H a b i t a t - Daily wildlife and environment news from the British Isles


Marine
Resources
British Marine Life Study Society JNCC Fisheries Marine Conservation Society Marine Life Information Network for Britain and Ireland Shark Trust The European Register of Marine Species The UK Coastal Zone

Paddlers in peril as poisonous weever fish hit the beach

Holidaymakers should wear flip-flops on sandy beaches to protect them from an explosion in the numbers of a poisonous fish in Scotland, marine biologists warned last night.

Scotsman.com

Fish life disaster as red tide scourge engulfs bay of death

An algal bloom in Dingle Bay in Co Kerry is leading to "an ecological disaster in marine terms" according to a sea fisheries officer and marine expert.

Irish Independent

Turtle found dead in fishing nets

A rare leatherback turtle has been found dead off the coast of Cornwall.

BBC

Firth boat man cleared of disturbing rare dolphins

The case against a boat owner accused of deliberately disturbing rare bottlenose dolphins in the Moray Firth was found not proven yesterday.

this is north scotland

New Amble dolphin

A bottle-nosed dolphin has been spotted off the coast at Amble recently.

n-e-life

Spill fears over oil move in the Forth

Alistair Darling, the transport minister, has been urged to intervene to stop a plan for ship-to-ship oil transfers in the Firth of Forth involving Russian vessels.

The Herald

WWF UK - Recommendations for marine environment radical but not unrealistic

Helen Davies, fisheries policy officer at WWF UK, today said that the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution's recommendation to close 30 per cent of UK seas to fishing "may be radical but it is not unrealistic".

politics.co.uk


Animals
Resources
Mammal Society Mammals Trust UK The Deer Commission for Scotland Scottish Big Cat Trust Scottish Badgers International Otter Survival Fund Bat Conservation Trust National Federation of Badger Groups Froglife Herpetological Groups of Britain & Ireland Butterfly Conservation Butterflies of Ireland Spiders of NW-Europe British Dragonfly Society Buglife

A terrific night out with the creatures from the features

Bats, it has to be said, do suffer from a bad PR. Dracula and his blood-sucking, bat-loving ways probably started it - and hundreds of low-budget horror films with dodgy-looking plastic bats clinging to the necks of heroines haven't helped.

Scotsman.com

Endangered great crested newt is returned to the wild

An endangered newt, which was first thought to be a frog, has been cared for by a Vale family.

this is Worcestershire

Homes will leave newts unharmed

A plan to build a new 800-home estate on the outskirts of Scunthorpe appears to have cleared one of the final hurdles and moved a step closer, following clearance of the scheme for environmental impact.

this is Scunthorpe

Playtime with Tarka

Philip Wayre was duck shooting on the River Stiffkey in Norfolk when he met his first otter. It was a brief encounter lasting less than a minute, perhaps, but he was captivated.

Telegraph

Hives crisis as bee inspectors face the sack

Worcestershire's bee population could be under threat because of Government plans to save money.

this is Worcestershire

The harlequin ladybird is the most invasive ladybird on Earth.
Now it's in Britain.
Help monitor its spread here


Birds
Resources
British Trust for Ornithology Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Birds Directive BirdGuides Bird News JNCC - Birds Natura 2000 Birds by Species Breeding Birds in the Wider Countryside Black Grouse UK Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust BirdLife International Fat Birder

Barn owls ready to woo again

Barn owls look like having their most successful breeding year in decades with conservationists confident a 70-year slump in numbers has been reversed.

Times Online

Tree sparrows call Suffolk home

Record numbers of sparrows are choosing Suffolk as the place to call home.

Evening Star

Feather report

Goldfinches are back on the thistles. Farmers do not like thistles, because they are so hard to get rid of, but goldfinches have no cause to complain.

Times Online

Wild birds targeted by crossbow attacker

Police today appealed for help in tracking down crossbow hunters who shot two wild geese.

this is Leicestershire


Plants
Resources
The British Lichen Society The Woodland Trust Botanical Society of the British Isles Plantlife Flora locale Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh Royal Botanic Gardens Kew Heritage Trees of Scotland The Postcode Plants Database Forestry Commission

So much more than just a pretty flower

When I was a very small child, my friends and I used to look for red clovers and detach the flowers' petals one by one to suck sweet nectar from their bases.

Gazette & Herald

Trust plants an idea for growth

Wiltshire Wildlife Trust is replanting the banks of the River Ray with plants form the nearby meadows.

this is Wiltshire

Trust sues for forest damage

The National Trust is suing an Asian airline over the crash of one of its aircraft in 1999.

this is Wiltshire


National/Europe
Resources
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group Natural Environment Research Council Minerals and Nature Conservation Forum The Wildlife Trusts Wildlife and Countryside Link British Naturalists' Association EnvironmentJobs

Brownfield building boom

Development on brownfield sites has reached record levels as homes are built to meet the needs of those trying to get onto the ever-heightening first step of the property ladder.

edie news centre

Naturenet
Countryside management and nature conservation
- here


England
Resources
English Nature Countryside Agency Environment Agency Campaign for the Protection of Rural England

Fine for mass fish deaths

A farm company involved in a slurry spill that killed more than 2,000 fish has been handed fines and costs of more than £13,000.

this is Bath
this is Wiltshire

Deadly legacy lingers

As the Post reported earlier this week, experts are tracking the source of chemical pollution linked to defects and deaths in Notts herons - with a risk to human health not yet ruled out.

this is Nottingham

Rain offers reprieve for our reserves' wildlife

As would seem to always be the case, the school holidays start and so does the bad weather.

this is Worcestershire

Night walk will take in bore thrills

The sounds and smells of the riverbank at night will be on offer on a walk this month. A large Severn Bore tidal wave is due to travel up the river on Sunday, August 21.

this is Gloucestershire

Going wild over organic farms

Organic farmers in Oxfordshire say turning away from conventional farming has boosted business and benefited wildlife.

this is Oxfordshire

David Bellamy to lead beach wildlife tour

Renowned wildlife expert David Bellamy is to give a guided tour of a Cornish beach, highlighting its flora and fauna.

this is Devon

Back to nature

A new nature reserve and conservation area is proposed on part of the site of two lakes between Abingdon and Radley into which millions of tonnes of spent coal ash could be dumped.

this is Oxfordshire


Ireland
Resources
Environment & Heritage Service (Northern Ireland) Northern Ireland Biodiversity Group National Parks and Wildlife Service Ireland's Environment All-Ireland review of introduced species

EPA lacks the expertise to enforce environmental regulations, expert claims

One of Ireland’s foremost experts on the chemical industry believes the Environmental Protection Agency has neither the expertise nor the resources to fully monitor and enforce environmental regulations within the industry.

Examiner

Government urged to scrap duty on biofuels and drive biodiesel cars

The Green Party has urged the Government to scrap excise duty on biofuels and has called for the State’s fleet of ministerial cars to be converted to run on biodiesel.

Examiner


Scotland
Resources
Scottish Natural Heritage Scottish Environment Protection Agency Scottish Biodiversity Group Scotland's National Nature Reserves John Muir Trust Scottish Environment News Scottish Wildlife Trust Red Squirrels In South Scotland

RSPB urges Executive to give green energy lead

The million-member RSPB has made an unprecedented public demand on the Scottish Executive to display leadership and outline a nationwide strategy on renewable energy.

this is north scotland

People unite to buy site

A barren area of felled woodland in the Lothians has been bought by a local community to prevent developers from snapping it up.

Scotsman.com

Launch of SNH work on Coastal and Marine National Parks

Scottish Natural Heritage today started a process which will seek views from a wide range of interests on the functions and possible locations for Scotland’s first Coastal and Marine National Park.

Scottish Natural Heritage


Wales
Resources
Welsh Assembly Countryside Council for Wales Wales Biodiversity Partnership Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales Environment Agency (Wales)

Probe into oil spill on Welsh coastline

An oil spill has hit the Welsh coastline, triggering an investigation. Up to 500 tonnes of kerosene leaked from a tank owned by Petroplus in Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire.

icWales

Fish killed by chemical in river

An investigation has been launched after thousands of fish were wiped out by a mystery pollutant - for the second time in a year.

icWales


Climate
Resources
Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research Southampton Oceanography Centre Centre for Ecology and Hydrology Natural Environment Research Council UK Climate Impacts Programme Impacts of Climate Change on Wildlife ENN Special Reports: Climate Change Global Warming: Early warning signs

Rise in CO2 emissions will outpace Earth's absorption capacity

There are limits to the planet's ability to absorb increased emissions of carbon dioxide, according to one model in a new generation of computer climate models that include the effects of Earth's carbon cycle.

Environment News Service

All air fares to rise under Brussels plan

Every passenger flight leaving a European Union airport will have to pay for its greenhouse gas emissions under proposals being considered by Brussels, The Business can reveal.

The Business Online

Help produce a forecast of the climate in the 21st century, using your computer -
here


Global
Resources
IUCN - World Conservation Union Convention on Biological Diversity WWF - The global environment network World Land Trust

'Move people to save tigers'

An Indian task force said on Friday that the country's tigers were under siege from poachers and people living in protected reserves, and called for thousands of villagers to be relocated to save the endangered big cat.

IOL

The World Land Trust is a conservation charity that has helped purchase and protect over 300,000 acres of rainforest and other threatened wildlife habitats worldwide. You can help us save even more - here

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Daily wildlife and environment news from the British Isles