There we were getting ready for spring and the ecology survey season starting, when coronavirus (COVID-19) came along with other ideas. Surveys have been postponed and like many others around the UK, we find ourselves working from home. This has involved dusting off laptops, setting up workspaces in spare bedrooms, rummaging around for notebooks and pens, and nabbing the good desk chair off your partner. Optional extras include headphones so the whole house isn’t subjected to your terrible taste in music and binoculars for a cheeky wee bit of garden bird watching. Close proximity to the kitchen has its benefits for keeping caffeinated but the biscuits have already had to be rationed. Team Echoes pets are overjoyed to have their humans around all day.
We are busy writing reports and catching up on those jobs we’ve been putting off/claim to never have the time to do. Team catch ups have moved online for the time being.
Now is a good learning opporchancity for brushing up on old skills or for branching out into new fields. Dust off that invertebrate/lichen/(insert chosen species group here) ID book you’ve been meaning to read for the last five years. Listen to those bird calls without annoying the whole office.
During this time remember to keep an eye on the wildlife in your garden, you never know might be there when you’re usually not around. Clean and fill up your bird feeders. Set up a camera trap in your garden to see who might be around after dark. Get the bat detectors out at dusk, or dawn if you’re super keen. Identify the plants on your daily walk. There’s a whole world to explore while keeping your distance from everyone else.
Hopefully we’ll be back out in the field before you know it.
Stay safe and healthy,
Team Echoes