cattle prairie in the United States being ploughed up to grow crops for fuel; of new Power
Stations in Holland fuelled by Palm Oil, grown on uprooted rain forest in Indonesia and
the Far East; of forest destruction in South America accelerating to grow soya and maize;
of plans to destroy huge areas of forest in Uganda. So it goes on. The vast acreages of
land needed to grow sufficient crops to even dent our insatiable demand for fuel defies
belief. A folly with a capital F among a multitude of human follies. Thus, the fate of one
little field seems trifling in comparison. Yet what that field represented was hope. Hope
that things would gradually improve for our farmland wildlife after decades of decline.
What price that hope now? How long will agri-environment schemes remain in place if
wheat prices stay high, or even increase? Already farmers are demanding an end to
"Government interference". Or at least arable farmers are. How long before the remaining
dairy and beef farms become uneconomic and their land is ploughed up to grow fuel? So
is it farewell or au revoir to set aside? Me, I'm a natural born optimist. Or is it a natural
born fool? When it comes to conservation it sometimes seems that the one is a prerequisite
of the other! Time alone will tell.
A proposal for a database of Essex naturalists
Bill George 11 Sterry Road, Barking, Essex IG11 9SJ William-george@lineone.net
Essex has a rich heritage of natural history which goes back well before the Essex Field
Club was founded by William Cole more than 125 years ago. Many naturalists have
contributed to this legacy in the last 400 years. Naturalists' connections with Essex are
varied. Some have lived in Essex and contributed to the study of the county's natural
history. Other famous naturalists were born or temporarily lived in the county before
they moved and contributed to natural history elsewhere. Several naturalists have retired
to Essex after contributing to natural history outside the county. More than 80 Essex
naturalists are listed in the table below. Many more must be known to Essex Field Club
members and our Recorders.
Name___________________________________Dates___________Interest____________________
Benjamin Allen____________________________c.1663-1738______naturalist____________________
Dorothea Minola Alice Bate__________________1878-1951_______palaeontologist_______________
Sir Antonio Brady__________________________1811-1881________palaeontologist_______________
John Brown_______________________________1780-1859_______geologist____________________
Adam Buddie_____________________________died 1715________botanist_____________________
Charles R.N. Burrows_______________________1851-1936_______entomologist_________________
Anthony Buxton___________________________1881-1970_______naturalist____________________
Edward N. Buxton__________________________1840-1924_______Epping Forest________________
Sir. Thomas F. Buxton______________________1837-1915_______Epping Forest________________
George S. Cansdale ~1909-1993 zoologist
Edward Charlesworth_______________________1819-1893_______geologist____________________
Cuthbert Christy___________________________died 1932________naturalist____________________
R. Miller Christy___________________________1861-1928_______naturalist____________________
E.D. Clarke_______________________________1769-1822_______mineralogist_________________
Joseph Clarke | 1802-1895 | naturalist
10 Essex Field Club Newsletter No. 56, May 2008