Welcome to Nature in Mind

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Welcome to Nature in Mind where I write about wildlife conservation, animal welfare, the environment, and mental health. I believe wholeheartedly that keeping nature in mind as we live our life is good for our health and for nature.

On my About page, you can read about the inspiration for Nature in Mind. 

You might like to read some of my most popular posts:

‘No man is an island’: we are interconnected
Spending time in nature is good for our soul
Elephant orphans find comfort in wool blankets
African grey parrot silenced by trapping and logging 
Sirocco kakapo’s rise to stardom
Dairy free for three months and counting
Searching for Ruru: a native owl
Scientists develop alternative to antibiotics for farm animals

You can also find Nature in Mind on Facebook and Twitter.

I would love you to join this community to share your thoughts, experiences and enthusiasm.

Image credit: Muriwai Beach Australasian Gannet Colony by David Brighten

Must we teach children to kill?

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By Tracy Brighten

There’s something perverse about teaching children to hunt.

enfance-et-violence

The slaying of Cecil the lion last year epitomises everything that’s wrong with a hunting culture that now seems to be more about pleasure and ego. A dentist who learned to shoot when he was five years old hops on a plane from the U.S to Africa and buys himself a baited lion which he slaughters, all for the thrill and the trophy. He doesn’t see the wondrous animal that others see. He sees only himself.

Blasting bunnies for family fun

Pleasure and ego doesn’t just drive trophy hunters. Continue reading →

Rabbits blasted by hunters in New Zealand Easter fun day

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By Tracy Brighten

Children in Central Otago see a dark side to the Easter bunny

Rabbit    

Easter is a time for celebration, whether it’s the Christian celebration of resurrection, or the Pagan celebration of fertility, symbolised in community Easter egg hunts and the Easter bunny.

What you wouldn’t expect is a family bunny hunt involving the slaughter of 10,000 rabbits. But that’s what happens every year in the Central Otago region of New Zealand’s South Island. The Great Easter Bunny Hunt seems to be a celebration of killing. Continue reading →

Malta set to slaughter 5000 turtle doves in spring hunt

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By Tracy Brighten

European turtle dove

Turtle doves will be shot down again this spring as they fly over Malta. Operation Turtle Dove’s tagged bird ‘Titan’ is expected to steer clear.

The Maltese government has sanctioned the slaughter of 5,000 European turtle doves as they fly over Malta in the last stages of their 5,600 km journey from wintering grounds in West Africa to breeding grounds in Europe.

No other European country allows spring hunting of turtle doves. Continue reading →

Dairy-free for three months and counting

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By Tracy Brighten

A dairy-free diet hasn’t been as difficult as I thought, even in New Zealand

dairy free milk options

After reading and writing about New Zealand’s dairy industry, I was unable to convince myself the abuse might be a one-off as claimed by industry representatives. Animal cruelty rarely occurs in isolation, but is often endemic, whether for cultural reasons or poor regulation. So as I wrote in a post last year, I’m now on a dairy-free diet. I survived the festive season with a delicious vegan nut roast and hadn’t given my new eating plan much thought until recently. Continue reading →

African grey parrot silenced by trapping and logging

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By Tracy Brighten

Our fascination with intelligent parrots drives the harvesting and poaching of wild birds, with the African grey parrot suffering catastrophic decline

African grey parrot head    

When we’re looking for an animal to keep as a pet, we think about food, exercise, and affordability. But how much thought do we give to where the animal came from? When we buy exotic birds through online ads or breeders, we may unknowingly support the plunder of wild species. The African grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus) is one such species. Continue reading →

Blind love for cats is killing our songbirds

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By Tracy Brighten

As cat ownership soars, we need a change in attitude to save mammals and songbirds from cats’ claws

Cat whiskers

Despite evidence from camera traps and Cat Tracker devices showing predatory behaviour, cat owners tend to describe their pets as too slow or too gentle to harm wildlife. But Kitty is equally at home stalking wildlife as she is sleeping on our lap.

As human populations and domestic cat ownership explode, especially in urban areas, more small mammals and birds fall prey. When breeding can’t keep pace with predation, species numbers decline. Well-fed domestic cats might even be compared to trophy hunters in the sense they aren’t hunting for food. Continue reading →

Catios and collars cool for cats and wildlife

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By Tracy Brighten

Cat predation is wreaking havoc on wildlife, but an open-air safe haven for domestic cats and a collar that warns birds could be the purr-fect solution

Cat wearing Birdsbesafe collar

I’ve written in the past about the threat to wildlife from domestic cats and owners’ reluctance to accept their cat might be involved. While exact prey numbers are difficult to determine, camera traps show that small mammal and bird populations are threatened in areas with high density cat populations. If we want to preserve biodiversity then local government and cat owners can’t ignore the predation problem. Continue reading →

When dietary changes make you a social outcast

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By Tracy Brighten

Vegetarian sandwich

Make a decision to lose weight, change career, or have children, and friends and family generally meet the change with excitement and words of encouragement. But tell them you no longer eat meat, fish, or dairy, or even that you’re just thinking about it, and you find yourself being interrogated.

If your reasons for dietary changes are health based, you risk the usual ill-informed response that you can’t be healthy without meat. But if your reasons are ethics based, be prepared for an even rougher ride. Overnight, you will have become a tree hugger, a bunny hugger, an animal activist, pigeon-holed with all the negative and often unjustified associations. Continue reading →

Spreading the word on birds

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By Tracy Brighten

A profile of volunteer Sylvia Durrant who has been caring for sick and injured birds on Auckland’s North Shore for over twenty years

Sylvia Durrant

I recently read The Art of Work by Jeff Goins, a book that invites and challenges us to recognise and pursue our calling. By spending more of our time working on the things we love, we can enrich our life. Sylvia Durrant found her calling when she replied to an advert for an SPCA bird rescue volunteer. Jeff also suggests that everything we do is a step towards our calling. Sylvia’s previous career as a nurse had prepared her for this life-saving work with birds and educating the community. She is an inspiration, as I found when I had the pleasure of meeting her. Continue reading →