End of Year 2023 September to November should be the peak time for fungi. This year we had rain followed by rain and rain again. Because the weather was also warm, the undergrowth in woods remained in full leaf so searching for fungi was difficult, fungi relying on dead material.I paid a number of visits...
With measureable rainfall on 22 days and a total precipitation of 152 mm, November 2023 was a wet one. In fact, Rachael Park’s Formby garden rain-gauge recorded 71% more rain than average for the month. Two named storms largely passed to the south and north of us, though ‘Storm Debi’ on 13th produced severe gale-force...
In July 1997, a Black Guillemot chick was ringed in Orkney. This bird successfully fledged from its nest and lived for nearly 25 years without being seen again. In May 2022, the bird was recaptured, still in Orkney, making it the oldest-known Black Guillemot in Britain and Ireland! This is one of the new records (see...
The outstanding contributions of five individuals and one organisation were celebrated at the British Trust for Ornithology’s annual awards ceremony last week. The event at London’s Mall Galleries brought together celebrated scientists, dedicated volunteers and BTO staff. It was co-hosted by the Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA) Natural Eye Exhibition. The 2023 Marsh Awards for...