Submitted by Grainne Kennedy on Tue, 2019-05-28 16:16
The visit of mesmerising moths to Jesus College Library a few years ago started a trend in monitoring species, that has not only encouraged Jesus staff and students to get out and explore, but has also encouraged the College to create more spaces to meet the needs of local species.
Rhona Watson (figure 1) was one of those Library staff who started identifying and monitoring moths and now she is the person behind the College’s wildlife blog. If you follow Jesus College Wildlife Facebook page, many of the photos you will see there have been taken by Rhona. Students and staff send Rhona content for both webpages regularly. Everyone is keen to share what they have seen, of particular interest this month are the foxes that can be spotted sunning themselves on the College’s cricket grounds!
Figure 1: Rhona walking in the College Close
Another group of interest at the moment is the blue tit family. Rob Spragg of the IT department installed a camera in a nest box to watch our feathered friends as they go about their day. If you are having a stressful day we recommend tuning into the feed for a few minutes. The chicks jostling about and the visits of the parents is fascinating to see. Be sure to take a look soon before the young leave the nest.
Figure 2: Screenshot of bluetit chicks
Exploring the College and contributing to the blog or Facebook page with your sightings couldn’t be easier. The College map has even been edited to show you the most biodiverse spaces, just follow the red dots. Once you have explored the grounds, why not join Rhona in her efforts to monitor the moth varieties on site?
Figure 3: Jesus College Nature Trail (click on the image to access full map)
Members of the Environment and Energy team were lucky enough to take a wildlife tour with Rhona recently. In a short time we saw a variety of species; ladybirds, butterflies, finches and tits. Rhona pointed out where water voles, muntjac, sparrowhawks and woodpeckers had been seen, and we took a look at some of the improvements that have been made to encourage more species (figure 4). We enjoyed visiting the grounds and it was clear in the chats we had, particularly with gardeners, that seeing wildlife is a joyful part of the day for many, and the commitment is there to protect wildlife going forward.
Figure 4: Wildlife pond with native East Anglian wildflowers. This pond has recently been visited by waterhens who made a nest.