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The wildlife and wetlands of WWT Steart Marshes

WWT Steart Marshes

In this short film, Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore talks to Alys Laver, WWT Steart Marshes General Manager, about what to expect from a visit including large amounts of wintering birds, salt and freshwater marshes, and plant life. The manmade site was finished in 2014 to compensate for the loss of salt marsh habitat in Somerset … Read more

St Martin-in-the-Fields presents The Conversation: Coming Together to Talk About the World

The Conversation at St Martins-in-the-Fields

Continuing on Tuesdays at 7pm, the 2026 Conversation Spring Series at St Martin-in-the-Fields on Trafalgar Square in London explores the themes of social justice and how we write about the world with curiosity, rigour and a sense of wonder. The series looks at how we can have faith in humane intelligence that searches for knowledge … Read more

Crush the turtle rescued after storm on Jersey

Crush the turtle

The UK airline Loganair transported a very special passenger, ‘Crush’ the loggerhead turtle, recently. As the largest regional airline in the UK, it received special dispensation to fly Crush within the passenger cabin on a scheduled service from Jersey to Southampton. With no temperature control in the cargo hold, Crush had to travel in the … Read more

Learning about animal care with Secret World Wildlife Rescue

A rabbit at the Secret World Animal Rescue conference

Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore recently attended a two-day conference about animal care run by Secret World Wildlife Rescue. Pearse Stokes, a highly experienced Wildlife First Responder and Rescue Coordinator, spoke to the packed audience at the Holiday Inn in Taunton about the importance of filming video of any animal that you find that may need … Read more

Celebrate Valentine’s Day at Stratford Butterfly Farm!

A glasswing butterfly at Stratford Butterfly Farm this Valentine's Day

As the half term holiday (14th – 22nd February 2026) falls over Valentine’s weekend, Stratford Butterfly Farm is inviting families to enjoy the magical experience of wandering through the tropical rainforest filled with colourful butterflies. With fish-filled pools, waterfalls, and lush plants and blooms, the popular family attraction is the perfect place to share a … Read more

Cubs enjoy first Christmas at West Midland Safari Park

WMSP cubs first Christmas

Tiger and red panda cubs at West Midlands Safari Park have been enjoying some early festive treats to celebrate their first Christmas. The youngsters were gifted carefully planned Christmas enrichment by their keepers, with species appropriate treats hidden inside sacks and stockings. The 11-month-old Sumatran tiger cubs, Nova, Nadirah and Naresh, along with their older … Read more

Endangered giraffe calf born at Whipsnade Zoo during meteor shower

Baby giraffe and mum Luna at Whipsnade Zoo

While stargazers were searching the skies for the Leonids meteor display last month, zookeepers at Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire were observing their own other-worldly spectacle – the birth of a giraffe calf. After a 15-month gestation period, the female reticulated giraffe calf was born to aptly named mum Luna at 8:50am on Tuesday 18th November, … Read more

The Alderney gannets

The Alderney gannets

Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore reports again from the tiny Channel Island of Alderney, which punches above its weight when it comes to wildlife. As well as the famous blonde hedgehogs, there are the 4,000-5,000 Northern gannets that nest every year on the rocks of Les Etacs, just off the coast. A reasonable quality of telescope … Read more

The blonde hedgehogs of Alderney

The Alderney blonde hedgehog

Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore got an insight into the wildlife of the island of Alderney on a three-day stay recently. This small island in the Channel Islands group has nevertheless a large and interesting animal population, which includes the unique blonde hedgehog; these tiny albino creatures have become quite a draw for tourists along with the … Read more

Book on the Bird Table: I am BIG I am Small

The book I am Big I am Small

Our next Book on the Bird Table is another wonderful offering from author Vicky Woodgate, I am BIG I am Small, published by Scholastic. Here, she tells us how she came to create a comparison book aimed at early years readers: “Non-fiction for younger children is a great way to open the door to readers … Read more

Meet Wessex Water’s detection dog duo

Wessex Water's detection dog

In this short film, Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore meets Bluey and Bandit, Wessex Water’s newest pollution detection dogs. The cocker spaniels are part of a UK-first team, being trained to sniff out misconnections in sewers to help protect the environment. You can find out more here. Bluey and Bandit’s powerful sense of smell is more … Read more

Book on the Bird Table: The BIG Around-The-World Animal Adventure

The cover of The BIG Around-The-World Animal Adventure

Our latest Book on the Bird Table is The BIG Around-The-World Animal Adventure by author illustrator Vicky Woodgate, which was published this month by Hodder. Here, she shares how she came up with the idea for the book, which is a hop around the world, fun, fact-packed, search-and-find journey! “While searching for pictures of cats … Read more

New track celebrates return of the White-tailed Eagle

Alice Boyd

Musician, sound artist and composer Alice Boyd has released a new single, Return of the White-Tailed Eagle, created in collaboration with the RSPB to mark the 50th anniversary of the successful reintroduction of White-tailed Eagles to the UK. Our largest bird of prey, the species had previously been driven to extinction due to persecution and … Read more

Famous First World War pigeon deserves medal

Pigeon 2709 at the Royal Signals Museum

Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore reports on the amazing story of Pigeon 2709 from the Royal Signals Museum at Blandford, where a campaign has been launched to posthumously award the heroic bird with the PDSA Dickin Medal for its service during World War One. Released to fly a message back to England from France during the … Read more

Alpaca trekking at Loch Ness

Feeding the alpacas on a trek

Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore visits Fiona Cairns to find out more about the walks she offers with her herd of alpacas in Scotland. When she needed to get her fields grazed after she no longer owned a horse, she decided to turn to alpacas. And this change in animals brought a change in her business … Read more

New photobook showcases spectacular birdlife of South America

BotTA Graphic with white backgroud

Acclaimed bird photographer Owen Deutsch and Michael J. Parr, President of the American Bird Conservancy, have joined forces to reveal the incredible bird life of one of the world’s most breathtaking birding regions – the Tropical Andes in South America. Birds of the Tropical Andes, published on 8th July 2025 by Princeton University Press, celebrates the splendour … Read more

Capybaras cool off at Blackpool Zoo

Capybaras swimming at Blackpool Zoo

As the hot weather continues this week, the capybaras at Blackpool Zoo took a break from greeting their adoring fans to cool off in the lake. The supersized rodents have shot to stardom on social media in recent months and the zoo is feeling the capy-craze after it introduced a Capybara Encounter, which became the … Read more

Saving strays in Sri Lanka

Lucas Helps Dogs helps strays in Sri Lanka

In this short film, Discover Animals’ Geoff Moore meets Dorset-based Alena Warburton, who has just headed off on an animal care charity project in Sri Lanka. Her team from ‘Lucas Helps Dogs’ will be neutering and spaying animals living on the streets or owned by poor families. There are millions of cats and dogs living … Read more

Argonne Discovery Park welcomes UK visitors

Loups blancs arctiques Yéti & Claranore

Families from the UK visiting the French Ardennes are being encouraged to visit the Argonne Discovery Park near Vouziers, an ideal place to observe wolves, birds and other wild animals. On the edge of the Argonne forest, the park invites you to meet over 50 animal species. including owls and other birds of prey, raccoons, … Read more

WWT highlights plight of Bewick’s swans

Bewick's swans

Annual swan counts suggest that Britain could have lost up to 43% of its population of Bewick’s swans in just five years. WWT, the charity for wetlands and wildlife, is warning that the species could soon be a rare sight, after only 700 Bewick’s swans and only five cygnets were recorded during annual winter counts. … Read more

The Wildlife Trusts bring magic of rainforests to RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025

Treecreeper (c) Ben Porter

The Wildlife Trusts are creating a British Rainforest Garden, designed by award-winning Zoe Claymore, for RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025. The garden will evoke the lush, wet woodlands that once swathed vast areas of the west coast of the British Isles and is sponsored by grant giving charity, Project Giving Back, and supported by insurer, … Read more

Rare species recorded in New Forest restoration project

The Willow Emerald damselfly - a recent colonist in the New Forest

Nearly 40 rare species have been recorded in the New Forest during a project to restore areas for nature. The species were identified during surveys undertaken by Wild New Forest last year as part of the Species Survival Fund, which is restoring and creating habitats to halt species decline. The surveys were completed at 10 … Read more

Eurasian Lynx could return to Scotland but not through unwelcome illegal releases

European Lynx (Lynx lynx) adult female in winter birch forest, Bardu, Norway

Lynx to Scotland, a three-charity partnership working to restore lynx to the Scottish Highlands, welcomes the humane capture of two Eurasian lynx illegally released in the Cairngorms National Park. Peter Cairns, Executive Director of SCOTLAND: The Big Picture, one of the charities involved, said: “It’s excellent news that experts from the Royal Zoological Society of … Read more

Trio of rare lion cubs born at Whipsnade

Three newborn African lion cubs sleeping peacefully in their den at Whipsnade Zoo

A trio of rare Northern African lion cubs have been born at Whipsnade Zoo in Bedfordshire, marking a huge conservation success for the vulnerable subspecies. Born to three-year-old lioness Winta, and three-year-old dad Malik, the litter of three arrived on 25th November 2024. Footage captured by the conservation zoo‘s ‘cub cam’ CCTV shows attentive mum … Read more

Where to visit animals this Twixmas 2024

Twixmas at Stratford Butterfly Farm

Scratching your head trying to decide how to keep the kids busy this Twixmas? Then why not try these animal-themed ideas: Glow Marwell There’s still time to visit Marwell Zoo in Hampshire this Twixmas, which has been transformed into a stunning illuminated wonderland until 30th December. Glow Marwell 2024 invites guests to immerse themselves in … Read more

The Secret Lives of Animals to debut on Apple TV+

A shot from The Secret Lives of Animals

Apple TV has announced an all-new 10-part docuseries, The Secret Lives of Animals, narrated by SAG Award winner Hugh Bonneville. It highlights 77 unique species in 24 countries over three years, revealing stunning, never-before-seen animal behaviours and highlighting the remarkable intelligence of the natural world. Hailing from the acclaimed BBC Studios Natural History Unit, the … Read more