Last week the coalition government came out with their energy policy proposals. It can be seen as a small victory for the Liberal Democrats in the government that the worst excesses of Conservative climate-scepticism were pushed aside. There will not be a new dash for climate-changing gas but a dash for renewables and nuclear. We…
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Waging war
Today is Remembrance Sunday and this year it falls on the 11th day of the 11th month. The Second World War was the deadliest conflict in human history but I was surprised to learn that the First World War was ‘only’ the sixth deadliest. Are you wearing a poppy? It’s interesting that we use a…
Haiku
Do you know the story of the Wake Island rail? It lived, guess where?, Yes! on Wake Island and nowhere else. Wake Island is a small Pacific island and the Wake Island rail was a small flightless rail. When Japanese soldiers arrived on Wake Island there were rails, after they left there were no rails. …
How many is best?
What is the best number of people to go birdwatching together? I’ve been pondering this question and discussing it with my birding companions and I have made up my mind – but what do you think? Now I expect you’ll ask what ‘best’ means and what ‘go birdwatching’ means – because you are that…
Desert Island Naturalists
I am a big fan of Desert Island Discs. As the theme tune comes on I have usually organised my late Sunday mornings so that I can listen in peace to the guest and their choice of music. Sometimes I get bored after a while but usually I love it! This programme has been a…
Five years on…
On the evening of 24 October 2007 I was on the train to London and received a phone call from one of my staff. He told me that he had received a report from a Natural England staff member who had just seen two hen harriers shot out of the air on or near the…
Naturally curious
Reading the minutes of other people’s meetings is not my natural habitat or habit. However, you never know what you might find. The trouble is, most minutes are written to hide rather than expose any interesting parts of the meetings they purport to summarise. What might we find out if we had the energy to…
Children’s Eyes on Earth
You have a few days to vote in this international photographic competition for children and young people up to the age of 17. Voting closes at midnight on 25 September but why not vote now, otherwise you’ll forget won’t you? There are 50 photographs from around the world and some of them are stunning –…
Montreal
25 years ago, that’s all, the Montreal Protocol was signed. The ozone hole is healing. International agreements can be agreements and can make a difference. Let’s have some more please.
For all that’s sacred…
I had a brief and pleasant walk at Stanwick Lakes one lunchtime this week. The sun shone and there were lots of birds around. A common sandpiper meant that it was either autumn or spring. An adult yellow-legged gull made it more likely that it was late summer as that is when I see most…