This weekend (26th-28th January) is the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch. Every year they collect millions of records from citizen scientists. I highly recommend taking part. It reminds us of what we have on in our own spaces, and you can even visit the website to see species counts coming in live!

National schemes like this are hugely important to show species population trends on a large scale. While we can’t always see the big picture from local surveying, with consistent records on a large scale, over time the patterns start to emerge. By sitting at the window with a cup of tea and a notepad, we can all have a big impact on monitoring wildlife.

Many people in the Weald to Waves network already undertake monitoring, from professional ecologists to beginners with a casual interest. We need to harness that knowledge and enthusiasm, the help us monitor change in the corridor.

A Call to Action

To cover 100 miles of corridor, we will need the expertise of our partners, the skilled ecologists of Sussex, and an army of citizen scientists to undertake the challenge. Would you like to explore the wildlife and habitats in your area? We are looking for interested people, no matter your previous experience, to help us to monitor wildlife along the Weald to Waves corridor.

We are designing a scheme to monitor changes in key indicators that will tell us about the impact of the corridor, ranging from bird populations to water quality. This will include a wide range of surveys that you can pick and choose to get involved with, depending on what you are most interested in, and would most enjoy!

We need experts, experienced or prospective citizen scientists, coordinators, parish councils and monitoring groups to help us monitor wildlife across the landscape. Are you up for the challenge?

Get Involved Here

Signing up now is not an obligation to get involved. This scheme will be trialled in some areas in summer 2024, before we start monitoring the whole corridor in the coming years.

The information you submit through this form will be stored securely by the Knepp Wildland Foundation (coordinating Weald to Waves), and will remain confidential. Once we have established a network of coordinators, we will ask your permission to share your details with a local coordinator who will be organising monitoring in your area.

Image credit: Rachel Bicker