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Science news
Rare tooth from 55-million-year-old predator uncovered by seven-year-old boy
A molar found in sand from south London could shed light on the last days of an ancient mammal.
25 July 2024 -
News
Woolly mammoth genome rebuilt in 3D from freeze-dried skin
Ancient DNA has been reconstructed in three dimensions for the first time ever using a 52,000-year-old mammoth.
11 July 2024 -
Science news
World’s smallest living elephants listed as Endangered on Red List
Only 1,000 Bornean elephants are thought to be left in the wild.
27 June 2024 -
Anthropocene
From aurochs to burgers
Uncover the past, present and future of cattle and what this means for climate change and nature.
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News
World’s smallest great ape may have lived in Europe, researchers claim
While the researchers describing Buronius manfredschmidi claim it is a new species, not all scientists are convinced.
7 June 2024 -
Science news
Most comprehensive seal family tree reveals the hidden history of walruses
Seal diversity is just a snapshot of the species that used to exist.
24 May 2024 -
Anthropocene
Remembering the Tasmanian tiger or thylacine
Looking back at the story of the Tasmanian tiger, the echoes of colonialism and its impact on Australia’s wildlife today.
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News
Orangutan spotted treating head wound with medicinal plant
It is the first time a wild animal has been seen applying a medicinal plant to an injury.
2 May 2024 -
Science news
Laser technology could help curb the illegal trade in ivory
Every year thousands of elephants are still killed for their ivory.
24 April 2024 -
Anthropocene
Barbary macaques: Europe and north Africa’s last monkeys
Learn about Barbary macaques and the challenges they face.
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News
Going through the menopause helps whales to become long-lived grandparents
A select group of toothed whales may have doubled their lifespan to become better grandparents.
13 March 2024 -
News
Most male mammals aren’t bigger than females
New research is cutting male mammals down to size.
12 March 2024 -
What on Earth?
Why do star-nosed moles have a ‘hand’ on their face?
It may look like it’s fallen to Earth from space, but the star-nosed mole is perfectly adapted to its wet soil habitats.
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News
Solo south African orcas learn how to hunt great white sharks
The orcas have learnt to catch and eat young great white sharks in less than two minutes.
1 March 2024 -
News
Wildlife Photographer of the Year 59 People’s Choice winner announced
Nima Sarikhani’s stunning picture of a sleeping polar bear was crowned 2023's People's Choice.
7 February 2024 -
News
Oldest evidence of Homo sapiens in northern Europe discovered
The first modern humans to live in northern Europe arrived more than 45,000 years ago.
31 January 2024 -
Collections
Our LGBTQ+ video tour
Take a virtual tour of the Natural History Museum and explore the astonishing diversity of the natural world.
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News
Tiny ants are changing the diet of Kenya’s lions
Invasive ants are reducing tree cover on the savannah, causing lions to hunt buffalo over zebra.
25 January 2024 -
News
World’s first rhino IVF could help save the northern white rhino
Scientists have successfully managed to perform IVF on a rhino for the first time.
24 January 2024 -
Science news
Early giant whale from Australia changes our understanding of whale evolution
A jawbone fragment overlooked for more than 100 years was once part of a nine-metre-long ancient whale.
20 December 2023 -
Science news
Jawbones reveal how evolution has shaped the face of whales
It’s said that you are what you eat – and that’s certainly true of toothed whales.
19 December 2023 -
Science news
Better fossil dating could help to clear up human evolution
Going back to basics could help to unlock the mysteries of our origins.
18 December 2023 -
Science news
Toxic chemicals in UK whales and dolphins are exceeding safe limits
Almost half of marine mammals around the UK are being poisoned by banned chemicals.
28 November 2023 -
News
Serotine bats have sex unlike any other mammal
Their style of mating is more similar to birds than any known mammal.
20 November 2023 -
News
Natural History Museum human evolution expert awarded Huxley Medal
Professor Chris Stringer, our longest-serving researcher, is set to be honoured for his contributions to human evolution.
23 October 2023 -
Science news
Dog volunteers needed to understand canine motion and domestication
Your dog could have its day as part of a new scientific study.
20 October 2023 -
News
From staple to superfood: how seaweed fed prehistoric Europeans
Dental plaque may help to reveal what prehistoric humans ate.
17 October 2023 -
News
Human voices scare African mammals more than lions
African wildlife is more than twice as likely to flee from the sound of humans than lions.
5 October 2023 -
News
Calls for the UK to legally ban keeping whales and dolphins in captivity
Around the world, over 3,600 whales and dolphins are being kept in captivity.
26 September 2023 -
Science news
Horns in the Natural History Museum's collection confirmed to be from extinct bluebuck antelope
Only four confirmed specimens are known to science.
4 September 2023 -
News
Human ancestors may have almost died out after ancient population crash
Almost 99% of all human ancestors may have been wiped out around 930,000 years ago, a new paper has claimed.
31 August 2023 -
News
Sperm and bottlenose whales may have learnt to follow trawlers for easy meals
A new study demonstrates the extraordinary ability of whales to develop new ways of feeding.
23 August 2023 -
News
Ancient otter-like seal relative may have used whiskers to find food
Whiskers may have been crucial to allow seals to adopt a life in water.
21 August 2023 -
Science news
How deep-sea drilling is helping to unravel elephant evolution
Elephants and their relatives evolved in a previously unappreciated way.
14 August 2023 -
Science news
Ancient ice age could have caused the first Europeans to go extinct
Melting polar ice caps may have pushed some of the first ancient humans out of Europe.
10 August 2023 -
News
Crocodiles might understand how upset ape babies are
Nile crocodiles may have a limited ability to understand our emotions.
9 August 2023 -
News
New fossil whale might have been the world’s heaviest-ever animal
Fossils found in Peru are redefining the history of whale evolution.
2 August 2023 -
News
Missing Crystal Palace mammal recreated decades after disappearance
A new statue is joining the world’s oldest display of extinct wildlife in south London.
1 July 2023 -
News
Oldest known Neanderthal engravings unearthed in French cave
Neanderthals might have been making some of Europe’s oldest art thousands of years before the arrival of humans.
21 June 2023 -
News
Fossils reveal early modern humans in southeast Asia 77,000 years ago
Our ancient relatives may have reached southeast Asia over 10,000 years earlier than thought.
15 June 2023 -
News
World’s longest fence affecting the development of kangaroos
Kangaroos spring up faster when they’re living with their predators.
6 June 2023 -
News
Endangered chimpanzees contaminated with pesticides and flame retardants
Primate poo is revealing how pollutants are affecting threatened species in the wild.
24 May 2023 -
Science news
Marsupials might be the more evolved mammals
Mammal evolution has been flipped on its head, according to new research that suggests marsupials are the more evolved mammals.
19 May 2023 -
Oceans
Beluga whales: Social, smart and wizards with sound
Get to know the Arctic's most friendly faced white whales.
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News
Oldest bat skeletons ever found described as new species
52-million-year-old fossils of Icaronycteris gunnelli offer researchers a deeper look at how bats evolved.
12 April 2023 -
Science news
Fossils of whale ancestors reveal the path to becoming Earth's largest mammals
Whales started becoming big early in their evolution – and kept going for millions of years.
30 March 2023 -
News
Beaver families thriving in the West Country after unofficial reintroductions
As many as 50 beavers could be living in Somerset and Wiltshire, Natural England has revealed.
28 March 2023 -
Wildlife photography
Wildlife Photographer of the Year: A Slim Outlook for South America's Spectacled Bear
Why are elusive spectacled bears roaming Quito's city limits?
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News
Beavers reintroduced in Ealing after London rewilding projects funded
22 rewilding schemes will share £850,000 to help bring back nature in the UK's capital city.
11 October 2023 -
News
Bird flu kills thousands of South American sea lions as outbreak continues
An outbreak of bird flu has swept the world over the past year, raising fears that humans could become more vulnerable.
9 March 2023 -
News
UK creates three new 'highly protected' marine nature reserves in England
While conservationists have welcomed the announcement, they've also raised concerns that the proposals aren't enough to protect vulnerable marine habitats.
28 February 2023 -
News
Legendary beasts from ancient literature may have been whales gulping down fish
Ancient Norwegian and Greek literature may have described trap feeding as much as 2,000 years before it was first observed in 2011.
28 February 2023 -
News
Critically Endangered Yangtze finless porpoise shows signs of recovery
The Yangtze finless porpoise has faced habitat loss and a reduced range as a result of sand mining, but a suspension of the practice offers hope that they could recover.
16 January 2023 -
British wildlife
Where do animals go during the long, cold, dark winter?
Winter is a time where many animals conserve their energy, fly south or grow a thicker coat.
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What on Earth?
The wonderfully weird world of tenrecs
From looking like Pokémon to having more nipples than any other mammal, tenrecs are an unusual bunch.
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Collections
Hidden Treasures: Season one of our behind-the-scenes live streams
Catch up on season one of our interactive behind-the-scenes live stream.
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News
Giant glyptodont armadillos may have been hunted by early South Americans
A chink in the armour of giant South American armadillos may have left them vulnerable to human hunting.
25 November 2022 -
Science news
Earliest human fossils in the UK reveal how ancient Europeans were connected
Fossils discovered in Sussex were compared to human remains found in Spain from a similar time period to see if the populations are linked.
14 November 2022 -
News
Earliest gibbon fossil unlocks clues about the history of apes
The discovery of a seven million-year-old gibbon fossil has filled a long-elusive gap in the fossil record.
7 November 2022 -
News
Dams threaten populations of Australia's duck-billed platypus
Dam building in Australia is reducing gene flow between platypus groups, piling pressure on populations whose numbers are already falling.
3 November 2022 -
Science news
Neanderthal extinction may have been caused by sex, not fighting
The question of how the Neanderthals died out remains one of the biggest mysteries in human evolution.
31 October 2022 -
Science news
More sociable mammals evolve quicker than solitary ones
The study could help in predicting how species will respond to the rapidly changing environment.
27 October 2022 -
Science news
Aye-aye recorded picking nose and eating snot for the first time
The aye-aye is one of 12 primates that pick their nose - but we have no good reason why the behaviour evolved.
27 October 2022 -
British wildlife
There's life among the dead: Wildlife in cemeteries
Left alone over time, many graveyards have become secluded sanctuaries where plant and animal life can thrive.
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News
First wild European bison born in the UK for thousands of years
A herd of bison released into woodland near Canterbury, Kent, have surprised conservationists by giving birth to a calf.
21 October 2022 -
Science news
Sinuses offer new way of studying the evolution of ancient humans
While their function remains uncertain, the sinuses provide an insight into how ancient human skulls changed over time.
21 October 2022 -
News
Feeding British red squirrels is changing their skulls
Red squirrels are developing differently depending on the region of the UK they live in.
17 October 2022 -
Anthropocene
The baiji: why this extinct river dolphin still matters
Sometimes reminding ourselves of a conservation failure can be just as important as celebrating our successes.
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Science news
Size, not sex, is key to the development of wildebeest horns
Female wildebeest are engaged in an evolutionary arms race - but scientists aren't sure why.
14 September 2022 -
News
European moles can shrink by a tenth in winter to save energy
A new study shows the tunnelling mammals are among a handful of mammals known to be capable of an unusual process known as Dehnel's phenomenon.
7 September 2022 -
News
Moist mountain mice grow bigger than their drier relatives
Andean mice grow differently depending on what side of the mountain they come from.
1 September 2022 -
News
Solitary whales and dolphins could be becoming more common
Scientists and conservationists are continuing to investigate this phenomenon, with the exact reasons remaining unclear.
17 August 2022 -
News
Concerns grow for beluga whale swimming in France's River Seine
A beluga whale has been spotted heading towards Paris, thousands of miles from its natural habitat.
10 August 2022 -
Science news
Whales have altered their development to be able to echolocate
The ability of dolphins and toothed whales to echolocate is shaped before they're even born.
3 August 2022 -
News
Fossil teeth could represent Europe's last panda species
While the evolutionary history of the bears remains uncertain, it contributes evidence to suggestions that panda bears could have evolved in Europe.
1 August 2022 -
Science news
Mammal ancestors became warm-blooded in burst of Late Triassic evolution
As mammaliamorphs switched from being cold to warm blooded, new behaviours, habitats and ways of living became available to them.
20 July 2022 -
News
Underwater noise pollution is risking the lives of whales and dolphins
Loud sound bursts throwing cetaceans out of balance and risk their health, amid growing concern over the impacts of anthropogenic noise pollution.
14 July 2022 -
News
Killer whales that attack great white sharks are changing a marine ecosystem
By scaring away the great whites, the killer whale hunters are altering the habits of other sharks, abalone and even penguins.
1 July 2022 -
Collections
The Irish elk: when and why did this giant deer go extinct and what did it look like?
Fossil bones and antlers in the Museum's collection hold clues about the life and disappearance of Europe's biggest ever deer.
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Science news
Invasive mice are pushing the Tristan albatross to the brink of extinction
A Critically Endangered species of albatross may be in more danger than previously thought.
21 June 2022 -
News
Greenland polar bears have learned to hunt without sea ice
A group of newly-discovered polar bears may reveal how the Arctic mammals could survive climate change.
17 June 2022 -
Science news
Whale faces reveal how the world's biggest animals evolved
We now know how whales evolved from furry, four-legged critters to giants of the ocean.
9 May 2022 -
News
Critically Endangered porpoise can bounce back from edge of extinction
There are fewer than 10 vaquita left in the world, but it's still possible to save the species.
5 May 2022 -
News
Climate change could cause diseases to gain new hosts
Diseases which spread between animals and humans, such as Ebola virus, are likely to spread further than ever before.
28 April 2022 -
News
Koala biobank could help save Australian mammal from extinction
Freezing koala eggs and sperm may help to buy the species time while wider threats are tackled.
14 April 2022 -
Science news
Museum bats digitised to combat future pandemics
Understanding how bats, which are one of nature's largest disease reservoirs, have changed over time can help scientists to identify new disease hotspots.
7 April 2022 -
News
Beavers reintroduced to London after 400 years
The reintroduction is another step forward for campaigns to return the aquatic rodent to the UK.
17 March 2022 -
News
One of the earliest sabre-toothed mammals discovered in the USA
Living over 40 million years before the sabre-tooth tiger, Diegoaelurus vanvalkenburghae may have preyed on rhinos and primates in the forests of California.
15 March 2022 -
News
Artificial whale poo could help restore ocean biodiversity
While it could provide a useful stopgap, there is no guarantee the technique, or whales, will ever fully restore what has been lost.
9 March 2022 -
News
Britain's rural hedgehogs see dramatic population decline
Up to three quarters of all of Britain's rural hedgehogs have been lost in the past 20 years.
22 February 2022 -
News
Reintroducing large mammals could restore the world's ecosystems
Just 20 large mammals, including beavers, bears and bison, could bring back communities across a quarter of the planet.
17 February 2022 -
British wildlife
Squirrels in the UK: what they are up to, when and why
Discover what these rodents get up to - what they eat, where they sleep and why they keep digging holes in your garden.
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Science news
Oldest evidence of modern humans in western Europe discovered
Modern humans arrived in western Europe about 10,000 years earlier than previously thought.
9 February 2022 -
News
Woolly mammoth and rhino among Ice Age animals discovered in Devon cave
The animals roamed Devon's vast grasslands thousands of years ago.
3 February 2022 -
News
Giant pandas' supercharged gut takes advantage of changing seasons
Pandas develop a supercharged gut for part of the year, allowing them to gain weight when they chow down on the most nutritious parts of bamboo.
19 January 2022 -
News
DNA floating in the air can be used to identify nearby animals
Animals can be detected from hundreds of metres away, just by the presence of their DNA in the air.
6 January 2022 -
Biodiversity
Christmas animals and plants: The festive species named for 25 December
Over 30 species globally are named for Christmas Day, recognising their bright colours, place of origin or reproductive cycle.
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Science news
Ancient Britons adapted to drink milk a millennium earlier than Europeans
The genetic landscape of England and Wales was shaken up thousands of years ago as new arrivals redefined its people.
22 December 2021 -
What on Earth?
How do camels survive in deserts?
From snowshoe-like feet to a nose that works like a dehumidifier, discover the amazing adaptations camels have that help them survive.
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News
The extinction of mammoths led to more wildfires
The end of the mammoths gave rise to a tinderbox world that was more likely to catch fire.
30 November 2021 -
Science news
The world's smallest elephants led unusually long lives
Ancient elephants that would have been born the size of a puppy lived for decades more than previously thought.
29 November 2021 -
News
Will walruses become established in UK waters?
A walrus has been spotted taking a rest on the coast of north-eastern England.
16 November 2021 -
News
Arctic whales may be consuming thousands of microplastics each year
Beluga whales may be consuming hundreds of thousands of microplastics each year due to the fish they eat.
7 November 2021 -
News
Ancient animals show how the elephants got their tusks
The fossils of 'very weird animals' have helped show how elephants and walruses may have evolved their iconic tusks.
6 November 2021 -
News
Potential new human species may redraw the family tree
A new ancestor of modern humans with the potential to rip up the family tree has been tentatively named.
3 November 2021 -
News
Origin of domestic horses uncovered in central Asia
Domesticated horses are about three centuries younger than the Pyramids of Giza, researchers have found, as they uncover the origin of all domestic horses.
1 November 2021 -
News
Sardinia was once home to a corgi-sized canine
A corgi-sized canine once roamed Mediterranean islands, hunting small prey like birds and pika.
30 October 2021 -
News
Numbers of North Atlantic right whales fall by almost 10%
Populations of the North Atlantic right whale fell by almost 10% in 2020, leaving only a few hundred of the animals surviving.
28 October 2021 -
News
Gorillas can recognise known and unfamiliar human voices
Gorillas react more strongly to the voices of unfamiliar humans and those they like less, researchers have found.
15 October 2021 -
News
Giant sloth that once roamed South America scavenged for meat
A giant ground sloth that once roamed South America occasionally broke its plant-based diet to eat meat, researchers have found.
14 October 2021 -
News
Our ancestors were pushed to the brink during ancient African extinction event
Most African mammals all went extinct 33 million years ago as the world became dramatically cooler.
13 October 2021 -
News
Extinction of primates threatens greater diversity loss than first thought
The loss of the world's primates will lead to a greater loss of diversity than first thought, as their parasites also risk extinction.
30 September 2021 -
News
Nursery for ancient elephants uncovered in Spain
A nursery for the largest land mammals ever to have lived has been uncovered in Spain, offering rare clues to their family lives.
25 September 2021 -
News
Bats go silent to avoid competition when looking for mates
The phrase 'blind as a bat' is looking increasingly out of date as new research suggests bats use their sight and memory after going silent when looking for mates.
22 September 2021 -
News
Polar bears lose genetic diversity as sea ice loss divides populations
Polar bears are becoming less diverse as sea ice declines, putting them at an increased risk of extinction.
19 September 2021 -
News
Oldest known mammal tooth cavities offer glimpse of the world 54 million years ago
Our ancient relatives had a sweet tooth, researchers have found, after uncovering the oldest-known mammalian cavities.
18 September 2021 -
What on Earth?
Mutualism: eight examples of species that work together to get ahead
In nature, species will sometimes form unexpectedly close bonds and work to their mutual benefit.
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News
Entrepreneur plans to resurrect woolly mammoths
A new company has been launched to restore the woolly mammoth to the Arctic tundra.
13 September 2021 -
Wildlife photography
Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Is the USA on the cusp of banning tiger tourism?
Wildlife photojournalist Steve Winter explores the shocking world of tiger tourism in the USA.
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Anthropocene
Why woolly mammoth ivory could spell trouble for elephants
Mammoth ivory is appearing from melting permafrost and joining international markets.
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News
First baby beavers born on Exmoor for 400 years
The beavers were reintroduced just a year and a half ago.
13 July 2021 -
Science news
Australian rodent thought to be extinct is found alive on desert island
Gould's field mouse, a small rodent native to Australia, is not extinct as previously thought. It is alive and well living under a different name.
28 June 2021 -
Science news
Evolving a bigger brain isn't always about intelligence
It's more common for mammals to have evolved smaller body sizes which makes it look like the brain is getting bigger.
28 April 2021 -
Science news
Prolonged suckling has vastly limited marsupial evolution
Marsupials have missed out on their evolutionary potential because of how they reproduce.
28 April 2021 -
What on Earth?
Wildlife Photographer of the Year: the curious case of parasitic bat flies
Wildlife photographer and entomologist Dr Piotr Naskrecki introduces the peculiar insects that spend their entire lives clinging to bats for dear life.
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News
African elephants now listed as Endangered and Critically Endangered
For the first time ever the two species of African elephants has been assessed separately.
25 March 2021 -
What on Earth?
Are leopard seals dangerous?
Leopard seals are incredible apex predators, but these mysterious mammals are often portrayed as villains.
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News
Gamestop Redditors donate their winnings to endangered gorilla fund
Gamestop investors donate hundreds of thousands of pounds to endangered gorilla charity.
18 March 2021 -
News
Why we want to believe that thylacines still exist
Why does the thylacine still capture our imagination?
1 March 2021 -
Science news
Oldest-ever DNA extracted from a million-year-old mammoth tooth
It is shedding light on how the Columbian mammoth came to be.
7 December 2022 -
What on Earth?
Manatees: what is a sea cow?
How much do you know about slow-moving, seagrass-munching manatees?
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What on Earth?
Why do goats faint and scream?
Discover the reality behind the ever-popular videos of screaming and fainting goats.
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Science news
New species of monkey is already critically endangered
The Popa langur lives on an extinct volcano in Myanmar.
11 November 2020 -
Science news
Giant dormice the size of cats used to live on Sicily
Why did they get so big?
4 November 2020 -
British wildlife
Otters are making themselves at home in UK cities
Otters are sprainting the town red (well, black) and are being spotted in city rivers across the UK.
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News
Endangered water voles to be reintroduced to London
One of Britain's most threatened mammals is being given a boost.
26 October 2020 -
What on Earth?
How seals' whiskers help them hunt underwater
Seals have specially shaped whiskers that enable them to hunt effectively even in poor visual conditions.
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British wildlife
Meet the neighbours: eight surprising animals living in UK towns and cities
It's not just foxes, rats and pigeons in the concrete jungle.
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Anthropocene
Nature: liberated by lockdown?
What really happened to nature in 2020?
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British wildlife
How to see UK bats and give them a helping hand
The best places to hang out with bats and how to take them under your wing.
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British wildlife
Why road verges are important habitats for wildflowers and animals
They cover an enormous area of the UK and are home to many rare and declining wild plants, insects, amphibians and more.
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Tring
A shaggy dog story: champion Wolverley Chummie
Before Instagram pet accounts and dog-related memes were a thing, Wolverley Chummie was a bona fide four-legged superstar.
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What on Earth?
Fantastic felines: a world of wild cats
Meet some of the small and elusive felines roaming wild around the world
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News
Hedgehogs and water voles face extinction in new Red List for British mammals
The first official red list for British mammals has been produced.
7 August 2020 -
Collections
London calling: nine specimens from the big city
These exhibits all have a story rooted in London, from the banks of the River Thames to Trafalgar Square and all the way to the Tower of London.
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British wildlife
Twelve things to see in nature this summer
Can you find these usual summer suspects on your walk?
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British wildlife
How to make a footprint tunnel that reveals what wildlife visits your garden
Have you ever wondered what wildlife wanders through your garden when you're not watching?
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Gilbert White: the modern naturalist
Gilbert White's talent and passion for observing and recording nature inspired many future naturalists, including Charles Darwin.
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Science news
Echolocation gives whales lopsided heads
Whales are some of the only animals with wonky heads.
10 July 2020 -
Anthropocene
What are invasive species?
Invasive species are a much bigger threat to nature than many people realise.