PotM Calendar
The Photo of the Month (see gallery) is a year-round calendar of wildlife and nature images with story contributions from visitors, friends and fellow photographers.
When it comes to nature photography, it's not only those exciting tales of high adventure that often accompany talent and skill for a fabulous result. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a well-timed shot or well-framed one can say as much about you as a photographer. So, if you'd like to showcase one of your pictures here, free, for one calendar month with a bio or personal account, then this page is for you.
The Fall of the House of Sparrow by Roger Cox
Elmley Nature Reserve, The Isle of Sheppy
A long time ago, in a street with a past much like your own, there lived a small grey-brown commensal bird that roosted and nested in the eaves of our houses and fed on leftovers and insects in our privet-hedged parks and gardens – until our infrastructure and homes began to change.
From a national upsurge in urban renewal, gone were those crumbling, brick-creviced buildings, along with their slate-covered coves. As sheltering house-front hedgerows became driveways, and native outdoor plants gave way to more exotic flora from every corner of the globe, gone too were the insects that fed on them, followed by the everyday “cheep-cheep” call of the house sparrow from town and city life.
In the 1970s, it was estimated that this finch-sized social bird that once hopped all over our streets numbered around 30 million. Today, we’re left with just 5.3 million breeding pairs, enough to assume they’re doing well. But if a bird in Britain ever needed a home, it’s the house sparrow, whose numbers continue to fall due to intensified agricultural practices and a significant reduction in nest sites. Yet from their abundance at Elmley Nature Reserve, it’s safe to say local populations do increase in places willing to accommodate them, proving they’re not so much affected by habitat loss, but a housing crisis – a problem quickly resolved by using our garden walls for suitable nest boxes, should we ever long to hear their “cheep-cheep” calls in our towns and streets again.
Special announcements or simple hellos. Place your message or link here as part of your PotM agreement. With six places left for 2025, the PotM Calendar is closed until June 17th. To learn more about posting news, comments and events under a PotM agreement, see our Terms of Use page, where you can submit your photo (along with your story) during the last two weeks of every month.
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