Nature and people | Swimmers and sharks get closer

  Sharks – an ‘apex’ predator are found ‘in just about every kind of ocean habitat, including the deep sea, open ocean, coral reefs, and under the Arctic ice ( according to Smithsonian ). With summer in full swing, with more families enjoying the beach and sea, unsurprisingly more likely contact between people and sharks…. Only yesterday, the Department of Conservation in New Zealand issued this warning – “Please be extra vigilant. There are always sharks around our coastline and...

Birds | which bird are you most like?

As its Big Garden Birdwatch in the UK , I came across this resource. Whilst I’m not normally into ‘online games’ this is typical of one thats  ‘fun and educational’.   Take the quiz and discover which bird most closely relates to your own personality…. play here LearnFromNature  Tweet  ...

Birdwatching | some resources

In the UK, it’s Big Garden Birdwatch… so here is a collection of great websites   The event, which was held over the weekend of 25-27 January, revealed that House Sparrow retained its number one spot in 2020 – 64% of partaking gardens recorded the species, a slight rise of 2% on 2019. Although registering a slight decrease on 2019, Common Starling was again in second place. Bird guides Discover Wildlife- the website behind BBC Wildlife magazine   RSPB –...

Cities hot topic at Davos Conference

  As Davos conference comes to an end, let’s look at an #DavosAgenda item – life and economics of life in the city. The city – where more and more of us live, and where children in particular grow up with both opportunities of resources as well as the blunt realities of being separated from nature.  Those blunt realities come (and from ) with huge emissions…. see ‘Decarbonising Cities’ below…. Sometimes seen, often invisible, always arguably deadly long term. As...

Are there enough women in science? Does it really matter?

The election in the United States of America of the first woman Vice President has been applauded as historic.  While it begins to re-balance the gender  imbalance, it also highlights the gender issue – women , or the absence of, in high office – in the first place. In the field of nature conservation/ science/ etc , the high profile women are certainly there – Dr Jane Goodall  Dr Sylvia Earle  Susan Goldberg  Audrey Azoulay Mechtild Rosser Christine Lagarde However...

Greta Thunberg: reminders of the promises made to your grandchildren

Greta calls for urgent action to address the climate and ecological crisis. She reminds the world of the promises made to children and grandchildren – a promise they expect to be kept.   Let’s remind ourselves what Greta stated 1 year ago at Davos…     Followed by her latest message… My name is Greta Thunberg and I’m not here to make deals. You see, I don’t belong to any financial interest or political party. So I can’t bargain or...

The unseen but very real problem…Plastics!

  Plastic – a family of polymers that is cheap, lightweight, strong, durable and very versatile, making it a primary choice for a variety of applications – has for the exact become same reasons become an environmental burden and a human health concern. Up to 14 million tons of plastic waste enter the ocean every year.  It takes years….. to degrade! Here are some updates – good news of positive actions, and ‘reality checks’ from the United Kingdom. Some good...

Australia is unique. Why?

Australia Day – January 26th – when we consider all things Australian, the country and its people, is an ideal opportunity to check in on … the ‘nature of Australia’. Some key facts that together answer ‘how is Australia so very different’ ? * Australia is an ‘island’ – fully surrounded by water ; it’s also a ‘continent’ * Being an island, Australia tropical or sun-tropical, its long coastline hosting vast rainforests. These tropical rainforests are home to massive biodiversity...

Trees poem

Trees   Fingers down to meet green earth or grey brown Earth holding all together tapping Nature’s foundations   Arms outstretched, brimming with pride to home wild things, wild plants, wild creatures floating butterflies irresistible breaks in the foliage   Strong limbs grasp the thick embers of a burning sunset layer upon layer of fire in unreal heavens marching to the top of the world the unseen ancients   Planet Earth continues through space trees the silent messengers of time...

Environmental education? Why bother?

Environmental education and sustainability education are key rafts of ways to educate… Here are some examples. The National Association for Environmental Education UK : The purpose of NAEE is “to promote all forms of environmental education, and to support all those involved in its delivery, so that together we can understand and act on the need to live more sustainably in order to protect the future of our planet. We believe that young people have a right to first-hand educational experiences in...

Spotted from space – technology locate elephants. Are poachers next?

It feels like something straight out of “Minority Report” the movie – a computer searches the planet for ‘ grey elephants in green forest’ – and returns a positive result – ‘there’s a herd scattered at ### , ### coordinates’ . Yet it’s very real – and it’s helping to highlight the plight of these magnificent beasts, spread as they are the vast plains of Africa.   “Satellites allow large‐scale surveys to be conducted in short time periods with repeat...

Great wetlands resources

(Photo by WWT ) Wetlands are a vital ecosystem – many too often forgotten benefits including improving water quality, flood control, providing wildlife habitats, recreation and education opportunities. They are also places where families can often access during times of lockdown. In this vein, The Wetlands & Wildfowl Trust UK has refreshed their online education resources…   WWT home learning hub “With another lockdown in full swing, we know how hard teachers are working to provide high-quality remote learning whilst...

President Biden backs Paris (agreement)!

On Day One, President Joe Biden signed an executive order – to return the United States of America to full membership of the Paris Climate Agreement. ( That was wonderful to write ! ) The Guardian reported it so….. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/jan/19/biden-environment-paris-climate-agreement-keystone-xl-pipeline?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other  This is VERY good news indeed – the United States is once again a strong leader and partner in the vital fight against climate change! A search for ‘US withdrawal of Paris Agreement’ – the following was a result …....

Stressed by lockdown? Turn to Nature

How do we remain healthy and well during particularly challenging times – such as pandemics? A number of studies show that being in or even near natural environments, can help a great deal regarding both our physical health and vital associated mental well-being. Science Daily…   A study published in Ecological Applications suggests that nature around one’s home may help mitigate some of the negative mental health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. An online questionnaire survey completed by 3,000 adults...

Celebrating penguins – hello New Zealand’s yellow-eyed!

It’s Penguin Awareness Day, so here we focus on the slightly unusual Yellow Eyed Penguin (YEP) and the important conservation and outreach  work of the YEP Trust… About the yellow-eyed penguin / hoiho Yellow-eyed penguins / hoiho are one of the rarest penguins in the world and are only found in New Zealand (endemic). The scientific name of the yellow-eyed penguin is Megadyptes antipodes which means big diver from the southern lands (mega = big, dyptes = diver, antipodes = southern...