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Nature Towns and Cities: Creating Greener Neighbourhoods and Brighter Futures 

David Drake, Director, People & Nature at Natural England Did you know 47% of people do not currently have access to green space within 15-minutes' walk of home? Nature Towns and Cities aims to transform this reality, enabling millions of …

Mountain hares in decline: New research reveals diminishing numbers in the Peak District 

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Biodiversity, Evidence, Monitoring, Natural England, Nature, Science and evidence, Wildlife

By Dr Carlos Bedson The Peak District is home to England's only population of mountain hares, a remarkable Arctic species introduced here in the 1870s by sporting landowners. These cold-adapted mammals, with their distinctive seasonal white winter coats, have become …

Shapwick Heath Peat Restoration – Bringing Bogs Back to Somerset

By Louise Treneman, Senior Reserve Manager Peatlands habitats, such as raised bog, blanket bog and fen, in good condition, are home to a wide range of species and store the largest amount of carbon of all habitats in England. However, …

A New Era for England's Nature: Celebrating the Publication of the second Local Nature Recovery Strategy

By Emily Butterwick – Northamptonshire LNRS Senior Officer This month we celebrate the publication of North Northamptonshire Council’s Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS). It marks a significant milestone towards our country’s efforts to tackle biodiversity loss, climate change and improving …

A brighter future for Cornwall’s willow tits

Willow tit. © Adrian Davey, CBWPS member

Weighing as much as two teaspoons of sugar, with a round body and a ‘sooty black cap’ on their heads, willow tits are some of the sweetest looking birds in the country. But they are in danger – the willow …

Tracking Jack Snipe: Our quest to understand the UK’s most elusive bird

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Biodiversity, Evidence, Monitoring, Natural England, Nature, Nature Recovery, Wildlife
Jack Snipe head and bill profile. © Kevin Clements, Natural England.

By Kevin Clements, West Midlands Area Delivery Team The project The Jack Snipe is probably our most elusive and least understood bird. But a Natural England project aims to change that. It’s a small and secretive bird which, arguably, a …

How new technologies are helping us monitor one of England’s largest grey seal colonies 

A seal and its pup on Horsey Beach. Image: Natural England

By Gabriella Fasoli and Nick Tomline (AI specialists), Emma Milner (marine mammal specialist) and Elizabeth Mitchell (engagement), all on the marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (mNCEA) programme Documenting Norfolk's biggest beach party On a windy day in December, something …

Apprenticeship Week: Developing the Skills for Nature’s Recovery

To celebrate Apprenticeship Week 2025, Ecologist Apprentice, Annalise Machin, shares her apprenticeship journey with Natural England, highlighting the impact her developing skills will have for nature’s recovery. I have always had an interest in in the natural world, loving the …

Helping nature to recover and thrive in the Wye Valley in Derbyshire

Ruth Keeley, Wye Valley Nature Recovery Project Senior Officer Back in 2022, Natural England and Defra announced five unique Nature Recovery Projects (NRP) across the Peak District, West Midlands, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk and Somerset. Since then, a further seven projects have …

Green Infrastructure: the catalyst for Urban Greening 

It’s two years since Natural England launched the Green Infrastructure (GI) Framework to support the creation of good quality Green Infrastructure. It’s well documented that we need to build a more sustainable future, and at the forefront of this movement …