Big brother censorship

Tonight I feel compelled to write about some appalling and unjustified censorship I have been subject to this evening.

Readers of this blog may have seen my post about Chequered Skippers a couple of days ago. Today I posted some photographs on a UK Butterflies Facebook page being careful not to divulge any site information. Indeed my post just said 'Northants' so gave away far less than anyone could find out with a very quick google search. Within a very short space of time I received a message from the Northants butterfly recorder and an email from the Rockingham Forest Project Officer (who I had helped out with full gps details of my sighting and photos for their project) both asking me to remove my photographs from everywhere on social media. I politely declined explaining that I had given no location details and reassured them that I hadn't and wouldn't divulge any site details. Shortly afterwards I discovered that my post had mysteriously vanished. Mmm? Strange that.

I fully understand the need to keep things hush unless or until the species is fully established in its new home. In everything I have posted I have been extremely careful not to give locations away which makes this all the more galling.


Of course, these people can't censor or remove posts from this blog or things from my personal Facebook or Twitter accounts.

If anyone wants to do the homework and investigations I did to find out the site details it's all out there on the 'dark web' - it just takes some work, understanding of habitat requirements and the willingness to tramp those woodland rides looking...