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The 57th K.O.S Annual General Meeting held on 10th April 2008 @ Maidstone.
PRESIDENT'S INTRODUCTION by Don Taylor
I welcome you all to this 57th AGM of the KOS, encouraged by the increasing numbers attending our Thursday evening indoor meetings. However, in spite of my confidence at the last AGM, it is extremely disappointing that you haven’t yet received your copies of the 2005 Kent Bird Report (KBR) and our Chairman will be commenting on this during his report. Being editor of the annual report is demanding and often extremely frustrating, particularly when writers and printers fail to meet deadlines. Tim Hodge deserves our thanks for stepping into the breach but has found that it is too demanding on his time and his offer of resignation has been accepted. Being our Archivist is as much as any one person can be expected to handle. Thank you, Tim. As I mentioned last year, Andrew Henderson is not receiving sufficient support from writers and progress is slow too on completing the ‘Birds of Kent’. I too am guilty of not meeting deadlines for completing species’ texts. However, with the new Atlas work now underway it makes no sense to base the texts on the results of the last breeding survey. Later in the year we will be discussing how best to update those texts that have been written with the new winter and breeding bird maps. I make no apologies for repeating again that, “Patience is a great virtue, as all birders know well”. Martin Coath will expand further on the work of the Executive Committee during the past year, when I ask him to give you his report and I propose that, if there is time, there will be an opportunity for a brief question or comment or two following the reports from the Chairman of each of the committees or sub-committees. We do have a vitally important role to play in conserving our environment, so please encourage others to join the society and please keep submitting your records and volunteering your time and enthusiasm for the various surveys, that both the national organisations and the KOS initiate. The Bird Atlas has had a tremendous start and it provides an opportunity for us all to make our observations count, which is particularly straightforward if you go online. As a county we will be producing a tetrad atlas for both the winter and breeding bird distributions. It is simple to see where the gaps are, presumably where members don’t live, so do take responsibility for a number of those tetrads during the next four years. We had hoped that this evening’s talks would comprise a selection of members’ photos and comments on their local patches or maybe an interesting visit elsewhere. For those who subscribe to KOSNet we did ask for volunteers, but there was no response, so three committee members have agreed to oblige. Maybe we left it a little late, or maybe individuals simply don’t volunteer and need to be asked. By looking at our website it is obvious that a good number of you could contribute to an interesting evening, illustrated with quite excellent photographs, which would be greatly appreciated, particularly by those who do not have internet access. If you have any thoughts about this matter, do let us know how best to organize a members evening for the next AGM. We have had a question from a member – ‘What are the aims and objectives of the Conservation and Surveys sub-committee and what has been achieved this last year?’ This question will be answered by the Chairman of that sub-committee in his annual round up, this is also available on our website (www.kentos.org.uk) and will be in the KOSNews. Apologies for absence received from: Barry Wright, Robin Mace, Chris Abrams, Hugh Nye, Terry Laws.
Minutes of last AGM: Approved Matters arising: None
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT by Martin Coath
The Executive Committee has met three times during the year and has discussed a range of topics. The minutes are published on the Website, which also has biographies and photos of most of its members. Manual copies of the minutes are available from the Honorary Secretary. There are 15 members to whom I would like to record my thanks, in no particular order. They are the same as last year, but I will not repeat what I said then: President - Don Taylor, Vice-chairman - Tony Morris, Honorary Secretary - Ann Abrams, Treasurer - Mike Henty, Membership Secretaries - Ken Lodge and Dave Sutton, Chairman of the Conservation and Surveys sub-Committee - Gordon Allison, Chairman of the Editorial and Records sub-Committee – Barry Wright, 2005 KBR Editor and Archivist – Tim Hodge, Computer Specialist – Robin Mace, Editor of KOS News – John Cantelo, Jack Chantler, who is also recorder for East Kent, Webmaster – Chris Abrams and BTO Rep. – Sally Hunter. Thanks too to Jill and Nick Tardivel for their ringing reports. They are standing down and Chris Hindle has kindly stepped in. I will be telling you about the work of the Editorial and Records Sub-Committee and Gordon Allison will be telling you about the work of the Conservation and Surveys Sub-Committee and especially about the atlas project and how you can help. We hoped that you would have received the 2005 Kent Bird Report by last autumn, but there have been delays at the records and writing stages. The latest news is that the report is now going to the printers. Tim will be standing down after this report, and, with no obvious successor in sight, the 2006 report will be a committee effort. We all know that a camel is a horse designed by a committee, but in fact much will go on as before. Tim in his Archivist role will soon be sending out the records, all 150,000 of them, to writers. This is not just a question of pressing a few buttons, but the elimination of duplications at an early stage. It will then be up to the writers to do their bit, and a small sub-committee will be chasing them right until the midnight knock on the door. If anyone here, or any member who reads this, would like to write species’ accounts please let me or any committee member know. We may restrict the 2006 report to Aspects of the year, Systematic List and Ringing Report, subject to time available, and perhaps divert appropriate articles to KOS News. Perhaps one day a new editor will emerge. If not we may find the committee approach works well. John Cantelo has taken over the job of editor of KOS News and has proved a worthy successor to Ian, who was a hard act to follow. I hope you have enjoyed all the editions he has produced so far. If you want to write an article about matters Kentish, such as your best and/or worst day’s birding in the county, or the delights of your local patch, John would be pleased to hear from you. The KOS News is not a committee publication, anyone can send in an article. Now for my annual plea for records: I have always said that it is not difficult to get records of scarce or rare birds. Thanks to Bird Track we are now getting more records of the commoner species. I wrote up the Nuthatch accounts for 2004 and 2005. In the first three months of the year there were reports from 11 sites in 2004 and 42 in 2005. Derek Jackson, our new organiser of indoor meetings has injected his own ideas and enthusiasm. We have enjoyed an interesting series of talks this winter and the programme for 2008/9 is planned. We have noted that some members are keen to have more kentocentric talks, but others enjoy visits to exotic places. Ideas from members are always welcome. The change of venue to Grove Green has worked well and offers better parking. If any member or friend or whoever wants a good evening out I can recommend a visit to Grove Green on the appropriate Thursday. Derek has arranged for posters to be put up in a number of places in mid Kent. Tony Morris is getting a programme of outdoor meetings together for 2008/9. Last year’s meetings enjoyed varying success. Because we have again had no volunteer Tony has agreed to continue this year. No one turned up for one meeting, whereas a number have attracted double figures. We are considering joint meetings with RSPB and other groups. Attenders vary from the experienced, who enjoy a day out with other birders, to novices. All are welcome, as are non-members. We are looking at how best to advertise our meetings. If anyone has any ideas or wishes to take over please let us know. The KOS website continues to do well. If you explore it, besides finding out in detail about the work of the KOS and how to join, you can find out how to submit your records, discover what’s around at top birding locations, find out where to go birding, explore the varied wildlife of the county and look at an archive photo gallery of many of the county’s rarities along with a selection of the very best bird photographs currently being taken in the county. Exploration will also reveal an art gallery, trip reports and many articles. It consistently maintains its place within the top 50 birding websites, out of the top 500 birding websites registered with Fatbirder. Its popularity has recently been proved by the numbers of hits bloggers get when their website is added to the ‘Latest Sightings’ section of the site. Chris continues to encourage people to produce local patch sites to which he can link. He sees the way forward as encouraging birders to produce their own blogs. These do not have to be monitored by the KOS and do not need to be backed up when the whole site is backed up. They also incur no fee to the KOS for a licence for software to access the KOS site. Chris would like to express his grateful thanks to all those who contribute to the site to keep it up to date and relevant, with special thanks to Robin Mace. Mike Buckland is standing down as Photographic editor, many thanks for what you have done, Mike. Marc Heath and Steve Ashton have kindly agreed to take over. Chris has been concerned that some people have expressed difficulty in finding information on the site. The site was designed with simplicity in mind but in light of these comments Chris and Robin are now redesigning the title page to enable people to find what they require as easily and as quickly as possible. If anyone has any suggestions for improvements to the site, please let Chris know. The number of subscribers to KOSNet has reached 416. There have been a number of debates, interesting to some, boring to others, but as usual if the topic is not for you it is very easy to delete the offending postings. If only other unwelcome aspect, like TV adverts, could be so easy to remove. Many thanks to Julian Russell, our moderator, for maintaining KOSNet as a lively, informative and civilised forum. As we have a healthy financial surplus we have decided to sponsor a species for the new atlas. We are donating £2000 towards the Sandwich Tern account. We have also agreed to give a more modest amount to help a group of members who are putting up Barn Owl boxes. If any member would like help with a suitable project would they please supply details to a member of Committee. When I joined the Society we had smaller, but more timely KBRs and monthly Newsletters. We now produce quarterly newsletters, but, in line with the electronic revolution, we bring you up to date information through the website and KOSnet. It’s almost as good as having a pager – free. May the birds go with you!
EDITORIAL and RECORDS SUB-COMMITTEE delivered by Martin Coath
Evening! (Once again I have managed to be on holiday for the AGM, not on purpose though! You are fortunate that once again Martin will read out this summary, in my absence.) Incredibly another year has passed and the committee has been busy gathering information together for future KBRs and Birds of Kent. As has already been explained, the KBR 2005 is behind schedule despite Tim Hodge the archivist and Editor, in collaboration with Robin Mace, working hard to meet deadlines. KBR 2006 is very much a matter of urgency to hopefully bring us back in line with expected publication, and work is ongoing. I’ve been very lucky to have been aided once again by a large number of individuals that have tirelessly replied to my many emails and dealt with some problematic issues. Despite appearing to spend countless hours a year dealing with KOS matters the committee are all very busy with their ‘routine’ lives and yet still manage to keep this committee achieving its aim of recording the bird life of Kent. We have met four times in the past year, and I would like to thank Gordon Allison at Bromhey farm, and Ian Hodgson at Sandwich Bay for hosting us, and providing at times some birds to look at nearby! In decline they may be, but the House Sparrows at Bromhey can be very noisy when attempting to host a meeting outside! Alan Fossey our Secretary has been of great support to me and the committee over the past year and I thank him for his accuracy, efficiency and keeping track of matters. John Cantelo, and his ever expanding encyclopaedic knowledge of the English language, had produced some fine newsletters of greatly varied material, and long may they continue. The past year has kept us very busy dealing with such delights as Caspian Gull, and the changing list of species that we now deal with as a county committee. This is just one aspect of the work of this committee, though tends to be the one that is at times very time consuming. The new BBRC secretary, Nigel Hudson, has greatly aided processing and reporting of national records and I thank him for his help with county records. Mike Rogers was a hard act to follow but Nigel has excelled so far in taking on this thankless task. The receipt of all records has greatly increased as we become more and more computerised, though the sheer volume of them can evidently delay proceedings at times. We apologise for these delays though, as a result we are gaining and maintaining a more complete picture of the county’s avifauna. None of this would be possible without the area recorders, archivist, editors, and writers, proof readers and you the observers providing and collating the data. Far too many people to thank, but once again I thank all of you. The committee members have not changed since my last address at the 2007 AGM, and they continue one year further on to contribute a huge amount of effort, spare time and commitment towards the workings of the KOS. This computerised world that we now live in has possibly taken away the ‘personal’ touch when dealing with some matters, though as a result of the website we can keep you informed of what is going on within the KOS and I thank Chris Abrams and Robin Mace for their work in this area. As in previous years I owe a huge debt of gratitude to our County Observatories, with Dave Walker at Dungeness, and Ian Hodgson at Sandwich Bay providing data, answering queries and supplying records. Without wishing to ramble on too much and delay the remainder of the AGM, a massive thanks to everyone once again, chairing this committee is at times, a huge drain on my time and resources, but with the committee members being there and doing all the hard work, it’s a pleasure to continue to help move the KOS forward and keep our Kent as a haven for birds and birding.
CONSERVATION and SURVEYS SUB-COMMITTEE by Gordon Allison
In answer to the members question “What does the C&SSC actually do?”, here is a brief summary of our aims & objectives. These are also available on the KOS website. Essentially we co-ordinate survey work on birds in Kent, contribute KOS responses for data re: planning and other decisions that affect the county’s birds and finally, we draw up KOS responses with regard to matters pertaining directly to the conservation of birds in the county, for example the Kent RDB list and criteria for Sites of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI’s). Much of the work involves co-ordinating county-wide survey work for national surveys organised by the likes of RSPB & BTO - the BBS, WeBS and single species surveys like marsh harrier, nightjar and nightingale. These last tend to be part of a rolling national monitoring programme with repeat surveys every 5 or 10 years. We also organise county level surveys of selected species, especially those whose local rarity or uncertain status has meant that further effort is required than can be covered through a national survey. Recent examples of these have included hobby, firecrest and Dartford warbler. The results of these surveys are published in the KBR, or occasionally in ‘British Birds’. For these surveys we rely entirely on volunteer effort to collect the data and to date, all the surveys have been highly successful in establishing the status in the county of the target species. On the other objectives: No. 2 – the KOS is not Greenpeace! As a small county-based organisation run on a voluntary basis, we don’t have the resources to fight major environmental campaigns. As our prime purpose is to record the bird life of the county, we can make this data available in support of larger organisations when a threat to the environment of the county appears. This doesn’t mean that we can’t be pro-active however. We have policy statements on wind farms for example and we will become actively involved in an “anti-” stance if it is deemed appropriate. The proposed airport at Cliffe was a very good example of this. Finally, in drawing up KOS responses as regards conservation issues, most recently Richard Moyse (Kent Wildlife Trust) gave a presentation to the committee about the Local Wildlife Sites (LWS) database and Bird Conservation, looking particularly at definitions for sites and their relationship to bird conservation. The committee discussed how KOS could be involved in the LWS process, particularly regarding information for current sites. Membership of the committee is open to anyone who is prepared to contribute to our aims and objectives. We have convened on three occasions since the last AGM and I have been ably abetted by the same committee as last year. My thanks to Rob Clements and Robin Mace as minuters; and to Martin Coath, Tim Hodge, Richard Moyse, Owen Sweeney, Sally Hunter and Brian Watmough for their valued contributions. Brian is currently back in Kazakhstan on a work placement. So to this past year’s surveys: the standard BTO Heronry’s survey returned a total of 289 pairs in the county, one pair down on 2006. However little egrets continue to increase with at least 93 pairs – these all from the heronry at Northward Hill – an increase of almost 30 pairs! Thanks to Owen Sweeney for continuing to co-ordinate this survey. Tim Hodge organised an “off-the-cuff” Cetti’s warbler survey which produced an impressive total of 362 singing males. Given that several areas where birds occur weren’t surveyed completely, Tim believes that a county population of 450-500 pairs is likely. However the main thrust this year has been the BTO 2007-11 Wintering & Breeding Bird Atlas. The most recent picture that I have dates back to the turn of the year. At this juncture, 390 out of a total of 1007 squares had been allocated, with others being allocated at a rate of 3-4 per week. It is hoped that all the squares in the county will eventually be covered. In January, 29 out of the 52 ten kilometre squares have got the BTO-required 8+ tetrads allocated. This whole project is a massive undertaking and Sally Hunter, as BTO rep., has elected to take on the organisation herself. I can only offer my heartfelt thanks and congratulations to what she has managed to achieve so far. So far there have been meetings for surveyors in Sandwich and West Kent, prior to the winter work, and a further meeting is planned, in line with the breeding season surveys. An article for the KOS newsletter is also in preparation. I’m hoping that everyone here tonight has signed up for a few tetrads. I can’t think of a better excuse to get out for a few hours’ birdwatching – after all, it’s what we do!
TREASURER’S REPORT by Mike Henty
There was a surplus of income over expenditure in 2007 of £4,035, which compares with a very similar surplus of £4,341 in 2006. The main differences between the years are as follows: Subscription income was down on 2006 by about £100. This is the third consecutive year that the number of members has gone down. The Executive Committee has looked at various ways in which we can recruit new members and retain them when we get them, but we are no means in crisis yet. However we do need youth coming in at the bottom to replace our ageing members. Income tax recovered under Gift Aid is down on 2006 as we have now made all our back-claims and £887 is the amount claimed in respect of the single tax year 2006-07. The amount of donations is down but this is always a variable amount and in 2006 we received a single donation of £200 from one member. Bank interest is a little higher than in 2006. As explained at the last AGM, in 2006 we effectively received eighteen months’ worth of interest in that year but in 2007 we benefited from higher interest rates. Income from meetings was up on 2006, partly arising from increased numbers attending and partly from increasing the admission charge to £2 from the start of the 2007/08 season. Income from sales of KBRs has always fluctuated and is unpredictable. The 2007 amount of £336 is above the average for previous years. In 2007 we banked £125 received from the sale of a Denis Harle painting in the previous year and a further £390 from the sale of DVDs of our past KBRs to add to the £850 received in 2006. We incurred costs of £35 for packing & postage, which is included below under Sundry Purchases. As at the end of 2007 we broke even on the DVD exercise and we now have all our past publications stored in electronic format at zero net cost to the Society. As we are still making sales in 2008 we have now moved into profit. We have a small amount of income arising from advertising in our 2007 newsletters that will appear in our 2008 accounts in line with the practice of not recognising income until it is received. Turning to expenditure: The cost of the 2004 KBR was not as high as I had anticipated, in the 2006 accounts, so we benefited from writing back the over-provision this year. Expenditure on Other Printing, Postage, and Stationery is up on 2006, largely reflecting the increased number of pages in our recent newsletters and inflation in postage rates. Sundry Purchases. I have already mentioned the costs of sending out DVDs of £35. The balance of £225 is the cost prints and a painting presented to Jonathan Braggs and Ian Hodgson as thanks for their efforts over many years in producing our KBRs and newsletters. Our Chairman referred to this at last year’s AGM. Depreciation is up a bit as we bought some new equipment in the year. More detail is given under Note (b) on the accounts. All other items of expenditure are on a par with last year. Our Total Reserves are divided between the Birds of Kent Fund and the General Fund as shown in Note (a). As the Chairman has said, as we have two years of healthy surplus it was decided that we should donate £2,000 to provide financial support to the BTO for the Bird Atlas (2007-11). This donation will appear in the 2008 accounts. That concludes my report. Thanks are due to Keith Ellis again who has acted as the independent examiner of our accounts.
A.O.B. Tony Morris asked if a regular budget of say £300 could be made available to the Conservation and Surveys sub-committee, annually, so they could authorise the expenditure for small Kent bird related projects. (To be discussed at next Executive meeting).
Eric Philp raised the problem of attracting new members and retaining old ones. He suggested that as other societies sent out a renewal slip with their December Newsletters we should do the same. Our membership Secretary, Dave Sutton, replied that we printed a reminder in the first two Newsletters of the year and a loose piece of paper may become mislaid. He had also sent out personal reminders to members but had no positive result. Everyone agreed standing orders were the way forward. (Executive committee will examine another reminder approach for the first Newsletter of the year.)
Peter Heathcote was not criticising the committee but did want to know when the 2005 Kent Bird Report might be arriving and asked that a summary of 2006 be considered or a joint 2006-8? Don replied that we had broached this before but would again discuss at the next Executive meeting.
Don proposed the acceptance of the Treasurer’s report and in the absence of any new nominations fro the Executive Committee that they again hold office for another year.
The AGM proceedings were followed by talks on New Zealand, Gulls and Northern Canada. |