Celia Carter has been monitoring dormice in Marden Park, a large area of Woodland Trust land, on North Downs in Woldingham, Surrey since 2005. She tells us how What3Words (W3W) has made searching for dormouse boxes, and hopefully dormice, easier. Searching for dormouse nest boxes The woodland here is dense and in summer there’s quite …

In the Chinese zodiac, 2023 is the year of the rabbit. If that means we think about them as more than just a pest in the countryside, that’s a good thing because rabbits play an important part in shaping the British landscape. Rabbits only really took off in the wild after about 1750. Before then, …

In 2022, nine organisations took part in a trial investigating the effectiveness of using floating rafts to detect water voles by providing them floating platforms for their latrines (droppings). Water voles are naturally inquisitive, and it didn’t take long for them to explore the rafts and use them as artificial feeding platforms where they would …

No prior experience needed, and free training is available to help save one of Britain’s fastest declining mammals Volunteers in all corners of England, Scotland and Wales are being called to help save one of Britain’s fastest declining mammals, by taking part in a nationwide water vole survey between 15th – April and 15th June. …

North-eastern Kenya continues to experience its worst drought in 40 years In Garissa County, East Kenya, our colleague Dr Abdullahi Ali Hussein is fighting against the effects of the drought. Many wild animals, especially those dependent on grass, are dying due to the severely dry conditions. Giraffes, hirola antelope, desert warthogs, Beisa oryx, Grevy’s zebras, …

The Wood Pasture and Parkland Network (WPPN) is a working group of conservation professionals from a number of different organisations who meet quarterly to share information, promote a wider understanding of the habitat and provide advice on its protection. We usually meet virtually, but once a year we meet in person at an exemplary or …

Volunteers needed to record garden wildlife for nationwide ‘Living with Mammals’ survey This spring, volunteers across the UK are being asked to record sightings of mammals spotted in their gardens, local parks and other green spaces, in a bid to understand our changing environment better and encourage urban wildlife to flourish. The annual ‘Living with …

Countryside specialists Countryside Jobs Service (CJS) is an ethical business working in harmony with environmental professionals to conserve the British countryside and natural world. They’re motivated by conservation success not profits, and their website provides a one-stop shop for everyone in the countryside, conservation, ecology and wildlife sectors. We’re delighted to have been chosen as CJS’s featured …

Without Biodiversity, There is No Net Zero Dec. 6, London: Nature is under grave threat. We estimate one million species are at risk of extinction by 2030 and populations of wildlife have declined 70 percent in 50 years. Global action has never been more urgent, as world leaders prepare for the COP15 UN biodiversity summit …

Restoring Broadwater Warren Broadwater Warren – a 180ha nature reserve – was acquired by the RSPB in 2007. It’s a remnant of Waterdown Forest, a medieval hunting forest in the High Weald where, historically, the landscape would have been open heath with pockets of woodland. RSPB’s aim was to restore rare lowland heath and woodland …

Earlier this month, with the dormouse monitoring season almost over, I excitedly packed my wet weather gear and travelled to northern Germany. I was joining Björn Schulz, Sven Büchner and their families and friends to look for evidence of hazel dormice on the German/Danish border. Finding evidence of dormouse in Germany Germany, like all EU …

We were incredibly sad to hear from Sue Portsmouth that one of our long-term dormouse monitors, Karen Bigmore, passed away at her home in April. Karen has been a dedicated monitor and a well-known part of the dormouse community for years. She started monitoring dormice at Hadleigh Great Wood in Essex in 2006, training Sue …