What a week!
What a week! We’re celebrating ‘Wild About Woking’ with a week of events around…ahem…Woking! There’s hardly been any time for social media, so I thought I’d do a quick round up here of the week so far!
On Monday evening we tried an experiment at the Heather Farm wetland area. A free after-school nature trail and craft pop-up! Thank you to everyone who came to see us, and do let us know what you thought. If there’s demand, we could run more of these.
On Tuesday I met my new colleagues Sam, Dan and Zhinlap and introduced them to some of the work I do, including (usually) social media!
Here’s Warden Nicky with Warden Zhinlap and Warden Sam in the rain today!
On Wednesday we had a treat of a visit to the heathland near Church Crookham, where expert bird surveyor John Eyre and expert nest-finder Jim Baldwin shared their knowledge with us. John and Jim have spent many years studying heathland birds and have an in depth knowledge of where they nest and the habitat they need. They’ve been following the progress of the nesting Woodlarks carefully and have observed them rear one brood of chicks already this season, and are hoping to see a second brood imminently. They were able to show us two nests, already successfully used this year. So fantastic to see for ourselves.
You’d never spot a Woodlark nest without an expert guide!
On Thursday we had a sell-out Heathland Hounds walk at Heather Farm. For those that don’t know, wardens Nicky & Jo run a fantastic Facebook group for local dog walkers. It’s a lovely group of people and a great way to share ideas for dog-friendly walking. Everyone enjoyed Thursday’s sunshine and the meadows at Heather Farm were looking lovely.
Lovely day for a leisurely walk at Heather Farm
Thank you to everyone who braved the weather this morning for Michael’s nature walk at Horsell Common. Michael got us all identifying wildlife with that great resource most of us carry around with us in our pocket…our phone. Michael’s enthusiasm for citizen science is infectious, and I for one will certainly be making more use of apps to learn about nature.
Braving the weather this morning!
And last but not least, we had our first ever work experience student with us all week this week. Thank you for all your help Polly (right below), I hope you enjoyed yourself and got a nice taste of life on the Thames Basin Heaths. You’re welcome back anytime!
Me (left) and Polly
Sarah
Thames Basin Heaths Partnership