We’ve had Ciara, Dennis, Ellen and friends ‘storming’ our shores in the past month or so, but surely the start of March heralds the start of spring and the end of the stormy winter?!Granted, the spring equinox doesn’t take place until Friday 20 March – and the old saying has it that March comes ‘in like a lion and goes out like a lamb’ – but we think we can start planning more outdoorsy days. And if you need to get out of the house and into nature, what could be better than joining us for one of the many RSPB NI events we have to get the ‘spring/summer’ of 2020 started?First up at Belfast WOW is our Easter Wreath-making Workshop on Thursday 9 April (6.30pm-9pm). You will learn to make your own Easter wreath using local foliage and flowers to create a seasonal wreath to decorate your home. Our guided walks at Belfast WOW are always a big draw and next up is our Spring Walk on Saturday 18 April (10.30am-3pm).Reserve warden Chris will take you around the reserve, with highlights including migrant flocks of black-tailed godwits on their way to Iceland. Then we have another family-friendly event at WOW on Saturday 16 May - Marvellous Minibeasts (12noon-2.30pm).With our Rathlin West Light Seabird Centre opening for the season on 1 April, we also have a host of events over spring and summer on the island. We begin with the Roonivoolin Ramble on Saturday 18 April (12noon-4pm), with our warden Liam McFaul leading this scenic walk exploring the Roonivoolin reserve (pictured, top) on the southern arm of the island. On Saturday 16 May, meanwhile, Liam will be joined by acclaimed wildlife photographer Ronald Surgenor to host the Nature Photography Walk (12noon-4pm) from the harbour to Rue Point. We are also putting on a Rathlin Boat Trip on Saturday 13 June to take in the spectacular seabird sights. It will depart Ballycastle at 10.30am and return there for 4pm, after touring around Rathlin (and giving guests an hour's free time on Rathlin itself).If you’d like to combine a nature walk with a yoga session, then we have exactly this at our Portmore Lough reserve on Saturday 25 April (Wellness Walk and Yoga, 3.30pm–5.30pm). We also host family events at Portmore Lough, so the Butterfly and Bug Bonanza on Saturday 23 May (10.30am–12.30pm) is well worth checking out if you have some budding wildlife enthusiasts on the scene!And three more special spring events worth booking well in advance are the Lough Beg Dawn Chorus (Saturday 2 May, 5am–7.30am, starting in Toome), the Glenwherry Nature Walk on Saturday 16 May (9am–12noon) and our Lough Erne Curlew Cruise, also on Saturday 16 May (10am–12noon).
Hope to see you at one of our events!
To book on for any RSPB NI event, just visit our Eventbrite page: http://rspbni.eventbrite.com