Lorna is out at #RRR2025 – the 4th conference on Renewable Resources from Rewetted Peatlands 💧A fantastic opportunity to share learning on #wetfarming and how to get economic use of wet land alongside carbon protection, clean water, wildlife and other benefits #paludiculture

We're only halfway through the week but Adam is certainly packing in the work! He's been installing peat cameras to monitor soil levels on the restoration land, clearing poorly trees in Railway Covert and learning to drive the dumper trucks at Upwood Meadows! Has your week been as varied?

As we head into astronomical autumn with the equinox this evening, it seems the perfect time to reshare this gorgeous image of Holme Fen silver birch and fly agaric by Andy Cronk

Incredible numbers of these enormous water beetles now appearing at the Great Fen. So exciting when the first one was only discovered last year!! Read more about Great silver water beetles in Henry’s blog www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/henry-s...

This Sunday!

9-5? More like 5-9! First thing in the morning and last thing at night, our monitoring and research team don’t stop in their surveys. They’re discovering which wildlife is making use of the restoration land, as residents or travelling through as they migrate. www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/henry-s...

Surveying stoneworts in the Great Fen today... hard to focus on the job with an ever-changing skyscape, a family of Hobbies hunting dragonflies close by and the first tumbling Lapwing flocks of the autumn. Thankfully the thunderstorms passed by on each side of us... @greatfen.org.uk #birds

One week to go to our #HeritageOpenDays event at Woodwalton Fen NNR and the Rothschild Bungalow! Step inside this historic building, enjoy the beautiful nature photography being exhibited and join one of our optional guided walks. www.wildlifebcn.org/events/2025-...

How do they DO that?? The skill involved in weaving this sling between reeds, making it secure enough to withstand wind and weather and strong enough to hold up to 5 eggs, (and sometimes a very large baby cuckoo), is phenomenal. Bravo reed warblers 👏👏 👌 Isn’t nature amazing? @wildlifebcn.org

Three cheers for Catherine Weightman as she retires from her role as Senior Advisor on Peat with our partner, Natural England! Thank you for all your hard work and for continuing to volunteer in the Fens so we don't lose your expertise completely! @wildlifebcn.org

Struggling to get to sleep? We hear rain sounds can help…💤💤 What a welcome bit of weather for our parched peaty wetlands.

Incredible find by reserves officer Jasmin! This beautiful wasp spider is weaving an enormous egg sac. Once it’s filled with eggs then, sadly, her work is done and she won’t see another year. But we’ll be on the lookout for wasp spiderlings in spring! @wildlifebcn.org @britishspiders.bsky.social

Great news, as part of the Heritage Open Day celebrations in Ramsey, a free bus will be available to and from Woodwalton Fen and our Rothschild Bungalow open day...

After a morning of plant id training, a gentle walk round Woodwalton Fen NNR was a perfect counterpoint. Masses of Frogbit in the ditches and Marsh Sow-thistle along the drain banks while Greater Water-parsnip and Greater Bladderwort were rarer treats... #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Broad-leaved Ragwort at Woodwalton Fen NNR. Originating from Central and Eastern Europe, it was probably introduced by Charles Rothschild and remains locally abundant near The Bungalow. A very statuesque plant of damp places -significantly taller than me! #wildflowerhour @bsbibotany.bsky.social

A new road closure has appeared on the B660 by New Decoy/Holme Fen. Please consider this when trying to access the nature reserves or any events this week. Thank you. one.network?tmi=GB40917298 @wildlifebcn.org

If you enjoyed Apple Day, you're going to love what we have on offer this year! Our Apple and Harvest Fair is being held with Ramsey's Rural Museum and Walled Garden. We'll have more food, entertainment, activities - don't miss it! www.wildlifebcn.org/events/2025-10-12-apple-and-harvest-fair

Our brand new traineeships are open for applications!! On this paid, 6-month programme, we are looking for two people, age 18-25, to join the Communities and Education Team at the Great Fen as part of our National Lottery-funded project, #PeatlandProgress. www.wildlifebcn.org/jobs/peatlan...

A new and exciting free #SummerSchool for 14-18yo interested in #furnituredesign, #materialscience, #architecture... Don't miss the last few spaces! 26th-29th August, 10am-4pm. @wildlifebcn.org

A new and exciting free #SummerSchool for 14-18yo interested in #furnituredesign, #materialscience, #architecture... Don't miss the last few spaces! 26th-29th August, 10am-4pm. @wildlifebcn.org

"...filtering water, preventing flooding, preserving history and providing habitat. Our human ancestors knew the extraordinary power of peatlands, so why are they still being destroyed?"- Alys Fowler www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jun/22/uk-bogs-peatlands-borth-conservation-britain-bogs

Preparing for a lazy weekend with a book? Word has it that ‘Peatlands’ by Alys Fowler is a fascinating read, a personal embrace of peatlands that also sheds a light on the plight of peatlands and some people who care. A must for fans of #CorsFochno @natreswales.bsky.social. @alysf.bsky.social

We met Abigail at Groundswell and were fascinated by the potential of this idea. It takes hours for volunteers to collect and record species, and can't be enjoyable for the moths kept in boxes and pots for so long. Not a replacement, but an assistant perhaps?

"Creating new wetlands isn't like building Lego landscapes where pieces click neatly into place...Saving our precious peatlands needs long-term vision, policy change, and collaboration". www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/natural...

New #wetlands loading... So exciting seeing this development take shape. Which wildlife do you hope to see when it starts filling up? #PeatlandProgress

The wildlife of our wonderful wetlands on your way to work? Listen now! #podcast #naturepodcast

I also put together a photo montage for Fenlandia: williegeemusic.com/index.php/20...

Duke of Gloucester visits Great Fen Project at Woodwalton www.huntspost.co.uk/news/2529049...

🙌Our August winner of the header photo of the month is Jean Fitch with a Wren in Bedford. 🌟We would like to highly commend this photo of a large Skipper at Woodwalton Fen by Charlie Ison. Look out for September's mini comp soon 👀 Thank you so much to all our other entrants!

Youth Week is only one week away!! How can we engage younger generations in nature #conservation? Laura takes a look at the opportunities currently available. www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/laura-a... #ConservationTraining #youthweek #conservationmatters #inspiringyoungpeople #youngconservationists

We love that the Fens inspire so much art. If you're a fan of electronica and the Fens, with tracks like Big Skies and Fenlandia, this album surely needs to be next for a listen! Anyone else creating with the Fens in mind?

We've been out talking to nature reserve visitors about why dogs need to be kept on a lead. Nik and Michael were at Beechwoods reserve near Cambridge yesterday to chat with dog walkers and give out leaflets. The site has had several issues with dogs off leads including one visitor bitten.

What a beautiful piece of art! Such talent and so much care for the natural world is exciting to see in young people.

Dave asks can he record peacocks on his bird transect this morning? 😁 Anyone else up and out in nature at 6am today?

Thank you to everyone who joined us on our #glowworm walks. Some came hoping to see their first ever, others to relive a childhood memory. Luckily everyone saw more than one, with 7 on the first walk and 13 on the second. Next summer we're hoping for a return to numbers like the 60 we saw in '24!

A fantastic video with our lovely Jasmin, introducing the new conservation grazers!

Some stats from our latest Impact Report 🐛693 species of invertebrates recorded at Strawberry Hill 🦫8 beavers and 116 water voles released 🕵️Volunteers carried out 2,064 hours of monitoring 🙋154 events delivered for adults, 230 for families, 86 for children www.wildlifebcn.org/impact-report

Get on over to Ely Museum today! It's ‘Birds & Planes & Things that Fly’ week - create your own flying creature with us. Explore how flight's evolved in birds, bats and insects. Will yours swoop silently as a barn owl, zip backwards like a dragonfly, or even use their wings as a musical instrument?

What's about in the Great Fen? Catch up with @henrystanier.bsky.social's latest update! www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/henry-s...

Or learning about #paludiculture even? Activate spellcheck... 😬

Did you celebrate #BogDay by learning more about #pauldiculture? We've been delighted to collaborate with regenerative designer, Lucy Mitchell, on a very special project using the paludiculture crops being trialled in the Great Fen...

Thank you to our Reserves team for installing the first of our new benches along the Dragonfly Trail! More will be coming. Where would you like to see a new bench added? www.greatfen.org.uk/explore/walk... @wildlifebcn.org

It's #NationalMothWeek! We're so proud of Kaitlyn, who's used her internship to fully tackle her fear of insects and is now one of our biggest moth champions! www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/great-f... #mothweek @wildlifebcn.org

He envisioned a joined-up Great Fen over 25 years ago, rallied support from local authorities, National Government and royalty! Alan Bowley looks back at the story of the Great Fen so far... www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/guest-p... @wildlifebcn.org #peatlands #landscaperestoration #conservation

😎Get outside this summer and start at Picnic Day on Wednesday! Discover our wildlife, make colourful crafts, climb the trees and swing to the skies, make marvellous mud cakes and eat real ones in the sun. 🧁 @wildlifebcn.org @huntspost.bsky.social #summerholiday #daysoutwithkids

When you understand that an oak tree can support 2,300 species, you know it’s ALWAYS worth stopping to take a closer look! And this week we found these incredible Sputnik-shaped egg sacs. They belong to a small comb-footed spider, Paidiscura pallens! @wildlifebcn.org @britishspiders.bsky.social

Apologies that we're a little tardy in our updates, but here's what our #PeatlandProgress interns got up to in their first two weeks. It really was a crash course in everything we do! www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/great-f...

When you're thinking Fen tigers, you're probably imagining the rebels of the reeds, tearing down dykes, ditches and sluices to halt drainage work! Henry has been tracking tigers and elephants of a different nature... www.greatfen.org.uk/blog/henry-s... @wildlifebcn.org

Sad 😢 Our fabulous interns have finished their 6 week contract and will be incredibly missed! But what a beautiful thank you card to greet my day, a chiffchaff in honour of my Forest School nature name. Thank you Kaitlyn/Grass Snake! 🥰

We're excited to be hosting a brand new free #summerschool in #furnituredesign with London-based art school Store! 15 state-school 14-18y students will join designer and material scientist Georgemma Hunt, and designer-builders, Flimsy to experiment with materials made from wetland plants...