L J Parkinson
Saw a strange thing happen while I was waiting for the pigeons to come from training, one morning last week. There was a sparrow feeding its young and what appeared to be out of nowhere a seagull swooped down and grabbed the youngster and took off with the parent sparrow chasing it. I have been told that seagulls have been known to take pigeons, I haven’t seen one do this, but word is they have been known to take young pigeons. I have seen Magpies take young out of wood pigeons’ nest in the trees behind. Move over BOP the seagulls and magpies are coming to cut your food chain off.
BOP
“Dear Mr Parkinson. I read your article in the BHW 28/06/2024 about BOP and it is true a pigeon man cannot take on all the woolly hat people in the RSPB but on the other hand do they know what they are doing? I live in the middle of the new Nation Forest in Derbyshire, I have a dog who by the way is now 15 years old but when she was younger I took her for long walks through the forest now the thing that struck me was the lack of bird song yes there was magpie, crows and wood pigeons but nothing ease, now Midlands Today goes doo lealer over BOP on the church in Leicester. Now I forget what the prospers is for prey and killer it may be 1-3 or 1-5. Has the RSPB thought about what the BOP are going to eat now? There are a few Sparrows, Robin, Black Bird Song Thrush etc. to eat, perhaps they will turn on themselves, the sooner that happens the better. Another hairbrained Idea the government has thought up is to bring Wolves back to roam in Scotland, bet the sheep farmers are looking forward to that. All the best, and in the most enjoy your articles. Bob” The problem is the BOP population went through a spell of reduced numbers so every man and his dog jumped to their defense. However, the time has come when there are far too many of them around and the RSPB are walking about with their eyes shut, they just don’t want to know. Before I had a spell away from racing the pigeons I only ever had one BOP strike but that’s not the case now. I know that Peter, who is less than a couple of hundred yards away has had a few taken this year so I think I have been lucky.
Results.
The South West Cheshire Fed race from Guernsey, race 11 in the program, saw a reduced entry of 171 birds from 25 members liberated at 7am in a light north-north east wind. The numbers might be reduced but there are some good fanciers fighting for top honors in the fed and there are only so many fanciers are going to send to Guernsey, I must admit I have not entered any of them. Topping the list are Duddon PFC fanciers K W Walker & Sons who are 1st & 2nd club 1st & 4th fed recording vels of 1399ypm with a 4yo and 1395ypm after clocking a 2yo. K & K Rowland take 3rd & 4th club 7th & 9th fed with two 2yo’s on 1385/1374ypm. Still with the same club we have Gary Adamson 5th & 6th club 10th & 18th fed on 1374/1342ypm his next just missing the cut off for these notes. Crewe West End winner Bob Humphries is there again coming home 1st & 4th club 2nd & 15th fed after seeing home two yearlings with another just missing the list. S & T Soper are 2nd club 11th fed on 1367ypm followed vey closely by Mr & Mrs Keith Lovatt 3rd club 12th fed with fellow club member Roy Parker 5th club 20th fed on 1335ypm with a yearling. In the Middlewich 5B club top spot goes to Jones Bros & Karen Jones who saw home a 2yo Chequer w/f cock and yearling Chequer hen with vels of 1396/1342ypm, after finishing 1st & 5th club 3rd & 19th fed. Mark Smith is 2nd & 4th club 5th & 17th fed on 1390/1343ypm, seeing home a 3yo slaty cock and 2yo blue cock. P & D Latham are 3rd club 16th fed with a 3yo Chequer hen on 1347ypm. Both Mark and Peter have had a good run of results in the clubs and Peter in the National. Richrd Ormandy collects the red card plus 4th in the Winsford HS with two 3yo on 1389/1348ypm. 2nd 8th fed is H Bratt & Son with a yearling on 1383ypm. A few days ago, we were at the funeral of Melvin Bratt, which would have gone exactly as it would have done had he been there orchestrating it. The room was full and plenty of laughter, Melvins life to a tee. It's nice to see the family carrying on racing Mel’s pigeons, what will happen as the weeks go by, we shall have to wait and see. Sticking with the same club in 3rd club 13th fed we have Dave & Lynda Healey who clocked a pensioner for this prize. In the Halmer End FC D & P Whitfield lead the way with 1327/1310/1309/1198ypm.
Les Parkinson. 11 Rushton Drive, Middlewich, Cheshire, CW10 0NJ.
Tel: +44 (0)1606 836036.
Mob: +44 (0)7871 701585.
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Web site: http://www.elimarpigeons.com