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Pigeons are too successful for their own good — that's why we hate them so muchSpare a thought for these much maligned birds with their soft, crooning seven-note song, writes Mark Cocker.
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Bugs bugs, glorious bugs: 'The little things that run the world'This week's leader celebrates the many merits of the humble insect, from the bumblebee to the butterfly.
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The ultimate noisy neighbours: The antisocial squawking seabirds whose screams have been heard in ParliamentMany of us have heard the shrill cackle of a herring gull at 4am, writes Mark Cocker, but these birds have an ethereal beauty.
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Why have the songbirds that protect the Tower of London been branded 'trickster Gods' and 'butcher crows'?Considering that it was Edgar Allan Poe’s avian muse, the raven has a bloodthirsty reputation that isn’t entirely deserved.
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If the Unloved Birds’ Club has an apex predator in its midst, then it is surely the white-tailed eagleWhat part–if any–did the white-tailed eagle play in the mysterious disappearance of a group of Shetland foals? Mark Cocker investigates
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Britain's gamebird of choice is more exotic in origin than you might thinkThe pheasant’s gradual triumph over the sporting imagination belies this striking gamebird’s hotly contested impact on flora and fauna, writes Mark Cocker.
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If England wants to win the World Cup, it should listen to these emperor penguinsAs it turns out, the natural world has a lot of good advice for how to make a great football team. Country Life and the World Wide Fund for Nature break down the keys to success.
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Cheerio Churchill, hello hedgehogs: The British animals Country Life wants to see on our banknotesAs the nation votes on the British wildlife that will appear on the next series of banknotes, our writers argue their case for their favourite animals.
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From Worzel Gummidge to the kakashi of Shikoku: The scarecrow is iconic the world overThey might be questionably effective at frightening away birds, but scarecrows remain a quirkily enduring feature of our physical and cultural landscape.
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The marine animals that look suspiciously like dogsFrom Staffie-shaped seals and smiling Samoyed belugas to borzoi swordfish, World Ocean Day seemed the perfect opportunity to tackle one of life's most important questions: which marine animals look most like dogs?
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We rudely refer to them as 'sky rats', but pigeons add a touch of the natural world to our busiest metropolisesMark Cocker defends the ungainly pigeon in this weeks column, where he defends Britain's least likable birds.
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Where to listen to the greatest musical performance on EarthThe dawn chorus is a rich reminder of the beauty of the world we live in, far removed from its many horrors. And you can hear it from anywhere.
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Will AI be the saving grace of Britain's beloved hedgehogs?A group of scientists at the University of Cambridge has managed to identify specific sites that might offer habitat for hedgehogs, writes Will Hosie.
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Why is this British bird sometimes dubbed 'the black death'?In the second instalment of our series on Britain’s most misunderstood birds, the voracious cormorant is in the spotlight.
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What is everyone talking about this week: The secret life of planktonPlankton generates at least five times more oxygen than tropical rainforests. Yet its various subspecies remain opaque and poorly understood. That could soon be changing.
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'Simply sustaining is not enough — we must rebuild, improve and enhance if we are going to save the planet': Meet the forward-thinking farmers of the CotswoldsThey might struggle with stony, dry Cotswolds-brash soil, but the region's food producers explain why working the land sustainably and regeneratively is the best way to balance food production with wildlife recovery.
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Bertie Gregory: 'You know the cliché line people say “never meet your hero”? Those people haven’t met David Attenborough’Wildlife cameraman Bertie Gregory has travelled all over the world in pursuit of the perfect shot. He talks to Rosie Paterson about a few of his favourite moments.
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What is everyone talking about this week: Why we need more female treesFor too long, urban planners and landscape designers have favoured male trees for easier maintenance — but it's made hay fever a whole lot worse. Fortunately, a solution exists.
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How the curlew's call inspired some of Britain's best writersFor centuries, this enigmatic wader has brought both gloom and joy to many of the nation's literary minds.
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Divine tears, fairy footsteps or the sweat of heavens: The delight of dewThe transient beauty of early-morning moisture has bewitched poets, playwrights and scientists alike, finds Deborah Nicholls-Lee.
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With a fighting spirit and human help, the red squirrel is fighting backThe red squirrel’s plight is well known, but, recently, there have been some encouraging signs of a revival. Vicky Liddell listens out for rustling overhead.
