Innholdsfortegnelse for November 5, 2025 i Cage & Aviary Birds

CLUBS AT THE NATIONAL in October, the Lancashire Canary Club reformed, having its first AGM with eight members in attendance (see C&AB October 29, page 16.) Graham Bradbrook was elected treasurer and David Deans will supply rosettes as well as six new trophies to be awarded to club members at the three patronage shows. Paul Woodward was elected secretary of the Lancashire CC and he spoke to us about the start of a new chapter for the club. Katherine: Who was the driving force behind the club getting back together? Paul: Lancs exhibitors are a small but keen group, and we all know each other well, regularly keeping in touch. Some members in conversation raised various issues regarding the breed standard, stock availability, showing procedures, and cages, etc. And we…

I WONDER if it would be possible with the help of Cage & Aviary Birds to say thank you to a fellow budgie fancier, namely Nigel Beevers. I got my first budgies in the early 1950s and enjoyed some success. However, some 30 years ago my wife Irene was rushed into hospital for emergency surgery. That event was to change our family life and has done so to this day, so that on more than one occasion was I was ready to give up my hobby. However, for many years Nigel has always been there to help. Not only does he supply my seed and sundries, but also good-quality outcrosses when needed. But he has also loaned me some really good cock birds as well. In return, as my other…

SHOWS IT WAS a real privilege to be asked to judge the exhibition zebra finches at the Scottish National. This is a show I've followed with interest since its return to the calendar a few years ago. And I've mentioned previously how these events, in my view, represent the way forward, allowing multiple specialist clubs to come together, share a decent venue and enjoy a wide range of birds on the day. An added pleasure was being able to make a weekend of it with my wife Vicky, taking in the sights of Edinburgh, Stirling and Loch Lomond – albeit in a hire car one grade up from a roller skate. The National Cockatiel Association put on an impressive section, both in numbers and quality. I'm always struck by the…

SOFTBILLS HOPEFULLY the Suffolk Softbill Show has been well attended and a success. I was asked by several keepers to promote the show via this bulletin. I did mention it in the October bulletin, but did not realise it was being taken over by another organiser at the time. These shows are a perfect window into the hobby and great to meet like-minded people. Reading Cage & Aviary Birds, I saw that the Foreign Bird League show had to be cancelled due to lack of interest. Such a shame that this former beacon of a show has now gone. I exhibited at that one when it was at Doncaster Racecourse alongside the Budgerigar Society Club Show back in the day. Then when that closed it went to Birmingham and carried…

PICTURE OF THE MONTH! C&AB TEAM PICKS THEIR FAVOURITE ENTRY EACH MONTH Send us your birdkeeping pictures and we'll publish them on this page. Each month the C&AB team will pick their favourite picture(s)! Simply email your picture to: birds.general@kelsey.co.uk with “Readers’ Gallery” in the subject line or put them on our Facebook or Twitter pages. Unfortunately, the Kelsey Media offices at Welbeck Way, Woodston PE2 7WH are now closed so it is not possible to receive entries sent by post. Don't forget to include your name and address and a caption. NB: you must send only images for which you own the copyright. We cannot guarantee to print everything we receive. Readers’ Gallery will return next month. Closing date for entries: November 13, 2025.…

Additional show details will appear in our Club Roundup section. For your open show to appear in our monthly calendar, send open show date, venue and contact details so it reaches us in time for the relevant issue (e.g. December shows must reach us by the middle of November). Email: birds.general@kelsey.co.uk NOVEMBER 2025 FRIDAY NOVEMBER 7 BALLYMONEY ORNITHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION St.James’ Church Hall, St.James’ Road, Ballymoney Tel: 02827 663 954. SATURDAY NOVEMBER 8 NUNEATON CBS OPEN SHOW Bulkington Village Community & Conference Centre, School Rd, Bedworth CV12 9JB Tel: 02476 365 339. TRIMDON CBS OPEN SHOW Trimdon Village Hall, Hallgarth Road, Durham TS29 6JX Tel: 07970 391 873. SUNDAY NOVEMBER 9 LINCOLNSHIRE FIFE & BORDER FCC OPEN SHOW Great Coates Village Hall, Grimsby DN37 9NJ Tel: 07772 534 969. MERSEYSIDE BORDER…

ABERDEEN BS – November 13, Northern Bowling Club, Orchard Road, Aberdeen, AB24 3DP, 7.30pm. A talk on bird products and seeds by Alan Melvin plus other club business. Enquiries: 01358 721 550. AUSTRALIAN FINCH SOCIETY – November 16, Village Hall, Cheswick Way, Cheswick Green, Solihull B90 4JA, 10.30am-2.30pm. Council meeting. This is the last meeting of the year. Enquiries: 01473 626 938. BASILDON CBS – November 10, Felmores Community Centre, Northland's Park, Basildon, Essex SS13 1SD, 7.30pm. Annual show planning. Enquiries: 07880 707 502. BRISTOL BS – November 10, Little Stoke Baptist Church, Kingsway, Little Stoke, Bristol BS34 6JW, 7pm. Meeting. All welcome. Enquiries: 07748 740 794. COLCHESTER CBS – November 20, Stanway Village Main Hall, Villa Road, Stanway, Colchester, Essex CO3 OHR, 7.45pm. Evening members’ show and end of…

TREASURED BIRD HIDE DESTROYED IN FIRE A BIRD HIDE was burnt to the ground on October 22 with damages of £12,000, says Humberside Police. It happened on Nev Cole Way, a public footpath near West Marsh Lane, Barton-upon-Humber at 10.15pm. Police believe the fire was started deliberately. Sgt Sarah Jackson told the BBC: “This doesn't just destroy property, it takes away a peaceful space that families, birdwatchers and nature lovers have cherished.” Humberside Police are appealing for information. APHA STRENGTHENS PREVENTATIVE BIRD-FLU MEASURES FROM October 30, keepers of 50 or more birds in several regions must keep their birds housed. The regions are Cheshire, Cumbria, Derbys, Durham, East Riding of Yorks, Greater Manchester, Lancs, Leics, Lincs, Merseyside, Norfolk, North Yorks, Northumberland, Notts, Rutland, Shropshire, South Yorks, Staffs, Suffolk, Tyne &…

THANKS TO STUART Mason (see letter, left) for impressing on me what a kerfuffle DEFRA's latest bird-flu announcement had caused in the hobby. I was going to downplay it, hence its appearance as an “Also in the news” item on page 2. Just to spell it out: this is not a blanket ban on bird movements. It's what we have had in every recent winter – a requirement to cover up your outside aviaries securely if you live in the named regions and have 50 or more birds outside. It does not affect shows or sales. All pretty simple and nothing new, then, but what a shambles of a press release. You have to dig a long way before you find confirmation that “50 or more birds” means both poultry and…

CANARIES THE early shows of Gloster canaries set in motion wheels of development that seem in no danger of slowing down. The Crystal Palace show of 1925, at which Leonora Rogerson displayed her “small crests” in the novice section, would not have been as eventful if she had not contacted Albert William Smith prior to the show. In fact, we might have had a different outcome with regards the formation of a new breed of canary. Oh, to have been a fly on the wall at the conversation between Smith, John McLay and Mrs Rogerson at that seminal Palace show. Mr McLay, from Kirkintilloch near Glasgow, took up the challenge with Mrs Rogerson and, together with a small group of others, created what we know as the Gloster fancy canary.…

SHOW DATES BEAUMARIS CBS the “Palace show of Wales” returns on January 3. The club committee are meeting on a regular basis working on the arrangements for the annual show. It will stage the final round of this Irish fancy canary series, along with the second show of the North Wales Yorkshire Canary Club. John Keeley (Wexford) will judge the Irish with Martin Adair (Cumbria) judging the Yorkshires. They will be joined by Robb Brown (Oxfordshire) for British and foreign, Jeff Hamlet (Runcorn) border and Fifes, Paul Martin (Dublin) for Norwich and finally Joe McGovern (Liverpool) judging budgerigars. Cash prize money has been increased and exceeds £1000. Once again, a good entry is expected and any visitors who require accommodation are advised to book early. There will be an eve…

EXHIBITIONS A RECENT EXHIBITION – “The Natural Eye 2025” – showcased the work of 30 Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA) as part of a year-long project capturing the rewilding of a previously intensely farmed site in West Norfolk. The SWLA annual exhibition took place from October 16-25 at Mall Galleries in London and is now viewable online. It has over 300 works (ranging from painting and sculpture to original prints and field sketches) by leading British wildlife artists. This year, The SWLA Massingham Heath Project was said to be an exhibition highlight, featured in a dedicated “Out of the Frame” room. Launched in May 2025, the project has brought together the Society's member artists to document the seasons, wildlife and transformation of Massingham Heath as it is rewilded. Through close…

I KNOW I'VE mentioned it previously, but this year it has felt like the foreign bird show season is completely compacted now into October. This is with the loss of one event and a change of date for another September show I try to attend. The month became quite quiet compared to previous years. That did mean I was able to prep for Stafford, and despite it being much smaller than before, my daughter and I had a great day out. Naturally, first port of call was the AFS stand where I took the most cages ever with sales birds. Thanks to the excellent team who managed to sell all bar one pair – it made me a very happy man. Having my daughter with me was a tremendous help to…

TRAVEL SOMETIMES, I wonder if I have left childhood at all. Here I am, not long back from another lovely holiday in Norway and Denmark (with a morning spent in Sweden) and I want to share the experience – albeit in relation to bird life and the zeitgeist. What strikes you most about Scandinavia is an apparent lack of abundance of bird life. That in turn starts you asking yourself why that might be and then you realise: the country is covered in forests. Dense forests for miles and miles. Lots of our bird life is visible because it has come to our gardens and other locations in search of food. Clearly, the Scandinavian forests provide an adequate supply. “There was a pair of swans with three cygnets just yards…

GRAHAM FLETCHER IT IS with great sadness that I inform members and the wider public that on August 2 Graham Fletcher passed away peacefully at the age of 85, reports Beverley Hutt. Graham became involved with Cambridgeshire BS after moving to the area from Orpington in Kent where he had been an active member of the London & Southern Counties BS. Graham was one of the founder members of Cambridgeshire BS taking on the role of chairman at the inaugural meeting on May 14, 1985. He remained a member of the society even when he no longer kept birds. Prior to his move to Cambridgeshire, he was an active committee member in the London & SC BS area society joining them in 1972 and holding the offices of patronage secretary…