CATEGORIES

Metamorphosis: a life-changing event

WITH EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGIST JV CHAMARY

IT'S TIME TO VOTE!

Welcome to the ninth Horse & Hound Awards - celebrating the dazzling achievements of the 2024 season, both on centre stage and behind the scenes. As ever, we have some very worthy shortlisted candidates, from sublime champions to emotional stories to pull at the heartstrings.

Genetic susceptibility

A certain number of inherited disorders are limited to specific breeds. Rebecca Hamilton-Fletcher MRCVS explains the what and why of such cases

OPINION - GILLIAN BURKE

\"We can make a start by living with more ecological humility\"

Loss of Antarctic sea ice could impact seabird food supply

Albatrosses and petrels may be forced to fly further to feed

New series for BBC One: Asia

Settle in this autumn for a new natural-history extravaganza on BBC One and iPlayer: the longawaited Asia, presented by Sir David Attenborough.

VISIONS OF NATURE

The winners of the Wildlife Artist of the Year competition 2024, from David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation

Farewell to medal-winning star mare and 'best friend', aged 18

Gareth Hughes' championship ride Classic Briolinca has died nearly six months after she retired from sport

Eventing Euros return to Blenheim after 20 years

The Oxfordshire four-star will mark its 35th anniversary by hosting the eventing Europeans for a second time

Take a bow, Mulberry Lane

The show horse of the moment is crowned supreme horse of the year on the flat, after scoring a Hickstead overall victory as a worker three months ago

Sour grapes? Possibly...

As Tessa Waugh settles into the novelty of hunting \"alongside\" husband Adam in the field, she accepts that her prospects of playing a couple working in tandem are far-fetched

RETURN OF THE GIANTS

After two decades of preparations, the island of Floreana in the Galápagos is ready to welcome back an iconic tortoise

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

'My bone was shattered'

A working rider bouncing back from serious injury and a busy farmer are among those securing coveted Badminton tickets

Home-bred takes two

From Star Wars to Harry Styles, riders celebrate music victories, while one amateur has to move her office for the week - but the effort pays off

Jilly Cooper

As Rupert Campbell-Black is immortalised on our screens, the bestselling author tells Martha Terry about her own showjumping exploits, real-life inspirations and the day she lost her manuscript on a bus

Alfie

This huntsman's horse had a traumatic start to his career with Gary Thorpe, but turned out to have \"the heart of a lion and a proper engine\"

KEY TO CHANGE

Change is afoot in Florida, as ecotourism is being made a priority

'The change was refreshing to watch'

H&H's showing editor on the new judging format at HOYS 2024

'What eventing needs to thrive'

Oliver Townend on collecting rings, a new owner's award and prize money

10 HOLIDAYS FOR CONSERVATION

Our round-up of the best ecotourism projects around the world. Here's how to help wildlife while having a blast!

Moonshine on best behaviour

The county of Cornwall fields a clutch of champions, while a veteran horse earns his 11th title

Actions rather than words are needed for horse sport's future

The 2024 Racing Foundation conference considered how to help maintain public support

We must change worming habits before it is too late

New guidelines on worm control have been published to try to fight the growing threat of anthelmintic resistance

Household Cavalry Sculptor-in-Residence - After years in a city job, Zoë Carmichael was destined to devote herself to the antique discipline of sculpture and immortalise her favourite subjects - horses - in bronze

I’ve hunted all my life. Growing up, I hunted with the Cotswold and VWH and I’m lucky to have been out with lots of packs, from the Teme Valley in Wales where I learnt the name of almost every hound, to days out with the Beaufort with a field of 200-plus. My greatest moments have been following my best friends over Ledbury hedges. Eventually, I focused on eventing – I did juniors and under-21s. Then I got a four-year-old, Bertie, and took him up to what would be four-star today.

See It, Save It? - Wildlife tourism can be a powerful ally in protecting nature - but it can also harm it. We weigh up the pros and cons.

The sums of wildlife travel aren’t as simple as more tourists equals happier nature. How much did my visit really contribute to the conservation of Lady Liuwa and her habitat – and was that outweighed by carbon emissions from my flights? Did my presence disturb the animals’ natural behaviour more than it reduced the threat of poaching or benefited local communities?The question of whether wildlife travel is, on balance, good for wildlife is a complex one – and there’s no simple answer.

A Nose for Nature -With an uncanny ability to detect elusive species in the wild, dogs are poised to play a vital role in conservation and biosecurity.

Ꮓiba seems to be the perfect colleague: hard-working, efficient and fun to be around. However, Ziba isn't a person; she's a conservation detection dog, especially trained to sniff out the presence of rare bats and birds. The sixyear-old German shorthaired pointer is one of an increasing number of dogs helping to conserve wildlife. Similar to sniffer dogs employed to detect drugs or explosives, these detection dogs are using their extraordinary sense of smell to identify anything from great crested newts to pine martens.

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.

Duck and Cover - With a comical and heart-warming call, the eider or 'cuddy duck' is a convivial bird that was highly favoured and protected by Northumberland's patron saint, says

Anyone who has spent time on the rugged, castle-fringed coast of Northumberland will be familiar with the call of the eider duck. The male emits a fluty 'ahoooh' that sounds amazed and a little censorious. The female responds with a throaty cackle-Dame Barbara Windsor to the drake's Kenneth Williams, if you like. There's something good humoured, fond and comforting in the eiders' calling. It evokes feelings of nostalgia even in those hearing it for the first time.