BSBI News: a bumper issue!

The April issue of BSBI News is being mailed out today to all our members and it's a bumper 92 page issue. I've been reading a proof copy which Gwynn and Trevor very kindly forwarded and I simply can't keep quiet about some of the great articles in there... So here's a spoiler alert. If you don't want to know what will be in the April issue, then look away now. 

BSBI News #129 front cover: the montage of
plants in flower at Glengarriff Nature Reserve,
County Cork, during the New Year Plant Hunt
Image courtesy of Glengarriff Nature Reserve

There is a nice mixture in BSBI News of the historic and the 21st century. So you can read about Ireland's 'first woman botanist', the first record of a Sundew from the 16th century or the Georgian botanist after whom a pub is named. Then come bang-up-to-date to read about new opportunities for citizen scientists, whether you want to record the dates when orchids come into flower, or where the signs of ozone damage can be seen or maybe you would rather take part in the new National Plant Monitoring Scheme (NPMS). 
  
Two of our eminent botanists challenge us to think again: Michael Braithwaite asks what BSBI's role should be in the conservation of botanically-rich roadside verges and Richard Bateman considers several citizen science projects and asks if BSBI is handing over its "crown jewels in return for at best a modicum of publicity". 

There is a fascinating report from Jim McIntosh on highest altitudes of British & Irish plants based on recent work in Perthshire, Andy Amphlett reports on his survey work in the Cairngorms and Phil Smith demonstrates the usefulness of the England Red List to wildlife conservation.

Robert Pocock, botanist, as seen in a local pub!
Image courtesy of R. Burton

For regular readers of News & Views, a few items will be familiar, such as the report on the New Year Plant Hunt, but most of the contents will either be brand new or will expand on what you have already seen here. And there are some great flyers tucked inside News, including one for the NPMS, one for the Summer Meeting in Northern Ireland and one especially for bird-lovers. 

There is also a flyer for the new Hybrid Flora, by Clive Stace, Chris Preston and David Pearman, with an astoundingly good pre-publication offer. You can save a whopping £19 (that's not a typo, that's £19!) by filling in the form which is available only inside the latest copy of BSBI News and posting it to Gwynn Ellis, who is both BSBI's Membership Secretary and General Editor of BSBI News (Trevor James is Receiving Editor). Don't forget to put your membership number on the form. And save £19! 

Of course, if you are not (yet) a BSBI member, this short post will be all that you get to see of BSBI News #129 until it shows up here on the archive page, but that might take a few years. So, if you want to start receiving the first of your three annual issues of BSBI News, and three issues each year of New Journal of Botany, and the BSBI Yearbook with contact details for more than 100 specialist referees who can help you identify tricky plants, and all the other benefits of membership, such as priority booking on our programme of field meetings and discounted offers on selected botany books such as the amazing £19 off the cost of the Hybrid Flora... well, you'll just have to head over to this page and part with £30 for a year's membership of BSBI. And remember - if you are under 21, or under 25 and in full-time education, then you only pay £12 per year as a junior member. That's only £1 per month!