Events

We recorded 105 species - including 46 for the first time - as part of the City Nature Challenge in April 2025. Our aim was to see how many species we could record in two hours, joining in with over 650 other cities across the world as part of the City Nature Challenge.

Working with an amazing group, The Conservation Volunteers (TCV), we cut back invasive brambles to open the reserve up to a wider variety of wildflowers and other plant species.  

Since April 2025 we have been monitoring reptile mats across both Great Park and Mudcombe. So far we have found two slow worms, some toads, froglets and toadlets, and a shrew. You'll notice some of the mats and corrugated sheets across the reserve - helping to create habitats, ideally for reptile and also amphibians.  

In January 2025 as part of the RSPB's Birdwatch census, we counted 18 different bird species in the reserve — including this delightful 'flying teaspoon', also known as a long-tailed tit, and a kestrel.  You can use the free merlin app to help identify birds found around the reserve from green woodpeckers to goldfinches.

15 volunteers spent four hours digging out two new ponds on the reserve, helping to create new habitats for amphibians and invertebrates. These new ponds in Mudcombe are spring fed and we'll be monitoring them throughout 2026.