Neil Forbes
@treebeard793.bsky.social
330 followers 290 following 300 posts
Ecologist, based in South Cumbria. Mostly focused on coastal, wetland, limestone and upland habitats; botany, birds & Natterjacks. Views my own.
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treebeard793.bsky.social
Earlier this year we published a summary of our short-term study of the apparent changing phenology of Sabulina verna, Spring Sandwort, at #Arnside Knott in @bsbibotany.bsky.social News. Had a quick visit yesterday and it was by some margin the most abundant flowering species.
#wildflowerhour
Sabulina verna, Spring Sandwort.
Arnside Knott, Heathwaite Sabulina verna, Spring Sandwort.
Arnside Knott, Heathwaite
treebeard793.bsky.social
Blackening #Waxcaps on the #Arnside Memorial Playing Fields.
#MushroomMonday
Blackening Waxcaps
Reposted by Neil Forbes
adambienkov.bsky.social
The Greens requested an interview on the Laura Kuenssberg Show with Zack Polanski when he was elected leader, but were denied, with a promise to interview him during Green conference instead.

This was then scrapped citing the Manchester synagogue attack. Polanski is both Jewish and from Manchester
BBC Laura Kuenssberg Show Accused of Anti-Green Bias After Cancelling Zack Polanski Interview
The new Green Party leader was the only major party leader not to have been granted a conference interview on the flagship BBC show
bylinetimes.com
Reposted by Neil Forbes
rspb.bsky.social
While saying they want to "preserve nature" the Conservative Party have just pledged to scrap the Climate Change Act.

This makes no sense.

How do more floods, more droughts, and rising temperatures "preserve" nature?

That's what scrapping the Act will lead to.
treebeard793.bsky.social
Suaeda maritima, Annual Sea-blite. A pioneer #saltmarsh species that plays a key role in denitrification of soils, and also provides an abundance seeds for wintering passerines and wildfowl.
#wildflowerhour
#MorecambeBay
#Arnside
#Cumbria
Suaeda maritima
treebeard793.bsky.social
Lesser trefoil, Trirolium dubium. Another late-flowering species on the species-rich grasslands (some of the finest in the country) at Heathwaite, #Arnside Knott.
#wildflowerhour
#Cumbria
Trirolium dubium
treebeard793.bsky.social
Earlier this year we published a summary of our short-term study of the apparent changing phenology of Sabulina verna, Spring Sandwort, at #Arnside Knott in @bsbibotany.bsky.social News. Had a quick visit yesterday and it was by some margin the most abundant flowering species.
#wildflowerhour
Sabulina verna, Spring Sandwort.
Arnside Knott, Heathwaite Sabulina verna, Spring Sandwort.
Arnside Knott, Heathwaite
treebeard793.bsky.social
It really does pretty much always look like it's gone over. None the less lovely for that though.
treebeard793.bsky.social
Crepis capillaris is one of the most frequently encountered winter-flowering native species in our area (South Cumbria). There should be plenty about well in to November & it's usually possible to find the odd plant later than that too.
#Phenology is changing
#wildflowerhour
@bsbibotany.bsky.social
Crepis capillaris
treebeard793.bsky.social
It's not uncommon to find a few late-flowering Small Scabious, Scabiosa columbaria on the NW limestones in England. And that's exactly what this is.
#wildflowerhour
#Arnside Knott
@nationaltrust.org.uk
Scabiosa columbaria
Reposted by Neil Forbes
astridbiddle.bsky.social
Completely blown away today by how the Scarce Tufted-sedge (Carex cespitosa) was faring on the River Gade.
It was with trepidation that I entered the river. Vegetation had grown tall this summer. 2025 was one of the worst for reintroducing a wetland plant. Summer drought followed high winter water.
treebeard793.bsky.social
Woodland scenes 🍄🌳💚
The Fly Agaric, a species steeped in northern #folklore and #mythology

#Autumn
#Fungi
#Arnside
#Cumbria
Reposted by Neil Forbes
richardkbroughton.bsky.social
Another recent paper in #BirdStudy showed autumn densities of Pheasant & Red-Legged Partridge in southern England can be an astonishing 2,500 birds per km2 on land near releases. After winter, there were still up to 700 birds/km2. That's huge numbers.
Paper: doi.org/10.1080/0006...
#ornithology
britishbirds.bsky.social
Ticks are more likely to carry the bacteria that cause Lyme disease in areas where Common Pheasants Phasianus colchicus are released, according to new research.

Read more: britishbirds.co.uk/journal/arti...
🥇Subscriber Content
treebeard793.bsky.social
Late-flowering Wild Thyme, Thymus drucei & Lady's Bedstrraw, Galium verum on the species-rich limestone #grasslands at Warton Crag.
#Wildflowerhour
@rspbengland.bsky.social #LeightonMoss
#Lancashire
treebeard793.bsky.social
Bell Heather, Erica cinera on a limestone outcrop overlooking #MorecambeBay.
#wildflowerhour
#Cumbria
treebeard793.bsky.social
Greater Sea-spurrey, Spergularia media.
Larger flowers than the similar Lesser Sea-spurrey and always with 10 stamens (or stamenoides).
#wildflowerhour
#MorecambeBay #Saltmarsh
#Cumbria
Spergularia media
treebeard793.bsky.social
Perennial Sow-thistle, Sonchus arvensis and the gall, Cystiphora sonchi, a species of #Midge. Many gall-forming species a host-specific & therefore easy (easier) to ID at this stage in the life cycle, so long as you know the plant that is.
@rspbengland.bsky.social #LeightonMoss
#wildflowerHour
treebeard793.bsky.social
One of my favourite #wildflowers, & one of the seemingly small subset of species that appear to be benefitting from #ClimateChange on the #Cumbria Coast. A rare plant register species for now. Unlikely to survive the next review (in a positive way).
Rock Samphire, Crithmum maritimum.
#wildflowerhour
treebeard793.bsky.social
Common Centaury, Centaurium erythraea.
#MorecambeBay
#WildflowerHour
#Cumbria
Centaurium erythraea
treebeard793.bsky.social
The @rspbengland.bsky.social #LeightonMoss #MorecambeBay Allen & Eric Morecambe pools are always a good bet for a Curlew Sanpiper at this time of year. Blackening #Waxcaps by the path through the reeds were less expected.
#Waders
#Birds
#Fungi
#Autumn
Curlew Sandpiper Blackening Waxcap, Hygrocybe conica Blackening Waxcap, Hygrocybe conica
Reposted by Neil Forbes
midsandeastnt.bsky.social
Good news 🥳 For the 3rd year in a row, since the 2023 project to lower the sea walls and create new saltmarsh, surveys at Northey Island have shown an increase in fish such as sand smelt and bass - an essential food for other fish, mammals and birds on the island and the wider Blackwater Estuary.
Reposted by Neil Forbes
chloelewis.bsky.social
IMF graphs of wealth inequality 1910 - 2010. Suggests people's income became much more evenly distributed in the decades after WWII in many countries, then started to become more unequal from the 1980s onward. Countries that remained more equal are often those perceived to have good quality of life.
Graphs from IMF showing patterns of income inequality 1910-2010 for United States of America, Canada, New Zealand, Australia Ireland, UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, Switzerland, Japan Wealth inequality by country 1910-2010 Sweden, Finland, Norway, Spain, Portugal, Italy
treebeard793.bsky.social
It's a real highlight of this time of year isn't it? And Spindle is so unobtrusive and easily overlooked for much of the rest of the year.