EDITORIAL
p. 33
just how hot
does lake
natron get?
Flamin-goals
The idiom ‘stop the press’ conjures some very industrial mental imagery. Of someone pushing a giant, creaky lever,
causing a bustling conveyor belt to grind to a halt. Alas, in 2018, the reality is somewhat more sterile – a few apologetic
emails here and there, and some tweaks to the Google Calendar. Nevertheless, it’s still a nuclear option that should only be
deployed when absolutely necessary – and the last-gasp news of the closure of the soda ash plant threatening Tanzania’s
‘Flamingo Factory’, Lake Natron [p. 33] fits that bill. We’ve waited ten years to hear this news – the magazine could wait
another day.
It’s a red letter month – or should that be pink letter month – for conservation. Across the ocean, another crucial site for
flamingos, Mar Chiquita, is poised to become Argentina’s largest National Park [p. 26]. But while lobbying governments is
important, so is ensuring we all do our part to make the world a better place for birds – no matter how small. Which is why,
as part of our ongoing Year of the Bird campaign, we’re outlining 12 small, but substantial, steps everyone can take [p. 16].
Enjoy the issue,
Alex Dale, Editor
Contributors to this issue
terry townshend
A British birder living and working in China, Terry is
the founder of Birding Beijing, a website dedicated
to celebrating the birds of the vast Asian country’s
capital city. On page 58, Terry reports on the
fantastic news that China has decided to halt coastal
land reclamation in the South China Sea.
apr-jun 2018 • birdlife
katie sims
What if we told you that you could save a rainforest
by eating a chocolate bar? It sounds too good to
be true, but it’s becoming a reality thanks to an
innovative project from our UK Partner, RSPB.
Katie is the Gola Rainforest Cocoa Project Manager
– sink your teeth into her report on page 46.
hannah wheatley
Hannah is an integral part of BirdLife’s Red List
team, which consults bird experts across the
globe to make sure we have the most up-to-date
information about bird species. Every issue, she
runs down the headline findings from our journal,
BCI – flip to page 60 for more.
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