• Impressions of fieldwork in Sierra Leone
    Guest blog by Amy Fitzmaurice, Senior Research Assistant, RSPB Centre for Conservation Science I am carrying out a study in Gola Rainforest National Park, Sierra Leone, to look at the patterns of crop...
  • The impact of Gola Rainforest in Sierra Leone (part 2): a focus on threatened species
    My pre-dawn walk through Gola Rainforest in Sierra Leone was rewarded with a perfect view of the elusive White-necked Picathartes sitting on its nest. I say ‘elusive’ as this was how Sir David Attenborough...
  • The impact of Gola Rainforest in Sierra Leone (part 1): a focus on chocolate
    “When Gola came here, I didn’t want it because the forest was my livelihood. Now, I want Gola to stay because it taught us cocoa farming.” [Quote from a member of cocoa production cooperative.] During...
  • Emerald starlings – fate unknown in Sierra Leone
    All this week I will be posting a series of blogs from John Bowler, normally based in Tiree as a Conservation Officer, telling us about his trip to Sierra Leone to learn more about the emerald starling...
  • “Digging for Wildlife”: The Economics of Food Security
    Increases in food prices have raised consumer concerns around the affordability of food and our future food security. In today's blog, RSPB Environmental Economist Donal McCarthy tells us what recent...