Eco-warrior 'Swampy' has returned to protesting after a "quiet ten years" and was this evening staging a sit-in in a tree in protest against the HS2 rail line.

The activist - real name is Daniel Hooper - has joined an HS2 rebellion group which has been holding out against eviction from woodland marked out for clearance.

Swampy, 47, has been occupying a tree in Jones' Hill Wood in Aylesbury since October 1 alongside eight other activists.

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Eleven protestors have so far been arrested at the ancient woodland site over the last four days.

The woodland is one of 20 sites that have been identified as targets for clearance and ground works by HS2 from October 1st.

Swampy first hit the headlines in 1996, when he spent seven days and seven nights living in a tunnel dug by campaigners to stop the £50 million A30 dual carriageway link road in Devon.

He briefly re-emerged last year to join an Extinction Rebellion protest in Pembrokeshire, Wales, where he obstructed access to an oil refinery by attaching himself to a concrete block.

Hooper pleaded guilty at Haverfordwest magistrates' court in October 2019 to wilfully obstructing free passage along a highway and was fined £40, with a surcharge of £32 and £85 in costs.

Last night he was back up to his old tricks as he silently sits in Jones' Hill Woods - with no intention of being budged.

As of yesterday, Swampy is one of eight activists who have vowed to stay in the trees.

This is despite building pressure from the National Eviction Team (NET), dwindling supplies and the continuing storm that has battered England over the last five days.

The group who have been occupying Jones' Hill Wood have declared part of their intention is to highlight the loss of habitat, and irreversible damage being done by HS2 across the line.

Lawyers for Nature yesterday released the following statement on Facebook: "The scenes of destruction as HS2 begins to start felling woodlands along the route are heartbreaking.

"Over the last 24 hours, we've been working with independent ecologists who have recorded evidence of rare barbastelle bats in Jones Hill Woods near Wendover.

"Further enquiries suggest that HS2 does not have a license from Natural England to disturb bats at the site, or to damage or destroy their roosts.

"Therefore, prima facie, it would spread that further work and/or felling at Jones Hill is illegal.

"We have helped to draft letters to both Natural England and HS2 pointing out the legal position and requesting that works at the site are halted pending further investigation into the existence of bats and bat roosts at the woods.

"We hope that HS2 will respect and obey the law and that, if not, Natural England will enforce it.

"If not, however, we need to bring public pressure to bear to stop wildlife crimes being committed by way of the destruction of this woodland."

Despite the threat of violence and arrests, the remaining activists defending the trees within the threatened land are resolved to stay and they accept any and all consequences of their actions.