Yes, it has come to that time again for me to update you all on my progress!
I have been really busy this Summer setting up and running a small project called ‘Wild for Art’. You may remember I mentioned it in my last blog, accompanied by some pictures that purposefully never gave anything away. The aim of this project was to engage teenagers from the Barmulloch and Robroyston area (North East Glasgow) with the Robroyston Local Nature Reserve that sits practically on their door step. From previous experience I have found that using artistic approaches to engage a younger audience with nature can be very effective. With this in mind I organised 5 fun and artistic filled sessions that aimed at raising the local profile of the nature reserve, an understanding and knowledge of biodiversity, increase an interest in biological recording and get new volunteers onto the reserve. I managed to obtain almost £500 funding from CSV Action Earth to carry out this project and I am happy to say it was a great success! I am now in the process of getting invoices together in order to claim the funding awarded and enter one of the unusual pictures taken into their photograph competition. Fingers crossed my group win something. The sessions included the following and more;
-
Environmental art – made from natural objects in the reserve.
-
Biodegradable trainer plant pots – designed and planted by the volunteers.
-
Biological recording.
-
Creating and designing bird and bat boxes.
-
Litter pick and litter Art.
And my favourite activity I must say…
-
Light graffiti! We made torch light images depicting thoughts or images related to the reserve.
One lovely handmade biodegradable plant pot trainer.
Our rainy summer didn’t put these troopers off! We also planted 40 wildflower plants including, Geranium, Red Campion, Ox-eye Daisy and Sneeze-wort (which by the way I found out was used to get rid of warts and cattle ticks back in the day! It also made a few of my volunteers with hay fever sneeze… that explains the name I guess).
Watch your feet!
These trainer pots are no doubt in the process of disintegrating now, especially after all the bad weather we have had (insert sad face here), but at least we have some nice pictures to prove how nice they were!
Drawing the lovely views and wildlife at Robroyston LNR.
Looking for birds through binoculars.
On the southern pond we spotted 2 Coots and 2 Little Grebe’s that we think they had a chick! We counted 9 Blue-tailed Damselflies, 3 Common Blue Damselflies, an unidentified Dragonfly (it was too fast to identify and net), 4 Buff-tailed Bumblebees, 1 Carder Bublebee, 13 Ringlet Butterflies, 3 Common Blue Butterflies, 4 Six-spot Burnet Moths, 1 Orange Underwing Moth, several Small Heath, 5 Small White butterflies, 2 juvenile Common Frogs and 2 Roe Deer.
Litter man!
There was surprisingly not that much litter on the reserve compared to what it used to be like… but just enough to make this little dude.
It seems the Robroyston bird population is down with social networking… you should follow them!
Light Graffiti!
I really wanted to carry this activity out on the reserve at night time, but since it doesn’t get dark until late here in Scotland it just wasn’t feasible. Nevertheless we managed to take our thoughts and images from the reserve back to the Barmulloch Community Centre to create these images in a darkened room instead. If you haven’t tried this at home already, I highly recommend it!
Last week I was down at Threave Estate in Castle Douglas, where I completed a Bat Ecology, Survey Methods and Mitigation course over 4 the course of days. It was by far the best course I have been on this year! I met some really interesting and important contacts, met some interesting bats (Brown Long-eared, Pipistrelle and Whiskered) and learned loads.
Setting up a harp trap (above). In the green jacket taking measurements from a Brown Long-eared Bat (below).
I am now in the middle of my personal project at the moment with Children’s Inclusion Partnership. They organised a dog show a few weeks ago, on the east side of Possil Meadow to encourage responsible dog ownership and to encourage residents in the community to pick up after their dogs in local green spaces, including on Byshot Path and Possil Meadow where I am taking children thorugh their John Muir Discovery Award.
Don’t worry I haven’t forgot my promise given to you in my last blog; here are some pictures of some fluffy critters. Enjoy!
I have wildlife first aid training coming up soon… oh dear more furry critters to come. Autumn here we go!!