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Hello all,
David Geering makes a good and important point in regard to disclosure of
exact details of sites for rare and endangered/vulnerable bird species.
It is very important to remember that a lot of these birds will be on
privately owned land.
When this is the case we all must respect the rights of the owner of the
land.
For this reason when people are reporting their sightings it might be a
good idea to advise if the bird was seen on or from private land.
And also to advise of any restrictions and/or procedures pertaining to
access to that land.
The birds may not be owned by the land-owner but the land is.
Remember, a lot of gazetted roads in remote areas pass through land that is
either freehold or leased and is therefore, in my mind, private land.
These roads are 'public' land as is a small area either side. When
there is a fence anything on the other side should be considered
'private'.
I don't condone being on private land without permission but I see nothing
wrong with observing from public land and encouraging others to follow up my
observations within the same limitations.
Having said all of that, I must admit it is often difficult to determine if
land is private or public.
A fence makes the determination easy but there is not always a fence.
May a rare sighting make your day,
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