|
A round up of the top countryside, conservation, wildlife and forestry stories as chosen by the CJS Team.
Dog owners “walk this way” to cleaner green spaces
– Keep Britain Tidy ‘Walk this way’ - our innovation trial, with the Dogs Trust charity,
saw an impressive 38% cut in dog fouling. And now we want to spread the
benefits
– asking councils to nominate their local parks or public spaces to
receive the make-over too. Image: Keep Britain Tidy Whilst the vast majority of people think dog fouling is the most
offensive litter, our research found 13% of dog owners admit to leaving
bagged dog poo behind on a walk. The most common reason was a lack of
nearby bins (54%), followed by forgetting to collect it on their way
back (40%) and bins nearby being too full (26%). Our pilot saw six popular dog walking routes receive a makeover to
feature more bins and clear signage to find them – leading to a 38%
decrease in dog fouling over the four week period. We’ll be making-over a further 18 sites – so we are asking local
authorities to nominate your local parks and public spaces to join us.
Once we have the 18 new sites, we’ll be working with local authorities
to feature signage, maps and colour-coded routes which clearly mark the
length of the walk and direct walkers to the nearest bins to dispose of
their dogs’ waste along the way. Keep Britain Tidy Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton said:
“Contrary to what some people seem to think, there is, in fact, no such
thing as the dog poo fairy who will come along and remove their bagged
dog poo. The responsibility is on the owner. This approach has led to a
marked reduction in the amount of bagged poo littering parks and we’re
keen to see if this success can be mirrored in even more sites this
year.”
Buglife Reaction to the EC Pollinators Initiative The launch of the EC
Pollinators Initiative on 1st June marks a significant moment for
international cooperation to halt the declines in bees, butterflies,
moths, hoverflies and other pollinators. The actions
identified
by the EC for implementation should all be welcomed, endorsed and
delivered – they will put pollinator conservation on a stronger footing
across the continent. However, despite overwhelming evidence that
EU agriculture policy is not currently compatible with healthy wild bee
populations, a solution has been deferred to the post-2020 Common
Agriculture Policy.
Most importantly the report is clear that “the main threats to
pollinators are established and allow immediate, knowledge-based action
to be undertaken”, the Initiative sets out some clear actions that will
contribute to this aim, while promoting other actions to improve and
develop knowledge. The introduction of an EU wide pollinator scheme is very good news,
getting robust data on wild pollinator population trends should enable
much better protection of the agricultural economy and informed
stewardship of our pollinator populations.
New report offers global outlook on efforts to beat plastic pollution
– World Environment Day
Released on 5 June, a new report from UN
Environment finds a surging momentum in global efforts to address
plastic pollution. The first-of-its-kind accounting finds governments
are increasing the pace of implementation and the scope of action to
curb the use of single-use plastics. In what is framed as the first comprehensive review of ‘state of
plastics’, UN Environment has assembled experiences and assessments of
the various measures and regulations to beat plastic pollution in a
report: “Single-use
Plastics: A roadmap for Sustainability.” This global outlook, developed in cooperation with the Indian
Government and the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change,
presents case studies from more than 60 countries. The report analyzes
the complex relationships in our plastics economy and offers an approach
to rethink how the world produces, uses and manages single-use plastics. Among the recommendations are specific actions policy makers can take
to improve waste management, promote eco-friendly alternatives, educate
consumers, enable voluntary reduction strategies and successfully
implement bans or levies on the use and sale of single-use plastics. The
report was launched in New Delhi today by Indian Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, and Head of UN Environment Erik Solheim on the occasion of World
Environment Day. “The assessment shows that action can be painless and profitable –
with huge gains for people and the planet that help avert the costly
downstream costs of pollution,” said Erik Solheim Head of UN
Environment, in the report’s foreword. “Plastic isn’t the problem. It’s
what we do with it.”
Over 100 MSPs Champion Scottish Biodiversity for 100 Days under the
banner of Scottish Environment LINK’s Species Champions Initiative
- Scottish Environment LINK On 5 June, in celebration of World Environment Day, Scottish
Environment LINK members are launching
their Species Champion 100-day Challenge. For 100 days over 100 Members
of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) who have accepted to become a Species
Champion will be participating in a series of actions raising awareness
about their selected species, encouraging policy changes in support of
their species and raising awareness about wider biodiversity concerns in
Scotland. LINK’s award-winning initiative “Species Champions”
pairs MSPs with species that are under threat in Scotland. With almost 1
in 10 species in Scotland at risk of extinction, political support for
protecting our precious natural environment has never been more
critical. Graeme Dey, MSP for Angus South Constituency and Convener of the
Scottish Parliament Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform
Committee commented:
GPS tracking reveals secrets of gannets’ foraging success
- University of Leeds Long-lived seabird species, such as gannets, take several years to
learn where the best feeding grounds are and how to recognize them, new
research has revealed.
Mini
GPS trackers, attached to the birds by ecologists at the University of
Leeds and University of St Andrews, have uncovered key differences in
how able birds of different ages are to target the best feeding zones. (image: University of Leeds) The research, published in the Royal Society
journal Interface discovered that, while adult birds repeatedly targeted
specific areas associated with oceanographic fronts, immature gannets
ranged more widely and exhibited a limited response to these frontal
areas. Professor Keith Hamer, from the School of Biology at the University
of Leeds, said: “The results of our study provide crucial information on
how seabirds efficiently locate and exploit patchy food resources vital
to their survival and long-term fitness. The time taken for individuals
to learn how to recognize good foraging sites and where they’re likely
to occur probably goes a long way to explaining why seabirds and other
long-lived predators don’t start breeding until they are several years
old. Differences in the foraging ranges of adults and immature birds may
also mean they face different levels of risk at sea, for instance from
collision with offshore wind turbines, which we’re now investigating
further.” Access the paper: W. James Grecian,
Jude V. Lane, Théo Michelot, Helen M. Wade, Keith C. Hamer
Understanding the ontogeny of foraging behaviour: insights from
combining marine predator bio-logging with satellite-derived
oceanography in hidden Markov models
Wildlife sites threatened by Government’s ‘yes’ to Heathrow Airport
expansion - London Wildlife Trust A statement from London Wildlife Trust on the Transport Secretary's
approval this week of a third runway at Heathrow London Wildlife Trust is disappointed – but unsurprised – to see the
Government exhibit its shifting and fickle attitude to the environment
by giving the green light to build a third runway at Heathrow Airport on
World Environment Day. This expansion will be disastrous for the environment close to the
airport, and for the wildlife assets that will be destroyed or damaged
by the expansion westwards into the Colne Valley. It was only in March this year that the Trust officially opened
Huckerby's Meadows, a new nature reserve situated just metres from
Heathrow's existing northern runway, with support from the airport's
operator. A third runway at Heathrow means:
There are 39 wildlife sites within 5km of the proposal, including the
South West London Water Bodies Special Protection Area (SPA) -
supporting internationally important numbers of over-wintering
gadwall and tufted duck - and two Trust nature reserves; Huckerby’s
Meadows and Frays Island & Mabey’s Meadow. There will be significant
implications for potential birdstrike at the SPA site.
You talking to me? Scientists try to unravel the mystery of ‘animal
conversations’ - University of York African elephants like to rumble, naked mole rats trade soft chirps,
while fireflies alternate flashes in courtship dialogues. Welcome to the
weird and wonderful world of ‘animal conversations’.
An
international team of academics undertook a large-scale review of
research into turn-taking behaviour in animal communication, analysing
hundreds of animal studies. (image: University of York) Turn-taking, the orderly exchange of communicative signals, is a
hallmark of human conversation and has been shown to be largely
universal across human cultures. The review, a collaboration between the Universities of York and
Sheffield, the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in
Germany, and the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics in the
Netherlands, reveals that this most human of abilities is actually
remarkably widespread across the animal kingdom. While research on turn-taking behavior is abundant, beginning more
than 50 years ago with studies of the vocal interactions of birds, the
literature is currently fragmented, making rigorous cross-species
comparisons impossible. Researchers who study turn-taking behaviors in songbirds, for
example, speak of “duets” whereas those who study some species of
monkeys note their “antiphonal calls”. One of the most noteworthy aspects of turn-taking behavior across all
species, humans included, is its fine timing. In some species of songbird, for example, the latency between notes
produced by two different birds is less than 50 milliseconds.
Land Trust pay tribute to contribution of volunteers as they complete
10,000 days on site - The Land Trust Land Trust volunteers completed over 10,000 days on the charity’s
sites in 2017/18 and played a key role in helping the organisation
deliver its charitable objectives the charity announced today. In 2017/18 over 4,000 volunteers took part in activities on Land
Trust sites, meaning that on average each volunteer gives up at least
two and half days of their time a year. The Land Trust announced the amazing figures on the final day of
2018’s National Volunteers Week which pays tribute to the incredible
work carried out by volunteers across the country. Alan Carter, Director of Portfolio management for the Land Trust,
said: “Volunteers play an absolutely vital role in local communities and
the Land Trust is fortunate enough to be able to draw upon a vast
network of people at our sites across the country. While the Land Trust
benefits hugely from the work they carry out, we also work extremely
hard to ensure that volunteers get back as much as they put in. This
could be in the form of some professional training or qualification to
help them with the work they carry out on our sites or in the mental and
physical benefits they get from spending time outdoors in green space.” Volunteers play a key role at all 64 of the Land Trust’s sites across
the country, taking part in a wide range of activities including
wildflower planting, shrub clearance, den building and recording and
welcoming visitors.
World-leading 'Blue Belt’ expands as new marine protections revealed
- defra On World Oceans Day, government launches consultation to protect rare
sea life and threatened marine habitats around English coast. Environment Secretary Michael Gove will today set out plans to create
more than 40 new Marine Conservation Zones across the UK – safeguarding
almost 12,000 square kilometres of marine habitats and marking the most
significant expansion of the UK’s ‘Blue Belt’ of protected areas to
date. The proposed protections – announced on World Oceans Day -
will cover an area almost eight times the size of Greater London.
The new sites will reach right the way across England’s coastline – from
the South West to Berwick on the Scottish border, with two sites in
Northern Irish offshore waters. No new activities deemed damaging – such as dredging, or significant
coastal or offshore development – will be allowed to take place in these
areas. Existing harmful activities will be minimised or stopped to allow
important habitats to be restored over time. Rare or threatened
marine habitats and species which will be protected include the short
snouted seahorse, stalked jellyfish and peacock’s tail seaweed. Some 50 zones have already been designated around England as part of
the UK’s ambitious Blue Belt programme, including the first tranche of
27 zones designated in 2013, followed by the second tranche of 23 sites
in 2016. This third and final tranche will be designated within 12
months of the consultation, which will last for a period of six weeks.
It will cover approximately 11,700 square km, bringing the total area of
protection to over 32,000 square km. Marine Conservation Zones are just one type of the many Marine
Protected Areas in place around the UK to conserve rare, threatened and
nationally important habitats and species for future generations. Marine
Protected Areas currently cover a total of 209,000 square km. If
approved, the new tranche will take the total figure to around 220, 000
square km – meaning two fifths of the UK coast would be protected. At the same time, the Prime Minister will be making a call for urgent
global action to protect the world’s oceans from plastics and other
harmful waste. Speaking at the G7 summit in Canada, she will
implore other world leaders to follow the UK lead in working with
business, industry and Non-Governmental Organisations to find innovative
and effective solutions to this issue. She will say that without joined-up, global action, we cannot
effectively tackle this shared environmental challenge.
Marine Conservation Zones: third tranche of designations
- defra consultations Seeking views on plans to designate 41 Marine Conservation Zones
(MCZs) around the UK and views on proposed new features to be added to
12 existing MCZs.
Take part in the consultation.
New data collected by citizens: Cigarette butts and filters the most
common pieces of litter on Europe’s beaches -
European Environment Agency The European Environment Agency (EEA) has released new data about
litter found on Europe’s beaches. Based on nearly 700,000 collected
items, disposable plastics are the biggest contributor to marine litter,
with cigarette butts and filters being the most commonly found
individual items. The new data has been collected by volunteers using
the EEA’s Marine LitterWatch mobile app. A new EEA analysis on marine litter showcases data collected by
volunteer groups at beaches across Europe’s four regional seas — the
Baltic Sea, the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea and the North-East
Atlantic Ocean. Using the EEA’s
Marine LitterWatch mobile app, volunteer groups collected litter
data at 1,627 beach clean-up events between 2014 and 2017. The EEA has
been responsible for controlling the quality of the data and analysing
the results. Based on the new data, the most common items found on beaches include cigarette butts and filters, pieces of plastics and polystyrene, fragments of glass and ceramics, plastic cups and lids, cotton bud sticks, shopping bags, crisp packets, strings and cords, and drink bottles. As for materials, disposable plastics are by far the biggest contributor to marine litter across all four regional seas.
Hen Harriers Breed in Bowland - RSPB Rare hen harrier chicks have hatched in Bowland for the first time
since 2015. RSPB wardens discovered two hen harrier nests on the United Utilities
Bowland Estate, Lancashire, in early spring and have been monitoring
them closely ever since. The nests were visited recently by the wardens
under licence who were delighted to find four healthy chicks in each of
them.
Bowland
Hen Harrier chicks (image: M Demain / RSPB images) A single male hen harrier is responsible for both of the nests and
he is currently taking food regularly to them. Bowland used to be known as England’s last remaining stronghold for
breeding hen harriers. But, until this year, hen harriers hadn’t bred
successfully there since 2015 when a single chick fledged. Nature conservationists now hope that the arrival of the eight chicks
may mark a reversal in the fortunes for the hen harrier in Bowland. The
RSPB is working in partnership with United Utilities and their tenants
to give hen harriers the best chance to breed successfully. James Bray, the RSPB’s Bowland Project Officer, said: “It is
fantastic news that hen harriers are breeding once again on the United
Utilities Bowland Estate after two barren years. It’s an incredibly
nerve-wracking time for all involved in protecting these birds,
especially for the team that have been constantly monitoring the birds
since they arrived on the estate in April. The male hen harrier is doing
a fantastic job of keeping the chicks in both nests well fed and we’re
doing all that we can to ensure that they fledge safely.”
Plants use many of the same methods as animals to camouflage
themselves, a new study shows. Research on plant camouflage is limited compared to the wealth of
knowledge about how animals conceal themselves. But a review by scientists from the University of Exeter and the
Kunming Institute of Botany (Chinese Academy of Sciences) found plants
use a host of techniques long known to be used by animals. These include blending with the background, “disruptive colouration”
(using high-contrast markings to break up the perceived shape of an
object) and “masquerade” (looking like an unimportant object predators
might ignore, such as a stone). “It is clear that plants do more than entice pollinators and
photosynthesise with their colours – they hide in plain sight from
enemies too,” said Professor Martin Stevens, of the Centre for Ecology
and Conservation on Exeter’s Penryn Campus in Cornwall. “From
‘decoration’, where they accumulate things like dust or sand on their
surface, to disruptive coloration, they use many of the same methods as
animals to camouflage themselves. We now need to discover just how
important a role camouflage has in the ecology and evolution of plants.” “These plants are a wonderful example of how camouflage can be adapted for different habitats,” said first author Dr Yang Niu, of the Kunming Institute of Botany (Chinese Academy of Sciences) and Exeter. “Different populations of this species look different in different places."
Volunteers halt alien invasion - Scottish
Natural Heritage Volunteers across the North East of Scotland turned out in force
during national Volunteer Week to help put a stop to the spread of alien
invasive species while working with the Scottish Invasive Species
Initiative (SISI). The Initiative, led by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and funded by
the Heritage Lottery Fund, was set up to tackle one of the countryside’s
biggest problems – invasive non-native (alien) species. Project Manager, Callum Sinclair explains; “Invasive non-native
species are those that have been introduced to Scotland and are
spreading and causing harm to our environment, native wildlife or
people. They are a big threat to the nature of Scotland and so it’s
crucial we address the problem.
“We can’t deal with this threat on our own, so our project is working
with volunteers and local communities to put in place sustainable,
long-term control for the worst offending plants and for the invasive
American mink. This is a really ambitious project working at a huge
scale. It encompasses over a third of Scotland and the success of it
hangs on the support and dedication of networks of volunteers working
with us and our local fishery trust partners.” Luckily, many people already have a passion and love for their
countryside, just like the staff from Chivas Brothers, who decided that
they wanted to do something to make a difference in the environment and
spent a day volunteering with the project. Gordon Buist, Production Director at Chivas Brothers Pernod Ricard
said “We're delighted to be partnering with the Scottish Invasive
Species Initiative for our 'Responsib’ALL day.' We've had a fantastic
day removing an invasive species, Himalayan balsam, from the banks of
the river Deveron. It's really rewarding to make a contribution to an
important environmental project, and we look forward to a continued
partnership in the future.”
Scientific publication Durrant J, Botha LM, Green MP, Jones TM. Artificial
light at night prolongs juvenile development time in the black field
cricket, Teleogryllus commodus. J Exp Zool (Mol Dev
Evol). 2018;1–9. https://doi.org/10.1002/jez.b.22810 Rees, M. J. et al (2018)
Accounting for habitat structural complexity improves the assessment of
performance in no-take marine reserves. Biological Conservation
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2018.04.040
|
|
CJS is not responsible for content of external sites. Details believed correct but given without prejudice. Disclaimer: the views expressed in these news pages do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of CJS. |