Do you know of someone who loves seahorses and the sea?

If so, you could give them a membership to the Seahorse Trust or adopt a seahorse for them to help the Seahorse Trust. 

Based in Devon, this UK registered charity that was set up as 1999.  It was established as an umbrella organisation to preserve and conserve, especially the marine environment.  It works with many organisations worldwide, and Seahorses are the flagship species of the Trust.

Seahorses occupy the coastal areas - and sadly it is these areas which are greatly under threat, as they are vulnerable to human and natural interference.  Boating activities for instance can damage the sea grasses on which seahorses depend.   

There's just been a key decision for seahorses in Studland Bay where the UK government has thankfully overlooked the objections of boating people and made imposed anchoring restrictions on boast in the area;  the anchors can destroy the seagrass.  This ban will give the seahorses there a chance to recover.

You can join the Seahorse Trust for £25 a year.  You could also Adopt a Seahorse as a gift for just £4 a month. 

Find out more about joining the Seahorse Trust and adopting a seahorse here

So did you see Big Cats About the House on BBC2 on Thursday night? 

The series is running three programmes featuring big cat expert Giles Clark.   He is aiming to turn the Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent into a global centre of big cat expertise.

Last night we saw the utterly adorable black jaguar cub Maya (who you can adopt for £75) whom Giles is hand-rearing around the clock after she's been neglected by her mother.  

There are 50 big cats at the sanctuary, and as well as giving us an insight into the animals there, it focuses on big cat conservation and the issues affecting these majestic animals in the wild.

©Big Cat Sanctuary

The great news is that you can give a gift membership to the Big Cat Sanctuary and help big cat conservation, welfare and breeding.   Members receive a quarterly newsletter, an exclusive pin badge and priority booking for events.

But surely the most important thing you receive is the knowledge you're helping big cats and making a difference towards their conservation.

Visit the Big Cat Sanctuary's website here. 

I've been glued to the television every Sunday night recently watching Sir David Attenborough's incredible series, Blue Planet II.

For me, it's television at its best.  The BBC's Natural History Unit is superb - with stunning photography and footage.  The patience and expertise of the crew is breathtaking. 

The last programme focused on Coasts and amost the places the programme visited, the Galapagos Islands was one of those featured.  The way the sea lions chased and herded the tuna inshore was something to be seen.  And the islands are beautiful.  

The programme's website has information about ways in which we can all get involved in helping our oceans.   

If you've got a loved one who is very interested in the Galapagos Islands, you could give them a Gift Membership to the Galapagos Conservation Trust.

It's the only UK registered charity to focus exclusively on the conservation and sustainability of the Galapagos Archipelago.  It was launched in 1995 and it's supported an array of projects in Galapagos.

The charity raises funds and awareness in the UK, and so can support conservation projects and therefore help with the overall management of this unique ecosystem.  You can find out more about its mission here.

You can support the work of the Trust by giving a Gift Membership.  Prices start at £36.00 and there's Gift Membership - Galapagos Friend;  Gift Membership - Galapagos Joint Friend and Gift Membership - Galapagos Benefector.  

Benefits of a gift membership are the same as for a regular membership and include a subscription to Galapagos Matters, invitations to events and an exclusive GCT pin badge.

Click here to visit the Galapagos Conservation Trust to find out more about Gift Memberships

The Caledonian Forest is a really important forest ecosystem.  It provides homes for wildlife but it's very fragmeted and consists entirely of old trees in some places.  So Trees for Life is working to expand and link these pinewoods.  It uses three strategies:

• Natural Regeneration
• Planting native trees
• Removing non-native trees

Trees for Life's mission is to restore the Caledonian Forest and its species of flora and fauna.   It enagages volunteers to do this, and so aims to provide an educational experience that will promote the work of restoration to wider audiences.  It hopes that this will inspire other projects around the world.

The Caledonian Forest once covered a large part of the Scottish Highlands but deforestation has taken place over many years as trees were cut for fuel and timber and to convert land for agriculture. 

Their membership scheme plays a key role in helping to save the wild Caledonian Forest and the wildlife there.  Regular membership donations enable the charity to plan ahead.  You can join for as little as £3 a month, but the more you give, the more you'll help the forest!  There are a number of different membership schemes to choose from.  

Click here to go to Trees for Life to find out more.