Extinction Advent calendar – Day 24
Which species is next? We are. If we can’t maintain a healthy natural world, with all its ancient complexity, we are likely …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 23
All wildlife needs is land and to be left alone. Human impact on the planet is devastating the number of species and …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 22
What hope do we have of wolves and bears being reintroduced when beavers prove so controversial? Britain has no wilderness or nature …
Extinction Advent Calendar – Day 21
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 21. The Grey Whale has been with us for 30 million years. We killed the last British …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 20
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 20
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 19
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 19 Just imagine if we still had ancient forests full of wild horses.
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 18
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 18 Named after the county of Kent, but no longer a breeding species here due to habitat …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 17
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 17 The Large Tortoiseshell became extinct in the UK in the 1950s.
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 16
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 16 Many of the extirpations of British species have taken place in relatively recent times. It’s only …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 15
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 15 Hunted to extinction in Britain 8,000 years ago.
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 14
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 14. Blue bugle, Ajuga genevensis has been extinct across the whole of the British Isles since 1967.
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 13
Today’s extinct animal of the British Isles: The Auroch. These impressive, wild cattle finally died out in Britain 1,000 years ago. They …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 12
The Black-veined White Butterfly was first listed as a British species in 1667. This stunning butterfly became extinct in the British Isles around 1925. Sir …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 11
No longer breeding in Britain. Loss of habitat, like wooded pastures, traditional orchards, and changes in agricultural practices to intensive farming are …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 10
Extinction Advent Calendar – Day 10 It’s the little things we’ll miss the most.
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 9
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 9. Elk were hunted to extinction in Britain for meat and skins and their antlers were used …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 8
Extinction Advent Calendar – Day 8. It’s not just animals and plants which are suffering in Britain. Degradation and loss of habitat …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 7
Extinction Advent Calendar – Day 7. Time to mourn the passing of the Brown Bear from Britain. Brown Bears lived in Britain …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 6
Extinction Advent Calendar – Day 6 – extirpated from the British Isles. There’s a Lynx-shaped hole in our landscape. There’s a Lynx-shaped …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 5
The Red-Backed Shrike is no longer considered a regular British breeding bird because it became effectively extinct as a breeding species in the UK in …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 4
Today’s extinct animal of the British Isles #7: The Burbot. In 1590 Burbot were so common they were used to feed pigs. …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 3
It’s Day 3 of my Extinction Advent calendar. Today’s extirpated creature of the British Isles is the Grey Wolf. We killed every …
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 2
Extinction Advent Calendar – Day Two. Large Copper Butterfly – Lycaena dispar. Killed by draining the Fens. Extirpated in 1851.
Extinction Advent calendar – Day 1
Do you feel any grief for the death of our wild heritage? Extinction Advent calendar Day 1. Today’s extinct animal of the …
There’s a beetle-shaped hole in our lives
In the UK the species Trichodes alvearius and another, the Bee-Eating Beetle, Trichodes apiarius, “Have not been seen since the 19th century and are likely to be extinct.”
Diplomatic ambassadors of life from deep time
You can’t boil it, fry it, roast it or casserole it. There’s nothing you can do to make an Osage Orange edible. …
The advantages of species extinction
It was both sad and entertaining to see that BBC Bitsize, the BBC’s resource for school children, had a list of the …
The Overconsumption Chronicles – Volume 1
When people complain about overconsumption there’s an inalienable truth at play. It’s the same truth that governs people’s attitudes to income. The …
Birch Brackets and extinct elephants
This Birch Bracket fungus is Piptoporous betulinus. It looks like a bicycle saddle here. I almost expect it to have springs underneath like …
Do you give a Spectacled Flying Fox?
Eight years ago I was offered half a day’s work in Australia, all expenses paid. That’s not something I was expecting. All …