Innovative mammal conservation
My second anniversary of working for the Vincent Wildlife Trust was spent mostly heading north on the M6 en route to the Highlands for the third and final year of pine marten translocations to Wales. It was not dissimilar to my first day with the Trust, which was spent heading south en route to head Read More
20th October 2017
Last year we did ‘a year in the life’ of one of our much-loved translocated martens, ‘Miss Piggy’. She managed to make herself a firm favourite with all of the PMRP staff over the first year as she was so well-behaved and followed the expected patterns of a newly translocated animal – unlike some of Read More
17th July 2017
In early March, we received a phone call from the producers of ‘Big Week on the Farm’ asking the VWT to take part in this year’s show to discuss the pine marten live on RTÉ One! The programme celebrates the start of spring every April, running nightly over the course of a week. There are Read More
26th June 2017
This winter, I was incredibly fortunate to take a three-month sabbatical from the VWT to work in the USA with the Michigan Predator-Prey Project. In early January, I headed across the Atlantic with bags overflowing with winter kit, ready to spend the season in Michigan. The Michigan Predator-Prey Project, led by Mississippi State University and Read More
22nd May 2017
It’s day seven of my quest, I’m on the first transect of the day and I am about to check how much more rain is needed before I can use the word diluvian. The Scottish Highlands is my backdrop, and I’m sniffing poo. I’m told the aroma is akin to that of parma violets. I’ve Read More
26th April 2017
I’m just two-months shy of finishing the first year of my PhD at the University of Exeter with both The Vincent Wildlife Trust (VWT) and Devon Wildlife Trust. My research aims to examine the implications of how practical management and issues surrounding landscape connectivity can influence the conservation of the greater horseshoe bat (GHS – Read More
15th March 2017
‘Why are you researching the poll tax?’ is just one of the questions that I have been asked when explaining what I do. Or a more usual first question is: ‘oh, pole cats. Is that like a wild cat…actually, what are they again?’ It is testimony to the elusive nature of the polecat that one of Read More
1st February 2017
I am now over halfway into my PhD looking at the impact of the native pine marten on invasive grey squirrel populations. Working alongside the Pine Marten Recovery Project team in Wales, I am tracking and observing grey squirrels to try to understand their response, if any, to the presence of pine martens. My introduction Read More
4th January 2017
After the excitement of finding our first Welsh born pine marten kits in early summer, there was more good news. Josie, our Field Assistant, managed to track down another female, PM13, who had moved a little way north of the release area. Josie put some baited cameras out to check on her and was rewarded Read More
14th November 2016
It has now been a year and a half since I’ve started my PhD at the University of Exeter and I still tend to get confused faces each time I start talking about my project. The bat lovers don’t always understand why I’m doing genetics and the geneticists don’t understand why I’m studying the Bechstein’s Read More
1st September 2016