Continued from last Saturday After a few days of getting to know the Colonsay, with lots of short drives and walks to the most accessible places, I thought it was time to venture out into one of the more remote and wilder parts of the island. A look at the Ordnance Survey map drew me…
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
Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and spent convictions – media mentions
I am considering two guest blogs at the moment – both happen to be about fox hunting but similar issues arise as those described below about other wildlife crimes (such as against birds of prey). When people write about illegal fox hunting they tend to want to give examples where ‘huntspeople’ have been convicted of…
Saturday cartoon by Ralph Underhill
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Did you see this story in the Independent this week? Endangered sharks being served up in British fish and chip shops, study reveals ‘It’s almost impossible for consumers to know what they are buying‘ https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/sharks-endangered-fish-and-ship-shops-fishmongers-dogfish-hammerheads-a8755821.html
My garden birds – January 2019
Last year I recorded which days I saw Red Kites, this year I am keeping a list of birds seen in or from my garden. Well, I’m on a respectable but not very impressive 24 species so far: Robin House Sparrow Jackdaw Blackbird Woodpigeon Starling Black-headed Gull Great Tit Red Kite Carrion Crow Chaffinch Goldfinch…
BTO report being used by SNH to justify Raven culls
A BTO research report, which looks quite good to me, is being used, wrongly, by SNH to justify further Raven culls. The report, essentially, says that killing a few Ravens won’t make any difference to the Scottish Raven population level. That is certainly true (and I give you that finding freely – no charge!). However,…
The Wadsworth Trog on Walshaw Moor (Wuthering Moors 82)
Tomorrow, Saturday, there is a fell run over parts of Walshaw Moor organised by the Calder Valley Fell Runners and called the Wadsworth Trog. We’ve missed the chance of entering (damn!) this race of 19 miles and a height range of over 3600′. Few of the entrants will probably realise that Walshaw Moor is one…
One last push?
A few more signatures won’t really make any difference to anything, but I’ve been glad to see Les Wallace’s epetition continue to keep rising after passing 10,000 signatures on Monday night. Click here to sign the petition that grouse shooters would like to be ignored.
National Trust press release
Hambledon Hill. Photo: John Miller. Rising to the challenge – ancient hillforts and wildlife to be given new lease of life Thirteen majestic iron age hillforts and 332 hectares (820 acres) of their surrounding landscape across Dorset and Wiltshire are to be given a new lease of life as part of a generous award of…
Guest blog – Blanket bog burning: what’s planned? by Bob Berzins
Natural England has outlined proposals for the restriction of burning but what difference will we see in our uplands? A Freedom of Information request has revealed the following: There is a complicated series of consents which currently allow burning to take place on blanket bog. NE say “The consents will be individually modified or revoked….
Natural England – you need to look in the mirror
Our latest victory to protect moorland habitat was a victory against Natural England, the government agency and regulator whose job it is to protect such habitats. Just read that sentence again. The government agency which we pay to protect the environment has been forced, eventually, to do the right thing because of a legal challenge…