Bits for Pets Blog

The RSPB has launched an appeal to help the UK’s fastest declining mammal, the Water Vole by purchasing an extension to one of its wetland reserves near London.

The RSPB’s Rainham Marshes reserve, next to the River Thames, is home to the UK’s largest remaining concentration of Water Voles. Its miles of reed-filled ditches form a stronghold for the species and it is hoped that by extending the reserve, the number of voles can also be increased.

The wetland habitat of Rainham Marshes not only supports Water Voles but also birds that feed on them like Short-eared Owls and Grey Herons, along with breeding waders like Redshank.

Water Voles declined by almost 90 per cent during the 1990s. Last month it was added to the list of creatures protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, making it an offence to kill, injure or take Water Voles from the wild.

Nick Bruce-White, the warden at RSPB Rainham Marshes, said: “We hope to buy more land at Rainham Marshes, creating a new and improved home for Water Voles and many other animals, such as wading birds and dragonflies. We are immensely grateful to our young members, who are working hard across the country to raise money to buy this extra bit of land.”

The appeal is being aimed at children everywhere who are being asked to raise money through sponsored activities. Every young person who raises money to help the appeal will get a certificate and a set of stickers.

Visit www.rspb.org.uk/youth to download a Rainham Marshes sponsor form.

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A gecko’s tail is as crucial to the animal’s acrobatic ability as its “sticky” feet, scientists report.

High-speed video reveals that the creature uses its tail as a “fifth leg” to prevent it from slipping as it climbs wet surfaces.

And the footage shows that if it does fall, a flick of the tail is all it takes for the gecko to land feet-down.

The study is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

The researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, said the discovery could aid the development of improved climbing robots and unmanned gliding vehicles.

The gecko is one of nature’s best climbers - its feet are covered with millions of microscopic hairs that allow it to effortlessly cling to smooth surfaces.

But while the reptile’s hairy toes have been extensively studied, little has been known until now about the role of the gecko’s tail.

Bob Full, director of UC Berkeley’s new Center for Interdisciplinary Bio-inspiration in Education and Research, and an author on the PNAS paper, said: “Initially, we thought the gecko’s climbing ability was all in the feet, but now we know that this is clearly not true and the tail is critical.”

The researchers discovered that if a gecko was climbing up a slippery surface and lost its footing, the creature would press its tail to the wall to prevent itself from slipping backwards while it recovered its grip.

Professor Full said: “We set up an experiment where we could see what would happen if a gecko fell off of the underside of a leaf.

“They started off with their backs to the ground, but when they start to fall, they swoosh around their tails, and by doing this they are able to rotate themselves so they move into a sky-diving or ’superman’ pose.”

This enabled the gecko to land on its feet, he told the BBC News website.

While other animals, such as cats, can rotate their bodies when falling to manoeuvre into a safer landing posture, the gecko is one of the few to use its tail to do this.

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