Environment news

• Country diary 1918: fowls fill dead air with an alive gurgling call

  14-01-2018 23:30 via theguardian.com
  19 January 1918 Ducks waddled across to a narrow outlet, dabbled with their beaks, flopped in, and breasted away from the current, catching an odd flake as it fellSURREY
  Just after daybreak, while snow was falling, the fowls crept from their house, flew into the bare branches of apple trees, and filled the dead air with an alive gurgling call which tells that laying time has come. Ducks waddled across to a narrow outlet where a stream breaks quickly for the river, dabbled with their beaks, flopp
  
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• Country diary: the fells are buzzing with hope

  14-01-2018 18:56 via theguardian.com
  Bannisdale, Cumbria: Thousands of birch, holly, hawthorn, rowan, oak, alder and aspen are being planted to create new habitats and lessen floodingIt was midday, but already the sun was low to the alder-fringed ridge of Dryhowe Pasture. A buzzard passed above the skyline, its underwings and tail stained like December’s landscape: peat-dark, and the paler patches like snow-remnants on winter bracken. A kestrel swerved elegantly into view, then dropped into the top of a birch tree, sunlight f
  
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• Belize bans oil activity to protect its barrier reef

  14-01-2018 11:00 via theguardian.com
  Decision hailed as huge step forward that will safeguard both the marine environment and the country’s lucrative dive tourism industrySome good news for the new year: in what has been called a huge step forward in protecting oceans and marine life, the Belize government has announced bold legislation to end oil activity in all of its waters.The move is designed to protect the fragile Belize Barrier Reef world heritage site, the second-largest in the world after Australia’s and home t
  
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• How flowering plants conquered the world

  14-01-2018 01:12 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists solve Darwin's "abominable mystery": How flowers rapidly evolved and spread across the globe.
  
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• The Observer view on the government’s environment and obesity plans | Observer editorial

  14-01-2018 01:05 via theguardian.com
  Only when she tackles producers and retailers will May have workable strategies on recycling and healthy eatingLast week, Marks & Spencer withdrew the “cauliflower steak” from its shelves. Essentially a thick slice of cauliflower that came with a sachet of lemon and herb drizzle, the product was widely criticised for its excessive plastic packaging and sizable markup, retailing at a “special offer” price of £2.That a retailer thought it saw an opportunity in mar
  
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