The Anatomy of Caterpillars

If Insects Were People

As promised this week's post has a more scientific vibe than of late.

I came nose to nose with this caterpillar the other day. I know we have to love all god's creatures, but I found this guy rather unnerving. He's too green, too juicy, too ... erm ... priapic, shall we say.  Quite a challenge for an old maid like me.

Natural Dyeing With Concrete

A Natural Dye Project Using Materials From Derelict Land

The online Environmental Humanities MOOC I have been doing has sadly finished. I still can't define exactly what Environmental Humanities is. It might have something to do with thinking about what could be done to improve the environment. It definitely didn't tackle the practical side to the problem. Maybe the one thing I did gain was an appreciation of how entangled Nature and Humanity are. There is no longer any 'out there', and probably never was.

Part of the course was to do an art project about an environmental concern we have. Actually we were supposed to make a Creative Intervention. That sounded too assertively ambitious for me, so I decided to stick to what I know: some natural dyeing.

Bird Brick Houses

A bit of light relief this week. And a good news story.  A rarity for both this blog and any report about the state of nature. This one is lovely. You will sing hallelujah and punch the air with delight when you hear it.

A small building firm has designed a simple and stylish way to provide bird boxes built directly into a building, not just nailed precariously onto the outside.

Two Films : One Problem

Before we plunge into this week’s cri de coeur I would like to apologise for the recent emphasis on philosophical matters. I too miss happy little posts on courageous bees or curious cats or unexpected butterflies, but we must bide out time until spring and her more charming subjects appear. Consider these winter posts as fireside stories told to pass the time while winter rains itself outside.

This week we are going to pick over a couple of films recently released by climate change charities.