The Red-tailed Chimneysweep
There’s a beautiful male Black Redstart in the Pratone di Torre Spaccata here in Rome. Unfortunately, this whole area is due to be destroyed by a new cinema studios complex. There are Ancient Roman villas here, together with a fabulous array of wildlife. It’ll all be covered in concrete unless a small committee manage to get political traction. They’ve done everything local people can do: They’ve written letters, appeared on radio and TV, put on fundraisers with a musical event and even collected over 11,000 signatures against the development.
Here are some the experiences I’ve had here, in what is a rough, abandoned piece of wasteland, previously used as a dumping ground, which contains a homeless man sleeping rough and a colony of cats:
More Pratone di Torre Spaccata
There’s a beetle-shaped hole in our lives In the UK the species Trichodes alvearius and another, the Bee-Eating Beetle, Trichodes apiarius, “Have not been seen since the 19th century and are… read more
“Gruccione!” We're walking in Broken Tower Meadow, il Pratone di Torre Spaccata when the Puffin Whisperer says "Gruccione". I recognise the… read more
I’m a big fan of garden pests Whenever I search the Internet for an invertebrate, unless it's rare, there's always a result which is "How do I… read more
Thousands of orchids as far as the eye can see Walking around il Pratone di Torre Spaccata in Rome we spot a Long-Lipped Tongue Orchid, Serapias vomeracea. Then we spot… read more
‘Shrike’ she shrieks! We're walking in il Pratone di Torre Spaccata (Broken Tower Meadow) in Rome when I hear the Puffin Whisperer shout… read more
What sort of a name is Zitting Cisticola? I'm in Italy for a couple of weeks and, although I've got work to do, I'm having a few trips… read more
Wrens’ nest Last year I found a Wren's nest, high in a tree in a wasteland in Rome. It was in an… read more
Gheppio In Italian, the Common Kestrel is known as Gheppio, which is from the Latin, originally from the Ancient Greek for… read more
Journeying south to spring and north to winter I've spend a large part of my adult life travelling from the south of England, and more lately from the… read moreFabulous, isn’t it?
Nature needs a home. There’s so little of it left and it’s squeezed out to the margins, the edges the interstices.
I’ve loved seeing the Black Redstarts here in Rome.
More Black Redstarts
In volo Black Redstarts are lively. More lively than me this morning. They're flitting in an elaborate pattern across the scrub in… read more
Black Redstart One of my favourite Black Redstart photographs from this year. Lovely, aren't they? read more
More Black Redstarts Are you tired of seeing my photographs of Black Redstarts yet? I'm beginning to feel like one of those 1970s… read more
More Black Redstarts It's time for another trip to the nearest waste ground, which counts as the natural world these days, to see… read more
Codirosso Spazzacamino The Italian name for the Black Redstart is Codirosso Spazzacamino. It means red-tailed chimney sweep. I love their ash-grey plumage.… read more
Chimney Sweeps Here's a handsome Italian chap: He's a Codirosso Spazzacamino, a male Black Redstart. What fine plumage he has. Spazzacamino means… read more
I hope the Pratone will stay wild and free for generations to come.
More from il Pratone di Torre Spaccata
There’s a beetle-shaped hole in our lives In the UK the species Trichodes alvearius and another, the Bee-Eating Beetle, Trichodes apiarius, “Have not been seen since the 19th century and are… read more “Gruccione!” We're walking in Broken Tower Meadow, il Pratone di Torre Spaccata when the Puffin Whisperer says "Gruccione". I recognise the… read more I’m a big fan of garden pests Whenever I search the Internet for an invertebrate, unless it's rare, there's always a result which is "How do I… read more Thousands of orchids as far as the eye can see Walking around il Pratone di Torre Spaccata in Rome we spot a Long-Lipped Tongue Orchid, Serapias vomeracea. Then we spot… read more ‘Shrike’ she shrieks! We're walking in il Pratone di Torre Spaccata (Broken Tower Meadow) in Rome when I hear the Puffin Whisperer shout… read more What sort of a name is Zitting Cisticola? I'm in Italy for a couple of weeks and, although I've got work to do, I'm having a few trips… read more Wrens’ nest Last year I found a Wren's nest, high in a tree in a wasteland in Rome. It was in an… read more Gheppio In Italian, the Common Kestrel is known as Gheppio, which is from the Latin, originally from the Ancient Greek for… read more Journeying south to spring and north to winter I've spend a large part of my adult life travelling from the south of England, and more lately from the… read more