Election Night

While the tv political pundits mull over the results coming in from the polls here  are  some  photos I took recently in our local reserve. Above is the Common Vetch and this is the Germander Speedwell and the lower one is Ground Ivy

   

The Election

Just to start this post I am pleased to be able to show these photographs taken in our local nature reserve meadow in the last week or so. The cowslips are looking great and the fungi has not been seen there before. A Morel fungi I think!

 

 Now for the election!

 

This is what the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts is saying about the Election debate.

 

Public urged to tell politicians:

We care about wildlife

30th March, 2010

Conservationists are urging the public to help stop further wildlife loss by encouraging their local MPs and Prospective Parliamentary Candidates to sign a new ‘wildlife pledge”, to do all they can to stop and reverse wildlife decline.
A consortium of 11 wildlife charities, including The Wildlife Trusts, have pulled together the pledge to help reverse the rapid decline in our wildlife - both species and habitats. It was recently reported that around 500 species have become extinct in England in the recent past and conservationists are appealing to the public to help make wildlife a top priority for politicians and stop further species being lost.
The Wildlife Pledge, which can be viewed online at www.wildlifepledges2010.org.uk  is supported by wildlife organisations representing more than two million people. It includes the promise to take action in tackling climate change and to help wildlife meet this challenge. It also looks for commitment from politicians to help reverse the decline of farmland wildlife by the effective promotion of nature-friendly farming, as well as to provide children with contact with the natural world as part of their education.
The pledge gives Prospective Parliamentary Candidates the opportunity to express their support and commitment to various aspects of wildlife conservation. The public can view which candidates have given their support for this issue before the election. Conservationists are encouraging people to then contact their Prospective Parliamentary Candidates informing them how important this issue is and that their response to the pledge may affect the way they vote.
Stephanie Hilborne, chief executive of The Wildlife Trusts, said:
“The actions of the next government are absolutely crucial to ensuring a future for our wildlife. One of the many challenges they will face will be to implement the Marine Act to restore our seas and also to restore the natural environment on land. It is vital that we have MPs in the new parliament who understand and appreciate these challenges and keep the next government on its toes.”

To find out if your local candidates have signed the pledge, visit www.wildlifepledges2010.org.uk

Story by RSWT

More Information

The consortium of 11 organisations involved with the Wildlife Pledge is as follows: Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, Bat Conservation Trust, Buglife, Butterfly Conservation, The Grasslands Trust, Mammals Trust, Plantlife, RSPB, Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, The Wildlife Trusts and the Woodland Trust.

Orchards.

2010 International Year of Biodiversity.

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Butterfly Conservation.    Drink cider and help the Mistletoe Marble moth.

Traditional Orchards.
April 15th. Details on our Diary Blog.
This is the subject of our next public meeting.

Our speaker is the Project Officer for the National Trust. Read more about their project to conserve Orchards. Click here to go to their web site and here.

Their project is funded by  Natural England.  Click here to go to their report on orchards.

The Peoples Trust for Endangered Species is also running a project to find and record England's remaining traditional orchards. Click here to go to their web site.

Butterfly Conservation have been cooperating with the National Trust to survey orchards for moths. The rare Misletoe Marbled Moth ( Celyphia Woodiana) is described here in a report.

The moth is also reported in the web site of "Bird Guides"with a photo and this recommendation to help the conservation of traditional apple orchards.

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"Butterfly Conservation.  Drink cider and help the Mistletoe Marble moth."

Orchards - old and new, Biodiversity, International Year.

In this post I am showing a link to the National Trust web site covering their Orchard restoration project.

This is the subject of our next public meeting.
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Month: April 2010 Date: 15th……………Tea and Coffee from 7.15,  Start Time: 7.30…pm………… End Time: 9.30 pm

Wildlife in traditional and modern English orchards.

Kate Merry, NT Orchard Project Officer and Alison Slade, Somerset Partnership Biodiversity Officer with the Somerset Wildlife Trust.

Click here to go to National Trust  for more information.

Description of event: An illustrated talk about traditional orchards which are a priority habitat under the UK Government’s Biodiversity Action Plan. The NT is a joint leader with Natural England in a project for their conservation and restoration and to improve our knowledge of their associated wildlife. Kate and Alison will talk about their work and the implications for Biodiversity.

Fee £2.50
Curry Rivel Primary School.

Posted by David at 8:52 PM

Labels: Biodiversity, Orchards

Election meeting

Somerset Wildlife Trust

invites you to come along to

ENVIRONMENT

QUESTION TIME

A pre-election public meeting with

Somerton & Frome’s political party candidates

Monday 12 April

Caryford Community Hall,

Ansford, Castle Cary.

(Doors open at 7:15pm for a 7:30 start)

This is your chance to ask Somerton & Frome’s political party candidates what they would do for Somerset’s natural environment

Urban woods and trees can help wildlife to flourish - the Woodland Trust

Urban woods and trees can help wildlife to flourish - the Woodland Trust

Natural disasters down under.

Now for something completely different. As far as I can tell this is a video from Australian TV and is a parody of the way politicians handle real environmental disaster. In any case its very funny (IMHO)

Wildlife podcast Meeting with prospective Members of Parliament

 I'm pleased to see the Somerset Wildlife Trust taking part in a discussion about local issues related to the candidates views on the future of wildlife. Here is the news item from the SWT web site giving a link to the Pod Cast of the debate.

26 March 2010

Wildlife podcast

More than 70 people turned up to quiz the politicians vying for their votes in Taunton Deane, ahead of the general election, at a hustings meeting organised by Somerset Wildlife Trust and Friends of the Earth.

The event, which took place at the Meetings Room, Taunton Library, on March 11, tackled the theme of Somerset’s Natural Environment and explored climate change, wildlife and the food chain.

The hustings were recorded by 10Radio and you can listen to the podcast here by clicking this link: Somerset Wildlife Trust and Taunton Friends of the Earth hustings, 11 March 2010

Blogging news and campaigns from other conservation organisations

Trying a quick round up of news from other Bloggers and conservation groups,so we'll see how it goes.
Starting by looking at the most recent posts.

Chris Sperring. Hawk and Owl Trust.

Chris Sperring MBE: New update coming soon, still surveying at mo.

Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts.

Press News: "Latest News
Mar 10
Mum'sea' creatures go the extra mile
Study recognises key to future conservation success
Marine Protected Area announcement welcomed by The Wildlife Trusts
Scotland gets Marine Act
Government peat announcement welcomed by The Wildlife Trusts
BBC Eggheads smashed!
Don’t damn the Severn Est"

Somerset Wildlife Trust.

01 March 2010
24 hours of wildlife watching on the Avalon Marshes
Discover the abundance of wildlife on the Avalon Marshes at a spectacular 24-hour nature event.

Avalon 24 is 24 hours of guided walks where everyone is invited to see and hear as much wildlife as possible from noon on Saturday, May 29 to noon on Sunday May 30.

The two hour walks take place on some of the Avalon Marshes nature reserves including Somerset Wildlife Trust’s Westhay Moor and Catcott Lows, the RSPB’s Ham Wall, Natural England’s Shapwick Heath, and the Hawk and Owl Trust’s Shapwick Moor.

RSPB Link here.

The Albatross Task Force
We got our wish in 2005 with the formation of the Albatross Task Force - the world's first international team of skilled, at-sea instructors.
Albatross Task Force teams are based in the bycatch 'hotspots' of southern Africa and South America, where albatrosses come into contact with large and diverse longline and trawl fishing fleets.
Since its formation, we have seen dramatic reductions in the numbers of albatrosses and other seabirds killed. This is a sure sign that Albatross Task Force members really are getting something practical done to help save albatrosses from extinction.
The Albatross Task Force is managed by BirdLife Partner organisations around the world, and co-ordinated by the Global Seabird Programme from its headquarters at the RSPB.

Butterfly and Bumblebee sightings17th March 2010

First sightings today in our garden  of a Small Tortoiseshell and a Bombus terrestris. ( my identification?)