SS15 wildlife watching

This blog was set up in mid-March 2020 during the emerging COVID-19 health crisis in the UK. It initially aimed to provide records of wildlife sightings and photographs from sites within walking distance of my home in the SS15 postcode area of Basildon in Essex during lockdown travel restrictions. Even though the pandemic has largely subsided, this blog continues to include my local wildlife sightings, my trips away from home plus some personal thoughts and reflections on other issues.

Friday, 22 November 2024

Red Squirrels to vanish from England?

Red Squirrels will soon disappear from England unless the Government funds a vaccine against squirrel pox.

Conservationists say the English population of non-native Grey Squirrels has exploded this year, triggered by warmer winters which enable mating pairs to feed and breed all year round, and estimate that 70% are carrying squirrel pox, a virus which is lethal only to Red Squirrels.

The Guardian - Red Squirrels "to vanish from England" unless vaccine against squirrel pox funded

Here are some of my photos from LNR Dingle, a small local nature reserve in the town of Llangefni in Anglesey and one of the few remaining strongholds for the Red Squirrel in Wales.