FROM BUMBLEBEE CONSERVATION TRUST—WE CAN ALL HELP THESE BEES

view online Bumblebee Conservation Trust logo Bumblebee on willow branch with yellow flower and blue sky It may be October, but with the fine weather, there is still so much we can do for bumblebees! We have some top tips on how to provide hibernation spots for new queens, plus bumblebees 'bank' a big win this month. And, as October marks the last month to submit your BeeWalk data this year, now is a good time to get those records in!🍂 Rare bumblebee found at historic London site All black bumblebee on a purple and lilac flower The scarce Ruderal bumblebee (Bombus ruderatus) has been discovered at Lesnes Abbey Woods in Southeast London! Famous for its 12th century abbey ruins and rich ancient woodland, the discovery was made by local volunteer Jason Lok. This sighting in the Buzzing in the East End (B.E.E) project area shows just how important urban green spaces can be for wildlife. Read the full news story 📰 It's official: bumblebees are 'noteworthy'! Graphic mock up of bank notes with bumblebee graphic and text saying 'Bumblebees bank a big win' Last week, the Buff-tailed bumblebee was chosen to feature on the new Bank of England banknotes and received the most public votes! From a shortlist of 18 UK wildlife species, the Buff-tailed bumblebee attracted an unbelievable 360,399 votes. A big thank you to everyone who voted for this iconic insect. Why not find out more about the Buff-tailed bumblebee 👇 The Buff-tailed bumblebee 🐝 Create a safe place for hibernating bumblebees Bumblebee walking over leaf and grass debris In autumn, new bumblebee queens search for places to hibernate while the rest of the colony comes to a natural end. New bumblebee queens are looking for a safe place to spend the winter. Leaving areas of soil, leaf litter, long grass and logs undisturbed can provide valuable hibernation spots. Autumn/winter guide 🍂 iam McArthur, MSP surveying for bumblebees in Orkney How will we know if nature is recovering? A new Scottish parliamentary motion, lodged by Great Yellow bumblebee Champion Liam McArthur MSP, has highlighted the important role the Trust's BeeWalk volunteers play in monitoring biodiversity and nature's recovery. Full story 📰 Two people with clipboard and pen walking through field Have you completed your October BeeWalk? BeeWalk is the Trust's national recording scheme. Submitting your October data promptly makes sure it can be included in the latest BeeWalk picture and helps the Trust guide conservation work where it is needed. Submit data 🖊️ Bee inspired with some pumpkin magic 🎃 Person with jumper showing pumpkins and a mug with foliage in background Bumblebee season may be drawing to a close, but there are still plenty of ways to support the UK’s bumblebees this autumn, including purchasing one of our bee-rilliant pumpkin-inspired designs. Add a little spice and all things nice to the season by browsing our new range. Every purchase helps to support vital conservation work all year round! Shop autumn designs 🛒 Photo credits: TMB Photography, Nick Owens and Teresa Farr. Bumblebee Conservation Trust. Registered Charity No: 1115634 / Scottish Charity No: SC042830. © 2026 Bumblebee Conservation Trust. All rights reserved. You are receiving this newsletter because you are already a member, subscribed via our website, an event or when becoming a volunteer. We hope you enjoy reading it! Registered address: International House, 109-111 Fulham Palace Road, London, W6 8JA; Correspondence address: Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Beta Centre, Stirling University Innovation Park, Stirling FK9 4NF Unsubscribe

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—THE SHOOTING INDUSTRY DOES NOT WANT YOU TO SEE THIS

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more The shooting industry doesn't want you to see this PROTECT THE WILD OCT 19 READ IN APP The government is asking what shooting really does to birds, wildlife and the countryside. If just the shooting industry answers, nothing will change. For years, those of us who care about the birds bred and released for shooting have been told the same thing: this is a rural tradition, it is well regulated, and the people who know best are the people who do it. Blah, blah, blah. We don’t believe a word of it, of course, and for the first time in a generation, the government is asking all of us to tell them what is really going on in the countryside. On 4 September, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) opened a Call for Evidence on Gamebird Release, Shooting and Welfare during Rearing in England. It wants evidence on the environmental and animal health and welfare impacts of the whole industry: breeding and rearing, release into the countryside, and shooting. That covers the cage, the incubator, the release pen, the shoot day and everything that happens to the birds afterwards. Defra says the responses will help the government understand current practice and welfare problems in the ‘gamebird’ sector, as part of its Animal Welfare Strategy for England. It has also said that any future change in policy would begin with exactly this kind of evidence gathering. In other words, what Defra hears now will shape what it does next. The call for evidence is open to all of us. It closes at 11:59pm on Sunday 1 November, so please treat the end of this month as your deadline and do not leave it to the last day. Become a Game Changer Why it matters who responds A call for evidence is not a vote, but it is shaped by who turns up. The shooting industry knows this. Its organisations have staff, press officers, membership lists and years of practice at telling government what it wants to hear, and they are already lobbying their supporters to respond. If the only evidence Defra receives comes from people who make their living from shooting, the picture it builds will be a familiar one: well managed, good for conservation, good for the rural economy. Nothing to see here, in other words. That picture will then sit behind government policy for years to come. What will be left out is what many of us have seen with our own eyes. Millions of pheasants and partridges are bred and released into the English countryside every year to be shot for entertainment. Behind that number are breeding birds kept in cages, eggs and chicks dumped as waste, foxes, crows and other wildlife trapped and killed to protect the ‘stock’, birds of prey persecuted, injured birds left to die in hedgerows and on roads, pheasant carcasses dumped in pits, lead shot scattered across the land, and the very real risk of spreading disease, including bird flu. None of that will reach Defra unless we send it. What counts as evidence Defra says it welcomes many kinds of evidence, from published research and NGO reports to monitoring data and well-documented operational or experiential evidence. That last phrase opens the door to all of us. No matter who we are or what our job is, our experience counts. Defra will give more weight to evidence it can check. So the more specific we can be, the better: what we saw, where, and roughly when. A dated photograph of pheasants dumped in a ditch. A note of a trap found on a footpath and what was in it. A record of injured birds on local lanes in the days after a shoot. Problems we have had walking a public right of way through a shooting estate. Even a single, carefully described incident can be valuable. Please be accurate. We need to be precise about what we’ve experienced. Describe anything suspected as being illegal as a suspicion unless it has been established. Honest, careful evidence is far harder to dismiss. What we will submit We will be sending Defra our own evidence, drawn from the reports published in our Investigations series this summer. Those posts documented what goes on out of sight on ‘game farms’: birds in filthy breeding cages, the incubators and brooders where chicks begin their short lives, chicks handled like items on a conveyor belt, and the breeding birds discarded once they are ‘used up’. Become a Game Changer Our investigators found skips and trailers filled with dumped pheasant eggs, with live chicks among them, and wild birds scavenging from those dumps, raising serious questions about the spread of bird flu. We also documented what Larsen traps mean for the wildlife caught in them. We will present that evidence to Defra with its sources and context. But we cannot be everywhere, and we cannot tell your story for you. Our submission will be far stronger if it sits alongside hundreds or thousands of others. Protect the Wild has made it easy You do not have to work out Defra’s questionnaire on your own. Protect the Wild has published a simple guide and email tool here: protectthewild.org.uk/defra-call-for-evidence The page explains the kinds of things worth reporting, from wildlife persecution and predator control to injured or discarded birds, environmental damage, disease and welfare concerns, and the effect of shooting on local communities. It shows which of Defra’s questions each one relates to. Most usefully, it gives you a ready-made email to Defra: just add your own experience and any photos or documents, and send it. If you would rather complete Defra’s full online survey yourself, you can do that on the Defra consultation page, which also includes Defra’s own guidance documents. Please act now This is a genuinely rare chance to put the reality of bird shooting on the government’s record, in front of the officials who will advise on what happens next, and in a process it set up. If we stay silent, the shooting industry will be the only voice in the room. Go to Protect the Wild’s guide and use the email tool. Add what you have seen, with as much detail as you can. Send it before 11:59pm on Sunday 1 November, and ideally by the end of October. Share this post with anyone who walks, rides or lives near a shoot. The birds cannot give evidence. We can. Submit your evidence in seconds Join the movement. Become a Game Changer. We have been hard at work. Months of undercover work. Hundreds of hours of footage. Farms across the UK exposed. We are making a difference. But we are only just getting started. Many of you have already become a Game Changer, standing with us as we take this fight forward, week by week, piece by piece, until the public, the media and the politicians can no longer look away. We are extremely grateful. We are reaching a larger audience all the time, though, many who won’t know that Game Changers helps us fund investigations, take on staff, and make us more effective. So we are going to repeat the call here - this is just the beginning, please be a part of it. Become a Game Changer SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start your Substack

FROM MARINE CONSERVATION SOCIETY

Marine Conservation Society logo View in browser Donate On a green box is a folded dark green t-shirt. On the front of the t-shirt is a beautiful illustration of an ammonite in light green colouring New collection has landed Plus a FREE gift for you, and a competition Hi John, Earlier this year, I helped out on a school trip to a science museum. We all loved the prehistoric sea creatures section, and were fascinated by the size of the creatures and how unusual they were. We saw helicoprions and their impressive tooth-whorls, plesiosaurs with their paddle-like limbs and then the big reveal came - the tremendous ichthyosaur skeleton. This trip inspired me to work with Phoebe, our lovely designer, to create our new Prehistoric Creatures collection for our shop. If you're a dinosaur-lover or you’ve ever spotted an ammonite fossil on a beach and wondered what they looked like when they roamed the ocean, you're going to love our latest designs. Shop the new collection > As a valued member, you hopefully already know that whenever you buy something from our store, you're raising extra vital funds for our ocean conservation work. It’s also a powerful way to raise awareness of the importance of our work when you wear your new clothes. Read on to find out how you can claim a free gift, get a sneak peek at this year's Christmas jumpers, and get involved with our latest competition. Happy shopping! Staff member Bobbie is smiling at the camera. She's wearing a light pink top. She is the Shopkeeper for the Marine Conservation Society Bobbie Shopkeeper Have a Kraken Christmas... Let the festivities begin Another collection that we’ve been working on is our Christmas jumpers. We’re all about the puns with this one, so get on board the Manta Sleigh, dig out the Manatree and get Christmas Kraken with this year’s festive looks. Speaking of festive characters, have you got an idea for one of your own? An otter in a Santa hat, dolphin delivering presents? Get your pens out and share your idea with us in our Christmas Jumper Design competition. In a box is a beige jumper with a festive "manatree" design. Surrounding the box are festive warm whit lights, gift boxes and pieces of pine tree Cosy Christmas gifts From jumpers and t-shirts to Christmas cards too, our Christmas collection features our favourite festive characters. Shop Christmas > On a beige t-shirt is a pink cartoon Kraken illustration pulling a Christmas cracker Creative competition Design an ocean-themed festive creature or scene for our next Christmas jumper. Anyone can get involved - enter by 25th October. Submit your design > A white mug with a black illustration of an octopus playing the drums is pictured on a peach and light blue background. FREE mug worth £10 Spend £35 or more in our shop and use the code MCSMUG and we'll send you our bestselling octopus mug. Claim by 21st Oct. Start shopping > Facebook logo Threads logo Instagram logo LinkedIn logo Bluesky logo Contact Us General 01989 566017 info@mcsuk.org Membership membership@mcsuk.org Beach cleans beachwatch@mcsuk.org Fundraising fundraising@mcsuk.org The Marine Conservation Society is the UK charity dedicated to protecting our seas, shores and wildlife. Marine Conservation Society | Company Limited by Guarantee (England and Wales) No. 2550966 Registered Charity No. England and Wales No. 1004005 | Scotland No. SC037480 VAT No. 321 4912 32 Registered Office: Overross House, Ross Park, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, HR9 7US. Scottish Office: CBC House, 24 Canning Street, Edinburgh, EH3 8EG. Contact us | Privacy policy | Unsubscribe

NICOLA HUTCHINSON FROM PLANTLIFE—SPEAKS OF WONDERFUL FUNGI

View this email in your browser Donate Join Shop Hi John, Fungi are everywhere. In our woodlands. In our grasslands. Beneath our feet. They help grow our food, store carbon, recycle nutrients and support more than 90% of the world’s land plants. Quite simply, our planet wouldn’t be green without fungi. Yet there is a shocking imbalance in the way we protect the natural world - for every £500 spent on protecting nature, less than £1 goes towards understanding and protecting fungi. It’s a funding gap nature can no longer afford. You can help by donating today. Fill this funding gap Fungi have spent too long in the shadows. And as habitats disappear and climates change, species risk being lost before we even know they exist. But right now, we have a rare opportunity to change their future. Next week, we’ll be at COP17 in Armenia to launch the world’s first Global Strategy for Fungal Conservation, developed with leading international experts. It’s an important step towards putting fungi firmly on the global conservation agenda. But a strategy alone won’t save fungi. We need the resources to transform knowledge and ambition into action. Your gift of £20 could help make that happen. Help bring fungi out of the shadows By giving a gift today, you can help: Turn scientific knowledge into conservation action Enable vital research into rare and threatened species Increase our understanding of fungi by growing campaigns such as Waxcap Watch For millions of years, fungi have quietly supported life on Earth. Now they need champions willing to stand up for them. We are racing to save an extraordinary kingdom we barely understand. Please donate £20 today and help make sure fungi are no longer forgotten. Donate to help fungi Thank you for giving fungi a future. Best wishes, Nicola Hutchinson Chief Executive P.S. For every £500 spent protecting nature, less than £1 goes towards fungi. Your donation today can help close this gap and bring the hidden kingdom out of the shadows. Small reddy orange ruby elfcup on dark background Image: Ruby Elfcup Sarcoscypha coccinea References: Fungi support more than 90% of the world’s land plants For every £500 spent on protecting nature, less than £1 goes towards understanding and protecting fungi. Globally, fungi receive 0.16% of funding spent on protecting nature. This appeal represents Plantlife’s work to create a world rich in plants and fungi. Your gift will help support work from protecting habitats and species to campaigning for policy change and working in partnership with people. Your gift will be used in the most effective way possible to make a difference to nature. We can only continue our conservation work through the generosity of supporters like you. Follow Plantlife on: Instagram Instagram Facebook Facebook YouTube YouTube LinkedIn LinkedIn Website Website Copyright © Plantlife All rights reserved. Plantlife International is a charitable company limited by guarantee. Registered Charity in England and Wales (1059559) & Scotland, (SC038951) Registered Company in England and Wales (3166339) Registered Office: Brewery House,36 Milford Street, Salisbury, Wiltshire, SP1 2AP, UK Tel: +44 (0) 1722 342730 enquiries@plantlife.org.uk www.plantlife.org.uk Plantlife respects your privacy. You can read more about how and why we use your personal data at www.plantlife.org.uk/privacy-notice Want to change how you receive these emails? You can unsubscribe from this list here. If you would no longer like to receive emails about fundraising appeals, please respond to this email and we'll update your record.

SPINEY SEAHORSES FROM MARINE CONSERVATION

Marine Conservation Society logo View in browser Donate Spiny seahorse No stomach means food passes quickly through its body An adult spiny seahorse eats 30-50 times a day. How much do you think a seahorse fry (baby seahorse) eats? Take a guess > A tiny juvenile spiny seahorse has its tail wrapped around a piece of vivid green seagrass Credit: Georgie Bull Hi John, As an ocean-lover, you'll probably already know that the male spiny seahorse becomes pregnant - they fertilise and look after the eggs in a pouch and can carry up to 2000 babies at a time. But did you know these other fascinating facts? They can change colour to match their environment! Although typically yellow or light green in colour, they can change their shade to better blend in with their environment, usually seagrass, to hide from predators. Despite their unique look with soft spines and upright posture, they're actually fish as they have a swim bladder and fin. Favourite fact: They're quite rare and are mostly found in seagrass off the South Coast of England - they're one of only two seahorse species found in the UK. Learn more about the spiny seahorse > Have you ever spotted a spiny seahorse? If you have, I'd love to hear your best tips - it's on my list to try and see one in real life if I can! Staff member Amy is smiling at the camera wearing a light pink jumper. Amy Digital Channels Manager In the background is some bright green seagrass. Overlaid on top of the seagrass photograph is a smaller photograph of a spiny seahorse clinging to seagrass with its tail. Credit: Seahorse - Georgie Bull, Seagrass - Heather Hamilton Super seagrass Seagrass is more effective at absorbing carbon than an equivalent area of rainforest. It's also a vital habitat for spiny seahorses, which is why we're planting 10,000m² of seagrass in the next three years. With a little of your help John, we can give the ocean’s most devoted dads somewhere safe to raise their young. Donate now > Facebook logo Threads logo Instagram logo LinkedIn logo Bluesky logo Contact Us General 01989 566017 info@mcsuk.org Membership membership@mcsuk.org Beach cleans beachwatch@mcsuk.org Fundraising fundraising@mcsuk.org The Marine Conservation Society is the UK charity dedicated to protecting our seas, shores and wildlife. Marine Conservation Society | Company Limited by Guarantee (England and Wales) No. 2550966 Registered Charity No. England and Wales No. 1004005 | Scotland No. SC037480 VAT No. 321 4912 32 Registered Office: Overross House, Ross Park, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, HR9 7US. Scottish Office: CBC House, 24 Canning Street, Edinburgh, EH3 8EG. Contact us | Privacy policy | Unsubscribe

FROM AMY AT MARINE LIFE CONSERVATION

Marine Conservation Society logo View in browser Donate today Short-beaked dolphin "Bow-riding" by boats since ancient Greek times Spend a mindful minute with an acrobatic, playful, sociable dolphin. Watch the video > Three bottlenose dolphins swimming together in a bright blue sea Hi John, Meet the common short-beaked dolphin - a playful treat to brighten up your inbox and give you a moment to pause. These fast, super‑social dolphins are often seen racing alongside boats in UK waters. It’s one of the most eye‑catching cetaceans around our coasts - have you ever spotted a pod? They have a distinctive two-tone appearance with cream/light grey colouring to the sides and belly, and dark grey colouring on top. They're also a bit shorter than a bottlenose dolphin, with an average length of between 1.8-2.5m long. Fun fact: Common dolphins ride alongside boats for a few reasons, including using the boat as a way to swim with less friction, shed dead skin or parasites, but also...simply for fun! These dolphins have been known to do this for centuries, even the ancient Greeks documented it. Learn more about the common dolphin > Do you have any fun facts about short-beaked dolphins? I'd love to hear them! Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend. Staff member Amy is smiling at the camera wearing a light pink jumper. Amy Digital Channels Manager P.S. want to know which unseen species helps the common dolphin? Scroll down! In the top section of the image there is a photograph of a beautiful common dolphin breaching the water's surface. Underneath that is a picture of lots of native oysters, which help filter the water common dolphin's need to thrive. Native oysters to the rescue Common dolphins need clean water to thrive. Native oysters can filter up to 200 litres of water a day, removing harmful pollutants. Restoring oysters will help create cleaner, healthier seas. We want to grow 1 million oysters by 2030. John, please can you help us? Yes, I'll donate > Facebook logo Threads logo Instagram logo LinkedIn logo Bluesky logo Contact Us General 01989 566017 info@mcsuk.org Membership membership@mcsuk.org Beach cleans beachwatch@mcsuk.org Fundraising fundraising@mcsuk.org The Marine Conservation Society is the UK charity dedicated to protecting our seas, shores and wildlife. Marine Conservation Society | Company Limited by Guarantee (England and Wales) No. 2550966 Registered Charity No. England and Wales No. 1004005 | Scotland No. SC037480 VAT No. 321 4912 32 Registered Office: Overross House, Ross Park, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, HR9 7US. Scottish Office: CBC House, 24 Canning Street, Edinburgh, EH3 8EG. Contact us | Privacy policy | Unsubscribe

BIRD LIFE INTERNATIONAL IN MIGRATION

View email in browser Hi John, To celebrate World Migratory Bird Day we're excited to share Global Flyways, a new digital series with Content With Purpose, that brings together scientists, conservationists, communities, organisations and local voices to reveal the global effort to protect migratory birds. Filmed across five continents, the series comes at a critical moment. Our recently published State of the World's Birds report shows that 45% of migratory bird species are in decline. Watch conservation in action All of our work forever shows that nature does not stop at a border, and neither should the people defending it. It's why today we also want to share that we're so close to reaching one million signatures towards our #HandsOffNature petition that we launched last year. It is asking people everywhere to speak up for the laws that protect Europe's wild places, and we've got 12 days left. Weakening the protections for Europe's nature breaks a chain that stretches across continents, and biodiversity everywhere depends on every link in it holding. I'll sign to say #HandsOffNature Feeling inspired and want to do more to help birds? Mark the 8th May 2027 in your diary to take part in BirdLife's Race to Save Birds Challenge. You can find out more and sign up early here, or stay tuned to hear more. Best wishes, BirdLife International Supporter Care Team Instagram Facebook YouTube Website You are receiving this email because you opted-in to hear from BirdLife International Image credit: Common Cranes © 2016 MstudioG, Shutterstock 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.