If you are sick and tired of Governments failing to implement a peat compost ban again and again - to save all of the habitat it destroys each year and bring security to jobs and businesses in horticulture - please sign this petition actnow.peatfreepartnership.org.uk/end-peat-sal... I’ve signed

What a wonderful antidote to the rampant commercialism of this time of year … “The darkness around me feels inhabited, companionable.” Lovely stuff from @nicwilson.bsky.social

We've had nearly 300 bookings for our talk on the Clubmosses of Britain and Ireland by Fred Rumsey next Tuesday evening (2nd December) and there's still places left! Book now for free (though donations towards our work are appreciated): share.google/lQL6JQ7E9SEQ...

Looking forward to the British & Irish Botanical Conference tomorrow, where I'll be manning the @wildlifetraveller.bsky.social exhibit, sharing exciting opportunities for natural history holidays with a strong botanical focus. Do come and say hello! @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Its that time of year again: a male Snow Flea, one of 3 seen yesterday in woodland on the Shrops/Herefords border. These 4mm relatives of Scorpionflies live in moss (esp. Polytrichum & relatives) & are winter active as adults. Not fleas of course but they can jump a bit.

Charles Darwin the barnacle taxonomist, a story in two parts

I read BBC Wildlife Magazine avidly as a child and now my nature memoir, Land Beneath the Waves, is one of their Best Books of 2025. Can't quite believe it! What a way to end the year! uk.bookshop.org/p/books/land... @summersdalebooks.bsky.social @curtisbrownbooks.bsky.social

I really wish we'd stop calling them climate "skeptics" or "vaccine skeptics", if you jump off a cliff we don't call you a "gravity skeptic"

Last night the Government steamrollered its Planning Bill through, slamming the door on vital protections for nature. They said it would be a ‘win-win’ for the economy and nature. But in reality, they’ve pushed nature into last place.

Impressive paper with a huge range of techniques applied to answer questions about fossil lichen anatomy.

24 November 1859: 'On the Origin of Species', Charles Darwin's groundbreaking book, was published. Darwin's magnum opus is considered to be the foundation of evolutionary biology and is undoubtedly one among the most important books in the history of science. 🧪 #science #histsci #Darwin 1/3

OH MY! Land Beneath the Waves is one of BBC Wildlife Magazine's seven best adult books of 2025! And in such wonderful company! Totally made my year! 🥰💚 @summersdalebooks.bsky.social #naturewriting #chronicillness

"A 25-person startup" should not be allowed to "disrupt" fundamental inputs to the Earth's ecosystem, hydrosphere, and atmosphere. Like, what are we even thinking here?

Stop worrying about terraforming Mars and start preventing the venusification of Earth.

Celebrate Autumn! Sunday 23rd November, 11am - 3:30pm in the cosy cabin on Torpel Manor Field Nature Reserve, Helpston, Camb PE67DU. Plus homemade cakes, mulled apple juice, a warm welcome & lots to see! Nearest postcode PE6 7DU. Near the junction of West Street and Langley Bush Road (see map)

Woohoooo 💚💚💚@sarahwhild.bsky.social www.linkedin.com/posts/sarah-...

#Bugsky 🐙🌿 Who wants another baby earwig update? Everyone? Thought so. The babies are now two days old and slightly darker than when they hatched. Mama is guarding them and will stay on the job until their second molt. Btw, in the earlier post, the newly-hatched babies only had--

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!

I also made this online document of easy-to-take actions for allies who want to support trans people right now: docs.google.com/document/u/0... 🏳️‍⚧️

I'm delighted that I'll be joining @ukceh.bsky.social in February as their new Science Director! 🧪🌎🌳💦🦔 www.ceh.ac.uk/press/ukceh-...

I’ve only just seen this. A really good wildflower-rich hay meadow is a wonderful thing. #Cumbria www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Wow, nice! and welcome to Bluesky - that's a very original first post on here.

This is what many of us have been saying. Part 3 of the Planning & Infrastructure Bill is based on a myth: that we don't have enough homes because wildlife and green spaces are protected. It will solve nothing, and inflict terrible harm on our remaining ecosystems www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

A magazine asked Ursula to write about a book that changed her life. "A book? One book?" she wrote on her blog. You can read the whole post here: www.ursulakleguin.com/blog/100-a-b...

In the autumn I spend some time looking for Purple Emperor larvae. Before hibernation they spin silk threads to ensure their seat leaf stays attached. Eventually some leaves remain hanging by a silken thread and spinning in the wind. This gives away the caterpillars location - here alongside a bud.

Some exciting news. The Moss Safari book has been shortlisted for the ASE Book of the Year Award 2025. 💚🔬 #iseemoss www.ase.org.uk/news/ase-boo...

I've waited a lifetime to find Striated Bird's Nest fungus, and this week I've seen it twice! Also a magnificent colony of Coral Slime-mould, a troop of another slime-mould Physarum sp. with a lime-encrusted peridium and a heap of Witch's Butter. At @wildlifebcn.org Old Sulehay NR 📷🍄

Like Australia. It's all about bums on seats. There's already a short fall of graduates - plant science majors walk straight into jobs

🌱🌾🌍🌺🍄🧪🌳🐝🌿🌳🍅🍞🥦Botanical University Challenge to inspire the next generation of botanists. University of Nottingham, UK, plans to close Plant Biology for new students from autumn 2026. Current students want to know more. Read more here: www.change.org/p/reconsider...

And finally, Lubo’s message to the young: LESS COMPUTER, MORE COLLECTING

Frankly I’m with Lubo

I remember the bonfire nights of my youth - absolutely freezing As the warmest bonfire night on record hit the UK, the BBC managed to report it without mentioning climate change! www.bbc.com/weather/arti...

🚨 The Govt has just published its Carbon Budget Delivery Plan - we are calling for nature to be at the heart of net zero “Only nature can put the ‘net’ in ‘net zero’, by restoring landscapes with woodlands, peatlands, wetlands and wildflower meadows" Read here👇 www.wcl.org.uk/only-nature-...

I have no idea who to credit for this, apologies. But fuck, that's so accurate based on recent workplace conversations I've overheard.

Wild Roses of Great Britain & Ireland (latest title in the series of #BSBIHandbooks for tricky plants) is due out this month! Final proofs now with authors Gareth & Roger. Interview with them about the new Handbook here: bsbipublicity.blogspot.com/2025/10/inte... £16 for #BSBImembers until 24 Nov.

Send me records: I am excited to be taking on the role of national springtail recorder. I have huge shoes to fill, but I hope to continue the progress Peter Shaw made in understanding the taxonomy and biology of the UK's #springtails. www.brc.ac.uk/scheme/colle...

Exciting news: we have a new British flea weevil. Less exciting news: it is a Rhamphus. I still don't understand how to tell them all apart. Even so, this is a very useful paper: www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/16... Six new Palaearctic species and a review of diagnostic characters. #coleoptera

"The economy is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the environment." - Gaylord Nelson, Earth Day Founder, Wisconsin Governor and Senator. Friend.

One striking result is that the dangers of the dramatic decline in natural ecosystems and biodiversity (in oceans and on land) are not widely recognised by the general public, and I would say are still underestimated by the experts. We all ultimately depend on a functioning biosphere.

Often overlooked, small water bodies - streams, damp ditches, small bogs, ponds - support more rare species compared with larger habitats while high-quality ponds support about 2/3 of all freshwater plant + animal species in a landscape. 🧵 1/4 freshwaterhabitats.org.uk/news/start-w...

Gotta love Private Eye. Always cuts through the crap.

Here are some miniatures seen during a foray that I led for Doncaster Nats today. The Physarum and the Didymium are slime moulds and the Mollisia and the Orbilia are ascomycete fungi.

My book has got a great endorsement from Chris Packham: "This clever and immensely resourceful book is an overdue gem". There's also a few pages up on the website too! It's up for pre-order here with publication set for January pelagicpublishing.com/products/pan...

Thinking of patenting my favorite method for ranking researchers: reading their papers and deciding whether they are good.

It’s like a Douglas Adams story. Billions of dollars spent on a machine that consumes incredible resources. Earth has blown past 4C. Fresh water is gone. But at last it’s done. The makers ask, “How do we solve climate change?” The machine whirs and responds, “You can switch to solar 100 years ago.”

Yay. Priceless. The right column at the right time. And a gleefully English two fingers to the haters.

The door inside the forest. #Inside #BlueskyArtShow 📷 #photography

Let’s rename A.I. Artificial is another word for fake. Fake Intelligence is not appealing. F.I. F*** It.