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Freelance Ecologist Based in Somerset Specialising in Ecological and Wildlife Surveys

About Morelia Ecology

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  • Morelia Ecology is a freelance ecological consultancy based in Somerset and run by myself Andre Blacker. I have a lifelong interest in wildlife with particular, but not exclusive, interests in birds, reptiles and amphibians.

  • I strongly believe that human society is highly dependent on a functioning, biodiverse ecosystem and that our lives are enhanced and enriched by regular contact with wildlife.

  • In my opinion society can have all the benefits of a modern technological society (efficient transport and communications infrastructure, plentiful and affordable food, secure well paid jobs) and a diverse functioning ecosystem full of wildlife.

  • If we are to live in a biodiverse, wildlife rich environment development must be sustainable and based on sound ecological principles, if development is guided by those principles we need not revert to a stone age society in order to maintain biodiversity.

  • To this aim Morelia Ecology offers common sense, affordable, ecological advice based on sound ecological principals and survey methodologies.

  • Morelia Ecology is based in Somerset and offers a local service delivered by a local wildlife expert who is a stake holder in the local economy.

About Andre Blacker BSc

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  • I have studied ecology, biology, conservation and related subjects at Exeter University, The Open University and Oxford Brookes University; my BSc was awarded by Oxford Brookes University. My dissertation was written on Barn Owl feeding ecology with specific reference to Barn Owls hunting over wetland habitat in Somerset.

  • I hold a Natural England Great Crested Newt licence (No: 2016-24151-CLS-CLS) and have been conducting reptile and amphibian surveys and giving habitat management advice for the last 7 years. In 2014 I made a programme for the BBC Natural History Unit that covered the terrestrial ecology of the Great Crested Newt. I have consulted on  planning applications where the advice given to stake holders, regarding Great Crested Newt ecology, was not fully understood.

  • My bird survey experience is extensive with my first surveys being conducted for the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), these involved population estimates for Nightingales and Rooks, both surveys carried out in an area of North Somerset. I am currently engaged by the RSPB on one of their Somerset reserves to conduct Breeding Bird Surveys (BBS), Wetland Bird Surveys (WeBS) and individual species surveys of Bearded Reedling, Bittern and Marsh Harrier. I have been involved with the RSPB’s species recovery plan for the Bittern for the last 5 years.

  • I have training in and have conducted Otter Surveys and Water Vole Surveys. I have surveyed small mammal populations via the use of Bait Tube Transects; I have used this methodology to conduct surveys for Water Shrew on reserves owned and managed by Somerset Wildlife Trust and the RSPB. My aquired knowledge of Badger ecology and survey methodology are used to monitor 'my' local Badger setts.

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