Exciting free wildlife workshops at Whirlowbrook Park in Sheffield

The common footman moth by Ian Rotherham.

South Yorkshire Biodiversity Research Group with the Friends of Whirlowbrook Park are running two more evening events in the Park as part of the Together for Our Planet: Climate Action project supported by the Lottery Community Fund.

The two events are part of our programme to introduce local people to wildlife and wildlife experts to help them record nature on the doorstep. This is to then help guide actions to mitigate and also to respond to the pressures of climate change on our green spaces. Do join us and share the enthusiasm for neighbourhood nature. All are welcome.

Moths are a group of insects under big pressure from climate change and other stresses and so on August, 19, from 8.30pm to 10pm, is an Introduction to Moth Watching led by Jan Turner, Paul Ardron and Ian Rotherham. The evening will start with a short introduction on moths and attracting them to light and other sources. This will be followed by an hour or so of using a moth trap and inspecting the sugary attractants for specimens. We will be looking at the variety of moths and their recording and hoping to see new species that we didn’t see on our first moth watch. We will be based in the lower car park at Whirlowbrook Park and there will be minimal walking involved. These creatures are excellent ‘barometers’ for environmental change and we need data and other information from the Park and surrounding areas.

Go batty at our second event on August, 20, from 8.30pm to 10pm, which is an Introduction to Bats. This workshop is being led by Dave Gash and Ian Rotherham. It will cover surveying for Bats and using bat detectors to record different species. At the first bat session in May, we recorded six different species. After monitoring a potential roost site discovered during our earlier event, we will walk through the grounds and round the ponds to observe which species we can record this time and which habitat areas they are using. This is great fun but also very important recording and you don’t need any prior skill.

Buff-tip moth which camoflages as a twig by Ian Rotherham.

Both these events are free and are suitable for complete beginners as well as those with a little more knowledge. Places must be pre-booked and this is via https://bookwhen.com/sybrg#focus=ev-s5jh-20220721103000

For further details, email Christine at [email protected]