A NEW reserve at the Countryside Regeneration Trust’s Bere Marsh Farm, near Shillingstone, has been opened in memory of the pioneering farmer and conservationist Angela Hughes, who died in 2009. Angela was a dairy farmer who championed wildlife-friendly farming and was committed to protecting and conserving the natural world. She owned East Farm at Hammoon,…
THE four peregrine chicks that have been hatched at Salisbury Cathedral have been ringed, reading for their imminent fledging. The chicks, that hatched in the nestbox on the South Tower balcony, were ringed by Nigel Jones from the British Trust for Ornithology, assisted by Phil Sheldrake, the Cathedral’s nature conservation adviser. The two females and…
THERE was a double boost for Dorset Museum on Thursday 7th April with wins in both the South West Tourism Awards and the Dorchester and Poundbury Business Awards. After receiving a silver Dorset Tourism Award, the museum received bronze in the Large Visitor Attraction of the Year category at the South West Tourism Awards at…
AS the second season of Gentleman Jack returns to our screens, the interest of the audience will once again turn to Shibden Hall, the beautiful Tudor house where Miss Anne Lister grew up, and where she lived with her aunt, uncle and sister – when she wasn’t travelling, usually with her lover and wife, Ann…
A NEW project to record heritage sites that matter to local communities has been launched by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. Somerset and the Exmoor National Park is one of 22 pilots for this new Local Heritage List. The list is intended to help to protect buildings, sites and structures that local…
THE peregrines are back on their lofty perch at Salisbury Cathedral – and the webcam which allows us to see them has now gone live. They’ve been hanging around the tower for a while and have been seen mating, so the signs are good. Last year the first egg was laid on 15th March so…
WORK on renovating the orchards at Springhead, the environmental and arts trust at the ancient mill-house at Fontmell Magna, is beginning on 10th November. There will be volunteer working parties on Wednesday mornings, from 10am to 1pm. It is an opportunity to learn new skills and meet new people. All ages and abilities will be…
… a walk along the River Otter WE can’t fly anywhere and all our favourite places in Scotland are booked up into 2022, so it’s day trips for us this summer. When we read about guided walks to see beavers on the River Otter, we booked up for one immediately. The best holiday we…
AN unusual friendship has developed at Longleat where an emu chick which was rejected by its parents and a flock of farmyard chickens. The two-month old chick is being reared by keepers who have named it Bueno. It is the first to have been successfully reared at the Wiltshire safari park. Keepers initially cared for…
BRISTOL Harbour achieved international attention last year when protestors toppled the statue of slave-trader Edward Colston and tipped it into the harbour. More lastingly damaging is the amount of plastic that gets dumped in the water – a new boat aims to help tackle that problem. Seacycler, a 12-seater, launched by environmental charity Hubbub, is made…