UK Wildlife Blog – Page 6

Ep46 – Pasque Flower and Snake’s-Head Fritillary

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife April 16, 2021 Leave a comment

In the first of 2 spring flower episode we take an in depth look at the Pasque Flower and Snake’s-Head Fritillary, their ecology, native status and uses in history. In news we discuss Freddie the seal being attacked by a dog, Puffin numbers booming to 1940s-level high on Skokholm, Buglife’s investigation finding ‘I’m a Celebrity’…

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Ep45 – Cuckoos with Professor Nick Davies

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife April 5, 2021 Leave a comment

We discuss cuckoos with Professor Nick Davies, field naturalist and author of the book ‘Cuckoo: cheating by nature’. We talk about the cuckoos diet, migration and their extraordinary nest parasitism. Over many years of study Nick and his colleagues have answered many of the questions around how the cuckoo gets away with laying it eggs…

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Ep44 – Bee-Flies with Dr Erica McAlister

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife March 22, 2021 Leave a comment

We talk about bee-flies, the cute brown fuzzy flies that start to appear in Early spring. As guest host we have the only person we could have asked, the woman Nick baker that described as “the best thing that has ever happened to flies, Dr Erica McAlister! (Who was a great guest back in Ep26).…

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Ep43 – Ladybirds with Professor Helen Roy

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife March 14, 2021 Leave a comment

We are joined by Prof. Helen Roy, President of the Royal Entomological Society, to discuss ladybirds. We talk about what ladybirds are, what they eat and their lifecycle. We also ask Helen some of your questions on the value of recording and impact of invasive ladybirds, and finally we talk about who the Royal Entomological Society are and…

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Ep42 – Snakes with Steve Allain

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife March 5, 2021 Leave a comment

Steve joins us again for another herpetological episode, this time we cover the Uk’s snake species: Adders, Grass Snakes, Smooth Snakes and Aesculapian Snakes.

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Ep41 – Ancient Orchards with Nick Gates

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife February 21, 2021 Leave a comment

We talk to Nick Gates, naturalist and natural history TV producer, vlogger and writer. We discuss the Ancient or Traditional Orchards, the topic of the book Orchard, which he co-authored. These orchards can hold a wealth of wildlife, including rare and declining species such as the noble chafer, lesser spotted woodpeckers and redstarts. We also, answer…

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EP40 – Back from the Brink project

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife February 12, 2021 2 Comments

We are joined by James Harding-Morris, who is the Communications Manager for the Back from the Brink project, a large collaboration of UK nature conservation bodies which aims to save 20 species from extinction and benefit over 200 more through 19 projects that span England. We discuss the aims and achievements so far, some of the many…

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Ep 39 – Tawny owls

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife February 5, 2021 1 Comment

We talk about tawny owls which are very active and calling at this time of year. In news we discuss The badger cull ‘halting’, using birth control to control squirrels, more raptor persecution and a strange arrangement between Natural England and BASC, a study showing half of all bird biomass in August is non native…

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Ep38 – Freshwater Filmmaking with Jack Perks

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife January 30, 2021 Leave a comment

We talk to the fish twitcher himself, Jack Perks, about how he ended up filming freshwater fish and other wildlife, his quest to film every species of British freshwater fish and many other things. In news we cover the call by conservationists to monitor our smaller streams and ponds, andJack also gives his insights on…

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Ep37 – Entomology + Carrion Beetles with Ash Whiffin

PodcastBy Neil-UKWildlife January 25, 2021 Leave a comment

We talk to entomologist and museum curator Ashleigh Whiffin, discussing how she got to being a museum curator and entomologist, the need for taking specimens in entomology and how entomological displays have changed over the years. We also discuss Carrion Beetles, their wonderful behaviours of this group, (which include a surprising amount of parental care),…

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