May 2023

It is a sad reflection on our islands that the UK is recorded by the World Wildlife Fund as “one of the most nature depleted countries in the world”. 30% of our native bird species are “threatened with extinction”. Most of this loss is due to human activities that degrade the natural environment. A motto of the RSPB is “giving nature a home”. The RSPB establishes nature reserves in partnership with other organisations. These reserves give nature a home which in turn supports birds that depend on ecological biodiversity hot-spots. Birds fly from disturbed areas to undisturbed areas. However, they are then in competition with other birds that are already in those areas. The only way to stop this degradation is to recognise local biodiversity hot-spots and save them.

All habitats have what is called a carrying capacity. If animals are forced to move from one location to another, they become refugees. As such, they have to compete with others for food, nesting sites and just space. The result is density dependent mortality due to this competition. The total population is reduced to the carrying capacity of the habitat, for example a woodland or a meadow or a pond, lake, or river.

Many species depend on habitat diversity for their homes, such as song thrushes. Thrushes forage in grass-lands as well as nesting and singing in trees. Herons also nest in trees but hunt their food in water-bodies. Where large numbers of species live (biodiversity hot-spots), we need to follow the current national initiative to reverse this trend of species loss. In Uckfield we have such a dilemma. The northern perimeter of Uckfield is such a biodiversity hot-spot with protected areas like Buxted Park SSSI, Lake Wood LWS, West Park LNR LWS, Uckfield Cemetery LWS and many more. There is an application to make Lake Wood and Downlands Farm an SSSI like Buxted Park. However, some folk want to build a housing estate there. This would destroy the habitat mosaic and reduce biodiversity. If you would like to see the site saved for the rich biodiversity of plants and animals etc that it contains, please sign the petition at https://www.change.org/p/wealden-council-uckfield-town-council-stop-building-on-downlands-farm-uckfield. I personally have recorded 70 different bird species using this site and have a 20 page list of all species that I have recorded there, including kingfishers.