Alfred Newton partridge. Birds became an abiding interest. Those included the great bustard ("Otis tarda"), Montagu's harrier ("Circus pygargus"), ravens, buzzards ("Buteo" sp.), redpolls, wrynecks ("Jynx"), which are small woodpeckers that specialise in feeding on ants. "The vast warrens of the 'Breck', the woods and water-meadows of the valley of the Little Ouse, and the neighbouring Fenland made an ideal training-ground for a naturalist". This enthusiasm Newton shared with his younger brother Edward: the two carried out bird observation when they were together and corresponded when they were apart. In 1846 Newton went to a tutor in Biggleswade for a few months,
Ascochyta tarda Ascochyta tarda Ascochyta tarda or Phoma tarda is a fungal plant pathogen that causes dieback and leafspot on coffee and was first observed in Ethiopia in 1954 (Stewart, 1957). It poses a potentially serious threat to coffee crops, but climate change may reduce the prevalence of environmental conditions favorable to its spread. Die-back is a condition in which a tree or shrub begins to die from the tip of its leaves or roots backwards, owing to disease or an unfavorable environment). Necrosis of both flowers and rosettes is also observed with this pathogen and this can significantly reduce crop yield.