Walking for doves

Published on the25April 

2014 

11:00

A WILDLIFE reserve welcomed two intrepid heroes when they crossed the finishing line of a gruelling 300-mile walk.

Jonny Rankin and Robert Yaxley spent 13 exhausting days walking from Suffolk to RSPB Saltholme near Billingham.

They, along with their friend Andrew Goodrick, who joined them for the first 100 miles of the journey, raised more than £2,000 towards efforts to save the European turtle dove from extinction.

They magnificent sum of money will go to Operation Turtle Dove, a project launched by conservation charities including Saltholme managers the RSPB.

Jonny said: “We’ve been involved in Operation Turtle Dove since its inception in 2012 and each year we look for bigger and better ways of raising the profile and raising funds for this iconic species.

“This walk has given us a chance to start planning next year’s expedition.

“However, right now I’m terrified of taking my boots off because I feel like they’re holding my feet together.”

Jonny, Robert and Andrew began their walk from Lakenheath Fen, on the boarder of Norfolk and Suffolk.

Continued

Two Durham bird watchers among quartet embarking on 300-mile walk in name of the turtle dove

5:06pm Wednesday 26th March 2014 in News

By Matt Westcott

IT'S called Dove Step and it will involve four bird watchers walking 300 miles to the North-East.

The idea of Jonny Rankin, originally from High Shincliffe, Durham, but now living in Bury St Edmonds, he along with friends Andrew Goodrick, originally from Meadowfield, Durham, Tristan Reid and Robert Yaxley will embark on the trek, which starts on March 29 and ends at RSPB Saltholme on Teesside on April 10, in the name of Turtle Dove.

All have been raising cash for Operation Turtle Dove for the past three years - a campaign launched by conservation charities to save the European species.

Continued

Amateur wildlife watchers help with search for one of the UK’s most threatened birds

Conservationists trying to save the UK’s most threatened farmland bird have been given a helping hand by members of the public who’ve been calling a special hotline to report sightings.

Photo: Wikipedia

Since Operation Turtle Dove was launched by the RSPB, Conservation Grade, Pensthorpe Conservation Trust and Natural England in May, the hotline has had 429 calls reporting the elusive bird.

Highlights include two unusual sightings on the Welsh coast, an area not usually associated with turtle doves; a B&B, frequented by visitors to the RSPB’s Snettisham nature reserve, where a pair of turtle doves nested in the conifers outside; and various calls from people who thought the ‘purring’ sound turtle doves make was coming from a group of frogs.

Norfolk came top as the county with the most reported turtle dove sightings (112), second was Suffolk (69), closely followed by Cambridgeshire (61), with Essex (32), Kent (29), and Lincolnshire (20) coming fourth, fifth and sixth.

Alison Gardner from Operation Turtle Dove, said: ‘It’s great that we’ve already had so many people supporting Operation Turtle Dove and looking out for these birds.

Continued:  http://www.surfbirds.com/community-blogs/blog/2012/09/13/amateur-wildlife-watchers-help-with-search-for-one-of-the-uks-most-threatened-birds/

More turtle dove information:

http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/t/turtledove/index.aspx

http://operationturtledove.org/