A really important part of conservation is engaging with communities – and this week we’ve been doing just that! We began the week at Gibraltar Point National Nature Reserve, a place of unspoilt coastline full of sandy and muddy seashore, sand dunes, salt and freshwater marsh, and home to a rich assemblage of coastal wildflowers and many birds. Can you picture it?

The reserve hosted a sea dipping event, where anyone can get involved and have a go dipping nets into the North Sea and seeing what creatures they can find on and above the seabed. The turnout was unprecedented – 176 people came to have a go! People of all ages got stuck in pushing their nets across the shore bed and intently surveying their nets for sea creatures; the adults were having just as much fun, if not more fun, than the kids. We even spotted a common seal peeping his head above the water from afar! It was reassuring to see how excited everyone was about what lies in the sea; we felt it gave them an even better appreciation for marine species, which in turn will likely fuel a positive community mindset of how important protecting our environment and wildlife is. 

Another activity was a marine-themed Nature Tots event, hosted by the Trust's Gibraltar Point education team. The event was aimed at getting pre-school children engaged with and interested in marine life. We helped them save sea creatures from plastic (shells wrapped in pipe cleaner!) and learn what should and shouldn’t be in the sea, then went on a treasure hunt around the reserve’s forest to hunt for hidden sea creature images and match the half-concealed picture to its full picture on their sheet, before ending with a marine story. Thank you to the Gibraltar Point team for hosting us and letting us get involved in these events. We had as much fun, if not more, than the public did!

We also had the opportunity to visit RSPB Frampton Marsh, a reserve full of abundant birdlife of The Wash which includes a rich variety of habitats, such as reedbeds, scrapes and wet grasslands. We learnt about the Greater Frampton Vision, one of the projects chosen for the first round of Landscape Recovery. Landscape Recovery is a scheme by Defra (the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) that funds large-scale and long-term landscape restoration projects. We were privileged to learn about the project and see what plans are ahead for the area’s conservation. Thank you to Zoe Gillard for hosting us for the day.

Why is National Marine Week important? It’s time (sneakily more of a fortnight than a week!) dedicated to celebrating our marine environment and creating nationwide engagement, which not only brings knowledge, but brings together communities.

And it’s not over yet! This weekend we will be assisting at a whale and dolphin watching event. Keep your eyes peeled for our next blog post to find out what we spotted…