Last week was a reminder of what British summers can now look like with the first heatwave of the year. With long dry spells arriving earlier and lasting longer, it's worth thinking about how you water, because a bit of care goes a long way when the ground is baked solid, and your plants are struggling.

Chester Zoo and Malagasy conservationists are carrying out the biggest ever butterfly survey in Madagascar – and they have high hopes of “uncovering what an extraordinary forest is hiding”.

Three giant otter pups have started learning how to swim at Chester Zoo. Born to first-time parents Bonita and Manu, the adorable triplets have remained tucked away in their den for the first few weeks of life. Now, at 15 weeks old, the youngsters have had an unforgettable introduction to life in the water as they experience their very first swimming lessons.

Three spectacular species are neck and neck in Lancashire for the coveted title of Britain’s Favourite Butterfly and every vote could make the difference. Wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation is calling on the people of Lancashire to back their favourite butterfly as the race to crown the nation’s champion reaches its final stages.

A tree-planting project is providing a big boost to biodiversity and plant science in the North West. The Mersey Forest, Chester Zoo and the Environment Agency have created more than five hectares of new woodland in Cheshire, roughly the size of 40 Olympic swimming pools.

Zookeepers at Chester Zoo have stepped in to help raise a newborn aardvark, bottle-feeding it warm milk every few hours to help it grow. The tiny arrival – only the second aardvark ever born at the zoo in its 94-year history – was born healthy, but mum Oni wasn’t producing enough milk to fully support the youngster.

It’s World Bee Day today and bees are some of the most effective pollinators we have - not just helping plants to grow, but helping crops including broccoli, cabbages and apples, to thrive. But sadly, UK bee populations have reduced by around a third in the last 30 years – prompting the RSPCA to highlight what people can do to help the nation’s buzzing buddies.

Did you know Yorkshire is one of the only places in the country where you can see puffins without a boat? Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s annual festival on 6th and 7th June celebrates the return of this much-loved but threatened seabird to their internationally important breeding grounds at Flamborough cliffs.

To mark the Trust’s 80th anniversary, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust wants to spotlight the unsung heroes of local and regional wildlife conservation. Through ten award categories, the Wildlife Hero Awards will celebrate the individuals, businesses and community groups making a real and lasting difference for wildlife. Award winners will be announced at a special ceremony during the Trust’s Annual General Meeting on Saturday 3 October at York College, and will receive a prize.

RHS Garden Bridgewater has announced an extension to its popular Salford Free Tuesdays scheme, allowing Salford residents to continue enjoying free entry every Tuesday until 18 May 2027. The news comes as the garden prepares to celebrate its fifth birthday on 18 May, marking half a decade as a much-loved community hub where people and nature thrive together.

New data from seven common snipe being tracked as part of the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust’s (GWCT) project to map the routes to their breeding grounds has so far shown five of the birds travelling to Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Germany.

A national award will celebrate the educators inspiring young people and encouraging the UK to go green. Nominations are open for Chester Zoo’s National Education Awards until May 17, and the zoo’s Conservation Education & Engagement team is urging teachers and educators from Lancashire to get involved.

Spring is the perfect time to refresh outdoor spaces with a burst of colour, and as part of the Make It Bloom campaign, British Garden Centres is encouraging gardeners of all abilities to get creative with vibrant spring planters. Whether brightening a doorstep, patio or garden, creating a professional‑looking display is simple with the right plants and a few easy steps.

A new stage show all about sharks, hosted by world-renowned wildlife conservationist and TV presenter Steve Backshall, is coming to Chester Zoo this May half term.

The Hedgerow Cards Collection, designed exclusively by Welsh artist Lizzie Spikes, has a beautiful, seasonal illustration for every month of the year. As the artist at Driftwood Designs, Lizzie’s passion is creating colourful illustrations that can be translated to any number of items.

The first young white-clawed crayfish raised in Yorkshire’s first crayfish hatchery site have been released into the wild yesterday, marking a turning point for rare and endangered native populations clinging on across the county. 182 juvenile crayfish have been released into Haverdale Beck in North Yorkshire, where their pregnant mothers were collected back in summer 2025.

The RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch results are in, and while the familiar faces still top the charts, a troubling decline further down the rankings has prompted the charity to issue new guidance on how we feed our garden visitors More than 650,000 people across the United Kingdom took part in this year's Big Garden Birdwatch — the world's largest garden wildlife survey — counting upwards of ni…

Yorkshire Wildlife Trust was founded in 1946 as Yorkshire Naturalists Trust to care for Askham Bog nature reserve, gifted to the Trust by confectioners and naturalists Sir Francis Terry and Arnold Rowntree. The charity is launching a new community fundraising pack to encourage the public to take meaningful and impactful action for wildlife across the county. There will also be a bumper year of events and activities, including a poetry competition, wildlife hero awards and a region-wide birthday celebration.

Led by Ribble Rivers Trust and the North Atlantic Salmon Fund, Hodder Together for Salmon is an ambitious, community-driven project focused on restoring the River Hodder and supporting the recovery of the endangered Atlantic salmon. Flowing through the heart of the Forest of Bowland, the River Hodder has long been a stronghold for salmon, with generations of fish returning each year to spawn.

Northumberland National Park Authority is marking a landmark moment as The Sill: National Landscape Discovery Centre welcomes its one millionth visitor, a milestone that coincides with the 70th anniversary of Northumberland National Park. Since opening in 2017, The Sill has transformed how people connect with the landscapes, nature, and cultural heritage of Northumberland and beyond.

Celebrations begin in April to mark 50 years of the North York Moors National Park Centres. The events will highlight how both Sutton Bank and Danby Lodge have gone from being simple visitor information points to attractions in their own right where people can spend a nature-filled, free and fun day out.

Waste management company We Waste has issued advice and warnings around how to spot and prevent infestations of three common pests that often reappear in March and throughout spring.

With clocks due to go forward by an hour on Sunday 29th March, David Martin, Group Director of Animal Welfare at IVC Evidensia shares his expert advice on helping owners navigate a change in routine the clock change brings. Pets thrive on routine, and even small changes can impact them.

A critically endangered monkey has given birth just months after pioneering surgery saved her from undergoing an amputation. Masaya, a 15-year-old roloway monkey at Chester Zoo, had a golf-ball-sized mass removed from her foot last summer in a complex operation carried out jointly by zoo vets and surgeons from the University of Liverpool's Small Animal Teaching Hospital.

Research by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that one in eight British households (12%) has no access to a private or shared garden. Yet the appetite for growing, whether it be flowers, herbs and vegetables, has never been stronger. Even if you have a small space, a balcony or a patio, you can make your garden your own.

The first Puffin has arrived back at RSPB Bempton Cliffs on the East Yorkshire coast and the nature reserve’s conservationists will be watching closely as the seabird breeding season begins.