How will Poland’s new anti-migrant border wall impact the environment?
This article first appeared on the Notes from Poland news portal. Since summer last year, Poland’s border with Belarus has been the scene of a man-made migration crisis created by the Belarusian regime. In response, the Polish government has constructed a five-metre-high wall along around half of the frontier to stymie the flow of those […]
Our new paper: Badgers remain fearless in the face of simulated wolf presence near their setts
Badgers remain fearless in the face of simulated wolf presence near their setts. So suggests our new paper published today in the journal Ecology & Evolution. In this study we investigated whether badgers vary their denning behaviour after perceiving wolves near their setts. We wanted to explore whether the transient presence of wolves shapes badger […]
Nature conservation in the Polish 2023 general election
If nature conservation is important to you, then this post may help you compare the parties’ pledges. I decided to explore what the major parties’ manifestos (programmes) say about nature. —- The manifestos reveal a change in government could welcome a new era for Polish nature. —- All three democratic opposition parties promise big, positive […]
Poland’s exclusion zone on the Belarusian border suspends normal life for residents
Amid unprecedented numbers of migrants crossing its border, the Polish government has established an exclusion zone along its eastern frontier, barring entry to non-residents, journalists and humanitarian NGOs. These unprecedented restrictions have led to a feeling of helplessness in many residents as their normal life is suspended. Despite a recent supreme court ruling that the […]
How the Jodłówka Manor reflects the Białowieża region’s dramatic 20th century history
Hidden in a glade on the outskirts of Białowieża Forest stands a piece of local heritage: a charming abandoned manor whose history is deeply intertwined with the region’s dramatic 20th century. Here follows its story. The manor’s origins The historical landscape in which the manor lies befits the tale. Here a Polish-Belarusian civilisation lives amongst […]
Poland to restart logging in Białowieża Primeval Forest
Straddling the Polish-Belarussian border in northeastern Poland, Białowieża Forest is the last of the vast primeval forest that once stretched across the European lowlands. Strictly protected for centuries by royalty as a private hunting ground, it is now a living museum of ancient natural processes replete with species extinct elsewhere. Yet despite this special status, […]
My favourite books of 2020
During last year’s tedious lockdown months I discovered some wonderful books. Here follow my favourite three. I hope folks will enjoy them as much as I did. The three books One River − by Wade Davis, anthropologist, ethnobotanist and professor at the University of British Columbia. This book is a biography of Davis’ mentor, Prof […]
The story and science behind the recent appearance of a bear in Białowieża Forest
This article first appeared on the Notes from Poland newsblog. Białowieża Forest is Europe’s last primeval forest. The vast expanse of dense woodland on the border between Poland and Belarus is replete with moss-covered trees harbouring species extinct elsewhere. Yet, for all its well-preserved nature, and successful efforts to reintroduce its iconic bison, since the […]
Our new paper about badger denning behaviour in a landscape of fear
The Journal of Zoology recently published our paper entititled ‘Fossoriality in a risky landscape: badger sett use varies with perceived wolf risk’. In it, we analysed how the denning behaviour of the badger varies across the Białowieża Forest landscape. We found that badgers use dens far less often in areas that wolves use intensively, compared […]
Our new paper: bears in Białowieża Forest
We turned a photo of a lonely bear into a ten page scientific paper The paper Our new paper reports the first bear documented on the Polish side of Białowieża Forest since 1963. We give the historical overview of bears in the forest and point out that as the bear population in central Belarus is […]