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Feral wallabies sighted in UK almost 100 times in 10 years

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The Independent reports wild wallabies only live in Australia don’t they? Wrong. Wallabies are here in the UK, and they are becoming increasingly common.

In recent years, feral red-necked wallabies have been seen bobbing along dark stretches of road in Kent, scampering into towns in Devon, fighting police in St Ives, and patrolling the graves in London’s Highgate Cemetery. But now, researchers at University College Dublin used public records and media reports to reveal there were almost 100 wallaby sightings in the UK over the past 10 years. 

Red-necked wallaby photo by Wildlife Wanderer under creative commons.

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Raw sewage dumped into English and Welsh beaches ‘2,900 times this year’

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The Guardian reports water companies discharged raw sewage into bathing water beaches almost 3,000 times in the past year, polluting the environment and risking public health, new analysis shows. The study by Surfers Against Sewage, which publishes data on sewage releases as they occur, examines the notifications by water companies of effluent discharges over 12 months. 

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RSPCA fears spike in animal cruelty in Hampshire over second coronavirus lockdown

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The Portsmouth News reports animals face being hunted, beaten and mutilated during the second coronavirus lockdown, a charity fears. The RSPCA is concerned that as the United Kingdom goes into another lockdown, people’s search for entertainment could lead to animals being harmed.

It comes after intentional harm and illegal activity towards animals spiked during the first Covid-19 lockdown. In Hampshire, there have been 28 instances of intentional harm this year, with 58 animal-related offences overall.

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‘Biggest ever’ initiative to restore natural world launched amid warning it needs more cash

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The Independent reports a national push by the government and numerous wildlife and environment organisations to restore the natural world across England has been launched, aiming to tackle biodiversity loss, climate change and people’s isolation from the natural world. But it comes as some of the same environment groups supporting the initiative have warned that public funding for green recovery projects is already 10 times oversubscribed. 

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Rare birds declining in the UK because of warmer Arctic climates affecting migration rates

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The Telegraph reports a study which tagged geese and monitored their movements and density from 2006 to now has found that vastly fewer young come with adult animals when they travel to our shores. Nowhere else on earth are experts seeing such rapid changes than in the Arctic where the primary cause, greenhouse gas emissions, are instigating warmer winter temperatures and ice loss, affecting the availability of food, competition and predation of animals. 

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Half of all nature reserves not in a healthy state, report reveals

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The Telegraph reports half of England’s nature reserves are not in a healthy state, a damning report by a government-commissioned body has found, as they warn that most climate targets have been missed. Natural assets including soils, land, plants and wildlife are in serious decline despite Government targets to improve the environment in a generation, according to the Natural Capital Committee. 

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Conservation charities warn UK nature targets under threat without £1bn more funding

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INEWS reports the Government must funnel more funding into nature schemes if it wants to save thousands of jobs in the sector and keep key green targets within reach. That is the message from the UK’s leading environmental charities, including the National Trust, Woodland Trust, Wildlife and Countryside Link and The Wildlife Trusts. They were among the green groups to pen a letter to the Chancellor, calling for Rishi Sunak to plough more cash into the Green Recovery Challenge Fund.