Cleeve Common bird spotter celebrates 25th anniversary milestone

A man is celebrating 25 years of bird counting at a local beauty spot.

Every month since 1999, Arthur Ball, 84, from Cheltenham, has walked a nine mile circuit around Cleeve Common in the Cotswolds. He has since recorded 92 different species of bird.

Over the years, Mr Ball has spotted red kite and buzzards and has walked almost 3,000 miles (4,828km) around the conservation area.

"I've only missed three months in those 25 years," he said.

"I just love the outdoors. It keeps me fit."

Mr Ball said he first decided to count the birds after thinking there were fewer of them around.

"But how do you prove it?" he said.

"In 1999 I decided the best way to do it, was to choose a site and to do a regular count over a prolonged period."

Mr Ball said Cleeve Common seemed like the perfect spot and while it can be "quite tough walking", over the years he has spotted numerous birds, including linnets, sparrow hawks, short eared owls, merlin and stone chats.

"I didn't anticipate then that I would be doing it still after 25 years," he said.

Mr Ball said while he has recorded 92 different species, he has only seen some of them once and according to his counts, small birds are in decline.

However, Mr Ball said that the "weather dictates what" he sees.

"They don't like the wind, they just keep their heads down," he said.

"On a good day, if the sun was shining and the wind wasn't blowing, the male yellow hammers at the moment are looking like canaries, they are so bright."

On how long he will continue to bird count at the beauty spot, Mr Ball said: "I've done 25 years. I don't see why I shouldn't carry on and do 30.

"We need to know if there's a decline and we need to try and find out the reasons why," he added.

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