Hunting down things to eat (and write about) becomes more of a challenge as the winter months drag on, particularly during prolonged spells of cold weather. I certainly wasn’t expecting to find this species, at least not in flower, during the second half of December. Whilst it’s tempting to blame climate change for this…
Author: Mark
Born Bristol, UK
Educated: Cleeve House School Bristol, Bristol Grammar School and Downing College Cambridge
Ph.D. University of Aberdeen, Winter activity of pipistrelle bats.
NERC post-doctoral Research Fellow, Edward Grey Institute, Oxford University
Former Conservation Director of the RSPB, 1989-2011
Tim Melling – Parrot Crossbills
Parrot Crossbills are restricted to the Western Palearctic, breeding mainly in Scandinavia and NW Russia. But this population is nomadic, occasionally wandering to Britain when their pine cone crop fails. Wandering birds occasionally stay here to breed, and it has become apparent in recent years that a population of about 100 pairs breeds in Caledonian…
RSPB reaction to the e-petition that they ought to have written themselves
Gavin Gamble’s e-petition to ban driven grouse shooting came out of nowhere as far as I was concerned. But I have supported it and will continue to support it, and it has topped 20,000 signatures which is respectable rather than spectacular, but I remain confident that it will reach a much higher total by the…
British Wildlife magazine
The December issue of British Wildlife came through my letter box yesterday but others must have got theirs earlier as I had a few emails and messages on social media about my column. Here’s a taster: ‘On the ground, local NE staff may well be doing their best, and will be doing some good, but…
Calling all sanctimonious and hypocritical bigots!
This email may have started the spurt of support for the ridiculously-worded e-petition in favour of grouse shooting. It was sent out, as you can see above, by a person whose anonymity I will preserve, at least for a while, as he or she (sounds like a bloke though doesn’t he or she?) has done…