Half term got off to a very exciting start here at Minsmere with the arrival of some very important visitors... no not the Springwatch team (although we are very pleased and excited to see the Springwatch crew here again) but the BBC Blue Peter team. A group of children came to Minsmere from Benhall Primary School to do a bioblitz around the reserve as part of the National Garden Bioblitz event.
A bioblitz is searching for and making a list of all the wildlife you can find in a certain area over a specified time. To Bioblitz at Minsmere Blue Peter recruited the help of two of our very experienced guides Steve and Davene Everett. They showed the children and film crew around the reserve and took them to places which are mini-beast hotspots. They hunted for many mini-beasts and carefully took some of the species they found to the Springwatch Macro Studio where the Springwatch team helped the children look at the creatures in close detail. One of these animals was a woolly bear caterpillar. He was a very determined caterpillar who made a bit for freedom before he was released back to where he had been found on the reserve. He incredibly managed to lift the lid off the petri-dish he was temporarily being kept in and was free. It took some serious authority in the form of our Site Manager to catch, contain and escort this woolly bear back to his rightful place on the reserve!
The woolly bear was only one of the incredible species found by the school children on their bioblitz. If you are keen to see what other amazing species were found then tune into Blue Peter on Thursday 2 June at 5 pm on CBBC or better still why not try a bioblitz yourself. It is a great way to experience nature first hand and encounter the wonderful variety of species we have on our doorstep. Minsmere is open throughout half term and playing host to Springwatch over the next three weeks. The reserve is open as usual with some incredible habitats to search for mini-beasts so why not come and see what you can find here. There is also a self-led nature trail for children and families to complete as well as the fun outside activities in the Wild Zone.
Four spotted chaser - Steve Everett
Green orb spider - Davene Everett
Large jawed orb spider - Steve Everett
National Garden Bioblitz is taking place this weekend (4 – 5 June 2016). All you need to do is make a list of all the wildlife you can find in your garden, local park, RSPB reserve or any outside space. Visit the National Garden Bioblitz website for more details about how to enter your results.
Lovely photos, especially the multi-talented Everetts!
Our herring gulls are red listed birds. Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.