Weather- January 2010

[mark smyth]

Armin in the UK the goldfinch population is up 600+%. The greenfinch is in steep decline. Bullies are OK

Anyone in the UK getting greenies?

[Lesley Cox]

They seem to be doing well in NZ. I had the occasional sighting a few years ago but recently there have been a dozen or so about my garden.

[Sinchets]

It does seem odd that people would want to introduce bird species to New Zealand given it has such a unique selection of native species hanging on 
Snow again here- another 10cm after the brief thaw we had over the weekend.

[Anthony Darby]

It does seem odd that people would want to introduce bird species to New Zealand given it has such a unique selection of native species hanging on 
Snow again here- another 10cm after the brief thaw we had over the weekend.

There was a society dedicated to the process of naturalising alien species into New Zealand! They even introduced foxes so the unspeakable could pursue the inedible in the primitive passtime of fox hunting.

[Lesley Cox]

I believe many early settlers brought European species with them, or caused them to be introduced later either for sentimental reasons or as food sources. These included gorse and that other much beloved species, the rabbit. (Teddy loves them anyway ). Since we have no native land animals with the exception of a couple of rare bats and a few frogs and lizards, probably not much thought (or importance) was given to what was here already. Most native birds either live or feed on the ground so introduced animals are devastating to native populations. The stoat, weasel and feral cats are particularly dangerous. If foxes were introduced, it was one that didn't make it. Australia has foxes but we don't.

But I at least, am very happy to have introduced birds and if birds, then plants too, obviously. (My) life without frits, irises, saxes, primulas and hundreds or thousands of others, is unthinkable, let alone roses and all the other stuff people grow. There is a quite strong movement in NZ to get rid of all which is not native. Logically, that would also include all non-Maori people (though they too, were immigrants). It would also have to include wheat, apples, cabbages and kiwifruit and the hundreds of other food crops we grow. Fortunately, for now, common sense prevails.

[Armin]

Mark,
what are the reasons for the goldfinch population explosion?
All continental ones flew to UK?

Lesley,
likely all (including us and our behaviour) is part of natures evolution. Even human mankind influences / destroy our todays environment - nature will find a way to survive with or without us in a longer term. The time slot we live is just a millisecond in earth life. The evolution of life is millions of years old changing always...

[Sinchets]

Maybe there will be a movement to go back to native foodsources- the Maori must have had crops which weren't based on European imports. Such a shame there will never be Moa ever again- they'd win hands down over finches for me everytime 

[Ragged Robin]

Mark,
what are the reasons for the goldfinch population explosion?
All continental ones flew to UK?

Armin, I think you're right!  Whilst in the UK the Goldfinches, normally not evident in such numbers, were all over the feeders with special seed for them and they were a fantastic sight in the bare winter branches in late November - here in the Alps not one!

[J.B.Wyllie]

The Maori ate the previous peoples in NZ when they arrived !!

[Anthony Darby]

Maybe there will be a movement to go back to native foodsources- the Maori must have had crops which weren't based on European imports. Such a shame there will never be Moa ever again- they'd win hands down over finches for me everytime 

Are they not trying to clone a moa using moa DNA and ostrich eggs?

The Maori ate the previous peoples in NZ when they arrived !!

Food for thought?

[Lesley Cox]

The Maori ate the previous peoples in NZ when they arrived !!

Yes, partly true. The Mori-ori who preceeded the Maori were peaceful; hunting, gathering and getting on with their low key lives when the Maori arrived, very tribal and warlike and eventually finishing off the lot. A few descendants of the Moriori still live in the Chatham Island off east NZ.

Of course the Maori also ate some of the later immigrants too, Europeans.

[Lesley Cox]

If many of our originally native birds, including the moa, are now extinct it is because they were hunted relentlessly by the Maori, likewise the beautiful huia, not so much as food but for its feathers for ceremonial cloaks.

Of course there is the rarely seen moa that still lives in the bush on the west coast. Some guy has definitely seen it (he says) and even produced some (blurry) photographs to prove it. Every year or two a group sets off to find it and settle the story once and for all but we're still waiting. I suppose it's a bit like the Loch Ness monster. It could be proved that it DOES exist but not that is doesn't.

[Luc Gilgemyn]

The Maori ate the previous peoples in NZ when they arrived !!

Of course the Maori also ate some of the later immigrants too, Europeans.

You seem to have some friendly neighbours Lesley...

[Anthony Darby]

There are some very sad stories about extinctions in New Zealand, but the one that really caps it is the fate of the flightless Stephens Island Wren (Traversia (Xenicus) lyalli). It was reduced to one population on Stephens Island, but in 1894 that population was hunted to exctinction by the lighthouse keeper's cat!

[ranunculus]

It was reduced to one population on Stephens Island, but in 1894 that population was hunted to exctinction by the lighthouse keeper's cat!

Is that where we get the term; 'Gone in a flash'?