
Fergus Collins
Editor, BBC Countryfile Magazine
Editor of BBC Countryfile Magazine, Fergus lives in deepest Monmouthshire with his family, where his neighbours are farmers, buzzards and sheep. When not working on the magazine he wanders the hills, grows vegetables and plans adventures.
Recent articles by Fergus Collins
It's bigger than France, Germany and Spain combined, is home to rainforests, savannahs, swamps and some of the world’s deadliest, strangest wildlife
It can seem eerily still in the forests of the Congo River in West Africa – and yet a diverse array of species inhabits this vast and mysterious land.
At 130km across, it's the world’s largest natural mirror – but this otherworldly landscape is stranger than it looks, and has starred in Star Wars
Salar de Uyuni is an enormous desert of white salt in Bolivia. Here's everything you need to know...
It can swallow 5 Empire State Buildings, is as long as Portugal – and is home to a deadly but rare big cat
The Yarlung Tsangpo Grand Canyon and its river are a sight to see. Here's why...
It's a tiny island, just 3 football pitches in size, filled with thousands of deadly venomous cobras and just 100 humans… This is what happens…
This tiny island in Uganda is home to deadly forest cobras, and local fisherman have strange beliefs to keep them friendly
It's twice the size of the Serengeti, flat as a pancake, white as snow – and home to mysterious, dancing lights and one of the world's fastest mammals
Known as the white desert, It looks like an endless field of snow and home to one of the world's rarest mammals
Can leopards and cheetahs interbreed? Could cheetapards be a thing?
Tigers and lions have been known to interbreed, so why haven't cheetahs and leopards?
Is rewilding really to blame for the recent wildfires?
As wildfires rage across the world, a fierce debate has erupted over whether rewilding is making landscapes more vulnerable to fire – or could actually help protect them. But what does the evidence really tell us?

"Symptoms rapidly worsen, including nausea, vomiting and stomach pain, and can lead to death." 9 most dangerous, deadliest tick diseases for humans
Like human hitchhikers, ticks need to find the best place to get a lift. But if you pick up a tick, it could drink your blood and pass on a very unpleasant disease.

Climate scientist whose work shaped modern climate science says US government report got his research 'completely wrong'
An American climate scientist has strongly criticised a US Department of Energy (DOE) report on the impacts of climate change in the US.

"Without warning and impossible to see with the naked eye, the prey vanishes..." 3 fastest bites in the animal kingdom
Some animals are so quick, zoologists have only been able to examine the physics of their 'bite' in recent years with the invention of super-slow-motion filming techniques. Here are some contenders for the fastest animal bites on Earth...

"This was a disaster for native wildlife that had few defences. This small, agile predator can find its way into the narrowest burrow"
Could mink be on their way out across Britain?

"Hippos and crocodiles have been known to capsize boats and kill the occupants..." 10 most dangerous, deadliest swamps on the planet
They may look calm, even beautiful –but some of the world’s swamps are among the most dangerous places in the world, from snake-infested wetlands to disease-ridden marshes
7 animals that can kill a rhino: They may be fearsome, heavily armoured, and weigh more than 2 tonnes but they aren’t invincible
There aren't many animals brave enough to take on a rhino…
"There's a brutal ritual called 'phajaan' where the animal is kept caged until its spirit breaks." It may make you think twice about riding elephants
The horrifying methods used to make elephants rideable...

"Excellent swimmers, they can tread water for up to three days..." Just how do rats get into toilets?
“There's a rat in my kitchen, what am I gonna do?” is a lyric from the 1987 song Rat in Mi Kitchen by British reggae band UB40. That sounds bad enough but what about a rat in your toilet?

"Baby monkeys are traumatically taken from their mothers and kept in poor conditions." Why is there a growing demand for primates as pets?
The trafficking of wild-caught animals for the pet trade is a huge global business

The same size as Casablanca, this arid landscape holds over 15 staggering 300m rock towers older than the dinosaurs – and America’s deadliest snake
Discover the land of red rock towers, legendary monsters and coyotes

At a staggering 3500m below sea level, this frozen abyss is the deepest, darkest and least explored place on land...
Delve into the deepest, darkest place on continental Earth

Why do dead animals smell so bad and have a very distinctive 'death smell’?
If you have ever smelt a dead animal you will know it has a very distinctive death smell - like nothing else on Earth. Here's why...

"It's often infected with a parasite, which can be transmitted to humans. Untreated, it can lead to heart failure, damage to the nervous system and death.."
This is one bug you don't want to be 'kissed' by

"Both are large, heavy, beefy animals with thick skin, pillar-like legs and enormous heads..."
Both are big, intimidating and dangerous at close quarters...

It's home to the largest concentration of crocodiles on the planet – 10 million of these ferocious reptiles to be precise. Swimming here is inadvisable...
In the flooded forests and winding rivers of South America’s vast wetlands the black caiman reigns as one of the most formidable predators alive today.

It's the size of Los Angeles and simply crawling with deadly alligators, black bears and highly venomous snakes

6 animals that can kill a hippo – "Weighing a mighty 4500kg the hippo is a huge, dangerous animal that only the boldest predator would dare approach"
We take a look at the animals brave enough to take on the world's third-largest land mammal
