British Isles
| Use attributes for filter ! | |
| Highest point | Ben Nevis |
|---|---|
| Locations | Europe |
| Total islands | 6,000+ |
| Population | 71,881,243 (2018) |
| Did you know | Great Britain is the largest island of the British Isles, and when combined with Northern Ireland, it makes up the United Kingdom. |
| Date of Reg. | |
| Date of Upd. | |
| ID | 405865 |
About British Isles
The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic off the north-western coast of continental Europe that consist of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, and over six thousand smaller isles.
Storm Ciarán eases but flood warnings remain
... Elsewhere across the British Isles, roofs were blown off homes, some train lines completely ground to a halt and there were long queues around the Port of Dover, which shut earlier amid rough seas...
Storm Ciarán: Flooding and damage hits homes across UK
...By Harrison Jones BBC NewsCommunities across the British Isles are reeling after Storm Ciarán battered homes and businesses...
Wales' Indiana Jones searching for lost mines in hills
... " Normally when you think of a Welsh mines, you think about a south Wales and coal, but in Ceredigion we have the oldest metal mines, known anywhere on the British Isles...
UK migratory birds 'in freefall' over climate change
... The number of wild birds in Britain has fallen by 73 million since 1970, according to the British Trust for Ornithology, which studies birds in the British Isles...
Antarctic sea-ice at 'mind-blowing' low alarms experts
... That s an area of missing ice about five times the size of the British Isles...
Rare tropical red-footed booby spotted near Isles of Scilly
... The British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), which studies birds in the British Isles, said the warm weather might explain its presence...
Scientists buzzing with hopes for AI bee research
...By Huw WilliamsBBC Scotland reporterThere are more than 20 species of bumblebee in the British Isles...
Scottish ceremony sees King Charles tread a thin line
... The Crown Jewels - now the oldest regalia in the British Isles - proved resilient...
The Shetland orca spotters who helped David Attenborough
By Katy ScottBBC Scotland news website
Shetland wildlife enthusiasts pulled together to help Sir David Attenborough spot orcas for his latest documentary.
Dozens of local people used WhatsApp and Social Media groups to alert The Crew when The Killer Whales appeared, helping them capture the elusive mammals On Film .
will investigate how British and Irish woodland, grassland, freshwater and ocean habitats support local wildlife.
The series took three years to Film . The First episode airs on Sunday.
Shetland-based ecologist and wildlife photographer Richard Shucksmith, 49, helped The Film crew get to know The Local landscape.
Orcas visit the islands in spring to hunt for seals.
As a member of several wildlife spotting Social Media group chats for dolphins, orcas, and Rare Birds , Richard would rally The Film crew whenever killer Whales were spotted in the area by the community.
" Everybody tends to pull together, " He Said . " If you want to see orcas, you need The Help of Everyone Else .
" There's fishermen involved, all walks of life are involved in the WhatsApp and Social Media groups.
" You can't predict when [the orcas] will turn up. But because we have a good network of people, when they're sighted, it gets put out to everyone.
" So you stand a good chance of seeing them. If it wasn't for the community, it would be a lot harder. "
Richard told Bbc Scotland that The Orca pods were well known to the wildlife enthusiasts on the islands.
He Said : " A lot of The Killer Whales we see around Shetland, we know the pods, we've known them for years, we know what members there are.
" We even know all The Family 's ages and when calves were born.
" So a lot of good information gets collected from a citizen science point of view too. "
He Said some shouts attract up to 150 locals racing to see the impressive killer Whales , occasionally blocking roads on the islands.
" Some families come and bring their kids, and you can see the orcas metres from the shoreline, " He Said .
He and his colleague Nick McCaffrey were contracted to carry out drone work on the new series, alongside The Film crew.
They worked with The Documentary crew Every Day for five-week periods over three years to get the footage of the Whales - including some up-close encounters.
" After filming the orcas all day on a boat, we decided to stay with them through The Night , " said Richard.
" It was amazing because it got too dark to Film and we just turned the engine off and sat there.
" The orcas spent about an hour and a half just drifting next to The Boat .
" It was nuts, a very cool experience. "
Sir David Attenborough said that wildlife in the British Isles can be just as " dramatic and spectacular" as anything elsewhere.
He has said that he regrets spending so much time working on overseas Natural History programmes rather than focusing on the wildlife on his doorstep.
The new series, broadcasting on Bbc One on Sunday, will examine species and habitats closer to home.
Nearly half of British wildlife species have declined since 1970.
Related TopicsSource of news: bbc.com
