UPDATE FROM CORNWALL WILDLIFE TRUST

View this email in your browser Orange text reading February news... with a chough perched on the F Dear John Hello there! As winter fades, Cornwall begins to awaken in February and we start to see the early signs of spring - primroses, daffodils and snowdrops lining hedgerows and footpaths. The daylight lingers a little longer each day, inviting us to the coast to watch for whales, seals and seabirds. Rockpools burst with life. Short-eared owls fly low over rough grassland and heather. Hazel catkins ripen in the winter sunshine, their pollen released in the breeze. Despite the lingering chill, life stirs beneath the surface, readying for the change ahead. Love Your Beach 2025 A beach with green cliffs in the background, with text reading: Love Your Beach 2025. 12 beach cleans, all across Cornwall, 12th to 15th Feb. Share the love! Valentine’s Day is here - and you know what that means? It’s time for Love Your Beach! 💘🏖️ Every year, Cornwall Wildlife Trust encourages everyone to share their love for their environment in a series of coastal clean-ups around Valentine's Day. Beach cleans will be happening all over the county on Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th February: is there one near you? Love Your Beach Humpback sightings Our coastline is alive with humpback sightings at the moment - have you been lucky enough to catch sight of one? If you're heading to the cliffs to look for whales this weekend, make sure you watch responsibly by following the Marine and Coastal Code. Our marine wildlife faces so many challenges, make sure you're not one of them. Give the animals space and time, observe from a distance and be calm while you enjoy your encounter. Make sure to report your sightings too! Thanks to Adrian Langdon for these stunning photos. Your local seagrass restoration project needs you! While out on a walk at low tide, have you ever noticed grass growing on the shore and wondered what it is? You are looking at intertidal seagrass - a flowering plant, just like the grass in your garden. It grows in sheltered, muddy areas and it’s fantastic at storing carbon and creating habitat for a wide variety of species. Over the past 50 years we have lost 92% of our seagrass beds nationally, but Cornwall Wildlife Trust are on a mission to restore our local intertidal seagrass meadows. Now, we need your help to identify new areas. Maybe you have a fond memory of seagrass growing on your local shores, but now you notice it’s gone. Let us know, and together we can bring it back! Read the full article and get in touch Take action: Volunteer Taster Day Fancy doing more for wildlife in 2025 but don’t know where to start? Try our Volunteer Taster Day on Thursday 27th February at our Breney Common nature reserve. Volunteering is a great way to meet like-minded individuals, practice your conservation skills and explore nature reserves. No experience or tools are necessary as Cornwall Wildlife Trust staff will be on hand to support you. We’ll also cook a tasty jacket potato on the fire! Volunteer Taster Day Beaver walks are back! Cornwall Wildlife Trust runs bookable beaver walks every Wednesday from spring through to autumn. Visitors can see the beaver dams in daylight, then sit until dusk to try and glimpse as they emerge. Beaver walks are back for 2025 - starting from Wednesday 2nd April. Booking now open Marine Strandings Report 2023 The Marine Strandings Report for 2023 has just been published on our website. It was another busy year, with a total of 733 records across all species - including 307 seals, 234 cetaceans, and 5 turtles. Cetacean strandings have remained high in recent years, partly due to increased dolphin presence in our waters, but the interaction with fisheries is concerning as nearly one third (29%) of assessed stranded dolphins showed evidence of bycatch. Seal strandings also reached a record high, with many being pups. Notably, this was the first year that the number of observed pups from Seal Research Trust data (191) was much less than the number of dead seals recorded (308). Huge thank you to all our amazing volunteers, to the hotline coordinator team and to the team at Cornwall Marine Pathology. Read the full report What’s on St Austell Bay Charter of the Sea Community Workshop Wed 5 Feb | 6.30pm - 9pm Porthpean Outdoor Education Centre Join Cornwall Wildlife Trust on St Piran's Day for a community focussed workshop to help us create a St Austell Bay Charter of the Sea. Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Biological Recorders Conference 2025 Sat 29 Mar | 10am - 4pm Penryn Campus, University of Exeter Welcome to the ultimate gathering of nature enthusiasts! Expect a day filled with fascinating talks from the recording community, hands-on workshops, and networking opportunities with fellow biologists. The theme for 2025 is ‘Data for the Future: Recording Nature in a Changing World’. Lunch included. Online tickets are also available for those who would rather attend remotely. See all events Looe Island Holidays 2025 Immerse yourself in the peace and tranquillity of Looe Island - bookings open for members on Monday 24th February. Learn more about Looe Island Wild About Social Media? Join the conversation and keep up to date with the latest news on our social media channels Facebook icon Instagram icon LinkedIn icon YouTube icon © 2025 Cornwall Wildlife Trust. All rights reserved. Registered charity number 214929. Privacy Policy and T&Cs Our mailing address is: Cornwall Wildlife Trust Five Acres, Allet, Truro, Cornwall, TR4 9DJ Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list.