Didn’t we have a lovely time the day we went to Bangor? Yes, we (Alicia Tredwell, Amy Copping, Dez Delahay, Patrick James and Will Trewhella) did have a lovely time at the Mammal Society’s 70th Annual Conference in Bangor (North Wales).
With an overall theme of Science and society; this was two packed days of inspiring keynote speakers, workshops, networking and much more, with RSK Biocensus as headline sponsor for the whole event. The full programme can be seen here.
With one quarter of native mammals now at risk of extinction in Britain, the conference programme chartered the ups and downs of British (and other) mammals. We learned, amongst other things, that:
• the North Atlantic Right Whale is Critically Endangered, with only ~370 left in the world and threatened by entanglement in fishing gear;
• common small mammals are often under-surveyed, but specially adapted camera traps (as discussed by the Cornwall Mammal Group) on boxes are best for recording these species;
• public perception is critical for conservation programmes such as those involving grey squirrel control to help red squirrels, and those investigating the feasibility of lynx reintroductions in the North of England and Scottish Borders;
• conservation survey dogs are cute but their needs to be standardisation in their training;
• Citizen Science is a powerful tool for conservation, especially for cetacean monitoring;
• whiskers are wonderful;
• although otter numbers are recovering, they have significant levels of PCBs and other ‘forever chemicals’;
• pine marten populations are continuing to recover;
• acoustic lures can be used in mitigation to lead bats away from potential impacts, though there is the risk of attracting predatory owls;
• the greater white-toothed shrew is a non-native shrew found around Durham;
• it might be possible to eradicate American mink. Intensive trapping in East Anglia using ‘smart traps’ has all but eradicated mink, and by extending the programme outwards and joining up with trapping areas in the south east and south west, wider eradication is possible, which would be good news for water voles;
• and the conference ended on a high note with an inspiring presentation by the young Dylan Allman (a Mammal Society Youth Ambassador) on hedgehog populations. Even though numbers are declining, there is hope for hedgehogs in urban areas, and Dylan has persuaded building suppliers to produce hedgehog friendly fencing (with gaps at the base) and strimmer manufacturers to fit machinery with labels warning about hedgehogs.
There was RSK Biocensus involvement in the programme, with Dez chairing a session and providing the conference with an update on research projects that the Mammal Society is involved in, and a poster presentation “Investigating the performance of artificial badger setts”, by Dani Sherman, Patrick James, Will Trewhella, Gavin Wilson and Dez Delahay, launching our initiative to collect and analyse information on the use of artificial badger setts following sett exclusions.
There was useful networking opportunities with NRW staff, and opportunities to view new survey equipment and books, including the hot off the press Hazel Dormouse Conservation Handbook and the Hazel Dormouse Mitigation Handbook. Social opportunities included the Mammal Society’s annual quiz (sadly the RSK Biocensus attendees relinquished being champions from last year’s Cambridge conference) and the Conference Dinner.
If you are not already a member of the Mammal Society, then why not think about joining now? You can get involved in surveys and research, join your local group, access a range of training events, and generally help mammal conservation in the UK. More information on membership can be found here.