95years Let nature inspire Saving Norfolk’s Wildlife for the Future Nature inspires me to... Over the last year many of us have taken comfort and inspiration from nature. he internet has lit up with creative responses Tto the natural world – photographs, drawings, poetry and podcasts – and our slowed-down, locally-limited lives have led to countless numbers of us noticing nature’s species and cycles more keenly than ever before. This new booklet captures some of these personal and creative responses to the natural world, along with ideas for how nature can inspire us to learn more, explore more and get creative! Your one-stop shop We have made a brand new webpage to bring together activities, further information, links to resources from our partners and other conservation organisations. From here, you can also explore our Frequently Asked Questions, book on to Cley Calling Presents events, add pictures to our wildlife gallery and more. Join in online on your favourite social media with #natureinspires sharing your pictures, activities, wildlife spots – whatever you want to share with us! We can’t wait to see it. www.norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/natureinspires Ask for help Take action The team running the Wildlife Information Service love talking about wildlife! If you can’t find an answer to your question in our FAQs online, or if you spot an animal or plant and you don’t know what it is, take a photograph for our garden of it and get in touch: [email protected] wildlife Gardens are increasingly important for a whole range of threatened wildlife, from declining hedgehogs and house sparrows to frogs and toads. A small patch of lawn, patio or even a balcony Let the grass grow can provide a home to wildlife. Here are some Be brave and dare to Dig a pond What nature A pond is a great way to your pond, particularly in ideas to inspire you to take on your own mini leave the lawnmower in encourage wildlife in your summer when drinking water the shed, or at least leave means to me... re-wilding project. garden. During the pond’s first for garden birds is scarce. a small patch long. spring look out for frogs and Wildlife ponds do better without “My newts settling in. Emperor fish and it is important to garden has Make homes for wildlife It will cost you nothing, just dragonflies will investigate properly source plants through become A great way to help wildlife let the grass grow and see any new bodies of water, reputable suppliers: there are in your garden is to put up what comes up. You can my own and as most water-bugs and several non-native invasive nest-boxes. Most birds that go a step further, choose miniature beetles fly, it is surprising aquatic plants in the county that use boxes like clear access a sunny spot and strip nature reserve, the what will suddenly turn up. are proving difficult to control. to the entry hole, and it is back some of the turf, dig seasons appear more Birds may also flock to best if it is placed about 7 to it over a little and sprinkle vivid and I notice 10 feet off the ground and if some wildflower seeds. even the smallest possible facing in a north-east direction. Robins and wrens details. I have started Most garden centres sell a making lists of the will use ‘open-fronted’ boxes, variety of seed mixes and birds, dragonflies and usually tucked away in a quiet you can find one that suits spot deep in a bush or shrub. nest in your hedges, so ensure your garden. They will attract wildflowers and many You may have blackbird, song they are trimmed before early a good variety of insects too. other creatures that thrush or dunnock attempting to March to avoid any disturbance. appear in my garden and I rejoice with each new addition. Through the seasons I can’t overstate the joy of sitting by a Spring pond in summer, the crackle of dragonfly Look for the first butterflies wings, the skipping to emerge from hibernation: butterflies among the peacock, tortoiseshell and brimstone are frequent garden flowers you planted, visitors in spring. Watch for it’s a pure delight.” garden birds carrying nesting materials or food, but don’t be Robert Morgan, NWT tempted to search the bushes Nature Reserves Officer for nests. Frogspawn may appear in the shallow end of your pond. Autumn Look for interesting fungi in your garden, you may see a ‘fairy-ring’ in the lawn. Let your meadow ‘go to seed’ and mow it without a lawnmower box on to allow the spread of seed, and then rake up any of If everybody the remaining litter. does something Winter small, you end up Summer Try a variety of bird food and see what with big action. Delight in your wildflower lawn, visits your garden. Clear the pond of any Monty Don look for beetles and hoverflies excessive weed; it is best to ‘wash-it gathering nectar on the flowers out’ in a tub, so as to try and catch any and listen for crickets. At night of the invertebrates. They can then be try searching for moths. safely returned to the pond. Nature inspires me to... Look deep into What nature means to me... nature, and then you will understand “During lockdown, everything better. nature has Learn Albert Einstein been a big part of my learning. In Geography we are currently learning about erosion about the and weathering so for our homework we were asked to go on a walk and find natural examples of these. We went on a walk to Thorpe Marshes to find birds in a tree that erosion on the banks. we later identified as I saw a few places along warblers. I have enjoyed world the river where the all the walks that we have bank had worn away. taken this lockdown.” After that we enjoyed the walk home and Maya Riches, spotted two little wildlife enthusiast Nature is addictive, the more you learn about it, the more questions you Tune in to wildlife Learn with Norfolk Wildlife Trust have, the more you want to know! And there is no end to learning about Norfolk’s wildlife: there is always a new species to discover, a habitat to Learning birdsong is a great Have a read of our monthly way to identify what birds are blog, with articles from our explore or a question to be asked. found in your local area, as often wardens, conservationists, you can hear them but not see and guest contributors. Carry out your them. Learning birdsong may Get to know your seem daunting, but there are Explore our Frequently Asked own wildlife some great resources online to Questions on the NWT midnight garden help you. The key is to take one website, or watch our Minute survey species at a time and maybe start Wildlife series of intro films! with birds you see every day such Why not discover the wildlife that How well do you know the as wrens, robins and blackbirds. visits your garden after sunset? wildlife that lives in your local One way to do this is to area? Maybe set yourself the create a simple moth trap challenge to find one new Join our Engagement Officer, by shining a lamp onto a species in your local area Isabelle Mudge, on one of white sheet, or for those each day. Just imagine, by our virtual Wildlife Watch moths with a sweet the end of the year you would sessions, where children can tooth, try soaking strips of an old have discovered 365 different learn about tracks and trails of cloth in a mixture of cheap animals and plants. You could garden birds. red wine and sugar, hang the strips even take it one step further over your washing line and check them and create a nature log, taking Watch one of our Cley for visitors after a couple of hours. each species and researching Calling digital events. some interesting facts. Nature inspires me to... There is something to be said for getting to know a local patch; a particular area you walk regularly. The more you get to know a local area, the more of its secrets it will share with you. It will let you know where the great spotted woodpeckers nest, or the favourite play spot of the local weasel Explore my family; it will reveal where the comma butterflies like to feed or the grass snakes like to bask in the sun. Whether you live in village, town or city your local patch is waiting to be explored. Create your own local patch What nature means to me... nature’s calendar “I’m lucky …there are Norfolk is the birthplace of enough to always new things to phenology, which is the study live within find out if you go of the timing of natural seasonal easy walking events. Robert Marsham (1708– distance of 1797) was a Norfolk man who looking for them. NWT’s Thorpe Marshes David Attenborough recorded the dates of certain wildlife events (continued by on the eastern edge of his family after his death) giving Norwich. Not every nature us approximately 200 years of reserve is good year-round, valuable information about British but at Thorpe there’s no wildlife. Phenology was once quiet spell in mid-winter seen as a relatively unimportant as the former gravel pit, personal favourite, willow pastime of amateur naturalists, St Andrews Broad, attracts emerald damselflies, in early but as a result of climate change ducks, including regular autumn are among the it is now seen as an exceptionally goldeneyes and, recently, 21 species recorded here.