Researchers say they can genetically modify endangered #quolls so they're immune to invasive #CaneToad toxins, and suggest they'll be extinct in 10 years without it (this is not a number I've seen elsewhere). I spoke to BBC Wildlife about the ethics of engineering a wild species:

Should scientists genetically modify a species of marsupial in order to save it from going extinct? My piece for BBC Wildlife on Colossal Biosciences® plans to introduce resistance to cane toad toxin into northern quolls. Jack Ashby University of Melbourne discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/n…

Some disasters don't make the news, because they happen every single day. We've become accustomed to these catastrophes, even though they're often (much) worse than even the worst news on the front pages.

Case in point: the tobacco industry. /1

Wallabies among the wild garlic. There’s a poem there somewhere.

A popular Australian beach has descended into chaos after tourists flocked to take selfies with dying stranded pilot whales.

'It's pretty disgusting down there. You've got kids sitting on dead whales & riding them like ponies & people are taking photos.'
au.news.yahoo.com/tourists-blast…

#mammalweek Day 5
There have been some vagrant mammals make it to Cambridgeshire such as
Common Dolphin – Amazingly there have been three individuals in Cambridgeshire since 2020
Mammal Society

A new study published today provides the strongest evidence to date that not only is nature conservation successful, but that further investment would be transformational for halting and reversing biodiversity loss 🌍

Dr Jake Bicknell, Senior Lecturer in Biodiversity Conservation…

Here's the full report, with ECI, Univ of Oxford, Uni of Reading, UNEP-WCMC, National Institute of Economic and Social Research.
greenfinanceinstitute.com/wp-content/upl…

If you agree that politicians need to take action, please join us in London at the #RestoreNatureNow demonstration: restorenaturenow.com

Extraordinary work by the Green Finance Institute today shows that damage to nature is slowing the UK economy and could lead to a 12% reduction in GDP - that's £150-£300bn - as early as the 2030s.

All political parties serious about the economy must invest and regulate to #RestoreNatureNow .

Pheasant with Grass Snake

photo John Tomsett

There’s no such thing as a benign beef farm – so beware the ‘eco-friendly’ new film straight out of a storybook theguardian.com/commentisfree/…

A new private members bill would see Natural England stripped of its powers to designate protected sites because the regulator’s 'failure to follow the science'.

But is there any truth in these claims or merits in the proposals? James Fair reports ⬇️
endsreport.com/article/186830…

Another day, another comment piece in the Telegraph that:

a) has a pop at EVs

b) says stuff about EVs that is pretty misleading

This one, by Ross Clark, also says some fairly misleading things about road pricing

So here's a thread to correct the narrative - buckle up!

Toxic relationships: Why are UK towns and cities backtracking on pesticide bans?

Interesting read by James Fair for ENDS Report
endsreport.com/article/186744…

Dipper on the stream in the Nailsworth valley in Gloucestershire. This area is quite populated with a lot of light industry and other businesses along the length of the valley. Dippers seem to do ok, though.

Great thread, Tom!

I’m fed up with misreporting of the Welsh Sustainable Farming Scheme.

We can’t afford to play farming off against nature recovery: the two go together.

Glad Private Eye Magazine printed my letter to correct the record.

Who killed cock robin? I, said the hawk - well, at a rough guess anyway. Could have been a cat, though.

What species of blue butterfly is this? I assumed common, but now I’m not so sure. butterfly-conservation.org/butterflies/co… Whatever - feels very early for it to be out Butterfly Conservation 🦋

The puffins are coming back. Soon there will be nearly 1000000 puffins around the U.K. 😊😊😊😊 #puffin