Meet Marvellous Milly Formby.

Imagine the thought process that must have gone on to get from watching a red traffic light, waiting for it to change, to deciding, on the spot, that you are going to combine your passion for wader conservation, with a desire to learn to fly. Then, before the lights had time to go green (no red and amber in Australia it seems) to then transform that bizarre combination into an extravaganza to eclipse all others in raising awareness about the problems the East-Asian Australasian Flyway (EAAF) is facing; not so much a process, more of a flash, dare I say, a flash of inspiration?* 

Milly Formby: photo Gordon Marshall

Milly Formby (for it was she that had this life changing revelation) decided she would fly the length of the EAAF to highlight the conservation nightmare that it has become, and that was before she had even learned to fly! What makes this all the more adventurous is that she isn’t going to do it in a cosy aeroplane, she plans to do in a microlight aircraft!

The EAAF and its waders are in a perilous state, if you are unaware of the destruction of the intertidal zone in the key Yellow Sea region then please understand that the problem is likely, if not addressed in the very short term, to cause the annihilation of several wader species such as Spoon-billed Sandpiper Calidris pygmaea, Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris, Eastern Curlew Numenius madagascariensis and Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer and regional populations of more widespread species such as Bar-tailed Godwits Limosa lapponica baueri.

Eastern Curlew, a species under pressure. Cairns Australia September 2013

What Milly is doing is nothing short of incredible and reflects the passion that she has for these birds. It is also a reflection of how inspiring waders can be, once you are caught by the bug, it is impossible to shake it off, we can confirm this from our own personal experience.

Milly learning to fly a microlight: photo Gordon Marshall

So, all of this is going to cost money, obviously, and Milly isn’t some super rich attention seeking celeb, she is just like you and me and wants to do her bit to improve the world for our ailing wader populations. Wader Quest fully supports her initiative and we will help out where we can, and we urge you to do the same if you have any concern for our waders, to help to fund this effort through Milly’s fundraising site. It doesn’t mean you have to give a lot, it would actually be much more satisfying to know that many people gave a little than a few people gave a lot. So do your bit if you can for the waders of the EAAF and support Milly and the Wing Threads project**.

Facebook www.facebook.com/wingthreads / Twitter @wing_threads #wingthreads 

* See Wader Quest the newsletter: Vol. 3 Issue 3 October 2016 pp1-2 The Inspiration of Waders.) We are campaigning for ‘an Inspiration of waders’ to become the official collective noun for a mixed aggregation of waders dancing and pirouetting over our beloved estuaries (blog to follow soon). 

** See Wader Quest the newsletter: Vol. 3 Issue 3 October 2016 pp18-19 Wing Threads – Flight to the Tundra

Wader Quest the newsletter is a quarterly e-newsletter that we publish with news and views about waders and their conservation available to Friends and Sponsors of Wader Quest (Subscriptions for as little as £5.00 per year for individuals).

Emergency appeal to save habitat for the Spoon-billed Sandpiper in Thailand.

Recently we reported the depressing news that part of the Khok Kham salt pans were being turned into a solar farm.

Many people contacted us about this and many tweets, posts, messages and emails suggested that surely it couldn’t be that difficult to raise enough money from the world’s birding community to buy some land to maintain habitat for the Spoon-billed Sandpipers in Thailand; especially as Nordmann’s Greenshanks and many less endangered waders and other birds that use the pans, will also benefit from this project.

Salt pans at Pak Thale

Spurred on by this outpouring of concern we contacted our friends in Thailand, the RSPB and others to see if there was some way of making a concerted joint effort in this respect.

Fortunately we were not alone in thinking this was a worthy cause and the Bird Conservation Society of Thailand (BCST) proposed a plan to purchase some salt pans in Pak Thale.

To buy the whole lot would cost millions, but the modest proposal that they made is certainly a start and we agreed to help them in the task of raising sufficient funds to make the plan happen.

So, if you are concerned about the fate of the Spoonies in Thailand, the least complicated place in the world to see them at the moment, and wish to help the cause, do come and see us at Bird Fair marquee 7 stand 67 this weekend and help us make a start.

Today we received donations totalling well over £150.00 and Elis and I have decided that any revenue that we make from the Eury the Spoon-billed Sandpiper book will be directed towards this fund. In addition all donations received for the time being will also be channelled into this fund with Friend of Wader Quest and Sponsorship continuing to build funds for our other projects.

Please come and support this important appeal but making a donation, however modest, every penny counts. Remember 100% of your donation will go towards the securing of this habitat with nothing being used for any other purpose. If you don’t want to make a straight donation, then why not support the spoonies by buying a copy of the new Eury book which was launched this weekend at Bird Fair.

Waders need love too!
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Meet the ‘shanks.

Shanks come in two pairings, the Spotted Redshank and Common Redshank plus Nordmann’s Greenshank and Common Greenshank. All but the Common Redshank occur in just one form or subspecies, the Common Redshank has six subspecies recognised around the world.

The Spotted Redshank breeds in northern Scandinavia and across Arctic Russia. The wintering quarters are across sub-Saharan Africa north of the equator for the most part, sporadically around the Mediterranean across Asia to South-East Asia.

Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus; Titchwell, Norfolk, England. June 2012.

It is a slim and elegant bird with a very striking white-spotted, dark grey or black breeding plumage, the females are slightly less black than the males. The bill is mainly black but the basal half of the lower mandible is red or orange. In this plumage it is unmistakeable.

Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus; Titchwell, Norfolk, England. June 2012.

In winter they look much more like the Common Redshank and care must be taken to identify them. They have white underparts and a light grey back similar to Common Redshank, but the bill is longer and thinner and has a slight droop at the tip and the legs are longer. They also show a distinct white supercilium especially in front of the eye creating a distinct dark eye line.

Non-breeding Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus; Laempakbia, Phetchaburi, Thailand. January 2014.

Non-breeding Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus; Titchwell, Norfolk, England. September 2012.

Juveniles can be distinguished by their barred underparts.

Juvenile Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus; Titchwell, Norfolk, England. August 2011.

The Common Redshank is a smaller, less elegant and striking looking version of the Spotted Redshank with a heavier, shorter bill which is red or orange on both the upper and lower mandible. There are six subspecies spread across from Iceland in the west to China in the east. In breeding plumage these birds are brown above and white below with varying degrees of dark spotting especially on the underparts.

Breeding Common Redshank Tringa totanus; Titchwell, Norfolk, England. June 2013.

In winter the underparts are white and unmarked and the upperparts plain brown.

Non-breeding Common Redshank Tringa totanus; Laempakbia, Phetchaburi, Thailand. November 2013.

The juvenile can be distinguished by the notching and fringing on the upperparts.

First winter Common Redshank Tringa totanus; this bird has almost lost its juvenile spotted back but retains the wing coverts and tertials.

The Common Greenshank is very much an old world species that unlike the previous two species penetrates well into the southern hemisphere across most of southern Africa and Australia in the non-breeding season. It breeds from northern British Isles across Scandinavia and Russia to the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia.

Non-breeding Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia; Pak Thale, Phetchaburi, Thailand. January 2014.

In breeding plumage they have very streaky head, neck and chest but in winter the streaking is confined to the back of the neck and crown.

Non-breeding Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia; Kotu, Western Division, The Gambia. January 2014.

Juvenile birds are slightly browner on the back and have pale fringed upperpart feathering wu=ith a dar subterminal bar. The pale fringing can be creamy instead of white.

Common Greenshanks Tringa nebularia; The bird on the right has retained some adult breeding streaking on the breast, the centre bird has the dark subterminal with pale fringes of a juvenile and the left bird appears to be a non-breeding adult.

Nordmann’s Greenshank is the rarest of our selection being Endangered according to BirdLife International. The population is less than 1,000 mature individuals according to recent surveys and the population as a whole is declining rapidly due mainly to habitat loss where tidal areas are being turned over to industry and agriculture.

Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer and Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus; Laempakbia, Phetchaburi, Thailand. January 2014.

In breeding plumage they are heavily spotted around the head and neck which gives them their alternative name of Spotted Greenshank. One of the features that distinguish this species given good views is the line between the upper and lower mandibles being slightly curved producing a ‘smiling’ effect.

Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer; Laempakbia, Phetchaburi, Thailand. January 2014.

The bi-coloured yellowish bill with a dark tip and the yellow legs are other pointers to this bird’s successful identification.

Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer (with Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola in foreground); Laempakbia, Phetchaburi, Thailand. January 2014.

To finish, Spotted Redshanks (see the kink at the end of the bill?) against a Thai sunset, one of Elis’ masterpieces.

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