Red-billed leiothrix. A native of China (Peking Robin) to the Himalayas that also finds NW Italy to their liking. A colourful bird with a liking for shrubby woodlands going on the last few days. They sing very loudly at dawn then intermittently through the day. Took a while to see one.

Spanish Festoon is the most striking of the 5 festoon species in Europe (inc. Caucasus) & can be found in North Africa, Iberian peninsula & southern France in spring. The caterpillars feed on various birthwort species. Birthworts are toxic so confer some protection to the caterpillars #butterflies

In light of current monopoly media, I'll just shamelessly promote my newsletter that is part journalism, part scicomm, part political education. In case you're looking for some ecologically-oriented independent writing. (Also free to read)

Fascinating! I didn't know any of this history.

‘This shows the value of a weedy pond & providing access to it by placing branches over the surface’ @iand777.bsky.social

YES!

Sadly 2024 was one of the poorest breeding seasons for Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers since we started in 2015. Only 11 nests were found/monitored & on average only just over one young fledged per nest. This is probably not enough to sustain the population, www.woodpecker-network.org.uk/index.php/news

Jeff Bezos never wanted this cartoon to become public. He killed it, and as a result, pulitzer prize editorial cartoonist Ann Telnaes quit. Make sure everyone sees this cartoon.

Pretty horrifying. If you fitted a more appropriate curve, extrapolation would be very worrying.

The last time carbon dioxide concentrations in Earth’s atmosphere were as high as now was 14 million years ago. Our planet is in for big changes. www.cardiff.ac.uk/news/view/27...

Many SSSIs I've visited in the past 5 yrs have declined or been damaged. There is scope for recovery, but you can't start that process unless the sites are visited at least every 5 yrs. Spending time understanding sites & building relationships with landowners needs more & better resources.

View from Battersea's glass elevator at 109m showing the extent of green landscaping. Some looks quite minimal &/or ornamental (similar landscaping can be seen at ground level). Be interesting to know the plants used & species benefiting especially inverts & birds #urbanecology #ecology #insects, 🌍

🚨 OUT NOW 🚨 📚 The @ipbes.bsky.social #NexusAssessment Summary for Policymakers is now available! ➡️ Explore the most comprehensive assessment ever of the interconnections between biodiversity, water, food, health & climate. 🌏 Options for a just & sustainable future! www.ipbes.net/node/85582

It's @joshlukedavis.bsky.social's annual round-up of species described by @nhm-london.bsky.social scientists! This year, I contributed two dinosaurs to the list, including the most complete found in the UK for over a century, lead by @valdosaurus.bsky.social www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/new...

Day 20 of the 2024 #dragonfly #AdventCalendar. White-faced Darter is small and rare but spectacular. It's a bog specialist and mainly lives in Scotland. This one from Whixall Moss, its only site in Wales, a couple of years ago. #DragonflyAdventCalendar #invertebrates #ukwildlife

Wisdom's still alive, she's back at her breeding grounds! This season she'll turn at least 74 years old. 🎉🎊💃

🌎🌾🧪🌿🌱🌻🪻🐝 #EcoRestore #GenerationRestoration

Finally! After a few years of trying to find the right spot & time things right. I've photographed adult California tiger salamanders (Ambystoma californiense) underwater as they return to vernal ponds to breed. I believe mine are the 1st UW images of wild CA tiger sals. 🦎🌎🐸

Join us next spring for a relaxed birding break Visit Estonia w/ @birdingdad.bsky.social in search of sea duck & owls, travel to Lesvos w/ @beardybirder.bsky.social as north-bound migrants mingle with Aegean specialities, or join Laurie cruising the Danube Delta Pack your bins & let's go birding

This new study suggests that high-quality old grassland may be particularly good at supporting pollinators because diverse food sources provided by such grassland provide additional health benefits. besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... | Pornon et al. @funecology.bsky.social

This is a flower fly, or hover fly. You can easily see two little barbell shaped nubbins protruding from its sides where the thorax meets the abdomen. Those are halteres, organs that evolved from hindwings. The fly uses them to sense orientation and direction while flying. Guango Lodge, Ecuador

A Leaf-tailed Gecko (Uroplatus phantasticus) from a nighttime hike east-central Madagascar. We saw a handful of these lizards and I'm surprised we did, given their complete commitment to dead leaf mimicry. No doubt we walked by dozens more. #herps #NaturePhotography 🌿

📰Published📰 More Species in Small Patches vs. Large Patches: Insights from Modeling https://buff.ly/3YRptz4 🧪🌍

A new study shows that #butterflies, #bumblebees & #hoverflies can be equally effective #pollinators. Read about it here: jeffollerton.co.uk/2024/09/13/b...

Phew! I thought i was coping quite well with what has just happened in the US and then the naturespot website went down. Great you are back!

The amazing Strawberry Hill farm has been saved after BCN Wildlife Trust raised £1.5 million. Thanks so much to everyone who read my story, spread the word and donated. Please visit this beautiful place and take heart: together we can do great things. www.theguardian.com/environment/...