I HAVE been on this wonderful planet of ours now for some 75 years and this year I have not seen a single red admiral butterfly or a lady bird.

I’ve not seen a hedgehog for about six or so years and then there were three on my lawn at once.

I’ve not seen a thrush in my garden for many years.

There is in my opinion something out there systematically destroying our wildlife.

Tiny creatures like butterflies are very prone to the chemicals in our air and even here in Durham City our air quality is quite poor, mostly as the traffic sits stationary with engines spewing out exhaust fumes.

These insects are our canaries in the coal mine and they are definitely suffering.

Things sadly will only get worse.

Malcolm Rolling, Carrville