We were very happy to have Molly, a student attending High School in
Alnwick, help us out on the Reserve as part of her work experience last week.
Molly writes:
"Hi! I'm Molly, a student in sixth form at Duchess's Community High
School in Alnwick and I'm just coming to the end of a week's work
experience placement with Natural England at the Lindisfarne National Nature
Reserve. So I'm doing a one-time-only blog entry to let you know all about
everything I've experienced and learnt whilst I've been here...
Day 1 - MONDAY: I arrived in the morning and, after having a
volunteer induction, was given my schedule from the week. It looked great with
something new to look forward to every day! I already knew I was not going to
have a bored moment here.
In the afternoon after settling into the office at Beal, it was straight
out onto site with Reserve Warden Laura for a butterfly survey around the Snook
on the Island. As we walked, Laura explained to me that she does the
survey once a week so that the results she collects each time can be
collated and then analysed for trends etc. I also learned that
there is so much that can affect whether these butterflies will be
spotted flying around including amount of sunlight and wind speed and
direction.
The rain held off but because it was quite windy, Laura didn't
expect we would see too many species fluttering by - however there
were actually more than I expected. We even spotted a common blue - the first
time Laura had seen one this year!
After this we got back to the office and Jo, Lead Advisor for the NNR
North team, explained to me about an event on the Island next week where
75 first school students will be arriving on the Island for the official
opening of the new Window on Wild Lindisfarne building so I
began helping to prepare for that creating some activity sheets for the
children.
All in all, a full day and a great start to the week!
Dark Green Fritillary - many of these were seen on
the butterfly transect this week
Day 2 - TUESDAY: I was barely in the office half an hour before I
was off out with Laura again. This time we went to the Cheswick part of the
nature reserve (until this week, I didn't realise that the
island only makes up quite a small portion of the Reserve) to show me how
to carry out a Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) and to look at the different species
of birds we could see along the coast. This is something that is done once a
month and basically, you look for all the different species of wetland birds
you see and record them.
On this occasion, we mainly saw herring gulls. In fact, there was a
large group of about 193 of them - I have no idea how Laura didn't lose count;
imagine what it must be like in the winter when the Reserve plays home to
several thousand waterfowl, including thousands of light-bellied Brent
geese, at one time on Lindisfarne!
We came back for lunch but it was straight out again; this time
with Jo.She took me to the island and showed me round the two new buildings. The
newest building (Window on Wild Lindisfarne) on the way to the castle is
a true architectural triumph with each tiny environmental detail considered.
From the turf roof to the way the grouting is set way back (allowing cover for
bees) and gaps within the walls that have been specifically left for birds
to nest, everything has been covered. It is a place which will surely become a
birdwatcher's paradise in the winter months when the thousands of geese come to
rest on the field directly behind it. Next, to the Lookout tower. Again, I
thought this was a great building providing spectacular views of the entire
Island. I particularly liked looking out to see the many heads of seals
bobbing up and down in the water!
Finally, to finish off the day, we went down to the beach for a spot of
rock-pooling, carefully looking around to make sure there would be something
there for the children to find when they're here next week. We weren't
disappointed with shore crabs, a few shrimp and plenty of common periwinkles.
But I hope you find some starfish next week too guys!
On Lindisfarne NNR, looking North towards
Berwick-Upon-Tweed
Day 3 - WEDENESDAY: In the morning, I had barely finished off
the activity sheets before it was back onto the Reserve straight away with
Jo again. On the Island, we met up with Julie from Newcastle University who is
part of the Northumbrian exchange project. She told me how she is currently
conducting a project which focuses on presenting Holy Island from the
perspective of the Islanders themselves. She really wants the community to take
part and is using a variety of workshops from photography and art to dance and
sounds which everyone can get involved in.
It was really interesting for me to get an insight into this side of
Natural England; before this placement I only considered the science side of
things but this has given me the opportunity to see the connections with the
arts it also has. It seems lovely that so many different organisations
(including the Holy Island Partnership too) on Lindisfarne seem to have the
same end goal: maintaining it as the beautiful place it is.
The stunning view from the Lookout on Wild
Lindisfarne
Day 4 - THURSDAY: In the morning, Laura and I went straight
out onto site once more to collect in the Little Tern decoys. Laura told me
that unfortunately, they do not seem to have encouraged Little Terns to nest in
this trialled decoy area yet but it is something that has worked in the past in
other areas so... hopefully next year! It was ideal to get a little bit of an
insight into this in the morning because after a quick litter-pick on the way
back to the car, it was back to the office but then in the afternoon we went
with Andrew, Senior Reserve Manager, to Long Nanny to visit the Little Terns
and Arctic Terns at this National Trust site. The Tern colony there was a
wonder to see and that is no surprise being that it is the biggest mainland
Arctic Tern colony in the UK. I really hope one day we will see that kind of
sight on Lindisfarne.
Day 5 - FRIDAY: Today is my last day with Natural England, back to
school next week. Already this morning we have gone out to the
Reserve again. This time, it was to see a Lindisfarne Helleborine which was
great as Andrew explained to me that this orchid is only found on Lindisfarne
and nowhere else in the world. Then this afternoon we are planning to go out
again and pull up as much as possible of the invasive species, the
Pirri-pirri bur. I have been warned this is not always an easy task as
sometimes their root systems can be extensive! But whatever
difference we can make will be a good one.
So that's me. I have had a great time this week and I feel like I have
learnt so much; it has given me such a better understanding of what goes into
the management of an NNR. This week has really opened my eyes to not only how
much work goes into keeping something as nature intended but also how
rewarding a career type this would be. After just a week I feel like
I have become quite invested in the site and want to help in the
conservation of the many species its dynamic habitats play home to.
I think I definitely want to come back here and do some more
volunteering if I can!
Thank you Natural England with particular thanks to Jo, Laura and Andrew
for this brilliant opportunity and experience."
Reserve staff are very grateful to Molly for all her hard work last
week, we really hope she enjoyed it and keeps in touch! We all wish you the very
best of luck in pursuing your future studies and career in conservation.
Special thanks to Duchess's Community High School for the opportunity to
provide a placement for Molly.
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