This month has been all about getting out and about! I have had lots of contact with students, as well as opportunities to get hands-on with more practical work. I have also been continuing to build my skills during homeworking by mapping fox predation data, allotment sites and more.
Waders Fieldtrip with Bangor University Students
Although this was an educational trip for Bangor University students, I also had a lot to learn about wader bird identification.
Since my background education has not specialised in ornithology, it was interesting to learn more about wader birds and be able to identify them in person. I had spent a few days before the fieldtrip trying to familiarise myself with some common wader species. This made identifying species on the fieldtrip much easier, and this helped me talk to the Bangor students.
From the help of Julieanne and Katie, we all were able to spot and identify species like Curlew, lapwing, oyster catchers and little egrets, to name a few. It was also great to hear from students who were already well familiarised with bird identification, as well as hearing about the history of the sites we visited, such as RSPB Conwy and West Shore.
‘Finding the Balance – Farming with nature’s blueprint’ with Ian Coghill and Steve Dobbin
On a Thursday evening, I made the drive to Loppington, near Shrewsbury, for a talk in the local pub.
The evening began with Steve Dobbin from Natural England and his work with ground-nesting birds, like Curlew. He explained that predator control has been a must for promoting successful fledglings, alongside electric fences and other works, similar to GWCT’s Curlew Connections projects.
Later, Ian Coghill introduced himself, expressed his views and answered questions on relevant environmental and rural affairs topics. His extensive experience, emotions and opinions in this field were clear from his talk and still appear to be relevant as many conservation projects continue to ignore the one of the key processes in conservation alongside resources and habitat, which is predation. Ian also touched on his experience with GWCT, as well as the concerns he has over countryside ownership in the UK towards organisations over local people. I tended to agree with these opinions, as I could relate to many of his ideas, including those around the importance of basing UK nature conservation around the research conducted in the UK, rather than worldwide ecological research. Although it is important to look at worldwide conservation work to evaluate ecological processes and principles, me and Ian agree that research and historical heritage based in the UK is still the most relevant for UK conservation.
First Aid Training
Despite the rainy weather in Llanrwst, I got stuck in with my first aid training course. The day was filled with lots of information about the equipment, supplies and skills I needed for being a first aider. This course was a long time coming for me, because despite having many fieldwork and group experiences, I have never completed a first aid course in full. The course also offered opportunities for practical experience to apply what I had learned from the talks. Even though this course was essential for my job, I realised anyone could benefit from first aid training, as situations requiring first aider can often occur outside of working environments.
Allerton Project Visit
Although it was a long drive from Wrexham, the Allerton Project was the perfect opportunity to gain practical experiences and talk to the team there about the possibilities of applying knowledge and techniques in Loddington to use with the Wales team, such as the Hedgerow Carbon Code (HCC) and different soil-testing methods.
Thursday – Hedgerows tour
Once I arrived, the first activity was a hedgerow tour from Jobe Burnham, involving showing me around the whole project and his work on expanding and improving hedgerow management. I learnt about the different elements that make a diverse and ecologically significant hedgerow, and the positive impacts that drenches and hedge coppicing and laying can have.
After the tour, I was given a chance to hedge lay myself. I watched Jobe wind the willow around the stacks and pounded the knots into the hedge. This now makes not only an attractive hedge for visitors but also will regenerate the hedge as the willow shoots and bushes out. Hopefully the songbirds will enjoy their new habitat!
Friday – Soil testing and lab work
Friday started with collecting water samples for the project in partnership with Syngenta, looking at nitrate runoff as an indicator of soil health.
This experience also led me to seeing one of the moth traps in action (as pictured in the stormy weather).
The lab facilities at Allerton were important to see in person, especially considering the Welsh team are looking to send soil samples to Allerton’s lab for testing quality and invertebrate diversity for projects such as the Integrated National Resource Scheme (INRS) and Thriving Allotments.
In the afternoon, I helped by sieving soil samples from various fields across the project for Soil Organic Matter testing (SOM).
Saturday – Allotment
Will Everitt, one of the placement students at Allerton, has started clearing the community allotment at Loddington. I got to see his work on Saturday, where we managed to build a compost bin from old pallets. Will showed me how it is possible to reuse and recycle what is already available for the benefit of allotments. I have taken this message away with me to use for the ‘Thriving Allotments’ project to save on budget and for the sustainability of the project.
Bangor University Careers Fair
This careers fair was another opportunity for me to network with students and promote the research work of GWCT. The students who attended took interest in us, and me and the team had some insightful conservations with many. We hope to see and hear from many of these students, as we are exploring possibilities to welcome students to participate in our research and work.
This was also a great opportunity for me to introduce myself with other organisations’ representatives at other stalls to talk about shared project aspirations.
‘Thriving Allotments’ Application
On the same day as the careers fair, Kaylee submitted our funding application for our new project idea, Thriving Allotments, where we hope to encourage nature and Welsh language education in community allotment spaces across Cardiff. The project would also aim to boost biodiversity on allotment spaces, which should help gardeners promote the amazing benefits allotments offer to people and wildlife to councils and government, alongside the help from our team. My wider vision with this project is to conserve and expand allotments to allow them to thrive amongst wildlife and communities.
Winter Fair
I experienced my first fully agricultural fair towards the end of the month, with the GWCT stand in the Lantra building at the Winter Fair. Being involved in running the stand helped to gradually introduce me to the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society and why the events are so important for people and communities in Wales.