Spugger

This little chap is a spuggy or spadgey or shitehawk, strangely all birds seem to fit the latter. It is in fact a 'House Sparrow' and its numbers are in decline. However it's a notorious pest of other birds, particularly Swallows and House Martins tearing to pieces their nests and kicking out any eggs or chicks resident. It is worth knowing that sparrows are protected under the 1981 wildlife act. In Scotland it is also illegal to prevent them from using their nest, so if repairs to roofs or guttering are planned it is best avoided during the breeding season which runs from April to August.

Pairs mate for life, though a female will generally find a new pair of trousers within a few days of her partners' demise, unlike humans who often don't have the decency to wait till death do they part....but then we were created in the image of god, weren't we?.

'The house sparrows partiality to grain crops and the damage and destruction this caused resulted in attempts to control their numbers. From the mid-18th century most parishes had sparrow clubs with the sole objective to destroy as many sparrows as possible. Bounties were paid for sparrows until the late 19th century, when it was accepted that the control measures did not work. Similar failures were recorded in a number of other European countries. Ironically, as people in Europe were paid to kill sparrows as pests, others deliberately introduced them to places as far apart as Australia and New York. Initially they were welcomed, although later appreciation turned to serious concern for the impact on crops. By then sparrows had become well established and control attempts have failed to limit the sparrows numbers and range'.