THE TIMES reports the best way to protect Britain’s wildlife would be to focus on safeguarding the hedgehog, house sparrow and brown trout, according to a radical plan.

After a scientific report last year found that 41% of UK species studied had declined over the past 50 years, the think tank ResPublica says wildlife protection needs a new approach. It is proposing the creation of a wildlife regulator with legal powers to help just three “bellwether” species — one each from the land, the air and the rivers. 

Sparrow photo by Stewart Black and trout photo by UnconventionalEmma both under Creative Commons.