Non-indigenous people or as we prefer non-native people or better still aliens are prevalent around England, not just in out towns like Bradford or the streets of Southall but have spread themselves in the more affluent areas including the Thames Valley. Sadly this unwanted trend has now progressed into the creature world and who has introduced these intruders? Once again the answer is easy. They have been brought here by human activity, either deliberately or accidentally and at a cost. These pests survive at the expense of our own wildlife and often have a negative effect on agriculture and foodstuff for other creatures and above all non-native species can pose a serious threat to our natural biodiversity.
Black swans were first introduced to England in 1791, though the earliest record of successful breeding in the wild was not until 1902.The species, though rare, has a wide geographical spread throughout the British Isles. Up until 2005, fewer than 20 pairs were reported to be breeding across the UK but now they have spread their range.
Black swans have the potential to be an agricultural pest, grazing and fouling grass and eating arable crops. The species is also known to be aggressive and can out-compete native species of wildfowl. The Black Swan is listed under Schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside
Act 1981 with respect to England and Wales. As such, it is an offence to release or allow the escape of this species into the wild. We were fortunate or unfortunate to see a couple of breeding pairs along the Thames on our journey.
The Captain turned to the First Mate and said “Those blackuns are quite smart for birds you know; they breed much earlier in the year than our native Mute Swans and thus avoid competition for food sources.
They’re not the only unwanted species of bird found on the Thames today, there’s also the Egyptian goose chaps”. The Cabin boy said “I’m not too sure what they look like Captain, can you describe them?”The Captain answered “Egyptian geese are small, stocky geese with an apricot breast, a white wing patch and dark eye patch and look if they have got two black eyes from being in a fight. And, for the benefit of the First Mate, like a lot of foreigners once you see one , you always see a few of them gathered together , probably because they believe in the old adage “safety in numbers. The Captain continued”
Egyptian geese were first introduced into England in the late 17th century and during the 19th century birds became increasingly common on private estates, mostly in southern and eastern England. Since then they have dispersed and established colonies and are now commonly seen on the River Thames and elsewhere.
In their native range, Egyptian geese are a pest and eat arable crops and if numbers continue to increase they could become a similar nuisance in the UK. They share the same habitat preferences as mallard and coots with which they might compete.
Egyptian geese are known to hybridise with native species in Africa and even worse gentlemen, hybridisation with non-native Canada geese has been recorded in the UK.You imagine what a flock of these hybrids would do to a golf course, the river bank or your own beloved lawn at home in a matter of hours. And, the picture gets even worse, if that is possible, there is also concern, that they unwanted guests may even hybridise with native species of goose, and threaten the conservation status of those species.
In the Netherlands the species is aggressive to nests of wading species. They could also potentially cause major damage to amenity grasslands, pastures and crops by grazing and trampling. And like all geese, the droppings could pose a health and safety risk to humans.
The Egyptian Goose is listed under Schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act198 1 with respect to England, Wales and Scotland. As such, it is an offence to release or allow the escape of this species into the wild.”The First Mate came in with “Yeah and I bet you can count the number of prosecutions on one hand. I suppose you’d better complete the picture Jimmy, and tell us about the Canada goose.”
The Captain continued with his discourse of alien birds.” The Canada goose was introduced as an ornamental bird in the 17th century, but was restricted to only a few areas of the UK up until the middle of the 20th century. Numbers increased markedly from this point, greatly facilitated by the deliberate introduction of birds into new habitats during the 1950s and 1960s. These beasts can cause major damage to amenity grasslands, pastures and crops through grazing and trampling. The droppings can be a health and safety risk to humans, both through ingestion but also causing slippery conditions. You try walking down the prom at Caversham, you’re lucky not to fall over on all that goose crap and break something. The ecological impact includes damage to other wildlife such as trampling on other bird nests and the destruction of waterside habitat such as reed beds. These large birds can also pose an airplane collision risk. Despite all these bad things, the do-gooders have ensured that Canada goose is listed under Schedule 9 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 with respect to England, Wales and Scotland and, as such it is an offence to release or to allow the escape of this species into the wild. However the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 affords legal protection to all birds, their nests and eggs”.
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