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Alpine shrew (Sorex alpinus) is still living in the Pyrenees
This is an interesting and very important story. Until now the occurrence in the Pyrenees of the Alpine Shrew (Sorex alpinus) has been documented only by a few, rather old data (1878-1930) from the Spanish side of the mountains (three specimens). Since then it has been considered extinct (missing). However, this year (2021) I was lucky enough to find the pdf.file of a book about mammals of the NP Ordesa y Monte Perdido (Ferrer E.W., 2019: Mamíferos del Parque Nacional de Ordesa y Monte Perdido - Ediciones Prames S.L., Zaragoza, 267pp.) and, to my surprise, I saw on pages 58 and 244 photos of the Alpine Shrew, presented as an unknown species; this individual was caught in autumn 2012.
Being sufficiently familiar with this shrew species in the Czech Republic I can, without doubt, state that it is the Alpine Shrew. The external features are quite typical – uniform grey-black colouration, overlong tail, very small eyes, light "meat"-coloured feet, the shape of the head and rostrum etc. Also, other experts on this species agree with this view, e.g. R. Kraft (München) and V. Vohralík (Prague). Therefore, it is my belief that the recent occurrence of the Alpine Shrew in the Pyrenees can be proven. Based on this finding, the occurrence of its relict population(s) in the Pyrenees deserves more attention.
Miloš Andĕra, Czech Republic (EMMA 2 national coordinator)
Per Ole Syvertsen
We are saddened to report the untimely death of our coordinator for Norway, Per Ole Syvertsen, at the age of 62. Per Ole will be known to all who attended the Eurobats Advisory Committee meetings and he was also present at the EMMA meeting in Prague, 2018.
Per Ole was the curator of the natural history department of the Helgeland Museum and was based in Mo i Rana.
Citizen Science in Ireland
There is growing interest across Europe in developing the involvement of volunteers to collect biological observations. A common part of this development is the setting up of a data portal, where observers can submit their biological records for verification and adding to a national database. A portal has been developed in Ireland by the National Biodiversity Data Centre and this video give an introduction to the system.
Atlas of the Mammals of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
The new Atlas of the Mammals of Great Britain and Northern Ireland has been published. Covering both terrestrial and marine mammals, the atlas draws on more than 1.8 million observations from a variety of sources. For terrestrial species, the atlas uses the Ordnance Survey National Grid (Great Britain and Ireland) at a resolution of 10km. For marine species, a wider area is covered, with the resolution depending on data availability.
The atlas can be ordered directly from the publisher:
Defending the EU Water Framework Directive
Today, the EMF is a co-signatory, along with many organisations and individual scientists, to an open letter to the EU, asking for the Water Framework Directive to be defended against any weakening of the strong protection it gives to aquatic and wetland habitats, which are widely threatened across Europe.
Droughts, floods, wildfires are on the rise in Europe. Resilient water ecosystems are more vital than ever. But 60% of freshwater ecosystems in the EU are not healthy.
The EU Water Framework Directive is an integrated and holistic environmental legislation, designed to ensure that we will have healthy and resilient freshwater bodies to support people and nature, today and in the future.