A little bird told me…

Edition: Restore Our Rivers

Newsletter blog by Joshua Harris

You can really immerse yourself in a river. Both literally of course, but also by observing the physical and biological activity which is taking place there. Rivers, and aquatic environments in general, have an extra dimension of living space for organisms to occupy – the water. So you have these three kinds of living space in close proximity: the trees and other plants along the river banks; the aquatic world of algae, aquatic plants, and riverbed life; and the air in the river channel along which the kingfishers and dippers zoom. 

Then there are the connections between these different realms: the caddisfly larvae under the rocks on the bottom of the stream which feed aerial dippers; the bats which roost under the bark of the dead trees and feast on the emerging midges; the kingfishers which zoom up and down the tunnel of air between the riverbanks and the overhanging vegetation; the deer, foxes, and badgers which come from land to drink at the river. 

In lockdown, as many people have got to know their local areas more intimately, rivers are the perfect way to explore a landscape. And since the UK has 200,000km of rivers and streams, you are never too far away from the opportunity. In last year’s lockdown, I spent many days exploring my local network of rivers and streams to search for evidence of a certain elusive mammal. Often dragging my kayak through streams little wider than ditches, clambering over weirs and woody debris, and keeping undercover of the overhanging vegetation, I was really immersed in the environment, seeing it from the perspective of the creatures which live there. In small streams with high banks, you can’t see anything either side; on one day, I travelled for about 10 miles barely encountering any signs of human activity. On other occasions I have spent hours sitting half submerged in the river to photograph dippers from the water level, passing the time by watching the minnows congregating around my legs and the kingfishers zooming past my head. 

Rivers are amazing, and you can get lost in exploring the diversity of life they hold, but our rivers today are a shadow of their former selves. The river which I spent my summer exploring is polluted on a near weekly basis in winter by sewage discharges whenever there is heavy rain, as well as slurry and fertiliser pollution from farming. A report last year found that just 14% of English rivers were classified as being in “good” ecological condition, and none any better than that. It’s often said that wildlife populations are nearing a cliff edge, but in the case of British migratory fish, they’ve pretty much already fallen off. The 8 foot long sturgeon which once migrated up our rivers are long gone, eels are critically endangered, and salmon are almost extinct in most rivers. Medieval records tell us of the almost inconceivable abundance of migratory fish which once thronged our river systems and marshlands, in numbers which would once have rivalled those we see in western north America today.

To restore our rivers we’ll need a variety of approaches. Removing dams and weirs would allow migratory fish to journey unimpeded from sea to source, and reinstate some of the natural hydrology – meanders, gravel banks, eroded river cliffs, etc. At the same time, reintroducing beavers (whose dams are porous and often have side channels, allowing migratory fish to pass) could kickstart interesting hydrological processes and create wildlife habitats in our headwater streams, as well as holding back the flow of water after heavy rain. We urgently need proper regulation of the farming industry and water companies, as well as the adoption of better farming techniques (zero till farming, buffer strips, and the reduction of livestock numbers adjacent to watercourses), and better infrastructure for dealing with sewage.

We should also allow more public access to rivers so that people can engage with them. Currently a shocking 97% of rivers are off limits to wild swimming and kayaking. If we could implement a 20m buffer zone either side of our rivers and streams with no cultivation or chemical applications, and then allow public access to these areas, then this could form corridors for people and wildlife through the landscape. 

River restoration provides huge benefits for both nature and people – diverse wildlife habitats, recreation, flood alleviation, and ecological connectivity. With some fairly simple changes we could all enjoy living rivers. 

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April 28, 2021 brendenbeckett A little bird told me, Blog, Newsletter, Our member! No Comments  

The power of Awe: How nature changed my outlook on my place in the world

By Ella Gregory

Nature has an almost hidden power to elicit grand emotions from us. This concept, in literature, is called the sublime and is defined by the Tate as ‘a quality of greatness or grandeur that inspires awe and wonder…a source of inspiration for artists and writers, particularly in relation to the natural landscape.‘

This feeling of reverence, one that is so consuming it is almost indescribable, has featured in many great works of art and literature, including The Prelude by William Wordsworth and Romantic art, like that of Joseph Mallord William Turner. Works of art that capture the sublime have the power to produce overwhelmingly strong reactions from the observer, usually accompanied by a recognition of how small we as individuals are. 

The truly magical thing is that nature inherently has this power, without needing to be sculpted or created nature can remind us simultaneously of how small and how important we are. This reaction is characterised by a feeling of awe, sometimes including both a fearful feeling and one of great amazement.

Awe surpasses the traditional dichotomy of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ emotions and offers a unique experience. A lot of research has been done into the importance of feeling awe, the effects it can have on our life and outlook. “Awe walks” are an activity that we can all take part in and have shown to “reduce self-focus, promote social connection, and foster prosocial actions by encouraging a ‘small self‘.” Awe is an emotion, that one we open ourselves up fully, can be felt in most areas of life, but it is most easily felt when we are in nature.

A truly incredible example of an awe-inspiring experience is described by ‘The Overview Effect’. It is an experience had by astronauts viewing the Earth from space, that promotes greater clarity and interconnectedness. Some of these astronauts went on to experience profound shifts in their worldview that stayed throughout their lives. Edgar Mitchell, an astronaut on Apollo 14, described the effects of seeing the Earth from space: “You develop an instant global consciousness, a people orientation, an intense dissatisfaction with the state of the world, and a compulsion to do something about it. From out there on the moon, international politics look so petty. You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, ‘Look at that, you son of a bitch.” He spoke about it being an ‘epiphany’ and that the feeling of being in a ‘larger reality’ inspired him to change his life back on Earth. Most importantly Allen felt that his ‘role in the universe completely shifted. I saw myself as part of a bigger cosmic picture.’ This inspired him to think about our global lack of sustainability, which should worry us all, and realise that what could combat this is a ‘love of nature’ and ‘love of each other’.

The feeling of awe for many has a direct spiritual connection. It is a key feature of mystical experiences, and the feeling of vastness and oneness is one typically embraced by those following a spiritual path. However, this new research into awe is showing us that it needn’t be reserved for those who believe in some sort of higher power, and that awe has the ability to help us shape a kinder society for all. It has also been suggested that awe-inspiring experiences can open us up to further personal growth.

I have experienced this myself through meditating and walking in nature. The ‘vastness’ that often accompanies these experiences is both terrifying and humbling and I have walked away with a renewed sense of my place in the world and a determination to do good.

These benefits of awe show us another reason why greater access for nature is needed. We should all have the chance to improve ourselves and to feel such beneficial emotions. This is why our campaign ‘Nature Nearby’ is so important, we are calling on the UK government for better access to nature so that people across the UK have access to nature’s benefits, of which awe is one of many.

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April 19, 2021 brendenbeckett Nature Nearby, Our member!, Power of, Uncategorized No Comments  

The Power of parks

By Monica Bhatia

Some people may question, “What’s so special about a park?”. Even though the idea of stretches of green grass and stoney paths may be seen as boring to some, these places are the ones we can always rely on; they are always free, often accessible, and have been one of the safest and only places we have been able to turn to for the past year or so. Not to be stereotypical and discuss the revelations I have had during this lockdown, but many months after not leaving my home, I stumbled across a park that is a one minute drive from my home – I have lived in the same house all of my life and I never knew this place existed – and since then, going for a quick lap around this park has been the highlight of my days and weeks. It provided me with a place to exercise, a place to think and breathe, and a place to get away. Parks feed the nation with so many rich benefits, and in this post I am going to discuss a mere few of the beautiful gifts that parks provide us with. 

Physical health – run, walk, cycle or jog, these parks provide paths that allow us to get our steps in in an environment that is peaceful and calm. Different routes allow for different amounts of exercise, and in addition to this, many parks are fitted with gym equipment! You can easily argue that one could simply walk down the street for their daily walk, buy some home exercise equipment or head to the gym for a work out, yet there is something about parks that makes the often daunting idea of working out more comfortable. Walking down the street is great, but the thing about streets is it is often just houses after houses – this almost mundane surrounding can lead to demotivation when it comes to exercise, yet in a park, there is always the option to try something new! You can take a new path each time, or even if you choose to take the same one, I guarantee there will always be something new there that wasn’t there the day before – this could be as simple as a new bug or bird sound, or something drastic and beautiful like the colours of the leaves on trees changing – either way, this ever changing environment can be the factor that motivates people to visit and therefore exercise in parks every day. In regards to working out in the gym or in your homes, I understand that a lot of people almost feel embarrassed about working out in front of regular gym goers or family, but in parks there is a certain comfort in knowing that everyone is here to do the same thing – just go for an easy walk! In addition to this, if you’re lucky you will have a dog run up to you, and I can’t think of anything more motivational than that. 

My go to walk route in my local park!

Mental health. This is what I have gained the most from these parks. The quiet, the fresh air, and the open space combined provides an environment perfect for organising your thoughts, or given that parks create a world separate to the crowded urban streets, the option to leave your worries at the gate and get back to them when you’re ready. Whenever I find myself stressed, I often get so frustrated that I can’t make myself feel better where I am in the house – I ask myself “why do I need to go somewhere to clear my head?” – but that’s precisely the issue. You cannot make yourself feel better in the environment that is stressing you out, from the mound of homework laying on your desk to the loud hustle and bustle going on in your kitchen, to feel better, you need to get away from the source of worry. I can fully admit that now, sitting at my laptop with a huge to do list of tasks ahead of me, that a simple 10 minutes outside would make me feel miles better.

I remember exactly how I felt when I took this one! I’d been sitting at home for 3 days straight, and felt so demotivated. I went to the park to get a break and saw the blossoms and remembered it was the beginning of spring! And while I was still stressed, simply seeing the blossoms provided me with a mental boost.

Hobbies and education. The fact that something as simple as a space full of grass and trees could open up so many doors and interests is mind boggling! While these links may not seem direct, the sheer beauty of a park can stimulate something in us creatives, this thing being inspiration! The colours, sounds, and feelings you can gain while in your park can fuel you with ideas to put in a vast array of things you do, whether it’s the things you do for fun such as music or art, or the things you have to do such as school assignments or projects – I’m an A Level student, and I can find myself in a biology lesson learning about anything from photosynthesis to the food web and I can actually think to myself “wait – I’ve seen this happen!” even if it was simple observing a leaf or seeing a bird gobble up a worm. I think a huge, direct hobby that I have gained from my parks is photography – not even anything special; I strolled into the park with nothing but my phone camera, and I left with a gallery full of pictures that were fairly decent, and since then whenever I go somewhere where there is a chance of coming across a spot of nature, a camera is always at the ready – this may seem simple, or uninteresting to some, but having this simple hobby to fall back on that has no commitments, pressure, and is free of charge provides me with so much joy. 

Finding moss in the park gives me an example of a component of a woodland area when studying ecosystems!

Community – this links to my last point. Let’s just say, if you’re a nature lover, that instantly makes you part of a pretty cool community – as I started to post the pictures mentioned above on my social media, I found myself being embraced into a community of wildlife photographers that I didn’t even know existed – the ability to talk, text and share with talented photographers all across the globe was a blessing in a time where I couldn’t even leave the house to see friends, and none of this would have happened had I not ventured into a park and took some simple photographs.  

One of my favourite bits of nature photography.

To conclude, I want to acknowledge how lucky I am to have a park on my doorstep – I understand that this is a privilege that not many have (if you’d like to help us ensure that this isn’t the case, keep up with our Nature Nearby campaign, we are all over the idea of equal access to nature like a rash!), yet if you are one of the lucky ones, all I can say is go. No commitments or anything, but just go for a little bit of your day, and I promise you that there will be something incredible to gain.

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April 9, 2021 brendenbeckett Our member!, Power of, Uncategorized No Comments