Shropshire Wildlife Trust

Here’s another event you can get involved with at half term.

National Nest Box Week is an annual event, designed to get you and your garden birds ready for spring.

Come along to Shropshire Wildlife Trust’s HQ at Abbey Foregate in Shrewsbury, on Wednesday 13th February for workshops at 10.30am and 11.30am, and make your own nest box.

Booking is essential (as we don’t have hundreds of boxes), but you are more than welcome to come along at any time between 10am and 4.30pm and meet Wildlife Trust staff, plus the famous sparrows in our wildlife garden!

We’ve found some interesting resources, free to download -Click here for a free information pack from the British Trust for Ornithology

If you would like to make a bird box, it will cost just £5 for the whole family, and we’ll give you all the advice you’ll

need on putting it up, watching birds and maintaining your nest boxes all year round.

If you would like any more information, please call Kate in reception, on 01743 284280,

or Sara (Education) on 01743 284284.

We’re looking forward to seeing you there!

On Friday 15th February, Shropshire Wildlife Trust will be throwing open their garden gates at Abbey Foregate, Shrewsbury and inviting you into a “miniature world”.

Between 10am and 4pm, you can take part in workshops designed to help you identify and celebrate the minibeasts in your back garden.

The event is suitable for all ages, and we of course welcome teachers who’d like to learn more about the wildlife in their school grounds

There will be a chance to go on a bug hunt with an expert, look at monsters under the microscope and even create your very own little creature from clay. Ask our wildlife experts about gardening for insects and learn about Charles Darwin’s encounters with strange creatures, as well as hearing about some strange creatures right here in Shropshire!

Entrance on the day is free- but there may be a small charge for some of the activities, plus a chance to stock up on bug friendly items in our wildlife shop.

This event is being run as part of the Darwin Festival celebrations, 2008: an annual celebration of the life and works of the great scientist, who spent his formative years exploring the wildlife of Shropshire.

We want to find and encourage a new generation of inspired and hopefully inspirational naturalists, which is why this event is taking place. So if you know of a young wildlife enthusiast in your class or at home, please make sure you let them know, and bring them along this half term.

Booking is essential for the workshops and bug hunt- please call Kate on 01743 284280.

If you’d like more information about the life and works of Charles Darwin and plans for the Darwin 200 festival in 2009, please click here.

The photo is a real monster, called a Lunar Hornet Moth, found in my back garden in Shrewsbury!

A typical January day. The rain is horizontal and the wind, gale force. Everyone and everything looks grey, wet and miserable. Will it ever be sunny? Do we really need this much rain?

Rain is, of course, a necessary and large part of our life in Britain. It’s what makes our land green and pleasant. It’s free water. No charge.

Here in Shropshire, we need all the rain we can get, in order to protect a habitat that is as rare and threatened as the rainforests of the Amazon.

Fenn’s, Whixall and Bettisfield Moss Complex in North Shropshire is a habitat right at the limit of what a “Moss” can endure. Shropshire is becoming marginally too dry for this habitat, technically known as a Lowland Raised Bog, or Peat Bog.

If our climate gets only a little bit drier, we risk losing this huge, soggy expanse of incredibly rare plants and animals that relies exclusively on rainwater for its survival.

Whixall Moss is a huge natural store of carbon - if it doesn’t get enough rainwater, it will dry out, crack up and release carbon dioxide in amounts that may be globally significant to the pace and destruction of climate change.

The Whixall peat (pickled plants) has taken over 10 thousand years to develop and contains bog bodies and ancient pine trees that are at least 3 thousand years old. Once it’s gone, it’s gone forever.
Take a walk there with your class and discover carnivorous plants, bright Green Tiger Beetles and clouds of dragonflies.

It’s one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Does that make you feel any better about the rain?

If not, how about a taste of last summer? Steel bands and a carnival atmosphere at the Meres and Mosses Festival podcast. Meres and Mosses festival podcast.

Photo: Rain on Summer Flowers, Sara Bellis.

Shropshire Wildlife Trust manages Wem Moss, which is a part of the Fenn’s, Whixall and Bettisfield Moss complex.

Do One Thing in your wildlife area this year and go peat free.

Shropshire Wildlife Trust sells a range of peat-free composts. Contact our wildlife shop here for more information.

Outside in your grounds, are thousands of little crustaceans; tiny descendants of crabs, shrimp and lobsters. They are Woodlice, also known as Sowbugs, Chiggypigs or Cheeselogs.

Woodlice belong to a dark and damp nocturnal world, where they feed on rotting plant material. They are incredibly useful as nature’s recyclers- beginning the process of decomposition that bacteria and fungi complete.

You can find woodlice in your grounds at any time of the year; to catch some, all you’ll need is a pot, a pair of tweezers and an identification chart.

Once you’ve collected a few woodlice, you may notice that there are different shapes, sizes and markings. Did you know there are 46 different species of woodlouse in Britain? You may have at least 3 or 4 of them in your pot.

Each species of woodlouse prefers a slightly different habitat, with a slightly different niche (or “job” if you like).

If you have woodlice you’d like to identify with your class, click on Woodlouse for a really nice online key from the Natural History Museum’s “Walking with Woodlice” project.

The NHM woodlouse survey was last carried out in 2004, but it still contains some very useful information and ideas on working with woodlice in your school grounds. Click here for the results of their national survey, which may inspire you to carry out your own?

A Simple Woodlouse Experiment.
Try this simple experiment to discover a woodlouse’s preference to living in darkness (if you would like to sound clever, this preference is called “negative phototropism”).

This activity is suitable for Key Stage 2-4 pupils.

Collect a minimum of 20 woodlice, preferably of the same species, and put them all into a pot at the centre of a large tray, the sides of which should be high enough to prevent any escapees.

Using cardboard, or any other suitable material, divide your tray into four “choice chambers”, or rooms, leaving enough space under your dividers for the woodlice to move about freely.

Create different conditions in each chamber - for instance, at Key Stage 2, it could be that you have two rooms covered (dark), and two rooms uncovered (light).

With older groups you could add damp vegetation to a light and dark chamber as an extra variable or “choice”.

Release the woodlice into the chambered tray and watch where they go.

At intervals of 1 minute, count how many woodlice there are in each chamber and note down the results on a recording sheet. This is harder than it sounds and is a nice problem-solving activity if you have the time!

At the end of the experiment (we suggest 5 minutes minimum), count up your results and discuss any patterns of behaviour. If all goes well, you should find that most woodlice prefer the dark, damp conditions to light and dry.

It is thought that the ancestors of woodlice came from the sea. Modern woodlice dry out very quickly if they’re out in the open, and if they dry out, they die. Woodlice even have primitive gills on their undersides, which absorb oxygen in damp and wet conditions.

These 14-legged friends are worthy members of our Monsters section. Let us know if you carry out this woodlouse experiment, and please share your results, pictures and photographs.

Members of our education team can set up and lead a woodlouse workshop for you, in school or at our HQ in Shrewsbury. This introduces and builds upon pupils knowledge of habitats, keys, adaptations and life cycles.

We also have bugpots, tweezers, hand lenses and fold out woodlouse keys for sale in our shop.

Please call us on 01743 284284, or leave an email request here.

Anyone for Extra Protein?

Incidentally, I have found a website from Key Stage 4 students in New Zealand, which explores a whole new use of woodlice- as ingredients in scones and sushi! Click here if you dare!

John and Jo of the Wood Lane team recorded a brilliant podcast back in October 07, about feeding birds. Click on this button Click here to find out about the whole process of producing and selling bird feed, from field to feeder.

At this time of year, it is really important to put lots of food out for birds as their natural foods are scarce. You can have a lot of fun creating interesting recipes for bird cake with your pupils, using ingredients like peanut butter, apples and grated cheese. The feeders you put out don’t always have to be the expensive plastic affairs; birds will just as happily visit a yoghurt pot filled with fat and seeds, or an apple with holes, filled with tasty morsels chosen by your class.

During the Big Schools Birdwatch, hang your home-made feeders outside the classroom, and enjoy the rewards of your hard work.

I can’t start work in the morning unless I’ve done two things. The first is make myself a cup of coffee, and while the kettle boils, I carry out the second important thing; watching our sparrows carry out the latest installment of their soap opera, right outside the tearoom window.

We’re lucky enough to have a flock of very noisy, comedic House Sparrows roosting in the garden at the Trusts’ HQ, in the heart of Shrewsbury. Their lives, as with many other sparrows across the world, are intertwined with those of humans. At this time of year, they are all huddled next to the warmth of our (poorly insulated!) building, feathers puffed up, chattering away all the time. You can easily spot the characters, the bossy matriarch, pecking the younger ones, keeping them in line, and the old timers, patiently waiting their turn at the bird table. During spring and early summer, we’re privileged to see courtship displays, nest building and parents patiently feeding their young. All the time they are chattering to each other, making a heartwarming scene for anyone taking the time to watch.

House sparrows are a sociable species, with large family groups always nesting together. There are so many parallels between their lives and our own- it’s easy to spot the family squabbles, the adolescent friendships and the care of fledglings. If you are lucky enough to have sparrows in your grounds or back garden, turn off the telly and take the time to watch your own sparrow soap opera - you won’t be disappointed.

How to encourage sparrows into your school grounds:

You can make or buy House sparrow nest boxes, which are terraces rather than single boxes. Put these up on a sheltered part of any building, preferably close to shrubs or trees with dense undergrowth. Our sparrows nest in the ivy growing on a wall opposite the tearoom, giving us some lovely views.

Natural sparrows nests are dome-shaped, made from straw, grasses and feathers, so make sure you have plenty of suitable nesting materials nearby.

Sparrows love to take a bath, often together, so consider having a birdbath in your grounds.

Your sparrows will more readily come to a bird table, rather than a feeder, so a well-stocked table of seeds and peanuts will attract these noisy, but endearing little brown birds.

An amazing opportunity has arisen for anyone wanting to become a Forest School Leader. Warwickshire Wildlife Trust have places on their 5 day, level three training courses held at Brandon Marsh, just outside Coventry.

They are accredited through Evesham College and are a BTEC qualification, allowing successful participants to set up and run their own Forest Schools.

The best bit? They are only charging £100 for the course! WWT have received Lottery funding for this training project, allowing them to save you money, while still providing a high quality qualification.

If you would like to book a place, or would like to know more about Forest School training in the West Midlands (including Shropshire) then please call Sarah Klaes on 024 76302912, or Sara Bellis 01743 284284.

STOP PRESS….There are still spaces on a level three course starting next Monday (21st Jan) - call 0247 6302912 to book your place.

The Blackbird. A bird that most people recognise; the males are completely black, with a bright orange beak. They are often seen hopping around on the school field looking for insects and worms, and fruit when it’s in season.

Have you ever sat and watched a blackbird catch worms? It stands with its head on one side, listening for signs of life in the soil. A sharp jab at the ground often results in a tug of war between bird and worm, in which the bird normally wins, but not always!

Did you know that Blackbirds often visit ants nests- and not just for food? Feather lice can be very uncomfortable for a Blackbird, and in order to clean themselves they have been known to pick up ants in their bills and rub them over their feathers, or stranger still, sunbathe with wings open, over an ants’ nest. Ornithologists believe that the formic acid these ants produce, helps to kill off these itchy lice!

Blackbirds are a common and beautiful species in Shropshire; if you want to attract them to your school grounds, we suggest planting trees with fruit or berries, such as Rowan, Holly, Apple or Cherry; and think about creating a nice, thick hedgerow for nest building females.

Watching a bird feeding area with your pupils is an ideal way to introduce the concept of adaptations. Birds at the feeders will often mimic the niche they have in the wild. For example; Blackbirds are adapted to ground feeding, with large bodies, short legs and a straight, sharp beak. In order to attract them to your feeding area, leave some seed and old apples on the ground.

On the other hand, a bird like a Blue Tit, is adapted to finding food on the light, outer branches of a tree. It’s small body, powerful legs and short beak make it ideally suited to hanging from branches and picking out insects and small seeds.

You may find that as you watch the birds, you spot lots of other adaptations. Why not read up on your feathered visitors’ adaptations, then have a go at designing feeders for specific species in your school grounds?

Click on the photo at the top of this post to watch fledgling blackbirds being fed.

Tomorrow: House Sparrow Soap Opera!

We often get asked by teachers about the best books to buy for school libraries, especially ones that give advice on creating, managing and enjoying wildlife areas. Our answers are always changing, but here is our current shortlist of great books we always go back to. If you have any suggestions for great books, simply leave a comment in the box below. Incidentally, many of these books can be ordered from our Wildlife Trust shop; just call Kate on 01743 284280.

1. A Natural History of the Garden, Michael Chinery, 1978.

This is my favourite book, and the one that got me interested in wildlife as a child. I still have the original copy my Dad gave me in the early 80s and have read it from cover to cover many times over. It is no longer in print I believe, but you can get a very cheap copy by clicking on the link above. It is so full of really interesting facts about creatures we see every day- a quiet, modern masterpiece!

2. Animal Tracks and Signs; Bang and Dahlstrom 2006

This is an exciting looking book, and the contents don’t let you down. It covers European as well as UK species, and has a great colour guide to “chiggled” or nibbled nuts, footprints and droppings. Take this book whenever you go for a walk, and keep your eyes peeled. Knowing a little about tracks and trails gives you a fascinating insight into the lives of creatures we often overlook.

If you’d like to know more about tracks and trails, contact Helen Trotman at SWT. She has spent many years tracking wolves and other wild animals across the world, and can help you develop your own tracking and field skills, in workshops designed for children and adults . 01743 284297.

3. Small Freshwater Creatures; Lars-Henrik Olsen, Bente Vita Pedersen, and Jakob Sunesen (Hardcover - 7 Jun 2001)

This is a handy guide for any teacher wishing to know more than the basics during a pond dipping session. Have it in your collection and refer to it if you get any strange creatures presented to you on teaspoons! There is a very handy guide on the inside covers , plus clear illustrations and simple facts that help add interest to any adaptations topic. Dont forget that SWT have over 15 years experience of leading pond dipping sessions, so if you need any help, just give us a call. 01743 284284.

4. Nature’s Playground; Danks and Schofield 2006

A practical book that re-charges any tired imagination. This book helps you get outside in all seasons and gives you activities to play, explore and create in different natural settings.

The thing that makes this book great however, is the section on stopping and listening. It’s simplicity means that you won’t have to spend a fortune, or have an in depth knowledge of wildlife; a love of the great outdoors is enough. Go star gazing, cloud watching, or fall asleep under an oak tree. Everyone needs a copy of this book.

5. SWT Nature Reserve Guide

This is not a published book ,and you won’t find it on Amazon, but if you love Shropshire’s countryside then this guide is an absolute must. It fits easily into a back pocket and covers all our 37 nature reserves, with information on not just wildlife, but geology, history and practical hints on parking and access. SWT staff use it every day!

Contact SWT for your own copy, available from our wildlife shop in Shrewsbury. 01743 284280.

6.Collins Bird Guide: The Most Complete Guide to the Birds of Britain and Europe (Paperback)

Beautifully illustrated and clearly written, this is a perfect book for beginners and experts alike. The hardback book is huge, and makes an excellent coffee table book to sit back and relax with, but thankfully, they’ve also produced a handy paperback that makes a great addition to any rucksack. We’ve used this title on many a field trip to Wood Lane in conjunction with an FSC Foldout Chart (See below).

7. Field Studies Council Foldout Charts

There have been more than a dozen of these produced over the past few years, covering diverse subjects such as pond creatures, lichens and garden birds. They are cheap, high quality and incredibly useful guides. We have used them for many years and would recommend them for all ages. They can be ordered directly from the FSC, or from our SWT shop, where we can advise you on the best guides to use. 01743 284284.

8. Wildlife Gardening for Everyone, Malcolm Tait.

We like this book, and have a copy on our bookshelf in the office, to help us answer your wildlife gardening questions! It is full of advice from experts with plenty of first hand experience of creating and managing wildlife areas.

9. The Earth Speaks; Steve van Matre.

A beautiful, sentimental book that brings together poetry, essays and short sayings from the world’s leading philosophers and natural historians. It is written from the heart and aims to inspire a sense of awe and wonder for planet Earth. Perfect for reading out loud to your group or quietly relishing it while on your own, sitting out in the sunshine. A powerful read.

Once you’ve read this book, contact us for an Earthwalk- they’re suitable for adults and children (7yrs up) and embody many of the sentiments set out in the book. 01743 284284.

10. Nick Baker’s The First Time Naturalist.

I have a copy of Gerald Durrell’s “The Amateur Naturalist” and could easily get very put out that it has been copied and shamelessly brought into the 21st Century- “leave our classics alone!” I hear you cry…but, give it a chance- it has an energy and enthusiasm that is infectious, it is fresh and full of new ideas that make it impossible to sit still for long. I promise, that once you’ve read only a handful of pages, you will have your wellies and waterproofs on and be striding down to the local mud puddle with a jam jar and a home made, coat hanger pond net, without even realising it. Long live Nick Baker and please buy his books.

We’re bound to have missed out some really good titles- so please let us know of any wildlife books that have inspired you, we’d love to hear from you- just leave us your list in the comment box below….

Yes, it’s that time of year, when schools across the county prepare for two weeks of serious birdwatching for the RSPB. If you haven’t signed up yet, we’d strongly advise you to, as it’s a great way to start noticing your local wildlife. You may be surprised at who visits your feeders. One school even had an escaped parakeet!

You’ll more than likely see our favourites, the blackbird, chaffinch and robin. Keen spotters might notice Fieldfares and Redwings on the school field - and listen out for the call of Barn Owls at dusk. Some species, like house sparrows and starlings, we may well have taken for granted- as they seem to have suffered a  sharp decline in recent years. This worrying development makes it all the more vital that you join in and help us protect these once common birds.

If you’d like to know more about the Big Schools Birdwatch, click here. If you’d like to find out more about how to look after our birds in Shropshire, then contact us here.

We’ll feature some birds you may see in your grounds here on the blog over the next 2 weeks. Come back to our blog for fascinating facts about Blackbirds, Chaffinches, Robins and many more.

Happy Birdwatching!