Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park

The management of wildlife habitat - Birkbeck free lecture series  

Birkbeck College, University of London, in conjunction with the Ecology and Conservation Studies Society and the Linnean Society of London, is running a series of free public lectures in central London on wildlife habitat management during February and March 2014.

In a crowded island how do we make space for a diverse wildlife? Until recently, the management of wildlife habitat was by mimicking traditional economic management, in an attempt to preserve rich remnants of the past and deter alien invaders. Dissenting voices, however, argue that we can create large blocks of wilderness, where natural processes allow native species to manage themselves with minimal intervention by us. Another view is that tradition is too focussed on birds, bees and wild flowers, ignoring most other biodiversity. Yet others find value in mixtures of both native and established exotic species and argue that it's difficult and unnecessary to strive purely for natives. This series asks whether our traditional management prescriptions need an update?

The lectures are on Friday evenings at 6.30pm in Lecture theatre B33, Birkbeck College, Torrington Square, London WC1.

14 February: Managing large forests for multiple benefits
Jonathan Spencer, Forest Planning and Environment Manager, Forest Enterprise, Forestry Commission England

21 February: Unseen biodiversity - managing for the invisible invertebrates
Roger Key, Consultant, previously Senior Education Officer at Natural England

28 February: National Trust: Managing Unnatural Histories
David Bullock, Head of Nature Conservation, National Trust

7 March: Pond restoration to conserve biodiversity in agricultural landscapes
Dr Carl Sayer, Geography Department, University College London

14 March: Conservation grazing, a universal panacea?
Clive Chatters, Head of Conservation (Policy and Evidence), Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust

21 March: River and wetland management – unleashing nature
Dave Webb, Environment Agency

For more information see the Birkbeck Institute of Environment website or e-mail the Ecology & Conservation Studies Society.