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Information about the annual general meeting of the British Ecological Society held at the University College in London on January 6-7, 1949 and its thirty-fourth annual meeting held at Bristol University in London on January 9, 1948 are presented. Various woods and rare plants in Great Britain were discussed in the 1949 event accompanied by exhibits of various photographs of species while the 1948 meeting was about hydrography and ecology.

(1) In two areas of Bristol, one 5.5 km [²], the other 3.2 km [²] fox litter counts in two consecutive years were used to estimate the number of fox groups. There were 3.64 family groups/km [²] in the smaller. In parts of the larger area densities of 4-5 family groups/km [²] were recorded. (2) To obtain data on the distribution and relative densities of foxes throughout Bristol nearly 88,000 school children were asked to record fox sightings for a period of one month. Since the absolute fox densities were known for two areas the distribution of recorded sighting could then be used to estimate fox densities throughout the city. By this means it was calculated that there were 211 fox family groups I an area of 116 sq km, a mean density of 1.82 fox family groups/km[²]. (3) Fox distribution in the city was uneven, and fox density was not found to correlate with household density, housing type, age of housing stock, or an other obvious habitat feature. There was a negative correlation (P< 0.001) between the distribution of stray dogs and urban foxes. This was attributed of the fox population by stray dogs. It is suggested that disturbance may be particularly important in the breeding season; dogs were the second major cause of mortality in young fox cubs. (4) Based on post-mortem material, it was calculated that the ratio of breeding to non-breeding vixen was 1:0.35, and so the adult fox population consisted of 211 males, 211 breeding females and 74 barren females. Assuming that all fox family groups breed each year, with a mean birth litter size of 4.80 (calculated from placental scars), the annual cub production would be 1013. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article highlights the summer meeting of the British Ecological Society held at Bristol, England in July 1963. The meeting started in the afternoon of July 18 when two separate excursions were arranged. Those primarily botanically minded explored the flora of the Avon Gorge. The following day was mostly spent on the peat of the Somerset Levels. Third day was spent on a tour of the southern Cotswolds and woodlands near Berkeley. The last day of the meeting was spent on the Mendip Hills, mostly around the area of Charter-house-on-Mendip.