The Guardian, and The Telegraph report conifer plantations, which are being expanded around the UK to combat the climate crisis and foster biodiversity, are in danger of hurting one of the key species they were thought to protect: red squirrels.
Tag Archives: mammals
Eurasian lynx could be returning to the UK countryside after a 1,300 year absence
I News reports Wildlife Trusts chief Craig Bennett wants to reintroduce the predatory felines – and says they could work wonders for the country’s eco-system and landscape.
Cull of 150,000 deer aims to save Scottishforests
The Times reports more than 150,000 deer are to be culled across Scotland over the next five years as part of a multimillion-pound scheme to protect the country’s trees.
Humpback whales are making a comeback around UK
The Times reports sightings of humpback whales have soared around the UK in a further sign of the recovery of the species. The Wildlife Trusts have recorded more than 75 sightings off Cornwall since 2019 plus others this year off the Isles of Scilly, Northumberland, Pembrokeshire in Wales, Shetland and in the Firth of Forth.
UK’s mild winter puts some butterflies and burrowers at risk
The Guardian reports creatures such as hedgehogs waking without sufficient food as abnormal weather disrupts hibernation.
Scientists worry for future of weasels as numbers halve in 50 years
The Times reports the weasel may be the villain in The Wind in the Willows but Britain’s smallest native carnivore needs legal protection because of falling numbers, scientists have said.
Fisherman ‘catches’ chatty dolphins on camera in Cornwall
ITV NEWS reports for most people seeing dolphins is a rare wonder but, for trawlerman Peter Green from St Mawes in Cornwall, it is an almost everyday occurrence – yet he still finds it magical.
Living with beavers: How the wild creature finally returned to British rivers after 400 years
The Independent reports after 400 years beavers could return to populate England’s rivers, land managers talk to Holly Bancroft about the government’s new consultation and the ups and downs of living alongside the animals.
Rewilding: should we bring the lynx back to Britain?
The Guardian reports reintroducing the big cats could control deer numbers and enrich ecosystems but farmers and the public need reassurance, say experts.
Tusk master: Wally the walrus departs Isles of Scilly and heads north
The Guardian reports after spending the summer wowing British holidaymakers – and sometimes making a nuisance of himself by accidentally sinking boats – Wally the walrus appears to be trying to head home. The British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said on Tuesday that Wally had departed the Isles of Scilly, where he had been in residence since June, and there has been a positive sighting of him in the waters off Ireland. Marine experts hope that the creature is on his way back to the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard between mainland Norway and the North Pole.