FROM WILD JUSTICE—IT’S ABOUT DEFRA AND THE CALL FOR EVIDENCE

Good morning, You may have already heard about Defra opening a Call for Evidence (CfE) on matters related to gamebirds. Today’s newsletter will tell you a bit about it, its scope, and how you might be able to contribute to it. Defra’s Call for Evidence; this is your opportunity to be heard on all things ‘gamebird’. Earlier this month Defra opened a Call for Evidence on gamebirds, their rearing, releasing, shooting and associated management. It covers several species; Red Grouse, Pheasants, Red-legged Partridges and Mallards. This is not a public consultation, but it is still very important. The Government has said it will explore wider measures, such as licensing, for recreational gamebird shooting and release, and the process of forming any new proposals will begin with evidence gathering. What Defra receives now could shape whether a full public consultation follows, and what future policy on gamebirds will look like. Defra wants evidence on the impacts of these industries, including environmental impacts, animal welfare implications, disease and biosecurity risks (including bird flu), wildlife crime and effects on local communities. The CfE is open to anyone, and that includes you if you live in, work in or visit the countryside. The webpage for the CfE states that Defra will accept "well-documented operational or experiential evidence" alongside peer-reviewed research. Shooting organisations are already urging their members to respond, telling them their experience is evidence. We would say, so is yours. Have you had a vehicle collision with a gamebird, found dumped birds or a stink pit, come across illegal traps, or discovered a dead or injured bird of prey in suspicious circumstances? Have you been harassed by gamekeepers, been disturbed by noise, or lost access to land because of shooting? We’ve written a blog explaining what the CfE asks for, who can respond, what kinds of evidence work best, and how to submit yours, including a list of questions about your own interactions with gamebird shooting. Wild Justice will be submitting our own response, which we’ll share with you at a later date. The shooting industry has largely evaded accountability for the harms it is responsible for. Now we have a rare opportunity to formally put on record issues that the industry would prefer remained hidden, and demonstrate to the Government that these issues are widespread and of deep concern to the general public. If you do respond via the online form, you might want to answer Questions 28 and 29 of Section A: ‘Call for Evidence Questions – Other impacts’ – particularly Question 28e. Read our blog & respond to the Call for Evidence If you'd like to share a copy of your submission with us via email, we’d be interested to receive it. Thank you, Wild Justice (CEO: Bob Elliot. Directors: Chris Packham and Ruth Tingay). This is the 274th Wild Justice newsletter. This email was sent to you because you subscribed to it through the Wild Justice website or through an e-action or a petition where you ticked a box. Thank you. We will only use your personal details to send you the Wild Justice newsletter. We will not give or sell your details to anyone else. You can unsubscribe at any time: there is an unsubscribe button at the foot of this email or you can reply to this email and ask us to remove you from the list (the former will happen immediately, the latter might take a few days). 124, City Road London Greater London EC1V 2NX UNITED KINGDOM Unsubscribe | Change Subscriber Options

SEPTEMBER NEWSLETTER FROM BRITISH TRUST FOR ORNITHOLOGY

The BTO logo – Birds Science People View this email in your web browser Goldcrest, by Liz Cutting / BTO Dear John, Welcome to the Members' Edition of the September BTO newsletter. It is certainly feeling autumnal now, the summer migrants gone and the first of the winter visitors already here. Many of you have commented on just how quiet gardens and the countryside seem. It is that time of the year when things do go a little quiet, with some species less visible because they are moulting or because they are feeding elsewhere on an abundance of berries and seeds. Our core monitoring data will reveal if there is anything else going on this year – the spread of usutu virus in Blackbird populations, for example. It is also the time to look ahead to winter birding and fieldwork opportunities, and the upcoming Non-estuarine Waterbird Survey provides an opportunity to combine both of these, so do take a look at what's involved to see if you can help. NEWS – can you help? Every winter, thousands of volunteers take part in the Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS), counting waterbirds at wetland sites across the UK. Decades of surveys provide valuable evidence of population trends, changes in distribution and conservation needs. However, coastal WeBS counts mainly cover estuaries, leaving thousands of miles of rocky shores, sandy beaches and exposed coastlines poorly monitored. These habitats support important wintering waterbirds, including Purple Sandpiper, Sanderling, Curlew and Turnstone. Information on these populations comes from the Non-estuarine Waterbird Survey (NEWS), a periodic survey for which a new round of fieldwork is about to begin. If you can survey a stretch of coastline at low tide during December 2026 or January 2027, you can help ensure that regional and national population estimates are robust. Most sectors are about 2 km long and involve walking along the shore or coastline (and back again). During the last NEWS, such scarcities as King Eider, White-billed Diver, Sabine’s Gull and Little Auk were seen, so you never know what you might find! Find out more White-billed Diver, by Liz Cutting / BTO White-billed Diver, by Liz Cutting / BTO Help us learn from local wader monitoring UK breeding waders such as Curlew and Lapwing are declining sharply, largely due to poor breeding success. BTO and the Curlew Recovery Partnership are piloting a new Wader Monitoring Scheme (WaMS) to collate existing monitoring data from across the UK, aiming to reveal patterns in egg and chick losses that single studies can't. We are not asking wader projects to do anything differently – just to share the data they have already collected. Further details, including data guidance and submission options, are available on the project webpage. The deadline for this year's data is 16 October. Find out more Lapwing chick, by Liz Cutting / BTO Delivering vital data on pollinating insects Declines in pollinating insect populations are a cause for concern, yet understanding how their populations are changing remains difficult. This is because long-term monitoring schemes cover relatively few pollinating insect species. BTO is a partner in the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme (POMS), and BTO volunteers contribute to the data being collected through the scheme. A scientific paper, published this week, delivers improved methods for tracking changes in insect abundance and diversity, while accounting for environmental variation and potential sources of bias. In addition to producing new trend information for different groups of pollinating insects, the paper demonstrates that POMS data can help to target conservation actions for these important species. Given the central role of pollinating insects in ecological foodwebs and the delivery of ecosystem services – such as pollinating our crops – this is good news for birds and for people. Find out more Hoverfly, by Edmund Fellowes / BTO Hoverfly, by Edmund Fellowes / BTO Pre-order The Birdwatcher's Yearbook 2027 You can now pre-order your copy of the 47th edition of The Birdwatcher's Yearbook! A comprehensive companion for British birdwatchers, the Yearbook features checklists, diary, fully revised County Directory, details of local clubs as well as 750 UK bird/nature reserves, and much more. Plus, today is the last chance to take advantage of their early-bird offer. Order today and save £3 on your copy! Click the link below or get in touch by phone or email: Email neildstratton@btinternet.com Call 01573 450695 or 07949 132990 Birdwatcher's Yearbook cover Pre-order your copy Latest News UK Cuckoos reach wintering area As the latest map updates reveal, our male Cuckoos are now entering their wintering quarters. The birds, which are part of an ongoing BTO project, have made incredible journeys south. Discover where they are wintering, and learn more about this important work. Cuckoo, by Moss Taylor / BTO Cuckoo, by Moss Taylor / BTO Identification feature With Little Egret and Great White Egret numbers continuing to increase, both species need to be considered if you catch sight of a large white 'heron'. This video, from our Bird ID Workshop series, provides some useful pointers for their identification. Little Egret & Great White Egret video / BTO Events and training opportunities BTO Annual Conference 2027 We're already looking forward to our next Annual Conference, taking place in Sheffield from Friday 5 to Saturday 6 March 2027! Our fantastic line-up of expert speakers will take you from gardens to coastal cliffs, through to farmland and urban environments, as they explore a range of key ornithological and conservation topics. Click below to explore the full programme! View the full programme Thank you for your continued support! Happy birding, The BTO Membership Team VOLUNTEER DONATE SHOP British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU. www.bto.org | info@bto.org. Registered Charity no. 216652 (England & Wales) SC039193 (Scotland). Company Limited by Guarantee no. 357284 (England and Wales) Unsubscribe from the BTO e-newsletter

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—SUCCESS AT THE THREE PEAKS CHALLENGE

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more We did it! Yorkshire Three Peaks Completed! ✅ ROB POWNALL OCT 1 READ IN APP We did it! The Yorkshire Three Peaks has been conquered by the (now exhausted) Protect the Wild team in eleven hours 48 minutes! A total of 24 miles walked, 1,500 metres of ascent and a whopping 60,000+ steps! No wonder we’ve all been complaining this morning about aches and pains! It was a day that summed up Britain in many ways, one minute absolutely tipping it down and the next minute finding ourselves saying ‘this is actually quite nice now!’ But regardless of what the weather was doing we weren’t going to let it dampen our spirits as we made our way towards the first peak. I’ll insert a picture below to get across just how wet things were when we set off at 6:50am! (The laughter captured after I told a very hilarious joke) Help us reach our target! The next ten hours were pretty rough but it was such a privilege to be surrounded by incredibly compassionate people who work so hard to make the world a better place. A walk of this length also gave time for reflection on exactly why we were ascending each peak. We scaled Pen-y-ghent for the foxes, hares and deer that are chased and killed We ascended Whernside for the hounds exploited and killed by hunts We conquered Ingleborough for the horses forced into dangerous situations for human entertainment Most importantly, we took on this challenge to remind all of us that we must keep pushing to ensure hunting with hounds is consigned to the dustbin of history. The Govt has a monumental opportunity to change legislation and make this a reality but only if they properly strengthen the Hunting Act and don’t leave any wriggle room like they did back in 2004. We are doing everything we can to make sure this gets over the line. If you’d like to chuck in a few pounds to our fundraiser we’d be so appreciative. We passed £13,000 this morning so our £15,000 goal is so close to being achieved! I'll donate to end hunting I am so thankful to every single person who has already donated and supports the work that we do at Protect the Wild. It’s an absolute privilege to have such incredible people in our corner and it made every step a little bit easier :) A huge thank you to Beck Hall Hotel! The fabulous Beck Hall Hotel, Malham hosted the team over the past couple of days and we are incredibly thankful for their generosity. It truly was the perfect place to recharge as we limped back last night to tuck in to our vegan dinner! I’m not usually one for taking photos of food but I couldn’t resist this morning! SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM BIRDLIFE INTERNATIONAL

View email in browser Hi John, From Nairobi to Panama City, this month's stories highlight the growing impact of conservation partnerships around the world. They show how people from different sectors and countries are coming together to put nature at the heart of the decisions that will shape our future. Want to inspire others? Click here to forward these highlights. An Omnibus Scrapbook of Nairobi: The Global Partnership Meeting and Global Flyways Summit 2026 A collage of photographs of staff taking part at our Global Partnership Meeting Our Global Partnership Meeting and Global Flyways Summit concluded with plenty to celebrate: a major new State of the World’s Birds report, the Nairobi Flyways Declaration, and an innovative Flyways Bond Framework that could help unlock future conservation investment. Together, these achievements show what’s possible when partners across the world come together with a shared purpose View the scrapbook Nature Cannot Be “Overshot”: BirdLife Partnership Demands Urgent Action on UN Climate Warning Seabirds flying over the sea A new UN report warns that delays in tackling climate change could lead to irreversible losses for nature. In response, we are joining Partners from more than 120 countries in calling for stronger action and greater investment to protect birds, biodiversity and the ecosystems we all depend upon. Find out more A bird-friendly vision Bird-friendly buildings are helping make cities safer for migratory birds. In Panama City, the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) is incorporating bird-friendly design into its new regional hub through the Americas Flyways Initiative, a partnership with CAF, BirdLife and the National Audubon Society. Read the Q&A Supporter photo spotlight A big thank you to the sculptor and visual artist Kamau wã Njoroge for sharing this wonderful image of his artwork. In Kamau's words "I am a scrap metal sculptor based in Gilgil, Kenya, working primarily with upcycled mechanical and industrial waste from bicycle chains and gears to discarded sheet metal. Guided by the philosophy 'Dunia ni chafu, Uchafu ukiutizama' (the world is dirty, depending on how you look at it), my creative process turns discarded materials into sculptures that reflect environmental stewardship and social vitality. Through my ongoing avian series, Birds of Kenya, I capture the spirit and forms of native Rift Valley species to raise awareness around habitat preservation, particularly around Lake Elementaita. Every piece is an invitation to reimagine waste as art, spark community action, and inspire sustainable solutions to our shared environmental challenges. " For your chance to be featured, send us your best shots and a short paragraph about it to: howtohelp@birdlife.org. Get your photography featured Last chance! All gifts doubled for a limited time to give birds a lifeline The Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Egyptian Vulture, Bar-headed Goose and Bobolink may follow different routes across the world, but they share a common vulnerability. If even one vital wetland, grassland, coastline or stopover site is lost, the effects can ripple across an entire migration. We can meet this challenge by taking conservation action on a global scale but we need your help. Double your donation today Thank you for your support, Mairianne Walker | BirdLife International Supporter Team Image credit in order of appearance: Urban creative of warbler © Americas Flyways Initiative, Bar-headed goose by Nejib Ahmed/shutterstock.com, Bobolink by Danita Delimont/shutterstock.com From £5 you can be part of our global community helping to bring birds back from the brink. Check out our memberships. 10% off on a BirdLife Bundle! Get everything you need to take out birding. All purchases can help birds and nature thrive. Need a Will? Estate planning doesn’t have to be complicated. We’re offering a free, easy-to-use resource to help. Get started! LinkedIn Instagram Facebook YouTube Website You are receiving this email because you opted-in to hear from BirdLife International BirdLife International is a registered charity 1042125 Address: BirdLife International, The David Attenborough Building, Pembroke Street, Cambridge, CB2 3QZ, UK For full details on how we collect, use and store your personal information see our Privacy Policy. update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. Copyright © 2026, All rights reserved.

OKAY YOU RIGHT TO ROAMERS—YOUR NEWS FROM THE SUMMER OF CLEAN UPS & POSSIBLE TRESPASS

Summer Round-up What we’ve been up to this summer, what’s coming this autumn, and a final call for print orders Dear Roamers, Autumn is beginning to make itself known. Stepping out for my morning walk, I noticed that the branches once laden with blackberries have been picked bare by purple-stained fingers, paws and beaks. It’s been a busy summer of swims, trespasses, investigations, festivals and acts of Wild Service. So, before we head into autumn, here’s a look at where we’ve been, and where we’re going. A summer of swimming During some of the hottest days of the year, many of us did the most natural thing imaginable: went looking for water. But across England and Wales, swimmers and paddlers continue to encounter fences, warning signs and threats of trespass. So this summer we set out to understand just how difficult it is to reach our rivers. Our investigation of 89 English river catchments found that 71% of riverbanks have no access land or public right of way on either bank within 100 metres of the water. The findings put numbers behind something swimmers, paddlers and walkers have known for years: we are a country full of rivers that most people have remarkably little right to reach. As our summers get hotter, access to cool water and shade matters more. We can manage genuine risks without shutting people out. Other countries do. Access, safety and care for nature are not opposites. A weekend in Makerfield Earlier this month we took the campaign to Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s own constituency. Despite large areas of Makerfield being Green Belt countryside, there is a right to roam over just 1% of the constituency. We started at the Wigan Diggers’ Festival, spending the day talking with hundreds of people about access to nature and hearing local stories. Among people gathered to celebrate Gerard Winstanley’s belief in the Earth as a “common treasury for all”, we felt very much at home. The following day we put on our boots for the Makerfield Mass Trespass. When we arrived, new fencing had been erected across our intended route through the Winstanley Estate, with police and security waiting nearby. After a friendly conversation with the officers, we were able to continue, albeit not quite as planned. So we did what we do best: we roamed. We found another route, picked up litter and talked about the landscape and access, before finding an unfenced way through and settling down for a picnic on the grass. There was something wonderfully absurd about eating sandwiches while police and security watched from a distance. We caused no damage and left the land in better condition than we found it. You can watch the BBC report of the trespass below. Or read about it here. The wild service workshop At Platt Fields Market Garden in Manchester, we brought together people already doing brilliant things for nature and others with the first seeds of an idea they wanted to grow. Through practical workshops, shared knowledge and plenty of conversation, we explored how to turn our love of nature into action and give something back to the places that give us so much. It was a reminder of something at the heart of our campaign: access and care go hand in hand. People protect the places they know. Trespasses, trails and tidy-ups Our local groups have been busy too. South Devon took to the water on the River Erme and at the Marristow Estate; Dorset cleared a blocked Right of Way on Deadmoor Common; Leicestershire held a swim trespass and picnic; and West Yorkshire joined Trash Free Trails to give the Yorkshire Three Peaks a post-summer spruce. From clearing paths and picking litter to swimming and trespassing, local groups have been putting responsible access into practice in their own patches. New groups are springing up too. Take a look at our website to find, or start, one near you. trailer teaser story visual trailer teaser story visual Final call for this batch of Nick Hayes prints Funding is tight right now. That’s one of the reasons we launched our print shop, featuring artwork by Right to Roam co-founder Nick Hayes. Every penny raised goes back into our investigations, actions, local groups, workshops and campaigning. Our first collection helped fund our work over the summer. Our current collection closes for pre-orders on 30th September and we’re still short of our fundraising target. So if you value what we’ve been doing and want to help us keep doing it, this is a very direct way to support us. And you get to take something beautiful home in return. Newsletter subscribers can also get a free postcard and bookmark set featuring our campaign artwork. Add your chosen print and the gift set to your basket and enter ROAMFREE at checkout. Final orders close on 30th September. If you can help with one final push by ordering a print or sharing the shop, we’d be enormously grateful. Coming up this autumn There’s plenty stirring this autumn. A few dates for your diary: ROAM: Animations Inspired by our Right to Roam - Bimingham, 5th October, 7-8pm Sarah Silverwood, Edd Carr and Grace Lee have created three short films inspired by Right to Roam. Join Animate Projects and Grand Union for a free screening and conversation with Sarah, Edd and Right to Roam’s Jon Moses. Book your free place here. Love Your River - York, 18th October Join Amy-Jane Beer and friends for a day celebrating Yorkshire’s rivers, including a ceremonial mixing of waters and procession through York, followed in the evening by words, music and poetry at the Love Your River Bardic Session. Reserve your free spot here. Summit Wrong?! - 24th October Our North West group will attempt to reach several fenced-off Peak District summits while exploring the life and legacy of pioneering access campaigner Ethel Haythornthwaite. Time and meeting place to come so keep an eye on our channels to stay up to date. South Devon Coming up: a river trespass on 18th October, costume and banner making on 15th November, Wintertide Festival on 21st November, and a solstice sunrise on 20th December. There’s plenty more in the works, so keep an eye on our website and local group channels as we roam our way into winter. Thank you to everyone who swam, walked, trespassed, volunteered, researched, picked litter, came to an event or supported us this summer. See you out there. Jess, on behalf of the Right to Roam team x Can you help keep us roaming? The right to roam campaign is kept afloat by small donations from a few hundred monthly supporters. We are grateful for every single one of you. It’s what keeps the work going, but if we want to scale what’s needed, we need to grow that base. We currently have a target of 1,000 subscribers in order to make the campaign sustainable for the next year. Can you help? £5 / Month £10 / Month £15 / Month £20 / Month As an extra bonus for supporters, those who choose to become monthly paid supporters of the campaign will automatically enter into our ongoing art print giveaway as a thank you for helping sustain the movement long term. Visit our social accounts RIGHTTOROAM.ORG.UK This email was sent from this site. 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FROM PROTECT THE WILD—DEFRA WANT UNDERCOVER FOOTAGE

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more The Government wants our undercover bird shooting footage PROTECT THE WILD SEP 25 READ IN APP For almost a year, we’ve been working undercover to expose what happens inside the bird shooting industry. We’ve documented intensive breeding, suffering, and birds being treated as disposable products. Now DEFRA is examining the industry and has written directly to Protect the Wild asking for our evidence. We have rather a lot to send them! That’s just one of the stories in the first episode of our new weekly recap, which you can watch below :) I’d love you to give it a watch and tell me what you think in the comments and whether this is something you’d like us to keep doing. The idea is to provide a digestible (and enjoyable) format to look over the biggest stories and issues affecting British wildlife and the work that we’re doing here at Protect the Wild. The first episode has just gone live :) SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—CATAPULTS & WILDLIFE CRIME

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Shot off a rooftop for fun, and left to die! In Cumbria, two boys filmed themselves shooting a gull for fun, then posted the sickening footage in a facebook group - for a “laugh”. CHARLOTTE SMITH SEP 17 READ IN APP The catapult attack at Southsea pier has not been the only one. In Cumbria, on July 7th, two teenage boys filmed themselves using a catapult to shoot a gull off a roof. In the video the gull can be heard letting out a pain filled squawk, then seen falling from the roof. What makes this more gut wrenching, is that the boys run away laughing and sniggering at the suffering and pain they have just caused an innocent, defenceless animal. Sign our petition, stop catapult crime! The teens seemed to be so proud of themselves, that they went on to post the footage into a facebook gull appreciation group - a group which is full of gull lovers. It’s hard to comprehend what they were thinking, other than they seem to have abused an animal, taken a video of them doing it, and shared it into a group where people, who love that animal, would see it - all for a reaction! It shows a staggering lack of empathy for the gull, and all the humans that would be, rightfully, upset from this cruelty. Cumbria Police have reported they are investigating the incident, stating that on the 14th of July they arrested a 14 year old boy in connection with the video. But, because the boys appear to be under 16, there are real concerns that nothing meaningful will follow, and they’ll be no consequences felt by either teen, who think animal abuse is funny. Sadly the gull's fate is unknown, which makes the video all the more unbearable. Unless someone kind found them, they likely faced a slow agonising death, from a metal ball lodged deep in the body, a broken wing or leg, starvation or infection. The injuries are catastrophic and often need human intervention and veterinary care, then rehabilitation for the animal to survive. Sign our petition, stop catapult crime! Why the law has to change We are seeing catapult crime again and again, yet no meaningful action taken by authorities because the current legislation is not good enough. A living animal is targeted for a “laugh” and the law offers no clear answer, because protections are scattered, inconsistent, and depend on the species involved or the exact circumstances of the attack. We believe a law that protects some animals but not others is not a law against cruelty. Whether the target is a swan or a gull, a fox or a pigeon, the pain, fear and suffering is felt the same. That’s why we are calling on the government to make it a specific criminal offence in England to use, discharge, or attempt to discharge a catapult at any animal, whether or not the animal is struck, and whatever their species. Wildlife is not target practice. Add your name and help us make this the law! Sign our petition, stop catapult crime! JOIN THE FIGHT TO PROTECT THE WILD Want to support our work fighting for British wildlife? Please consider becoming a monthly donor today and you’ll be joining thousands of others chipping in to keep us alive and kicking! Donate to Protect the Wild SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing