Like the rest of the country we have been taking the governments advice and are staying home as much as possible, which means no site visits, face to face meetings or events. Don’t worry though, we still have plenty of work to do! As Rangers, in addition to our outside jobs, it might surprise you to know that we also have lots of different admin and desk-based tasks that keep us very busy throughout the year.
Over the last two months the team have been working from home, which like many others has meant adapting to new ways of balancing work and home life. Thanks to technology we can keep in touch with each other and are having regular team meetings via video calls. This has been a great help, as much of our work requires collaboration from all the Rangers together. It’s also been really nice just to see each other, even if it’s only on a screen!
As we have not been able to go out and engage with people at our events like we normally would do at this time of year, we have been working hard on new ways to connect virtually instead. Thankfully in a digital world we have lots of different ways we can do this, from writing blogs and articles, creating new content for social media, producing interactive videos, games and quizzes together with a range of learning resources. You can find some of these on our Lockdown Learning page and our YouTube channel which we are adding to every week.
It’s been challenging as Rangers, and as someone who loves being outside as much as possible, to be restricted to staying indoors so much, especially when we have had such good weather after a shockingly wet winter! I have been spotting wildlife wherever I can though, from watching the birds and Red squirrels through the windows while working at home or looking for nature out on my daily exercise.
At the time of writing this blog the government have relaxed some of the restrictions that were in place, which means people are now able to spend more time outside. Wildlife has also been affected by the lockdown, and some species may not be so accustomed to our presence at the moment. Birds, for example, may have nested in unusual places nearer to pathways and many young animals are taking their first steps into the world, which over the last two months has been much quieter without so many humans around! It is therefore important if you are going out to the countryside or coast more often, that you really look out for the birds and all the other wildlife by giving them the space that they need. Simple steps can be taken to help them, such as sticking to pathways, reading signs and keeping your dog alongside you. For more information on this, please take a look at our helpful video below.
We will keep working hard to stay in touch and help everyone connect with nature around the Solent, whilst adhering to the government’s advice and guidelines. Let us know if you have noticed any changes or spotted anything different with the birds or other animals since the lockdown began.
Keep safe, look after your local wildlife and we hope to see you all soon!
Ranger Charlotte
