Conservation and Science

The only fair way to start this newsletter is to acknowledge that it is late by a week. As you probably gathered from the last one, written in the airport, stuff happened, hence the delay. This is an unavoidable part of being a solo creator. And speaking of that, I want to thank all of you who support me through 'buy me a coffee', either as one-off support or memberships. This is a great help in what I do.

This week, I'm bringing you one of those episodes that has been on my list to make for over a year. It is also touching on a subject that is often not easy and even controversial to some. And that is the eradication of invasive species. The subject of invasive species has been discussed many times, but eradication was only mentioned as a theoretical possibility in terms of a 'magic button'. But not today.

Finally, in the replay series, my discussion with Steve Carver, a professor of rewilding and wilderness science. This must be one of the coolest academic titles if you ask me. Unsurprisingly, we're talking about rewilding. What is and what isn't rewilding, and some of that might surprise or upset even some rewilding advocates. No spoilers. You have to listen to the episode if you haven't already.

Ferret Eradication from Rathlin Island

What are the ethical considerations when eradicating invasive species from an island? How do you develop wireless technology to monitor hundreds of traps across difficult terrain? Why do conservation projects like this cost so much more than people expect? These are some of the questions we explore in our conversation about the LIFE Raft project on Rathlin Island, Northern Ireland's only inhabited offshore island.

Our guest is David Tosh, a Lecturer in Terrestrial Ecology at the School of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Ulster University. David led the ambitious effort to eradicate feral ferrets and brown rats from Rathlin to protect internationally important seabird colonies. The ferrets were introduced in the 1980s to control rabbits but instead devastated ground-nesting bird populations. David explains the complexities of targeting two species simultaneously using different methods, the development of wireless platforms to monitor traps remotely, and where the money actually goes in projects like this. Success came faster than expected, with Manx shearwaters breeding on Rathlin for the first time in decades, just months after the eradication was completed.

Beyond the technical achievements, our conversation explores the social dimensions that often determine whether conservation projects succeed or fail. David shares why the most important measure of success isn't just the return of seabirds, but whether the organisations involved can maintain trust and partnership with the islanders. We discuss the frustrations of five-year funding cycles for projects that require decades of commitment, and what it takes to ensure Rathlin remains ferret-free and rat-free for generations to come.

213: Ferret Eradication from Rathlin Island with David Tosh

Rewilding Professor Unpacks

Is rewilding truly mainstream now, or does it remain mired in misunderstanding? Can we finally agree on what the term actually means? And is it really an anti-rural movement that seeks to empty the countryside of people? These questions have dominated conservation debates for years, and our conversation today tackles them head-on with refreshing clarity. Our guest is Dr Steve Carver, Director of the Wildland Research Institute at the School of Geography, University of Leeds, and Professor of Rewilding and Wilderness Science.

In our conversation we explore how rewilding differs fundamentally from traditional conservation and regenerative farming. We examine the crucial role of scale, the problematic nature of fences in rewilding projects, and why the Oostvaardersplassen experiment in the Netherlands offers important lessons. Steve introduces his concept of 'nature-led versus human-led' approaches and explains why giving nature the space and time to determine its own trajectory remains the core principle. We also discuss the controversial question of whether projects like Knepp Estate truly qualify as rewilding or represent something else entirely.

Throughout our discussion, Steve emphasises that rewilding is deeply context-specific and requires genuine local community engagement to succeed. He unpacks the relationship between wilderness and rewilding, explores why species reintroductions aren't mandatory, and shares his measured optimism about lynx returning to the UK (though wolves remain a more distant prospect). We also examine how the European interpretation of rewilding has evolved differently from its North American origins, and what this means for future conservation efforts. This episode offers a balanced, scientifically grounded perspective on where rewilding stands today and where it might be heading.

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