Nature Watch, with Ron Freethy

NOW that we have all got the millennium "bug" out of our systems, it is now time to consider how East Lancashire's wildlife has changed over the last 2,000 years.

There is no doubt that the golden eagle has fared very badly because of the needs and excuses of the human species.

There is still an area around Cliviger which is known as Eagle Crag.

The old name for an eagle was an earne and thus we have the name Earnshaw.

The word shaw means wood and thus we have the name Eagle's Wood.

Once commercial farming developed from the time of the monks in the 12th century the golden eagle was regarded as a "lamb killer" and was persecuted.

It is still possible to see golden eagles within a couple of hours drive of East Lancashire.

North West Water has provided a viewing platform where protected eagles can be seen but are also protected.

These are the only eagles present in England. East Lancashire is not well off for trees and we have less arboreal cover than any region in Europe.

The forest of Burnley is working wonders and is planting thousands of native trees but we cannot afford to relax our efforts.

In ancient times the forests of Trawden and Rossendale were vast areas used for hunting by the kings and their barons.

The valley of the Blakewater (Blackburn) was also well forested and Accrington means the settlement of the oak trees (Ac as in acorn, ing means a wet valley and tun means a settlement).

At this time the wild boar was common in the woods and was hunted for its flesh and also for so-called "sport" because the it was very fierce.

We still have a wild boar clough in Derbyshire and the area of Swinshaw, near Crawshawbooth, obviously means the Pig Wood.

The old Norse name for the wild boar was gris and in the Lake District we have Grasmere and Grizedale.

The wild boar is now extinct in England but there was no doubt that its presence helped the forests to stay healthy.

It dug up the ground in search of buried acorns, insects and fungi and this improved drainage and allowed oxygen to reach to the roots of the plants and the animals which lived in their tangled mass.

There is no doubt that our newly-planted forests will be safer without the presence of wild boar but future generations should not treat our native wildlife as badly as we have done in the past.

This is the lesson of both history and natural history.