|
A round up of the top countryside, conservation, wildlife and forestry stories as chosen by the CJS Team.
Feed the birds? Scientists highlight risks of disease at garden bird
feeders - BTO Wild birds are at risk of a number of serious diseases at our garden
bird feeders, according to a collaborative study led by scientists from
international conservation charity ZSL (Zoological Society of London)
and published in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal
Society B. The study found that while there are multiple benefits of additional
food resources for wild birds, particularly during the harsher winter
months,
garden
feeding can also promote the transmission of some diseases – not least
by encouraging birds to repeatedly congregate in the same location,
often bringing them into regular contact with other species they
wouldn’t otherwise interact with so closely in the wider environment.
Risks can be increased if hygiene at feeding stations is poor, allowing
stale food, food waste and droppings to accumulate. Greenfinch by Jill Pakenham The research, conducted in partnership with the British Trust for
Ornithology (BTO) and Fera Science Ltd, analysed more than 25 years’
worth of data on the occurrence of wild bird health threats, focusing on
protozoal (finch trichomonosis), viral (Paridae pox) and bacterial
(passerine salmonellosis) diseases. Members of the public contributed
their observations via national ‘citizen science’ projects, highlighting
the ongoing importance of these surveys in helping scientists track the
evolving health threats facing garden wildlife. Commenting on the study, lead author Dr Becki Lawson from ZSL’s
Institute of Zoology said: “Our study shows how three of the most common
diseases that affect British garden birds have changed both dramatically
and unpredictably over the past decade, both in terms of the species
they affect and their patterns of occurrence. You can read the full review paper here: Health
hazards to wild birds and risk factors associated with anthropogenic
food provisioning Birds of prey persecution: the evidence – Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority
‘Howard
Jones, RSPB Investigations Officer, gives police officers and National
Park staff an insight into illegal trapping methods at the Wildlife
Crime seminar day in Bainbridge on 21 Feb 2018’ (YDNPA) The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (YDNPA) has published an
‘evidence
report’ on birds of prey persecution – which was first presented to
a wildlife crime summit held at the Authority’s offices in Bainbridge. The report assesses the populations of a number of key upland raptor
species nationally and in the Park and quantifies the confirmed
incidents of persecution. It says, “The collation of breeding data, the number of confirmed
persecution incidents and the absence of some species from large areas
of potentially suitable habitat provide compelling evidence that illegal
persecution is limiting the populations of peregrine and hen harrier in
the National Park, and is preventing the colonisation of the area by red
kites. “There has not been a successful Peregrine nesting attempt on any of
the monitored grouse moor sites since 1997, with birds now absent from
the majority of sites that were occupied in the 1990s. This is in stark
contrast to the success of nest sites away from grouse moors.
There is no natural explanation for this difference. “Despite large areas of potentially suitable nesting habitat, there
has not been a successful hen harrier nesting attempt in the National
Park since 2007. In addition, 11 (19%) of the 59 hen
harriers that were satellite tagged by Natural England at sites across
northern England and Scotland between 2002 and 2017 are classed as
‘missing, fate unknown’ in the Yorkshire Dales.” The report – which draws on a wide range of sources – was presented
at a Wildlife Crime seminar organised by the YDNPA, which took place at
Yoredale in Bainbridge on 21 Feb. More than 50 people attended the
event, including police officers from the North Yorkshire, Cumbria and
Lancashire forces. The full link for the report here
Leading tech companies unite to reduce online wildlife trafficking by
80% in next 2 years - WWF Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Ebay are among companies brought
together by WWF, TRAFFIC and IFAW to form the global coalition to end
wildlife trafficking online - WWF The world’s top e-commerce, technology and social media companies are
joining forces to put an end to the online illegal wildlife trade.
Convened by WWF, wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC, and
International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) the companies have
committed to bringing down the online illegal trade in threatened
species by 80 per cent by 2020. 21 global technology giants - including Google, Microsoft, eBay,
Etsy, Facebook and Instagram – are part of the first-ever Global
Coalition to End Wildlife Trafficking Online. As members of the
coalition, the companies pledge to work together and for each company to
develop and implement policies to help end wildlife trafficking online. It takes just minutes to find illegal wildlife products for sale
online, from elephant ivory carvings to live tigers and cheetah cubs.
These sales are generally illegal and in breach of a site’s rules.
However, the internet’s global connectivity and relative anonymity of
sellers, combined with rapid transport, enable wildlife traffickers to
buy, sell and ship animals and wildlife products with just a few clicks.
The challenge has been that inconsistent policies across the web have
meant where an ad is removed from a site it simply pops up elsewhere. As
more traders and consumers move online globally it is a critical time to
ensure that social media and e-commerce platforms cannot be exploited by
the loopholes to detection created by wildlife traffickers.
More must be done to make sure everyone can benefit from our National
Parks – Campaign for National Parks Campaign for National Parks is calling for more to be done to enable
everyone to access our National Parks, including the quarter of
households who do not own a private car. In a new report, published today (Monday 12 March), we set out the
importance of everyone being able to access and benefit from the
National Parks. National
Parks for all: making car-free travel easier makes the case for
improving sustainable travel options to open up the
Parks to new visitors as well as reducing the ongoing environmental
damage and considering what alternative solutions could be made
available. Traffic in Brockenhurst in the New Forest National Park. Photo
credit: New Forest District Council. Ruth Bradshaw, Campaign for National Parks’ policy and research
manager, and author of the report, explains “in some places high volumes
of traffic can have a negative impact on the landscapes and wildlife,
the very things that attract people to the Parks in the first place. But
unfortunately the severe cuts to rural bus services in recent years have
made it increasingly difficult to reach many parts of the Parks without
a car.” An example of some of the challenges people without cars face
travelling to the Park, is the limited options for bus or coach journeys
between the National Park visitor centres and major towns. In Exmoor
National Park, for example, a return journey between Exeter and
Dulverton, a distance of 29 miles, would involve a cost of £22 and two
changes of bus each way. Unsurprisingly 96% of visitors to Exmoor arrive
by car. In the North York Moors National Park, there is a direct bus to
the visitor centre at Ravenscar from Scarborough but it costs £7.80 for
a journey of 10.8 miles.
Overcoming barriers to green infrastructure investment is a major
opportunity for the UK – Aldersgate Group Today (Monday 12 March), the Aldersgate Group publishes a new
report Towards the new normal: increasing investment in the UK’s green
infrastructure. This report, which concludes a one-year research project
underpinned by multiple interviews with businesses and investors, argues
that overcoming the barriers currently limiting private investment in
green infrastructure is essential to delivering the Government’s
economic, industrial and environmental policy objectives. It sets out
key recommendations for government, businesses and investors to unlock
greater volumes of private investment to meet the objectives of the
Clean Growth Strategy, Industrial Strategy and 25 Year Environment Plan.
Increasing private investment in green infrastructure represents a huge
opportunity for the UK. It is a growing market for the professional
services industry, and is a crucial way of reducing the cost of capital
to meet the UK’s environmental and industrial policy objectives,
presenting a significant opportunity in terms of job creation and
potential exports. There is real urgency: up to £693bn investment in low
carbon infrastructure will be needed by 2031 in the UK to deliver policy
objectives, with $90tn needed worldwide over the next 15 years. The report, which comes shortly ahead of the publication of the
government’s Green Finance Taskforce recommendations, brings together
findings from the Aldersgate Group’s year-long project on green finance
with the Centre for Understanding Sustainable Prosperity (CUSP). Read the report
here
UK rivers heavily contaminated with microplastics, study finds
– University of Manchester Researchers from The University of Manchester are calling for tighter regulations on waste flowing into urban waterways, after the first study of its kind found that microplastics from urban river channels are a major contributor to the pollution problem in the oceans.
Image:
University of Manchester The study
is available to view on Nature Geoscience.
Welsh-first as captive-bred crayfish reproduce in the wild
– Natural Resources Wales
A Welsh conservation programme to save a highly endangered species is
celebrating a major milestone after a captive-bred population has
successfully spawned in the wild for the first time. Experts
from Natural Resources Wales’ (NRW) released native white-clawed
crayfish in a tributary of the river Irfon near Builth Wells between
2012 and 2014. Now they have found first-generation wild crayfish in the area –
demonstrating that a new population has been established. Image: Natural Resources Wales The white-claw is Britain’s only native crayfish and without
intervention the species could become extinct in mainland Britain in 20
to 30 years. Over the last decade the species has declined by up to 80 per cent
world-wide. In the wild they have less than a 10 per cent chance of surviving to
adulthood, compared to around 80per cent in the hatchery. To date more than 5,000 captive-reared crayfish have been released
into carefully selected ‘Ark’ sites in Wales. The programme aims to offset the damage caused to the native crayfish
population by the non-native American signal crayfish, climate change,
habitat degradation and the impact of pollution on water quality. The American signal crayfish, introduced for food production in the
1970s and 80s, carries a plague which affects only the white-clawed
species.
Decreased oxygen levels could present hidden threat to marine species,
study suggests - University of Plymouth The research was led by Dr Manuela Truebano and Professor John Spicer
with contribution from students from the marine biology programmes Species living in coastal regions could face a significant future
threat from reduced levels of oxygen in the marine environment,
according to research published in Nature Scientific Reports. The prevalence of hypoxic (low oxygen) areas in coastal waters is
predicted to increase in the future, both in terms of their scale and
duration. And while the adults of many estuarine invertebrates can cope
with short periods of hypoxia, it has previously been unclear whether
that ability is present if animals are bred and reared under chronic
hypoxia. A study by the University of Plymouth showed that exposure to even
moderate hypoxia can have markedly different effects on metabolic
performance, depending on whether adults are exposed to short-term
hypoxia or undergo the whole of their development under hypoxic
conditions. Scientists warn that these differing reactions could result in the
number of vulnerable species in an affected region currently being
underestimated, and ultimately lead to vastly reduced biodiversity in
ways that are not immediately obvious. Lecturer in Marine Molecular Biology Dr Manuela Truebano and
Professor in Marine Zoology John Spicer, from the University’s Marine
Biology and Ecology Research Centre, led the study with contribution
from students from the marine biology programmes. Access the paper: Manuela Truebano, Oliver Tills, Michael Collins, Charlotte Clarke, Emma Shipsides, Charlotte Wheatley & John I. Spicer Short-term acclimation in adults does not predict offspring acclimation potential to hypoxia Nature doi:10.1038/s41598-018-21490-y
Climate change risk for half of plant and animal species in biodiversity
hot-spots - University of East Anglia Up to half of plant and animal species in the world’s most naturally
rich areas, such as the Amazon and the Galapagos, could face local
extinction by the turn of the century due to climate change if carbon
emissions continue to rise unchecked.
The
Amazon, Miombo Woodlands in Southern Africa, and south-west Australia
are among the most affected places in the world, according to new
research. Even if the Paris Climate Agreement 2°C target is met, these places
could lose 25% of their species according to a landmark new study by the
University of East Anglia (UK), the James Cook University (Australia),
and WWF. (image: University of East Anglia) Published today in the journal Climatic Change and just ahead of
Earth Hour, the world’s largest environmental event, researchers
examined the impact of climate change on nearly 80,000 plant and animal
species in 35 of the world’s most diverse and naturally wildlife-rich
areas. The report explores a number of different climate change futures –
from a no-emissions-cuts case in which global mean temperatures rise by
4.5°C (relative to pre-industrial times), to a 2°C rise, the upper
limit for temperature in the Paris Agreement. Each area was chosen for
its uniqueness and the variety of plants and animals found there. It finds that the Miombo Woodlands home to African wild dogs,
south-west Australia and the Amazon-Guianas are projected to be some the
most affected areas. If there was a 4.5°C global mean temperature rise,
the climates in these areas are projected to become unsuitable for many
the plants and animals that currently live there meaning:
Another satellite-tagged golden eagle ‘disappears’ in Inverness-shire
- RSPB Conservationists are concerned about the safety of a young pair of
eagles after news emerged that another satellite-tagged golden eagle has
disappeared in the northern Monadhliath Mountains of Inverness-shire. Data from the two-year old male’s transmitter showed that he had been
living in an upland area, mainly managed for driven grouse shooting,
north of Tomatin, since early last year. He had stayed almost
exclusively in this area until mid December, when his tag, that had been
functioning as expected, inexplicably stopped transmitting. A follow-up investigation by Police Scotland has not yielded further
clues as to the bird’s fate, and no further data has been received from
the satellite tag. The young bird, fitted with a tag sponsored by SSE, before it fledged
from a nest in the Cairngorms National Park, was paired to a 2 year-old
female, coincidentally also fitted with a transmitter. Data from her tag
shows that she left the same area for several days following the male’s
sudden disappearance, possibly searching for her missing mate, before
returning to the territory. She has subsequently been joined there by
another young male, also reinforcing the case that the two year old bird
has disappeared. Duncan Orr-Ewing, RSPB Scotland’s Head of Species and Land Management
said: “A report published by the Scottish Government last May, prompted
by the regular disappearance of satellite-tagged eagles in this same
area, provided unequivocal evidence that the sudden disappearance of
these birds is highly suspicious. This is now the twelfth tagged eagle
to go missing in this “black hole” in just seven years and is entirely
consistent with the systematic and ongoing illegal persecution of eagles
in this area.” Response:
Smearing of grouse moors ‘undermining’ investigations into
satellite-tagged birds - Scottish Land and
Estates Scottish Land & Estates has issued the following statement in
response to a RSPB media release on the alleged disappearance of a
satellite-tagged golden eagle in Inverness-shire. David Johnstone, chairman of Scottish Land & Estates, said: “RSPB has
stated today that a young golden eagle fitted with a satellite tag
disappeared three months ago in the Northern Monadhliath mountains. We
have no hesitation in urging anyone who can provide information on the
matter to contact Police Scotland. “We are, however, deeply concerned by the assumption by RSPB that
this eagle is most likely the victim of a wildlife crime perpetrated on
a grouse moor. Yet again, we see RSPB acting unilaterally as judge and
jury without waiting for those professional experts in the police and
the procurator fiscals’ office to reach an informed decision as to the
actual facts. We believe this continual smearing of grouse moors
actually runs the risk of being counterproductive and directly impacting
all the good, productive collaboration that has taken place in recent
years. “Incidents such as this absolutely do need to be investigated but it
is for Police Scotland to lead investigations. They have very extensive
powers to gather evidence as they see fit, and we would expect all our
members to assist them in their enquiries.
Boaty completes first under-ice Antarctic mission
- NERC The National Oceanography Centre's autonomous underwater vehicle
Autosub Long Range (ALR), known affectionately around the world as Boaty
McBoatface, was successfully recovered last week following its first
under-ice mission beneath the Filchner Ice Shelf in West Antarctica.
This success marks a significant milestone in proving the vehicle's
capability. From January to February 2018, the autonomous underwater vehicle
(AUV) was deployed in the southern Weddell Sea during Research Vessel
(RV) Polarsterncruise PS111 as part of the Filchner Ice Shelf System
(FISS) project - a collaboration involving leading UK research
institutions including the British Antarctic Survey (BAS), National
Oceanography Centre (NOC), Met Office Hadley Centre, University College
London, University of Exeter and Oxford University, and international
partners including Alfred Wegener Institute, Germany, and University of
Bergen, Norway. The AUV plays a critical role in the project that aims to investigate
and describe the current state of the complex atmosphere-ice-ocean
system. Boaty spent a total of 51 hours under the Antarctic ice,
travelling 108km over the duration of the deployment. The vehicle
reached water depths of 944m, and spent 20 hours exploring beneath a
section of the ice shelf that was 550m thick. Science Minister Sam Gyimah said: "Global warming is one of the
greatest challenges we face today. Boaty's maiden under-ice voyage
provides scientists with a greater understanding of the changes that are
occurring in Antarctica, which could have a colossal impact on our
planet - but, this is only the tip of the iceberg. The government is
committed to doing more and, through its ambitious industrial strategy,
we are revolutionising industries and society by shifting to clean
growth economies - ensuring the UK is leading the way in tackling
climate change."
UK gardens at risk from game changing plant disease
– Royal Horticulture Society
The quintessential UK garden, bursting with a wide variety of
flowers, fruit and vegetables, could be lost to an unprecedented new
disease in 2018, warns the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). Xylella fastidiosa – a bacterium which restricts water
movement in plants resulting in eventual death – has already caused
widespread devastation on the continent and threatens to arrive in the
UK through the importation of infected plant material. Unlike most pests and diseases which are plant-specific, Xylella
affects more than 350 different plant species with garden favourites
such as lavender, hebe, rosemary and flowering cherry at high risk
because of their popularity, susceptibility to different strains of the
disease and association with outbreaks on the continent. The disease, which is spread by insects including leafhoppers and
froghoppers is difficult to identify meaning it could advance unnoticed.
Infected plants either show no symptoms or exhibit ones which may be
confused with other common problems such as drought or frost damage. If
found in the UK, all host plants within 100m would be destroyed and
there would be restrictions on movement of plants within a 5km radius
for five years - striking a death knell for surrounding nurseries and
garden centres. In light of the threat, the RHS is calling on gardeners and the
industry to future proof gardens by purchasing host plants that are
UK-sourced and grown – that is, propagated from seed in the UK or grown
in the UK for a minimum of 12 months - maintaining varied plantings and
reporting potential cases of Xylella to Defra.
Wildlife charity launches Woodland Wonders Appeal
– Northumberland Wildlife Trust
With
woodland cover in England currently standing at just 10%, and
Northumberland being one of the counties with the least remaining areas
of native trees, Northumberland Wildlife Trust is calling on members of
the public to help it improve and expand what remains of the region’s
precious wooded areas by supporting its Woodland Wonders Appeal. Woodland at Bakethin, photo Matt Williamston Trees support a wider range of wildlife; as well as providing food in
the form of flowers, fruits and seeds; they provide cover, shelter and
nesting sites for animals, insects and birds. They also reduce flooding
and pollution with trees planted on hillside slowing rainwater runoff
and holding the soil in place, reducing the risk of flooding and
preventing water pollution by filtering out pollutants from the rain. Often overlooked by people as they go about their daily lives,
woodlands are places of tranquillity, beauty and inspiration with
research showing that spending time in woodlands and around trees
reduces stress, improves mental health and encourages physical activity. In this region, teams from Northumberland Wildlife Trust is creating Kielderhead Wildwood to restore the only native Scots pine woodland in England. This will be an upland woodland landscape, similar to that which existed in prehistoric times. It is an isolated and challenging spot and just the first year of work requires 5,300 native trees to be planted and protected.
England's first 'Moss Tree' to tackle city centre pollution –
Newcastle City Council England’s first pollution-busting “moss tree” has been installed in
Newcastle, where it will purify air in the city centre and create
opportunities for research into
the benefits of the plants’ natural filtering abilities.
Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) has been working on the plans since
July 2017, when it held its first ever NWG Innovation Festival, working
with a range of partners to identify ways it can tackle a wide range of
social and environmental problems. The company reached an agreement with Newcastle City Council to site
the tree at the Haymarket, close to the city’s bus interchange and busy
main roads. The moss cultures involved in the “tree” have the ability to filter
certain pollutants, by binding them to the leaf surface and then
integrating them permanently into their own biomass. This makes them
ideal air purifiers. The moss is built into the “Moss Tree” structure,
which provides the water – largely harvested from the rain – and the
shade the moss needs to survive, creating an intelligent combination of
technology and nature. The results achieved will be made available for universities and
other bodies on an ongoing basis, to feed into their own research on
tackling pollution. Built-in sensors will gather information on
pollution including Nitrogen Oxide, Nitrogen Dioxide and Carbon Dioxide,
as well as monitoring air humidity, temperature and rainfall. The NWG Innovation Festival involved Northumbrian Water working with
140 partner organisations, including headline sponsors IBM, Microsoft,
Ordnance Survey, BT, CGI Group and Reece Innovation. More than 1,000
people took part during the course of the week-long event. Community charity, Groundwork, has teamed up with the Royal Navy to
offer school children in Birmingham and London the opportunity to get
involved in a unique design competition to revamp local parks and
greenspaces to help improve their local area.
Image:
Groundwork The 'UGarden' project encourages young people to work in teams to
plan, agree and present their ideas around developing part of a
local greenspace to a Dragon’s Den-style panel of local stakeholders.
The winning team will be the one who successfully meets the brief given
and presents design proposals with the potential to be considered to be
used in the local plans for the greenspace. This exciting collaboration for Groundwork with the Royal Navy will
continue in March and will focus on ensuring spaces are attractive and
usable by whole communities as well as addressing air quality concerns,
biodiversity, sustainability and climate change adaptation. Groundwork
will provide guidance in designing the gardens for maximum environmental
benefit, while the Royal Navy teams will mentor the students to improve
their planning, communication and presentation skills. In Birmingham, two Year 9 school groups (13 -14 year olds) from Eden
Boys School and Handsworth Wood Girls Academy, will come together
to work on the project. They will focus their creativity on a corner of
Handsworth Park, which was identified by the Constituency Park Manager
and poses many design challenges.
New solution to harmful algal blooms raises hope of economic and
environmental benefits – John Innes Centres A cheap, safe and effective method of dealing with harmful algal
blooms is on the verge of being introduced following successful field
and lab
tests.
Moves to adopt use of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)
as an effective treatment against toxic algae are already underway
following the results of new research by a team from the John Innes
Centre and the University of East Anglia (UEA.) Successful trials last summer showed that H2O2 was
effective against the golden algae, Prymnesium parvum. This is
responsible for millions of fish kills worldwide each year and a threat
to the £550m economy of the Broads National Park where trials are taking
place. Now follow up lab tests have demonstrated that controlled doses of
the versatile chemical compound could be even more effective in dealing
with cyanobacteria commonly known as blue green algae - a major public
health hazard and potentially fatal to dogs and livestock. Some of these exciting results are published today (Friday 16 March)
in the journal Biochemical Society Transactions along with a series of
other scientific developments related to algal communities in the Broads
National Park; one of the UK’s most popular and environmentally
important network of waterways. Scientific publications Dall’Ara, E. et al (2018)
Green Mobility Infrastructures. A landscape approach for roundabouts’
gardens applied to an Italian case study. Urban Forestry & Urban
Greening. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.03.011
Lerman, S. B., Contosta, A. R., Milam, J. & Bang, C. (2018)
To mow or to mow less: Lawn mowing frequency affects bee abundance and
diversity in suburban yards. Biological Conservation.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2018.01.025
Gribben, P. E. et al (2018)
Below-ground processes control the success of an invasive seaweed.
Journal of Ecology. DOI: 10.1111/1365-2745.12966 |
|
CJS is not responsible for content of external sites. Details believed correct but given without prejudice. Disclaimer: the views expressed in these news pages do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of CJS. |