Paul’s tips for promoting botanical education: 1 Make it enjoyable 2 Make it intellectually stimulating 3 Field work 4 Communicate widely.

#WildMarsh is looking for collaborators & field sites! We’re prepping a Europe-wide study for spring/summer 2026 to explore how trophic #rewilding influences #saltmarsh resilience. Let us know about salt marsh areas with large grazers, e.g. water buffalo, deer, moose, wild boar, cattle, sheep,etc.

🎓 Black Friday 50% OFF alert! Learn UK invertebrate ID & practical ecology online 🐝🪲 All entoLEARN & Skills For Ecology courses discounted. Use BLACKFRIDAY3 before 30 Nov! Courses: courses.biologicalrecording.co.uk/collections/...

To keep momentum going and to stop our botanical brains from seizing up over the winter, I shall be posting a series of vegetative ID posts through December and January. The posts will start on Monday 1st December. I hope you will find them useful

A paper that shakes up what we learnt at school

‘The Fenland Flora- survival against the odds’ webinar from Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust is now available to view m.youtube.com/watch?v=8fV0...

Yet more depressing news on the state of our species in a new report from Natural Resources Wales. Link to report in comments

Here is the link to the paper onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

🟥 New paper out 🟥 Powerful flowers: Public perception of grassland aesthetics is strongly related to management and biodiversity. With an amazing team: @valentinecology.bsky.social @davide-andreatta.bsky.social @foxnat.bsky.social & Franzi www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

I left it a bit late to find a flowering plant for tonight’s #wildflowerhour but in so doing, I have ended up taking a close look at a Lady’s-mantle flowers for the first time

Looking to grow your species ID skills? Join the list for the upcoming iNaturalist ID-a-thon event - a global initiative from mid-December to mid-January to help identify observations from around the world! For more info, join the mailing list at cdn.forms-content.sg-form.com/329e8835-c55...

Checked out our shiny new website yet? bsbi.org New to @bsbibotany.bsky.social or #WildFlowerID? We think you'll find it easier than ever to access resources, hear about events & learn more about wild plants in your area. Seasoned botanist? All your fave pages are still there + lots of new stuff!

The Botanical Society of Scotland’s Species of the Week: Yellow Archangel botsoc.scot/2025/11/16/l...

For #wildflowerhour it’s a lone Great Mullein, Verbascum thapsus flower from me. Larval food plant for Mullein and Cinnabar caterpillars

Kicking yourself because you missed Mark Duffell's recent Botanical Skills Webinar on the etymology of scientific names? Or maybe you just want to watch it all over again because there was soooo much to take in! No problem, we recorded the webinar for you! www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8o4...

New research from @unileipzig.bsky.social & iDiv shows: when non-native plants have been in Europe longer and have spread more widely, they begin to be used by native micro-herbivores at levels similar to native plants. #Biodiversity #iDivResearch www.idiv.de/non-native-p...

On Monday 17th November we have a webinar from our @npwsireland.bsky.social-funded Targeted Aquatic Plants Project. This webinar, from the fantastic Nick Stewart, is about the identification of non-native aquatic plants. Interested? Book yourself a ticket here: www.tickettailor.com/events/botan...

The Botanical Society of Scotland’s Plant of the Week: Hart’s-tongue botsocscot.wordpress.com/2025/11/09/p...

For #wildflowerhour it’s the unglamorous Annual Meadow Grass, Poa annua. According to the 1864 Flora of Harrow, this and Shepherd’s-purse were considered to be the most common plants in the world

Pirri-Pirri Bur, Pampas grass, Wireweed: all plants from the S Hemisphere that are establishing in the UK. Can we explain current and predict future invasions by S Hemisphere plants? Apply for this NERC ACCE+ PhD project to find out: tinyurl.com/374ty2b7 Please Repost! @acce-dla.bsky.social

We have another dozen talks still to go, with the next four being: 🟢Getting started with Rushes 🟢Leylandii and their look-a-likes 🟢10 Years of the National Plant Monitoring Scheme 🟢 Clubmosses of Ireland and Britain All of these can be booked from this page: bsbi.org/botanical-sk...

Over the winter, our Northern Ireland Botanical Skills Project is running a series of webinars on Tuesday evenings. This week we had the amazing Mark Duffell explaining the etymology of scientific names. Who knew that 'galeobdolon', the specific name of Yellow Archangel, means weasel-scented?

Did you know some of the world’s most threatened plants can’t be stored in our seed bank at –20° C? 🌱 This makes them highly vulnerable to extinction, but cryopreservation could be their lifeline. Go behind the scenes to learn how 👇 🎧 Learn more in our latest podcast episode: ow.ly/Q1Nl50XlYTF

Major revision of #GBRedList of plants published today shows 25% of our native & archaeophyte flora threatened with extinction. Many iconic widespread species classified as threatened for first time including Betony, Marsh Marigold, Devil’s-bit Scabious and Harebell. Another wake-up call for action!

20 years on from the first #GBRedList for vascular plants - what's changed? 285 taxa have become more threatened. Critically Endangered up from 35 to 55 taxa, Endangered up from 90 to 117 taxa, Vulnerable up from 220 to 261 taxa 😱☠️ Action needed now! Well done @bsbibotany.bsky.social and partners

The story of Fen Orchid is a bright spot in the gloomy picture of the new #GBRedList @plantlifeuk.bsky.social show that positive conservation actions can make a difference to the threats plants face, highlighted by @emilybeament.bsky.social in @the-independent.com www.indy100.com/news/beautif...

Here is the PDF of the new Vascular Plant Red List for Great Britain britishandirishbotany.org/index.php/bi...

New #GBRedList for vascular plants is published today by a team led by @bsbibotany.bsky.social with partners @naturalengland.bsky.social @ukceh.bsky.social @naturescot.bsky.social @natreswales.bsky.social @nhm-london.bsky.social @plantlifeintl.bsky.social @rbgkew.bsky.social @thebotanics.bsky.social

Last week’s Plant of the Week from the Botanical Society of Scotland: Rustyback botsoc.scot/2025/10/26/a...

For #wildflowerhour it’s Common Chickweed, Stellaria media and a question from me. Does anyone know the purpose/function/advantage of having hairs on alternating sides of the stem? I’m intrigued 🤔Thanks

🌾 What is a hay meadow? Once common across the UK, these wildflower-rich grasslands support incredible biodiversity but have declined by 97% since the 1930s. Learn how to restore and create them in our webinar on 29 Jan 2026: 🔗 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1821584400... @forestofbowlandnl.bsky.social

Bramble associated species: Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Noctua janthe. Forewing up to 20mm. Flies July to early September. Wide range of larval food plants inc. Bramble, White Dead-nettle, Broad-leaved Dock, Lords-and-ladies, hawthorns, sallows and Blackthorn.

Bramble associated species: Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Noctua fimbriata. Up to 27mm long forewing. Flies July to September. Uses a wide range of larval food plants including Bramble, Blackthorn, Cleavers, Broad-leaved Dock, Common Nettle, Primrose and Hawthorn.

An Etymological Flora of Britain and Ireland, with Mark Duffell The first Botanical Skills Webinar of the Winter 25/26 series, organised by the @bsbibotany.bsky.social - with funding from @daera-ni.gov.uk - is on Tuesday 4 November at 7pm. www.tickettailor.com/events/botan...

You can now join this from anywhere in the world! Head to www.mont-hmg.co.uk/2025-symposi... to get your live streaming tickets. Please share! #habitatmanagement @severnrivers.bsky.social

For #wildflowerhour here in Wales it’s the Welsh Poppy, Papaver cambricum. Leaves pinnate, dull pale or glaucous green. Yellow flowers up to 7.5cm, solitary, in leaf axils.

Bramble associated species: Lackey, Malacosoma neustria. Larval foodplants include Bramble, Blackthorn, Dog-rose, Hawthorn and Apple. Early instar larvae live together in white, silk tent. Final instar larvae disperse and feed singly

For tonight’s #wildflowerhour it’s Himalayan Knotweed, Koenigia polystachya. Still in full flower in Llandovery. Much less common than Japanese Knotweed as the BSBI map shows

Bramble associated species: Bee Beetle, Trichius fasciatus. Adults approx. 1cm. Females lay eggs in dead wood. Larvae feed on dead wood for up to two years. Adults live up to 8 weeks and feed on pollen and nectar

Bramble associated species: Emperor Moth, Saturina pavonia. Flies April-late May. Males are day flyers, females fly at night. Larval food plants include Bramble, heathers, Meadowsweet, hawthorns, Blackthorn, sallows and birches. Larvae feed gregariously out in the open to start with

The Botanical Society of Scotland’s plant of the week: Sweet Chestnut botsoc.scot/2025/10/12/c...

Bramble associated species: Food plant for the micro moth Stigmella aurella. Leaf mines very common. Mines are long and serpentine and can cross veins and the mid rib. One part of the mine typically has broad line of frass (distinguishing it from S. splendidissimella).

For #wildflowerhour it’s Pineappleweed, Matricaria discoidea. Pineapple scented when crushed. Much-branched, up to 35cm. Bristle tipped, yellowish-green leaflet lobes. Solitary discoid heads on short stalks, up to 8mm across. No ray florets.

Want to up your #WildFlowerID game this winter? We just launched our Winter Webinar programme! 7-8pm, every Tuesday from 4 Nov - 10 Feb. Thanks to funding from @daera-ni.gov.uk, these 10 great plant ID webinars are FREE for all of you to attend! Programme & booking links: bsbi.org/botanical-sk...

Bramble associated species: Peppered Moth, Biston betularia. Wing length up to 28mm. Flies early May to late August. Wide range of larval food plants including Bramble, Blackthorn, Hawthorn, birches, limes, sallows, oaks, Broom, Goldenrod, Beech and roses. Common across UK & Eire

Bramble associated species: Broom Moth, Ceramica pisi. Wing length up to 20mm. Flies late May to July. Larval foodplants include Bramble, Broom, Heather, Bracken, Sea-buckthorn, larches and sallows. Common across GB and Ireland.

Bramble associated species: Green Arches, Anaplectoides prasina. Wing length up to 25mm. Flies June to July. Larvae feed on a variety of shrubs and herbaceous plants including Bramble, Bilberry, Honeysuckle, Primrose, docks. Common across most of Britain

Bramble associated species: Buff Arches, Habrosyne pyritoides. Up to 20mm. Flies late June to early August. Larval food plants are Bramble and Dewberry. Common in England, Ireland and Wales. Scarce in Scotland

Bramble associated species: Peach Blossom, Thyatira batis. Flies late May to late July. Larval foodplant is Bramble. Common across the UK

Bramble, Rubus fruticosus agg: you have no doubt heard the slogan ‘A dog isn’t just for Christmas’ well I think we need a new slogan…….. I shall be making a series of posts highlighting a variety of species associated with it.