Michael Williams - MCIEEM BSc (Hons)

Posted by Michael Williams - MCIEEM BSc (Hons) on 20/01/2015

A recent paper in Science magazine ‘Recovery of large carnivores in Europe’s modern human-dominated landscapes’ shows that large carnivores in Europe can share the same landscape as humans.  The paper, published in December 2014 and authored by 76 researchers from 26 countries is not the first to show that large carnivores can co-exist with people, however their results show that the land-sharing model, in contrast to wilderness and national park strategies elsewhere in the world, can be successful on a continental scale.

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biodiversity valuation
rewilding
large carnivores
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Biodiversity Research
Posted by Michael Williams - MCIEEM BSc (Hons) on 11/06/2014

As a teenager I used to hear older naturalists comment frequently that there used to be a lot more glow-worms back in their day. Nowadays I find myself saying the same thing.

Alongside the footpaths, back lanes and disused railway lines of north Devon I would often pass the green glow of the females in the grassland and low scrub.

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Invertebrate survey
Invertebrate Surveys
Ecological Consultant
invertebrate specialists
Glow Worm
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Ecological Consulting
Posted by Michael Williams - MCIEEM BSc (Hons) on 13/03/2014

While some invertebrates are generalists, and feed on or live in a wide variety of trees, many can only be found on certain species, or a very small number of species. Sometimes the name is a dead giveaway – oak apple gall wasps, the blue willow beetle etc. But some can be somewhat inaccurate – for instance the oak eggar moth does not feed on oaks, but gets its name due to the cocoon resembling an acorn.

 

Under the Bark

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ecological consultancy
ecological consultants
Invertebrate Surveys
Ecological Consultant
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Ecological Consulting
Posted by Michael Williams - MCIEEM BSc (Hons) on 4/02/2014

The Ranavirus, first reported in the UK in the 1980s, is responsible for killing thousands of frogs, toads and newts in the UK every year. The cause of the spread of the disease is as yet unknown, however some populations have recovered following an outbreak. The second disease is the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, which was first discovered in the UK in 2004 and is thought to be the main threat to amphibian populations worldwide and can destroy entire populations of amphibians.

Tags: 
ecological consultancy
great crested newt survey
Categories: 
Ecological Consulting