I decided to complete my work experience at RSPB Rye Meads Nature Reserve as I have an interest in Ecology, water management, and conservation. I knew that Rye Meads had multiple large bodies of water that were all home to many species of wildlife, including many rare birds as well as other mammals. This drew me in as I wanted to gain a deeper insight on wildlife conservation and habitat management.
Monday was my first day on the reserve and as soon as I walked into the centre, I was immediately greeted by a couple of the very welcoming staff. I was given a tour of the site as well as an induction and a plan for the week. After my induction, I then set off to explore the reserve and get my bearings, I made sure to go inside each of the hides and use the binoculars I was provided to watch over the water. Along the way, I had a chat with some of the visitors who were in the hides taking photos as well as bird watching. They told me that they really enjoy coming over to Rye Meads and have been coming for many years due to the different range of wildlife that they can spot every day.
Tuesday was the day I was out on the reserve with the work party. We had been set a task to clear the mud of a path and get down to the gravel underneath. We got to work scraping away the mud using shovels and rakes, it was quite tedious but as a team we got it done. In the end this task took around 5 hours to complete and we had a clear path to show for our efforts. Over the day, I spoke to a few of the work party members to find out their reasons for being on the reserve and how long they had been doing it for. Many of the volunteers said that they had been doing it for years and that they really enjoy it due to the great community spirit and the fact that they are involved in maintaining a safe habitat for birds to reside in. After we had finished with the path, me and one other volunteer were set the task of making handrails to be fitted around the reserve. We took the edges off pieces of wood to make them smooth by using a couple of tools and within a couple of hours, we had multiple handrails ready to be used.
Wednesday was my last day at the Rye Mead reserve, I started my morning by copying over some of the sighting's log from the physical book to the online version, I also had a look over other blogs and news articles on the RSPB’s website to learn more about what they do. I then went for a long walk around the reserve and visited each hide to see if I could spot any exciting wildlife.
I enjoyed my time at the Rye Mead Reserve, I learnt a lot and would highly recommend the venue to anyone who loves the outdoors and has a keen interest in Wildlife.
Thank you to everyone at RSPB Rye Meads for having me :)