News and Opinion - British Ecological Society

From sewage to water consumption: aquatic ecology during coronavirus

Aquatic ecologists were among those who rapidly responded to the coronavirus epidemic, with many examples given at the BES Special Interest Group conference.

Capturing Ecology: Behind the Lens - Top tips for photographers

We've collected together some top tips from the winning photographers of Capturing Ecology.

How to save your planet: UK Schools Outreach Project

During British Science Week 2020 the BES Education Team travelled around England to deliver outreach events in which school pupils learnt more about global environmental challenges and how to solve them.

Wildlife 'porn' or a conservation tool? A summary of our debate on nature documentaries

A panel of producers, presenters and researchers debated the purpose of nature documentaries.

Best of Belfast: highlights from the 2019 Annual Meeting

We have pulled together a summary of our favourite moments from the 2019 Annual Meeting in Belfast.

2019 Annual Meeting Student Prize Winners

We are pleased to announce the winners of the Student Talk and Student Poster Prizes from our 2019 Annual Meeting.

Northern Ireland’s recovering pine marten population benefits red squirrels, but the urban grey squirrel poses a problem

The recovery of pine marten in Ireland and Britain is reversing native red squirrel replacement by invasive grey squirrels

Bumblebees exposed to Chernobyl-levels of radiation consume more nectar

Researchers at Stirling University have found that exposure to chronic low-dose radiation, found in the Chernobyl exclusion zone, negatively affects bumblebee energy use by increasing their metabolic rate and food consumption. The preliminary results will be presented on 12 December at the British Ecological Society Annual Meeting in Belfast.

Local traditional knowledge can be as accurate as 10 years of scientific transect monitoring of animal abundance in the Amazon

New research from a cross-organisational consortium in the Amazon has found indigenous knowledge to be as accurate as scientific transect monitoring.

Study finds that multi-species grassland mixtures increase yield stability, even under drought conditions

In a two-year experiment in Ireland and Switzerland, researchers found a positive relationship between plant diversity and yield stability in intensely managed grassland, even under experimental drought conditions. The results are presented today at the British Ecological Society’s annual meeting in Belfast.

Participation in citizen science camera trap project dramatically increased school children’s knowledge of UK mammals

Children who participated in a citizen science project called MammalWeb, used camera traps to detect wildlife visiting their schools..

Invest in pollinator monitoring for long-term gain

A research team from the University of Reading and the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology is studying how to improve pollinator monitoring in the UK in a cost-effective manner.

2019 Annual Meeting Webinars

The Annual Meeting is just around the corner and in preparation we want to help delegates prioritise, have amazing networking opportunities and avoid burnout.

Field to Fork Festival: insects and the future of food

The BES explored the importance of insects for our food at Field to Fork Festival

Astro-ecology: Counting orangutans using star-spotting technology

Drones fitted with thermal cameras can detect orangutans and other endangered species.