The boards of UK businesses need to start treating the natural environment as a core strategic priority, according to new guidance from the Institute of Sustainability and Environmental Professionals and the Aldersgate Group.

Placing Nature on the Board Agenda supports efforts to incorporate nature into business strategy and warns that environmental degradation now poses material risks to business resilience, financial performance and long-term value creation.

The guide follows the release of The Boardroom Briefing on Nature, discussion paper and resources from the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ (Defra), which urges UK businesses to unlock millions of pounds in saving and new growth opportunities by putting nature at the heart of boardroom decisions.

Salty water could be preventing the recovery of the Natterjack Toad, one of the UK’s rarest amphibians, by making former breeding sites unsuitable for their survival.

The Natterjack Toad is found in a handful of locations across the UK.

In Scotland, there is just one remaining population in the RSPB Mersehead Nature Reserve on the Solway Coast.

Scientists have found that water from former breeding sites in south west Scotland was linked to failed hatching, smaller growth and altered development.

A project aiming to revive an area of coastal seagrass beds to help tackle climate change is "seeing the start of growth", the team behind the venture say.

Cumbria Wildlife Trust is bidding to restore a meadow covering 5.5 hectares in the Barrow area and has so far planted about 16,000 seeds.

The scheme, which got under way in 2024 and will run until at least 2029, involves planting near Roa Island in the Walney Channel.

A pioneering three-year funded project that fused cutting-edge artificial intelligence with boots-on-the-ground conservation has come to a successful end – leaving behind over 60 hectares of restored pollinator habitat and a blueprint for the future of wildlife monitoring.

Space4Nature, a collaboration between Buglife, Surrey Wildlife Trust, the University of Surrey and Painshill Park, and funded by People’s Postcode Lottery’s Dream Fund, has spent three years working with new technologies and approaches to nature recovery – combining high-resolution satellite imagery, citizen science and machine learning to revolutionise how we understand and monitor habitats.

The results speak for themselves. Across 22 sites throughout Surrey, the project has delivered more than 60 hectares of enhanced pollinator-friendly habitat – wildflower meadows, heathlands, wetlands and hedgerows – deploying over £100,000 to connect Buglife’s B-Lines: the network of insect pathways that threads through our countryside, creating connection and hope for the UK’s wildlife.

A building that was a noted nesting site for swifts, among the UK’s most at-risk birds, has been demolished during the nesting season, highlighting significant weaknesses in the protection of wildlife from development, campaigners say.

Contractors for the housebuilder Hill Group carried out the demolition of Regent House near Dorking station in Surrey over the last few weeks, during the nesting season which runs from 1 March to 31 August.

Footage captured last week shows swifts attempting to return to nests in the building, which was known to be home to one of the largest populations of the birds in the Mole Valley area in Surrey. They approach and then repeatedly turn away because their nests are no longer there.

Puffins, dolphins and bumblebees are among the wildlife that could feature on new banknotes in the UK as the Bank of England announces its shortlist.

There has been controversy over the decision, with figures including Nigel Farage criticising the Bank for, he claimed, wanting to replace Winston Churchill with a beaver. The Conservative leader, Kemi Badenoch, said it was “a silly thing to do”, and Reform UK’s Farage called it “absolutely crackers”. In the end, no beaver appeared on the shortlist. Mammal options include bottlenose dolphins and red foxes.

However, it is primarily an anti-counterfeiting measure. Announcing the consultation, the Bank defended the decision and said banknotes were updated periodically to incorporate the newest security and accessibility features.

Driving through part of Northumberland, you might look around at the tall Sitka spruce and imagine yourself in Canada’s evergreen forests, or perhaps, on a sunny day, in northern California. Instead, you are in England’s largest forest, Kielder, often heralded as a success story that balances commercial production with ambitious conservation.

The first trees of this 60,000-hectare forest were planted 100 years ago with one aim: increasing Britain’s timber reserves. Much has changed since then. From a single-use plantation, Kielder Forest has been transformed into a haven for nature and an invaluable environmental asset.

In the spring of 1926, the newly created Forestry Commission was tasked with solving a security issue that had emerged during the first world war: with Britain’s woodland cover at a record low of 5%, and timber an essential building resource, the UK needed more trees.

Job opportunities, collaboration and nature recovery show promise for the national commitment to restore Scotland’s degraded peatlands.

On the day (Tuesday 2 June) the world celebrates the importance of healthy peatlands, the annual Peatland ACTION review has revealed that 15,448 hectares of peatland restoration – the equivalent of nearly 30,000 football pitches – was achieved in Scotland through the partnership in 2025. This total is over 3,000ha above the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government target for 2025/26.

Healthy peatlands are carbon sinks, estimated to hold the equivalent of 140 years’ worth of the country’s total annual greenhouse gas emissions. Scotland has around 2million hectares of them, but they are currently one of our largest degraded ecosystems making them a contributor to climate change if we don’t restore them.

‘Hold your nerve and trust nature’: birds, bats and butterflies rebound at Somerset rewilding farm

Letting nature take over at a former dairy farm has resulted in a surge of species in just three years Patrick Barkham Mon 1 Jun 2026 14.55 CEST Prefer the Guardian on Google

Three years of rewilding on a former dairy farm in east Somerset have led to the number of recorded bird species soaring from 67 to 94, butterfly species rising from 11 to 24 and small mammals growing in number.

Heal Somerset, the first site acquired by the charity Heal Rewilding, has produced a state of nature report mirroring a national survey by environmental charities that has tracked the decline in nature.

Surveys at the 190-hectare (460 acres) farm are revealing the rate at which wildlife returns after conventional agriculture stops. A humane trapping survey found the site was home to five small mammal species compared with three at a nearby organic dairy farm.

On Ross Sands in Northumberland, a little tern has caught sight of a group of people and is sprinting across the beach. “It wants us to follow it,” says Andrew Craggs, senior manager at Lindisfarne national nature reserve. “It’s a diversionary thing – it’s got a scrape and it wants to take us away because it thinks we’re predators.”

Craggs is no predator, and he’s not after the scrape – a small pit the ground-nesting bird has dug into the sand to lay its eggs. He is a guardian of these little birds, as well as more than 3,500 hectares (8,600 acres) of sand dunes, saltmarsh and mudflats that make up this tranquil nature reserve perched on the tip of England’s north-east coast.

Terns, as well as the ringed plovers that nest on these shores, need protecting. According to the British Trust for Ornithology’s Seabird Monitoring Project, the UK’s little tern breeding abundance – the number of birds returning to breed each year – dropped 19% between 1986 and 2024. Arctic terns were down 25% over the same period, and the number of common terns plummeted 63%. Lindisfarne is important for all three species, which migrate here from across the globe to breed. The little tern spends the winter in west Africa before flying thousands of miles to arrive in the UK in April.

A pioneering drone seed-spreading trial has taken to the skies above the Peak District, as the “LIFE in the Ravines” project led by Natural England explores innovative new ways to restore precious ravine woodlands devastated by ash dieback disease.

The trial, believed to be one of the first of its kind in a steep, compact ravine woodland setting, used specially designed drones to spread a mix of native tree seeds across a 0.75-hectare plot at Dovedale and a similar area at Lathkill Dale. The seeds, including field maple, wych elm, alder, small-leaved lime, birch, rowan, yew, goat willow, crab apple and holly, have been carefully selected from the project planting palette for ravine woodland restoration.

The steep, rocky sides of Dovedale and Lathkill Dale present a major challenge for conservation teams. While traditional tree planting and seeding has been carried out across the Peak District Dales as part of the wider project, and by the teams at Natural England and the National Trust, some slopes are simply too dangerous or difficult to work on by hand. Drones offer a potentially safe, efficient and cost-effective alternative, mimicking the natural way seeds would disperse if mature trees were already present.

The Scottish Seabird Centre has today published a new report warning that Scotland’s seabirds are under increasing pressure and calling for an end to licensing of the guga hunt on Sula Sgeir. This follows news this week that a new application for a license has been made for 2026.

The report highlights concerns over recent declines in gannet populations, the lasting impacts of avian influenza, and the risk of disturbance to other vulnerable seabirds, including the highly protected Leach’s storm petrel. It concludes that current licensing decisions are being made despite significant gaps in scientific evidence and growing uncertainty about the long-term resilience of seabird populations.

The report recommends ending the hunt and calls for stronger seabird monitoring, improved scientific modelling, and greater transparency in future decision making. It recognises the cultural importance of the hunt to the Ness community and calls for collaborative support for cultural heritage and community-led conservation initiatives.

There are early signs that 2026 may be a 'Painted Lady year', with large numbers of the butterfly being reported in Britain during the second half of May.

A migrant species, Painted Lady undertakes a long-distance migration from North Africa, although no single individual completes it – instead, successive generations breed, emerge and continue northward.

Each year, numbers vary dramatically. Roughly once a decade, a spectacular influx occurs. During the legendary 'Painted Lady year' of 2009, an estimated 11 million butterflies arrived on our shores, a phenomenon repeated in 2019.

Footage of an endangered bird with a nest and eggs has been described as "remarkable".

A video of the curlew was posted on social media by the Sliabh Beagh Curlew Conservation Trust on Saturday.

The Trust said: "For a species that has declined by over 98% in Ireland since the 1980s, this is a genuinely significant and hopeful conservation milestone."

When the Hindhead Tunnel opened in 2011 it was said to have "surpassed expectations" by finally removing one of the worst bottlenecks on the A3.

But its more significant legacy may be environmental - by taking the road under the landscape instead of through it, the project sparked one of the most successful rewilding projects in southern England.

The A3 cut directly across Hindhead Common and the Devil's Punch Bowl, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and one of the largest remaining areas of lowland heath in the South East.

As a recent study revealed almost half of UK adults now spend less than three hours a week in natural settings such as gardens, parks, fields or woods, we asked readers to tell us about what being outside means to them.

The replies – heartfelt and passionate – came flooding in, with some admitting they just did not have the words to say how important it is.

“It’s my happy place, my therapy and a reason to slow down and pause during my busy week,” wrote Hannah Powell from Perrywood garden centres. “I HAVE to look at plants every day. I notice every change in the garden. I sit facing the garden for my breakfast. I look out for nature on the way to work (recently seeing a little owl, red kites, foxes, hares, and more). It helped me get better when I had burnout and FND in London. I wouldn’t (couldn’t) be without it.”

A new species of "killer fungus" has been discovered in Britain that destroys an aggressively invasive plant, raising hopes that decimated native habitats could be restored.

It infects the heath-star moss that is damaging UK environments by taking over and turfing out other species.

Scientists say it could represent a rare fightback by the British environment against invasive species.

Ian Hughes and his son, Ben, are driving through the hills of north Wales with an array of homemade animal artefacts rattling around their car: diagrams, plaster casts, hand-printed T-shirts. They finally reach Llyn Tegid – Bala Lake in English – where, knee-deep in the water, Ian brandishes two glutinous snails.

It is a mollusc the size of a fingertip. It is also one of Europe’s most endangered species, which Ian has dedicated himself to protecting. “It’s beyond passion,” he says. “It’s an obsession.”

Glutinous snails get their name for the gelatinous, golden-flecked tissue that protects their shell. Because they live in low-calcium habitats, the shell is extremely delicate, so Hughes uses a fine paintbrush to move them from one place to another.

A promising recovery in Barn Owl numbers is emerging across Suffolk, following one of the poorest breeding seasons in recent years.

n 2025, conservationists monitoring 42 nest boxes across the 6,000-acre Wilderness Reserve recorded just two chicks successfully fledging.

The decline reflected a wider national trend, with Barn Owl breeding activity estimated to be around 25 per cent below average.

Having enjoyed setting up bird boxes with his father as a child, the wildlife artist Robert Fuller wanted to go one step further. While he happily spent hours making the boxes and dotting them around the Yorkshire Wolds, he found it tantalising that he was unable to see exactly what the nesting owls, kestrels and kingfishers were up to.

It transpires Fuller was not alone in his curiosity. His YouTube channel, which livestreams footage from his artificial habitats and documents his love of British nature, is about to hit a million global subscribers. His channel now generates on average 2.8m monthly views.

The only pair of breeding ospreys in the south of England have successfully hatched their fourth and final egg of the season.

Female CJ7 and male 022 laid four eggs at their nest site near Poole Harbour, Dorset, in April for the third year in a row.

The birds took up residence in the area following a reintroduction programme led by Birds of Poole Harbour.

Thousands of wildfires engulfed England and Wales last year, burning nearly 120,000 acres of countryside.

Homes were evacuated, crops burned and the habitat of rare birds in places including Derbyshire and Staffordshire was destroyed.

With Britain sweltering in record temperatures recently, wildfires are continuing. A fire last week broke out on the side of Arthur’s Seat, the near-wilderness in the middle of Edinburgh, with the fire service battling the blaze for two days.

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Ministers urge City of London to act over swimmers in Hampstead Heath wildlife ponds

Exclusive: Local authority asked what steps it is taking after hordes of splashing revellers seen disturbing nesting birds Helena Horton Sat 30 May 2026 11.00 CEST Prefer the Guardian on Google

Ministers have written to the City of London demanding it stop people from swimming in a protected pond on Hampstead Heath, after disturbing scenes of cygnets and eggs being disrupted went viral on social media.

Swans and their 12-day-old cygnets were disturbed by hordes of splashing revellers in the north London park on Monday as temperatures reached a record 35C in the capital. In one video, a swan was seen poking an unhatched egg with its beak after it fell into the water during the chaos.

Conservationists responded with dismay after a video was shared on social media of the scenes which the the City of London, the local authority that owns Hampstead Heath, called “utterly appalling”.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency’s (APHA’s) National Wildlife Management Centre at Woodchester Park in Gloucestershire is marking 50 years of wildlife science protecting animals, humans, and the environment.

The centre brings together scientists, vets, ecologists and pathologists working at the intersection of wildlife health, farm animal health, human health and environmental protection.

The work carried out over the last half century has spanned some of the most pressing challenges facing nature and agriculture. This includes developing badger vaccination programmes to protect wildlife and livestock from bovine TB, monitoring emerging diseases in wildlife before they can impact farming or public health, tracking environmental threats from pollutants and toxins, and tackling invasive non-native species.

A major conservation effort is helping species across the New Forest thrive.

Bats, eels, reptiles, and dragonflies are just a few of the thousands of species benefiting from the £1.3 million species survival fund project, a two-year scheme aimed at reversing species decline and boosting habitat resilience in the New Forest National Park.

Led by the New Forest National Park Authority (NPA), the project brought together five partner organisations to restore and enhance habitats across 320 hectares at 31 sites.