Motion-activated Camera Footage of Bechstein’s Bat
This footage of Bechstein’s bats at a tree roost in Gloucestershire was captured by BSG Principal Ecologist Gareth Lang.
23 November, 2020
News & Views
BSG Ecology & Tawnywood Highly Commended for Best Biodiversity Enhancement at the Brownfield Awards 2020
We are delighted to announce that BSG Ecology and Tawnywood have been Highly Commended for the Best Biodiversity Enhancement award at the Brownfield Awards 2020. The Brownfield Awards are dedicated to acknowledging best practice in the brownfield, regeneration and contaminated land industry.
20 November, 2020
Black Wind Turbines: the way forward for reducing avian collision risk?
A recent paper entitled ‘Paint it black: Efficacy of increased wind turbine rotor blade visibility to reduce avian fatalities[1],’ was widely reported by the UK media. Reports stated that a reduction of over 70% in bird fatalities could be expected as a result of changing the colour of turbine blades, thereby making them more visible to birds. In this article BSG Ecology Director Owain Gabb provides a short non-technical review of the paper, and comments on its potential relevance to UK schemes.
18 November, 2020
Promoting The Profession: John Baker Chartered Ecologist
John Baker, Senior Ecologist, has been awarded Chartered Ecologist status by the Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (CIEEM).
11 November, 2020
Promotion of the profession: Careers advice to University of Derby students
BSG Ecology’s Kirsty Kirkham (Director) and Emma Bruce (Ecologist) presented an online talk on Working in Ecological Consultancy to students from University of Derby’s School of Environmental Sciences on 4 November 2020.
06 November, 2020
Supporting Professional Development: Invertebrate Survey Training
Training provision during 2020 has been significantly complicated by Covid-19. To address this, we have attempted to integrate job-related work with training wherever possible. One such initiative has seen Dr Jim Fairclough, our lead entomologist, providing training to staff based in South Wales, Derbyshire and Newcastle in invertebrate survey.
05 November, 2020
Bat Conservation Trust re-launch Bat Roost Award
The Bat Conservation Trust (BCT) have re-launched the Roost Awards to promote best practice bat roost mitigation and enhancement. The BCT are inviting entries of case studies which demonstrate best practice in surveys / initial data collection, design and planning, monitoring and lessons learned /...
05 October, 2020
What Are We Looking For In A Graduate Ecologist?
This article aims to provide guidance to students, graduates and early career ecologists on the skill sets they might seek to develop, and how to set themselves apart from their peers in a highly competitive job market. It is an updated version of the article last...
25 September, 2020
Use of Technology to Enhance Ecological Data Collection: Footage from Recent Survey Work
In some circumstances the use of technology such as remote-activated cameras can significantly improve the quality of ecological data collected and the confidence in the outcome of mitigation, while also saving money for our clients through a more cost-effective and less labour intensive approach to work. Some recent examples are outlined below, along with the footage captured in each instance.
30 July, 2020
BSG Ecology Short-Listed For Brownfield Awards 2020 – Best Biodiversity Enhancement
BSG Ecology is delighted to have been short-listed in the Brownfield Awards’ Best Biodiversity Enhancement category. The Best Biodiversity Enhancement Award is for the “demonstration of respect for local ecosystems in a brownfield project, with long-term planning to enhance biodiversity and amenity value.”
22 July, 2020
Monitoring Demonstrates the Success of Bat Mitigation
BSG Ecology has recently provided support to Ford and Etal Estates with regard to the renovation of estate cottages in the village of Ford, Northumberland. An initial appraisal suggested the cottages provided good roosting opportunities for bats due to both their age and setting. Bat surveys then found small bat roosts in a number of the cottages, and that one supported a maternity roosts of 270 soprano pipistrelle bats and 57 brown long-eared bats.
17 July, 2020
Delivering Biodiversity Gain and Connection with Nature: the work of Celtic Wildflowers
In late 2019 BSG Ecology made a substantial donation to Celtic Wildflowers, a Swansea-based company set up for the purpose of providing plants of local provenance for habitat restoration / creation projects and development-related mitigation work. Our assistance helped them to purchase a large new polytunnel needed to expand growing space and meet increasing demand for plants.
07 July, 2020