Naming animals is a tricky job - all the easy ones have been grabbed - like the snuffling animal that hogs the hedges … you know, the hedgehog! Today Kew Gardens announced the name of a new fungus, one of more than a hundred they have identified this year - and this is named after the Queen Elizabeth II - Hydnum regina.
As described in the Guardian by Patrick Barkham: This is a rare European species known in Britain only by the specimen which defines the species, which was found in the ancient beech woodland of White Down, Surrey. Previously known as Hydnum albidum, a name originating from North America, a collaboration of British field mycologists and Kew experts led to its description as a distinct European species.
Every time there is a hedgehog story, my computer pings me - keeps me on my toes as there is a new Sonic game out there and I have not found a way of blocking those references! But this one was different!
Studying ecology is crucial - working out what is out there and understanding the links between those things. Whether it is fungi, plants, animals - even the bacteria and viruses - they all form part of the complex web of life.
This has been at the heart of COP15 debates in Canada, which have just ended. Some people have returned from this international biodiversity summit claiming a sensation of hope … I do not know enough about it yet to draw strong conclusions - but at the heart of this is the drive to find ways of giving nature value - financial value so it can be added into great spreadsheets … and it makes me feel uneasy, even if it is the only game in town.
My lack of ease stems from the predominance of ‘economy’ in global thinking - as opposed to ‘ecology.’
Both words stem from the same route - the ancient Greek, ‘oikos’ which means home … economy is about the management of our home - ecology is the study of our home. The problem is that many people still think that the economy is everything. Yet the economy is but a small subset of a healthy ecosystem. Without an ecosystem that works, there will be no economy. At this point - let me point you to the work of Kate Raworth - author of the vitally important book Doughnut Economics.
The work we do raising awareness about hedgehog highways is a microcosm of this bigger story - the networks we nurture by ensuring hedgehogs can move between our gardens is very much like the local, regional, national and international pathways that allow nature to flourish. We should not think that what we are doing is trivial - every bit of work we do is helping to sustain life on earth.
This will be last post before Christmas - and maybe of the year (will see if I get excited!) Today’s photograph is of a gift I was left by my front door … I love my neighbourhood!
Today is also the turning point of the year - we are heading towards spring and that is worthy of excitement!
Thank you all for all your kind words and support - especially after the rather more off-message update - I have been really touched to read your stories. My biological mother read it and was so moved … I usually advise her NOT to look at the comment section of anything as it is usually so vile - but you lot … well … thank you.