1 Greenham Common
Berkshire
Cold War-era base filled with birdsong
DURING THE COLD WAR, RAF GREENHAM Common was famously the home of NATO's nuclear deterrent: an arsenal of short- to long-range cruise missiles targeted on Soviet Russia. From the early 1980s until 2000, the perimeter fence also became home to the Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp. At its height, 30,000 women protesters lived permanently at the site, attracting worldwide media interest and edifying the international peace movement.
Visit today and you won't hear the sound of fighter jets taking off or the melodies of protest songs, rather the shrill calls of larks breaking the silence over this long expanse of grassland. Peppered with egg-yolk-yellow flowering gorse and vibrant pink heather, the site is home to 30 species of butterfly and its open heath attracts birds such as skylarks, woodlarks, nightjars and linnets. Though the runway is now mostly grown over, you can still trace its path with a keen eye. The missile silos are cornered off but can be seen clearly from many parts of the site, and the old control tower is now a visitor centre.
2 Lindisfarne Priory
Northumberland
Great for orchids
HOLY ISLAND IS HOME TO THE RUINS of Lindisfarne Priory, founded by Irish monks in 635AD and abandoned following Viking invasion. Another priory was built after the Norman Conquest, and it is the remains of this that still stand. The surrounding dunes, saltmarsh and mudflats are designated a National Nature Reserve and are a great spot to see migrating birds in autumn, and visiting wildfowl and waders in winter. In summer, look out for the endemic Lindisfarne helleborine in the dune slacks, one of 11 orchid species found here, as well as many other nationally important plants.
3 Candleston Castle
South Wales
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May 2023 من BBC Wildlife.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة May 2023 من BBC Wildlife.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
Jump Around - Bagheera Kiplingi - The acrobatic spider with a predilection for veggie food
Spiders eat flies, right? everyone knows that the 45,000 or so spiders in the world are all obligate carnivores, more or less – eating other animals, mainly invertebrates. Nature, however, loves an exception, and one particular spider missed out on that ecological memo. It goes by the wonderful scientific name of Bagheera kiplingi, and its claim to fame is that its diet is – at least mostly – vegetarian.
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Can Your Really Offset Emissions? - Planning an overseas wildlife-watching trip entails facing some inconvenient truths
Imagine (or maybe you don't need to) that you hanker after the safari trip of a lifetime in sub-Saharan Africa. A 17-day tour beginning at the iconic Victoria Falls, passing through Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and Tanzania, taking in some of the continent’s most wildlife-rich national parks, and ending on the lush island of Zanzibar.
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Loss of Antarctic sea ice could impact seabird food supply
Albatrosses and petrels may be forced to fly further to feed
Tarsiers in trouble
Urgent action is needed to ensure survival of the Yoda-like primate
SNAP-CHAT
Chien Lee on shrew loos, rogue drones and being rained out of bed
VISIONS OF NATURE
The winners of the Wildlife Artist of the Year competition 2024, from David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation
