RSPB great garden birdwatch, Boar and Red kite talks

Not long completed my hour for this, saw 6 different species,
House Sparrows
Blackbirds
Robins
Blue tits
Great tit
Dunnock
Anyboday else done this? Hopefully give some idea as to how many birds we have lost this winter with how bad the weathers been I'm expecting it to be quite alot.

There is a talk on the re-introduction of wild boar into the Forest of Dean being held at chepstow leisure centre on the 4th Feb at 7.30pm.
On monday the 8th feb there is also a talk on the success of the Red kite in wales, being held in the Ballroom, Bridges community centre in Monmouth, also from 7.30pm.

Wild Boar cull and feeding them

Well apparently the cull of Wild Boar in the Dean is just a rumour, the forestry commission have said that there is no planned cull and their stance remains the same, to only shoot problem boar. Good news I think but how long will it be before the cull is put into place?

In this weeks Forest of Dean review paper, a couple have been photographed feeding wild boar. According to the article accompanying the photos says that the have fed them mince pies, chocolate and the such. Not only is this bad for the boar but it will encourage them to seek out humans as a food source. In situations like this there can be no winners. Boar are wild animals no matter how tame they may seem they can injure you, this would probably end up with the boar being classed as a problem and killed.
Please use common sense: -
* do not feed them,
* do not approach them,
* keep your dogs under control in woodlands,
* stick to the paths
Remember Boar have as much right to be here as we do, so follow the rules above and you should have no problems with this amazing species.
Rob Ward over on Forest of Dean wildlife and nature diary has some more info and tips on wild boar.

Wild boar cull in the Forest

Seems to be official.

http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/gloucestershireheadlines/Wild-boar-culled/article-1667370-detail/article.html

Such a shame considering the population size is only an estimate. I cannot see how the forestry commision can realisticly cull any species without gaining accurate population figures, I know they do it with the deer but they are estimated to be in the hundreds whereas the boar are only thought to number around 90-150 animals.
I have also read that they want to keep the population to approx 100, now to me a population of 100 of breeding boar, capable of reproducing anytime of the year is not enough to control their numbers, so what is the point?
I hate to think of the boar being culled as their benefits to forest ecosystems are well documented and they also add character to the FOD.

More info on the boar in the UK can be found here http://naturalengland.etraderstores.com/NaturalEnglandShop/UserFiles/Files/sin002.pdf

Feeding station

Well as I didnt seem to be getting any different bird species on my feeding station I decided to use my friends to get some shots of their more colourful visitors.

Various birds in the snow

I was up at the crack of dawn to walk to work which meant I finished at 1pm. When I got home I decided to go out for a stroll through the forest and took a few photos.

SNOW SNOW SNOW!!

The forest of dean is predicted to have heavy snow over the next couple of days. This coupled with the ongoing freezing temperatures means our garden birds are struggling to survive. They are rely on us to help them a lot more during winter so keeping your feeding stations topped up is a must. Remember to also brush the snow off the top of the seed trays after a heavy snowfall and also to put fresh water out throughout the day, as water can also be scarce.