Latest news with #Starlings
The Courier
31-05-2025
- The Courier
Angus pensioner went on Orkney knitwear shoplifting spree
An Angus pensioner went on a summer shoplifting spree in Orkney. Allison Anne Marnie has been ordered by a sheriff to pay more than £1,300 to compensate the losses suffered by four craft and gilt stores. The 67-year-old had travelled with her husband and were staying in an AirBnB when she carried out the thefts. Marnie was sentenced at Kirkwall Sheriff Court earlier this month, having previously pled guilty by letter to thefts of knitwear from four outlets. The court heard she had later sought to sell some of her haul on eBay. She took goods totalling nearly £1500 from Starlings gift shop and Judith Glue's store in Kirkwall, on July 7, and from Orkney Souvenirs in Kirkwall and The Quernstone in Stromness, on July 12. Sheriff Robert McDonald had continued the case for a background report and to establish the extent of the losses incurred by the businesses. Procurator fiscal Sue Foard said none of the traders had made an insurance claim due to the high excesses they would have had to have paid. While many of the items had been recovered undamaged, she said by the time they were returned, they were viewed as old stock and out of season, meaning they could not be sold at the original price. The knitwear included cardigans, scarves, mittens, gloves and socks. Defence solicitor Fiona MacDonald said Marnie suffered from adverse mental health which had been exacerbated by the death of a close family member and believes she had 'some form of breakdown.' The accused had accepted responsibility at the earliest opportunity and was willing to recompense the retailers, she said. The Orcadian newspaper reported shop owners were unhappy with the result of the case. One, Fiona Mitchell of Castaway Crafts, said she had first reported the stealing spree after noticing goods on eBay. A not guilty charge to stealing from her store was accepted by prosecutors so she is not included in those receiving compensation. Judith Glue said she had expected a punishment element from the court, as well as the repayment order. Marnie admitted an analogous recent offence in Edinburgh. Her attendance at the hearing was excused. Sheriff McDonald said in fixing compensation orders, he took into account the items recovered would be heavily marked down when put on sale again. He set the figures at £250 for Starlings, £550 for Judith Glue's, £300 for Orkney Souvenirs and £240 for The Quernstone. Marnie, of Dishlandtown Street, Arbroath, was ordered to pay at £100 per month.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Veterans Memorial reopens following bird ‘invasion'
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The New Mexico Veterans Memorial is back open after the city dealt with a bird invasion. The Parks and Recreation Department shuttered the memorial last month after around 50,000 European Starlings began roosting there, leaving behind a large amount of droppings. BioPark Zoo sees Spring Break influx The city says they used non-lethal methods to encourage the birds to relocate then cleaned the memorial, fully reopening the grounds to the public Friday. 'Starlings are a common, non-native bird around the country that can create big problems when they gather in large numbers, but it's the first time we've had anything like this in a city park,' says Dennis Vasquez, deputy director of the City of Albuquerque Parks and Recreation Department. The department says it also took steps to prevent the birds from coming back. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
BBC News
05-03-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Falcon captured hunting during starling murmuration in Chester
"Breathtaking" footage of what was believed to be a peregrine falcon attempting to hunt during a murmuration of thousands of Starlings has been captured on of the wildlife experts who filmed the phenomenon said it was even more spectacular as it was above a "built up urban area" in Upton, Cheshire, close to Chester Cunningham, who is schools engagement officer at the zoo, went with his colleague Mayukh Chatterjee in the hope of seeing the display after hearing about it. He said it was "incredible" to watch it with residents on an "everyday street". "The cherry on the cake was the sky. It was a stunning canvas of pink and blue illuminating the spectacular." Sarah Vickers who lives on Caughall Road said she has lived in Upton almost all of her life and does not recall ever seeing a murmuration so 59-year-old said she was thrilled to see the display from her doorstep last week."I never expected to see that here," she said, adding "so near surburbia"."I was so pleased. It is amazing how the birds don't collide."Mr Cunningham said: "You really are seeing one of nature's amazing spectacles right in front of your eyes." He said he is thrilled he can show the footage to the students he works with to "demonstrate that amazing wildlife can be found right on your doorstep"."It's very accessible - and we captured it on a mobile phone," he only downside for residents, though, he said was many of their vehicles were covered in bird "poo".Ruby Merriman, who is estate biodiversity manager at Chester Zoo, said the starlings will likely have been feeding on its habitats such as reed beds, wetlands and woodlands."The murmuration was so close to our estate, closer than ever and hopefully with our big plans to improve our habitats even more I am hoping they will be over the zoo in the future," she said. The 33-year-old said: "It is one of the wonders of the natural world."It is one of the best spectacles we can see in the UK. Their agility and ability to avoid predators is breathtaking."She said the dominate theory behind murmurations is for the birds to avoid predators as they come to roost with "safety in numbers" by joining up in tight knit Merriman said the video appeared to show the starlings had been successful as the peregrine falcon was not seen to get any of the birds. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
