The Independent, Metro, and ITV News report the nocturnal mammal disappeared from the region in the 1880s, but now conservationists are looking at plans to bring them back.
Tag Archives: mammals
Beavers make a splash with return to London after more than four centuries
ITV News and The Independent report beavers have been reintroduced to London for the first time in more than 400 years to help restore natural habitat and reduce the risk of flooding in the city.
Dormice population growing thanks to University of Cumbria project
ITV News reports it’s hoped dormice will spread from their only home in Lancashire to Cumbria this spring. They’re incredibly rare in the UK but a project in Silverdale is connecting woodlands so they can spread to other areas.
Hedgehog population plummets in UK countryside, research suggests
BBC News reports the population of hedgehogs in rural Britain is continuing a “steep decline” according to research.
Conifer plantation push could threaten red squirrel population, study finds
The Guardian, and The Telegraph report conifer plantations, which are being expanded around the UK to combat the climate crisis and foster biodiversity, are in danger of hurting one of the key species they were thought to protect: red squirrels.
Eurasian lynx could be returning to the UK countryside after a 1,300 year absence
I News reports Wildlife Trusts chief Craig Bennett wants to reintroduce the predatory felines – and says they could work wonders for the country’s eco-system and landscape.
Cull of 150,000 deer aims to save Scottishforests
The Times reports more than 150,000 deer are to be culled across Scotland over the next five years as part of a multimillion-pound scheme to protect the country’s trees.
Humpback whales are making a comeback around UK
The Times reports sightings of humpback whales have soared around the UK in a further sign of the recovery of the species. The Wildlife Trusts have recorded more than 75 sightings off Cornwall since 2019 plus others this year off the Isles of Scilly, Northumberland, Pembrokeshire in Wales, Shetland and in the Firth of Forth.
UK’s mild winter puts some butterflies and burrowers at risk
The Guardian reports creatures such as hedgehogs waking without sufficient food as abnormal weather disrupts hibernation.
Scientists worry for future of weasels as numbers halve in 50 years
The Times reports the weasel may be the villain in The Wind in the Willows but Britain’s smallest native carnivore needs legal protection because of falling numbers, scientists have said.