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Top 10 Facts: The Tawny Owl
I heard a Tawny Owl last night. A nocturnal foray to my local store interrupted by an eerie, frightfully abrupt, yet oddly soothing shriek from…
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Walking in a Winter Wonderland
I have not ventured outside much recently: due to Masters work, plotting for New Nature and various other, more tedious tasks. All of which, combined,…
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Introducing ‘New Nature’ Magazine
For quite some time now, environmentalists have lambasted the perceived lack of interest that young people possess for the nature: branding us lazy, disinterested, and…
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Wild Resolutions for 2017
I posted last week with regards to just how fabulous 2016 has been for me, both as a keen naturalist and aspiring nature writer. It…
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40km for Curlew Conservation
The haunting call of the Curlew is one of the most iconic, and enjoyable, sounds in nature. Especially in Britain: where rippling trill of our largest…
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2016: A Wild Year In Retrospect (Part 1)
It has become somewhat of a tradition on this blog to, near the turn of the year, dwell momentarily on the high-points of the months past.…
North East Botany
An amalgamation of botanical blog posts, identification crib sheets, special interest pages, and assorted useful information, all centred around the wonderfully diverse plant life of North East England.
Ladybirds
Helpful articles, species profiles, and assorted titbits focused on our surprisingly diverse ladybird fauna, a relatively recent obsession of mine that, unfortunately for my free time, shows no signs of fading.
British Ferns & Clubmosses
A gradually growing library of ferns and fern allies photographed during my ongoing quest to find and enjoy Britain’s pteridophytes, alongside the occasional trip report and identification ramble. Quite unapologetically, my favourite subject of all.
Urban Flora of Newcastle
The Urban Flora of Newcastle and North Tyneside is the first comprehensive account of the wild plants growing across the Newcastle and North Tyneside conurbation, one of the largest in the UK.
Published with the generous support of the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI) and Natural History Society of Northumbria (NHSN), it is essential reading for botanists, ecologists, conservationists and anyone curious about the surprising richness of nature in Newcastle and urban areas more generally.
Training & Tours
Through my role as Senior Naturalist with the Natural History Society of Northumbria (NHSN), I am lucky to spend much of my time outdoors leading trips, training sessions and guided walks for all manner of groups.
From field trips in search of ferns and orchids to multi-week courses on grasses, ancient woodlands and beginner plant identification, if you are interested in collaborating, please get in touch.
Meet James
Born and raised in North East England, James is a botanist, general naturalist and biological recorder with a passion for sharing the joys of North East nature with others.
He currently works as Senior Naturalist for the Natural History Society of Northumbria (NHSN) and volunteers as a vice-county recorder for the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI), both of which allow him to spend ample time outdoors leading trips, courses, surveys and guided walks.
