Spent a very enjoyable afternoon talking with the wonderful @alisontwells.bsky.social about her new book, for an event at my local library. I've done zillions of interviews in the past as a journalist and as a researcher, but the "in conversation with" approach is so much more fun!
Then Jessica den Outer is here on 21 May with The Forest Fights Back, about how the Rights of Nature movement is taking on the legal system to recognise the rights of rivers, forests, and mountains to exist, flourish, and sustain their ecological balance ⬇️
#RightsOfNature
They could at least have got the number of eggs right!
Well if humans are part of nature, which we are, I guess cats are too! They like being outdoors as much as we do, but the trick is to keep them indoors at night. And to have them wear noisy bells on their collars. All the cats I've ever had have followed these guidelines and never killed anything.
Wonderful! I'll be in Scotland in late April and will try to get to Charlotte's exhibition. I love what I've seen of her work!
So sorry I'll miss this launch. I could normally get over to Glossop easily but I'll be on the Isle of Mull in late April. I'll definitely buy the book though!
Wilder Visions & the Urban Wild - Creating and Managing Meadows and Scrub Conference this May
www.facebook.com/reel/2273715...
I've got one of those on my mantlepiece. A replica of course, bought from the British Museum. I love him to bits!
Delighted but a bit bemused to see this plant beside the River Derwent. I thought it was a snowdrop but it seems to have too many inner petals. There's another, not in flower, close by, but no others. Apart from trees fringing the river, the land here is open fields. Can anyone confirm what it is?
I so identify with your take on this! Awareness of possible risks must not stop us claiming our right to the outdoors. I'm sure you know Elizabeth Austen's wonderful poem and its defiant conclusion:
"The girl who goes alone says with her body
the world is worth the risk."
vimeo.com/78439954
Hostelling Scotland, the equivalent of England & Wales' YHA, has the same system when you become a member. No GB or UK category, just Scotland, Wales, Ireland (Northern) or England. Really good to be able to put Wales. Must piss off the Ulster Unionists though!
Indeed! The Wildlife Trust are trying to find out who they belong to, but they can wreak a lot of havoc in the meantime!
Spotted this little gaggle of intruders in my local nature reserve! They saw me coming and shimmied off along the brook looking guiltily pleased with themselves, like a bunch of kids who've skipped school and headed for the park. (Yes I did dob them in to @wildsheffield.bsky.social).
#naturewriting
Best of luck, Nic. I hope the garden vibes work their magic!
Thanks for this Nic! I've just signed up. I live opposite a small urban park so have easy access to a survey site, if this park isn't already covered. As it happens I'm also already booked on an online BTO course in bird sound ID, starting tomorrow, which should boost my usefulness for the survey!
Definitely good news! I'm a bit obsessed with wildcats and sponsor one for this project. It's worth also noting the huge amount of work they've done with www.cats.org.uk & local vets to trap, neuter, vaccinate & release local feral domestic cats, to avoid hybridisation undermining wildcat recovery.
Oh wow, could even be the same one, a few minutes later! Is that a frog that it's just caught? Poor frog - but herons have to eat.
One for the blurry birders - I've signed up!
www.bto.org/our-work/eve...
@joannahastings.bsky.social
#blurrybirding
I'm definitely a blurry birder too, with deteriorating eyesight and frequently-forgotten binoculars. The LBJs are especially hard to see!
Signed! I've read about the devastation caused by avian flu to the Bass Rock colony and the hopeful signs of recovery, but I didn't realise this hunt was still going on. Gannets are indeed fabulous. I used to be very familiar with the colony on Grassholm (Pembrokeshire), looked after by the RSPB.
Definitely buzzard, arcing gracefully on a thermal, as they do.
Dydd Gwyl Dewi hapus, John!
Hours of harmless fun can be had imagining scenarios for the bizarre word combinations of What3Words! I prefer an old fashioned grid ref, myself.
Thanks Jen. I'm looking forward to the next one!
Fascinating and inspiring discussion with Amy Jane Beer - thank you so much for organising and hosting it so brilliantly!
Well, for me the correlation was more with working myself into the ground! As well as some "colleagues" consistently making it clear I didn't belong. Yes, great relief to be out of it, albeit on less than half previous income, but happily freelance and able to do more writing. 😊
Exactly how I felt, until I quit last year! But workloads have also escalated crazily, with redundancies, recruitment freezes & ever-increasing demands on teaching, research, pastoral responsibilities, admin etc. Also in my case, impostor syndrome contributing massively to internalised expectations!
Oh but I think Kermit would have to be Heathcliff, because he's also othered ("It's not easy being green...")
I would so love to see "Muppets Wuthering Heights"! It would be a worthy successor to "Muppets Christmas Carol", one of my fave films of all time!
So sorry to hear this! Look after yourself and get well, that's the most important thing. No hurry to air podcast from my point of view.