Reintroducing White Storks is not a priority, according to Natural England.
The reason? Serious questions remain over whether White Storks were ever truly native to Britain. There is only one confirmed record of the birds breeding here – in Scotland in 1416 – and their remains are rare in the archaeological record.
If storks were never really part of Britain’s ecosystems, should we be trying to bring them back at all?
Despite the uncertainty, reintroduction projects are already underway. At the rewilded Knepp Estate in West Sussex, White Storks have been breeding following releases that began in 2016.
So what do you think: does Britain need White Storks?
Read more in this week’s edition of GROUND COVER. Link in bio.
@kneppwildland@naturalengland@whitestorkproject
A new study estimates the net cost to society of bottom trawling in European waters. The impacts of climate change are the greatest expense: trawling disturbs carbon in the sediment, releasing greenhouse gases.
Read more in the latest edition of Continental Drift. Link in bio.
"Tree veteranisation is the deliberate damaging or wounding of ‘younger’ trees to accelerate the development of microhabitats typical of large, old trees (veterans)."
- @sussexwildlifetrust
Read more on inkcap.co.uk.
This week's edition of Ground Cover features:
🦅 Golden eagle reintroduction
🌿 Peatland restoration
🐿️ Red squirrels in trouble
🐝 Historic lake pollution
🌸 An interspecies council
And much more. Free to read.
Link in bio.
Loch Ness photo by @james__shooter .
Rewilding got off to a bad start in Wales, after a project launched in 2018 was met with accusations of eco-colonialism.
But the time has come for the Welsh to embrace the concept, argues @jon.m0ses of the recently launched @welshrewildingalliance . Nature in Wales is suffering, and rewilding can help to restore it.
This time, however, the movement must be adapted to its unique Welsh context – a movement that is embedded in the culture, communities and economics of the landscapes where it unfolds.
"This needs to be an exploratory conversation, not a heated argument. We should be cautious about boosterism. Rather than hard-selling a bright new horizon, we need to talk honestly about the existing evidence, be optimistic where it shows promise, make space for trialling different approaches, and be open about what has and hasn’t worked."
Read more on inkcap.co.uk. Link in bio.
This week's issue of Ground Cover features:
🐞 'Largest ever' investment in species recovery
🌿 Campaign to save Upton Heath
🏠 What developers really think of Biodiversity Net Gain
🌲 Natural regeneration in the Cairngorms
🌷 David Attenborough on gardens
And much, much more.
Link in bio.
Around 25km from the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant is a herd of feral cattle.
Since the last resident of the village died, they have been roaming free – and have adopted several new wild behaviours as a result. For instance: huddling around their young when there's a wolf – or a human – in the area.
The cattle are providing valuable insights into the kind of "full rewilding" that is missing from more managed projects in the UK, where wild animals are still subject to human management.
Unfortunately, however, the cattle are dying: not as a result of their environment, but because of war. The herd has shrunk since the Russian invasion, putting one of Europe's most interesting – and accidental – experiments at risk.
Read more in the latest edition of CONTINENTAL DRIFT. Link in bio.
