Ecology – Hoopoe – A blog by nhbs

Q&A with Trine Bregstein: The Riverfly Partnership

The Riverfly Partnership is a collaborative effort between anglers, conservationists, scientists, and water managers to protect the health and quality of our rivers. They use citizen science to monitor riverfly populations, which are sensitive indicators of water quality, and gather data on these fascinating insects to contribute to a better understanding of river ecosystems.

We recently had the opportunity to speak with Trine Bregstein, riverfly partnership development manager, about the work of the Partnership, their citizen science initiatives, the importance of riverflies and more.

Can you give an overview of the Riverfly Partnership, its aims and the work that the group is involved in?

The Riverfly Partnership is a network of organisations supporting projects to assess river health. The aims of the partnership are to protect the water quality of our rivers, further the understanding of riverfly populations, and conserve riverfly habitats. The partnership comprises many individuals and groups, including entomologists, angling clubs, volunteer groups, wildlife charities and Rivers Trusts.

We have data on freshwater invertebrate life dating back to the early 2000s, collected by a dedicated base of citizen scientists that is continuing to grow. Volunteers get to learn about the fascinating world of tiny critters living in their waterways, which are referred to as the canaries of our rivers because they are an important indicator of water quality. The work of Riverfly monitors means pollution incidents are quickly detected and reported, changes in water quality are monitored over time and the impacts of restoration work in and around the river can be tracked.

Can you tell us about the Riverfly Monitoring Initiative?

The Riverfly Monitoring Initiative (RMI) is a citizen science scheme in which trained monitors collect data about the invertebrates living in their local river. Volunteers are trained in the identification of key groups of riverflies, which are invertebrates that spend most of their life cycle living in fresh water. The initiative mainly focuses on the orders Ephemeroptera (also known as up-wing flies or mayflies), Plecoptera (stoneflies) and Trichoptera (caddisflies).

Invertebrate sorting and identification. Credit: Trine Bregstein

On a monthly basis, monitors carry out kick sampling at their site and count the numbers of each group of riverflies they have collected. From these counts, an RMI score is generated. This score is compared to the ‘trigger level’ of the site, which is a number set by the local ecology contact at the statutory body. If the RMI score is below the trigger level, it may be an indication that a pollution event has taken place. Another sample is done to confirm the breach, and then the relevant authorities are informed.

What are the main challenges associated with your work?

The national scale of the project, with various regional hubs coordinating groups of monitors at a local level, means it’s important to make sure things are done consistently across the network. We at the Riverfly Partnership HQ in the Lake District facilitate and try to keep track of what’s going on in all of these separate groups, and make sure training and protocols are standardised around the country to ensure the robustness of the data set. This can prove challenging, particularly as many of our hubs are charities and trusts that may not have consistent funding for citizen science projects, whilst others are volunteer run and rely on people managing to co-ordinate their groups in their spare time.

A group of volunteers standing around the riverside edge during a training day — Ribble training day. Image credit: Trine Bregstein

How did 2024 fare for the Partnership and its work?

2024 was a great year for the Partnership. Our monitors submitted 7,832 surveys to our database over the year – this is up from 6,392 in 2023, which reflects how much the partnership is continuing to grow, with many new monitoring groups set up all over the UK. We also launched a new Riverfly data dashboard for easy viewing of all this data.

Citizen science is of increasing importance in wildlife conservation across the globe. How can we get involved and be proactive in protecting our rivers and riverfly populations?

Riverfly monitoring involves carrying out a survey at your allocated site once per month, usually taking about an hour. As a monitor, you’d be contributing to a trusted, long-term, open-access data set that can be used to track gradual changes in habitat quality, as well as quickly pick up on any major incidents that the statutory body can investigate. Anyone can become a Riverfly monitor – no prior knowledge is required; you just need to have attended a training day led by one of our accredited tutors.

Kick sampling in a river — Gwent Wildlife Trust sampling. Image by Gareth Edge

If you’re interested in becoming a volunteer, e-mail info@riverflies.org and we will link you up to your local co-ordinator. Most training tends to take place in the spring and summer months, but you can register your interest at any time.

Aside from Riverfly monitoring, you can also get involved in the Rivers Trust’s Big River Watch, Earthwatch has the Great UK Water Blitz, The Angling Trust has the WQMN (Water Quality Monitoring Network), ZSL run the Outfall Safari project, and through the CABA and CaSTCo projects other organisations around the UK have been able to cascade this initiative to their volunteers. Check your local Rivers Trust or Wildlife Trust to see what volunteering opportunities they have, for example balsam bashes, riverside clean ups or restoration works like reed bed planting, tree planting and fence building.

Gwent Wildlife Trust members holding certificates following training — Gwent Wildlife Trust training. Image credit: Gareth Edge

There is so much to get involved with, and on a personal level, try look after your own patch. If you’re out walking the dog for example, try to keep them out of the water if they’ve had a recent flea treatment, take a couple of bits of rubbish to the nearest bin (safely, don’t pick up anything potentially dangerous) and know who to call if you spot something untoward – the EA/SEPA/NRW/NIEA for pollution, your local council for fly tipping and don’t forget to report sewage and water leakage problems to your local water company too, they all have helplines or online reporting options.

What projects will the Riverfly Partnership be working on next?

We have a scheme called ‘Extended Riverfly’, which is a more advanced version of Riverfly monitoring that experienced monitors can move on to. It involves identifying and counting 33 groups of invertebrates, rather than the eight in the Riverfly Monitoring Initiative. It’s a fairly new scheme, currently only operating in certain parts of the country, but we recently held an event at which many Riverfly trainers upskilled to become extended trainers, so we’re looking forward to rolling out this project to many more groups in the coming year.

Extended training at the natural history museum — Extended training at the Natural History Museum. Image Credit: Trine Bregstein

We’re also working on our ‘Targets and Triggers’ project, which has been developed with partners at the Environment Agency, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Buglife and CaSTCo. We’re aiming to devise a standard, and relatively easy, method for trigger levels to be set, making it easier for statutory bodies to engage with Riverfly monitoring without it being too much of a drain on their limited resources. Through gathering extra data about each monitoring site and running these through a predictive model, we plan to come up with not just trigger levels, but expand the initiative so that sites also have a ‘target level’ – the maximum RMI score that we would expect to see at a site, which gives a goal for habitat improvement projects to aim for.

The Riverfly Partnership Approved Kit is a complete kit suitable for water quality monitoring. The Riverfly Partnership receives £5 from the sale of this kit to help them continue their fantastic conservation work.

Please see the Riverfly Partnership website for more information on how to get involved.

National Nest Box Week 2025

Friday 14th February marks the start of National Nest Box Week. With widespread population declines due to habitat loss and urbanisation, National Nest Box Week presents us with the perfect opportunity to provide habitat for local birds, boosting breeding success and contributing to the enhancement of biodiversity in our green spaces.

Mid-February marks the start of the breeding season for many British bird species, with many beginning to actively seek new territory and suitable nesting sites. Nest Box Week is a great time to install a new nest box or do some maintenance on any existing boxes. By providing artificial nesting sites, we can assist species such as Robins, House Sparrows, and Swifts, while simultaneously raising public awareness about the diverse range of birds that benefit from these resources.

House Sparrow at the entrance of a nest box — Image by Vine House Farm via Flickr

Here are some ways to get involved in National Nest Box Week:

Install a nest box in an outside space, garden or balcony
Plant native flora and provide access to fresh, clean water to keep your garden bird-friendly
Support bird conservation organisations by donating, volunteering or sharing their work
Encourage friends and family to get involved in supporting their local wildlife

Garden Bird Species

Robins are a familiar sight in UK gardens and are easily recognised by their bright red breast and cheerful song. They prefer open-fronted nest boxes, often tucked away in hedges or shrubs, to mimic their natural nesting preferences in sheltered crevices and vegetation.

Blue tits are small, vibrant birds common across the UK that are often seen flitting through gardens and woodlands. They prefer small, enclosed nest boxes, hung high to mimic their natural nesting sites in tree cavities.

With their distinctive yellow beak and melodious song, Blackbirds are a common sight in various habitats across the UK. They prefer open-fronted nest boxes, at a slightly higher location, tucked away amongst dense vegetation or climbing plants for added security.

House Sparrow perched on balcony railing

Common in UK gardens and urban areas, Sparrows prefer nest boxes with a small entrance hole, placed high up on walls or under the eaves of houses, mimicking their natural nesting sites in crevices and holes in buildings.

Why is National Nest Box Week important?

Increasing urbanisation, human development and changing land-use have had devastating impacts on bird populations in the UK. A loss of natural nesting habitats has introduced extra challenges for rearing young, and nest boxes provide nesting birds with vital habitat to rear chicks – helping to mitigate the impacts of habitat loss which is essential for supporting local bird populations.

Find a selection of nest box blogs on the Conservation Hub, including:

NHBS Guide: Where to hang and how to maintain your nest box

Training Course: Bats for Building Professionals

The recent training course by the Bat Conservation Trust, Bats for Building Professionals, aimed to provide direction and understanding on the legal protections surrounding bats and their roosts in buildings. Suitable for contractors, pest controllers, surveyors, architects or those working within the construction industry, the session aided building professionals in developing their bat roost identification skills and taught them how to navigate situations where bats are present on site.

The seven-hour course, run over two interactive online sessions, explored bat ecology, biology, best practices, the latest guidance and legal information.

The course began with a comprehensive overview of Britain’s breeding bat species, covering their biology, ecology, adaptations, habitat preferences and roosting types. Speaker Katie Swift introduced the Bat Calendar – a particularly interesting aspect of the session which revealed how contractors and construction workers can plan work around bat activity to minimise disturbances (see below).

Bat calendar indicating best times for construction works — The bat calendar shows how contractors and construction workers can plan work around bat activity to minimise disturbances.

This led to a discussion of bat roosts in built structures, where Katie explained why bats favour these spaces and detailed attractive features for both cavity and crevice roosting species, such as soffits, eaves, and cladding. Exploring the different uses of these roosts throughout the year, Katie highlighted how occupied spaces change between summer and winter, and which bat species commonly utilise buildings for this purpose. Using examples like pipistrelles and horseshoe bats, she demonstrated how different species utilize roosting sites and how to recognize an active roost.

The second part of the discussion focused on legislation and bat protection, educating attendees on the laws that are in place to ensure bat protection, actions that are considered an offence, and highlighting advice services available. Katie then reviewed the European Protected Species License, explaining its role in safeguarding bats within the UK, outlining how construction activities can potentially harm bats in buildings, and when to seek advice as a building professional in keeping with best practice guidelines.

Common pipistrelle bat — Image by Bio Blitz via Flickr

The second session concluded with an interactive quiz of working examples for building professionals, covering a range of typical building works including barn conversions, door repairs and gutter replacements.

The ‘homework’ task between sessions was a particularly enjoyable aspect of the course – through independent field work, attendees had the opportunity to report on the potential bat features of their chosen building or structure and apply the knowledge learned throughout the session to understand which species may be present in the area, the areas bats may utilise on the structure and what works might impact a roost.

This insightful and informative training course provides a valuable resource for building professionals seeking to learn or refresh their knowledge about bats and building projects. The speaker’s expertise ensured a comprehensive and engaging learning experience, covering everything from bat ecology, to bats in buildings and licensing.

Find out more about upcoming events and the extensive range of training courses with the Bat Conservation Trust via their website.

Top 5: Binoculars

A good pair of binoculars is a staple in any naturalist’s kit. Whether you are wildlife watching, insect spotting or exploring the wilderness, we have a fantastic range of optics to enhance your outdoor activities.

Discover our top 5 best binoculars for wildlife watching below, where we highlight the key features of each for easy comparison.

Bushnell Prime Binoculars 8×32 BP832B

A great entry-level option with high quality optical performance, these binoculars are waterproof, lightweight and robust which makes them great for fieldwork. A wide field of view makes these ideal for fast moving animals and large landscapes, and the anti-reflective coasting ensures a bright image with high contrast.

EXO barrier coatings to repel oil, dust and water
BAK-4 Prisms for excellent image quality and low light performance
20-year guarantee
Weight: 479g
Magnification: 8x
Field of view: 130m @ 1000m
Eye relief: 18mm
Close focus: 9ft / 3m

GPO PASSION ED 8×32/42mm Binoculars

Combine value and performance with these lightweight binoculars from GPO. A magnesium body provides a robust chassis, the Schmidt-Pechan prisms further enhance their durability, while superb clarity and exceptional colour transmission ensure an excellent price to performance ratio.

Suitable for all levels of expertise
Multi-coated lenses for exceptional clarity and colour transmission
Wide field of view
10-year guarantee
Weight: 520g
Magnification: 8x
Eye relief: 16mm
Field of view: 139m @ 1000m
Close focus: 2m

Hawke Optics Nature-Trek Binoculars 8×42

Completely waterproof and fog free, these robust binoculars are ideal for fieldwork. The multi-coated optics and an inner-focus optical design ensure high resolution images, and a close focus distance of 2m make them great for observing insects.

Shock resistant polycarbonate body
BAK-4 roof prism
Lifetime guarantee
Winner – Best Low Cost Binocular Award 2014
Weight: 638g
Magnification: 8x
Eye relief: 18mm
Field of view: 129m @ 1000m
Close focus: 2m / 6.6ft

Opticron Explorer WA ED-R Binoculars 10×42

An impressive field of view makes these compact binoculars great for surveying large landscapes and fast-moving animals, and a close focus of 2m makes them suitable for viewing insects too. Multi–coated lenses allow extra light transmission and colour contrast, ensuring clear, crisp viewing.

Nitrogen waterproof construction
Close focus: 2.5m / 8.2ft
Weight: 660g
Magnification: 10x
Eye relief: 15mm
Field of view: 113m @ 1000m
10-year guarantee

Swarovski CL Pocket Binoculars with Wild Nature Case 10×25

Ideal for travelling, these pocket binoculars are compact and lightweight, while providing users with a large field of view and great close focus suitable for insect observation. A high-quality lens and prism coating ensure excellent optical performance, even at low light, and SWAROBRIGHT phase prism coating ensures better colour reproduction and light transmission.

10-year warranty
Waterproof to 4m
Magnification: 10x
Eye relief: 17mm
Field of view: 98m @ 1000m
Close focus: 2.5m
Weight: 350g

For more information on how to choose the right pair of binoculars, see our blog post on the Conservation Hub.

The NHBS Harp Trap: New Model Assembly Instructions

This blog provides a step-by-step guide on to how to set up and disassemble the latest model of the NHBS manufactured Harp Trap.

Please note that the NHBS Harp Trap is a made-to-order item, contact us at customer.services@nhbs.com for enquiries and we will be happy to advise on the current lead time.

Handling your trap

The trap carry bag has been designed to allow handling/carrying by either one or two people.

What’s in the bag?

1 × Harp Trap, 4 × legs, 2 × support poles (in two parts), 1 × accessories pack (including instructions, 4 × pegs, 4 × guy ropes and spare line)

Please follow these instructions for correct assembly and disassembly. We recommend that this is carried out by two people.

Setting Up

1 . Carefully remove the harp trap from its carry bag and place the frame upright on the floor.

2 . Take the legs out of the carry bag and insert them into the holes on the underside of the frame – it is easiest to do this one end at a time. When required, all legs can be individually adjusted to raise the trap or to level out when setting up on uneven ground.

3 . Undo the straps and allow the collecting bag to settle by opening the arms of the frame out fully. If using guy ropes, attach them to the upper carriage now.

4 . Release the spring locking pins at both ends of the trap by pulling the lever out and rotating 90° to lock in the open position. Grab the longer piece of the support poles and hold upright with the connector facing down. Now, loosen the star handled screw and carefully lift the top carriage, raising it away from the main frame. Insert the support pole through the hole, where you removed the upper carriage from, and allow the poles to sit on the floor. Then insert the top carriage locating pins into the open end of the support poles.

5 . If using guy ropes, untie and allow to hang.

6. Working at the same pace, slowly raise the support pole so that the bottom of the pole is just below the lower part of the main frame, watching closely to ensure no strings get tangled. Once you reach this height, tighten the star handled screw to secure the support pole in position.

7 . Take the shorter parts of the support poles and attach them to the bottom of the longer parts by screwing together.

8 . With the support poles now at their full length, while holding on to them, loosen the star handled screw and continue to raise them, still working together and checking for any string snagging. Raise until the bottom of the pole is level (or as near as possible) with the bottom of the frame and tighten star handled screws.

9 . Engage both spring locking pins to secure the lower carriage.

10 . If you are using them for stability, you can now peg out the guy ropes and your trap is ready for use.

Disassembly

1 . If used, pull out the pegs and store them carefully.

2 . Release the spring locking pins from both ends of the trap. Hold the support poles (one person at each end) and loosen the star handled screws to lower the poles.

3 . Continue to slowly lower the poles and as you do so, carefully start winding the bottom line carrier, taking great care to ensure no lines get tangled. Guiding the lines with your hand/arm is key. Keep lowering the support poles slowly and evenly while winding the line carrier until the support poles rest on the floor.

4 . With the support poles resting on the ground, tighten the star handled screw to hold the pole in position, unscrew the lower/short part of the support pole and safely place to one side.

5 . Hold onto the support pole, loosen the thumb screw, and continue to lower until the pole sits on the ground. If used, gather up the guy ropes, tie them up, detach from the frame and place safely to one side.

6 . Now lift the top carriage off from the top of the support pole, slide the pole out from the frame and place to one side. Continue to lower the top carriage, whilst winding the bottom carriage, until the top carriage sits on the main frame.

7 . Once the top carriage has been lowered fully, engage the spring locking pins and tighten the star handled screw to secure it in place, fold the arms of the catch bag assembly inwards until they meet, wrap the bag around the trap and tie the straps to secure.

8 . Remove the legs from the frame, working on one end of the frame at a time is easiest. If you have extended the legs, to aid storage, reduce them to their shortest length.

9 . Place the guy ropes and pegs back in the accessories bag. Put the legs and the support poles in the bottom of the carry bag and finally, carefully place the trap and accessories bag back into the carry bag, safe and sound, ready for next time.

Author interview with Susan Young: Night Vision and Daylight Camera Systems for Wildlife

This comprehensive guide describes how wildlife can be monitored and recorded in a non-intrusive way using well-developed and reliable technology. Detailing key techniques for capturing high-quality footage of a range of species, from nocturnal mammals to elusive birds, this practical resource is ideal for both professional ecologists and amateur naturalists alike who are seeking to enhance their understanding of the natural world.

Susan Young is a photographer and writer based in South Devon, who has a wealth of experience in wildlife photography. She has authored several books, including CCTV for Wildlife Monitoring and Wildlife Photography Fieldcraft, and is currently carrying out research with Natural England, the Woodland Trust and Mammal Society on the use of remote cameras for wildlife monitoring.

We recently spoke to Susan about her latest book, where she explained how she first started working with visual systems, how ecological and wildlife-watching camera systems differentiate, and more.

Firstly, could you share a little bit about yourself and your background working with visual systems?

My background is in physics and engineering, but I have had a keen interest in wildlife from a very early age. Since moving to Devon some years ago, I developed my interest in photography and wrote several books on various technical topics. I used trail cameras before they became ‘famous’ and finding some aspects frustrating, moved to bird box cameras – I then became interested in using security cameras with separate recorders as they had more useful features.

In 2015/2016 I started as a volunteer with Natural England and the Woodland Trust where I was encouraged to develop my ideas for portable CCTV systems, which led to the discovery of three calls of Barbastelle Bats not previously recognised. Further work with dormice, otters, deer, small mammals and birds showed just how well the systems performed, being much richer in features than trail cameras and much less expensive than thermal systems.

Your previous book, CCTV for Wildlife Monitoring was published in 2016. What inspired you to revisit the topic for a second book, and what advancements or changes does your latest title encompass?

My book in 2016 was more of an introduction to CCTV technology, which was just taking off and becoming more readily available. Since then, the technology has advanced dramatically, with HD cameras giving very high-quality images, and recorders becoming available with solid state drives making them very portable.

There are many other features not found in other visual systems – in particular, security recorders have inbuilt video analysis which can be controlled by the user, greatly reducing the amount of video data to analyse. My book has detailed step-by-step instructions for all aspects of the night vision camera systems with the aim of flattening the learning curve.

Night Vision systems are commonly associated with ecological research and wildlife watching, how do the camera systems you describe differentiate from them?

The systems I describe have a raft of features, as described above, making analysis much easier. They can also be left outside unattended and are particularly useful for remote areas. They are also relatively low cost and portable.

Why did you feel that it was important to include a section on public engagement and education in this book?

Public engagement is important for raising awareness of the plight of our wildlife, as well as for attracting funding. High-quality videos from security camera systems, particularly of protected or rarely seen species, have proven successful. My book gives step-by-step instructions to encourage the use of this technology without the need for costly specialists.

Regarding schools, introducing children to technology at an early age makes use of the systems less daunting in later life.

Have you come across any emerging or under-utilised applications for this technology that you believe hold potential?

Many of the applications I have developed using my camera systems are new and I believe hold great potential. Because the systems can be set up and left for long periods, it means little or no disturbance to wildlife – for example monitoring breeding birds of prey in remote habitats, observing dormice behaviour in dormouse boxes, or surveying bats in hazardous environments.

Have you encountered any particularly memorable or exciting wildlife captures? Can you share any highlights from your experience?

On the conservation front, discovering new Barbastelle calls was very exciting, as was viewing previously unseen dormouse behaviour. On the naturalist level, filming four young Fallow Deer running round and round my rural garden in play was very heart-warming.

Finally, what’s next for you?

I am planning some research using my systems for small mammals which are often under-recorded. I am also producing educational material for the Mammal Society.

Night Vision and Daylight Camera Systems for Wildlife is available here.

NHBS In the Field – Song Meter Mini 2 and Micro 2

The second-generation Song Meter Mini 2 and Micro 2 are the latest additions to the Wildlife Acoustics acoustic recorder range, with the Song Meter Mini 2 available in both AA and Li-Ion powered versions.

I was eager to test the new Li-Ion version of the Song Meter Mini 2, which I set up alongside the Song Meter Micro 2 in early December. The aim of this deployment was to compare the performance of the two models, and as a self-described ‘bird nerd’, I was also very excited to capture recordings of the incredible birdlife that resides on Dartmoor.

Deployment

The Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion model holds six rechargeable 18650 lithium-ion batteries with a minimum of one required for deployment. In this case, I used four batteries in both devices which provided ample runtime for this short field test, and I inserted a 32GB SDHC card – unfortunately, I did not have access to a battery charger so the Song Meter Mini 2 began the deployment at 57% battery life. I set up the recorders in a rural Dartmoor village hoping for clear recordings.

Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (right) and Song Meter Micro 2 (left) set up with batteries and SD cards. — Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (left) and Song Meter Micro 2 (right) set up with batteries and SD cards.

One of the main strengths of Wildlife Acoustic’s recorders is their simple deployment and configuration using the free Song Meter app. Here you can select your preferred recording schedule and check the status of your recorder at any time while in Bluetooth range – this provides information on SDHC card capacity, battery life, recording mode, and number of recordings taken. For this deployment, I used a pre-set recording schedule to record birds for two hours around sunrise and sunset.

Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (right) and Micro 2 (left) status before deployment. — Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (left) and Micro 2 (right) status before deployment.

Both models now feature cable lock holes so that they can be safely secured during deployment – using a Python Lock, I fixed the device to a tree and left it to record for two days.

Results

Over 2 days, I had collected 33 recordings on each device. Both devices had ample battery life remaining and had used just 1.75GB of storage.

Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (right) and Micro 2 (left) status after deployment. — Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (left) and Micro 2 (right) status after deployment.

I analysed the recordings with a fantastic free desktop software called Chirpity. Using the BirdNET model, this software has an auto ID feature which simplifies analysis of sound recordings, particularly for large data sets. Using this software, I was able to identify a wide variety of garden bird calls including Robins, Blue Tits, Tawny Owls and many more. Examples of the dawn chorus from each device can be heard below.

Dawn chorus recording on Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion.

Dawn chorus recording on Song Meter Micro 2.

Spectrogram analysis of dawn chorus in Chirpity

Product Comparison

Both devices are impressive recorders in their own right – they produced clear and extensive recordings that captured a fantastic snapshot of the surrounding soundscape. On paper, the most obvious difference between these two recorders is the price, with the Micro 2 being much more affordable than the Mini 2-Li-Ion (@less than 1/3 of the price).

Furthermore, the Micro 2 is around half the size of the Mini 2-Li-Ion, its compact design is hard not to be impressed by, and it can fit easily into a pocket. Despite its small size, the Micro 2 features an incredible sample rate of 256kHz which allows you to capture good-quality high frequency recordings.

However, what you gain in compactness you lose in battery life. The Micro 2 has an estimated runtime of 280 hours compared to the Mini 2-Li-Ion which has a whopping 1,330-hour run time. The Micro 2 was deployed with a fully charged battery and finished with 76% battery life. Comparatively, the Mini 2-Li-Ion started and finished at 57%, an impressive feat.

Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (right) and Micro 2 (left) — Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (left) and Micro 2 (right)

Another key difference between these recorders lies within environmental noise. These devices were deployed in the run-up to Storm Darragh, and some of the recordings experienced a good deal of wind distortion. Although this is an extreme case, it served to highlight the difference a windshield makes. The Micro 2 has no windshield over the microphone and as a result, experienced markedly more distortion when compared to the shielded Mini 2-Li-Ion. This can be seen in the spectrograms below, which were taken simultaneously. The Mini 2-Li-Ion also has the advantage of a low-noise microphone which, to my ear, produces slightly clearer recordings compared to the Micro 2.

Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (right) and Micro 2 (left) wind distortion — Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (left) and Micro 2 (right) wind distortion

Comparison table of Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (right) and Micro 2 (left) — Comparison table of Song Meter Mini 2 Li-Ion (left) and Micro 2 (right)

Summary

While both recorders allow you to experience the surrounding soundscape in new ways, they each offer distinct functionalities to achieve this goal.

The compact design of the Song Meter Micro 2, along with a recent price drop, makes this recorder a fantastic choice for enthusiasts who want to delve into bioacoustics. It has an excellent sample rate, good battery life and produces crisp recordings that are a joy to listen back to.

In comparison, the Song Meter Mini 2-Li-Ion is perfect for researchers. Its improved battery life makes it an excellent choice for both short and long-term deployments, and the low-noise microphone and windshield are ideal at producing clear recordings for subsequent analysis.

This Week in Biodiversity News – 13th January

Wildlife

Water Vole populations are undergoing a national decline in the UK. A new report from the Wildlife Trusts, The National Water Vole Database Project Report, was released last month to document the findings of a nationwide investigation examining Water Vole distribution over the past ten years. Although the report documented a 39% decrease in the number of occupied areas across the UK, it also identified a further 11 new regional key areas of increasing local populations, including several in East Anglia and Yorkshire. The report reveals a bleak national picture with declines across the country due to habitat loss and deterioration, but shows that in the right conditions, and with the help of conservation practitioners, it is possible to reverse their historic decline.

Bumblebee on a lavender flower — Image by Indy via Flickr

Conservationists have observed active worker bumblebees nest-building in Scotland during the winter months. Unusually mild weather during the Christmas period has led to early awakening from hibernation, and at least two species have started to build new nests early in the winter season. However, the subsequent return of cold weather and the scarcity of winter food sources pose a significant threat to these early nests, risking their collapse. In this instance, fewer queens would be available to build nests in the spring and could contribute to the national decline of bumblebees.

Conservation

The National Trust has announced plans to create 250,000 hectares of biodiverse landscape. Equivalent to 1.5 times the size of Greater London, these nature-rich landscapes across England, Wales and Northern Ireland will address a current national need and are estimated to provide habitat for 1 billion earthworms. Labelled audacious yet achievable, this goal will be actioned on Trust properties, but also in partnership with other organisations, farmers and communities, to create larger tracts of landscape to tackle the climate and nature crises.

Male Lynx in the snow — Image by Tambako the Jaguar via Flickr

Last week, Lynx were reported in the Cairngorms National Park. A total of four animals were illegally released and subsequently captured by the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RSS), where they were taken to be quarantined at Highland Wildlife Park (later one sadly died). The source of these animals remains unknown, but experts have raised concerns about the nature of their release – these animals were released in sub-zero temperatures within areas of logging activity, which has been deemed a highly irresponsible action that has drawn criticism from conservationists.

Climate Crisis

2024 marks the first calendar year to surpass the 1.5°C warming limit. Now thought to be the world’s hottest year on record, 2024 has brought the world closer to breaking the international warming target of 1.5°C – although this target is based on long-term temperature averages, last year’s trends signify an upturn in global temperature, with the last decade being the warmest on record. Predominantly due to harmful greenhouse gas emissions, which are still at record highs, this record is met with calls for cuts in emissions over this calendar year.

Wind turbines at sunset — Image by Michael Mueller via Flickr

The UK generated its cleanest electricity ever in 2024, with 58% from low-carbon sources. The amount of electricity generated from fossil fuels has halved in the past decade, with the UK having seen an upturn in the use of renewable energy sources. In the past twelve months, renewables have generated 45% of the UK’s power, and when including nuclear sources, this number totals to 58%. Despite this, fossil fuels are still generating approximately 29% of electricity in the UK, and in order to meet climate and emission targets experts are urging for an accelerated phase out.

Finance

In a ‘landmark’ deal, the world’s first private sector loan based on biodiversity net gain unit models has been granted. Triodos Bank UK has loaned £3.85m to environmental consultancy Nature Impact – the money will be used to purchase a total of 122 acres over two sites, unlocking degraded farmland for biodiversity net gain. These degraded sites will undergo restoration and habitat creation, including native wildflower meadows and wetlands, to enhance their support of British wildlife and climate goals.

Habitat restoration site with wildflowers — Image by Robert Miller via Flickr

Ecologists at Oxford University have designed a new framework to classify how a unit of nature is defined for biodiversity credits. In the review, researchers acknowledge the lack of clarity on how one unit of nature is defined, or how measurements are standardised, and demonstrated the challenges involved with the biodiversity credit market. It presents a framework exploring how biodiversity is quantified, how positive outcomes are detected and how the number of credits can be adjusted to account for uncertainties. The authors caution against biodiversity credits to offset negative impacts, and instead direct focus on avoiding and reducing these factors.

Author interview with James Shipman: Identifying Bats of Britain and Ireland

Packed with insider information, Identifying Bats of Britain and Ireland offers expert guidance on how to identify bats in the hand for beginners and field ecologists alike. Filling a gap between introductory books and more technical volumes, this humorous guide uses detailed images, diagrams and tables to communicate, in simple terms, the fundamentals of bat ecology, survey equipment, techniques required when training for a bat licence and the key features that distinguish one species from another.

James Shipman is an ecologist and bat enthusiast who loves to inspire and motivate future bat workers. He works as a senior ecologist and is involved in numerous bat-related projects. In 2016 he was recognised with the Bat Conservation Trust’s Pete Guest Award for outstanding contribution to bat conservation.

We recently chatted with James about his inspiration for the book, which challenges he faced when constructing a detailed identification guide and more.

Can you tell us a little about yourself, your history of working with bats, and why you chose to write this book?

Originally I planned to work as a game ranger in South Africa, but after returning to the UK, I studied zoology, met my wife and fell into landscaping as my first career and passion. A roofer and a builder both mentioned that I may ‘like’ working with bats, as I’m an animal person, so I explored the idea of them as a hobby!

After a few events I was gripped, and I have now volunteered with bats for nearly 15 years with the intention to install passion, enthusiasm and fun into everything bat-related for volunteers and professionals! Within this time I have helped to train over 50-75 individuals (could be more, I don’t count!) and after nearly 20 years in the landscaping sector, I now work in ecology as a professional.

During my years of training, I found that the more serious and technical books available out there made it hard to learn, and that digestible guidance that was fun, relatable and easy to work with would be beneficial! A lot of my trainees suggested the idea for the book originally, and other bat authors with Pelagic mentioned to the publishers that I would bring a nice approach to ID for ecologists – so here we are.

You have taken a relatable, and oftentimes humorous, approach in the way Identifying Bats of Britain and Ireland was written. Why did you feel this was important, and with that in mind who is this book designed for?

Who said science, research and volunteering can’t be fun! If you enjoy what you do, it’s more fun and you usually get more out of it!

I thought it was important to bring my open, welcoming personality to bats and volunteering into the book, as well as an understanding of how hard it can be to learn in the world of ecology.

Public opinion of bats is often contested, and their associations with rabies and vampirism contribute to this negative perception. This guide contains a section on the myths and rumours of bats – why did you feel it was important to debunk these misconceptions?

Well spotted! It’s one of my favourite parts of any walk, talk, training or even in the book itself. Bats have such a negative view through media – whether it’s Halloween, Covid or other diseases, the positives (not just bats but anything in life) are very rarely talked about! So let’s try and win one for the bats – 2,000 less mosquito bites a night is a good seller!

This guide also features vagrants and species that are extremely rare in the UK. How did you navigate writing about species that you may not have met? And did you find it challenging to construct identification guidance for these scarcer species?

Fortunately I have handled and seen these species abroad in my years of volunteering and training (which I will touch more on in your last question), and I have even been lucky to handle one or two of these in the UK too!

The hardest part of it all was trying to address the elephant in the room (or maybe I should say vagrant in the sky!). I believe there are now 21 species found in the UK – some of these are not proven residents, but are not far off – plus a few others that I chose not to include at the time of publication as records were too scarce!

Were there any other challenges that you came across in the process of writing this book?

As previously mentioned, mental health is important in all areas of life, and I felt that slight delays in finishing this book were due to anxiety of judgement on the final product. However, many close friends and ex-trainees assured me that more positives will come of this work than negatives.

The book is aimed at any level of bat worker and should taken with a light hearted approach. It’s important to address these things when discussing books and publishing – it’s a hard process, and without friends, family and a decent publisher (plus the bats) you can sometimes feel isolated. Luckily, I had the best support from all of the above!

What’s your advice for those just getting started in this field?

Well I could say read the book (haha), there are some good sections about starting out with bats. In short, don’t give up, persist, find bat workers who are open, friendly and passionate with no judgement (they are out there, I’m one of them), and most importantly have fun!

Finally, what’s next for you? Do you have plans for more books in the future?

Um… a break! It’s harder than I ever imagined. However, I would love to eventually write a similar book for bats of Europe! But it may take a while to compile some new jokes!

Identifying Bats of Britain and Ireland is available from our online bookstore here.

This Week in Biodiversity News – 16th December

Environment

An area larger than India has permanently degraded into arid conditions, research shows. Studies by the UN Science Policy Interface have reported that up to three quarters of the world’s land has experienced likely irreversible drying in the past thirty years and now, arid drylands make up 40% of land on earth. Driven by climate change, poor farming practices, excessive water extraction and many other factors, this drying could see significant decreases in crop yield, GDP, and a reduction in the capacity of the land to store water.

viviparous lizard — Image by David Evans via Flickr

A two-year restoration project in Avon Heath Country Park will help to restore a rare habitat. Funded by Defra, £1.2 million will be used to restore this Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) that is home to 2.5% of the world’s remaining lowland heathland. The 210-hectare site provides key habitat for all of Britain’s native reptiles, including Smooth Snakes and ground-nesting birds such as Woodlarks and Nightjars. Restoration work will involve the removal of invasive rhododendron, scrub and pine trees to rejuvenate the heathland and increase the availability of light for low-lying plants.

Conservation

A recent survey has shown that Grey Squirrels are invading Red Squirrel strongholds. Conducted by Red Squirrels Northern England (RSNE), the survey assessed 246 sites for an annual squirrel check. The survey found a rising presence of Grey Squirrels in Red Squirrel strongholds, a trend described as ‘concerning’ by RSNE project officers. These invasive, non-native species were found in 69% of surveyed sites, a 6.8% increase from last year and are now outnumbering Red Squirrels in Cumbria and Northumberland. However, RSNE successfully recorded a 2% increase of Red Squirrels in survey sites, up from 50% in 2023.

Cutting-edge technology is being used to inform forestry management in the UK. Forestry England is employing bioacoustic technology, environmental DNA (eDNA) and drones to inform conservation efforts across multiple sites. EDNA gathered from soil, air and water is being used to build a better picture of community composition across 21 forestry sites, and after four months of sampling, 5,000 unique fungal species and 1,000 invertebrate species have been identified. Bioacoustic data is also being gathered across four areas in Somerset, Dorset, Northumberland and North Yorkshire and will be used to track bumblebee activity through analysis of flight sound. This detailed data will be used to form a new biodiversity baseline to monitor the effectiveness of conservation efforts in the midst of biodiversity decline and climate change.

A light brown rodent is sat on a river bank underneath grasses, it has small black eyes and a small brown nose — Image by Peter Trimming via Flickr

A reintroduction project has seen the return of Water Voles along the Severn shoreline, levels and moors of North Somerset and South Gloucestershire. Led by the West of England Nature Partnership (WENP) in collaboration with Bristol Zoological Society, the programme is seeking to restore intertidal habitats, wetlands and peatlands, and part of this will be actioned through re-establishing Water Voles in the area. Avon Wildlife Trust have observed evidence that these animals have returned to the area, contributing to the region’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy.

Policy

Angela Rayner has been met with criticism following an interview discussing Labour’s housing pledge. With plans to build 1.5 million homes and fast-track over 150 major infrastructure projects, wildlife protection may take a back seat. Rayner expressed concern for those who desperately need housing, stating that providing homes in the UK should not be sacrificed for wildlife protection. Despite critics deeming the targets ‘unrealistic’, Rayner assured that compliance with national building plans would be mandatory under Labour’s National Planning Policy Framework.

Great crested newt in a hand — Image by Chris H via Flickr

Vital scrubland habitats are at risk following Labour’s announcement to build on grey belt land. Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has pledged to build 1.5 million homes on redefined green belt land, known as grey belt land. With what some call a ‘vague definition’ of grey belt land, swathes of countryside could be sacrificed for housing developments, in areas that could have been transformed to woodland or wetland habitats. This traditional landscape is vital for wildlife, including birds, reptiles and amphibians, and could prove essential in meeting 30×30 targets.