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Black birder week

Learn how you can participate in #BlackBirdersWeek on Twitter and Instagram starting Sunday 5/31! A group of approximately 30 black scientists, birders, and outdoor explorers are raising awareness of the black birding community and are encouraging new members. This event is hosted by @BlackAFinSTEM(link is external). Learn more about the inaugural event, including the list of activities, in Bird Watching Daily. Get involved via Birdwatching Daily...

Native versus introduced…

Nice night time visitor or large invader? Spotted the above in my backyard tonight…. At first , I was excited as it’s ‘wildlife’ and I am enthused to ID life that I had not seen before – a frog! Seeing a creature at night , is particularly exciting and important at this time of Coronavirus lockdown, when we want to be more aware of what’s in our local environment. So, I ran inside, returned with my camera, zoomed in for...

Top animal photos

Here are a selection of some of best websites featuring animal images… Photo Ark founded by National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore has taken images of 10, 000 species in a bid to ‘show the world before it’s too late’ …. There are education resources called Photo Ark in the Classroom using Endangered Species, Storytelling and a special Save the Frogs project , all via the massive resource that is National Geographic The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition brings together...

Wildlife safari, England

Welcome to safari but we are not in Africa or Asia, but at Longleat in the English countryside! Learn what colour a zebra actually is. How a giraffe walks. what the top speed of an emu. Why Asian elephants are in trouble in the wild. How animals like the camel, and antelope, can go for such periods without drinking water. Of course, sadly due to lockdown, longleat is currently closed, but you can enjoy the above and have a virtual...

Learning from home

A few groups have new ‘learning hubs’ which provide easy access to free resources , for everyone…. WWT Wild Home Learning Hub WWT have launched a new home learning hub to help parents teach their primary school aged children key parts of the science curriculum. ‘New resources, covering different science topics, will be released on a Monday morning each week until the end of this term. Families will have access to lesson plans, written specifically with this audience in mind,...

Learning outside

As we begin to think about and even ‘plan’ emerging from the ‘lockdown’ – remember ‘safety first’ – it‘s essential to ’be prepared’ with as many ideas as possible for getting outdoors. Here are some great outdoor education online resources…. A great quote : I learned how to respect the places I was in and find a different kind of beauty in them than I had previously looked for. UNITED KINGDOM Creative STAR is my top recommendation for a website!...

Geological resources

There are a huge range of online resources – here’s a selection… United states of america US Geological Survey Education pages The geological society of America United kingdom Geological society of London AusTRALIA Geoscience Australia Geological society of Australia New zealand gns government geology survey...

NZ earthquake zone

Almost to prove that New Zealand can endure … An earthquake measuring 5.8 on the ‘richter scale’ was felt in the capital of Wellington on Monday May 25th (early today). ’Quite a decent shake here’ quipped a very cool Prime Minister Ms Jacinda Ardern. WHY? Earthquakes in New Zealand occur because we are located on the boundary of two of the world’s major tectonic plates – the Pacific Plate and the Australian Plate. These plates are colliding with huge force, causing one to...

Zoos in trouble

In Australia, Zoos to receive $95 million coronavirus lifeline from Australia Federal Government FROM NAT GEO ….. British zoos are starving to death – and the most historic of all may be about to slip away The Zoological Society of London’s work has saved species across the globe. Now, amidst the uncertainty of post-lockdown – it’s the zoo that needs saving. “Many assume a venerable institution like ZSL London Zoo receives regular government funding in the same way Kew Gardens and the...

Why sky blue?

Why is the sky blue? I used to think the blue colour was caused by the refection of Earth’s waters but that’s simply not the case. It happens due to ‘Rayleigh scattering’ – explained above. Rayleigh scattering (/ˈreɪli/ RAY-lee), named after the nineteenth-century British physicist Lord Rayleigh (John William Strutt),[1] is the predominantly elastic scattering of light or other electromagnetic radiation by particles much smaller than the wavelength of the radiation. For light frequencies well below the resonance frequency of the scattering particle (normal dispersion regime), the amount of scattering is inversely proportional to the fourth powerof the wavelength Astrophysicist...

Biodiversity Day!

Our solutions are in Nature – that’s the message of the 2020 Biodiversity Day which is technically May 22nd While the COVID-19 pandemic has postponed some of the preparations related to the 2020 super year of biodiversity, the celebration of International Day for Biological Diversity aims to prompt reflection on the importance of working together at all levels to build a future of life in harmony with nature. The year 2020 is significant for international biodiversity policy for a number...

Every Flower Counts

Leave your mower in the shed and count your flowers for ONE DAY between Tomorrow – saturday 23rd may until sunday 31st may. That’s the message from Plantlife in their new citizen science campaign Every Flower Counts WHY is this information important …? On a single day in summer, one acre of wildflower meadow can contain 3 million flowers, producing 1 kg of nectar sugar. That’s enough to support nearly 96,000 honey bees per day. But since the 1930s, we have lost nearly...

UN International Tea Day

A cup of tea is a daily ritual in the lives of millions throughout the world – and millions depend on it for their livelihood. The first ever International Tea Day, backed by the United Nations, takes place today – 21 May. We take a look at the challenges facing the global tea industry, and how it can build back better after COVID-19 to support smallholder farmers and sustainability.   The UN states – Tea, one of the oldest estate cash crops,...

Man rescues a whale calf, but….

A man rescued a whale calf trapped in nets off the Gold Coast, Australia from a small boat …. this from the Guardian However , he may face a fine of almost $27,000 for ’interfering with shark control nets‘. It’s unknown how long the calf – believed to be a humpback – had been trapped. It was spotted about 7am by a drone operator, and a crew from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries arrived at the scene at 9.45am....

Archaeology Week in Australia

National Archaeology Week (NAW) in Australia – May 17 to May 23 – which aims to put ‘archaeology in the spotlight’ , is (of course) fully online this year due to coronavirus. NAW has 4 prizes : Best online event or content People’s Choice.  Nominate and vote for your favourite via social media. Bake It and Make It.  Bake a stratigraphic layer cake, french knit a scale bar, the only limit is your imagination.  Post a photo of your creation...