Bristol Naturalists’ Society and the Coronavirus Covid-19 Emergency, 25 March 2020.

Dear member,

In the current national emergency BNS Council has considered what is best for the Society and for its members.

As a consequence the following steps have been taken:

• the Society’s Library has been closed since early March
• all Society meetings have now been cancelled at least until the end of June, with the possibility of a further extension
• the monthly Bulletin will continue, if at all possible, but in place of the information about meetings it will carry notes and observations by members on wildlife and geology
• the publication and distribution of the annual publication Nature in Avon for 2019 may possibly be delayed to later in the year
• improvements to the Society website are being actively pursued and implemented and greater use will be made of social media outlets (e.g., the Society’s Facebook group and Twitter feed) to provide information on local wildlife and geology
• planning for a programme of indoor and field meetings for the autumn and winter will continue in anticipation of an improved national outlook.

We wish all our members well in the coming months and hope you will be able to enjoy the natural world from wherever you are located despite the restrictions now in place.  Fortunately, geology and nature are always around us and taking an interest in them is both rewarding and therapeutic.

Please abide by all the government advice to stay safe and we look forward to seeing you again as soon as we are able to return to our usual extensive programme of walks and talks.

Ray Barnett

Chairman, BNS