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      • Five of our favourite springtime wildlife sights and sounds
      • Five essential things to look for when choosing a nest box for outside your home or garden
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    • Nature Reserves >
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      • WWT to re-open 6 wetland centres in England after Covid-19 crisis
      • Start 2019 in style with a trip to one of these famous five nature reserves
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      • A starling spectacular!
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    • Mammals >
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      • Shoresearch: new project launches to help count marine life on UK shores
    • Travel >
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Online nature activities to help you get through Covid-19 lockdown


6 April 2020
Picture
Small tortoiseshell by Mark Hamblin
For those struggling for things to do during the Covid-19 lockdown, The Wildlife Trusts have created some wonderful online nature activities to encourage everyone to tune in to wildlife at home this spring – and to help people find solace in nature during these unprecedented times.

Spot bees, butterflies, bats and birds during your permitted local walk, keep children entertained with nature-themed crafts, or tune in to look at fabulous wildlife footage and photos! There’s also plenty of practical outdoor advice to inspire us to do more for wildlife in gardens, balconies or window boxes.

Tune in at www.wildlifetrusts.org/looking-after-yourself-and-nature. The Wildlife Trusts are also launching a weekly wildlife programme on YouTube this week for kids and parents. A new video will be uploaded to Wildlife Watch UK every Wednesday at 10am. The channel will feature wildlife experts, home-school help and seasonal species to spot at wtru.st/Wildlife-Watch-YouTube. Future videos will include:
  • How to build a pond 
  • Be a garden scientist  - exploring your garden wildlife
  • How to identify insects in your garden
  • How to make a bug hotel
  • What is marine pollution?
  • Why birds sing and how to recognise their songs.

Wildlife Trusts across the UK are providing new ways of helping us feel more connected to the wider world and each other, via their online and social channels.  Wildlife experts who are usually leading school visits, events or talking to visitors on reserves have had to down tools and work from home – and so they can now be found online leading wildlife-spotting tours through their gardens, blogging about the life cycle of oil beetles or sharing heart-warming sounds of a dawn chorus on a sunny April morning. For example:
  • Follow over 20 webcams from nests and locations around the UK and watch puffins in Alderney, peregrines in Nottingham, bats in Essex and ospreys on their nests www.wildlifetrusts.org/webcams.
  • Join Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust’s mini-beast expert Ben Keywood talk about frogspawn and springtime insects from his own garden. Help the Wildlife Trust record sightings of wildlife and follow their advice for helping in your garden.
  • Daily wildlife diaries from Sussex Wildlife Trust’s Michael Blencowe who talks about the wildlife in his gorgeous garden.
  • Worcestershire Wildlife Trust is advising people about feeding birds, watching wildlife in the garden and learning how to identify it. 
  • Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is producing a series of videos called Bringing Nature to You. Join education officer Susan Symmonds and hear about the life cycle of an oil beetle.
  • Go to Surrey Wildlife Trust’s website where you’ll find spotter sheets and activities to help identify local wildlife.
  • Sign up for Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust’s Wild at Home ideas for regular activities and inspiration to help people stay connected with wildlife.
  • Keep an eye out for #EverydayWildlife across social media, an outlet to share local wildlife, big, small, grand or often overlooked.
  • Get guidance on how to create a butterfly haven in our Wild About Gardens campaign with the RHS, by downloading a handy booklet full of inspiration.​
​
Leanne Manchester, wildlife gardener and digital communications manager at The Wildlife Trusts, says: “More people than ever are tuning into our wildlife webcams – more than double the figure for this time last year – and we’re seeing people have a lot of fun wildlife-watching in their gardens. Spring has arrived in splendid colour and sound, and over the past few days, hundreds of people have told us that they've spotted their first butterflies. These are joyful moments that people hold dear at this difficult time. 
“Everyone can share and follow on social media using #EverydayWildlife – swapping such experiences can be a lovely way of keeping in touch. Do keep an eye on our channels in the coming weeks – we’ve got lots of lovely ideas and activities to help you stay connected to nature and still feel the health benefits of being outside in your garden or neighbourhood.” 

Michael Blencowe, learning and engagement officer at Sussex Wildlife Trust says: “Despite being confined to our homes and neighbourhoods, we can still enjoy wildlife’s busy activity around us and be part of a huge online community sharing local wildlife stories. Butterflies and bumblebees are all emerging from hibernation, the blossom is bursting into life and the birds are singing beautifully every morning. It's all helping to lift our spirits and improve our mental wellbeing. It proves that the role wildlife plays in our lives has become more important than ever.” 
In total there are 24 webcams offered by Wildlife Trusts across the UK that are online, or will come online soon. 19 webcams are online right now and five cams will come online later in spring, depending on when the species they watch arrive!

Discover more > 
The Government’s guidance on access to green spaces here

Next article: Five of our favourite springtime wildlife sights and sounds
​
Next article: Where can you watch owls in the UK? 
Next article: Endangered beetle hides out at WWT Welney​
​
Next article: 
BTO ask British public to participate in a national study of Tawny Owls and their calling behaviour this autumn and winter
Next article: The prestigious Bird Photographer of the Year (BPOTY) competition has announced the 2018 winners
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  • Editor's Choice
  • New Gear & Tech
    • New compact binoculars from SWAROVSKI OPTIK released for those looking for a lightweight travel companion
    • Learn more about Digiscoping and Phonescoping wildlife
    • SWAROVSKI OPTIK offers new accessories for customers with the launch of their gear collection
    • SWAROVSKI OPTIK announces largest objective module ever made for wildlife watchers
    • OXAZ unveils OVERCAP - the World's first rigid, all-weather removable hood for wildlife watchers
    • SWAROVSKI OPTIK announces new NL Pure binoculars - bringing new levels of performance and comfort for wildlife watchers
    • Experience wildlife in fabulous detail with your whole family using these Kowa garden sets
    • The lowdown on Kowa's BDII-HD wide angle binoculars
    • SWAROVSKI OPTIK changes the game of animal identification with release of their digital guide and mammals ID app
    • Canon launches two new practical pairs of binoculars including the world's lightest binoculars with image stabilisation technology
    • SWAROVSKI OPTIK have released an updated version of their popular digiscoping adapter for iPhone 8 owners
  • News & Features
    • In Your Garden >
      • Walk for wildlife this autumn!
      • Are bats spreading the coronavirus? This and other similar questions debunked by industry expert
      • 7 simple tips on how to improve your gardens for hedgehogs safety and wellbeing
      • New ‘wild’ home learning hub helps parents be fun science teachers
      • Online nature activities to help you get through Covid-19 lockdown
      • Birds of a feather get hot in this weather
      • 30 Days Wild returns for a fabulous fifth year
      • Proof that feeding garden birds has led to population increases in over 30 species since the 1970's
      • Five of our favourite springtime wildlife sights and sounds
      • Five essential things to look for when choosing a nest box for outside your home or garden
      • Top tips to help your garden birds survive winter
    • Nature Reserves >
      • Good news! The Wildlife Trusts are to receive nearly £2 million to restore land for nature and tackle climate change
      • WWT to re-open 6 wetland centres in England after Covid-19 crisis
      • Start 2019 in style with a trip to one of these famous five nature reserves
      • The annual ‘swanfall’ at WWT Slimbridge has started with a flurry of Bewick’s swans arriving for the winter
      • Where can you watch owls in the UK? Plan your trip with Wildlife24/7's six best places to watch owls this winter
      • A starling spectacular!
      • Eels at WWT reserve being microchipped to track movements of a species on the brink
      • Endangered beetle hides out at WWT Welney
    • Bugs
    • Birds >
      • >> Birding247.co.uk
      • BTO ask British public to participate in a national study of Tawny Owls and their calling behaviour this autumn and winter
      • The prestigious Bird Photographer of the Year (BPOTY) competition has announced the 2018 winners
    • Mammals >
      • One of Britain's rarest mammals returns to Forest of Dean
    • Marine >
      • Easing of Covid restrictions in 2020 produced once in a lifetime wildlife watching opportunities for UK's population
      • Get ready to dive into National Marine Week 2019!
      • Shoresearch: new project launches to help count marine life on UK shores
    • Travel >
      • Safari
      • Islands
      • Oceans
      • Europe
      • South America
      • UK & Ireland
      • Survival & Awareness
  • Conservation
    • HS2 - new report details vast scale of destruction and impact to nature
    • New film from Sir David Attenborough and The Wildlife Trusts calls for nature’s recovery
    • UK's wildlife continues to decline according to new state of nature report
    • UK Government considering badger cull in new areas
    • Wetnose Day Announce Amanda Holden as the Animal Loving Celebrity for Wetnose Day 2019!
    • Stars speak up for wildlife in new film trailer hitting cinemas this weekend
    • Swifts are in need of our help as numbers halve in just 20 years
    • The Wildlife Trusts condemn HS2 phase 2B draft environmental statement - impact on wild plants and animals will be devastating
    • It could become legal to kill wild barnacle geese in the UK in the near future, if a proposal by Norway to the EU is adopted
    • Major project to safeguard Orkney’s internationally important native wildlife wins National Lottery and LIFE support
    • Kate Humble becomes new President of WWT
  • Photography & Video
    • Equipment Reviews >
      • Gitzo's new 2 way fluid tripod head for wildlife observers using medium-sized scopes and camera lenses up to 200mm
    • Technique & Insights >
      • Chris Fallows: Ocean, Earth and Air - in his own words
    • Contests >
      • The Wall Of Fame 2019 Wildlife Photography Competition - Winner
      • Wall OF Fame 2019 Powered by SWAROVSKI OPTIK
      • Celebrate the magic of the UK’s wildlife with the new Back from the Brink Film and Photography Competition