Talking point


Talking Point


For many people, maintaining a connection with nature, and each other, became more important than ever during lockdown. From improving our gardens for wildlife to visiting wild places, here is how three Trust volunteers coped.


Maintaining connections


TO help volunteers like Naomi Tayler maintain a connection with nature, and fellow volunteers, our National Lottery- funded Cumbernauld Living Landscape partnership organised weekly sessions over Zoom. Each one explored a different topic, such as identifying pollinators and bird calls.


“I have three children at home, one


of whom can’t cope with being outdoors, and my husband is a key worker,” explains Naomi. “It was challenging for me to leave the house at all between March and August. “These online catch-ups were a bright spot of my week. The rest of the time, I was either playing referee with the kids or out at the supermarket, and this gave me back a sense of community. I enjoyed mixing with folk


that I had a lot in common with – everyone was always looking to learn, and it created a nice atmosphere.” Naomi was inspired to increase the number of wildflowers in her garden. “My knowledge and interest in wildflowers and insects, in particular, have increased,” she says. “I’m still no expert, but I do now feel very motivated and I have already seen a big change in the insects visiting my garden.”


Creating a wildlife haven


WHEN Connie Dawson built a small pond in her front garden in St Andrews during lockdown, it became a magnet both for wildlife and for passers-by.


Fresh experiences


AS the Covid-19 outbreak developed, Chinedu Nsude, a postgraduate student based in Aberdeen and one of the Trust’s Young Leaders, realised he needed to spend more time with nature. “The pandemic made me


remember how important the natural environment is and think about what I should do to help conserve biodiversity,” he says. Chinedu made time


to visit Aberdeen beach, took part in the 30 Days Wild challenge, and posted content on social media – particularly the Wildlife Champions Facebook group – to help spread the message


34 SCOTTISH WILDLIFE NOVEMBER 2020


about biodiversity. He also encouraged his neighbours to give birdwatching a try on World Migratory Bird Day. “For many, this was their first bird-watching experience,” Chinedu recalls. Fast forward to today, and a small, socially distanced group has since enjoyed several outings to a number of locations. The rather different


birdwatching protocol, with group numbers of no more than five and the use of face masks and bird identification apps on individual phones rather than field guides, has done nothing to dampen enthusiasm.


“During lockdown, my garden became a haven – a place I could unwind and connect with nature,” she explains. “I decided to build a small wildlife pond to extend that haven for wildlife, in the hope it would both encourage


biodiversity and keep my spirits up.


“Building it was


surprisingly simple. I used a preformed lining with an inbuilt wildlife escape route and then added some aquatic soil and marsh marigold to get it started.”


The pond soon became a talking point as neighbours stopped to look over the wall and chat as it was being built.


It also quickly gained the attention of local wildlife, attracting frogs, dragonflies, water snails, beetles and birds.


© Connie Dawson


Connie, one of our Young Leader volunteers, says: “I had regular, socially distanced visits from children who came to see the pond and its patrons. I brushed up on tadpole facts to share with the children – such as how tadpoles


consume their tails for energy – and we all


became extremely attached to the tiny frogs that the tadpoles eventually became!” Inspired by Connie, some of the neighbours have since mentioned plans to create their own ponds, so there could soon be a growing network for wildlife in the area. As Connie says: “It just goes to show the impact that one tiny pond can have!”


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© Naomi Tayler


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