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Bird/poultry flu update
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We near the end of 2020 with a further rise in detected cases of avian flu in wild birds (affected counties shaded pink below), mostly swans and geese, and new cases in poultry in Devon and Norfolk (all cases this winter indicated with blue splodges below).
Jane V. Adams – Jackdaws
Jane is a naturalist, photographer and nature writer living in Dorset. Her work has appeared in books, anthologies and blogs for charities such as The Wildlife Trusts and the International Bee Research Association. When she’s not exploring Dorset’s lanes and countryside she can be found lying on her stomach watching insects in her garden. Jane…
Otter with Octopus by Gordon Yates
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Gordon Yates is a wildlife photographer and many of his superb images of Hen Harriers have graced these pages over the years. Here are two images of a female Otter, photographed on Islay in November, bringing an octopus to her cubs.
Happy New Year Mr Pursglove
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A letter to my MP: Dear Mr Pursglove I hope you have had as merry a Christmas as is possible under present circumstances and I wish you a safe 2021. It may seem a little odd to bother you with a missive in this period between Christmas and New Year but I guess you’ll be…
Brood meddling appeal – four weeks away
Four weeks today (and tomorrow) the Court of Appeal will be hearing my, and the RSPB’s, appeals against Natural England issuing licences to allow brood meddling of Hen Harriers ie Tuesday 26 and Wednesday 27 January. This process started as far as I was concerned in January 2018 and we went to court in December…
Book review – Back to Nature by Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin
This is a very good book – and although Chris Packham is a mate of mine, that isn’t why I think it is a very good book. It’s a book about conservation issues now, and it needs to be read widely. But this isn’t a book solely by Chris, it is co-authored with Megan McCubbin…
Dream of the Highland tiger by Peter Howard
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DREAM OF THE HIGHLAND TIGER Felis silvestris grampia Pete Howard has worked in Nature Conservation for the past 20 years, mainly in species monitoring and protection for the RSPB. He lives in north Cumbria, where he is regional Bird Recorder and Vice Chair of the Cumbria Bird Club. He is also an irredeemable butterfly fanatic….
Guest blog – Digging Holes by Alick Simmons
Alick Simmons is a veterinarian, naturalist and photographer. He lives in Somerset. He has written six previous guest blogs here – click here. His Twitter handle: @alicksimmons I’m a conservation newbie, an ingenu trying to compensate for a terrifying lack of experience. Although I’ve been a wildlife nut since my early teens (and a proud…
Tim Melling – Wryneck
Tim writes: Wrynecks used to breed in Britain and in Victorian times were found in every county in England and Wales south of the Humber. But they had dwindled to extinction by the 1970s while a small population temporarily colonised Scotland, which was way outside its original range. But I don’t think it has bred…