
Last chance to count butterflies
The charity Butterfly Conservation (BC) has urged Scots to take part in its annual Big Butterfly Count, which draws to a close this weekend.
The citizen science survey helps assess the health of the environment by recording the number and type of butterflies and some day-flying moths spotted around the UK.
Members of the public spend 15 minutes in an outdoor space counting the butterflies they see, and record their results.
Over 7400 Big Butterfly Counts have been made in Scotland in the recent weeks as part of this year's survey.
The Large White has been the most commonly recorded species so far, ahead of the Gatekeeper. The Small White, Meadow Brown and Red Admiral make up the top five.
Half of Britain's butterfly species are currently threatened or near threatened with extinction.
Butterfly Conservation declared a 'butterfly emergency' after last summer's survey returned the lowest numbers on record.
A spokesman said: 'Taking part in the Big Butterfly Count only takes 15 minutes but that can help to make a huge difference.'
Peacock Trevor Goodfellow
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Scotsman
8 hours ago
- Scotsman
Edinburgh Fringe theatre reviews: Matt Winning: Solastalgia The City for Incurable Women 2025 Salem Witch Trial Always, Sometimes, Maybe Do Astronauts Masturbate in Space?
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... THEATRE Matt Winning: Solastalgia ★★★★ Assembly George Square Studios (Venue 17) until 24 August Matt Winning - sorry, Dr Matt Winning - imagines mirror worlds for a living. No, he's not some kind of spaced-out sci-fi geek. Instead, he analyses the evidence to predict the effects of even the smallest changes in temperature on agriculture, trade, migration, conflict - oh, and the small matter of the possibility of humans' very existence in a near-future world. To cut to the chase, things aren't looking good. 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JOSEPHINE BALFOUR-OATTS THEATRE Do Astronauts Masturbate in Space? ★★★ Greenside @ Riddles Court (Venue 16) until 23 August To save you a Google; the answer to the question posed by the title is 'yes' and while it may not initially seem to have any relevance to this quietly effective two-hander, it is relevant. Set in a very near dystopian future Britain where Nigel Farage is Prime Minster, this follows a young couple, Lily and Gareth (played by the play's writers, Briony Martha and Zak Reay-Barry) who, after unexpectedly falling pregnant are required to register the conception and attend a week-long island retreat in order to gain their 'Stork Card'. At first this futuristic window-dressing seems just that; a theatrical device that allows the couple to be interrogated with invasive personal questions by unseen officials. However, it's also a neat metaphor for the loss of control you can feel when preparing to welcome a child; the creeping suspicion that your life is not your own anymore. While there's more than a hint of a primer for soon-to-be parents about this, Martha and Reay-Barry work well together and have real chemistry, utilising physical theatre to emphasise the couple's developing anxieties. Science fiction can be notoriously hard to successfully pull off on stage but this works by using the genre to focus on the characters. RORY FORD


Daily Record
12 hours ago
- Daily Record
Exact time Scots can catch Perseid meteor shower light up sky tonight
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Scottish Sun
2 days ago
- Scottish Sun
Cannibals ‘cooked & ate' humans 6,000-years-ago in bizarre rituals as human bones found riddled with bite marks
All recommendations within this article are informed by expert editorial opinion. If you click on a link in this story we may earn affiliate revenue. Six people's remains showing clear signs of cannibalism were previously found in the same cave HUMAN MEAT Cannibals 'cooked & ate' humans 6,000-years-ago in bizarre rituals as human bones found riddled with bite marks A HUGE family was slaughtered, skinned, cooked and eaten in a cave nearly 6,000 years ago, a new study reveals. Neolithic cannibals in what's now northern Spain feasted on at least 11 people - including kids - their remains show. 4 The cannibalised human remains of at least 11 people Credit: IPHES-CERCA 4 The remains were found in El Mirador cave in northern Spain Credit: Getty 4 The cave is believed to have been the site of a violent clash 5,600 years ago Credit: IPHES-CERCA Bones discovered at the El Mirador cave showed clear evidence of cannibalism, including cut marks, human bite marks and fractures for marrow extraction. The bones also showed signs of being boiled, according to a study published on Thursday in the journal Scientific Reports. The gruesome event is believed to have occurred over a few days during the final phase of the Neolithic - or New Stone Age - occupation of the cave. Researchers believe the cannibalism was a result of violence between groups - not ritual or famine. "This was neither a funerary tradition nor a response to extreme famine," said study co-author Francesc Marginedas, who is an IPHES evolutionary anthropologist and quaternary archaeologist. "The evidence points to a violent episode, given how quickly it all took place - possibly the result of conflict between neighbouring farming communities," he added. Based on radiocarbon dating, the bones were found to be between 5,573 and 5,709 years old. A chemical analysis revealed that the individuals were local to the region and likely a nuclear or extended family, with ages ranging from under seven to over 50. The analysis also confirmed suspicions they had been killed over a short period of time. The discovery has captured the attention of historians studying the Neolithic period as it offers rare evidence of conflict-driven cannibalism. True face of 'alien' reconstructed by scientists after bizarre 1,500-year-old elongated skull found buried in village The Neolithic period, which lasted till around 2000 BC, is understood to have been marked by upheaval and conflict. Humanity shifted from nomadic foraging and hunting to settled farming and animal domestication - sparking new social hierarchies and competition over land and resources. "Conflict and the development of strategies to manage and prevent it are part of human nature," said study co-author, archaeologist and IPHES researcher Antonio Rodríguez-Hidalgo. "Ethnographic and archaeological records show that even in the less stratified and small-scale societies, violent episodes can occur in which the enemies could be consumed as a form of ultimate elimination." In the early 2000s, archaeologists found the remains of six people with similar marks at El Mirador cave. "Taphonomic analysis revealed the existence of cutmarks, human toothmarks, cooking damage, and deliberate breakage in most of the remains recovered, suggesting a clear case of gastronomic cannibalism," wrote the authors of the study published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology. The remains are younger than the recently discovered ones, dating to the early Bronze Age - about 4,600 to 4,100 years old. Meanwhile, human remains recently found in Maszycka Cave in Poland suggest victims of cannibalism during an act of war. A study published in Scientific Reports in February analysed 53 bones belonging to at least 10 people, six adults and four children. The 18,000-year-old bones show signs of butchering and were hard to distinguish from the animal bones they were found alongside. Cut marks and fractures reveal the attackers cracked open skulls and scooped out brains. The pattern indicates they targeted the most calorie-rich parts - the brains, bone marrow and muscles - shortly after death.