World Wildlife Day 2023 is coming up on 3rd March and the Galloway & Southern Ayrshire Biosphere will be marking this international awareness day with a special session of their newest nature-based initiative, ‘The Biosphere’s Most Wanted’.
This free event will take place at Glentrool Hive between 10:30-12:00, and will be followed by a light lunch and social – an opportunity to share stories about creatures great and small you may have met in southwest Scotland’s UNESCO-designated region.
The Biosphere’s Most Wanted is a long-term project that aims to improve understanding of six key native species that are lacking local records or in need of monitoring: the red squirrel, wych elm, grayling butterfly, swift, adder, and nursehound shark. The event on 3rd March will provide an overview of these species and where they might be found, and will explain how sightings recorded via a simple mobile app can contribute to national scientific research.
Hosted by the Biosphere’s Project Support Officer, Malcolm Haddow, the session will begin indoors with an interactive introduction to nature recording via the iNaturalist app, before moving outside for a wildlife walk around Glentrool, where attendees will discover what’s living and growing unseen on rocks, trees, and in the undergrowth.
Malcolm says, “The Galloway & Southern Ayrshire Biosphere is working hard to raise awareness of the biodiversity crisis, with many of our local species under increasing threat from climate change and human activities. Collecting data is an essential part of conservation, and this is no longer an activity just for scientists and researchers – we can all help enormously, anytime we’re outdoors and have a mobile phone to hand. Please do join us in Glentrool on 3rd March to help celebrate and protect our amazing wildlife – it’s going to be a lot of fun.”
The Biosphere’s Most Wanted is free to book via Eventbrite (visit the Biosphere’s Eventbrite page, or search ‘Most Wanted’). Alternatively, contact [email protected] to reserve your place.
For more information about the Galloway & Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere please visit www.gsabiosphere.org.uk.
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