Tag: england

My #VisionforNature

Posted on by Georgia Locock

As you’ve probably guessed in just under a month the general election will be held, 7th May. The campaign has already began and parties are rolling out their policies.

Unfortunately, as I’m 16, I can’t vote but that doesn’t mean I don’t have an opinion on the political parties and what I would like to see in their Manifestos. As you can probably guess the thing I am most interested in what they say about is wildlife and the environment.

A few weeks back I became aware of the #VisionforNature campaign that A Focus on Nature have set up which consists of a series of blog posts running up to the general election. Over the month AFON members will share their own Vision for Nature. This includes what they want the natural world to look like by 2050 and how they want to get there. You can get involved by using the hash tag they have created, #VisionforNature and by filling in this survey.

Yesterday, for the 3rd day of their series, I did a blog about my Vision for Nature. It was very difficult to decide what to write about but in the end I decided to write about getting the next generation involved and everyone realising how important nature is. Not just to them who are interested but for every single one of us, all ages.

You can read the blog post I did here – http://www.afocusonnature.org/a-vision-for-nature/inspiring-the-next-generation-by-georgia-locock/#more-6049

I have also sent the blog to all of my local party candidates to help spread the message that young people care about nature’s future. Since that is the aim of the campaign.

Signs of Spring: Part Two

Posted on by Georgia Locock

This afternoon I decided to take a well earned break from my revision and go to the RSPB reserve, Middleton Lakes.

The sun was shining, it was turning out to be a brilliant afternoon and Spring was definitely in the air! At the first pond we came to there was about ten different toads. They were all swimming about and enjoying the sunshine. This was the first time I’ve seen a toad this year and it got better as we then saw a common and a great crested newt!

Common newts, also known as smooth newts, are the most common newt of the three species which we get in the UK. Whereas the Great Crested newt is far more rare and localised. During the breeding season males develop a large, jagged crest, giving the species its name. All of the UK newts are protected but the crested newt is heavily protected as they are categorised as ‘lower risk’. In all three species declines have been observed, the reason for this is most likely to do the loss of many ponds across the UK.

Whilst walking round I also heard some woodpeckers drumming, plenty of butterflies including brimstone and peacock, and I saw some more Spring flowers, including crocuses and my first bluebell of the year!

Here are some photos that I took.

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IMG_5390King Alfred’s Cake Fungus – perhaps not a typical sign of Spring!

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Leaping into Spring!

Posted on by Georgia Locock

Over the past few days and weeks the weather has been warming up, we’re seeing birds collecting nesting material in the garden, bees and butterflies are emerging, primroses are spurting up everywhere and frog spawn is emerging in our garden ponds. There’s no doubt about it Spring has sprung and it’s very exciting! I went along to one of my favourite local places yesterday, Elford Hall Gardens, and there were plenty signs that Spring has arrived!

Whilst walking around the walled garden I was having a good look in one of the small ponds and spotted a massive heap of frog spawn and at least 10 frogs surrounding it. The frogs were croaking, swimming around and poking their little heads above the water. Even though frogs are a species that I see throughout Spring, Summer, and sometimes into the colder months, they were great to watch and I managed to get some photos of them too.

Along with this, whilst walking around the gardens, there were lots of Spring flowers including primroses and daffodils. However the best moment of the visit was walking down a path and a swallow was flying right above our heads! This was the first time I’ve seen a swallow this year so it was very exciting and I couldn’t wait to record it as part of the Big Spring Watch.

The Big Spring Watch

For those of you who watched Springwatch at Easter on Friday evening you’ll already know all about this but for those of you who didn’t the Big Spring Watch is where you record when you see five seasonal events. By doing this the Woodland Trust hope to piece together the speed at which five seasonal events are first seen across the country from south to north.

The five season events are:

  • English Oak
  • Hawthorn
  • 7-spot ladybird
  • Orange tip butterfly
  • Swallow

These records will lead to a better understanding of seasonal timings which means the Woodland Trust, along with many others, may be able to help species that appear less able to react to climate change. We know that our precious habitats are under threat and it’s important that we do what we can to protect these habitats and the species within them.

You can read more about the Big Spring Watch here – http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/natureuk/entries/ec03f10b-aa7e-46a4-8671-67d8f9069bec

I have already recorded one of the five seasonal events, which was a swallow, so don’t forget to do so yourself when you spot one of the events from the list.

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Flying Start to my Easter Holiday!

Posted on by Georgia Locock

If someone was to ask me what my favourite bird is without a doubt I’d say a peregrine falcon. They may not be as beautiful or glamorous as some other birds but their speed, ability and performance is beyond me, plus they’re a raptor.

Occasionally I see one on my evening walks after school, visiting my local patch or nature reserve. As well as this I travel to Derby Cathedral quite often and watch them there. You can watch the peregrines at Derby by clicking here.

Even though watching them at Derby is fantastic, it’s a bit of a trek for me. So when I found out a few months back that last year a pair had nested at my local cathedral I was over the moon! I kept in touch with a man who works at the cathedral and yesterday morning I had a message saying that one of the birds had been spotted there quite a lot recently.

Due to this as soon as I got home from school yesterday evening, I got changed and walked down to the cathedral. It took me about 20 minutes to walk there and as soon as I got there, I raised my binoculars and there it was sitting directly in front of me. I was so thrilled. It was quite high up so I didn’t get the best view or the best photo. However by pot luck the man I’d kept in touch with recognised me whilst I was watching the bird and we had a chat about last years chicks, when the birds around and where it normally sits. This was very interesting and hopefully, in the future, I’ll get some better photos when it isn’t sitting as high up.

I arrived at 6.30 and observed it until about 7.40, when it vanished. Even though looking up almost vertically for over an hour didn’t do my neck or back any good it was worth it! I felt so privileged to see a bird like this so close to my house and I’ll definitely be making the most of it!

Here are some photos I got. They’re not the best but at least I managed to get some!

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