Islington Wildlife

The Garden Classroom at Whittington Park

The Garden Classroom, Islington's non-profit organisation dedicated to outside the classroom learning, is delivering a seminal pilot project using Whittington Park's new community building for education.

Since the spring, The Garden Classroom's Education Officer has been delivering a series of 2 hour workshops to local primary school children within a 30 minute walk of the park. Pupils from Pooles Park, Yerbury, Montem, Ashmount, Drayton Park, St Joseph's, St Mark's and Pakeman Primary Schools have been enjoying nature learning using their local park which they normally associate with for playing sports and playing with their friends.

Yerbury - who's rear gates open directly onto the park - has been using the entrance for the first time in many years - making a direct connection between the school and the park using it as a learning resource.

The programme of workshops has been designed to create interest in the flora and fauna found in Whittington Park and to encourage awe and wonder about the natural world. As well as the science workshops, curriculum learning activities in the autumn will also include literacy, numeracy and trees. The programme is a partnership project with Islington Council.

To book a workshop, which is free to schools in 2011, please email schools@thegardenclassroom.org.uk or call 07704 238655.

Marnie Rose, The Garden Classroom

Say what you see!

Several public participation wildlife surveys are currently underway.

The number of swifts breeding in south east England halved between the nineties and the noughties.  Swifts usually arrive in England from Africa at the beginning of May. And you should still be able to spot swifts in Islington until around the end of August. You can get tips on how to recognise them and help them from Swift Conservation. And you can report any sightings to this year’s Swift Survey which has been launched by the RSPB. Islington’s Biodiversity Action Plan includes our Common Swift Species Action Plan.

The London Wildlife Trust is running its 23^rd annual Kestrel Count. London’s kestrel population declined during the1990s, but the situation over the last decade is less clear. So if you do spot a kestrel hovering overhead, you can help by taking part in the Kestrel survey.

Lastly, the London Wildlife Trust are also running Staggering Gains. London has a nationally significant stag beetle population, but sightings in Islington are rare. The People’s Trust for Endangered Species website can help you identify both Stag beetles and stag beetle larvae. The please report any sightings to the Stag beetle survey.

 You can still report any wildlife you see in your garden to Greenspace Information for Greater London (GIGL). The Islington Garden Wildlife Survey will keep running until 3 September.  And you can submit one-off records directly at any time.

 The more we know about our local wildlife, the more we can do to help. So please keep your eyes peeled while you’re out and about this summer.

happy wildlife spotting

Morgan

 

Greenspace Life newsletter June-July 2011

The Greenspace Life e-newsletter has just been published.

Greenspace Life is a bi-monthly newsletter for people who care about Islington's parks. We use it to share information about new initiatives, developments , success stories and events. We also welcome submissions from the community, whether it's to tell us about a project you're involved in or to advertise an event.

Greenspace Life is an e-newsletter distributed to Friends of Parks, community groups and interested individuals. To subscribe to Greenspace Life, please send an email with the subject ‘Subscribe’ to greenspace@islington.gov.uk.

We have also recently launched a Friends of the Parks Forum.  You will need to create a profile to join the group but this only takes a minute.

Summer Beekeeping Courses 2011

Highbury Builders is once more holding its popular Introduction to Beekeeping short courses over the next couple of months in Finsbury Park. There is now a greater awareness of how important honey bees are to the health of our environment but a declining number of people with the skills to take care of these very important creatures. So why not come along and learn the basics of what beekeeping is all about - you will get to handle live bees and it may inspire you to become a beekeeper yourself. There are opportunities to join a longer course that follows the bee calendar year if you get the bug!

The course costs £30 and places are limited so its first come, first served!

Saturday June 25th 2 - 4 pm

Saturday July 23rd 11 - 1pm OR 2 - 4 pm

Saturday August 6th 11 - 1pm OR 2 - 4 pm

Saturday August 20th 11 - 1pm OR 2 - 4 pm

Saturday September 3rd 11 - 1pm OR 2 - 4 pm

Book via e mail, stating your preferred date and time of course to Liam at: info@highburybuilders.co.uk

 

Song thrushes

On Friday I was delighted to see a song thrush on the grass of Elthorne Park N19. I have seen them occasionally over the years on the Hillrise slopes, and we must have a small colony, are there thrushes in other parts of Islington?

Sue, Islington Wildlife Gardeners' Group