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Somerset Birding News

The Bittern, our newsletter, is shortly to be re-launched in electronic format. 

The forthcoming issue will have articles on such subjects as colour-ringed Great White Egrets, firsts for Somerset and where to watch birds in the Forest of Dean.

If you are a Member and wish to read it,  we will need your email address. If you haven't already provided it, please send a request to be added to the circulation list to sos.emails@somersetbirding.org.uk

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The Society launched its new programme in January, when Rob Grimmond gave a virtual talk using Zoom on the birds and other wildlife of Alaska.

The next talk will be held on 24th February, when Dr. Mark Eaton, Secretary of the UK's Rare Breeding Birds Panel will giev a talk on the works of the Panel.

The virtual Members' Day on 27th March will also have a number of talks,one of which will be given by James Lowen, award-winning author and photographer specialising in natural history, conservation and travel, on birding Argentina.

Futher details can be found in the Events section of this website.

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The charity ‘The Kenneth Allsop Memorial Trust’, is offering a unique opportunity to join the board of this charity that owns and manages Steep Holm Island.

The Island has been inhabited on and off for centuries, is full of hidden surprises and is steeped in history. Steep Holm is close to the shores of Weston-Super-Mare and it sits proudly in the Bristol Channel, a hidden, yet exposed 63-acre gem, with its limestone cliffs and caves. The history of the Island is told by stories of Celtic gods carved in stone, Vikings and pirates, Monks. The military encampments of the recent past can still to be seen today, the Palmerston Fort and cannons of the 1860s in preparation for a Napoleon invasion, 1st and 2nd world war gun, ammunition and search light emplacements, military barracks and a historical museum.

Steep Holm is a nature reserve, bird sanctuary, and a Site of Special Scientific Interest due to its rare plants, including the May Flowering Wild Mediterranean Peony. As a charity, they seek to preserve and enhance the island’s natural beauty and landscape, together with its antiquities, wildlife and scientific interest for the public enjoyment and education of the wildlife.

It is an archaeological dream. Archaeologists have found prehistoric evidence, Roman remains, coins, rare glass.  An old priory and those who never left the island, whose graves were laid undisturbed for 100’s of years.

The Kenneth Allsop Memorial Trust was formed to perpetuate the memory of Kenneth Allsop, a remarkable pioneer journalist and conservationist who died in 1973.  The Trust was able to buy Steep Holm by public subscription in 1976.

It is seeking a new Chair of the Board of Trustees and a new Company Secretary.

They are keen to appoint people whose personal values align with the charity’s objectives and values. If you feel you can bring passion and enthusiasm to inspire more support and local membership, they welcome your application.

The following areas have been identified as desirable areas of expertise, they are particularly interested in recruiting to the Trust Board people with an interest in:

  • Conservation
  • Archaeology
  • Historical Military & Religion
  • Ornithology
  • Palaeontology
  • Education
  • Natural Science
  • Heritage
  • An interest in the Island of Steep Holm

 

A candidate briefing pack is available - please contact Sandy Hinks, Head of Charity Practice at Moon Executive Search on 01275 371 200 or email recruit@moonexecsearch.com  Quoting reference: JN2133 TKAMT. For the Trust's advertisement, click here.

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As stated recently, this year's AGM will be held remotely, by Zoom. It will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday 12th December.

Details of how to register will be posted on this website by the beginning of December.

In the meantime, the 2019 Financial Statement can be found here. Other AGM documents will be posted soon.

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We regret that, due to COVID-19,it has been necessary to cancel the Members' Day & AGM on 19th September. We will advise a revised date for the AGM (and format) in due course.

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Become a Member of Somerset Ornithological Society.