Speaker for Tuesday 23rd September 2014 - Mr. James McDowell
25/09/14 12:05
Photo: President Gordon Ward greets James McDowell, with Club Members Des Moore (L) and John Dobson (R)
Talk by James McDowell on 'The Birds of the Czech Republic'
Club President Gordon Ward welcomed members to the meeting and thanked our Vice President John Graham for standing in for him over the last two weeks. The President then went on to introduce our speaker for the morning Mr. James McDowell. James gave us an interesting and colourfully illustrated talk on the 'Birds of the Czech Republic'.
James began his talk by saying that he really wasn't a 'Public Speaker', but he was very interested in birds and photography, so he hoped the talk would be OK. For James, the next point to mention was why the Czech Republic? That really came down to having a friend (Ken Perry) who was very involved with a Christian environmental charity working in the Czech Republic, and whom was very good a persuading people to come along to help.
James then went on to a lovely selection of his bird photographs in a PowerPoint slide presentation to illustrate many of the common Czech birds, some very familiar to us in the UK, and some quite different. With the slides, James described the characteristics of the birds and gave some background information on their numbers, habitat and uniquely, their bird song.
(In the place of a long and complicated set of notes, web users can view a selection of the birds James talked about and the club members saw and heard, by CLICKING THIS LINK - But sadly, it's photos only, NOT the song, on our website.)
The picturesque and melodic show was followed by a short question and answer session:- 'Any Corncrakes?' Seen once, but not here or on Czech visit. There are some in a protected area on Rathlin Island and on Tory Island as well. 'What size of hole to use in a Nesting Box for best mix of birds?' 28 - 32mm for Tits, Robins like an open box. 'What direction should you face a nesting box, N, S, E or W?' The RSPB say NOT facing direct sun.
A vote of thanks was proposed by Des Johnson, for both an interesting and enjoyable talk, and for the quality of the photos and sound, which was outstanding. The thanks were passed on by the President, and the members showed their appreciation.
Talk by James McDowell on 'The Birds of the Czech Republic'
Club President Gordon Ward welcomed members to the meeting and thanked our Vice President John Graham for standing in for him over the last two weeks. The President then went on to introduce our speaker for the morning Mr. James McDowell. James gave us an interesting and colourfully illustrated talk on the 'Birds of the Czech Republic'.
James began his talk by saying that he really wasn't a 'Public Speaker', but he was very interested in birds and photography, so he hoped the talk would be OK. For James, the next point to mention was why the Czech Republic? That really came down to having a friend (Ken Perry) who was very involved with a Christian environmental charity working in the Czech Republic, and whom was very good a persuading people to come along to help.
James then went on to a lovely selection of his bird photographs in a PowerPoint slide presentation to illustrate many of the common Czech birds, some very familiar to us in the UK, and some quite different. With the slides, James described the characteristics of the birds and gave some background information on their numbers, habitat and uniquely, their bird song.
(In the place of a long and complicated set of notes, web users can view a selection of the birds James talked about and the club members saw and heard, by CLICKING THIS LINK - But sadly, it's photos only, NOT the song, on our website.)
The picturesque and melodic show was followed by a short question and answer session:- 'Any Corncrakes?' Seen once, but not here or on Czech visit. There are some in a protected area on Rathlin Island and on Tory Island as well. 'What size of hole to use in a Nesting Box for best mix of birds?' 28 - 32mm for Tits, Robins like an open box. 'What direction should you face a nesting box, N, S, E or W?' The RSPB say NOT facing direct sun.
A vote of thanks was proposed by Des Johnson, for both an interesting and enjoyable talk, and for the quality of the photos and sound, which was outstanding. The thanks were passed on by the President, and the members showed their appreciation.
Mike Turner - Secretary
To find out more about Birds around the UK, and perhaps join an organisation that protects and encourages the diversity of our bird population, click on this link: http://www.rspb.org.uk
