FROM BUGBYTES—AN UPDATE

Buglife Logo saving the small things that run the planet View this email in your browser Dear John Welcome to the September edition of Buglife's e-newsletter, BugBytes! As October knocks on the door, we’re looking ahead to “spooky season” and some of the amazing invertebrate characters who fit right in. We’ll be sharing more about what our Conservation Team have been up to, looking at some great news stories, events and opportunities. So, let’s dive in and take a look at what’s been happening in the world of bugs! Thank you for being a part of our journey! For nearly 25 years, we've been fighting for the small things that run the planet. Restoring habitats, shaping environmental policy, and delivering conservation projects across the UK - and thanks to you, our supporters, we're creating lasting change. Through our award-winning B-Lines network, working with over 750 partners, we've helped create and restore more than 610 hectares of wildflower-rich habitat - reconnecting landscapes so pollinators and other wildlife can thrive. 💪 But our work is far from over 💪 As our 25th anniversary approaches, we're setting our sights on the future. This summer, we need your help to create more wildflower habitats, restore more vital landscapes, and secure a future for invertebrates. Will you help us grow the next chapter of B-Lines? Find out more… Buglife, “Warts” and all… The past month has seen Buglife’s work with the Wart-biter Bush-cricket (Decticus verrucivorus) hitting the headlines. This fantastically named large green cricket is considered one of Britain’s most endangered insects; a rare species currently confined to just a six sites in England (two of which resulted from reintroductions). 🤝 Working alongside organisations including the The Royal Entomological Society, Sussex Wildlife Trust and a number of private landowners, with the support of volunteers, Buglife is planning further relocations and reintroductions as part of the latest Wart-biter Bush-cricket species recovery project work. Read the story “Spooky season” bugs! With so many to choose from, we struggled to pick just a few, but here’s just a small selection of bugs which fit right in when it comes to “spooky season” Ghost Slug (Selenochlamys ysbryda) © Liam Olds Meet the Ghost Slug (Selenochlamys ysbryda), found predominantly in Wales. The slug's white colour and nocturnal habits led to its species name ysbryda. The word ysbryd means 'ghost' in the Welsh language. Rarely seen, this slippery critter, truly is a ghost! The Bloody-nosed Beetle (Timarcha tenebricosa) common name comes from its unusual defense strategy of exuding bright red fluid from its mouth when threatened. As well as providing a visual deterrent, the fluid is foul-tasting, puting birds and other would-be predators off the beetle as a lunch option. Bloody-nosed Beetle (Timarcha tenebricosa) larvae © Buglife Batman Hoverfly (Myathropa florea) © Gertjan Kamsteeg “I’m Batman!” The Batman Hoverfly (Myathropa florea) to be precise. Instantly recognisable by the dark markings on it’s thorax (behind its head), which are often said to look like the Batman logo. Their aquatic larvae also have a spooky connection as they are sometimes known as rat-tailed maggots. Their long tail is actually a breathing tube that acts a bit like a snorkel! Burying beetles (also known as Sexton beetles) are often seen as one of the undertakers of the animal world and are often found where there are small animal corpses. They can smell a rotting animal corpse from up to a mile away! Burying beetles are known to cull their young at an early stage to ensure that the supply of food provided by the carcass is sufficient to nourish all the larvae sufficiently. Burying Beetle (Nicrophorus vespillo) © Samuel Merriman-Johnson Government report highlights Britain’s overseas invertebrates are in great peril When you think of the UK’s biodiversity, you probably think of bumblebees in meadows, spider webs in damp autumn grasslands or beetles gliding through ponds. You might not think of bright yellow woodlice covered in spines on distant Atlantic islands or tarantulas in the Caribbean! But the UK’s Overseas Territories (UKOTs) are home to over 1,000 endemic invertebrate species - those that are found nowhere else in the world and a new report by the JNCC has highlighted just how precarious these special species are. Join Buglife Programmes Manager, Jamie, in our latest blog as he explores the report's findings and what can be done to conserve and protect the fascinating species that call these islands home. Spiky Yellow Woodlouse (Pseudolaureola atlantica) © Mike Thorsen Read the blog… ✍️ Share your views ✍️ We’re currently developing two new projects in Scotland and are keen to receive feedback and comments from local communities. Take a look at both below and share your thoughts. Do you live or work in, or even visit, the Cairngorms National Park and/or Scotland’s northeast coast? Our first proposed project will rediscover and revive “ghost ponds” - historic ponds lost to infilling or neglect. There will be creation of new ponds, enhancement of existing ponds, peat pools, and wet grasslands aiming to rewet landscapes for the benefit of invertebrates, amphibians and other wildlife. Share your views and let us know what your thoughts! ✅ Please complete this short survey (<10 mins) to help us develop this new and exciting project, in partnership with Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC), that will create, restore, and reconnect wetland habitats across the area. Share my views… Our second proposed project is in response to community groups trained in the Riverfly Monitoring Initiative via Guardians of Our Rivers. Many of these community groups now want to expand the scope of their activities to better understand how the river and land interact and contribute to meaningful change that will protect their local river. River Citizens will raise awareness of the importance of rivers and of how monitoring them can empower communities enabling them to be involved in meaningful action. Share your views and let us know what your thoughts! ✅ Please complete this short survey (<10 mins) and help us to refine our plans to give Scotland’s communities a voice in determining the health of their rivers. Share my views… Browse our Bug Directory Did you know that we have almost 200 invertebrate species profiles on our website, and counting? Let’s meet one of the species that you may be seeing at the moment; the Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris). Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris) © Sid Mosdell (CC BY 2.0 DEED) Did you know that there are approximately 9,000 species of wasp in the UK? Only nine of these species are social wasps, which form large nests and are the type that most people think of when you mention “wasp”; like our friend here the Common Wasp. Found throughout the UK in almost all habitats, including woodland and urban areas, they are fairly easily identified by most people; striking in their yellow and black striped outfits. At this time of year they are generally making themselves known; the workers have fulfilled their purpose; new queens and drones are emerging to start the cycle all over again. Colonies only last one year and once the new queens depart, all the other wasps in the colony die. They are fascinating insects with an incredibly interesting lifecycle and an inspiring story to tell. Head on over to our Bug Directory to find out more. Take me to the Bug Directory! If you would like to know more about wasps in general, why not visit our Wonderful Wasps web page! You can also explore the world of social wasps and hornets with wasp specialist, Tony Madgwick, via the entoLEARN online course, Social Wasps of the UK Let’s be sociable… ICYMI ~ Suddenly seeing bugs… Ever wondered what it takes to bring mayflies, dragonflies, damselflies, bees and butterflies to life on screen? We asked illustrator Anina Takeff (Anina Takeff Studio) - the creative mind behind our brand new animations - to tell us about her process. Anina had barely given bugs a second thought before this project. But after weeks spent studying their wings, colours and body shapes, something shifted. On a trip to her family's lake house, she found herself surrounded by dragonflies and bees she'd never have noticed before. As she puts it: she wasn't seeing nature differently - she was finally seeing it. 💚 It's exactly the reaction we hope our work inspires! Meet Anina and discover more, in our recent guest blog, "Suddenly seeing bugs". Read the blog… Upcoming events Saturday 5 September - Saturday 31 October ~ Art at the Mill Exhibition (Banbury, Oxfordshire) Tuesday 6 October ~ Bookworms! preschool story time at Canvey Island Library (Canvey, Essex) Tuesday 6 October ~ Unwelcome Guests: How Insect Pests are Impacting Britain’s Forests with The Biological Recording Company (online) Wednesday 7 October ~ The Bug Bunch! For Home Ed Families (Canvey, Essex) Thursday 8 October ~ Robberflies with The Biological Recording Company (online) Thursday 13 October ~ Plug planting volunteering with Pollinators Along the Tweed (Peebles, Scotland) Wednesday 21 October ~ Fly Research and Conservation Virtual Symposium with The Biological Recording Company (online) Wednesday 21 October ~ The Bug Bunch! For Home Ed Families (Canvey, Essex) Tuesday 27 October ~ Surveying for Flies with The Biological Recording Company (online) Wednesday 28 October ~ Walk the Wick! Autumn 2026 (Canvey, Essex) Courses with the Biological Recording Company Buglife is pleased to share that The Biological Recording Company will now donate 10% of the sales price of their online courses and webinars when participants sign up through our dedicated links. To make finding and accessing these easier, using our sign-up links, we have created dedicated courses pages on our website. The pre-recorded webinars, and associated content, cover a wide range of invertebrate (and non-invertebrate) topics. Why not take a look and see what you discover?! Expand my knowledge with eLearning Please do remember that our website Events Page is being updated all the time so, to keep up to date with both current and future Buglife events, as well as events from partners and supporters, be sure to visit regularly. What’s the buzz? Pollinator survey uncovers three new species records across the Scottish Borders Rose Chafer (Cetonia aurata) © Artur Rydzewski (CC BY 2.0) Blue Mason Bee (Osmia caerulescens) male © Claire Pumfrey Read the story… Recent site surveys have identified what appear to be three new vice-county records across Scottish Borders Council-owned sites: Rose Chafer Beetle (Cetonia aurata) – new to Roxburghshire Blue Mason Bee (Osmia caerulescens) – new to Roxburghshire Hairy-footed Flower Bee (Anthophora plumipes) – new to Berwickshire All three species were recorded on sites where Buglife has been working with Scottish Borders Council to improve habitat for pollinators, as part of a broader initiative to support invertebrate populations across the region through a funded Buglife Scotland project, Pollinators Along the Tweed. ‘Exotic’ invertebrates in the wild: welcome visitors or warning signs? From the sightings of praying mantids in Cornwall to the suspected sound of cicadas on London streets, reports of non-native invertebrates appearing across Great Britain are becoming increasingly common. These discoveries can be exciting, offering a glimpse of new species in the UK. But they also raise an important question: should we celebrate these exotic invertebrates, or be concerned about how they appeared and what impact they may have on our native wildlife? European Praying Mantis (Mantis religiosa) © Didier Descouens (CC BY-SA 4.0) Read the story… For all our latest news please visit our website News Pages. Buglife shop The Buglife Shop is open for all your invertebrate needs, offering more ethical options and ways for you to support bugs. Whether you’re looking for clothing, insurance, home accessories or gifts for a loved one; there’s something for everyone! a packet of native wildflower seeds Nurture the Night Shift Jute Bag Visit Buglife’s shop Adopt a Bug Don't forget you can stay up to date with the work of the Buglife team via Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube! Thank you for your continued interest in and support of our work; together we can save the small things that run the planet! The Buglife Team Join the Buglife Community Facebook icon Instagram icon LinkedIn icon YouTube icon Website icon Buglife Logo Copyright © 2026 Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation Trust. All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you opted in to receive communications electronically from Buglife. Thank you. Our mailing address is: Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation Trust Allia Future Business Centre London Road Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE2 8AN United Kingdom Company No. 04132695 | Registered Charity No. 1092293 | Scottish Charity No.SC040004 Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe

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. If you no longer wish to receive this email, change your email preferences here.

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

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—GUGA IS ON THE MENU STILL AFTER SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT WON’T TAKE IT OFF

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Scottish Government REFUSES to Ban Guga Hunt Here’s what happens next. DEVON DOCHERTY SEP 6 READ IN APP Last month, the campaign to end the Guga hunt achieved a truly momentous milestone: NatureScot rejected the 2026 Guga hunt licence, saving the lives of 2000 Gannets who call the island of Sula Sgeir their home. Some of those chicks will just be beginning to fledge the nest and take their first flights out over the ocean as I write this email - a lovely thought, and one that makes everything we fought for over the past year feel so incredibly worthwhile. But along with that wonderful news, I’ve got some bad news as well. NatureScot’s rejection only protects the Gannets for one year. While the hunt is still allowed in law, it could still be licensed in future years, and the Scottish Government just confirmed they do not intend to outlaw the Guga hunt. This is despite almost 6000 of you emailing the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Rural Affairs directly to ask making ending the Guga hunt a priority in the new Government’s upcoming programme of work. It’s also despite NatureScot’s latest scientific data showing that the Guga hunt is no longer sustainable and could hold back the recovery of Gannets for decades, on top of a coalition of animal welfare authorities concluding that the Guga hunt is not humane. Take action There is so much urgent evidence pointing to the need for the Guga hunt to be outlawed for good. That’s why it’s so shocking that we just received a response from Jim Fairlie, Minister for Agriculture, Marine, and the Islands saying the Govt is not going to ban it, and repeating the same stock statement they’ve been giving for almost a year. But there was something else in their response that really stood out to us. The Government acknowledges the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission’s conclusion that there is no humane method of killing the Gannets that would be possible on Sula Sgeir. That conclusion followed advice from the Humane Slaughter Association, while the Scottish SPCA has also strongly opposed the hunt on welfare grounds. Yet in the very next paragraph, we’re told that NatureScot sought advice from the hunters themselves, legal advisers and unnamed “specialist, external advisors”, before concluding that the proposed method of killing the chicks would not constitute an offence under animal welfare law. That raises some pretty big questions. Who were these external advisors? What advice did they give? What evidence was used to reach that conclusion? And, does it really take someone committing a criminal offence before we recognise that the suffering being inflicted on these birds is unacceptable? We’re going to be digging into that, so expect to hear more from us soon. It is good to see, however, the Government recognising the growing number of animal welfare organisations calling for a complete ban on the Guga hunt. This is no longer some niche campaign demand they can easily dismiss - the call for a ban is growing, and they know it. Our job now is to make that call louder, bring more organisations, MSPs and members of the public behind it, and build the political pressure until refusing to change the law is no longer a comfortable position for the Scottish Govt to hold. Guga hunt petition will be discussed next week Regardless of the Scottish Government’s pitiful refusal to act, there are still other routes to secure change. The Scottish Parliament petition to ban the Guga hunt is due to be discussed by the Petitions Committee on Thursday next week, putting this issue back in front of MSPs for the first time since the election. The petition - started by wildlife photographer Rachel Bigsby - was temporarily paused in March while a new Parliament was elected. But it’s now back open for signatures and currently sitting at 107,031. How high can we get that number before Thursday? SIGN THE PETITION The petition is coming back to a newly formed Committee, with fresh MSPs around the table and a fresh chance to move it forward. A huge surge in signatures before the meeting would send a powerful message: the public demand for this hunt to end has never been stronger. And remember: once this petition is eventually closed, you won’t be able to add your name. So while we still can, let’s make PE2202 the biggest petition the Scottish Parliament has ever seen - sign and share it today. Keep this campaign going - Become a Gannet Guardian The Scottish Government’s refusal to act is deeply frustrating, but I can promise you one thing: We will not take no for an answer. We will give this fight all we’ve got, for however long it takes, until this cruel hunt is history. But to do that, we need you fighting alongside us. SUPPORT US Become a Gannet Guardian by giving just a few pounds a month to help keep this campaign going until the Guga hunt is gone for good. As a thank you, we’ll send you your own mini Gannet as a reminder of the birds you’re helping to protect. SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FROM MARRIANE WALKER —BIRDLIFE INTERNATIONAL—ABOUT VULTURES

View email in browser Your voice can lift vultures higher, John! Share these stories and inspire others to care like you From Egyptian Vultures crossing continents on migration to Griffon Vultures circling high above mountain landscapes, and Hooded Vultures quietly keeping towns and savannas clean, vultures can be found across much of the world. Vultures are nature’s clean-up crew, yet, sadly, they are among the most threatened groups of birds. It’s why on International Vulture Awareness Day, we wanted to spotlight the progress being made to protect these incredible species. We’re putting vultures on the map Effective conservation depends on knowing where and how to target our efforts. By tracking vulture movements and understanding the threats they face, we can identify the places where action is needed most. We’re protecting the most important areas for vultures Drawing on decades of experience, we are working with our Partners around the world to safeguard vital places for vultures to feed, nest, roost and soar. This will enable us to help reverse their decline. Remember, your voice is the lift that can help reach more hearts and minds. Celebrate International Vulture Awareness Day by inspiring others, and together we can save the birds and nature we love. International Vulture Awareness Day also marks the start of something special. From 8–11 September, we’ll be bringing you closer to BirdLife’s General Partnership Meeting and Global Flyways Summit in Kenya. Throughout the week, my colleagues will keep you updated with key highlights that are all thanks to your support. Watch a personal message from our CEO, Martin Harper. Thank you for being with us. Warmest wishes, Mairianne Walker | BirdLife International Supporter Team Image credit in order of appearance: Egyptian vulture globally endangered species in flight by GGRIGOROV/Shutterstock.com Griffon Vulture by David Tomlinson Twitter 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.

FROM EMMA FOR THE LEAGUE OF CRUEL SPORTS

League-Against-Cruel-Sports Banner stating top 3 reasons to attend our AGM Dear John, With only two weeks to go until the 2026 AGM, here are the top 3 reasons why it’s worth joining us: 1. Hear from inspirational speakers The AGM is a chance to hear directly from the team at the League. You’ll also hear a message from Chris Packham and Nigel Palmer from the Badger Trust which will be shared exclusively at the meeting. 2. Have your say The AGM is your opportunity to share your views and help shape our priorities for the year ahead. To use your voice, you can complete your proxy vote ahead of the AGM here. A new motions process is also being launched, designed to make it easier for members to put forward motions in 2027 and have your ideas heard. 3. Hear what’s next on hunting You’ll hear an update on ‘What’s Next’ now that the hunting consultation has concluded, including how we’ll continue to push the Government to strengthen the Hunting Act. If you’d like to submit any questions ahead of the meeting, you can do that on this page of our website. I want to attend the AGM Please join us for the AGM on 19 September 2026 at 10:00am and make your voice heard. If you’ve already registered to attend, we can’t wait to see you there! We’re looking forward to bringing Members together to celebrate our partnership. Warm wishes, Signature Emma Slawinski  Chief Executive Facebook Twitter Youtube Instagram League Against Cruel Sports New Sparling House, Holloway Hill, Godalming, GU7 1QZ www.league.org.uk Telephone: 01483 524 250 © 2026 League Against Cruel Sports Registered Charity in England & Wales (No.1095234) and Scotland (No.SC045533) You are receiving this League Against Cruel Sports email because it relates to your membership. Unsubscribe View this email in your browser. supporter

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—WHAT THE GAME INDUSTRY GETS UP WITH THEIR WASTE

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more “Straight in the bin” Disposal of live waste on a ‘game farm’ PROTECT THE WILD SEP 5 READ IN APP Over the past few months we have been publishing analysis of undercover footage obtained on so-called ‘game farms’ across England. We began by looking at the sheer scale of the shooting industry, then how adult birds (not every bird, but far too many) are sometimes treated, and the enormous numbers of eggs collected and washed - and in some cases dumped unlawfully in open-air trailers. Recently we looked at very young chicks being ‘sexed’ and sorted. But we didn’t explain why and what happens to the birds the industry doesn’t want… Sorting Sorting takes place when chicks are very young, and it has two functions on a farm where birds are being bred for the gun. The first is sexing - ie sorting males from females. The second is checking for weak or unhealthy birds. A breeding operation exists to produce eggs - and those eggs are laid only by females. A male is needed to fertilise them, but because farms typically rotate one male pheasant among eight females, only a small number are ever needed. The rest are, in the industry’s own accounting, surplus. While it depends on the individual farm’s requirements that year (and how Avian Flu has impacted imports of chicks from continental hatcheries), as many as half of every hatch on a so-called ‘game farm’ may be killed within hours of being born. Not for any reason connected to their health. They are killed because they are male, and a male pheasant will never lay an egg. ‘Unhealthy birds’ - ie birds that because of deformity or ill-health will not survive the rigours of egg production without costly intervention - won’t add to the farm’s bottom line so will be disposed of too. They won’t be treated, cared for, rehabilitated, or set carefully aside for something else - to use the words of one of the senior workers talking in the undercover footage we’ve posted below, they will be put “straight in the bin”. The method of disposal The question the industry would rather we didn’t ask: what happens to the chicks the farm doesn’t want? The typical method of ‘disposal’ is maceration. The chicks are dropped from trays, usually fully conscious and often with piles of other ‘waste’ like eggshells, into a high-speed mechanical shredder. They are literally ground up alive. We are saying ‘usually’ because undercover footage from one farm the investigative team visited suggested that it may leave the chicks to die in the trays after sorting: every chick thrown into the macerator was (as in the screenshot below) already dead. This practice was different from what was observed at other farms, but as we can’t be certain this is a regular practice, we are not naming the farm at this point. Typically, the shooting industry likes to disguise the actions they know the public will be incensed by with softer words: ‘processing’, ‘dispatch’, ‘culling’, and the like. But strip away the euphemisms and what remains is a machine being used to kill live animals at industrial speed within days of hatching, simply because those animals were worthless to the business that bred them. Become a Game Changer The law Maceration might sound like some sort of fringe practice dreamt up by rogue operators, or a historical anomaly. Far from it. It is current, and it is written into UK law. The Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing (England) Regulations 2015 (WATOK 2015) - which sounds like so much of the oxymoronic legislation that benefits the shooting industry - explicitly permits maceration, gas killing, or cervical dislocation as lawful ways to kill chicks under 72 hours old. In typically cold, remote words, it states that “The killing of surplus chicks…in hatchery waste must be as rapid as possible.” It’s also worth knowing that under UK law (and this advice was last updated in March 2026), a staff member working on a farm does not need a WATOK licence “to kill surplus chicks or embryos in hatchery waste” - in other words, the specific licences required to carry out animal slaughter under WATOK 2015 are not required if you’re a temporary or casual worker being employed on a ‘game farm’ for the summer and part of your role is going to be dumping live chicks into a machine that grinds them up. In-house training is all you need… At this point, it’s a fair question to ask how on earth a ‘game farm’ trains someone to work on the macerator anyway. Practice? Repetition? Just pick the person who doesn’t mind throwing helpless birds into a meat grinder? There really is no answer that reflects well on the industry or the people involved. ‘Humane’ does a lot of heavy lifting Shooting industry bodies will tell you maceration is ‘humane’ - ie ‘showing kindness, care, and sympathy toward people or animals’. Their loose interpretation of ‘humane’ totally ignores the fear and stress of the conveyor belt and the sorting facility, but it is used because (the industry will tell you) death is instantaneous. That claim rests entirely on the operator being properly trained, and the system functioning as intended, every time, on every bird, without exception. That’s the sort of ‘quality assurance guarantee’ that industrial-scale processing rarely earns. It is the sort of ‘quality assurance guarantee’ that unlawfully leaves a chick to die in a trailer full of broken eggshells, after all. Become a Game Changer The pattern, again Forget any noble concepts like ‘humane’ or ‘welfare’. This industry is not organised around the wellbeing of the birds it breeds. It is organised around egg output. Killing day-old chicks is where that logic leads. Maceration is a cost calculation, made by an industry whose business model depends on maximising eggs and minimising anything that doesn’t produce them. It is simply cheaper to destroy ‘unwanted’ chicks than integrate them into the system. The truth is that the chicks going into the macerator were never seen as animals to be cared for. They were a byproduct to be disposed of by whoever is at hand on the day. Living waste to be put ‘straight in the bin’… Video and images recorded by an undercover investigative team in 2025. We are working to END BIRD SHOOTING. This suffering has to stop. Please share this article. Share our socials. Follow us for updates. Become a Game Changer End Bird Shooting Over the coming months our campaign will look at the shooting industry at every level. We will highlight the suppliers — the farms, hatcheries, importers and breeders producing tens of millions of birds under conditions that would provoke public outcry if applied to any other animal. We will expose the providers — the estates and syndicates that take those factory-farmed birds and sell the experience of killing them as leisure. And we will look at the clients — the paying guns who are fully aware of the wildlife crime, the trapping of native predators, and the mass suffering involved, and who have decided that none of it is reason enough to stay away. This industry survives because suppliers supply, providers provide, and clients pay. We intend to examine them all. Join the movement. Become a Game Changer. We are at the beginning of something. Months of undercover work. Hundreds of hours of footage. Farms across the UK exposed. 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 of whom won’t know that Game Changers help 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 writing

FROM PLANTLIFE—NATURE NEEDS US

View this email in your browser Donate Join Shop Hi John, What would our world be without wildflowers in our meadows, fungi in our woodlands or the plants that support all life around us? Wild plants and fungi are the foundation of healthy ecosystems. They provide food and shelter for wildlife, help tackle climate change and create the beautiful landscapes we all love. Yet they're disappearing at an alarming rate. The good news is that people can make a difference. Every day, Plantlife members are helping to restore wildflower meadows, protect precious habitats, save threatened species and ensure that future generations can experience the joy of a world rich in nature. If you believe nature is worth protecting, we’d love you to join us. Join us Membership is more than a subscription. It's a way of standing up for the wild plants, fungi and places you care about. It's joining a community of people turning their love of nature into lasting impact. Together, we're proving that conservation works. As a special thank you, anyone who joins through this email will receive a free wildflower tea towel*. But the real reward is knowing you're helping create a future where wild plants, fungi and wildlife can thrive. All from just £5 a month. Nature needs more people on its side. Will you join us today? Become a member tea towel featuring pink orchids, plantain and other wildflowers As a member you'll get exclusive access to online talks, regular magazines, an ID guide and much more. Find out more here. Thank you for caring about nature. Together we can secure a world rich in wild plants and fungi. Best wishes Rebecca James Membership Team PS Don’t miss out! Show your support for nature today and receive a free wildflower tea towel* as a thank you. *This is a limited offer, join before midnight on Wednesday 9 September through the link in this email to claim your free tea towel. New members only. 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 update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—BAN THE SALE OF GLUE TRAPS

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more TAKE ACTION! Ban the sale of glue traps in England Sign our petition, telling the government to act urgently PROTECT THE WILD SEP 2 READ IN APP There’s a glaring loophole in England’s glue trap legislation. Since the Glue Traps (Offences) Act 2022 came into force in England in 2024, ordinary members of the public have been prohibited from using glue traps to catch rodents. Yet it remains legal for anyone to buy one from a shop or online. That makes no sense. If members of the public cannot legally use glue traps, they should not be able to buy them. Ban the sale of glue traps Glue traps cause severe and prolonged suffering. Animals caught on them can remain trapped for hours, panicking and struggling to escape. They may tear skin, injure limbs, become exhausted or dehydrated, and suffer extreme distress before they are eventually killed or die. Protect the Wild is opposed to the use of glue traps in all circumstances. We do not believe that deliberately immobilising a terrified animal on a sheet of adhesive can ever be considered humane, and we ultimately want to see their use ended completely. The Government argues that licensed professional operators may still use glue traps in limited circumstances to protect public health and safety. We strongly question whether such a cruel method is ever necessary when alternatives exist, but even under the Government’s current licensing regime, this provides no justification for unrestricted public sale. If licensed operators are permitted to use glue traps, they should obtain them through controlled professional suppliers. There is no credible reason for these devices to remain freely available to the general public. Sign the petition The Government also describes licensed use as being restricted to “exceptional circumstances”. Yet enforcement relies heavily on licence holders complying with conditions and on unlawful use being detected or reported. Animal rescuers continue to encounter animals caught on glue traps, and by the time misuse is discovered, the suffering has already happened. Removing glue traps from public sale would be a simple preventative step. It would make unlawful use harder, reduce confusion about their legal status and send a much clearer message about the cruelty of these devices. Other jurisdictions have already gone further. Wales has prohibited their use, while Scotland now prohibits their use, possession and supply. New Zealand has also introduced strict restrictions on their sale and use. England should not continue with a system where a product is illegal for most people to use but remains freely available for them to purchase. Our petition urges the Government to: ban the sale and supply of rodent glue traps to members of the public in England; end unrestricted high-street and online sales; restrict any remaining supply to appropriately authorised professional operators through controlled suppliers; review the continued licensed use of glue traps with the aim of ending their use entirely. The immediate demand is simple: if the public cannot legally use glue traps, the public should not be able to buy them. Please add your name to the petition, telling Defra to take urgent action. Every day the government delays, more animals will die a slow and agonising death. Sign the petition SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

ROAMERS—THE RIGHT TO ROAM WILL BE MAKERFIELD SOON

New prints available and an invite to come trespass with us in the Prime Minister's constituency In this newsletter: New prints available! Wild Service in Action Workshop 12th September Makerfield Mass Trespass 13th September Local Group updates Dear Roamers, Summer is giving way to autumn and, as Parliament returns from recess, we’re ready to hold our politicians to their word. In his first Commons statement as Prime Minister this week, Andy Burnham promised to give “people and places ownership and control” while back in June at the People’s History Museum he pledged the “biggest rebalancing of power our country has seen”. Localism and access reform are both about giving people a meaningful stake in where they live - but what does local control really amount to when the majority of people are shut out of the countryside on their own doorsteps? That is why, on Sunday the 13th of September, we are taking our campaign to the Prime Minister’s own constituency of Makerfield with a mass trespass. Despite Makerfield containing great swathes of Green Belt countryside, just 1% of the constituency has a right to roam. The trespass location will be revealed nearer to the date. To tell us you’re coming and be sent more details, sign up here on our Eventbrite. New Prints Up for Grabs! Our print shop is back with the events collection, three exclusive A3 artworks by artist, illustrator and Right to Roam co-founder Nick Hayes. Created especially for this collection and never seen anywhere else, they carry the folklore and joyful mischief of some of our most loved gatherings. We can't guarantee that these prints will be available again, so if one has caught your eye, now is the time. Every penny raised through the print shop goes directly towards funding our campaign to unlock the countryside for everyone. As a thank you for being part of our newsletter community, when you order a print you will also receive a little gift from us: a postcard and book mark set with our iconic campaign artwork. Simply add your chosen print, and the set into your basket and then enter the code ROAMFREE at checkout Wild Service In Action Workshop - 12th September Are you taking action for nature where you live, or nurturing an idea you'd love to bring to life? Join the us and friends of the campaign on Saturday 12th September for a one-day workshop created to encourage and connect the individuals and grassroots groups making real change for nature in their communities. Whether your Wild Service project is already putting down roots or it is only just beginning to stir, the day will offer practical tools, fresh inspiration and new connections to help it grow. The day will take place at Platt Fields Market Garden in Fallowfield, Manchester, a thriving community market garden and hub managed by the Manchester Urban Diggers (MUD). Alongside training and practical support from organisations including Wild Justice, Campaign for Commons and Lawyers for Nature, there will be plenty of time to meet others doing brilliant work for nature, explore the garden on a tour led by the MUD team and relax with some good food and live music Discover more about the workshop and book your free ticket here. When signing up you will be asked to complete a short registration form telling us a little about your current or planned wild service project. Local Group Updates South Devon Right to Roam are planning a walk and a swim on the Marristow Estate where ‘no swimming’ signs have appeared, on the 27th September. Get in touch if you’d like to join. Representatives from the group will also be at the Green Earth Awakening festival next week - if you’re planning to be there, drop them a line and say hi! There will be a stall with information and workshops. Northamptonshire has a new group in the process of forming - their first meet up will be on Tuesday 29th September at The White Hart pub in Great Houghton, Northampton at 7.30pm. If you can't make the meet up but are interested in joining the group or helping them, please get in touch at righttoroamnorthants@gmail.com That’s all from us for now - see you out there. Lewis and 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. If you no longer wish to receive this email, change your email preferences here.

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—THE IN-GLORIOUS BLOODY TWELFTH

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more What the f**k is "glorious" about this?! PROTECT THE WILD AUG 12 READ IN APP Today marks the so-called “Glorious Twelfth” — the beginning of another grouse-shooting season. But there is nothing glorious about turning Britain’s moors into killing grounds. Nothing glorious about birds being driven towards waiting guns. And nothing glorious about landscapes being manipulated so that wealthy shooters can kill animals for entertainment. Grouse shooting does not exist in isolation. Its intensive management is associated with the persecution of protected birds of prey, the killing of other wildlife, the burning of precious peatland and the degradation of habitats that should belong to us all. Until now, our End Bird Shooting campaign has focused predominantly on the pheasant and partridge shooting industry. But that is only the beginning. Over time, we will expand our work to confront every form of bird shooting for so-called “sport” across the UK — including grouse shooting. We will create hard-hitting animations and videos, produce powerful campaigning content, fund undercover investigations and push the truth in front of millions of people. We will expose what happens on Britain’s shooting estates, challenge the powerful interests protecting the industry and build a movement capable of bringing it to an end. Our aim is clear: to make grouse shooting socially toxic, politically indefensible and an industry with no future. You can help fund this work by purchasing one of our bird of prey pin badges. Every purchase helps us reach more people, reveal more of what the shooting industry wants hidden and strengthen the campaign to end bird shooting. Wild birds are not targets. Our countryside is not a playground for people with guns. And killing animals for entertainment has no place in a compassionate society. Stand with Britain’s birds of prey. Stand against persecution. Help us end bird shooting. Bird of Prey Pin Badge 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—LOCAL AUTHORITIES & RODENTICIDES

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Councils don't even bother recording the mass killing of wildlife by rodenticides Freedom of Information requests reveal a black hole at the heart of publicly-funded rodent control industry. GLEN BLACK AUG 8 READ IN APP Composite image showing a colour-shifted photo of rodenticide being placed in an outdoor bait box overlayed with photos of a hedgehog and barn owl This is the fifth in a series of articles highlighting the need to ban rodenticides in the UK. Last month, we explored how the pest control industry - worth over $25bn globally - has been left to regulate itself by the UK government, with disastrous effects for non-target wildlife. You can read our previous articles here, here, here and here. In the coming weeks we will outline how other countries are miles ahead of the UK in terms of recognising the threat that rodenticides pose to both animal rights and our fragile ecosystems. Rodenticides are lethal, not only to rodents but to a wide variety of other ‘non-target species’ as well. However, despite their widespread use, there is comparatively little understanding of their wider impacts. Whilst pest controllers say they have data demonstrating the effectiveness of their methods, Protect the Wild has uncovered major data gaps that undermine their argument. Last month we reported on the ‘pest’ control industry’s lack of oversight. Freedom of information (FOI) requests by Protect the Wild to councils across the UK reveal that, whether the job was contracted out or conducted by an in-house team, few councils carried out oversight on the pest control work itself in the form of audits or compliance checks. Beyond this lack of oversight, there is also a black hole around the impact of this work on non-target species. As a result of another tranche of FOIs submitted by Protect the Wild to UK councils, it became clear that getting data on how many non-target species are affected by rodenticides as a result of ‘pest’ control would be impossible because no such data exists. There is no statutory requirement to collect or report how many non-target species are harmed by rodenticides, whilst the ‘pest’ control industry claim it’s impossible to know. See no evil, hear no evil Of the 384 councils that Protect the Wild contacted, 311 had responded at the time of writing. Across the responses from all these councils, a clear pattern stands out: most have no information on secondary rodenticide harm, and where such information exists, it only accounts for domestic dogs. Protect the Wild asked all councils the same set of questions, which focused on acquiring records for the “known injury or death of animals that are not rats or mice that have occurred or are suspected to have occurred as a result of rodent control operations”. A total of 161 councils stated that they did not hold any such information, whilst a further 139 said their records showed no such cases. Only nine councils held information on accidental or suspected non-target casualties, something this article will return to later. The remaining two refused to provide information. Although many councils simply said they didn’t hold the information, some offered a detail that put that lack of information into context. Cambridgeshire County Council, for example, said that: There are no contractual provisions, standing instructions or service specifications requiring pest control contractors to report non-target casualties to the Council. Dozens of councils gave variations of this statement, making it clear that data on the harm caused by rodenticides to non-target species simply doesn’t exist across much of the country. South Tyneside Metropolitan Borough Council provided an even clearer reason for this data gap when it said that: there is no legal requirement around recording this type of data. There is no statutory requirement for recording or reporting the impact of rodenticides on non-target species, even though we know that the number of animals hurt and killed by them is not zero. Surrey Heath Borough Council’s response highlighted one ‘pest’ control company’s reason for not voluntarily recording such information: I asked the question to the contractor and the response was: ‘This data is undeterminable and therefore records are not held’. In other words, it is ‘impossible’ to determine what non-target animals might be affected by rodenticides, so no attempt is made to do so. Impossible to ignore The issue of unintended and secondary poisoning cannot be dismissed. In fact, the ‘pest’ control industry itself recognises how significant this issue is. In 2015, the Campaign for Responsible Rodenticide Use (CRRU), an industry body which acts as a regulator (in the absence of a proper statutory oversight body), created the Code of Best Practice as a condition of continued authorisation by the government’s Health and Safety Executive. However, the Code has proved ineffective. Despite this allegedly safer use of rodenticides, the rate of secondary poisoning in monitored species has not declined and in some cases has worsened. This was such a problem that even the industry couldn’t ignore it. As a result, by 2024, new guidance was introduced by CRRU and HSE that disallowed the use of SGARs “away from buildings”. This was driven by data showing that nearly 90% of barn owls had been exposed to Second Generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SGARs) despite the 2015 changes. This requirement should now be stated on the labelling of SGARs, and so can, in theory, be legally enforced. However, as Protect the Wild previously highlighted, the requirement is still problematic because ‘pest’ controllers are still allowed to place SGARs outdoors so long as they are set near a building. Cats and dogs Across 311 responses, FOIs revealed only nine councils with records of accidental or suspected non-target casualties: Cambridge City Council (Apr 2020) - One dog: Injured (secondary poisoning) via rodenticide block bait in a residential garden. East Riding of Yorkshire Council (Feb 2025) - One dog: Injured via bait placed in a burrow on an empty college site property. Eastleigh Borough Council (08/06/2020) - One dog: Released unharmed after exposure to Rodilon Soft Block in a bait station on a housing estate. Greenwich Borough Council (10/05/2023) - One grey squirrel: Dead on inspection in a spring-loaded rat trap (deer enclosure, animal park). Hounslow Borough Council (Jan 2025) - One dog: Unharmed following anticoagulant rat control on a housing estate. Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council (Date Unknown) - One dog: Died from rodenticide exposure in a public park. (This was stated by the attending vet, but the council said there was no baiting programme active in the park at the time). South Ribble Borough Council (07/02/2025) - One dog: Received vet treatment (no lasting injury) after consuming Brodifacoum from an unsecured garden bait station. Stroud District Council (May 2026) - One dog: Injured after escaping into a domestic garden and digging up rat bait in a burrow. Wandsworth Borough Council (2024) - Two dogs: Received precautionary treatment and recovered following rodenticide exposure on domestic premises. With the exception of Greenwich Borough Council’s grey squirrel incident, which was due to the related but different issue of spring traps, all recorded cases offered to us by councils involved domestic dogs. There is, of course, a very good reason for that, and the reason also underlines why we know so little about non-target animal harm by council-run or contracted ‘pest control’. Dogs have more of a voice-by-proxy than most other animals by virtue of their social situation. The closeness between dogs and humans, and their living in human households, means that a dog’s actions are more closely scrutinised than most other animals. As a result, they generate council records not because their owners care more, but because of the chain of events a poisoning incident has to pass through before it becomes a recorded complaint. The animal must be seen to fall ill; they must be taken to a vet who identifies anticoagulant poisoning; and crucially, the owner must be able to point to a specific location or object as the likely source. Dogs, typically kept within the boundaries of a house or else walked on leads/within eyesight, pass through all of those gates. When a dog becomes ill in a garden or after a walk, the owner has both the motivation and the means to make a complaint that sticks. This marks them out even from other common domestic animals such as cats, who often roam freely and unsupervised. Should a cat fall ill, identifying a specific location or object as the source of illness is much harder. Without that information, it becomes a lot more difficult to report an incident to the council. The difference between these two widely observed domestic animals makes clear why other creatures may go completely under the radar. It is also the reason why a ‘pest’ controller may say that such data is “undeterminable”. By accident or indifference This “undeterminable” quality isn’t a problem with the ‘pest’ control industry, however. In fact, it’s foundational to how the whole thing works. Rodenticides generally, and SGARs in particular, are designed to kill slowly. A rodent that has taken bait will continue behaving normally for several days before the anticoagulant effect becomes lethal. Because there is no immediate adverse reaction, the rodent doesn't associate the bait with their illness. This mechanism is desirable for ‘pest’ controllers, but it’s also the mechanism that invisibilises harm caused to non-target species. This is why an industry claim that non-target casualties are “undeterminable” isn’t just a neutral technical observation. It expresses the very structure of rodent control, and provides convenient cover for the ‘pest’ control industry. What makes this particularly striking is that the law itself provides a mechanism that should close this gap, yet councils are ignoring it. Even if a council outsources rodent management services to a contractor, it is still responsible for its legal obligations under Environmental Information Regulation (EIR) 3(2). This regulation establishes that what’s considered information held by a public body is not just what’s literally within its paper or digital records, but also any records held on its behalf. As such, a third-party ‘pest’ control company generating treatment logs and job sheets in the course of carrying out a council-commissioned job may be holding that information on the council's behalf, and the council is legally required to retrieve and disclose it if asked. Yet, as multiple councils explicitly told us, they make no requirement for contractors to provide such records. The consequences of this cut both ways. If contractor-held records don't exist, then the monitoring gap is even more complete than the councils' responses suggest, with no data existing anywhere about the impact of publicly-commissioned ‘pest control’ on wildlife. On the other hand, if contractors do hold such data but councils have made no arrangement to access them, that represents widespread failure to comply with the EIR. It means public authorities are commissioning work with known environmental impacts, and structuring the contractual relationship in a way that guarantees they will never know what those impacts are. Either way, the system has been structured by accident or indifference to remain ignorant. Our demand: An immediate end to rodenticide use Protect the Wild is demanding a complete and immediate ban on the use of rodenticide baits. Rodenticides are a threat to our waters: The effect of poor sewage management on the UK’s shorelines and rivers is well known. But rodenticides pose a serious threat too. Sewer baiting needs to be banned: The current protocols for sewer baiting are inadequate to prevent our seas and rivers from being polluted with rodenticide. The practice of sewer baiting needs to stop now. Rodenticides are killing non-target wildlife: Poison bait does not and cannot discriminate between target and non-target species. Killing protected wildlife is a crime. Rodenticides are causing unnecessary suffering: The slow, agonising death inflicted by SGARs – which cause internal bleeding over many days – may itself constitute an offence under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which prohibits the causing of unnecessary suffering to animals. We are already obliged to do better: Existing legislation, as well as the pest control industry’s guidelines, require that preventative methods such as rodent proofing and prevention measures are exhausted before any rodenticide is used. The routine use of poison bait as a first resort by both water companies and local authorities is likely unlawful. Humane solutions are not complicated and there are companies out there who follow an ethical approach to managing wildlife in public areas, including sewers and drains. Check out Humane Wildlife Solutions, for example. As animal rights advocates, we urgently need to step up efforts to stop the silent killing of our wildlife by SGARs and other poisons. We need to make our case loudly and set out the alternatives clearly. The routine use of lethal poisons causes immeasurable suffering and it needs to stop. SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

FRIENDS OF THE EARTH—CLEAN UP IN THE TYNE—NURDLES FROM SHIPPING

View in browser Dear John, One billion plastic pellets – known as nurdles – have spilled from a cargo ship into the River Tyne [1]. It’s a race against time to limit the disaster. Thousands of volunteers, including our local action groups, are desperately trying to clean the beaches and reduce the impact on wildlife. But the official response has been far too slow, while every tide washes more into the sea, making it harder to clean up. Please tell the government to coordinate an emergency response. And hold companies accountable for every penny of environmental recovery. I'LL SIGN THE PETITION Nurdles stick around for decades and wreak havoc on sea life – fish, birds and other animals fatally mistake the bright plastic for food. We need urgent action to stop any more of these deadly plastic pellets escaping from the Tyne into the wider North Sea. The local volunteer response has been quick and inspiring. But communities shouldn't have to clean up corporate pollution. The government has promised to listen to the North. Local people have stepped up. Now it’s time for the government to do the same. Tell Andy Burnham to coordinate an emergency response and hold the companies accountable. I'LL SIGN THE PETITION Thanks, Sienna, Campaigner, Friends of the Earth Notes: [1] ‘There’s no nurdle fairy’: thousands mobilise to clean up plastic spillage in north-east England, The Guardian. About us Supporter promise Privacy policy Contact us DONATE This email was sent to spanishjohnedwards@gmail.com Want to change how you receive these emails? Unsubscribe from this list We send communications to our supporters who have opted in to receive emails from us. Friends of the Earth Limited. Reg. No. 01012357. Incorporated in England and Wales. Registered office: Friends of the Earth The Printworks 139 Clapham Road London, SW9 0HP United Kingdom Copyright © Friends of the Earth Limited

FROM PROTECT THE WILD—BBC TV TALK OF THE REFUSAL FOR TH GUGA KILLING TO CONTINUE

Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more BBC Evening News Covers Guga Hunt Victory! Protect the Wild reacts to the landmark licence refusal on BBC Scotland. AUG 5 READ IN APP Monday was a truly historic day for Scotland’s Gannets. The Guga hunt licence was rejected for the first time ever, sparing 2000 Gannet chicks from a needless and brutal death in the name of tradition. This was a landmark moment for wildlife protection in Scotland, and we're delighted it received the national attention it deserved, featuring on both BBC Scotland's and STV's evening news programmes. Protect the Wild was invited to appear on both programmes to react to NatureScot's decision to reject the licence. BBC Scotland also aired an extended interview with our Scottish Campaigns Manager, Devon, which you can watch below. Speaking to BBC Scotland, we reflected on how emotional it was to hear that the Guga hunt would not be going ahead, and how much it meant to everyone who has campaigned so hard to protect these birds. We also highlighted how our campaign brought unprecedented public attention to the issue and pressured NatureScot into acting in the bests interest of wildlife rather than waving through the Guga hunt for yet another year. Over the course of the campaign so far, we built a petition of more than 250,000 signatures, released a viral animation, organised multiple protests, carried out creative campaign stunts that generated nationwide media coverage, and dedicated countless hours to research and meetings with NatureScot. We believe this significant new scrutiny caused NatureScot to take a far more precautionary approach to the licence. The unprecedented public interest and controversy surrounding the Guga hunt meant the decision was escalated to senior management, and new scientific evidence was commissioned rather than relying on assumptions rooted in the past. We also made clear that tradition, culture and heritage - the main argument we hear for the hunt continuing - cannot justify the continued killing of vulnerable seabird chicks. Finally, and most importantly, we warned that despite Monday's landmark victory, the fight is far from over. NatureScot made it very clear that the Guga hunters can apply again next year, and trust us, they will. Until the law is changed, we’ll have to fight this licence every single year and the Gannet chicks will be at risk of being beaten to death yet again. That’s why we’re now turning our attention to the Scottish Parliament and pressing for the Government to amend Section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act to remove the clause allowing the Guga hunt. Help us get this over the finish line Yesterday, our incredible founder Rob walked (but mostly ran!) 16 kilometres in laps around the Scottish Parliament building dressed as a Gannet to call on Section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act to be amended to outlaw the Guga hunt. We’re aiming to raise £16,000 for vital funds to power the next and final phase of the fight to end the Guga hunt for good. DONATE TO THE FUNDRAISER We're so close to hitting our target. If you can, please chip in a few quid and help us cross the finish line. SHARE LIKE COMMENT RESTACK © 2026 Protect the Wild Protect the Wild, 71-75 Shelton Street Covent Garden, London, W2CH 9JQ Unsubscribe Start writing

RIGHT TO ROAM NEWSLETTR—TELL THE STORY OF LACK OF ACCESS TO OUR RIVERBANKS

No right to access three quarters of England's riverbanks In this newsletter: –Our riverbank investigation –Wigan and Makerfield Events –Finnamore Wood –Local Group Updates Dear Roamers, Nearly three quarters of England’s riverbanks have no right of access according to our new analysis, revealed in the Guardian last weekend. We found that 71% of riverbanks across 89 English river catchments have no access land or public right of way on either bank within 100 metres of the water. It is a staggering finding and yet, somehow, an unsurprising one. Many rivers begin their life accessible, birthed in the mountains and moors where access land is more common. As estuaries become more urban they tend to offer greater access to the riverside. However, the middle courses are often forgotten and inaccessible. It’s like knowing someone in their youth and losing touch until their old age. Take the River Severn for example, whose headwaters begin high in the Welsh hills of Plynlimon, and end in the great estuary of the Bristol Channel. Yet through its middle catchment in Shropshire, it becomes one of England’s least accessible waterways, with 90% of its banks off limits. In other places, paths named after a river barely encounter the rivers whose name they carry – for example, most of the ‘The Test Way’ does not adjoin the famous chalk stream at all. Right to Roam's local group in South Devon experienced this phenomenon recently on the River Erme. Our trespass took us along the private paths of the Flete Estate (of Our Land fame), which for 5km on both sides of the river is reserved for the exclusive access of residents and guests of the estate. It is a beautiful section of a river in much need of help, but which for the most part is unseen even by those living in villages and towns in the same catchment. Does this story sound familiar? Have you been shut out from your local river? Drop us a reply and tell us your story. Details like that help us build the case for change. Our investigation lands on the freshly cleared desk of incoming DEFRA Secretary of State, Angela Eagle. Her arrival continues a decade-long trend at the department, where a new SoS has been appointed, on average, once every year. We hope she will recognise the scale of the inequality it represents and the inadequacy of the government’s flagship access policy of creating ‘nine new river walks’, which have so far failed to create any new access. She needn’t look far for ideas. Across Europe we see examples of a different approach. Sweden, Norway and Scotland all have a right to swim and paddle in most inland waters with exceptions made for privacy, wildlife and public safety. France has 1,286 officially monitored freshwater bathing sites. Meanwhile, in Paris, three free, supervised swimming areas have been opened on the Seine, with the water tested daily and sites closed temporarily when conditions make swimming unsafe. Berlin has 39 official bathing places where the city monitors conditions and gives swimmers information about where it is safe to enter. The city’s website states: “The Lageso wishes all Berliners and all guests of the city a pleasant and safe bathing and swimming season at the official bathing areas". In some Swiss cities, the rivers are so clean that people commute to work by swimming. Even in the densely populated Netherlands there are now 800 officially designated swimming locations, that are monitored and tested regularly. From the 1st of June next year Flanders will make all swimming legal unless there’s a good reason not to . Authorities there have taken the enlightened view that legalising swimming results in a stronger swimming culture, which in turn produces stronger and more capable swimmers: saving lives, and benefitting mental and physical health. As the Netherlands national swimming programme, Swim-ABC, website succinctly puts it: “Learning to swim is vital in our country with its abundance of water. We live near water, and we like to seek it out. Therefore, it is essential that children learn to swim at a young age.” While Europe evolves, we stagnate. England and Wales are increasingly looking like the last ones left on the bank while everyone else takes to water. Wigan & Makerfield: Save the Dates With the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, making his constituency of Makerfield a litmus test for the country, Right to Roam are paying a visit. –August 27th, The Old Courts, 7pm. Join Nadia, Guy, and the Right to Roam North West local group, for an evening of discussion about increasing land access, who owns the North West and what access reform could look like. –September 12th, Wigan Diggers’ Festival Right to Roam will be running a stall at this local festival, celebrating the legacy of the great Gerard Winstanley and his belief in the land as a common treasury for all... –September 13th, SAVE THE DATE With the team in town, there’s mischief to be found… save the date and we’ll release more details in due course! Finnamore Wood We recently reported on events unfolding at Finnamore Wood in Buckinghamshire, where a luxury property developer is enclosing a once-accessible woodland. The site was formerly home to a borstal but in the decades since it closed, local children and families have walked and played among the trees. In recent months, an eight-foot fence has been erected around the perimeter. Once again, the woodland has been turned into a fortress. Last week residents held a vigil to highlight the injustice and call on the local authorities to act. You can watch a moving short film about the day here. BBC News Jon spoke to the BBC about the legacy of the Kinder Mass Trespass and why it’s still unfinished business in England and Wales. Check the article out here. Local Groups Update Dorset Congrats to the Dorset group, who went out last weekend to liberate a Right of Way on Deadmoor Common from blockage – great work folks! Leicestershire The Leicestershire group are organising a swim trespass and picnic this Sunday, August 9th. If you’re interested, please contact Nadia on nadia@righttoroam.org.uk for more information. Kent Kent local group are looking to expand their pool of active members and organisers. They’re especially in need of someone who is interested in social media but would love to hear from any keen folk regardless of skill set. They welcome people from all over Kent and are hoping to gather some representation in the East or along the coast. Members meet regularly online and in person. They’d also love support in researching land ownership in Kent and planning actions that can include book clubs, socials, walks, film screenings, etc. If you’re interested in getting involved, please email righttoroamkent@gmail.com West Yorkshire On August 29th our West Yorkshire group are teaming up with long time friends of the campaign, Trash Free Trails, to give the hills a spruce after the Yorkshire 3 Peaks. “We will come together to give these majestic hills a good clean and do our bit of Wild Service. We want to have fun and engage with the public and really try to understand the psychology of littering. We are not aiming to lecture, blame or protest, but if we can talk to the public about rubbish and increased responsible access even better!" Sign up on the Trash Free Trails website here. For more details, drop the local group a line at: righttoroamwestyorkshire@gmail.com Lewis and Jon, on behalf of the Right to Roam team 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. If you no longer wish to receive this email, change your email preferences here.