Events

A brief introduction to the work of the BTO, followed by some insights into which birds come into our gardens and how to encourage and identify them.

Dr Kelly Harmar is Biodiversity Officer at Nidderdale National Landscape. Kelly will describe the NNL reptile project – a rolling programme of reptile surveys undertaken across the National Landscape since 2017.  The surveys have recorded over 30 individual adder hibernation sites, of which five are believed to have nationally significant populations while other sites are thought to only have small, isolated and vulnerable populations.  Kelly will describe why Nidderdale is important for adders, outline the steps taken to locate new adder sites and will give an overview of the local adder population at a landscape scale.

Dr Will Askew is a senior specialist in genetic technologies at Natural England.  Will is leading a Natural England funded project, working with Bangor University, that is examining DNA samples from adder populations in Nidderdale, the North Pennines, Norfolk and Suffolk.  The DNA sampling will provide insights into the genetic health of adder populations in Nidderdale, allowing the National Landscape Team to plan conservation actions to protect and better connect local adder populations.

This is a field trip led by Colin Slator to visit various local wildlife spots followed by a convivial Christmas lunch at the Ripon City Golf Club. After which we would hope to watch a nearby starling murmuration (starlings permitting). It’s always a great end to the year!

Numbers in the morning will be limited but there is no limit to the lunch numbers. And you are welcome to join in the morning but forgo the lunch if you wish.

The geological origins of the Okavango Delta and the salt pans; the effects of these geographical features on the wildlife; and the destructive effects wrought on the wildlife by the EU. 

Lots of wildlife pictures and behaviour interspersed amongst the more serious topics.

With recognition that climate change and loss of nature’s diversity is a threat to future generations, change of ownership gave opportunity for a new direction. 

Committing to the bold ambition to ‘rethink everything’, Denton reserve combines landscape restoration with sustainable food production, circular design and a deep respect for craft. Each space across the estate is being designed to restore- the land, the guest and our relationship with nature. Denton Reserve invites guests to connect with something lasting: a slower rhythm, a lighter footprint and a more hopeful future.

The talk will cover who YDRT are, what we do and why, and delve into detail regarding our projects on the Nidd – with a focus on river health. Learn how to get involved with what we do.

Photographic Encounters with Some of Our Most Charismatic Wildlife.

Oman is a country with a variety of habitats holding a large number of bird species. The talk will describe both resident and wintering birds seen both on the sea and whilst travelling the length of the country.

The remarkable story of Britain’s rarest plant, the Lady’s Slipper orchid. How we lost it to unscrupulous collectors in the 18^th and 19^th centuries, and was then refound at a site in Wharfedale in 1930. How the discoverers managed to keep the site secret for over 20 years and how conservationists have protected it since it became more widely known in the 1960s including efforts to propagate it in laboratories before returning it to some of its former haunts. Told by someone who has been intimately involved in its conservation since 1993.