The aims of this day school are to firstly explain their taxonomy and reproduction and then to examine ways of identifying a range of species, including horsetails. There will be an opportunity to identify fresh and herbarium material and to use a range of keys to aid identification. At the end of the day school, participants should be aware of basic fern taxonomy and be familiar with a range of common pteridophytes (ferns and fern allies) as well as their role as ecological indicators.

Cost

£45

Download the Fern Identification 2016 flyer and booking information

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It’s a day for people who are fascinated by spiders but don’t know where to start with them. It’s a very gentle introduction to the world of spiders and the art of telling one spider from another.

• Come and see different types of live British spiders
• Learn some of their names
• Learn how to tell a few of them apart
• Listen to some fascinating talks by local spider experts
• Find out what to do if you want to take your interest further

There is a booking fee of £10.  Bookings and more information can be found on the FSC website.

Dr. Rich Burkmar is a project officer with the FSC looking after the Tomorrow’s Biodiversity project. He has a wide-ranging interest in natural history and has been, for almost ten years, a keen recorder of spiders and, more recently, harvestmen. He is an active member of the Shropshire Spider Group and, through the Tomorrow’s Biodiversity project, is helping the group to develop an integrated training programme catering for all levels from beginner to expert, and concentrating on progressing the skills and contribution of individuals.

Nigel Cane-Honeysett is a founding member of the Shropshire Spider Group (SSG) and is the British Arachnological Society’s Vice County Recorder for Shropshire and West Midlands Regional Organiser. He manages the database of Spiders and Harvestmen found in Shropshire. He has taken a pivotal role in the development of the SSG, organising many field meetings and nurturing a fledgling group of active recorders. For his sins, Nigel is also the treasurer of the British Arachnological Society!

Dr. Charlie Bell joined the FSC in Feb 2015 to work on the Tomorrow’s Biodiversity project. She joined Tom.bio from Herts & Middlesex Wildlife Trust, where she worked as Living Rivers Officer. Her varied interests range from chalk stream ecology and management through to birds, moths, springtails, earthworms and, since joining Tom.bio, Spiders & Harvestmen! Charlie combines her part time role on the Tom.bio project with another on river catchment management based out of Shropshire Wildlife Trust.

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It is not a formal course, but instruction is available for those not familiar with the process of identifying earthworms. There will be plenty of more experienced people on hand to help out those who are new to it. The workshop is entirely classroom based.

This Sunday workshop follows a practical day of earthworm sampling the day before at Shropshire Wildlife Trust’s Pontesford and Earl’s Hill reserves. The field day is entirely outdoors. Over the course of the Sunday workshop we will identify earthworms collected the previous day.

You don’t have to attend the Saturday field session in order to book onto the workshop. And you don’t have to book onto the workshop to attend the Saturday field session!

There is a booking fee for the Sunday workshop of £5.00. If you wish to book please visit the FSC website. If you wish to attend the field day (for which there is no booking fee), just send us an email to admin@tombio.uk to say you are coming.

Earthworm identification – to the level required for most scientific records – requires that earthworms be collected, killed and preserved. So only come along to the field session and/or workshop if you are comfortable with that.

Keiron Brown works for the Bat Conservation Trust but has a (not so secret) passion for earthworms! He is the Recording Officer for the Earthworm Society of Britain (ESB), one of the leading earthworm recorders in the UK, and an experienced earthworm identification trainer.

Dr Charlie Bell joined the FSC in Feb 2015 to work on the delivery phase of the Tomorrow’s Biodiversity project.  Charlie combines her part time role on the Tom.bio project with working as one half of the national Catchment Based Approach (CaBA) Secretariat, based out of Shropshire Wildlife Trust. She is an active earthworm recorder in Shropshire.

Dr Rich Burkmar is an ecologist looking after the FSC’s Tomorrow’s Biodiversity project. He is an active earthworm recorder in Shropshire.

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