Springwatch
Posts
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Discover toads and how you can help them
Earthwatch Europe
Partner organisation of the Watches
Written by Cathy Robinson, nature and travel writer, for at
Have you been lucky enough to spot a pair of copper-coloured eyes peeping out from a hidey hole this spring?
If you have toads on your patch, they’ll have lain low during the colder months, snug in your compost heap, hiding in a pile of dead wood or burrowed into mud, only coming out to forage during mild spells.
When you do see one, it will most likely be the common toad (bufo bufo) - meaning ‘toad toad’. Two species of toad are native to Britain, the other being the very rare natterjack toad bufo calamita, found on sandy heaths and dunes in a few areas of the UK.
The common toad is fairly widespread throughout Britain, although absent from Ireland. But its numbers are declining. Estimates suggest we’ve lost two-thirds of our common toads over a 30 year period.
Is it a frog or a toad?
A toad’s skin appears much dryer than a frog’s and it is knobbly or warty. The warts鈥�
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Jellyfish in UK waters
Marine Conservation Society (MCS)
Partner organisation of the Watches
What do barrel, moon and mauve stinger have in common? They’re all types of jellyfish that you could spot in UK waters
Did you know that you can find jellyfish in the UK’s seas? It's most likely to be in the summer months, as jellyfish ‘blooms’ arrive as the water warms.
At the Marine Conservation Society, we’re interested in what jellyfish are found in UK waters. We started our jellyfish survey in 2003, with the intention of understanding more about the distribution of jellyfish in our waters and how this affects leatherback turtles.
Leatherbacks migrate to UK waters to feed on jellyfish through the summer. However, with limited data on where these blooms happened, we wanted to gather data to identify potential feeding hotspots for leatherback turtles.
But what jellies can you expect to spot at the seaside?
Here’s 8 to keep an eye out for, and be sure to report them to us at the Marine Conservation Society via our
How to identify different jellyfish:
Lion's mane (Cyanea capillata)
This jellyfish stings. Large, usually 50cm but can reach 2m in diameter. Large, reddish brown, umbrella-shaped bell with a mass of long, thin鈥�
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In black and white
Sea Watch Foundation
By Lorna Bointon, Sea Watch Foundation Regional Coordinator
Found in every ocean, orcas, or killer whales, are apex predators at the top of the food chain and, along with other cetacean species, provide a visible indication of ocean health.
A pod of orca / killer whales off the Caithness coast. Photo credit: Colin Bird/SWF
The sea may reflect the UK’s changeable weather, ranging from stormy grey to dazzling azure blue, but from a cetacean’s point of view, it’s all black and white, or at least grey. Studies indicate that orcas, along with other cetacean species, do not have the necessary optical cells / cones to see colour in the blue spectrum and rely instead upon rods that are used for discriminating contrast.
Of course, orcas are easily recognised by their black and white body colours. The monochrome patterning helps to act as camouflage, breaking up appearance, much as warships used ‘dazzle’ camouflage paint on their vessels to affect perception of appearance, speed and direction. They also boast the tallest dorsal fin of all cetacean species with the fins of adult鈥�
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On the hunt for a harvest mouse nest
The Mammal Society
Partner organisation of the Watches
Our blog comes from mammal expert Derek Crawley.
Derek is a valued and active member of the Mammal Society and has also previously sat on the Society’s Council. He is currently Chair of the Staffordshire Mammal Group and a Regional Coordinator for the National Harvest Mouse Survey.
The harvest mouse is one of our smallest mammals and is the only mammal in the UK that has a prehensile tail.鈥�
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Big Garden Birdwatch 2022
RSPB
Partner organisation of the Watches
By Beccy Speight, Chief Executive of the RSPB
Over the past two years, we have all had to navigate the difficulties and uncertainties which the Covid-19 pandemic has brought. But over one weekend in January, we can take a moment to put aside our worries and simply enjoy the beauty of nature on our doorstep with the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch.
House sparrow was the most spotted species in the Big Garden Birdwatch 2021. Credit: Ben Andrew RSPB Images.
Be One in a Million
Last year, more than a鈥�
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Experiencing nature with all your senses
WWT
Partner organisation of the Watches
By Leanne McCormella, Comms and Marketing Executive at Washington Wetland Centre
Experiencing nature is an immersive affair. It comes at you from all angles, overwhelming your senses, and to give yourself over to it is a truly special thing.
But what if you don’t have full use of all your senses? Is it any less magical to be amongst wildlife or in the great outdoors? Or does it open up a different way to explore the wild world?
Photographer Alex, from Sunderland, was born with Bardet Biedl syndrome; a genetic condition which causes a range of physical issues, including blindness.
The talented鈥�
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Swansong or staying strong: the uncertain future of the Bewick鈥檚 swan
WWT
Partner organisation of the Watches
Migration is one of the most hazardous tasks a bird can undertake. Yet they have no choice; they need to migrate in order to survive. The UK’s migratory swan population is no different, with Bewick’s and whooper swans whiffling in on their snowy wings to escape the northerly winter. Like ghostly spirits, they appear at dawn to give us heart as the winter freeze takes hold. These beautiful birds are hugely in tune with the rhythms of our Northern climate, so how is increased warmth and weather unpredictability affecting them?
Flock of Bewick swans by Ben Cherry
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Are we seeing a new climate normal?
National Trust
Partner organisation of the Watches
From Ben McCarthy, Head of Nature Conservation and Restoration Ecology at the National Trust
Reflecting on last year’s weather, while it might feel as though it was fairly benign compared to previous years of extreme heat and floods, we found that it was bookended by two catastrophic events in particular.
Fire on Marsden Moor on 26 April 2021 by Victoria Holland
Natural disasters strike
In April, a mile long wildfire tore through Marsden Moor, in鈥�
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Digging a little deeper
RSPB
Partner organisation of the Watches
By Dave Sexton, RSPB Scotland Mull Officer
It’s fair to say that after 30 odd years of assisting with post breeding nest clear-outs of white-tailed eagles, we’ve seen a vast array of prey items represented. In fact, it’s pretty clear that as both scavengers and hunters there’s not much they’ll turn their noses (beaks!) up at. The studies over many decades have given us a fascinating insight into what they will eat and what their particular favourites are. The limitations of such studies though are that they’ll tell us what they’ve carried into a nest but generally not how it was obtained in鈥�
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What to watch this winter: Snowdrops
Plantlife Partner organisation of the Watches
By Archie Thomas, Sarah Shuttleworth & Dr Elizabeth Cooke
Nothing quite delights like the first sight of snowdrops in January. Their plucky appearance – seemingly against the odds - has long heralded a beginning of the end of deep Winter and engendered feelings of hope and promise for the new year. Whether fluttering on a grassy road verge or carpeting the damp woodland floor, their brilliant white blooms put a spring in the step of even the weariest walker.
Snowdrops by Trevor Dines, Plantlife
