The RSPB wants to know what crawls, slithers, scuttles, flutters and flies in your garden with its new spring survey.
Make Your Nature Count is being launched by the RSPB on 8-14 June 2009 and is a one-hour nature count of gardens.
The RSPB wants to know exactly what nature gets up to over the spring. Not only is it asking people to record birds, its also wants to know about some of the other wildlife visiting gardens, like frogs, toads, squirrels and even badgers.
Richard Bashford, the RSPB’s Make Your Nature Count manager, said: “ This is an ideal time to take a look at what’s in your garden. Gardens are alive, everywhere you look something flutters, creeps, crawls, scuttles or flies. Swifts and swallows have returned from Africa. Hedgehogs fill their bellies with worms after a long winter sleep. Trees, hedges and shrubs become nursery schools for a host of baby birds.”
To take part, simply spend one hour during the week of 8-14 June, counting the birds and any other wildlife that visit your garden, and record the highest number of each species seen at any one time.
Richard added: “Each year hundreds of thousands of people take part in the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch. Afterwards they always ask for more. Well, this year that’s exactly what we’re offering. The chance to tell us about the wildlife they see over the spring and give people the opportunity to get even closer to the nature on their doorstep.”
Similar to how Big Garden Birdwatch has identified trends among wintering bird populations, the RSPB hopes, in time, Make your nature count will build a picture about the wildlife that visits gardens and how important they are for some of our breeding birds and summer migrants at this time of year.
With gardens becoming increasingly important for birds and other wildlife and the RSPB hopes people will be motivated to transform their homes and gardens into wildlife havens. The RSPB’s Homes for Wildlife, is an exciting project offering free wildlife gardening advice helping people make the area around their home even better for wildlife.
Further information about Make your nature count and an online survey form will be available from April on the RSPB website, visit www.rspb.org.uk/naturecount
Alternatively, Make your nature count forms can be obtained by phoning 0300 456 8330. The hotline number will be operational from 8 May until 10 June 2009.