Strange creatures of the sea: Your sightings
During Springwatch 2010, our resident underwater explorer Simon asked if you had seen any strange or weird creatures of the sea around the UK. The response was so good I had to blog about it.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 11:35 UK time, Wednesday, 30 June 2010
During Springwatch 2010, our resident underwater explorer Simon asked if you had seen any strange or weird creatures of the sea around the UK. The response was so good I had to blog about it.
Chris Packham | 11:35 UK time, Friday, 25 June 2010
Whilst doing an interview a journalist asked if I'd drop a Cure song title for her. I did. It was . But then I got carried away as usual and by the end of the first programme I had sewn four into the unscripted mix.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 15:53 UK time, Thursday, 24 June 2010
We had an incredible response from you with your spring photos for Springwatch 2010.
The was the fastest growing group in the world during the programme, and in total there are now more than 9,000 of you who joined to share your photos. Wow! A big, big thanks to all of you.
For the final time this year, our web researcher Sam caught up with some of the Springwatch team to find out which of your photos they liked best.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 14:14 UK time, Thursday, 24 June 2010
Thanks for all of your UK wildlife questions. We've received so many through the messageboards, blogsÌý²¹²Ô»åÌý.
Web researcher Sam grabbed some time with Springwatch's resident geek to ask him about some more of your wildlife conundrums. This time it's poo ID, birds of prey, bug boxes and a maggot in a cage!?
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 14:27 UK time, Tuesday, 22 June 2010
If you've been following our wild Pensthorpe families, you'll know that we've been getting footage of them from around the clock! This is only possible with the help of our story developers, one of whom, Robert MacDougall-Davis, reveals what life is like aboard the 'Starship Enterprise'.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 13:08 UK time, Tuesday, 22 June 2010
Thanks for playing our last Springwatch Lock-in Quiz.
If you haven't already given it a go then stop now and go to the quiz to make your guesses.
Here are the answers...
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 18:04 UK time, Thursday, 17 June 2010
This year the Springwatch website is different. You might have noticed the new name, Nature UK. Springwatch's Executive Producer Tim Scoones has already blogged about the new name and plan. But what's really new is that, in contrast to previous years, the website now carries on after the series has finished.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 15:28 UK time, Thursday, 17 June 2010
Guest blog: TV researcher Ruth blogs about glow worms.
The glow worm is the stuff of fairy tales. A magical being that has its place firmly in tales of witches, fairy princesses and dragons. Rightly so, for seeing them is a truly magical experience. But, of course, only at night.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 14:28 UK time, Thursday, 17 June 2010
Springwatch has five wildlife cameramen: Pete, Mark, Ian, Richard and Lindsay. You may remember Lindsay as our runner from Springwatch 2009. Well this year he's a fully fledged cameraman on the team and we caught up with him to find out how he got to where he is today.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 13:20 UK time, Thursday, 17 June 2010
For those who missed the last Photo Club in the series from last night. You can also have a look at the featured pictures in more detail in Martin's blog post, watch last week's Photo Club or the very first one. Please let us know which was your favourite... And please, please keep sharing your spring wildlife photos on the .
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Martin Hughes-Games | 21:00 UK time, Wednesday, 16 June 2010
The third and final Photo Club is on Red Button tonight at 9pm and with almost 50,000 photos in the Flickr group we've got a cracking selection for discussion. Let us know what you think of these artworks...
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 17:03 UK time, Wednesday, 16 June 2010
Guest blog: Ed Bramham-Jones, warden here at Pensthorpe, writes about how he ensures harvest mice and other mammals and birds thrive in the Conservation Trust's farmland.
is managed according to nature-friendly farming principles. It is used to demonstrate to farmers from all over the country how they can increase biodiversity alongside food production. It's also part of a nationwide Conservation Grade experiment designed to test what's best for farmland wildlife, which includes specific input from the on harvest mouse habitat.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 12:29 UK time, Wednesday, 16 June 2010
Did you do better than our teams? Did you beat the geek? Sadly it's the last Quiz of the series. But when you've had a go, try the first or second Springwatch Pub Quizzes.
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Martin Hughes-Games | 19:30 UK time, Tuesday, 15 June 2010
Our Springwatch Pub Quiz goes live tonight at 9pm on Red Button.
For all of our dedicated viewers who turn to the blog and messageboards after the Pub Quiz we bring you the second Lock-in Quiz!
Post your answers by commenting below.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 18:02 UK time, Tuesday, 15 June 2010
Chris and Kate moved into the dingly dale here at Pensthorpe to introduce a particular favourite of Chris's, the sparrowhawk... the avian terminator. There was more teasing from the will-they-won't-they swallows. Over at the wader scrape there had been savage drama as a jackdaw plundered the little ringed plover nest. One egg, though, managed to hatch before the raider returned. This had to be our first highlight.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 11:00 UK time, Tuesday, 15 June 2010
We've been receiving loads of interesting questions about UK wildlife and you've been brilliant at helping one another.
Although we can't answer all your questions we thought we'd pose a few to our resident geek. So we sat him down on the Springwatch sofa with our web researcher Sam to give him a grilling.
Simon King | 18:26 UK time, Monday, 14 June 2010
Here in Dorset we've seen some great marine creatures but we want your help in finding more. As the weather warms up, more and more of you will be heading to the seaside, a great place to see wildlife. As well as our more familiar creatures there's also a chance of seeing some more unusual visitors. Just this month a  and there's always a chance that they can be spotted from a stretch of coastline close to you...
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 15:46 UK time, Monday, 14 June 2010
The Springwatch OB (Outside Broadcast) team consists of over 90 people. Each one plays a key part in bringing Springwatch to our screens, from Trevor and Sue in security, and runners Kiri and Ryan, to Executive Producers Fiona and Tim.
One team who we haven't discussed so much before is that of our remote cameras, the minicam team, headed by wildlife expert and techie expert Jo Charlesworth. Nigel and Jo, alongside Nick, Charlie and local wildlife photographer Mike Powles, have the difficult job of finding our nesting characters and safely setting up the hardware that will bring us video from within the nests.
Chris Packham | 14:52 UK time, Monday, 14 June 2010
The cute, cuddly, sweet and vulnerable chick is obviously so appealing. So to see its life ended so brutally before it has even really got started is something which obviously appals many people. The blue tit youngster being fed to the kestrel chicks and the jackdaw pre-empting the fluffy emergence by eating the egg of the little ringed plover are two recent Springwatch cases. And last week, Simon's swan chicks were also disappearing without direct explanation but clearly as a result of some predator's attention.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 09:57 UK time, Sunday, 13 June 2010
The last show of the second week brought us glorious natives and exotic visitors, underwater sex, a beady-eyed bandit and bucketfuls of surprises. Here at Pensthorpe we saw amazing behaviour from the little ringed plovers in trying to ward off the marauding jackdaw. The avocet chicks continued to delight. A new and rather rare family, the spotted flycatchers, were introduced. And Chris analysed the kestrels' feeding habits.
Martin Hughes-Games | 19:46 UK time, Thursday, 10 June 2010
Simon King | 19:09 UK time, Thursday, 10 June 2010
Just a few days ago as we were travelling en route to a new location we came upon a curious phenomenon. A massive web enveloped several metres of hedgerow, spread over a mix of nettles and elder this curious structure seemed to have engulfed the plants beneath it.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 17:50 UK time, Thursday, 10 June 2010
Here in Pensthorpe, Kate and Chris looked at how the avocet chicks had to start learning to feed straight away. The kestrel chicks were suffering in the bad weather. Not as much as the poor little ringer plovers though. This drama on the scrape was definitely one of our highlights of the day.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 17:00 UK time, Thursday, 10 June 2010
For those of you who missed the show or don't have Red Button, here's Photo Club from last night. Bask in the beauty of the featured photos on Martin's blog post, watch last week's Photo Club or tell us your favourite right here. And please, please keep sharing your spring wildlife photos on the .
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Martin Hughes-Games | 15:33 UK time, Thursday, 10 June 2010
You can find out all you need to know about the Ö÷²¥´óÐã Wildlife fund at www.bbc.co.uk/wild and we'd love to hear what you're doing to help raise money for wildlife.
I've already met prisoners running for wildlife, school kids counting pigs for cash and cyclists riding across Europe to raise awareness. It's fun but it's seriously important too.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 14:34 UK time, Thursday, 10 June 2010
Here's a guest blog post from wildlife film-maker Richard Taylor-Jones, who made tonight's Springwatch film on ravens. (You can watch it here and read more from Richard on ).
"Ravens are one of the decade's real success stories. Once reduced to around a thousand pairs due to persecution, they have spread right back across Britain. In the last fifteen years numbers have increased by a whopping 134%. There are now over 12,000 breeding pairs.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 18:13 UK time, Wednesday, 9 June 2010
Springwatch has a large team of cameramen and minicam operators. Our four wildlife cameramen are constantly up early and out and about capturing amazing footage of all kinds of wildlife.
One of whom, Ian Llewllyn, has a particular passion for one bird that he just can't shake. Our researcher Sam caught up with him in a rare spare moment to talk about kingfishers.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 18:05 UK time, Wednesday, 9 June 2010
How many did you get right? When you've had a go, try the first Springwatch Pub Quiz.
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Jeremy Torrance web producer | 15:57 UK time, Wednesday, 9 June 2010
Such is his knowledge of and passion for the wildlife of our waterways, Riverman Hugh Miles's name is spoken of in hushed tones around the Springwatch Production Village. If, like me, you've been inspired by his films about the River Wensum in this year's series, you might like to see his top tips for river fish watching.
So now you can get out and enjoy the wonderful wildlife below the surface as much as he does. Here they are then in no particular order. (If you've got any you'd like to add, or experiences you've had, we'd love to hear.)Â Â
Martin Hughes-Games | 14:41 UK time, Wednesday, 9 June 2010
The second edition of Photo Club is on Red Button at 9pm tonight and here are some of the photos up for discussion. Which are your favourites? We'll post the full show on the website tomorrow if you missed it.
Chris Packham | 20:03 UK time, Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Some of you have been discussing the apparent attack by a fox on two young children on the messageboard. Earlier today I joined Jeremy Vine on his show for Radio Two to discuss it further. This is a tragic incident for any family to experience.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 17:56 UK time, Tuesday, 8 June 2010
From blazing sun to wild storms, the first weekend of this year's Springwatch was one of extremes. There was plenty of drama from the Pensthorpe nests too. The willow warblers and the wrens fledged, we had a new family of blackcaps and the kestrel chicks were developing fast. Simon moved to magical farmland further west in Dorset and his Black Fox Squad got video evidence of this near-mythical creature.
Our highlights were Martin's precarious peregrine ringing, the avocets finally hatching and Simon's look at the wonderful stamina of the singing skylark. So that's our highlights and we'd love to hear yours. (It feels like a long time ago now, but you can see Thursday's highlights here).
Martin Hughes-Games | 16:11 UK time, Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Exotic, 'non-native species - what a conundrum. On the one hand, some people think it's great to see egrets and . On the other hand, Japanese knotweed and escaped American mink are obvious problems.
Perhaps there's a useful disctinction between harmless, 'non-native' species and harmful, invasive species - ones that can cause serious problems for native species. And that can be a serious threat to biodiversity.
Chris Packham | 14:18 UK time, Tuesday, 8 June 2010
Is there anything better than meeting someone who knows more than you do about the thing that interests you most? Perhaps someone who has spent a tremendous amount of very dedicated and driven time developing a fabulous understanding of that topic? A person whose curiosity has fuelled a brilliant inventiveness, a methodology which has led to the unravelling of unique secrets, maybe utilising a spark of pure genius, maybe as a result of hours, years of totally hard slog.
Simon King | 15:14 UK time, Monday, 7 June 2010
We've been fascinated by your stories of black foxes, so much so that we're now wondering what other colourful wildlife we have around the UK. We'd like to hear about unusual animals you've spotted that are black, white and any colour in between.
Simon King | 09:58 UK time, Sunday, 6 June 2010
We have left the mysterious creatures of the dry, hot heathland of the Isle of Purbeck and headed to the west of Dorset, where we are surrounded by chalk downland, ancient deciduous forests and lush grassy meadows. Here the wildlife is a little more familiar, but no less interesting.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 15:20 UK time, Friday, 4 June 2010
The new blackbirds, conflict on the scrape and more updates on Simon's fox family... the final show of week one. Much of the talk in the Production Village here at Pensthorpe was about the gruesesome goings-on in the kestrel box, so that just had to be a highlight. The other two are Simon's piece on raft spiders, one of his favourite British invertebrates, and his look at how Dartford warblers manage to feed on insects all year round.
So that's the Springwatch team's highlights, what are yours?
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 13:01 UK time, Friday, 4 June 2010
On Wednesday's show we had the blue tits fledging, we met the kestrels, Gordon looked at the reintroduction of great bustards and Simon examined how the Purbeck vixen was coping with motherhood. The team's absolute highlights, however, were the bittersweet tale of the two roe deer fawns, Simon's meeting with the nocturnal nightjar and Chris's film with Frank Greenaway, the wonderful bat expert.
You can also watch our pick of Monday and Tuesday's shows. Or watch them all again from start to finish on iPlayer. We'd love to hear what your favourite bits were too.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 17:05 UK time, Thursday, 3 June 2010
For those of you who missed the show or don't have Red Button, we promised we'd put the Photo Club on the website. So here it is...Chris, Kate, Simon and Martin talking about some of the stunning pictures from the . (You can also watch the inaugural Springwatch Pub Quiz too.)
Martin Hughes-Games | 16:29 UK time, Thursday, 3 June 2010
Join us tonight for the return of Unsprung on Ö÷²¥´óÐã2 at 9pm. We'll be welcoming back some familiar faces as well answering your questions about all things spring.
Chris Packham | 15:52 UK time, Thursday, 3 June 2010
Editor's note: Chris previously posted this on the Autumnwatch blog but we just couldn't stop him banging on about poo (watch tonight's show and you'll see), so here it is again.
I'm sure that many people will consider what they are about to read as a little quirky if not completely mad. But here goes. Ever since I first started to roam and ramble I've been looking at poo. Not a casual glance or a furtive squint, but a hands-and-knees close-up, full critical examination in terms of colour, size, shape, texture, content and, of course, smell.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 14:17 UK time, Thursday, 3 June 2010
Here's the latest in our series of highlights from the show. This time it's Tuesday night's show and it's slo-mo hobbies part 2, the stoat and the baby rabbit, and daylight otters. If you're interested in the otter story, have a read of what Chris has got to say about why he thinks otters are appearing more in the day. Fascinating stuff. And, of course, tell us which bit of the show was your favourite. You can watch Monday night's highlights here.
Simon King | 12:50 UK time, Thursday, 3 June 2010
If you'd been looking carefully, you may have noticed in last night's show I had an RSPB bird badge on my cap. I'll be wearing a different badge with a different bird on it for each of the nine shows left in the series.
I thought it would be a bit of fun to set you a task: can you spot which bird is on my cap badge for each of the other shows? I'll give you the one from last night: a hobby. So watch carefully and post a comment below to tell us what you think they are.
Update 5 June 2010: The bird badge on Thursday's show was a Dartford warbler. Congratulations to JS, Dutch birder, sarahlcookson, Nicola Main, Ryan Wallace, liz, verreaux, wildlife_lee_n_tris and Michael_Fell, robster333. Keep those eyes peeled on Monday...
Editor's update 15 June:Â Mon 7th: peregrine; Tue 8th: nuthatch; Wed 9th: heron; Thu 10th: buzzard; Mon 14th: mute swan. Well done to all who got them right, and keep watching those caps...
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 20:28 UK time, Wednesday, 2 June 2010
For those of you who missed the inaugural Springwatch Pub Quiz on Red Button, here it is...
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Martin Hughes-Games | 18:04 UK time, Wednesday, 2 June 2010
Martin Hughes-Games | 16:52 UK time, Wednesday, 2 June 2010
We all have our favourite birds. Simon loves his hobby, Chris is passionate about sparrowhawks, Kate loves skylarks. Me? It's swifts, the most aerial of all our birds. Once the chicks leave the nest they can stay airbourne for three... yes, three... years! In all that time they never once touch the ground.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 15:01 UK time, Wednesday, 2 June 2010
According to Natural England's recent , 492 species of native animals have become extinct within modern times, most within the last 200 years. Habitat loss, environmental pollution and competition from alien species can be blamed but all of these activities were ultimately perpetrated by man.
So if we caused the loss of native animals from wolves to water voles, shouldn't we do something to repair the damage? Many conservationists believe that by reintroducing close relatives of our native species we can restore the natural order in the UK, helping develop new populations and stabilise those under threat.Â
Chris Packham | 13:07 UK time, Wednesday, 2 June 2010
Otters in daylight. In England. I mean only yesterday such a thing would have been unthinkable. Indeed, in my lifetime of wandering Hampshire's waterways I have only twice had the fortune of seeing otters twice with the glint of early sun on their glistening backs.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 12:34 UK time, Wednesday, 2 June 2010
Each night after the show, the team pick out their favourite bits from the programme. So I thought it would be nice to share them with you here on the blog. Here we go with the highlights from the first show of the series: Simon's slo-mo hobby, the red-backed shrike and the eye-opening Dorset diversity film. We'd love to hear what your favourites were too.
Jeremy Torrance web producer | 19:54 UK time, Tuesday, 1 June 2010
Martin Hughes-Games | 19:00 UK time, Tuesday, 1 June 2010
For all of our dedicated viewers who turn to the blog and messageboards after the Pub Quiz we bring you the Lock-in Quiz!
Post your answers by commenting below.
Update 9 June: Answers are now at the bottom of the quiz. No cheating!
Martin Hughes-Games | 12:56 UK time, Tuesday, 1 June 2010
Well, it's going to be tough but can we find a nest to beat the winner of last years "barmiest birds nest" competition? Remember the blue tit family nesting in the arm of an active railway level crossing, which rotated the entire nest through 90 degrees every time a train came by? (Sent in by the Allen family - thank you.)
Please, if you know of or have even heard a rumor of an active nest in a particularly weird and wonderful place could you let us know by commenting below? Even better, could you film it? We are standing by...
PS Lots of you have already told us about strange nests on this post (a big thank you). But to keep things tidy it would be great if from now on we stick to this one.
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