Public news and updates from the Purbeck Natural History Forum.
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Image above: National Trust Images – James Beck 2026 See below the latest update from Gen Crisford, Beaver Project officer for the National Trust: Wetland wonders In December we updated that we had discovered a new wetland near Little Sea,…
The Ladybird Spider (Eresus sandaliatus) is one of the UK’s rarest and most striking spiders, instantly recognisable by the male’s bright red colouring that resembles a ladybird. Once thought extinct, it was rediscovered in Dorset in 1980. Today, it is…
On a cold but sunny morning in mid-January 2025 I was photographing habitats as requested for the National Trust as part of the Invertebrate monitoring in the Swanbrooke valley west of Swanage. I had taken a tray to ‘knock’ a…
Summary of discussions This document summarises the main points discussed during the PNHF Member Consultation Meeting held on 21 January 2026. If you have any further comments or suggestions after reading the summary, please feel free to get in touch…
The good, the bad and the unexpected… It’s five months since the National Trust released two pairs of beavers into Little Sea, Studland. As the first ‘wild’ release of these eco-system engineers, the project gained huge interest in the media…
Every Wednesday from April through September, a team of committed volunteers heads out into the heart of one of the UK’s most ambitious rewilding landscapes: the Purbeck Heaths National Nature Reserve (NNR). This is the Purbeck Heaths NNR Monitoring Group…
Each month, Meet the Forum will introduce you to one of the people behind the scenes or out in the field—those who bring energy, expertise, and enthusiasm to our shared work. To launch this new feature, we are delighted to…
As the Purbeck Natural History Forum (PNHF) continues to grow, so does the range of surveys we are involved in, as well as the diversity of skills, knowledge, and passions within our network. Much of the survey work we carry…
Many of the Purbeck Natural History Forum (PNHF) members have been involved in species recording on the Purbeck Heaths NNR in recent years. This might have been as part of the ‘Wednesday group’ that focuses on recording in the grazing…
Come and discover the wonderful world of moths at Sandy Hill Arts with Martin Warren! Throughout the summer Martin Warren will be offering people the chance to discover more about the wonderful world of moths. Martin will be opening a…
The Purbeck Natural History Forum works with a group of partners
