Click here for more information.: Birds of prey stamps released by Royal Mail – Discover Wildlife

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.

Click here for more information.: Grizzled Skipper

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: North American drilling boom threatens big blow to climate efforts, study finds | Environment | The Guardian

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: ‘Death by a thousand cuts’: vast expanse of rainforest lost in 2018 | Environment | The Guardian

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Five things we’ve learned from nature crisis study – BBC News

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.”

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Humanity must save insects to save ourselves, leading scientist warns | Environment | The Guardian

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: ‘Bee saviour’ sugar cards could save starving insects | Environment | The Guardian

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

Click here to read the blog: A comment on the fallout from Natural England’s decision to change wildlife licensing rules – Martin Harper’s blog – Our work – The RSPB Community

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.

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Dutch engineers build world’s biggest sun-seeking solar farm | World news | The Guardian

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Why you should turn your lawn into a meadow | Life and style | The Guardian

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Biodiversity: ‘Beast of Beddau’ is new millipede find – BBC News

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.

Click here for more information.: Road verges can be key for pollinator survival | Buglife

On land, in the seas, in the sky, the devastating impact of humans on nature is laid bare in a compelling UN report.

One million animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction.

Nature everywhere is declining at a speed never previously seen and our need for ever more food and energy are the main drivers.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Nature crisis: Humans ‘threaten 1m species with extinction’ – BBC News

Do you love wild flowers? Would you like to know more about them? And help save them for the future? So would we.

Click here to get involved.: Great British Wildflower Hunt

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: General licences and BTO | BTO – British Trust for Ornithology

UK Government logo

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

Click here for more information.

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Lost river returns to Somerset 70 years after it dried up | Environment | The Guardian

“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.”

Click here to read the rest of the article.: ‘This report will change your life’: what zero emissions means for UK | Environment | The Guardian

A nature reserve found to be a breeding site for an endangered species of bird has been designated as a protected Local Wildlife Site.

Waterstock, near Oxford, is home to a population of curlews but is also an important site for otters, other mammals and some endangered plants.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Curlew breeding site at Waterstock gets protected status – BBC News

Ant identification

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 chart  for the most common species

Click here to read the view the chart.

Alex White has produced a short film (4.5 minutes) promoting the wildlife in his churchyard in Appleton, Oxfordshire

Click here for more information.: Churchyard Wildlife | Appleton Wildlife Diary by Alex White

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.

Click here to see Bluebell Wood recommended by the Bedfordshire Cambridgeshire Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust: Discover bluebells | Wildlife Trust for Beds, Cambs & Northants

Today, [3^rd 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.

Click here for more information:
Defra press release
Professor Ian Boyd’s blog

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

Click here to read the rest of the article.: This scientist thinks she has the key to curb climate change: super plants | Environment | The Guardian

https://issuu.com/nfbr/docs/nfbr_issue_57

MPs have approved a motion to declare an environment and climate emergency.

This proposal, which demonstrates the will of the Commons on the issue but does not legally compel the government to act, was approved without a vote.

Click here for more information.: UK Parliament declares climate change emergency – BBC News

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 for more information:
History and background
RSPB events
RSPB Local Group Dawn Chorus walk at Linford Lakes

Adonis Blue: The Movie. Sugar-crazed red ants satisfy the needs of Polyommatus bellargus caterpillar in return for sweet excretions! 🎬🐜😍🦋

Researchers have found that the decline in native oak puts more than 2,300 species at risk.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Native oak decline threatens thousands of species – Discover Wildlife

Click here to view the Bedfordshire Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust newsletter.

Click here to view the RSPB 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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Searching for webs of the Glanville Fritillary

Common Bird’s-foot-trefoil by Peter Hassett at Grangelands NR. 23May15

Plantlife produce a number of interesting guides to wildflowers.

Click here to download their spotter sheet for May.

In world first, Sydney researchers observe lizard’s egg laying and live birth three weeks later from a single litter

Click here to read the rest of the article.: ‘Very, very unusual’: Australian skink lays eggs, then gives birth to live baby | Environment | The Guardian

Climate change can’t be halted if we carry on degrading the soil, a report will say.

There’s three times more carbon in the soil than in the atmosphere – but that carbon’s being released by deforestation and poor farming.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Climate change being fuelled by soil damage – report – BBC News

Stalk-eyed fly

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.

Click here to listen to the 30 minute interview: The Life Scientific – Erica McAlister on the beauty of flies – BBC Sounds

A “rogue” fish has been removed from a lake after children reported seeing it eating ducks.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: ‘Duck-eating’ fish removed from Lakeside shopping centre lake – BBC News

UK Government logo

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.

Click here for more information.: Restore nature on a massive scale to help stop climate breakdown – Petitions

The number of curlews in Wales has dropped by 80% since 1990 with farming practices partly to blame, a charity has said.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Decline in curlew birds as farming ‘destroys habitat’ – BBC News

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Earliest life may have arisen in ponds, not oceans

Tests are being carried out on two suspected piranhas found dead in a Yorkshire fishing lake.

The razor-toothed fish were found by local anglers at Martinwells Lake at Edlington, near Doncaster, a popular walking and fishing spot.

Click here for more information:
BBC
Source: The Guardian

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.

Click here for more information.: Early Thorn

Thousands of emperor penguin chicks drowned when the sea-ice on which they were being raised was destroyed in severe weather.

Click here for more information.
BBC
The Guardian

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…

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Russia moves to free nearly 100 captive whales after outcry | World news | The Guardian

The wood will be open all day (10am to 5pm) on both the Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday.

Click here for more information.: Bluebell Weekend 2019 – Sunday 5th & Monday 6th May

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Two-thirds of glacier ice in the Alps ‘will melt by 2100’ | Environment | The Guardian

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: The butterflies that could stop Trump’s wall – BBC News

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.

Click here for more information.: Hebrew Character

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.

Source: Let Nature Sing: help get birdsong into the charts

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.

Source: Volunteers needed for a new dormice survey! | Wildlife Trust for Beds, Cambs & Northants

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Turtles’ absence from Nicaraguan stronghold raises alarm for future | Environment | The Guardian

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Scale of fox hunting killing

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.

Aerial view of Linford Lakes Study Centre

Task Sunday at Linford Lakes NR

10:00- 13:00hrs

Come and help tidy up the reserve.
Jobs for all levels of fitness and all abilities.
Refreshments available for helpers.

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.

Click here for more information.:
Statement by Wild Justice
NewScientist

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.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Mass killing of geese on Islay must cease, say scientists | The Ferret

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 – 

Source: Online Survey Software | Qualtrics Survey Solutions

The Garden Butterfly Survey allows you to record and report the butterflies that visit your garden over the course of a year. Create a free account, submit your sightings and help us learn more about how butterflies are faring in UK gardens.

Click here for more information.

Linford Lakes Nature Reserve showing observation deck by Peter Hassett

Wednesday 8 May at Linford Lakes NR
19.00 – 20.30 hrs

Presentation in the Centre
Cost: £2 per adult, £1 for children – payable on the night.

The relationship between bees and flowering plants goes back to the early Cetaceous period, and different species of bee have, over 100 million years or so, developed a number of different physiological adaptations and behavioural traits to enable them to collect pollen.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

The silphid beetles are a very interesting group of insects, many of them associated with carrion. Species in genus Nicrophorus, commonly referred to as Sexton beetles, are well known for their habits of burying small vertebrate carcasses. This group also display bi-parental care, a rare trait among beetles and for this reason are increasingly being used in behavioral research. Other carrion dwellers include Necrodes littoralis and the Thanatophilus species. The very distinctive species Oiceoptoma thoracicum is less specific, and can be found on carrion, dung and fungi. The group also contains some predatory species; Phosphuga atrata (hunts snails) and Dendroxena quadrimaculata(hunts caterpillars).

Click here for more information.

Study shows dramatic fall in baby coral numbers but also change in type of coral

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Great Barrier Reef suffers 89% collapse in new coral after bleaching events | Environment | The Guardian

Every one of the beautiful butterflies that grace our gardens and countryside during the year began life as an egg. So while butterfly eggs may lack the glamour of adult butterflies, they are an essential part of the life cycle; no eggs, no butterflies.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Easter Eggs

Diptera expert Erica McAlister talks to Tom Ireland about the awesome diversity and unappreciated beauty of flies

Click here for more information.: Fantastic flies

Scientists warn that social and economic price of plastic waste to global society has been underestimated

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Marine plastic pollution costs the world up to $2.5tn a year, researchers find | Global development | The Guardian

ATM has been painting on the streets since 2014. Known for his giant murals of birds and animals, his work draws attention to them. Often linking the paintings to the nature of the local area itself. This is about raising awareness of the natural world but in a local, community setting.

Click here for more information.: Ten of the Best Nature Murals by Street Artist ATM – Inspiring City

According to a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the right amount of tree cover can lower daytime temperatures in city landscapes by more than 5°C.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Trees are crucial for the temperature and future of our cities – Discover Wildlife

The RSPB and dozens of environmental groups have resigned from the government’s pesticides forum after two decades claiming the use of dangerous chemicals is now far worse than when they joined.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: RSPB resigns from government’s pesticides forum after chemical use soars 

Avoiding meat and dairy products is one of the biggest ways to reduce your environmental impact, according to recent scientific studies.

But what is the difference between beef and chicken? Does a bowl of rice produce more climate warming greenhouse gases than a plate of chips? Is wine more environmentally friendly than beer?

Click here for more information.: Climate change food calculator: What’s your diet’s carbon footprint? – BBC News

Butterflies have declined by at least 84% in the Netherlands over the last 130 years, according to a study, confirming the crisis affecting insect populations in western Europe.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Butterfly numbers fall by 84% in Netherlands over 130 years – study | Environment | The Guardian

A ground-breaking collaboration is harnessing technology used to study stars, to carry out detailed monitoring of orangutan populations in Borneo.

Liverpool John Moores University (LMJU), WWF and the HUTAN orangutan conservation programme came together to examine ways of detecting the great apes in the Bornean forest canopy.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Counting orangutans using star-spotting technology – Discover Wildlife

To celebrate its centenary, Forestry England is encouraging people to discover and celebrate its woodlands’ wildlife with a new citizen science survey.

The Big Forest Find aims to collect data from forests across the country and provide experts with the information needed to manage the land.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Largest ever survey of England’s forest wildlife – Discover Wildlife

More than 100 dead and injured ringtail possums have been found by wildlife rescuers along a single stretch of beach in Victoria in what ecologists say is becoming an annual occurrence due to extreme heat.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: ‘Falling out of trees’: dozens of dead possums blamed on extreme heat stress | Environment | The Guardian

The English and scientific names of this moth are derived from the distinctive yellowish colour of the antennae. The forewings of the English subspecies are grey or greenish-white with a large pale spot near the centre of the leading edge. The Scottish subspecies is a darker grey.

The caterpillars can be found from mid-May to mid-July feeding at night and resting between two leaves spun flat together during the day. They overwinter as pupae on the ground amongst leaf litter.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Yellow Horned

A record number of dolphins have washed up on France’s Atlantic coast in the last three months, many with devastating injures.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Mutilated dolphins wash up on French coast in record numbers | Environment | The Guardian

On a sunny summer’s day you might have noticed day-flying moths in your garden, such as the Humming-bird Hawk-moth buzzing around the Buddleia, but have you been out after dark with a torch to see which flowers the night-flyers are favouring?

Some adult moths don’t feed at all, such as the Eyed, Lime and Poplar Hawk-moths, but most moths do have to consume nectar to give them the energy needed for flying. While visiting plants they accidentally carry pollen between flowers, so playing an important role in pollination. Flowers that have evolved to attract moths as pollinators are often shades of white, lilac or pale pink so they can be seen at night and they emit their scent more strongly after dark.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Dig it – April Tips from the Secret Gardener

I have a large and well known soft-spot for the bee-flies in family Bombyliidae; it’s not just their adorable looks that have caused my heart to become theirs, but also, they have the most fascinating of life cycles.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Fly of the month – bee-flies – Discover Wildlife

The Morrison government has formally recognised the extinction of a tiny island rodent, the Bramble Cay melomys – the first known demise of a mammal because of human-induced climate change.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: The Bramble Cay melomys is climate change’s first mammal extinction victim

Six members of the Meynell and South Staffordshire Hunt will appear at Nottingham Magistrates Court, accused of hunting fox cubs.

Source: Hunt accused of illegally targeting fox cubs

Dutch elm disease caused a catastrophic decline for the butterfly that relies on the elm to feed its caterpillars. But help is at hand

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Butterflywatch: hope for the rare white-letter hairstreak | Environment | The Guardian

Academics have mapped out a network of sanctuaries they say are required to save the world’s oceans, protect wildlife and fight climate breakdown.

The study, ahead of a historic vote at the UN, sets out the first detailed plan of how countries can protect over a third of the world’s oceans by 2030, a target scientists and policy makers say is crucial in order to safeguard marine ecosystems and help mitigate the impacts of a rapidly heating world.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Campaign to save oceans maps out global network of sanctuaries | Environment | The Guardian

Despite the rather unsettled weather, spring is definitely in the air. In just a matter of weeks migrating birds will be making their way back to the UK, and wintering birds will be heading to the Arctic. The annual migration that some of our most loved birds take is often rather hard to comprehend. Take the Swallow…

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Giant Tesco and the Tiny Swallow | RDS Conservation

Honeybees can learn to add and subtract, according to research showing that while the insects have tiny brains, they are still surprisingly clever.

Researchers behind the study have previously found that honeybees can apparently understand the concept of zero, and learn to correctly indicate which of two groups of objects is the smaller.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Spelling bees? No, but they can do arithmetic, say researchers | Environment | The Guardian

Giant 42.6m-year-old fossil was found along coast of Peru and suggests creature could walk on land

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Fossil of ancient four-legged whale with hooves discovered | Science | The Guardian

The restoration of natural forests and coasts can simultaneously tackle climate change and the annihilation of wildlife but is being worryingly overlooked, an international group of campaigners have said.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Let nature heal climate and biodiversity crises, say campaigners | Environment | The Guardian

Live bird nests have legal protection, but nest sites do not. Swallows, Swifts and Martins return to the same nesting site year after year. If these nesting sites are destroyed, with few alternatives available, local extinctions are likely.

Click here for more information.: Grant legal protection to Swallow, Swift and Martin nest sites not just nests. – Petitions

The Wildlife Trusts and the RHS set up Wild About Gardens to celebrate wildlife gardening and to encourage people to use their gardens to take action to help support nature. Many of our common garden visitors – including hedgehogs, house sparrows and starlings – are increasingly under threat. But together we can make a difference.

Help us turn the UK’s 24 million gardens into a network of nature reserves, and invite our wildlife back.

Click here for more information.

Help us celebrate our centenary by discovering and recording the wildlife in your local forest.

Click here for more information.: The Big Forest Find | Forestry England

One of the world’s most common pesticides will soon be banned by the European Union after safety officials reported human health and environmental concerns.

Chlorothalonil, a fungicide that prevents mildew and mould on crops, is the most used pesticide in the UK, applied to millions of hectares of fields, and is the most popular fungicide in the US. Farmers called the ban “overly precautionary”.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: EU bans UK’s most-used pesticide over health and environment fears | Environment | The Guardian

Weight of 1.75m signatures persuades German state to bypass referendum and order action to protect pollinators

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Bavaria to pass ‘save the bees’ petition into law in landmark move | World news | The Guardian

When at rest the Red Sword-grass is brilliantly camouflaged as a bit of wood. Indeed its scientific name Xylena vetusta means ‘old wood’. It is a widespread species in northern and western parts of the UK, but is capable of long-distance flights so can turn up anywhere.

Red Sword-grass moths hibernate through the winter, starting to emerge in March. The moths visit early blossom such as sallow to drink nectar as well as feeding on the sap of birches.

Click here for more information.: Red Sword-grass

Researchers used state-of-the-art tools to help identify the most suitable location for lynx reintroduction in Scotland – and how this choice might affect the size of a population and its expansion over subsequent decades. Significantly, they believe their model will inform and enhance decision-making around large carnivore reintroductions worldwide.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: New study models the proposed reintroduction of the Eurasian lynx to Scotland | About | University of Stirling

Sexism. Is it a dirty word? It often feels that way – something that people don’t really want to talk about, or if they’re going to, they do it quietly. There’s no doubt that sexism continues to persist in many areas of society – but what about nature conservation? Is our house in order?

Click here to read the rest of the article.: “We must inspire women to fight for nature” – Lucy McRobert discusses sexism in conservation – Discover Wildlife

A deadly disease that wiped out global populations of amphibians led to the decline of 500 species in the past 50 years, including 90 extinctions, scientists say.

A global research effort, led by the Australian National University, has for the first time quantified the worldwide impact of chytridiomycosis, or chytrid fungus, a fungal disease that eats away at the skin of amphibians.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Deadly skin-eating fungal disease wipes out 90 amphibian species in 50 years | Environment | The Guardian

Water Works Project Awarded £1 million

The Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire working with partners Cambridgeshire ACRE, the University of East London and the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology has been awarded £1 million by the People’s Postcode Lottery Dream Fund to pioneer sustainable wet farming in the Cambridgeshire Fens and create a Fen Biosphere.

Click here to read the newsletter: £1million for new project, wildlife sightings and upcoming events

Hockeridge Wood (Royal Forestry Society). On the Bucks / Herts border, this site has an interesting mix of trees with some unusual species. Meet at SP 974 064 at the gated entrance towards the southern end of the wood, parking judiciously on the verge in John’s Lane. From the Chesham direction turn left off the A416 at Ashley Green into Hog Lane, then first right into John’s Lane. From the Berkhamsted direction turn left off Shootersway into Denny’s Lane, pass under the A41, then left fork into John’s Lane, continuing half a mile or so to the gate on your left. (NB Please note that this is NOT where we’ve met in the past at the northern end of John’s Lane at the fork!). Leaders Kerry Robinson, Derek Schafer & Penny Cullington.

Click here for more information.

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The first ever publicly released trail camera video of an ocelot in Arizona provides a glimpse into the life of this rare feline.

Click here for more information.: Extraordinary footage released of a rare wild ocelot in Arizona – Discover Wildlife

Property developers who deliberately demolished a house containing protected bats have been fined £18,000.

Click here to read the rest of the article.: Developer fined for destroying bat home in London – BBC News