Britain has lost 73 million wild birds in 50 years, drastically reducing the dawn chorus. This 'shifting baseline syndrome' means younger generations perceive current low numbers as normal, unaware of the richer soundscape of the past. Habitat loss, industrial agriculture, pesticides, pollution, and climate change are key drivers.
Business groups warn that an H5N1 bird flu outbreak in Australian commercial poultry flocks could drive egg prices above $10 a carton, following confirmed cases in wild birds. The industry, which contributes over $10bn to the national economy, has biosecurity plans, but concerns remain about wider species carrying the virus and the impact on free-range farms.
A new study published in Ecology and Evolution reveals that bird masturbation is a common and natural behavior, not a sign of stress from captivity. Researchers surveyed experts and keepers, finding the activity widespread across 120 species, more so in the wild than in captivity, and urged vets to avoid harmful interventions.
James Kempster, a 39-year-old roofer from Totton, has been found guilty of two counts of possessing a wild bird under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 after DNA matching his was found on barn owl and kestrel carcasses dumped outside a village shop in Broughton, Hampshire. The incident in March 2024 also involved 50 dead hares left at the shop, creating what prosecutors described as a "horror movie scene". Kempster was cleared of criminal damage as magistrates said evidence did not prove he was the person who threw the hares. He will be sentenced in June.
