Three leading Scottish institutions have made a public commitment to further strengthen their relationship and future collaborations.

The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, National Museums Scotland and Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh have signed a five year Memorandum of Understanding to encourage further collaboration on a range of biodiversity activities and projects.

Future projects include a joint public engagement programme on reintroductions planned for the Science Festival in 2016, exploring shared storage of DNA samples, and investigating shared facilities across all three organisations. Image © RZSS

A survey of the British public suggests robins are the nation's favourite bird. Yougov's recent poll of nearly 2,300 adults in the UK found robins stormed ahead of nine other contenders. Coming in second was the barn owl, followed by mute swan, kingfisher, blackbird, wren, red kite, blue tit, puffin and hen harrier.

YouGov released the results ahead of a wider online survey of 213,000 people. Carried out by David Lindo, the poll aims to identify Britain's national bird. Voting closed on 7 May to coincide with the date of the General Election and the results will be announced in due course.

A pair of kittens surprised Cats Protection staff when they arrived with 26 toes each - eight more than the norm. Violet and Knight have two extra digits on each paw due to the rare genetic condition, polydactyly.

Deputy manager of the charity's Sussex branch said: "We do see polydactyl cats from time to time, but it's unusual to see them with so many extra toes - normally it's more like an extra four or five. When we counted them up and found they had eight extra each we were really surprised."

The kittens were brought to the charity with their mother and litter mate (who are not affected by the condition) as their owner could no longer cope with the unplanned litter.

The world's last male northern white rhino now has a 24 hour armed guard to protect him from poachers. Rhino horn can fetch up to $60,000 per kilogram. Last year, more than 1,000 rhinos are known to have been killed in Africa for their horns.

In 1960, northern white rhinos numbered 2,000 in the wild; now there are just five animals left in the world. Forty-two-year-old rhino Sudan is the only male left. He lives at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya, where it is hoped he will one day produce offspring, keeping the species alive for a little longer. Image (c) Wikimedia Commons/sheep81

The Lafora Dogs Support Group has relaunched its website, aiming to raise awareness of the disease and provide information for vets. An inherited form of epilepsy, Lafora is known to affect miniature wire-haired dachshunds, beagles and basset hounds, though it can affect any breed.

The new site contains information for owners, breeders and vets alike, including how to recognise and manage the condition. Visit the site here: www.laforadogs.com/

The Horserace Betting Levy Board invites applications for the equine veterinary research and education awards, due to start in 2016. There are three options to choose from: research project grants, small project grants and education awards.

Within the education awards is a Veterinary Research Training Scholarship, which will offer three-year funding to veterinary graduates wishing to pursue a PhD programme in any scientific or veterinary field relating to equines. The Senior Equine Clinical Scholarship will allow veterinary graduates with at least two years' experience to train for a higher qualification in an equine field.

For more information on the options available, visit www.hblb.org.uk