The release of methane and carbon dioxide from thawing permafrost will accelerate global warming and add up to $70tn (£54tn) to the world’s climate bill, according to the most advanced study yet of the economic consequences of a melting Arctic.
This June, join hundreds of thousands of people taking part in 30 Days Wild. We’re challenging you to do something a little bit wild every day: that’s 30 Days of fun, exciting and simple Random Acts of Wildness. It’s easy!
We’re giving you a free pack of goodies to help you plan your wild month, plus you’ll get lots of ideas from your local Wildlife Trust to inspire you to stay wild all throughout June (and beyond!) and lots of inspiration, encouragement and support on social media #30DaysWild.
A butterfly on the brink of extinction in Kent has seen its population more than treble across the county thanks to a decade of conservation work to turn its fortunes around, wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation (BC) can reveal.
The Duke of Burgundy has declined by 40% across the UK since the 1970’s and in 2008 the butterfly was hanging on at just four sites in Kent, a former stronghold.
Once you’ve made your mini-wetland, you’ll need to fill it with lots of pond plants to keep the water clear and make your garden look attractive. Here are WWT’s top tips for easy-to-care-for native plants that wildlife will love.
April and May mark the start of the Common Sandpiper breeding season, as males display along rivers and streams and around the banks of lakes and reservoirs. Numbers in the United Kingdom have declined by 26% in just over 20 years, providing an increased focus to research that has been taking place over five decades.
Wild Justice’s first legal case was a challenge of the General Licences GL04, GL05 and GL06 which ‘authorised’ the lethal control of 16 species of bird. Similar licences have been issued each year, for many years, on 1 January. We initiated a formal legal process where we challenged the decision of a public body, in this case Natural England. The decision we challenged was the issuing of those three general licences. The legal system requires such challenges to be made in a formal way and completed within three months of the decision being challenged. So, in essence the clock started ticking on 1 January for any challenge of these general licences.
Marine experts in Norway believe they have stumbled upon a white whale that was trained by the Russian navy as part of a programme to use underwater mammals as a special ops force.
Bex Cartwright, our Making a Buzz for the Coast Conservation Officer, has written this handy guide on how to create or choose a suitable bee box to make a perfect home for solitary bees in your garden!
A (long) week of SWIFT AWARENESS events is taking place nationwide from Saturday 22nd June 2019 to Sunday 30th June 2019 and everyone is invited! It has been organised by the amateur enthusiasts who are known as Action for Swifts with the support of Swift Conservation.
The full list of events listed so far can be found from the swift conservation homepage at www.swift-conservation.org Scroll down that page a little until you see a box labelled “Swift Awareness Week”. Click on this box to get a map and associated events. There is a real eclectic mix of events but the main thing is all are welcome, come and join in and celebrate our wonderful swifts and learn what can be done to help them. I have listed the Cock at Stony Stratford as a DIY visit.
One event that is part of SAW which may or may not get listed on the AfS website is happening at Bucks County Museum in Aylesbury. It is a small pop up display all about swifts and ways to help them. It will be on throughout the SAW week during museum open hours (check museum website for times) The museum entry charge is “by donation”.
I will be providing some nice leaflets produced by AfS at both Stony Stratford and Aylesbury as handouts for visitors to take away – they are super little leaflets, absolutely packed with information in a surprisingly small space.
Incidentally, Swift Conservation and Action for Swifts will once again be exhibiting at Birdfair but they will be twice as good as previous years as they are doubling their stand size! There will be masses of information and advice – it is after all how the seed of the Dinton church project was germinated!
I can confirm that the Dinton breeding swifts have eventually returned but (darn darn darn) have not yet chosen to use my nestbox despite unrelenting use of the caller system!
Nesting Hedgehog by Susie Lane, Skelton, Cumbria 20 May 2017
Active Hedgehogs were being seen in gardens well into December, according to reports from the British Trust for Ornithology’s weekly Garden BirdWatch (BTO GBW) scheme. Volunteer Garden BirdWatchers reported more Hedgehogs in November and December than in previous years.
Renowned amphibian and reptile photographer Matthijs Kuijpers has released his first book, Cold Instinct. Kuijpers says the aim of the work is ‘for the viewer to abandon the fear and negative thoughts that often surround these animals’. What’s left is the bizarre beauty of these creatures in their simplest form – no backgrounds and no distractions
There are some 30 different species of harvestmen (Opiliones) in the UK. This interactive guide is a resource for anyone who wants to identify a harvestman and/or learn about the features that can be used to separate the different taxa in the field.
The beauty of a wildflower meadow is that it is constantly in a state of change. Nature teaches me to be patient: to wait and see what happens each year. It is beyond my control. Nature teaches me to let-go. Observing the wildflowers and the life that thrives there is a form of meditation, as self is forgotten and is immersed amidst endlessly fascinating beauty and a constantly changing scene. The wildflowers and life amongst them have become family and are regarded with loving-kindness. I care deeply about their well-being. Nature is sacred and is observed with awe and wonder. I cannot stress enough how beneficial a wildflower meadow’s beauty, wildlife and perfume is for your health. We need them to become the common, uncommonly beautiful sight that they were in the middle ages once again.
The world’s fattest species of parrot has had a record-breaking breeding season in New Zealand, with scientists saying the fortunes of the critically-endangered bird are finally turning around.
Wildlife campaigners have hailed a “historic day for Scotland” as beavers are granted protected status a decade after their successful reintroduction in Argyll.
Good news! Ravens venturing on to the grouse moors of Strathbraan in Highland Perthshire this year will NOTbe the victims of an SNH-sanctioned kill-fest ‘just to see what happens’, as they were in 2018.
This tropical-looking moth is very distinctive. Rarely, individuals with yellow hindwings or yellow spots on the forewings occur, and in some forms the hindwings may be extensively black.
Plastic bags that claim to be biodegradable were still intact and able to carry shopping three years after being exposed to the natural environment, a study has found.
Strongly associated with buildings and summer skies, the swift is the poster bird for urban nature conservation. The fastest bird in level flight, built for speed and to stay on the wing – including to eat, drink, preen and mate – they only land to nest and raise their young.
Because HS2 is an unjustifiable project, with terrible management that has not been subject to enough scrutiny, it will not face ‘notice to proceed’ tests before December. Consequently, HS2 Ltd must be stopped from trying to make it harder to cancel HS2 by maximising expenditure and destruction now.
Britain has gone a week without using coal to generate electricity for the first time since Queen Victoria was on the throne, in a landmark moment in the transition away from the heavily polluting fuel.
A biological record is essentially a point on a map showing you that a certain species/organism was found at that location by someone on a certain date. If you see an organism you know how to identify in your garden, whilst out walking, or anywhere, you can create a biological record. Some people are active recorders recording on a weekly or even daily basis, some just send in casual records when they’re out and about. However, before making a record, you must have these four key components covered:
Should the UK declare a “climate emergency” that would inform public policy and the national budget? The question was been debated in parliament on Wednesday, with the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn declaring the government should “embrace hope” through stronger actions on greenhouse gas emissions, and the environment secretary, Michael Gove, calling the problem of climate change “an emergency”.
Tree Bumblebee by Harry Appleyard, Tattenhoe 24 February 2017
Steven Falk has produced two new bumblebee crib sheets to help you identify those pesky white-tails and male cuckoo bees. The truth is that many can’t be done in the field at all but hope these sheets I clarify the where the limits lie. They can be downloaded here.
The world’s leading scientists will warn the planet’s life-support systems are approaching a danger zone for humanity when they release the results of the most comprehensive study of life on Earth ever undertaken.
The world’s leading scientists will warn the planet’s life-support systems are approaching a danger zone for humanity when they release the results of the most comprehensive study of life on Earth ever undertaken.
With their elongated bills and specially adapted tongues, hummingbirds are built to extract nectar from flowers. As new research shows, however, some hummingbirds from South America have evolved beaks designed to poke, prod, and pinch—at the expense of feeding proficiency.
Found throughout England and Wales but becoming increasingly rare. Wings black or dark brown with checker-board of white spots. A small, low-flying, darting butterfly. Dingy Skipper similar in size but wings much duller.
More than half of the world’s new oil and gas pipelines are located in North America, with a boom in US oil and gas drilling set to deliver a major blow to efforts to slow climate change, a new report has found.
It is some 20 days since I last penned some notes and for much of that time it has not really been moth weather, temperatures have been low and there has been rain and sometimes windy too. I have run the trap in my garden every night over those 20 days but have only been to Linford Lakes Nature Reserve on 5 occasions and had only one visit to Hollington Wood.
That said, there has been a sort of spluttering start to moth season proper with the appearance of the aptly named Herald on the 21stApril at Linford Lakes followed on 30thApril there a Lime Hawk-moth, Pebble Prominent and Spectacle Moth.
The Herald is one of a small number of moths that overwinter as adults in sheltered locations such as sheds, barns and outhouses. The caterpillars feed on Aspens, Willow and Poplars of which there are plenty at Linford Lakes.
The Lime Hawk-moth is one of nine species of hawk-moth that are resident in the British Isles. There are nine other species that occur as immigrants but the early stages are unable to survive the winter. The Lime Hawk-moth does not feed as an adult. The caterpillars are not confined to Lime trees and will feed on Elms, Birches and Alders.
Pebble Prominent is so named because of the pebble like blotch on the fore wing. It is able to produce 2 generations in a year, one on the wing April to June and the other July to August. The caterpillars feed on Sallow, Willows, Aspen and Poplars.
The Spectacle is so named after the grey shape, like a pair of spectacles or goggles visible on the thorax when viewed front on. Like the Pebble Prominent, the Spectacle has two generations spanning April to September. The food plant of the caterpillars is Common Nettle.
On Moth Notes of 29thMarch, I wrote about Emperor Moths and showed a photograph of some eggs that had been laid after moths had mated. Well, on Saturday, 4thMay there was great joy and excitement in the Redford household because the eggs began to hatch. The caterpillars are about 2mm long and as the photograph shows have shiny black heads, black bodies with short black hairs. They will just eat and eat now till around August.
Text and photos kindly supplied by Gordon Redford. Click here to read the previous edition of Moth Notes
Millions of hectares of pristine tropical rainforest were destroyed in 2018, according to satellite analysis, with beef, chocolate and palm oil among the main causes.
The most comprehensive and detailed review of the state of nature has been published in Paris. Our environment correspondent Matt McGrath extracts the key messages.
Humanity must save insects, if not for their sake, then for ourselves, a leading entomologist has warned.
“Insects are the glue in nature and there is no doubt that both the [numbers] and diversity of insects are declining,” said Prof Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson, at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. “At some stage the whole fabric unravels and then we will really see the consequences.”
If you’ve ever felt a pang of pity for a starving bee struggling on the pavement in front of you, then help may soon be at hand. Or more precisely, in your wallet.
A community development worker has invented a credit card-style reviver for bees containing three sachets of sugar solution, which can be placed beside the insect to feed it.
Martin Harper, the RSPB’s Global Conservation Director has published a blog post on the fallout from Natural England’s decision to change wildlife licensing rules
Bedfordshire Cambridgeshire Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust Logo
While the weather may not be quite sure what it’s doing, we do! We have lots going on across the county in the next few months, it would be great if you could join us.
Click here for our upcoming May events and the following list for June & July dates.
A fieldfare sightings has been confirmed by an RSPB Birder whom I met at Pilch on Friday last. They were very late to arrive and then left late from North Bucks this year. There is a great proliferation of Green-winged orchids and many cowslips still in full flower. Great for all you photographers out there, as colour of both is great.
There are strong purple to pink in the variations on the orchids this year which showed so well in the dullish 4pm onwards light on showery evenings.
Marsh marigolds are much more extensive this year with several new clumps in both fields.
The impact of BBOWT WORK Parties on clearing bramble in both field is welcome with very extensive areas of Adders Tongue on ridge and furrow clearings just in front of the trees area at far end of larger Pilch Field, uphill on the side of old pond area.
Dutch engineers are building what will be the world’s largest archipelago of islands made up of sun-tracking solar panels.
Growing resistance to the construction of wind turbines or fields of solar panels on land has led the renewable energy industry to look for alternative options. Large islands of solar panels are under construction or already in place in reservoirs and lakes across the Netherlands, China, the UK and Japan.
Most lawns have been silenced by the regime of a lawnmower, leaving just a few species of grass. They are biodiversity deserts, barren of beetle and bee, contributing to a vanishing insect population – and worse still, we pursue this. There are aisles in garden centres promising ever-greener sward, with no moss and weeds. Let there be no misunderstanding: these are chemicals that silence the soil.
The Beast of Beddau has joined the Maerdy Monster as a new bug species found at old coal mine sites in the UK.
The small, white millipede is one of more than 900 different species found during a three-year study which highlights the importance of colliery spoil sites in south Wales to wildlife.
It was found at the old Cwm Colliery near Beddau, described as one of the most biodiverse in the region.
A new report launched by Buglife has looked in detail at the role road verges play for pollinators across the UK. It concludes that road verges are important habitats for pollinators, providing food and shelter and connecting many habitats though they also present the threat of collisions and pollutants.
Andy Clements, BTO Chief Executive, sets out BTO’s position regarding the current debate about wildlife licensing
In the UK, certain wild bird species can be lethally controlled (killed) when the conditions of a licence from Natural England have been met. General Licences – the subject of current public debate – are licences for people to use without applying for a licence to undertake a particular activity. The principles embedded in the legislation to protect wild birds are that lethal control is used only as a last resort and in circumstances where the target birds can have a significant negative impact, for example on health and safety (birds and aircraft), livelihoods (Woodpigeons and food crops) or on the conservation of other wildlife.
We are being asked to leave opinions on an official government Facebook page about Hedge & Tree netting. 350k+ people signed the petition, now it’s time to let them know how much it means to you to put a stop to it. Please respond to the request. Thank you
A lost river has returned to the Somerset countryside for the first time in 70 years, and with it a new habitat for several species of rare and threatened wildlife.
“Make no mistake, this report will change your life,” says Prof David Reay at the University of Edinburgh. “If the meticulous and robust expert advice here is heeded it will deliver a revolution in every facet of our lives, from how we power our homes and travel to work to the food we buy.”
Ants are 1 of the most successful families on 🌏 with 12,000+ species. Luckily, there’s only 50 species in the UK & Richard Becker has made a quick ID chartfor the most common species
Bluebells by Harry Appleyard, Howe Park Wood 10 April 2016
Carpets of native English bluebells in ancient woodlands are a very special and very British wildlife spectacle. While they grow in other parts of Western Europe bluebells reach their highest densities in Britain and Ireland. It is estimated that 25% – 50% of all common bluebells can be found in the British Isles. Bluebells are a key indicator species for ancient woodlands, which means bluebell woods are likely to date back to at least 1600 and may be much much older.
Today, [3rd May, 2019] my team officially launches a new Defra Science project – the Systems Research Programme.
This programme breaks new ground by taking a “systems-thinking” approach to understanding the key policy questions across the Defra group. Defra manages different systems such as the food, water, waste, land use or marine. These systems involve many components which interact in defined ways at various scales. By mapping these systems – identifying the interdependencies between different components and relating these two areas of the Defra Portfolio – we have the opportunity to consider how Defra works and whether this needs to change.
Dr Joanne Chory hopes that genetic modifications to enhance plants’ natural carbon-fixing traits could play a key role – but knows that time is short, for her and the planet
International Dawn Chorus Day is held on the first Sunday in May each year, which falls on May 5th in 2019. The event is promoted by the Wildlife Trust and this is the perfect opportunity for nature lovers to gather at dawn in one of the scenic spots in the United Kingdom to listen to the sounds of birds as they sing to great the rising sun.
The trip across to the Isle of Wight to help monitor the number of webs of the Glanville Fritillary is a real highlight of the year and helps to understand trends in the population size.
Dr Erica McAlister, of London’s Natural History Museum, talks to Jim Al-Khalili about the beautiful world of flies and the 2.5 million specimens for which she is jointly responsible.
According to Erica, a world without flies would be full of faeces and dead bodies. Unlike, for example, butterflies and moths, whose caterpillars spend their time devouring our crops and plants, fly larvae tend to help rid the world of waste materials and then, as adults, perform essential work as pollinators. Yet they are rather unloved by humans who tend to regard them as pests at best and disease vectors at worst.
2019 is international Year of the Fly, and dipterists and entomologists around the world are working to raise the profile of the many thousands of species so far known to science.
Erica tells Jim about her work in the museum, cataloguing and identifying new species either sent in from other researchers or discovered by her and her colleagues on swashbuckling trips around the world. Modern gene sequencing techniques are revealing new chapters in the life histories of species, and her collection of 300 year old dead flies continues to expand our knowledge of how the world works.
Perhaps in the future, she argues, we will all be eating pasta and bread made from fly-larvae protein, or using small tea-bag like packets of maggots in our wounds to clean out gangrenous infection.
To avoid a climate emergency we need to act fast. Rewilding and other natural climate solutions can draw millions of tonnes of CO2 out of the air through restoring and protecting our living systems. We call on the UK government to make a bold financial and political commitment to nature’s recovery.
The resting position of the Early Thorn distinguishes it from all other British thorns, with wings held back and close together, similar to a butterfly. The summer generation is smaller and paler, typically with larger tawny orange patches on the underside. Darker forms are encountered in the north.
The RSPB North Bucks Local Group are leading a field trip to:
Location: Linford Lakes Nature Reserve. Meet in car park. Leave Newport Rd on north side opposite entrance to Black Horse pub. After 50m fork left and follow track, reaching car park after 1/3 mile. SP 843 429, MK14 5AH.
Postcode: MK14 5AH (Google map)
Linford is a great place to hear birdsong at its best, being away from roads. The scrub and woodland attracts a huge variety of songsters. Early morning is also good to see mammals. A joint event with the Friends group, who may (no promises!) lay on breakfast at the end. Paths accessible with care to wheelchairs/buggies.
Time: 6am to 8.30am PLEASE NOTE EARLY START!
Price: Free event
Read more at https://ww2.rspb.org.uk/groups/northbucks/events/#DyfQO641kuyGlqHy.99
See the RSPB North Bucks Local Group website for more information
MKNHS is not responsible for the content of external Internet sites. You should check details of any events listed on external sites with the organisers.
Russian authorities have decided to free nearly 100 whales held in cages in the country’s far east, according to reports.
Images of the whales, kept in cramped enclosures in a bay near the Sea of Japan port city of Nakhodka, first appeared last year, triggering a storm of criticism…
Two-thirds of the ice in the glaciers of the Alps is doomed to melt by the end of the century as climate change forces up temperatures, a study has found.
Half of the ice in the mountain chain’s 4,000 glaciers will be gone by 2050 due to global warming already baked in by past emissions, the research shows. After that, even if carbon emissions have plummeted to zero, two-thirds of the ice will still have melted by 2100.
The obstacles to President Donald Trump’s border wall are not confined to the four walls of Congress. As areas are cleared to start building new sections, some landowners, including a butterfly sanctuary, have sued to stop the construction.
The typical form of this common species has a distinct black mark on the forewing that is unique among spring-flying moths, but in northern parts, this mark may be the same as the ground colour, or paler.
This moth spends the winter as a pupa in an underground cocoon, with the adult fully formed inside. The caterpillars can be found between April and July, feeding mainly at night on the buds and then the leaves of their foodplant.
Imagine spring without bird song. Imagine summer without a bee’s busy buzz. 56% of UK wildlife is in decline and time’s running out to protect what’s left. Spread the word – don’t let nature’s music stop.
This summer we will be using a new, non-invasive technique – footprint tunnels – to look for dormice in a Northamptonshire woodland. Local volunteers will be needed on the ground but volunteers from anywhere can help identify the footprints.
Every year, from November through March, leatherback sea turtles arrive to the secluded shores of the Río Escalante Chacocente wildlife reserve on Nicaragua’s Pacific coast to lay their eggs.
The League Against Cruel Sports has gathered 284 reports of illegal hunting activity and 43 reports of fox kills by hunts, from November when the season opened, to now, at its close.
The RSPB North Bucks Local Group are hosting a talk:
Location: The Cruck Barn, City Discovery Centre, Alston Drive, Bradwell Abbey, Milton Keynes
Postcode: MK13 9AP (Google map)
As RSPB’s Conservation Director, Martin is perfectly placed to update us on key conservation issues – he and his team are often at the very heart of some of the key issues for the RSPB. Martin will talk about the species, locations and habitats that are RSPB’s current priorities and what the Conservation team at RSPB are hoping to achieve over the coming years. Sure to be a topical, informative and entertaining evening.
*** This illustrated talk will be preceded by our short Annual General Meeting ***
Time: Doors open 7.15pm for a prompt 7.45pm start, ends at 10pm
Price: Group members £3, Non-group members £4, Children £1
See the RSPB North Bucks Local Group website for more information
MKNHS is not responsible for the content of external Internet sites. You should check details of any events listed on external sites with the organisers.
Yesterday afternoon (23 April), nearly 10 weeks after Wild Justice launched a challenge to the legality of the 2019 General Licences (on 13 February), Natural England announced that it was revoking 2019 General Licences 04/05/06 on Thursday (25 April) after deciding to do so at its Board meeting of 15 April.
After nearly four decades of unlawful casual killing of millions, tens of millions, of birds, sanctioned by a succession of government statutory conservation agencies over the years, the current system has been shown to be unlawful by the tiny and fledgling wildlife organisation, Wild Justice.
The shooting of thousands of geese on the island of Islay leaves many to suffer a slow death, contaminates the environment and is founded on “poor science”, according to a new scientific study.
Independent bird experts have concluded that the mass culling of geese that fly in every October from Greenland is unnecessary, unsustainable and does not deliver value for money. They have called for the killing to end.
Greater Spotted Woodpecker by Peter Hassett, College Lakes 18 June 2017
Which bird species do people like and dislike? What are the reasons? Alessandro Pirzio-Biroli, a master’s student at Imperial College London, wants your help to find out. Please spare 5 minutes to complete this survey –
Glaciers are set to disappear completely from almost half of World Heritage sites if emissions continue.
The release of methane and carbon dioxide from thawing permafrost will accelerate global warming and add up to $70tn (£54tn) to the world’s climate bill, according to the most advanced study yet of the economic consequences of a melting Arctic.
This June, join hundreds of thousands of people taking part in 30 Days Wild. We’re challenging you to do something a little bit wild every day: that’s 30 Days of fun, exciting and simple Random Acts of Wildness. It’s easy!
A butterfly on the brink of extinction in Kent has seen its population more than treble across the county thanks to a decade of conservation work to turn its fortunes around, wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation (BC) can reveal.
April and May mark the start of the Common Sandpiper breeding season, as males display along rivers and streams and around the banks of lakes and reservoirs. Numbers in the United Kingdom have declined by 26% in just over 20 years, providing an increased focus to research that has been taking place over five decades.
Our moth guide looks at how to identify UK species, trapping and the best plants for attracting moths to your garden
Emperor penguins at the Halley Bay colony in the Weddell Sea have failed to raise chicks for the last three years.
Renowned amphibian and reptile photographer Matthijs Kuijpers has released his first book, Cold Instinct. Kuijpers says the aim of the work is ‘for the viewer to abandon the fear and negative thoughts that often surround these animals’. What’s left is the bizarre beauty of these creatures in their simplest form – no backgrounds and no distractions
There are some 30 different species of harvestmen (Opiliones) in the UK. This interactive guide is a resource for anyone who wants to identify a harvestman and/or learn about the features that can be used to separate the different taxa in the field.
The beauty of a wildflower meadow is that it is constantly in a state of change. Nature teaches me to be patient: to wait and see what happens each year. It is beyond my control. Nature teaches me to let-go. Observing the wildflowers and the life that thrives there is a form of meditation, as self is forgotten and is immersed amidst endlessly fascinating beauty and a constantly changing scene. The wildflowers and life amongst them have become family and are regarded with loving-kindness. I care deeply about their well-being. Nature is sacred and is observed with awe and wonder. I cannot stress enough how beneficial a wildflower meadow’s beauty, wildlife and perfume is for your health. We need them to become the common, uncommonly beautiful sight that they were in the middle ages once again.
An antidote has been discovered for the world’s most venomous creature, the Australian box jellyfish.
Wildlife campaigners have hailed a “historic day for Scotland” as beavers are granted protected status a decade after their successful reintroduction in Argyll.
Good news! Ravens venturing on to the grouse moors of Strathbraan in Highland Perthshire this year will NOTbe the victims of an SNH-sanctioned kill-fest ‘just to see what happens’, as they were in 2018.
This tropical-looking moth is very distinctive. Rarely, individuals with yellow hindwings or yellow spots on the forewings occur, and in some forms the hindwings may be extensively black.
Plastic bags that claim to be biodegradable were still intact and able to carry shopping three years after being exposed to the natural environment, a study has found.
Strongly associated with buildings and summer skies, the swift is the poster bird for urban nature conservation. The fastest bird in level flight, built for speed and to stay on the wing – including to eat, drink, preen and mate – they only land to nest and raise their young.
Check out this new ID guide for Large and Medium Fritillaries, now available to download from the European Butterflies Group website
Britain has gone a week without using coal to generate electricity for the first time since Queen Victoria was on the throne, in a landmark moment in the transition away from the heavily polluting fuel.
Police wildlife crime officers are investigating the shooting of two birds of prey in the Borders.
A biological record is essentially a point on a map showing you that a certain species/organism was found at that location by someone on a certain date. If you see an organism you know how to identify in your garden, whilst out walking, or anywhere, you can create a biological record. Some people are active recorders recording on a weekly or even daily basis, some just send in casual records when they’re out and about. However, before making a record, you must have these four key components covered:
Most lawns are biodiversity deserts, but there is a simple way to encourage nature – and you don’t even have to ditch the mower
The world’s leading scientists will warn the planet’s life-support systems are approaching a danger zone for humanity when they release the results of the most comprehensive study of life on Earth ever undertaken.
The Lummi Nation is dropping live salmon into the sea in a last-ditch rescue effort: ‘We don’t have much time’
British hedgehogs have suffered a rapid population decline. Here are 10 ways you can save these adorable mammals.
With their elongated bills and specially adapted tongues, hummingbirds are built to extract nectar from flowers. As new research shows, however, some hummingbirds from South America have evolved beaks designed to poke, prod, and pinch—at the expense of feeding proficiency.
Found throughout England and Wales but becoming increasingly rare. Wings black or dark brown with checker-board of white spots. A small, low-flying, darting butterfly. Dingy Skipper similar in size but wings much duller.
More than half of the world’s new oil and gas pipelines are located in North America, with a boom in US oil and gas drilling set to deliver a major blow to efforts to slow climate change, a new report has found.
Millions of hectares of pristine tropical rainforest were destroyed in 2018, according to satellite analysis, with beef, chocolate and palm oil among the main causes.
The most comprehensive and detailed review of the state of nature has been published in Paris. Our environment correspondent Matt McGrath extracts the key messages.
Humanity must save insects, if not for their sake, then for ourselves, a leading entomologist has warned.
If you’ve ever felt a pang of pity for a starving bee struggling on the pavement in front of you, then help may soon be at hand. Or more precisely, in your wallet.
Martin Harper, the RSPB’s Global Conservation Director has published a blog post on the fallout from Natural England’s decision to change wildlife licensing rules
Dutch engineers are building what will be the world’s largest archipelago of islands made up of sun-tracking solar panels.
The Beast of Beddau has joined the Maerdy Monster as a new bug species found at old coal mine sites in the UK.
On land, in the seas, in the sky, the devastating impact of humans on nature is laid bare in a compelling UN report.
Do you love wild flowers? Would you like to know more about them? And help save them for the future? So would we.
Andy Clements, BTO Chief Executive, sets out BTO’s position regarding the current debate about wildlife licensing
“Make no mistake, this report will change your life,” says Prof David Reay at the University of Edinburgh. “If the meticulous and robust expert advice here is heeded it will deliver a revolution in every facet of our lives, from how we power our homes and travel to work to the food we buy.”
A nature reserve found to be a breeding site for an endangered species of bird has been designated as a protected Local Wildlife Site.
Today, [3rd May, 2019] my team officially launches a new Defra Science project – the Systems Research Programme.
MPs have approved a motion to declare an environment and climate emergency.
International Dawn Chorus Day is held on the first Sunday in May each year, which falls on May 5th in 2019. The event is promoted by the Wildlife Trust and this is the perfect opportunity for nature lovers to gather at dawn in one of the scenic spots in the United Kingdom to listen to the sounds of birds as they sing to great the rising sun.
Click here to view the Bedfordshire Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust newsletter.The trip across to the Isle of Wight to help monitor the number of webs of the Glanville Fritillary is a real highlight of the year and helps to understand trends in the population size.
In world first, Sydney researchers observe lizard’s egg laying and live birth three weeks later from a single litter
Climate change can’t be halted if we carry on degrading the soil, a report will say.
A “rogue” fish has been removed from a lake after children reported seeing it eating ducks.
Primitive ponds may have provided a suitable environment for brewing up Earth’s first life forms, more so than oceans, a new MIT study finds.
The resting position of the Early Thorn distinguishes it from all other British thorns, with wings held back and close together, similar to a butterfly. The summer generation is smaller and paler, typically with larger tawny orange patches on the underside. Darker forms are encountered in the north.
The RSPB North Bucks Local Group are leading a field trip to:Russian authorities have decided to free nearly 100 whales held in cages in the country’s far east, according to reports.
The wood will be open all day (10am to 5pm) on both the Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday.
Two-thirds of the ice in the glaciers of the Alps is doomed to melt by the end of the century as climate change forces up temperatures, a study has found.
The typical form of this common species has a distinct black mark on the forewing that is unique among spring-flying moths, but in northern parts, this mark may be the same as the ground colour, or paler.
This summer we will be using a new, non-invasive technique – footprint tunnels – to look for dormice in a Northamptonshire woodland. Local volunteers will be needed on the ground but volunteers from anywhere can help identify the footprints.
The shooting of thousands of geese on the island of Islay leaves many to suffer a slow death, contaminates the environment and is founded on “poor science”, according to a new scientific study.
