New blog post on the website about our autumn bat box checks berksbats.org.uk/bat-box-chec...

Bat box checks - what's in the box?

A closer look at Clayfield Copse By Claire Andrews Over the coming weeks, members of the Berkshire and South Buckinghamshire Bat Group will be taking part in a series of bat box checks across the reg...

berksbats.org.uk

This little cutie came in to Bat Rescue Berkshire today. Just hanging out somewhere unsuitable, she’s a good weight so as long as she passes her flight test this evening she’ll be going home tomorrow, or at least to some more promising habitat next door to the industrial site where she was found

Some of the more interesting species from the moth trap today (along with double figures of large yellow underwing, square-spot rustic & willow beauty) - lunar underwing, black rustic, frosted orange & brindled green. Reading, UK (VC22)

State schools finally get their big day: ‘All of a sudden, playing at Lord’s becomes cool’

State schools finally get their big day: ‘All of a sudden, playing at Lord’s becomes cool’

The inaugural Knight-Stokes Cup was a special occasion not just for the teenagers playing on Lord’s hallowed turf, but for the English game as a whole State-school cricket has had its day at Lord’s, at last. On a ground that has this summer hosted men’s and women’s international Tests, the Women’s T20 World Cup final and the Hundred finals, on Thursday four school teams played in front of the Pavilion and Father Time for the Knight-Stokes Cup, named after two state-educated cricketers who have captained England’s Test teams. Heather Knight and Ben Stokes recorded video messages for pupils from Altrincham Grammar School, John Hampden Grammar School, Penistone Grammar School and Chelmsford County High School before they competed in the boys’ and girls’ finals. The privileges did not stop there – full use of the Pavilion dressing rooms, lunch and media duties made this a day to remember and inspire. Continue reading...

dlvr.it

@movso Lake Bohinj

Alastair Campbell @alastaircampbell2.bsky.social · last mo.

It’s a close run thing but I think No 1 nicks it because of the base. Both beautiful though. So many amazing trees Lake Bohinj Slovenia. And so so nice to be a bit cooler after Split. Tree of the Day.

Stay away yourself, by all means, but find someone who knows what they are doing to help the bat. Not just for animal welfare reasons, although those should be enough, but also to ensure the bat is not picked up by a child, pet or wild animal that will certainly not be likely to act with caution.

So, we found a live bat in our galleries. 🦇 a thread🦇

@themerl.bsky.social This is your bat visitor, after an initial feed - a very underweight juvenile female soprano pipistrelle. I suspect she’s been trapped in the museum for a few days, fingers crossed she makes it

@kevinhowells.bsky.social No watch & listen on BBC Sport app today? So no coverage of Lancs Kent game except via LancsTV!

Appalling: Church of England votes against plan to rewild 30% of its land by 2030 @wildcard.land have run a noble campaign trying to get the CofE to see sense But this demonstrates exactly why Ministers can't rely on landowners to voluntarily support 30by30: www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...

Church of England votes against plan to rewild 30% of its land by 2030

Campaigners criticise C of E for failing to show moral leadership as one of country’s biggest landowners

theguardian.com

“The Government should just say no to Farage's ego-trip and block his resignation until the Standards Commissioner has finished investigating him. The people of Clacton should have all the facts before they cast their votes." Says @eddavey.libdems.org.uk - He’s right!

Reading’s unique full-size replica of the Bayeux Tapestry is 140 years old this year! Visit for free or book a guided tour with one of our expert team. From September you can compare it to the original on display at the other end of the Elizabeth Line in the British Museum! #BayeuxTapestry

now's the time for Reading Museum's full-scale replica of the Bayeux Tapestry to shine

maxwell museums@maxwellmuseums.bsky.social · 3mo ago

I know not a surprise *at all* but with 41,000 people in the queue at this point, presuming the average booking is at least 2 tickets, that's pretty much already more than the number of tickets some BM exhibitions get sold in their entire run.

St Mary’s, Silchester, a stop on latest stage of our attempt to walk the #CaminoIngles or St James Way from Reading to Southampton. Claret 21 from home to Reading, lime 2 to Mortimer, then train back from Bramley. Won’t be able to do more for the time being as the first baby bat came in today!

@bylinetimes.bsky.social the subscription options on your website make no sense - I’m trying to buy a print + digital subscription as a gift which doesn’t seem to be an option?

More alpine flowers, round Big Almaty Lake at 2500m asl - Primula matthioli brotheri, or Himalayan bell primrose; Anemonastrum protractum; Rhodiola kirilowii; Trollius dschungaricus #tienshan #kazakhstan #wildflowers #alpineflowers

Some of the amazing flowers in the Zailiiskiy Alatau NP I’ve tried to identify, first round the abandoned Kosmostantsiya research station at 3330m asl - Allium atrosanguineum, Callianthemum alatavicum, Erigeron aurantiacus & Tulipa heterophylla #tienshan #kazakhstan #wildflowers #alpineflowers

Infrastructure for African mines destroying forests at 34 times the rate of the mines themselves phys.org/news/2026-06...

Infrastructure for African mines destroying forests at 34 times the rate of the mines themselves

Industrial-scale mining in Africa to support global supply chains is leading to unprecedented deforestation across the continent, with 34 hectares of forest removed for every single hectare of active ...

phys.org

Some typical birds of the sandy or rocky deserts in southern Kazakhstan - Isabelline wheatear, red-headed bunting, Turkestan shrike, calandra lark #BirdsSeenIn2026

Sadly a curtailed cold, wet final day in low cloud in the Tien Shan above Almaty. But several good birds, including brown accentor & grey-headed goldfinch and a welcome coffee & hot soup break at the Alpen Rose! #BirdsSeenIn2026 #Kazakhstan

🦇 What does a bat walk actually feel like? We’re looking for a filmmaker to create a short, atmospheric film that brings that experience to life - focusing on sound, light and the shift into darkness, rather than explanation. Read the full brief and how to apply:

Commission: Bat Walk - Dusk into Night - Jobs / Contracts - Bat Conservation Trust

What does a bat walk actually feel like?We’re looking for a filmmaker to create a short, atmospheric film that brings that experience to life - focusing...

bats.org.uk

Good views of a couple of mammals today - a Turkestan red pika (related to rabbits & hares) and lots of grey marmots #kazakhstan #TienShan

Long day in Tien Shan mountains above Almaty today - weather forecast for tomorrow not promising so tried to cram in as much as possible. Walked part way round Big Almaty Lake (reservoir) & had special permission to drive all the way up to abandoned Russian space station near Kyrgyzstan border

A trio of new redstarts today in the #Kazakhstan #TienShan - Eversmann’s (or rufous backed), blue-capped & Guldenstadt’s (or white-winged). Didn’t get a photo of the latter (too busy photographing the interesting alpine flowers) #BirdsSeenin2026

Best food of the trip at Chungzha guest house in Uyghur region of SE Kazakhstan - substantial soup, momo-type dumplings filled with meat & greens with refreshing veggie salad

Spent more than an hour sitting watching birds coming in to a waterhole in Sugaty Plain - sandgrouse (black-bellied & Pallas’s), rock sparrow, Mongolian finch plus various larks, wheatears #BirdsSeenin2026 #Kazakhstan

Today was rosy starling day - a colony of 100s nesting in a cemetery, then lots of tight flocks in a valley in the foothills of the Tien Shan, culminating in 1000s nesting in rocks below the road #BirdsSeenin2026 #Kazakhstan

5am start today to make the most of the relatively cool early morning. Inevitably it was cloudy all day, which combined with being at higher elevations meant we never overheated. Some amazing scenery in Charyn gorge, its various tributaries & the northern foothills of the Tien Shan #Kazakhstan