You might recall my attempt to get lots of data from you lot out in the real world about the number of species featured in the various editions of The Observer's Book of British Birds. And if you don't remember, here's wot I rote on post 868 ..... So ... here's another thing ... that copy was the 1952 version ,and had 236 species in it. But that other copy I've found, which wasn't mine either, has 226 . But unfortunately it is undated. Which is a pity, because I was going to draw a graph of the steady increase ( or decrease) in the number of species over the decades. And I know how you all love a graph. So .... dig out your copy/copies of TOBOBB and find out the year and the number of species it covers ... then send your vital data to me .... [email protected] , of, if you prefer, as a comment ... and then we can work out, for example, how many it should have in the 1993 edition, and how many it could be in 2050 or 3000 !!! If you were exceptionally keen, you could also tell me which species have been added. And any that have been slung onto the scrapheap. Vital stuff, as I'm sure you will all realise. We could even backtrack the graph and work out at what date in the past there were no British Birds for us Observers to Observe. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ So .. here we go ... In the 1937 and 1945 editions there were 226 species. And in the 1963 and 1974 editions there were 243. Aha ! So know we can work out, roughly, when there were NO UK birds at all. First up, let's look at scenario A .... 1945 226sp 1963 243sp. That works out as a "decline rate" of 17 species per 18 years = 0.94 species per year. And that means, back-tracking from 1945, we would reach zero 240½ years back That's 1945 - 240½ = half-way through 1704 . So, in the 2nd half of 1704, there were no birds at all. Crikey !!! But if we take the scenario B ....... 1937 .... 226 sp 1974.... 243 sp That's a decline of 17 species in 37 years ... = a mere 0.46 species lost each year. So .. working back from that 1937 figure of 226, it would take about 491 years to = 0 And that gives us a "zero-species" date of 1937 - 491 = 1446. So we have a wide " no birds in the UK" scenario .... from 1446 to 1704. BUT ..don't worry too much.... [a] There's lots of massive flaws in my reasoning ! ( surely not ?) [b] Oh yes .... for a start, you might have noticed that TOBOBB doesn't live up to its title .. it doesn't actually have all of the UK's birds in it. [c] On the other hand, it does cover a vast percentage of the actual numbers of individual birds in the country. I wonder what that percentage would be ? I'm guessing 99 %. [d] There's the slight problem of UK authors/poets writing about lots of birds before those theoretical " zero-species"dates. [e] And painters painting them as well. Hmmm. [f] There's even recipe books in which they boil them etc. [g] Maybe I could get a better estimate by reading all those ancient books... [h] ... and studying all those paintings ... [i] ... and stained-glass windows... [j] .... and folk songs [k] .. and surnames ... Partridge, Seagull, Knott,Finch etc [l] ... and first names ... Robin, Martin, Jay,Heron ... and the rest. [m] ... sometimes both ... there must be a few Albert Ross's about. [n] .. it is, in fact, a lifetime's work. [oh !] ..but to give you a starting point, the ice ages would be a reasonable backstop. Crumbs ... it must be music time ... maybe we should have a song about birds ... OK .... The littlest birds ( sing the prettiest songs ) Well, I feel like an old hobo, I'm sad, lonesome and blue
I was fair as a summer's day, now the summer days are through You pass through places and places pass through you But you carry them with you on the soles of your travelers shoes Well, I love you so dearly, I love you so clearly I wake you up in the morning, so early just to tell you I got the wandering blues, I got the wandering blues And I'm going to quit these rambling ways One of these days soon, ooh And I sing, the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs The littlest birds sing the prettiest songs The littlest birds sing the prettiest songs And the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs Well, it's times like these I feel so small And wild like the rambling footsteps of a wandering child And I'm lonesome as a lonesome whippoorwill Singing these blues with a warble and a trill But I'm not too blue to fly, no I'm not too blue to fly 'Cause the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs The littlest birds sing the prettiest songs The littlest birds sing the prettiest songs And the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs But I love you so dearly, I love you so fearlessly I wake you up in the morning so early, just to tell you I've got the wandering blues, I've got the wandering blues And I don't want to leave you, I love you through and through Well, I left my baby, on a pretty blue train And I sang my songs to the cold and the rain And I had the wandering blues, and I sang those wandering blues And I'm gonna quit these rambling ways one of these Days soon, ooh And I sing, the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs The littlest birds sing the prettiest songs The littlest birds sing the prettiest songs And the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs The littlest birds sing the prettiest songs And the littlest birds sing the prettiest songs Well, I don't care if the sun don't shine And I don't care if nothing is mine And I don't care if I'm nervous with you I'll do my loving in the wintertime
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AuthorThat's the author up there ... I was young and sprightly then. Archives
October 2022
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