Arts and science

Welcome to this latest issue of Scottish Birds. I hope you find it a timely accompaniment to the pleasure of longer days, springtime birding and plans for the season ahead. I always look forward to hearing the first Chiffchaff which, for me, signals the true arrival of spring. I know it will be followed by Blackcaps, Willow Warblers and more, and the woodland in my ‘patch’ will be full of songs, sounds and activity. Fresh leaves on the trees, early-flowering grasses and violets and unfurling bracken on the woodland floor, and deer, squirrels and sunshine complete my woodland scene. A Treecreeper does what its name suggests while Nuthatches, now fully established around here, are much more ‘shouty’. A Buzzard will emerge to fly over the adjacent fields and grassland; there are Yellowhammers and Reed Buntings along the hedges and a Whitethroat in an isolated bush.

I’m no wordsmith, but trying to offer the above picture is, I’d like to think, a reminder of one of the SOC’s key objectives – ‘encouraging the appreciation of the creative arts in natural history’. Did you enjoy reading the essay ‘Stay Alive’ by Scotland’s makar, Kathleen Jamie, in the last issue? I imagine it will have generated varied reactions amongst readers. The unique series of art exhibitions curated by Laura Gressani at Waterston House, Aberlady, is a long-established feature of the Club’s facilitation of creative arts, always worth a visit if you can get there and an apt reflection of the legacy of the great bird artist Donald Watson after whom the gallery is named. Details of current and future shows are in this issue and on the SOC website. Tim Birkhead, in one of the Club’s recent series of online talks, vividly described earliest known depictions of birds in Spanish cave paintings. And then there’s music – perhaps just that from the birds themselves, but have you noticed the way radio stations are offering more frequent compilations of birdsong into and alongside instrumental pieces? The appreciation of birds in art forms extends to audiences far beyond the regular birder.

Back to the coming season, and a feature of the essay mentioned above. We’ll soon be finding out more about the impact of the 2022 outbreaks of avian flu on populations of breeding seabirds and other groups. What numbers of Gannets, Bonxies and other species will we see back at their regular sites this year? Is the disease still rife within the colonies? Has it spread? Some winter reports were concerning. What level of breeding success will the birds have? Surveys and counts will be of paramount importance, and SOC members will contribute to them. Let’s hope the birds can thrive this year and our visits and outings around Scotland are not so tinged with worry for them.

Good birding!

Ruth Briggs, SOC President