The best read

I think Butterfly Conservation‘s magazine, wittily called ‘Butterfly‘, is the best read of all the magazines produced by wildlife NGOs. I’m not sure whether it has had a make-over because it has always been excellent, but the current issue, that has a common blue on the cover (a close up of the image used at…

What’s in a name?

I’m quite happy being called Mark.  It’s nice and short, easy to say and comes from the Roman god of war – Mark was one of the three commonest male names in Ancient Rome.  And seems fitting given that I was born in March too. My surname, Avery, is of uncertain origin.  I had a…

Gardening leave

I don’t get out much these days – I spend much of the day sitting at a computer and writing.  I’m not complaining – it’s what I want to do, but I am a bit deskbound. The other day I heard a bird call come through the window that was closed to keep the heat…

Guest Blog – Action wins! by Jonny Rankin

Based in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, I have a number of interests but I am always content to be out birding, which is usually every day walking my dog Fender.  I do a lot of birding in Suffolk Breck but of course go further afield too. Knowledge speaks, wisdom listens, but in the end, it’s…