Old Codger said:Quoted message said:Brin said:The Harlequin Ladybird is no ordinary ladybird. It is the most
invasive on earth and it is a "killer". It eats aphids but it also
eats other Ladybirds,butterfly eggs,lacewing larva etc.
It arrived in the UK in 2004 From the USA where it has decimated some
native ladybird populations.An on-line survey has been launched to try
to chart its progress in the UK.For more details of the Harlequin and
the survey go to:-
http;//www.harlequin-survey.org
I will do the survey and have made a pledge to that effect on
Pledgebank.I am looking for 10 other environmentally minded people to
do the same.If I get the 10 I am hoping to get some publicity in the
media for the survey.Have a look at the pledge,its simple and any co-
signees would remain anonymous. Go to:-
http://www.pledgebank.com/killerladybirdPlease help. Remember what has happened to our native Red Squirrel
since the introduction of the Grey Sqirrel.For that gross ignorance there is no doubt you are a [censored], and
therefore make the whole post worthless.Quoted message said:
After some grants, Brin?Just a [censored].
Quoted message said:
In recent months we have seen a build up of orchestrated hate being
directed at grey squirrels by a number of NGOs and conservation
organisations in order to gain public support for an agenda of killing
these friendly, amusing and relatively harmless animals. This is now a
reality as red squirrel conservation groups have embarked on a
ruthless program of killing.However, before falling for these smooth-talking advocates of death,
perhaps we should consider a number of issues.· The word "species" is no more than a scientific term within an
anthropocentrically concocted classification system and the idea we
should have adjectives such as "native", "non-native" and "alien"
describing an inanimate term is really quite ridiculous. It amounts to
the grand theft of these words for spurious and emotive reasons.· When a grey squirrel is trapped and bludgeoned to death, it is
not an alien or non-native species that is on the receiving end of the
club but an individual animal born and bred in this country from
around forty five generations and as native as I am.· All individual squirrels in Scotland are native by birth,
irrespective of their ancestral heritage or the colour of their fur.
The Greys' ancestors were brought here from America, just as the
present population of non-indigenous Reds were brought here from
Europe. Indeed, there is no evidence to show that the so-called past
"indigenous" population was not introduced here as well.
Archaeological evidence of their existence in England after the last
ice age is both sketchy and inconclusive.· The idea that genetically different animals within the
wide-ranging flux of a species can be "re-introduced" because they
look similar is not only the product of sloppy science but on or over
the verge of dishonesty. It's a bit like passing off a reproduction
for an antique.· The indigenous Red population, if there ever was such a thing,
was shot to extinction (confirmed by the Forestry Commission) by
estate owners and the like, who referred to them in the past as
"tree-rats" - the very same term as is now being used against Greys to
demonise them in the eyes of the general public. Red squirrels were as
much a "pest" as Greys, to those who regarded them with intolerance.· The squirrel-pox virus can be passed from Red to Red as well
as Grey to Red, and Red squirrel populations are now showing signs of
antibodies similar to that which provides the Greys with immunity.
This natural process will eventually protect the Reds. In reality,
very few Greys are carriers of this disease and it is as unfair as it
is obscene to slaughter them indiscriminately on the premise of a
possibility. Indeed, red populations have succumbed to virus
infection in the past, long before greys came on the scene.· The political and grant grabbing fad of planting native
broadleaf trees favours the expansion of Grey squirrels. This is well
known to conservationists, yet in only a very few places are they
willing to deviate from this path because of the money and politics
involved.· Scottish Natural Heritage is the leading protagonist in this
drive against Grey squirrels. They are in the unique position of being
advisors to government who in turn provides them with the necessary
funding to carry out whatever they manage to convince the government
is necessary. This is an unhealthy and unbroken ring that requires a
continuous flow of environmental crisises to fund their existence and
regrettably this results in persecution of wildlife unheard of in the
past. Sadly, they are adopting the same principle of ethnic cleansing
against wildlife as numerous brutal regimes have done against human
populations. It is a scientific fact that those who have little regard
for animal life are the most likely to have little regard for humans.
This intolerance should have no part in a civilised society.Squirrels are not "ours", no matter what colour they are. We don't own
them. They are independent and parallel mammalian populations to our
own and we should afford them the same respect and freedom we expect
for ourselves.Here, here. CONservation hooliganism is the greatest danger to
conservation, which is why it attracts gold digging criminals like
Malcolm Ogilvie et al. Just take a look at his posting history.
Didnt he also get caught copying Konters book on grebes!