Nature
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The 'Sheffield Chainsaw Massacre' inquiry report: 227 pages of dishonesty and shocking behaviour
The destruction and removal of thousands of healthy trees in Sheffield sparked protests and recriminations that lasted years — and whose effects are still felt in the city. Will the publication of the independent inquiry's report put the controversy to bed? James Fisher reports.
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Jonathan Self: 'Everyone deserves to engage with Nature, but enough is enough'
Jonathan Self muses on birds with bad sense of direction, militant ramblers and the plight of a camel-herding nomad.
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The 870-mile Wales Coastal Path cost £14.6 million — and it's truly money well spent
Walking along the cliffs in Ceredigion fires up Fiona Reynolds — next stop, Wales’s entire coastal path?
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Celandine: The delicate flower, harbinger of spring, which Wordsworth thought more beautiful than daffodils
Lauded by Wordsworth for their ‘glittering countenance’, the appearance of the first celandines and the swallow’s return to our shores are Ian Morton’s favourite, and much anticipated, harbingers of spring.
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A day in the life of an oak tree, from mistle thrush in the morning to mice at midnight
Among their deceptively inert branches, trees shelter feathered Pavarottis, scuttling beetles, opportunistic fungi and fierce owls. John Lewis-Stempel recounts a day in the life of an oak and the creatures that call it home.
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Carla Carlisle: Thirty years ago, our farm was on life support. It now thrives — and has 45 people on the payroll
Jeremy Clarkson's travails in farming are as well documented — by himself, in his television series — as they are turbulent. But having embarked on a similar journey herself a generation ago, our columnist Carla Carlisle has words of encouragement.
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Curious Questions: Can you hear the Northern Lights?
The Northern Lights — or Aurora Borealis — are among the planet's most extraordinary natural phenomena. Even stranger than their ethereal glow, however, is the fact that they can be heard as well as seen. Martin Fone explains more.
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Frogs: Why we love them, why we don't, and the real-life Kermit frog
Once a symbol of fertility and more recently a figure of fun, the frog has always loomed large in folklore, and not only as a means of finding a prince.
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The birds that mate for life — and the birds that belong in a Jilly Cooper novel
Birds have a reputation for mating for life — and for some species, that's true. Others, though, are much more like humans when it comes to romance: some looking for stable relationships, and others behave in a way which would make even an avid Tinder user blush. Stephen Moss explains all.
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Fallow Deer: Britain's most beautiful deer
Shy and elegant — yet far more hardy than its fragile appearance implies — the spotty-coated fallow deer is now more common than ever, despite only establishing itself on these shores when the Normans arrived, says Simon Lester.
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What is witches' broom, and how does it form?
Martin Fone looks into one of the most curious — and curiously named — natural phenomena visible on a country walk in Britain.
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The Ford Fiesta that dreamed it was Noah's Ark
Joe Gibbs tells a tale of roadkill, sporrans and the protected species who can circumvent an electric fence as stealthily as a cat burglar.
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John Lewis-Stempel: Glimmers of Nature's beauty, even amid a month-long downpour
After days of incessant January rain, the chicken paddock has turned into a quagmire, ghost ponds have resurfaced and a sheep has come close to drowning. But there's joy to be found even despite all that, says John Lewis-Stempel.
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United to save our plants — and stop another eco-tragedy like ash dieback disease
James Fisher reports on the latest efforts by Defra to help stop the spread of plant diseases in the UK.
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Ptarmigans: The avian world's master of disguise — and master of freezing conditions
Adept at cleverly camouflaging itself, the ptarmigan fools predators by turning snow white in order to survive in a harsh, arctic habitat. Simon Lester tracks this elusive species through the seasons.
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Country Life's best Instagram posts of 2022
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'An incomprehensible act of self-harm': The angry reaction to the new coal mine in Cumbria
The government's decision to allow a new coal mine to be opened has sparked outrage from across the political and environmental spectrum, as James Fisher reports.
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Climate change means we need new approach to tree planting or we'll keep losing them in storms, says chair of Forestry Commission
Britain needs to think again about its plans for tree planting, according to Forestry Commission data. Stuart Martel reports.
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Curious Questions: Why is smell the most evocative of our senses?
The smell of something familiar can transport you back in time as none of the other senses will, says Ben Lerwill.