Next Wednesday is the day we pull out all the stops to show the people we love how much we love them. But we love nature, too, so – as you’ll see on page 40 of our current issue – the RSPB is also asking you to Show the Love for your favourite wild places, species and activities. 

Remember your love for nature this Valentine's Day. (Photo: Ben Andrew)

Much of what we love is at risk from climate change. Birds that used to migrate are now overwintering here; frogspawn has been found in February; some wildlife species are being pushed north and new residents are arriving from across the Channel. Many habitats are being put at risk. And it’s not just nature - the coalition’s latest report shows how it’s affecting our lives too, such as popular sports. 

That is why the Climate Coalition, of which the RSPB is a member, is all about the green hearts this Valentine’s Day. 

These Show the Love hearts were made for Parliamentary front-benchers to wear. Even Theresa May's got one! 

Across the UK, supporters have been crafting their own green hearts to show their support for this awareness-raising campaign, reporting recent changes in their local habitats and wildlife, and sharing what they love. 

So, to join the love-in, I asked some of the Nature’s Home team to share what they love about nature, and whether they’ve noticed any climate-induced changes…

Butterflies: In decline. (Photo: Mary Braddock, rspb-images.com)

 

MARK WARD, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: “I want to protect our brilliant butterflies -  all 60 species of them - from climate change. There are far, far fewer around now than when I was a child (not that long ago!) and I’m really worried about their future. I used to see well over 100 on a single bush in my parent’s garden every August, but now they are lucky to get half a dozen at a time. I couldn’t bear for them to get any rarer.”

ALUN HARRIS, SENIOR ART EDITOR: “I love my local beach, a four-mile pebble bay in Budleigh Salterton where I walk my rescued street dog, Kizzy. The cliff faces there have been eroding lately due to storms causing big seas. All our coasts are at risk from climate change, so I want to protect this habitat for future generations.”

ANNA SCRIVENGER, EDITOR: “The stream at the end of my garden provides me with a fascinating population of frogs, toads and newts, as well as dragonflies and other flying insects that in turn attract bats which fly along the watercourse, and nesting swifts in summer. All this life delights me. However, with increased (feels near-constant!) rainfall in recent years, flood defences have had to be built along its banks, and there are plans to dredge and straighten the watercourse to get rid of floodwater faster. I’m worried for ‘my’ wildlife, and for riparian habitats across the UK.” 

EMMA POCKLINGTON, DEPUTY EDITOR: “I was lucky enough to grow up in the New Forest, and every time I go back to visit family it’s like a breath of fresh air. As the train rolls through I often see deer grazing by the tracks, the odd bird of prey sitting on a fence post. Butterflies, blackberries and badger setts were just something I took for granted as a child. Now, as all too often my journey home is blocked by floods or fallen trees, I realise how precious this place is. It may have been around for hundreds of years, but that doesn’t mean it won’t change.”

AISLING BRADY, SNR ACCOUNT EXEC: “Seeing hawfinches and redstarts for the first time in the Forest of Dean makes me sad to learn how little of the ancient forest is left. Hawfinches have lost around three-quarters of their breeding range in the past 40 years. Oak woodland is key for lots of other species as well as the hawfinch, so I really want to make sure we protect what little ancient forest and woodland we have left in the UK, and grow new forest. Woodland is crucial for sequestering carbon from the atmosphere, therefore reducing and even potentially reversing global warming.”

BEN MACDONALD, FREELANCE WRITER: “For me, the Cairngorms’ high mountains are somewhere that could vanish, as we know them, under climate change. To be able to sit beside Arctic birds like dotterels, ptarmigan and snow buntings in the UK is amazing. I always think of snow buntings as tame snowflakes. With climate change, they’ll melt. Already, mountain birds in the UK are being pushed north with climate change.”

How about you? Join the conversation and share your stories with #showthelove - and Email us at Nature’s Home to share your thoughts.

And if you’re feeling crafty, why not make a green heart to show the love for the places, people and life you want to protect from climate change. Click here to find your green hearts activity guide