The Kingdom of Fife is full of natural beauty. Fife covers an area of over 1300 square kilometres, which is bound to the north by the Firth of Tay and to the south by the Firth of Forth. A coastline stretching for 170 kilometres wraps around Fife; where many award-winning beaches can be found. There are three main rivers running through Fife: The Eden, Leven and Ore. Fife makes an important contribution to Scottish, UK and international biodiversity. In Fife you can find: Five Special Protection areas Two Special Areas of Conservation Two National Nature Reserves Seven Local Nature Reserves
How to get involved
Wildlife Recording
In order to adequately conserve species and habitats, we need good quality information on:
the distribution of species and habitats
the status of a species or habitat i.e. is it common or rare
the condition of habitats (usually determined by the species present).
These factors are dynamic and in a state of flux dependent on human activity and climate change. However, biological recording allows us to piece together a picture of the state of Fife’s wildlife. Biological recording simply means taking note of the plants and animals we come across in our everyday lives, from noting which birds visit the garden bird feeder to detailing the plants and trees in the local woodland. As well as being the first step for nature conservation, recording wildlife is hugely enjoyable for people of all ages and abilities – no specialist knowledge is needed!
A biological record should consist of at least four pieces of information – the four W’s:
What did you see? Simply what you saw! If you can identify the species, it adds value to the record. For example, a record of bat is useful but a record of a brown long eared bat is even better.
Where did you see it? A detailed description of the location or, preferably an Ordnance Survey grid reference. If you are recording wildlife in your garden, providing your address details including postcode will enable us to accurately locate the record.
When did you see it? The date you made the observation, preferably in the day/month/year format.
Who are you? The details of the person who made the observation including name and contact details in case we need to contact them for more information on the sighting.