Anthea Fleming suggests including common escapes in field guides.
What is "common" ? Common Pheasant and Mute Swan appear in most guides.
The Red Bishop/Grenadier Weaver Euplectes orix used to be in but is
absent from Pizzey and Knight because the breeding colonies have gone.
I've fond memories of the latter, looking like a giant pink bumblebee
dressed up for Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, heading over reed beds in
NW London. It wasn't in the UK field guides and neither were the Crimson
Rosellas or Cockatiels I saw passing my London office window. The
criterion seemed to be that a species had become feral, ie. was
breeding. Thus most escapes provided an excellent opportunity to check
one's field note and library skills.
So what (non-Australian) "common escapes" are missing ? I'd like to see
a "SHOOT THEM" page in field guides with notes on Barbary Doves and
Ring-necked Parakeets. Are there any other candidates ? Perhaps
Red-whiskered Bulbul should be added to the "SHOOT THEM" page because of
its potential spread when global warming gets going (helped by most
political parties' support of continuing low energy prices).
Michael Norris
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