Out and about in Cornwall this week....

Although I've been living in Cornwall for the past 5 years, I still find myself out and about discovering things to do and places to see that I've not visited before and am absolutely blown away when I get there! On Monday 27th Sept I found myself standing at the top of Godrevy Point on the rugged north Cornish coast completely spellbound by the incredible clifftop views of the vast sandy beaches of Gwithian and Hayle as well as St Ives bay and Godrevy lighthouse which is completely solar powered.

It's no surprise that this remote stretch of exquisite Cornish coastline protected by the National Trust made it to category finalist in the 2008 British Best Open Space, Green Space Travel Awards along with Kosi Bay in South Africa being nominated for best open space award worldwide! It was a beautiful sunny day so I had expected to have a lovely walk along the cliffs. I was even treated to a young seal putting in an appearance, but what I hadn't expected to see was Britain's most venomous snake! An Adder (Vipera berus) was slowly making its way across a grassy patch right in front of me. All I could think of was that awful South African snake wrangler wannabe Austin Steve who makes me cringe anytime I flick the TV channel onto one of his programs with him going...."yaaa like our snakes are so big they use your snakes for bait!" but of course me being me, I followed it..... much to the surprise of the now gathering group of spectators. They were warning me not to go too close in case it bit me but of course by then I was taking no notice of anyone, and managed to get some brilliant photos of my first Adder sighting which I've shared with you here... enjoy :)

For more Adder info visit the following link, as i've just found out from my narcoleptic naturalist fellow blogger and scientist friend Sally that my Adder is a female, due to the dark brown zigzag pattern on her back, whereas males have a black or grey zigzag pattern on the back.

http://www.surrey-arg.org.uk/cgi-bin/SARG2ReptileSpeciesData.asp?Species=Adder

Have a brilliant week all, until next time and my next adventure........ Nic x

Shark Bait

Early morning on September the 7th 2010 two intrepid zoologists set out to immerse themselves into the freezing Atlantic ocean in the hope of seeing what some people regard as the most feared creature in the sea but what we regard as one of the most incredible and intelligent ……. sharks.

Regardless of what we may think, sharks are in need of protection and raising awareness is one of the only ways in which we can begin to conserve them.
There are over 30 species of shark found in British Waters and over 50% of them are considered to be under threat. Of the sharks found around the coast of Britain the most iconic and loved must surely be the magnificent Basking sharks (Cetorhinus maximus). The second largest living shark after the Whale shark (Rhincodon typus) they move glide silently through the world’s temperate oceans peacefully filter feeding on plankton.

Photo by: Annabelle Lowe Atlantic Diving

After Basking sharks the next species we were hoping to encounter on our dive were Blue sharks (Prionace glauca). They are pelagic sharks, found worldwide in deep temperate and tropical waters from the surface to a depth of about 350 meters. Males range in size up to 4 meters in length as a sight to behold as they flash past the cage.
Sadly thousands of sharks are fished commercially each year for their meat, fins and liver oil which is used in lamps, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, vitamin supplements and Chinese medicine. Some of course ends up served in some restaurants as a delicacy. These threats are decimating shark populations worldwide.
The British Shark Trust work proactively with the public and fisheries promoting worldwide conservation of sharks through science, education, influence and action to develop sustainable fishing practices, influence legislation and put an end to cruel shark finning practices.
Sharks are apex predators and therefore play important roles in marine ecosystems. A decline in shark numbers has had serious effects on the marine environment.

Photo from: BBC Wildlife Sept 2010

The main aim of our sponsored cage shark dive was to raise funds for the Tag-a-Turtle project and the Marine Conservation Society, helping to raise awareness and support turtle conservation. But submerged 2 meters underwater in the freezing Atlantic Ocean with nothing but a layer of neoprene for protection we quickly realised that it takes more than guts and determination to survive out in the ocean.
We need to educate, conserve and change fishing practices from short term quick fixes to long term sustainable methods if we are to conserve marine biodiversity for future generations.

For more information on sharks please visit the sharktrust.org or for a trip of a lifetime visit atlanticdiver.co.uk. We even made it to to the BBC Cornwall News Page http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/cornwall/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8988000/8988488.stm

A huge thankyou to everyone for supporting the turtle project and reading my blog :)

Regards
Nic

Mobile phones and vanishing bees

Are mobile phones wiping out our honey bees?

The days of seeing honey bees on just about every flower and coke can are long gone…. Think about when last you opened a can of coke or the likes of a peanut butter and jam sandwich and within seconds a bee was trying to find its way inside to the sweet sugary treat awaiting… How many of these simple occurrences have gone unnoticed by so many of us in our busy lives recently? Recent scientific research suggests that the plight of our little buzzing friends is no longer going unnoticed, it is very much a hotly debated topic…..

The effects of mobile phone radiation on human health has been a question in scientific and medical communities for some time now. To date there has been a lot of research into the effects, or possibly non effects, of mobile phone radiation on human tissue. However as a result of the increasing world wide usage of mobile phones throughout the world the effects of GSM (Global System for Mobile Telecommunications) radiation on invertebrates has led to further investigations particularly on the declining honey bee (Apis mellifera).

Honey bees are keystone pollinator species. The sharp declines in honey bee numbers has raised many questions about the source of the problem. One area of research includes whether mobile phones, namely cellular phone radiation, is contributing to this global crisis. Honey bees are suffering from a phenomenon called Colony Collapse Disorder, in which worker bees from a colony beehive abruptly disappear. Colony collapse is also economically significant because many agricultural crops worldwide are pollinated by bees.
The causes are not yet fully understood, although many authorities attribute the problem to biotic factors such as Varroa mites and insect diseases. The effects of GSM radiation is being widely investigated, but the data regarding the biological effects of radiation is as yet insufficient to draw any concrete conclusions. However there is some evidence to show that radiation does have an effect on flight navigation which could explain the disappearance of vast numbers of worker bees trying to navigate their way back to the hive.

We can’t ignore the environmental impacts that would result from a loss of vital pollinators such as honey bee’s, however who doesn’t have and use a mobile phone these days? I’m making sure I use mine indoors and no where near the garden or honey bees these days!

Reference
Effect of GSM Cellular fone radiation on the behaviour of honey bees (Apis mellifera), 2009. Science of Bee Culture. Vol 1 (2) pp22-27