Primary School Children Help Wildlife.

[Rosemary]

In the southern suburb where I live, new housing estates have grown quickly and have taken away much of our local bushland. At least some effort has been made to aid the native wildlife, as their homes are destroyed. Links of bushland run through these new estates, allowing our possums and other native animals and birds to move away from the area. Our school children have been busy making nest boxes, including 11 bat tubes to place within the link. The group managing the habitat link was set up in 2004 and they enlisted the local school children to monitor it. Nest box observation cards have been given to the children, so that they can report any damage to the box and any new animals claiming one of the nest boxes. In one school the students have been given up part of their lunch breaks to ensure the next box inhabitants were thriving.
It is nice to know that there will be some of the younger generations will have learnt about our native wildlife and how to best help protect them.

 

[Talysia]

We used to do something like that at one of my old schools. At my primary school, we kept an small area at the back of the classrooms that was given over to the local wildlife, full of birdboxes and feeders, and we used to plant seeds that would attract insects and such. Even fifteen or so years ago, we had a lesson a week that would see us outside and helping with the wild area project, or we would go on school trips where the sole point was to recognise the local trees, flowers, animals and birds. Looking back, I think that may have been where I picked up my love of wildlife from.

The great thing is, I walked past my old primary school yesterday, and the wild area was still there, only with twice as many birdboxes, feeders, and plants, doing better than ever. I was so pleased to see that they were keeping the project going.