According to a survey published by the RSPB hedgehogs are spotted in 25% of UK gardens. The survey counted the number of birds and mammals in 70,000 gardens in June. Almost 30% of those who took part had seen hedgehogs in their gardens before. In rural areas almost half of people has seen hedgehogs in their gardens. The most frequent visitor to UK gardens is still the blackbird but other creatures such as roe deer and moles were also reported. It just goes to show how important the garden is for wildlife. I am yet to see a hedgehog in mine but we have a large population of foxes, and birds including woodpeckers, jays, blackbirds, a sparrow hawk, collared doves, robins and crows, just to name a few.

This is interesting its a car park that parks the car for you. Users of the car park are issued with an individual key fob which is unique to the user. They swipe this when putting the car in the car park. A lift then takes the car away turns it around so it will be facing the right way when it is returned and finds a space for it. When you return to collect your car, you swipe your key fob again and consult the screen to see which lift your car will be returned to. It’s an interesting idea, you can see the video of how it works here.

This is interesting, it’s an alcoholic drink made from stinging nettles. Called Cornish Stingers it is made with hand picked wild stinging nettles. They are left to brew for seven days and the resulting drink apparently tastes like a dry wine with aromas of citrus and elderflower. If you want to try some it is priced at £25 for a case of 12 and is currently available at retail outlets across Cornwall and from the Eden Project.

According to this article the world’s largest wind farm has recently opened off the Kent coast. The wind farm in Thanet will produce enough electricity  to power 200,000 homes a year. It is made up of 100 individual turbines and is the first of many more planned developments. The UK government aims to source 15% of power from renewable energy by 2010 and wind farms are likely to be a large part of this, so you might find one springing up near you sometime soon.

This is interesting, its a home test for skin cancer. Costing £40 the test is designed to check suspect moles. For that price experts will analyse pictures of skin defects which are sent to a website and email results back within 24 hours. A traffic light system will identify what sort of risk the mole poses. Red would signify that is malignant, amber that it could be cancerous and green that it is probably harmless. Malignant melanoma currently affects 10,300 people a year and causes around 2,000 deaths each year so the test is likely to prove popular. The best advice, however, if you concerned about a mole that has changed size, colour or shape is to get advice from your doctor.

A Marsh Harrier has successfully bred in Cheshire for the first time. The bird which according to this article is rarer than the golden eagle is usually confined to the East Coast. Three chicks have recently been hatched at a secret location in the Gowy and Mersey Washlands. They have now left the nest and it is hoped they will return to the UK when they are around three years old. There are currently only around 360 breeding pairs of Marsh Harriers across the UK so its encouraging to see them nesting in Cheshire for the first time.

According to this article the UK’s oldest arctic tern has been founds on the Farne Islands. The tern was originally caught and ringed on the islands in 1980 but has recently been spotted again 30 years later. It is thought the tern would have travelled around 1m miles so far in its lifetime and perhaps she will be go on to cover many more yet.

According to this article a grower has devised a way to keep English pears fresh so that they can be eaten all year. The problem with English pears is that they are currently only available from September until May but are not available in the summer. A grower has now found a way of cooling the pears by keeping them in giant fridges. The Oxygen is reduced to 2.5% and carbon dioxide is kept below 1%. This process slows down the normal deterioration. I wonder whether they still taste as good as the ones I pick from the tree in my garden. Personally I find these are best to left to ripen on the windowsill for a few days before eating but they are far superior to shop brought pears.