Sharpham Wild for People: an Interview with Jack Skuse
|
|
The beautiful and historic Sharpham Estate runs alongside the River Dart just outside Totnes in South Devon. Beginning this year, a three-year project called Wild for People, run by the Sharpham Trust under a National Lottery Heritage Fund project, will begin to enhance the biodiversity of this 550-acre area, aided by a passionate team of conservation trainees. Working with Ambios Ltd, who are based on the Estate, this project aims to turn more of the Sharpham Estate organic, rewild significant parts of the landscape and encourage more people to interact with the nature there.
Jack Skuse, director of Ambios, recently took the time to chat with us about the Sharpham Wild for People project. In this inspiring conversation we talk about the practicalities of rewilding alongside food production, how the Covid pandemic has affected the first year of the project, and his tips for people wanting to get into a career in conservation.
|
|
Our September 'In The Field' product review features the Pettersson U-series USB Ultrasonic Microphone. Head over to the NHBS blog to find out more.
|
|
This month, browse our newly catalogued books in Leon's bookshelf.
|
|
Plant Evolution in the Mediterranean: Insights for Conservation - New edition
Since the first edition published in 2005, there has been an immense amount of new and fascinating work on the history, ecology, and evolution of the Mediterranean flora. Human impacts have continued to increase dramatically, significantly influencing both the ecology and evolution of the region's biota. This comprehensive update of the original text integrates a diverse and scattered literature to produce an account of Mediterranean plant evolutionary ecology.
|
|
|
Raptor Prey Remains: A Guide to Identifying What’s Been Eaten by a Bird of Prey
Due September 2020
This practical guide will help you to identify the prey remains commonly found beneath raptor nests, roosts and plucking posts. The book features a huge number of photographs highlighting feathers, fur and other body parts and covers over 100 species of bird and mammal prey of raptors such as Sparrowhawks, Peregrines and Hen Harriers.
|
|
|
Bat Detecting for International Bat Night
|
|
The weekend of the 29th-30th August was the 24th International Bat Night. Organised by Eurobats, this annual celebration of bats saw events taking place all around the world in an effort to educate and inspire people about these fascinating flying mammals.
To mark International Bat Night, a small team from NHBS ventured out to an area of local woodland with a selection of bat detectors. The site we visited has been managed for the past two years by Steve and Tamara Davey, with the aim of maximising biodiversity. They are also ensuring the continued provision of habitat for certain species including seven recorded bat species, Nightjars and Woodcock. (Read more about how they are supporting nature in our recent interview or on the Woodland Wildlife website).
|
|
|
|
|