Author: Chris Glass

The decline of many species of bees is particularly relevant in current conservation circles.  The factors surrounding the decline include: the loss of habitat, spread of diseases and finally the presence of pesticides in the environment. The great risk which pesticides were presumed to cause spurred a motion to impose an EU wide two-year ban on three pesticides which contained neonicotinoid. The chemical, neonicotinoid, is similar in structure to nicotine and as a toxin released by plants, is damaging to insects. A recent study by Newcastle University has further explained the effects of pesticides and chemicals on bees, focusing greatly…

A recently discovered comet has given scientists a unique chance to study an object from the farthest reaches of our Solar System. The comet, named ‘siding spring’, was discovered on the 3rd January 2013 and is believed to have originated from the region of the solar system known as the Oort cloud. The Oort cloud is a spherical cloud of predominantly icy objects which surrounds the solar system, this spherical region of space on the outer edge of the solar system is responsible for the introduction of Comets into the inner solar system. On the 19th October, Siding Spring made…

The Ice Bucket Challenge has been the charity phenomenon of the summer and has encouraged everyone, from former US President George W Bush to Stephen Hawking, to pick up a bucket and get involved. The craze has created a much larger impact than just a few celebrities getting their heads wet however; the challenge has created a backlash from animal rights groups and also environmentalists. For anyone who has somehow missed the deluge of videos which have flooded social media the past few months, the basic idea of the Ice Bucket Challenge is as follows. The participant makes a short…

Five hundred years ago, cranes were a common sight across the British Isles, however these majestic birds were made extinct by over-hunting and loss of wetlands. Over the past 5 years, a programme, termed ‘The Great Crane Project’, has aimed to reintroduce cranes back into the UK. The project has raised and released almost 100 cranes on to the Somerset Levels and moors. The Great Crane Project is a joint venture between the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT), the RSPB, Pensthorpe Conservation Trust and Viridor Credits. The project aims to restore the Eurasian Crane to areas where they used to…