life nature magazine issue 3 autumn term
DESCRIPTION
Nature magazine from the University of Exeter and University of FalmouthTRANSCRIPT
i f en a t u r e m a g a z i n e
Autu
mn
term
201
3
From Dusk UntilDawn
ExperiencePhoto SequenceNew in scienceNight-timenavigation
Urbanfoxes
Nocturnalmoths
The eagles of the night
Feature
Editor in Chief: Roz Evans
Creative Director: Emma Simpson-WellsSub-Creative Directors: Georgia Cass & Andy Jackson
Picture Editors: Samuel Jay & Charlotte Sams
Great thanks for input and ongoing advice is owed to: Felix Smith, Feargus Cooney, Owen Greenwood, Jennifer Weller, Matt Bjerregaard and Claire Young.
Gemma Malenoir is a 20 year old student, studying in her third year of BA (Hons) Marine and Natural History Photography, at Falmouth University, Cornwall. Check out her work at: www.gemmamalenoir.carbonmade.com
2
We’re looking for a new team to join Life, so here’s a massive thank you to everyone who
A big THANKS!
The third issue of Life is themed ‘Dusk until Dawn’. These times are to me, some of the most exciting to experience wildlife. When I can make it out of bed in time for dawn, the chorus of birds chattering and singing above me makes the wrestle with my tiredness all worth it. As sun sets, some of the most secretive animals come out of their day time hiding places. Foxes and badgers can be seen by the lucky, and bats’ sonar can be heard with a handy bat detector. The time between dusk and dawn is fascinating too. Whilst most of us are tucked up in bed asleep, many animals are exploiting this quieter period, with multitudes of adaptations allowing them to use the darkness to their advantage. From this issue, many of the original team, including myself, are ‘phasing out’. We’re looking for new team members – see the careers section for more information on how to get involved. Whilst some of us will still be involved in the next issue, we’ll be taking less on, so we’d like to thank
few issues so warmly. We’ve had an amazing time making it and we hope that it continues from strength to strength!
Enjoy! Roz Evans, Editior in Chief
3
Want more Life over the christmas
break? Keep up to date with the latest in nature...
twitter.com/LifeNatureMag
facebook.com/pages/Life-Nature-Magazine
FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
Also keep an eye out for our new website www.lifenaturemagazine.co.uk ...coming soon!
From Dusk Until Dawn...
Contents
4 Image of the issue
Exeter Research
6 Garden snails go viral
New in science
8 Iron beaks and magnetic eyes10 Swiftly rising at dawn and dusk
Evolution
12 Coevolution of bats and moths
Photograph sequence
of the issue
14 Moths at twilight
18 Ageing badgers
Experience
20 Eagle owls up close
Feature
22 Urban foxes
Opinion
24 Light pollution25 An Exeter SWAN
News & Reviews
26 News & events
Careers
28 Careers & volunteering
30 Mammal tracks ID
Image of the Issue: Tim Hunt, www.timhuntphotography.co.uk
EXETER RESEARCH FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
Speedy snailsshot to fame
he lungworm species Angiostrongylus vasorum, is a type of parasitic
foxes. It causes illness in dogs and if left
untreated, it can be fatal. It is suspected
that the larvae are inadvertently ingested
by canines through consumption of these
unappetising gastropods from grass or
on chew-toys; the lungworm life cycle
completes when eggs are passed from the
dog in fecal matter ready to be taken on
by the intermediary garden hosts once
again. The research commissioned by
Bayer as part of their ‘Be Lungworm
Aware’ campaign aimed to understand the
distribution, movement and habits of snails
within a typical garden environment in
order to develop better protection for dogs
from this now endemic problem.
Over 450 snails were collected on the
Penryn campus or within 30km of the
surrounding area. They were numbered,
then either marked with UV paint or
their shell. Those from campus had their
initial collection location GPS tagged to
see if they were able to return ‘home’ at a
later date. The snails were then released at
dusk from one location and a professional
time-lapse photography and a UV cannon.
Measurements were taken every 30 minutes
to determine the distance and direction
of the snails movement, with further data
collected over the ensuing hours and in
the following weeks. The visual results
were stunning; see the video on YouTube
under ‘Lungworm snail experiment’. More
interestingly, insights into their speed and
distribution became apparent. With speed
records for land-snails only previously
found within the Guinness Book of
World Records, the team discovered that
snails move at a blistering pace… of
approximately 32cm per hour, with top
speeds of 100cm per hour. Okay, so it may
not be blistering but it’s faster than it seems
when watching these slippery invertebrates
snail can easily cover the entire distance
of the average UK garden in one night,
mate, or seek refuge inside a pet’s beloved
squeaky toy.
After releasing the snails at dusk, they
of the study and it was within this time
frame that the greatest speeds were
recorded. It’s possible that keeping the
6
T
On a chilly night in May, in the walled garden at the Penryn campus, the temporal and spatial movements of garden snails were recorded by University of Exeter undergraduate researches, led by Assosiate Professor of Ecology Dave Hodgson. The study reached international fame and became a youtube sensation, thanks to the glowing garden snails that took part.
EXETER RESEARCH FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUEIm
age
s:
Fir
st
two
fro
m t
he
le
ft:
Da
n B
lum
ga
rt,
Rig
ht:
Em
ma
Sim
pso
n-W
ells, C
ut-
ou
t: K
iera
n H
ollin
gsw
orth
.
be due to the onset of daylight hours
stimulating the snails to retreat into their
shells to avoid predation or dehydration
and thereby slowing down in the morning.
Interestingly, a small number of snails
moved at much greater speeds than others
and were more likely to create their own
of other snails showed preference to
crawling upon slime already laid down
by another. Exploratory behaviour was
noted across the group, pointing towards
a preference for snails to hide at the base
of trees, in long grass, or near to a water
source – indicating that it is important to
be aware of outside water sources that your
dog drinks from, or long grasses that it
explores. Snails were often seen to change
direction often, meaning the average
garden could harbour hundreds of possibly
infected snails. Very few snails
‘returned home’, not being
recorded back at their initial
collection site. A lack of
returning snails may not put
paid to the homing instinct
were encountered relocating
snails in daylight and rapidly
growing foliage.
The study went viral and
appeared in 32 UK national
newspapers and magazines,
155 national and international
TV and radio stations, 276
news websites, reaching global
audiences in the millions; the
last count on YouTube showed
more than 43,500 hits!
We aren’t advocating
eliminating all snails from your garden,
but be aware of what your dog is picking
up, and check their toys and bowls for any
signs of snails. Clean these items often,
and don’t leave them out overnight for
inquisitive snails to hide underneath. Pick
up your dog’s poo – if a dog is infected,
you might not know it, and leaving poo
can help the spread of the lungworm.
Moving forward with the observations
7
Written by Linday Leyden, Alumnus
at The University of Exeter, Cornwall
Campus.
Dr Hodgson’s favourite
moments from the media
frenzy include:
1. Whilst being interviewed on BBC
Breakfast being asked by a viewer
whether snail slime was hallucinogenic
and whether she should take her snail-
licking daughter to hospital.
2. Seeing a German newspaper with
the headline “Schnelle Schnecken!”
3. Earning a Drivetime car sticker from
Simon Mayo’s Radio 2 show.
made so far, Dr. Hodgson hopes to look
into the re-use of slime trails by snails to
minimise energy costs, and to look into the
the mucus itself. Watch this space. Slowly.
CAREERS THE WEIRD & WONDERFUL SUMMER ISSUE
28
Imag
es: P
ond
dipp
ing,
Kev
in M
urph
y; K
ieth
Lee
ves,
htt
p://
ww
w.c
ornw
allw
hale
andd
olph
inw
atch
ing.
co.u
k
NEW IN SCIENCE FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
9
Exploitation of the darkest hours has led to a huge range of adaptations designed to increase an animal’s ability to
navigate at night. Purely nocturnal creatures tend to sport more obvious adaptations to living in darkness; the giant eyes of the bush baby are a prime example. However, for those who need to be active night and day, migrating birds for example, the transition can be tricky.
Initial research suggested that birds, such as homing pigeons, use landmarks imprinted
Other birds like European robins are known to use a combination of landmarks and the position of the sun and stars as a guide. Recent studies have had some fascinating insights into how birds on the wing navigate at night. It has now been suggested that the retinas in the eyes of migratory birds are in fact able to not only detect light, but
wintering and breeding grounds. Such an anatomical feature requires incredible levels of sensitivity and detection of light at low levels, and unfortunately, doesn’t come with a simple explanation. How can the retina detect the magnetic pull of the earth? Two main theories have developed.
Light-dependent navigation
One such theory involves blue-light-sensitive photoproteins known as cryptochromes. Some scientists believe these molecules to be key in the detection of the earth’s magnetic
magnetoreceptors at a bird’s disposal. The cryptochromes, of which birds are known
send the information along ganglion nerve cells to the brain, where it can be processed into directional information that the bird can respond to. These ganglion cells have been found to be particularly active in migratory birds such as garden warblers and European robins when tested under moonlight-strength white light. Although this ‘compass’ is dependent on the presence of light, it is extremely sensitive and has been found to function at light intensities equivalent to that of a ‘partly clouded moonless night’. Impressive, when you consider your
unfamiliar, lightless expanses.
In addition, an area in the front of the brain, known as ‘Cluster-N’ has been shown to be highly active when birds are orientating through night-time migration. The light-dependent information is transmitted from the retina in the eye to Cluster-N, which is activated under low light intensities. Studies on European robins have shown that deactivation of this cluster renders their magnetic compass useless.
Magnetite-based navigation
Another theory on the ability of migratory birds to navigate at night involves iron deposits, found in the upper beak of several bird species. The migration distance of these birds range widely from year-round residents such as pigeons, to long-distance trans-equatorial migrants like garden warblers, and it is therefore thought that iron deposits will occur in most bird species. The iron-rich mineral structures were initially thought to act literally as magnets, with the metal aligning with the magnetic pull of the earth. This information was thought to then be relayed to the brain by the trigeminal nerve; a primary nerve connecting the face and brain. Despite this, experiments severing the trigeminal nerve found that the birds’ sense of
recent experiments have severed the nerve and subsequently relocated the birds up to 1000km east of their original starting point. This study showed that cutting the
their sense of location; birds would continue as if they had never been moved, and end up lost, rather than readjusting their course. It seems therefore that the iron-deposits
‘compass sense’ - sense of direction, of a bird,
their sense of location.
Neither of these theories provides a complete explanation of how birds navigate at night. As with many aspects of biology, it is likely that no one theory can explain all of the variation in the adaptations that we see. Essentially it seems probable that both the light-dependent and magnetite-based theories work together; depending on the light available both mechanisms will work to send directional information to the brain, with the iron-based clusters only activated at low light intensities.
So next time you’re following your Sat-Nav in the dark, or wandering home from the pub late at night, spare a thought for these
miles a year whilst using nothing but their fantastically clever, built-in GPS.
Magnetic eyes and iron beaks:
N
The avian eye and the magnet effect
retina
optic nerve
iris
lens
cornea
Directional information provided by
the bird’s eye by chryptochromes. It is thought that light absorption generates
radical pairs within chryptochromes in the retina which are determined by molecule orientation in relation to the
Georgia Cass, Alumnus of the University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus
The earth’s
gives migrating birds their sense of direction, or ‘compass sense’.
Imag
e: L
aure
n St
even
s, 20
13; D
iagr
ams:
Geo
rgia
Cas
s, 20
13.
Finding your way in the dark is always a challenge. Whether you’re a bat catching insects in a dense tropical rainforest, or a badger digging your sett in an English woodland, sensitivity in darkness is essential to your survival.
Imag
e: K
osty
a P
azyu
k
ou’ve probably seen swifts darting around our summer skies and heard their loud screaming calls in
the evenings and early mornings, these elements are all generally part of social
that towards the end of these night-time ‘screaming parties’, swifts climb
originally assumed the ascent was to locate
sleep, but developments show that swifts do not appear to select optimal wind-
Additionally, a secondary, identical ascent has been discovered at dawn, when they
So what is this costly climb all about?
would you do to get a better look at where you are? Climbing a tree would give
true of swifts? Adriaan Dokter and his team decided it was time to answer these
Swiftly rising at dusk and dawn
NEW IN SCIENCE FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
Doppler weather radars are typically used to measure the movements and intensity
birds leave characteristic signatures from
allowed Dokter to investigate the timing
altitudes in order to uncover the purpose
at twilight, isochronally from sunset and
According to Google, twilight is a cult vampire-romance novel, but in its original context it’s a rather unique and useful
no longer visible in the sky at dusk, or just before it becomes visible at dawn, sunlight still scatters through the upper atmosphere, illuminating the lower for a
of illumination provides crucial cues for a
cover, the nocturnal to start foraging and even for zooplankton to alter their position in the water column to account for
however, hold potential for more than an
landscape features, light polarization and stars makes it an information rich period of time, with the visual cues of both day
Unable to link the height of the ascent to environmental parameters, Dokter suggests that these ascents are akin to looking up
Emma Simpson-Wells, Alumnus of the University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus.
the weather forecast online before deciding
create their very own weather forecast and map linked to distant landmarks, helping them to locate suitable areas for foraging or sleeping and to navigate within them
to accurately assess weather conditions where you are currently and where you will be in the next few hours is clearly very useful when relying heavily on a diet
When whizzing around as swiftly as a swift, building a picture of the best directions prevents them from travelling
needs just two trips to higher altitudes to get a good look around, leaving more
navigate when their sight is hindered by darkness, and you may remember the dung beetle’s nighttime escapades using the milky-way as a compass from the
with discoveries like these pushing the boundaries of animal senses beyond our
Dokter and his team have plans to more closely link individual behaviour with the daily variation in visibility in order to better understand the vertical movement
Swi!s can create their very own weather
forecast linked to distant landmarks, helping them to locate suitable areas
for foraging.
An ascent at dusk to locate optimal sleeping
altitudes now seems unlikely; an identical ascent happens again
at dawn.
Y
Common swifts (Apus apus) rarely settle on the ground. So rarely, that their family was named ‘apodidae’, from the ancient Greek ‘without feet’.
are rapid and constant. It is therefore vital for their survival to gather as
Without Google maps and the weather forecast on your smart phone, how would you understand the day ahead?
Moths:by Laura Richardson
White ermine (Diaphora mendica) – This moth was found during
one of EcoSocs Moth Monitoring mornings and was a highlight
for all. One of the most glamorous looking of all the moths, it is
as if it is wearing Cruella Deville’s coat. During the early hours of
the morning moths are docile creatures and are only fully active
once they are warmed. They achieve this quickly by shivering
Puss moth (Cerura vinula) – For this photograph I chose a low angle to put me on the same level as the
moth and put two of its best features in the frame; puss moths have incredible, long, furry legs that stretch out in front of them when they rest on branches. The fur that covers them is what inspired their cat-like name. The second feature shown is the
sometimes potential mates.
Poplar hawkmoth (Laothoe populi) - When opening a moth trap or over turning an egg box (which are placed in the traps
to give the moths something to rest on and shelter in) you never
be beautiful, and sometimes they can be gigantic! With a 70mm wings span, poplar hawkmoths are one of the great gems of the moth trap treasure chest.
Peach blossom (Thyatira batis)
– Peach blossoms are easily one of our most attractive moth species because of their wonderful pink blotches. This individual (along with the Puss moth pictured below) was found during the Bioblitz that took place on Tremough campus and at Argal and College Reservoirs in June. Collecting them from the traps was a mad rush that morning; as the heavens opened and the thunder and lightning commenced, it felt more like a rescue mission! I’m happy to report there were no casualties.
!
!
!
Peppered moth (Biston betularia) – This species is often used as an example of natural selection and also as a pollution indicator. In areas where pollution is high the bark of trees and walls are darker and so darker Peppered
exposed to predators. This is the opposite in less polluted areas (such as Cornwall). As an areas air quality changes over time so does the colour of the local peppered moth population.
!
!
IN THE FIELD FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
16
Imag
es: C
lare
Gre
enw
ood,
201
3. Il
lust
ratio
n: C
hris
Bei
rne,
201
3.
’m suddenly startled by a rasping bark ringing out across the wooded valley, in the semi-darkness of this warm
summers evening. The call sounds like it might belong to a large and vicious predator and if you believed the local tales, you would know that a ‘big cat’ stalks this area of forest. Thankfully, my common sense intervenes. I am not in a wild and isolated fragment of the Amazonian rainforest but sat on a fallen beech tree just three and a half kilometres from the M5 in Woodchester Park, Gloucestershire, and the vicious caller is in fact, a roe deer. I am trying to catch a glimpse of the notorious nocturnal mammal that is present here in abundance - the European badger. Badgers live in large underground networks of tunnels called setts; in this location and many others in the south of
England, they live communally with other badgers in social groups. As the barking roe deer moves away all is quiet and my mind begins to wander again.
I have been studying badgers for the last two years in order to understand the aging process. On the surface of it, that sounds pretty strange. Why would you study bad-gers in order to understand how things age? First and foremost, humans are far too long lived to collect data on during the timescale of a normal PhD (3 to 4 years), so I would be looking at less than 5% of an individual’s lifespan. Secondly, most of what we have learnt about ageing comes from laboratory
strains of rats and mice. Such organisms are highly inbred to ensure that each individual is as genetically identical to each other as possible and they are reared in exactly the
experiments are repeatable. However, it’s the variation in ageing rates that make it
all, everyone gets old, but why do some people get old faster than others? Working on a wild population of mammals - such as badgers - embraces the variation that might be important in determining how long an individual lives and how fast it ages.
Old timers:
Chris BeirneI
As badgers have a highly tuned sense of smell I have positioned myself downwind from one of the larger setts within the aptly named ‘Beech social group’. After such a warm summer, the leaf litter is tinder dry, so if there are badgers on the move I should hear them well before I see them. Sure
to hear the rustling of leaves further up the
one badger up there, there’s a whole group of them! Despite the proximity of the noise, the darkness leaves me sightless.
The Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA) have been trapping the
badgers in and around Woodchester Park for over thirty seven years in order to understand how bovine tuberculosis (bTB), a disease particularly damaging to the cattle farming industry, spreads between groups of badgers under natural conditions.
given a unique tattoo in order to identify each individual and on each subsequent occasion the badger is caught, it is tested for bTB. I also take a small blood sample from each badger in order to take back to the University’s Molecular Genetics Lab and measure each badgers telomere length. A telomere is a region of repeating ‘TTAGGG’ nucleotide sequence at the end of each chromosome which protects the vital gene coding regions of DNA from degradation. In humans, and some species of birds, telomeres are at their longest at birth then steadily reduce in length as they are eroded by cell division and the ‘wear and tear’ of everyday life. Telomere length is positively associated with the number of times a cell can divide, the longer they are the more times a cell can divide in culture. As such telomere length has been suggested to act as a molecular clock which determines your biological age. However most of the telomere research conducted to date has been performed on animals grown in controlled conditions. I
important determinants of longevity in wild populations under natural conditions.
Just as I am starting to lose all hope of spotting a badger, I hear a rustle to my left. A solitary badger ambles out of the darkness and takes me by surprise. It stops
way and that, searching for earthworms. It is impossible to tell in the half light but I hope it is badger “L54” or his brother “L56” who have been captured every year here since they were born in the year 2000. I know for a fact they both have cataracts, and most likely arthritis to boot. Before my
makes them live so long. Is it super long telomeres, good genes, or have they simply ridden out their luck for the last thirteen years?
Suddenly the wind shifts and the badger stops in its tracks. As soon as it catches a
from whence it came.
Everyone gets old, but why do some people get old faster than others? Working on a wild population of mammals - such as badgers - embraces the variation that might be important in determining how long an individual lives
Chris Beirne uses his knowledge of molecular techniques to understand the proccesses which cause the individual differences in ageing rates, working with the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at Exeter Cornwall Campus.
EVOLUTION FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
night sky:
ne of
Theretra nessus
Illus
trat
ions
: lef
t: Ai
mee
Jew
itt H
arris
, rig
ht: S
amue
l Jay
Che
ssel
18
O
The discovery that bats use sonar – a process of producing sound and using the echoes bouncing back from objects to
EVOLUTION FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
organism to a hunting bat must surely go to
the Tiger moth (Bertholdia trigona), which
produces a series of ultrasonic clicks that
serve to ‘jam’ the signals of hunting bats.
This is an exceptionally tricky and precision
piece of defence as the moth clicks must
If successful, moths can disrupt the auditory
the returning echoes and so ‘jam’ the
sonar signal. Biologists from Wake Forest
University, US, have recently
against at least four species
of Myotis spp. bats in their
natural habitat in Arizona.
Sonar jamming can give the
moth those essential extra
seconds it needs to escape and
survive.
The pressure for both bats and
their own game has escalated
into an evolutionary arms race,
with each party continually
biological weapons. Hunting
with sonar in bats has selected
on moths to avoid predation
bias in the ability to detect
ultrasound. In turn, the evasive
use of ultrasound against the
tuning of sonar techniques
in bats. The Palaearctic pond
bat (Myotis dasycneme) can
switch between the type of
sonar that it uses, alternating
the frequency and pitch of
ultrasonic clicks in response
to moth activity. It can also
basic trawling along the water
surface to a form of aerial
hawking. Some bats even go
into silent or ‘whispering’
mode when making their
sneak up on their target. With
each escalation in biological
weaponry, there must be a
greater investment in energy,
physiology and behaviour.
Whether an evolutionary arms
race between bats and moths
will conclude with a winner or
cycle continuously is hard to
group of insects that make up
insectivorous bats’ diets and
there are many others that
make far easier prey items. In
the meantime, there is plenty
of entertaining research to be
done for curious and creative
biologists eager to follow the
game.
Bats have evolved many different adaptations, their skull shape determines their ability to produce sonar either orally or nasally.
Written by Dr Michelle Taylor, Associate Research Fellow at the University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus.
19
!e pressure for both bats and moths to be highly e"ective at their own game has escalated into an
evolutionary arms race, with each party continually updating and #ne-tuning their biological weapons.
Greater mouse eared bat Myotis myotis (oral sonar)
Jamaican fruit bat Artibeus jamaicensis (nasal sonar)
Ima
ge
s:
Ge
mm
a M
ale
no
ir 2
01
3
In February this year a four-week
old boy was taken to St Thomas’
Hospital after a fox attack left him
with a serious hand injury. Stories
about how dangerous foxes are
appeared in the papers almost
Johnson went as far as to call them
a “menace”, and understandably,
really at fault?
Askingfortrouble
20
An urban retreatLife in the big city can be tough, and I don’t just mean for us. Despite being one
such as coyotes, Eurasian badgers, raccoons
It has been suggested that Vulpes vulpes,
A happy home
Food glorious food
Urban foxes might dine on rodents,
fruit, pets,
or food
in return for a
of these
creatures. Up to 60% of an
!e Telegraph has only managed to "nd
"ve UK fox attacks within the last 11
years, none of which were fatal.
21
Written by Jennifer Weller, second year zoology student at the University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus.
be made up of anthropogenic food. The availability of these food sources all year round makes it worth the risk of city living.
Are we asking for it?
since 2010, where two 9-month old girls received arm and facial wounds. In fact,
would go for the neck, not the hand, arm
comparison to the number of dog attacks, animals most of us would consider a part of the family. It is understandable that the victims’ families are upset, but can we really
only 13 - 14% living in urban areas.
After the latest attack, the victim’s parents
by several politicians. However, wildlife
considered that humans are not the only
Human conduct could be partly to blame for such attacks. Many households purposefully leave out food for their garden visitors, or try to entice them to eat from the hand. The availability of food so close to human dwelling is a tasty prospect for those brave enough to risk close encounters, but there is a wealth of food available to them in the urban environment, without residents providing additional sources. If the animals become habituated to our presence, they will no longer feel the need to keep
could reduce the risk of confrontation.
metropolises approach upon their territories without stopping to consider the consequences. Our cities don’t stop growing and when faced with the prospect of die or adapt, we must surely realise that animals that can adapt, will.
FEATURE FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
t was only a few days previously, sitting around a very French farm house table in the very French farm hamlet that
my family has been visiting since I was 9 months old, that I noticed a tattoo of a barn swallow on his chunky forearm. “I don’t think you want to know”, he said in his very-unfrench-Essex-accent when I asked him what inspired it. He eventually relinquished the tale of how, as a young man, he used to shoot birds to pass the
his boat. He ended up shooting so many that he came to feel sorry for the feathered creatures, and decided to spend the rest of his life learning as much as he could about them as a sort of penance.
It was this conversation in which we learnt that there were Eurasian eagle owls nearby and that Pete had heard them calling whilst sitting quietly, waiting for a catch on his
got really excited and I, unknowing, was a little confused. A plan was hatched nonetheless and a few nights later we were winding our way down to the Dordogne River in a red and white VW camper, part of the family since 1987, in pursuit of a sighting of this elusive eagle owl.
As we followed Pete, he told us what they sounded like, and we all had a go at an impersonation, resulting in unsurprisingly poor attempts to mimic something unknown. When we reached the water’s edge we sat uncomfortably on precariously balanced rocks, and looked to the other side of the steep, tree lined ravine. We had binoculars, but as time went on we started to lose faith in our search, the trees were dense and where there were patches of open rock, the sheer width of the Dordogne made them too far away to pick
eagle owl sitting amongst the crevices. The grey-blue hues of dusk turned to black, and now my eyesight was only as useless as everybody else’s. We sat talking
in whispers, and joked to each other in hushed tones that we should try and call it out of the trees. I let out my best eagle owl impersonation, blowing through top teeth pushed against bottom lip, sounding something a bit like a mournful kazoo.
then through the quiet came a distant “oh huu” and we all gasped and fell into hushed giggles. I could barely believe it and thought it a coincidence, so I repeated my kazoo call and sure enough; “oh huu” came the owl’s reply.
I continued my conversation with the eagle owl for a while, calling out into the darkness and listening with anticipation for its replies to resonate through the trees. The others tried too, but perhaps something about the frequency of my voice hit the right note with my new friend. I heard it move from the left side of the forest to the right, and up to the top of the steep sides of the ravine, but it
we started talking about stories of how one owl can take down a sheep or a young roe deer on their own, and I imagined the moment of such a giant animal swooping towards you, talons outstretched. I don’t feel shame in fearing them; it’s a form of respect that we can recognise when to keep our distance. As time went on its replies got shorter and sharper, it seemed annoyed, that I, another owl, was in its territory uninvited and communicating with it out of turn. I drew our conversation to a close. Our feet were cold and the hours left to pack up to return home were dwindling, so we got up, and with one last hooting goodbye, we scrambled our way back to the van.
Eagle of the nightThe unexpected roughness of a branch grazing my cheek was a reminder
that I should have worn my glasses. I’m short sighted and when the light
fades it makes it even harder to differentiate between upcoming objects
and simple darkness. We followed on behind Pete, the most surprising
birder I have come across so far.
Written by Roz Evans, 3rd
year Conservation Biology
and Ecology student with the
University of Exeter, Cornwall
Campus.
Ima
ge
: M
arcu
s H
oa
re
(ta
ke
n a
t th
e N
ew
Fo
re
st
falc
on
ry d
isp
lay).
EXPERIENCE FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
I
Our remote ancestors in the Mesozoic were well adapted to nocturnal life, as many mammals and other animals
are today. The daily cycle of light and dark are essential in regulating the circadian 24-hour rhythms of most animals. Humans have
millennia, but over the past century there has been an explosion of night illumination with the advent of electric lighting.
the most overlooked factor in the complex web of the causes of biodiversity decline.
of many animals, and there is evidence that they disrupt the rhythms of birds, insects, reptiles and numerous other nocturnal animals. One of the best-studied examples is that of turtle hatchlings on tropical beaches,
horizon inland. Under normal circumstances, hatchlings instinctively orientate away from the dark silhouette of the horizon towards the brighter, starry sky, leading them to the
electric lights, the turtles often head inland, away from the sea, where they can become exhausted and disorientated, run over by
the extra illumination to their advantage.
Light pollution has been linked to population declines in snakes, disruptions of migrating birds and bats, amphibians, and invertebrates. Research suggests that invertebrate activity and small mammal distribution is increased on darker, moonless nights, probably due
to a reduction in visibility to predators. In a natural environment these moonless nights will be exploitable with each lunar cycle,
opportunities are lost. It’s apparent that
species in the shadows.A brief look at a satellite image of the world at night shows how seriously our densely
has seen serious declines in numerous animal populations over the last few decades. Moths
lights being brighter than stars even at large distances, the insects become disorientated and unable to navigate in the darker areas
night of moths around streetlamps saps the animals’ energy, and creates an aggregation of prey for nocturnal insectivorous predators such as bats, which in turn are more
accidents. Moths escaping predation will often land nearby, unable to navigate in the dark surroundings, leading to a loss of opportunity for feeding. This process has been referred
insects are drawn out of suitable habitats for miles around the light source, leading to depleted populations in the surrounding countryside.
The reduction in moth populations may also be a major factor in the current serious
are heavily dependent on moths as prey.
OPINION FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
The fading night
Written by Feargus Cooney,
third year Conservation Biology
and Ecology BSc with the
University of Exeter, Cornwall
Campus.University of Exeter,
last decade, and we are just beginning to understand the extent to which the problem
factors, particularly habitat destruction,
in most population declines, but this is something that would be so easy to address. Aside from the obvious issue of wasted energy, do we really need streetlights to be on all night, especially on weeknights in rural villages? It’s comforting for us, and it has been argued that accidents and crime rates are lower in areas that are brightly lit, but
we need to spend more energy and money understanding which lighting types have the least ecological damage. Thankfully some local authorities are rolling out testing periods reducing the amount or type of lighting used, but this is largely focused on money saving rather than ecosystem regenerating.
quietest periods each night would give wildlife a chance to disperse and resume it’s normal rhythms of activity, and we
consumption, enjoying richer biodiversity, and of course, re-acquainting ourselves with the darkness which is as much a part of our circadian rhythm as any other species.
Ima
ge
: N
ASA
, 2
01
3.
24
Some years ago, while hitchhiking around the sparsely populated landscape of Namibia, I was camping in a remote location in
the north of the country. There was no moon that night, and leaving my tent to go to the toilet I was initially overwhelmed by the
incredible display of stars arching overhead, but also by a deep fear. It was so dark, with barely any discernable background glow on
the sky, that the only way to see where the horizon began was by the absence of stars. This was the deepest view of creation I’d ever
had, and yet it felt more claustrophobic than ever, as though the universe was on the verge of collapsing on itself. It was a profound
reminder of how adapted I am to the day, and how successfully we have banished the darkness of night from our experience in the
developed world.
s I write, the new undergraduate students are arriving, ready to embark
my head.
Morgenroth also showed that even at
they even graduate.
Protecting our future SWANs
WOMEN IN SCIENCE FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
Claire Young, Student Engagement, Widening Participation and Internationalisation Coordinator at the University of Exeter.
25
Acronym Buster:
CEMPS
CLES
STEMEngineering and Maths
SWAN
Get involved...
gender? Do you have any ideas
undergraduate students gain
Athena SWAN in a nutshell...
and attitudes towards women and removing
Zeya Wagner and Liselle-Fae Jackson performing PCR technique in Tremough teaching lab
Imag
e: L
aura
Red
dish
, 201
3.
A
government-funded badger
vaccination scheme worth £2
million has been granted this month
to prevent the spread of bovine tuberculosis
in the Penwith area of west Cornwall.
This has come as welcome news to nearly
200,000 people who signed an anti-badger
cull petition as well large numbers of
researchers, activists and land owners who
have, for many years, been advocates of
a vaccine over the cull. It has also been
somewhat of a surprise given the recent
culls, ordered by DEFRA, that have begun
in Somerset and Gloucestershire with
another in Dorset planned for next year.
The treatment of the European badger
(Meles meles) with regards to bovine
tuberculosis (bTB) has long been a topic of
great debate. For over 30 years it has been
known that the badger may contract and
carry the pathogen responsible for bTB,
Mycobacterium bovis, with a subsequent
enquiries instituted by the government
showing transmission of the disease from
cattle to badgers and, more worryingly for
farmers, from badgers to cattle. The high
level of their interaction with cattle makes
the badger a key species in the eradication
of bTB.
Until recently the favoured course of action
has been controversial culling of badgers
in infected areas; despite extensive studies
failing to show lasting or measurable
TB concluded in 2007 that other than
the systematic or virtual elimination
of badgers over very extensive areas - a
realistically impossible task - culling
actually increases the spread of bTB. Once
most badgers are removed from the cull
area, a new territory is opened up that is
exploited by badgers in surrounding areas.
Immigrant badgers are infected from
abandoned setts and surviving infected
individuals increasing badger-badger and
badger-cattle transmission rates. The lower
badger density means that there is greater
movement than before the cull and the
original infection spreads to a larger area.
As Simon King, President of the Wildlife
Trusts, said in an interview on Newsnight
in 2012, “Badgers are not the enemy
here, bovine Tuberculosis is… The way
of countering it is not to kill badgers,
the way of countering it is to get rid of
bTB through vaccination, both with
the badgers and cattle.” Under current
EU legislation, the vaccination of cattle
against bTB is prohibited as a proportion
of individuals treated with the BCG still
test positive in TB diagnostic tests. This
means they cannot be declared free of the
disease for trading purposes. Although
new diagnostic tests are being developed
and vaccinated individuals, it is likely to
be at least 10 years before any change in
EU legislation will permit any these tests
or any vaccination programmes to be
implemented on cattle.
it will need to be carried for at least the
next 6 years at a cost of around £650 per
badger. Not cheap, but with over 30,000
cattle slaughtered throughout the UK in
cost of bTB to the UK taxpayer in the next
decade predicted to be over £1 billion, the
vaccination programme could be worth it
in the long run.
Badger vaccine success in Cornwall
Ima
ge
: Sa
mu
el Sh
rim
pto
n 2
01
3
Recently showcased on BBC2’s
hugely popular Winterwatch
show, Adam Rogers founded
the Feral Pigeon Project
with the hope of mapping
the variation in feral pigeon
plumage colours across the
UK.
Most feral animals are
uniform in colour, yet feral
pigeons come in a wide array
of colours - this variation
is thought to be key to this
charismatic bird’s success. He
is asking people to count the
number of pigeons of various
colours and to report them via
the project’s website or with
its new app.
He said, “Pigeons may not be
as glamorous as many of the
exotic animals a person could
choose to study but take the
time to look beneath the
feathers and they’re just as
superbly adapted as any of the
The project hopes to uncover
how pigeons are adapting to
environment, as well as
helping to spark people’s
The Feral PigeonProject announces the launch of its new app for Android.
NEWS FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
26
A
Written by Will Priestley, Alumnus of the
University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus.
The Feral Pigeon Project has announced the launch of its new app for Android TM
Recently showcased on BBC2's hugely popular Winterwatch show, Adam Rogers founded the Feral Pigeon Project with the hope of mapping the variation in feral pigeon plumage colours across the UK.
Most feral animals are uniform in colour, yet feral pigeons come in a wide array of colours -‐ this variation is thought to be key to this charismatic bird's success. He is asking people to count the number of pigeons of various colours and to report them via the project's website or with its new app.
He said, "Pigeons may not be as glamorous as many of the exotic animals a person could choose to study but take the time to look beneath the feathers and they're just as superbly adapted as any of the African big five."
The project hopes to uncover how pigeons are adapting to the influence of our urban environment, as well as helping to spark people's interest in the natural world.
To download the app visit:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=uk.co.hiafi.feralpigeon&hl=en_GB
or scan the following QR code:
www.feralpigeonproject.com
To download
the app scan:
www.feralpigeonproject.com
Hotspots of Cornwall recommended by the editors of Life
Illu
str
ati
on
: E
mm
a S
imp
so
n-W
ells 2
01
3.
Ima
ge
s:
ch
ou
gh
: D
ave
Jo
ne
s, gu
ille
mo
t &
tre
e c
an
op
y:
Em
ma
Sim
pso
n-W
ells, b
lue
be
lls:
Ro
z E
va
ns, d
ipp
er:
Billy
He
an
ey
REVIEWS FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
27
"I'm a bit in love
with Enys gardens
at the moment.
Although it isn't
wild, it's just
stunning when
you go in bluebell
season, so keep
it on your list as
something to look
forward to until
spring. The whole
place is really well
managed for wildlife
with ponds and
a huge variety of
vegetation. Students
get in for £2 and
there's a tea room
to top it all off!”
- Roz Evans, Editor
in Chief
"Kennall Vale Nature
Reserve is a great little
woodland hideaway.
Slightly inland, and with
a big stream running
through there’s
from dippers, to
woodland anemones
and an impressive
range of fungi!"
-Georgia Cass, Sub-
Creative Director
"Hell’s Mouth is a
beautiful coastal
spot for bird
watching. Fulmars,
razorbills, guillemots
and cormorants
all nest there, and
gannets can be seen
out to sea. Lie on
the grassy cliff and
watch them swoop
around below you! ”
- Emma Simpson-
Wells, Creative
Director
"Tehidy Country Park makes for a sun-dappled
leafy-green haze of a day. Leasuirely follow the
and fauna residing in the woodland. Keep an
eye out for some natural wood carvings too! ”
- Samuel Jay Chessel, Picture Editor
“The Lizard, most southerly
point, is amazing in winter
storms but beautiful in the
summer. The wildlife there
is unique and you’re pretty
much guaranteed something
each time you visit!”
- Charli Sams, Picture Editor
CAREERS FROM DAWN UNTIL DUSK AUTUMN ISSUE
28
BSc Conservation Biology
and Ecology
I have the longest job title
EVER. Such a mouthful: Student
Engagement, Widening Participation and
Internationalisation Coordinator for CLES
Cornwall at the University of Exeter. And
people still don’t know what it means after
I’ve said it!
My job is so varied. Part of
it involves working with current students
to get them engaged in projects we’re
running, as well as supporting them to set
up their own. I also do a huge amount of
outreach work with schools, developing
lessons and teaching kids, trying to inspire
them to get excited about science.
Having autonomy in
my job and being able to tailor it to my
strengths and what I enjoy. I’m supposed
to be an intern but I’m treated like an
into the deep end and it has been very
and I’ve achieved some great things.
Having to convince
people to come to events and take part in
Claire Young: Careers Interview
things that I’ve worked so hard on. At every
event I’m always so worried no one will
turn up! They usually do though!
I was an engaged
student myself and did lots of volunteering.
I was also a Student Ambassador which
gave me a lot of experience working with
massively.
I don’t really
know! I’d love to do a PhD but I’m yet to
me. I’m open to a most things but I need
something that challenges me!Imag
e Cr
edit:
Dav
e Jo
nes
We are looking for a new team for a new year. So will be
An Editor-in-chiefSub EditorsPicture EditorsContent Editors Layout Designers
Either experienced or just keen to learn and put in the time! Must be pro-active!
If you’re interested, e-mail [email protected]
Want to be part of Life Nature Magazine?
Blue Reef Aquarium: NewquayWhere & who?
I worked in Newquay’s Blue Reef Aquarium, with the
volunteering being mainly run by Lee Charnock, one
of the aquarium display team.
Tasks and responsibilities
My main tasks were to get the aquarium ready to
receive visitors in the morning, which included soaping
the octopus tank to keep it from fogging up with
condensation. I would also run checks on the tanks
including temperature and water quality. Feeding the
main task, as well as going out to local rock pools and
rivers to catch live food.
Highlights
It would have to be either feeding or playing with the
octopus. Hand feeding cayman, logger head turtles
and sharks was pretty cool, though having an octopus
latching onto your arms is a pretty amazing feeling.
Lowlights
morning and having to clean the glass on over 50 tanks,
especially the low glass, being 6 foot 5 tall.
Would you recommend it to others?
beach in Newquay, in the summer heat!
Cost
The only cost was petrol to and from where I was
staying, so if you live close it would be all sweet.
Yeah to a certain extent, helping the aquarium is always
helped me in my exploitation of the sea module in 2nd
year.
29
VOLUNTEERING FROM DAWN UNTIL DUSK AUTUMN ISSUE
Where & who?
I am currently completing a seven week internship with Sea Watch
Foundation in New Quay, Wales.
Tasks and responsibilities
Land surveys consisted of sitting on New Quay pier and counting the
dolphins seen in the bay. The boat surveys involved recording cetaceans and
the environment, such as sea state, and GPS coordinates. If dolphins were
When groups of dolphins were spotted, behaviour forms were also
used, along with the use of the hydrophone to record the dolphins
through sightings and inputting data.
Highlights
I was able to hear the dolphins communicating through a variety of clicks
and whistle through the hydrophone. This gave me an insight into the
dolphin’s lives that not many people get.
Lowlights
I don’t really have a lowlight as I have never worked with marine mammals
before. I was continuously learning not only about cetaceans, but also about
the marine environment.
Would you recommend it to others?
to get involved with marine mammals.
Sea Watch Foundation: New Quay
Cost
around New Quay.
There have been many papers published from data volunteers helped to
Do you think it will be helpful for your future career prospects?
I believe it will. You learn so much, not only how to collect data out in the
to input it onto databases. It also opens up opportunities to work in other
Jess Cripps
Do you think it will be helpful for your future
career prospects?
Well I’m now working in another aquarium closer to
home after telling them about my Newquay experience
in the summer, so it looks like it’s helping already!
George Clayden
ON YOUR DOORSTEP FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
Wildlife WatchOctober:
December:
November:
Red Deer
October is the peak of the red deer Cervus elaphus rut. Usually segregated, congregating into large single sex herds in open country, in the breeding season the stags return to the home rage of the hind deer creating large mixed groups. Males compete to win access to a group of females and by protecting their ‘harem’, the dominant male will receive exclusive rights to mate with them.
Moths
moths, the Merveille du Jour Dichonia aprilina can be seen on the wing from late September to October. Although scarce, it is widespread, often occurring in woodland, hedgerows and gardens around the UK, in particular those with high numbers of oaks - their larval food plant. It is one of our most beautiful moths, especially when newly emerged.
Fungi
October is the month fungal diversity peaks, with the majority of the seasonal mushrooms fruiting. This is a great time to get into wild foraging as
mushrooms emerge. But forage with caution; many poisonous species also thrive in October. These include the unmistakeable
Amanita muscaria (pictured), as well as species which are confusingly similar to edible specimens; false chanterelle Hygrophoropis aurantiaca can cause some people serious harm and looks almost identical to other edible chanterelles.
Thrushes
By November visiting thrushes can be seen in large
along hedgerows. Common migrants include redwing turdus iliacusturdus pilaris, most of the ones we see in Cornwall would have crossed the north sea, on passage from Scandinavia. They overwinter in the UK, departing in early spring. Redwings are easily spotted on the Tremough Campus, so keep your eyes peeled.
Waxwings
During harsh winters, large
Bombycilla garrulous are forced south, leaving northern and central Europe where they overwinter and visit the UK. They often make it as far south as Cornwall, and can be seen frequenting gardens and car parks in Falmouth, foraging on hawthorn Crategus monogyna and rowan Sorbus aucuparia berries.
Seals
By November grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) colonies are bustling with their Phoca vitulina,
pups much earlier in June-July. Grey seal pups moult their thick, white coat after three weeks, at this point their mothers will end their starvation period, leaving the pups to fend for themselves. Godrevy head in Hayle is a good place for seeing the new families interact.
Moss
In December when the temperatures drop really low, water everywhere can freeze, causing quite a spectacle in some places. Moss has a high water content, and lives in damp spots. The soft moss beds we are used to are transformed in to crunchy, icicle laden, glistening green walls.
Ima
ge
: re
d d
ee
r:
Be
th A
rkw
rig
ht,
re
d w
ing, H
an
na
h W
alk
er;
me
rve
ille
du
jo
ur, G
uy F
re
em
an
; se
al p
up
, Lis
elle
Fa
e J
ackso
n;
wa
xw
ing, Fe
lix S
mit
h;
fun
gi, C
ha
rlo
tte
Sa
ms;
mo
ss, C
lair
e Y
ou
ng.
Written by Fraser Bell, MSc
Applied Ecology Alumnus.
ON YOUR DOORSTEP FROM DUSK UNTIL DAWN AUTUMN ISSUE
9
colonies are bustling with their Phoca vitulina
Adaptations of a....to avoid detection by predators and insect prey.
Nightjar
Their brown feathers create an illusion of a pile of leaves or a dead log, blending in perfectly with their
for the times when they leave their nests.
The beak is wider than it is long, opening widely in both directions providing a wide
Big white patches on the ends of males’ wings
territorial displays. Enthusiasts might take two handkerchiefs and wave them at arms length, to
attract the attention of a territorial male.
retina enhances the nightjars’ vision at night by improving the light
gathering ability of the eye.
Image: Mozambique Nightjar, Jared Wilson-Aggarwal
Illus
trat
ion:
Wyn
ona
Legg
201
3
If you want to write for
The theme for the spring term’s issue is:
Anthropogenesis...Just send us a short summary of your idea for an article or a
photographic sequence to: [email protected]
Credit: Emma Simpson-Wells 2013
With thanks to our readers and supporters, The University of Exeter and University of Falmouth.
i f en a t u r e m a g a z i n e