Blog

In the midst of global climate and biodiversity crises, our world leaders came together last month. The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity summit (COP16) took place from 21/10-2/11 in Cali, Columbia. Although there were some small wins, many were dismayed by the lack of progress. No doubt there is good work happening in many countries to halt climate change and biodiversity loss, but is it enough to turn the tide? In her latest blog, our Senior Marine Ecologist, Dr Lissa Batey, examines the outcomes of COP16.

As the nights draw in and the weather turns chilly, we all feel like cosying up and it’s not much different for our wildlife! With limited access to food sources over the colder months, the UK’s wild animals have adapted a range of survival strategies to get them through winter. In her latest blog, our Terrestrial Ecologist, Kristina Wood, looks at the winter whereabouts of bats and bees, and how we can help them during this time.

Our Marine Ecologist, Athena Allen, has been out this month at the National School and College Leavers Festival held at Birmingham NEC. Helping out on the Green Jobs for Nature stand with CIEEM, Royal HaskoningDHV and National Parks UK, she had the opportunity to inspire young people about working in the environmental sector and protecting the planet. The festival is one of the largest of its kind, with over 20,000 students attending over the two days, and more than 50 companies running stands. Read more about her experiences inspiring the next green generation in her latest blog.

Our Creative Director, Peter Creed, has proudly collaborated with the Oriental Bird Club for four decades on their publications, including the BirdingAsia bulletin and Journal of Asian Ornithology (previously Forktail). He began working on the Journal in 1984, and has continued since the founding of NatureBureau in 1989. We are delighted that this collaboration is still going strong. These publications highlight the rich birdlife of Asia and its conservation. Alex J. Berryman, Managing Editor, reflects: “NatureBureau has been indispensable during these years, consistently delivering high-quality, reliable output.”

At this time of year, some 90 million birds from Northern Europe and the Arctic are migrating to Africa via the East Atlantic Flyway. Sadly, many migratory bird populations are declining rapidly and need urgent conservation action. Recently, NatureBureau has been engaged by the East Atlantic Flyway Initiative (EAFI) to help identify priorities for addressing threats to migratory birds, building partner capacity, and promoting a local-to-global conservation approach.

As the bat survey season draws to a close, our Terrestrial Ecologist, Kristina, finds her contact with bats is signifcantly reduced as they seek hibernation spots. Yet, the presence of bat-related items in the shops goes through an annual boom at this time of year. Every autumn is a reminder that many people associate bats with darkness, spookiness and even death. Bats are present in the skies above us for most of the year – so why do we link them so strongly with Halloween? In her latest blog, Kristina delves into the myths that shroud these winged mammals, alongside the truths of their ecology and importance for UK wildlife.

"The goal is not to sail the boat, but rather to help the boat sail herself. "
- John Rousmaniere

I have recently completed a continent-crossing journey to visit wetland restoration sites in the Danube Basin. Accompanied by my botanist wife, Natasha, we held talks with business stakeholders at Vlasina Lake (Serbia), Rudava River (Slovakia), March-Thaya floodplain (Austria) and, finally, the Razim lagoon wetlands at Enisala (Romania) adjacent to the Danube Delta. The sites are all involved in an EU-funded research project, Restore4Life, that is promoting restoring the ecological functions of degraded wetlands, including a component that I lead on nature-based solutions. More details of the project, which is led by the University of Bucharest, are on its website at https://restore4life.eu/. Here, I just want to pick up some of the highlights of the trip itself.

Going to catch a tiny one! NatureBureau had a lovely, but damp, staff day out at Thatcham reedbeds the other day, hunting for the nationally rare Desmoulin's Whorl Snail (Vertigo moulinsiana). This diminutive invertebrate is only 2mm long, so it's not an easy one to spot!

It is considered to be an Atlantic-Mediterranean species with a range extending far and wide from Ireland to Russia and south to North Africa! In Thatcham, new wetland habitat was created from mitigation measures on the Newbury by-pass, and the reedbeds, which form part of the internationally important Kennet and Lambourn Floodplain Special Area of Conservation (SAC - a European designation), were designated in 2005 solely for Desmoulin’s Whorl Snail. While no one is certain whether today’s population arose from snails present on introduced clumps of sedge only, or was supplemented by waterborne individuals from nearby populations, there is no doubt regarding the species’ capacity to colonise if the conditions are right.