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Headlines from week beginning 8 October 2018 |
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A round up of the top countryside, conservation, wildlife and forestry stories as chosen by the CJS Team.
Summary for Policymakers of IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of
1.5°C approved by governments - IPCC Incheon, Republic of Korea, October 8 – Limiting global warming to
1.5°C would require rapid, far-reaching and unprecedented changes in all
aspects of society, the IPCC said in a new assessment. With clear
benefits to people and natural ecosystems, limiting global warming to
1.5°C compared to 2°C could go hand in hand with ensuring a more
sustainable and equitable society, the Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change (IPCC) said on Monday.
Meet Freya the newt detective – Wessex Water
©
Nick Upton for Wessex Water We are the first utility company in the UK to have an in-house great
crested newt detection dog, owned and trained by ecologist Nikki Glover. Three-year-old springer spaniel Freya has been trained to spot the
nocturnal amphibians, with UK and European legislation making it an
offence to damage or destroy their environment without a licence from
Natural England. Training takes the form of hiding a great crested newt within a
breathable container. When Freya locates the newt, she indicates in a
non-invasive manner to earn the reward of a tennis ball or treat. Nikki said: "The Wessex Water region is a stronghold for great
crested newts and we come across them when carrying out construction
works. If works are within 250 metres of breeding ponds and we are
likely to cause an offence under the legislation, we must apply for a
licence from Natural England. We would then be required to fence off the
construction area and carry out pitfall trapping (buckets sunk into the
ground), which could take around 30 days to complete. Having a great
crested newt detection dog within a utility company is a massive benefit
because they can find the newts more efficiently and effectively, and
it's a non-invasive method." Nikki has been granted a Natural England licence which allows her to
keep four great crested newts in temporary captivity from July to
October for the purpose of training Freya. She has sought professional training from Louise Wilson, founder and
director of Conservation K9 Consultancy, who has 15 years' experience
within the detection dog industry and was the first person to train a
great crested newt detection dog. The type of container used for training is varied to avoid Freya
'scent imprinting' on the container material as opposed to the newt. She
is now able to locate wild newts as well as captive ones. Louise said: "Nikki came to me over a year ago to progress Freya's
training and they have both been absolute stars. You can see how much
Freya enjoys her work and the bond she has with Nikki is absolutely
vital. We've never worked with a water company before and it's been
really rewarding. I think it's a brilliant idea."
Nature to be prescribed to help health and wellbeing
– RSPB GPs in Shetland are now able to prescribe nature to their patients
thanks to a pioneering partnership project A partnership project between NHS Shetland and RSPB Scotland, which
is thought to be the first of its kind in the UK, has been extended
following a successful pilot. From this week, all of Shetland’s GPs will
be able to prescribe nature as part of their patient’s treatment. The successful pilot, which took place at Scalloway surgery last
year, has led to the roll out of “Nature Prescriptions” to all ten GP
surgeries across the county. Nature Prescriptions recognises the benefits of nature on reducing
blood pressure, reducing anxiety and increasing happiness as well as the
growing disconnection with nature throughout society. RSPB Scotland have produced a leaflet and a calendar of seasonal
activities using local knowledge and understanding of connecting people
with nature. It attempts to provide a greater variety of ways to realise
the health benefits that nature can provide regardless of health
condition, confidence or if you are a sociable or more solitary person.
The leaflet will be handed out at each doctor’s discretion. Dr Chloe Evans, a GP at Scalloway Health Centre, said: “I want to
take part because the project provides a structured way for patients to
access nature as part of a non-drug approach to health problems. The
benefits to patients are that it is free, easily accessible, allows
increased connection with surroundings which hopefully leads to improved
physical and mental health for individuals”.
Birmingham community project picks up top award
– Canal & River Trust A project to encourage more people from Birmingham’s South Asian
community to take advantage of the health and wellbeing benefits offered
by the city’s waterways has scooped a major award.
Nowka Bais, a ‘cultural extravaganza’ which saw 25,000 people flock
to Edgbaston Reservoir in July 2017 for a celebration of traditional
Bangladeshi dragon boat racing, collected the award in the ‘Engaging
Communities’ category at the Living
Waterway Awards. The awards – known as the ‘Oscars of the waterways’
- seek to recognise the most exciting and inspiring waterway-based
projects across the UK. In giving the award the judges recognised the success of the event
itself but also the important role it has played in getting more people
from South Asian communities, including women and children, to
participate in water sports activities on the reservoir and the
surrounding canals. Celebrating Bangladeshi heritage The event saw 18 teams from all over the UK participating in boat
racing, as well as Bangladeshi street food stalls, live music and
entertainment and a procession by children on celebrating Bangladeshi
heritage and culture. Since last year’s Nowka Bais there has been an increase in the number
of people from the South Asian community taking part in sailing,
canoeing and kayaking, both on the reservoir and the neighbouring
canals. There have also been a number of community canal boat trips and
groups of people from Smethwick, Lozells and Aston walking and cycling
on the canal towpaths as a means of improving their health and
wellbeing.
Cutting edge DNA analysis to reveal the secret wildlife of urban nature
reserves – Natural History Museum
Credit:
London Wildlife Trust / Natural History Museum Using cutting-edge environmental DNA analysis, the Museum and the
London Wildlife Trust aim to identify the tiny insects, other
invertebrates and microorganisms that play an important, if unnoticed,
role in healthy environments. Dr John Tweddle, Head of the Angela Marmont Centre for UK
Biodiversity at the Natural History Museum said: “London is home to
almost 15,000 kinds of plants, animals and fungi. To manage and conserve
this vital diversity of life we need to understand which species we have
and how their distributions and populations are changing. The
application of new scientific techniques, such as the analysis of
environmental DNA, has the potential to play a pivotal role in meeting
this time-critical challenge.” With the support of a grant from the National Geographic Society, the
project is focusing on two well-known London nature sites, the Wildlife
Garden at the Natural History Museum and London Wildlife Trust’s Camley
Street Natural Park in King’s Cross. Both locations feature wildlife habitats which have been grown from
scratch in challenging, urban locations. This project will support the
Natural History Museum and London Wildlife Trust to form a baseline
understanding of all the wildlife at each location, allowing them to
enact and adapt their conservation work accordingly.
Mapping breakthrough with benefits for people and nature
– SNH
The wildlife and landscape of Scotland’s wildest and most remote
islands, moorland and mountain ranges are set to be understood as never
before, through ground breaking new mapping technology that can help us
to tackle climate change and manage our upland habitats. The innovative method for mapping our upland habitats is being
pioneered in the UK by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH). It uses a
technique developed in Sweden known as ‘stereo colour infrared (sCIR)
aerial photo interpretation (API), which uses imagery taken from
aeroplanes. Sally Thomas, SNH’s Director of People & Nature, said: “This
technology really is a game changer for our work in some of the remotest
parts of Scotland. Healthy peatland is a key factor in tackling climate
change. It holds onto carbon, preventing its release into the atmosphere
to trap heat from the sun. This cutting edge technique means we can
identify prime locations for our peatland restoration work. It can also
help us to manage woodland expansion, and it’s great news for protecting
our diverse upland habitats: as well as the widespread heaths and bogs
there are many small, fragmented and internationally rare habitats, such
as important calcareous grasslands and juniper scrub.”
High-res data offer most detailed look yet at trawl fishing footprint
around the world – Bangor University About a quarter of the world's seafood caught in the ocean comes from
bottom trawling, a method that involves towing a net along the seabed on
continental shelves and slopes to catch shrimp, cod, rockfish, sole and
other kinds of bottom-dwelling fish and shellfish. The technique impacts
these seafloor ecosystems, because other marine life and habitats can be
unintentionally killed or disturbed as nets pass across the seafloor.
Scientists agree that extensive bottom trawling can negatively affect
marine ecosystems, but the central question — how much of the total
area, or footprint, is trawled worldwide — has been hard to nail down. A new analysis that uses high-resolution data for 24 ocean regions in
Africa, Europe, North and South America and Australasia shows that only
14 percent of the overall seafloor shallower than 1,000 meters (3,280
feet) is trawled. Most trawl fishing happens in this depth range along
continental shelves and slopes in the world's oceans. The study focused
on this depth range, covering an area of about 7.8 million square
kilometers of ocean. The paper, appearing [8/10/18] in the Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences, brought together 57 scientists
based in 22 countries, with expertise in mapping fishing activity from
satellite monitoring and fishing logbook data. It shows that the
footprint of bottom-trawl fishing on continental shelves and slopes
across the world's oceans often has been substantially overestimated.
John Muir Pollinator Way, funding success -
Buglife
Hogganfield Park (Suzanne Burgess) Buglife Scotland is now busy searching for sites that can be
transformed or enhanced for the benefit of pollinators. So far the team
have been working closely with land owners and managers in East
Dunbartonshire, The City of Edinburgh and Falkirk, however the hope is
to create at least one ‘hub’ in each of the council areas that the John
Muir Way runs through. To get the project started Buglife will be
working with the Falkirk Community Trust at Kinneil Estate and Callendar
Park as well as working with the Forestry Commission Scotland at
Callendar Park. Then over the winter months Buglife will start
finalising the remaining 22 sites that will make up the rest of the
areas being improved for pollinators as part of this project. Through creating these pollinator hotspots the project will be giving
our wild pollinators a much needed helping hand and creating new
habitats for other wildlife. Local communities and schools will also
have the opportunity to connect with their local natural environment by
getting involved, where possible, with the creation and enhancement of
these sites and being able to explore and look for the wildlife that
takes up residence in these areas. Alasdair Lemon, Buglife Scotland Conservation Officer said “We are
really excited to be able to continue working on our John Muir
Pollinator Way project, Scotland’s first urban B-Line. It is fantastic
that both the Scottish Government and Greggs Foundation have provided
funding for this project, so that Buglife, CSGNT and partners are able
to create and enhance grassland meadows for local communities to enjoy
and most importantly to help our pollinators when they need it most.”
Wading birds are benefiting from conservation action but we need more of
it - BTO Throughout Europe, birds associated with agricultural habitats
comprise the highest proportion (23%) of threatened species, with
breeding waders among the most vulnerable. Despite these conservation
concerns, only Ruff and the Baltic population of Dunlin feature on the
EU Birds Directive list of threatened species, while all except Dunlin
can be hunted in many EU member states under certain restrictions.
Campaign to inspire young women to get outside unveiled on World Mental
Health Day -
Scottish Natural Heritage A new campaign to inspire more young women to get outside and enjoy
nature has been unveiled on World Mental Health Day. Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and Young Scot have been working with
teenage girls to design #GirlsGetOot, a social media campaign aimed at
breaking down the barriers to getting outdoors. Visiting the outdoors can improve physical and mental health but
surveys have shown that girls aged 15-17 are significantly less likely
to be active outside than their male counterparts. Research with young volunteers found that issues such as gender
expectations, social pressures, body image and perceptions about the
cost can all prevent young women from experiencing nature. Animations designed in collaboration with teenage girls will
highlight how simple activities such as going for a walk with friends,
listening to music outdoors or sharing photos of nature are free, fun
and can help relieve the stress experienced by many young women.
Project to enable plastics to be recycled together
- University of Bath
Plastic waste (image: University of Bath) Never sure whether you can recycle your milk bottles with your
margarine tubs? This problem could be solved in a few years, thanks to a
new project led by the University of Bath that will allow a mixture of
plastics to be recycled together. Plastic milk bottles are made from high density polyethylene (HDPE)
whereas margarine tubs are made from polypropylene. These two plastics
cannot be recycled together so have to be separated either by
householders or at the recycling centre, a labour-intensive process that
can often mean that plastics ends up in landfill because the batch
becomes accidentally contaminated with several types of plastic. However the team of scientists and engineers at Bath’s Centre for Sustainable Chemical Technologies and Manchester University, led by Dr Arthur Garforth at Manchester, is investigating ways of chemically breaking down mixtures of plastics into their constituent molecules which can then be used to manufacture new plastics or other high value products.
Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy extended by 50,000 trees
- Woodland Trust Fifty thousand trees will be winging their way across the UK next
week to form part of the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy (QCC), a network of
global forest conservation initiatives to mark Her Majesty's lifetime of
service to the Commonwealth. They will be planted by 10,000 members of the public who snapped them
up in a matter of minutes in a free tree giveaway made possible by a
partnership between the Woodland Trust, Sainsbury’s and ITV. The giveaway was in support of a landmark documentary, The Queen's
Green Planet, screened on ITV in April. It followed Her Majesty the
Queen and the ambitious QCC legacy project which brings together her
deeply held commitment to the Commonwealth and her love of trees.
At the heart of the film by ITN Productions was a conversation between
the Queen and Sir David Attenborough filmed in the gardens of Buckingham
Palace last summer.
Wildlife Trusts join with University of East Anglia to identify cause of
hare deaths - Norfolk Wildlife Trust Suffolk Wildlife Trust and Norfolk Wildlife Trust are joining with
the University of East Anglia to call for help to discover the cause of
mysterious hare deaths in the region.
Coca-Cola listed as top ocean plastic polluter in global audit report
- WDC Break Free From Plastic, a global movement campaigning against the
rise in plastic pollution has released a report naming Coca-Cola,
PepsiCo, and Nestlé as the most frequent companies identified in 239
clean ups and brand audits spanning 42 countries and 6 continents. Described as the most comprehensive snapshot of the worst plastic
polluting companies around the world, over 187,000 pieces of plastic
debris were audited, identifying thousands of brands whose packaging
relies on the single-use plastics that pollute the ocean, threatening
many marine creatures including whales and dolphins. Coca-Cola was the top polluter in the global audit, with Coke-branded
plastic pollution found in 40 of the 42 participating countries. “These
brand audits offer undeniable proof of the role that corporations play
in perpetuating the global plastic pollution crisis,” said Global
Coordinator of Break Free From Plastic, Von Hernandez. The audits found that (in order) Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Nestlé, Danone,
Mondelez International, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Perfetti van Melle,
Mars Incorporated, and Colgate-Palmolive were the most frequent
multinational brands collected in clean ups, This ranking of multinational companies included only brands that
were found in at least ten of the 42 participating countries. Overall,
polystyrene, which is not recyclable in most locations, was the most
common type of plastic found, followed closely by PET, a material used
in bottles, containers, and other packaging.
Garden BirdWatchers allow us to better understand disease in British
finches - BTO
Weekly reports from BTO Garden BirdWatchers, as well as ad hoc
sightings of disease from members of the public to Garden Wildlife
Health, show that leg lesions in finches are widespread across the UK.
However, reports of leg lesions increase during the winter period
between November- March, at a time when we see an influx of Chaffinches
from the continent, joining our breeding birds. The increase in
migratory finches at this time might help to explain the increase in
disease reporting rate in the winter months.
Research reveals Scotland’s west coast as global cetacean hotspot
- Hebridean Whale & Dolphin Trust Scotland’s west coast seas are a global hotspot for cetaceans and
basking sharks, and need better protection, said Hebridean Whale and
Dolphin Trust as it released a new marine atlas capturing key
discoveries made over the past 15 years. The first Hebridean Marine Mammal Atlas showcases findings by the
charity’s scientists and citizen science volunteers during annual
research expeditions on its specialized yacht Silurian. The findings highlight the region’s extraordinary biodiversity and
shed new light on its whales, dolphins and porpoise – collectively
called cetaceans – and basking sharks. So far, 23 cetacean species – a quarter of all known globally – have
been recorded in the Hebrides. Since 2002, Silurian has travelled more
than 100,000 kilometres – the equivalent of sailing two and a half times
around the world – and 30,000 animals have been recorded. Discoveries include the Hebrides being a vital feeding ground for
minke whales and basking sharks, and that the region is one of the most
important areas for harbour porpoise in Europe. The trust’s evidence was
used to identify the boundary of Scotland’s first protected area for
harbour porpoise, approved by the Scottish Government in 2016. Human
impacts on the marine environment – including entanglement, marine
litter, and underwater noise – are also monitored on the surveys. The
scale of such threats is often still unclear. The trust’s unique citizen
science programme always uses the same rigorous methods, with annual
variations in survey effort accounted for – ensuring findings are
comparable between years. This provides long-term data on species’
distributions, populations, and behaviours, which is crucial for
identifying important areas, and trends and changes in the marine
environment. Download the Hebridean Marine Mammal Atlas
Beaver numbers increase across Tayside -
Scottish Natural Heritage Beaver numbers across Tayside have increased in the past six years,
according to a new Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) survey. The report estimates that around 430 beavers live in over 100 active
beaver territories. A 2012 survey estimated beaver numbers across the
region at about 150 beavers in 40 territories.
Nick Halfhide, SNH’s Director of Sustainable Growth, said, “By
building dams, beavers improve local water quality and help nurture
other wildlife, and it’s wonderful that people now have a chance to see
these fascinating creatures in their natural habitat. “But in some parts of Scotland, beavers can cause problems,
particularly in areas with prime agricultural land. So we are setting up
a mitigation scheme – with input from a range of interest groups such as
NFU Scotland through the Scottish Beaver Forum – to develop and trial
techniques to help farmers deal with any problems they encounter.” SNH provide farmers with free, expert advice, as well as practical,
on-the-ground solutions. These include techniques used across Europe,
such as deterrent fencing, tree guards, piped dams, culvert and flood
bank protection, as well as trialling new methods. The survey detected 72 beaver lodges, 339 burrows, and 86 dams or
recently removed dams. Beavers create lodges by burrowing into banks
where they dig several chambers and entrances. And analysis:
Scotland’s beavers need protection to allow them to thrive
- Scottish Wildlife Trust blog by Susan Davies,
Director of Conservation Response:
Trust calls for legal protection for Scotland’s beavers
- Scottish Wildlife Trust A report published by Scottish Natural Heritage has confirmed that
beaver numbers are expanding in Tayside and that they are beginning to
establish a presence in the neighbouring Forth catchment. The Trust is concerned that unregulated culling is taking place is
some areas. We are calling for the Scottish Government to speed up
progress on introducing protected status for beavers. Our Director of Conservation Susan Davies said: ““This comprehensive
survey shows a welcome expansion in their range since 2012. Beavers are
now widespread in Tayside and they are starting to recolonise other
areas including the River Forth. It is only a matter of time before they
enter other river catchments. “We believe it is time for the Scottish
Government to complete the steps required to give beavers protected
status. This was promised at the end of 2016 but progress has been too
slow. Granting legal protection would ensure that beavers are allowed to
thrive across Scotland, and that the management of their impacts will be
carried out according to the joint principles agreed between the Trust,
Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS), National Farmers Union
Scotland (NFUS) and Scottish Land and Estates (SLE) in late 2016.”
Flying success for Bats in Churches project -
Natural England The Heritage Lottery Fund have awarded £3.8 million for a project led
by Natural England to save bats and protect churches A groundbreaking project led by Natural England to help churches that
host large bat roosts has been granted £3.8 million of funding by the
Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF). This new round of funding will help deliver a five year partnership
project, bringing together wildlife, heritage conservation and church
organisations to save bats and protect churches for future generations.
The UK’s bat population has suffered significant historical decline
which is why they are protected by UK law. Loss of natural habitats
means some bat species have been forced to find safe havens in buildings
including historic churches. Many church communities live harmoniously with bat roosts. However,
in some cases bats are causing irreparable damage to historically
significant church monuments and memorials as well as impacting upon the
people who use the buildings. Recently approved techniques and a new licence developed by Natural
England to permit necessary work will be used to improve both the
natural and historic environment and to support the people who care for
them. The Bats in Churches project will:
Natural England is working in partnership with The Church of England,
Historic England, Bat Conservation Trust and Churches Conservation Trust
to deliver this ambitious and innovative project.
£27.8m programme will tackle environmental challenges
- Centre for Ecology & Hydrology The Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH) has secured a £27.8 million
National Capability funding award. The money from the Natural Environment Research Council – worth £5.7
million annually for five years – will fund a programme of research that
is designed to deliver new integrated understanding of the environment. The programme, UK-SCAPE (UK Status Change and Projections of the
Environment), will help tackle significant challenges caused by mounting
pressures on land use, air and soil quality, water and food security,
and biodiversity. Professor Richard Shore, chair of CEH’s programme board for UK-SCAPE,
said: “To provide effective solutions to these problems, we need to see
a paradigm shift that moves the current focus from isolated issues on
single sites towards a holistic, integrated approach looking at the
wider landscape. This will provide multiple benefits for researchers,
the economy, the environment and people.” CEH will collect and integrate national scale datasets, enabling
researchers to answer high-level questions around the status and trends
of environmental resources, such as:
Scientific Publication Walton, Z., Samelius, G., Odden, M. et al. Long-distance dispersal in red foxes Vulpes vulpes revealed by GPS tracking Eur J Wildl Res (2018) 64: 64. Doi: 10.1007/s10344-018-1223-9
Balmford, B., Green, R. E., Onial, M., Phalan, B. & Balmford, A.
(2018)
How imperfect can land sparing be before land sharing is more favourable
for wild species? Journal of Applied Ecology. DOI:
10.1111/1365-2664.13282
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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. |
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A four-legged friend with a nose for newts is helping us sniff out
protected species before new pipes are put in the ground.
Dragon boating racing in Birmingham (Canal & River Trust)
Volunteers and staff from the Natural History Museum and London
Wildlife Trust are working together as part of an exciting, experimental
project which they hope will reveal the hidden wildlife of two urban
nature reserves.
Segmentation
- © Getmapping plc/ SNH
Bangor
University%2012.08.2013%20Suzanne%20Burgess%20(11).JPG)
Thanks to funding from The Scottish Government and The Greggs
Foundation, The Central Scotland Green Network Trust are supporting
Buglife to create 25 pollinator ‘hubs’ at various points along the John
Muir Way. This funding will allow Buglife Scotland the opportunity to
expand and bolster the work already being undertaken to create the first
urban B-lines in Scotland, The John Muir Pollinator Way.
Curlew
by Neil Calbrade
Bath
is leading a £4.8M consortium to develop catalysts for sustainable
manufacturing and help promote a circular economy
Over
the past month, landowners, farmers and members of the public have been
in contact to report sightings of obviously sick and dead hares.
Male
Chaffinch with leg lesions (image: Jill Pakenham)
European
beaver (image: Laurie Campbell via SNH)
common
pipistrelle bat (image: Natural England)
