Update – we are 10,905 ahead

Here is an update on three e-petitions about grouse shooting: Gavin Gamble’s e-petition in favour of banning driven grouse shooting – c25,200 signatures Jane Griggs’s e-petition supporting grouse shooting – c14,300 signatures Ed Hutchings’s e-petition in favour of licensing grouse shooting – c1,900 signatures The last week has seen the ‘Gamble-ban’ e-petition pass 25,000 signatures,…

Shuffling

There may be a reshuffle today. Theresa May has a poor hand and it seems to be rather rich in jokers. What will she do? Let’s hope that Michael Gove stays in place so that he has to take things forward in this unfrozen moment. Many of the changes will be in the junior minister…

Oscar Dewhurst – Canada Goose

Oscar writes: this was taken earlier in the summer in Richmond Park, when there was a thick layer of mist over the pen ponds. There hadn’t been much deer activity, so I had a look on the ponds for any birds I could photograph before the mist burnt off, and luckily the flock of Canada…

Wild food (24) – Wood Sorrel by Ian Carter

This small, delicate plant is easy to overlook with its diminutive stature and uniform pale-green colour, but once you start looking out for it you will start to notice it everywhere. The trifoliate, heart-shaped leaves can be found throughout the year in a wide range of habitats, though it is less common (and less palatable…

Tim Melling – A Butterfly Mystery

Tim writes: Clouded Yellows (Colias crocea) have a small proportion of females that have a white ground colour instead of yellow, and this form is known as helice. This is one such female but there is a problem, as this isn’t a Clouded Yellow. This is an African Clouded Yellow (Colias electo) photographed in Ethiopia…