TV presenter and naturalist Chris Packham will visit Forterra’s Kings Dyke Nature Reserve near Peterborough on the morning of Sunday July 22nd, as part of the first independent wildlife audit of its kind in the UK.
The goal of Chris Packham’s Bioblitz campaign is to investigate the extent to which the nation’s wildlife species are under threat, and to meet local people and raise money for local projects supporting the conservation of wildlife habitats.
Chris begins his campaign in the Scottish Highlands on 14th July and is spending ten days travelling with his team across Northern Ireland, Wales and parts of England. Forterra’s Kings Dyke is proud to be one of the 50 sites Chris is visiting as part of Bioblitz.
The nature reserve, on Peterborough Road, will be one of the beneficiaries of the fundraising campaign, which people can support by donating on the link below.
Chris says: “I need to see it for myself. I need to meet the people with their fingers on the pulse of our wildlife the length and breadth of the UK, those unsung heroes, the great British naturalists who know their stuff and are making a difference. I’m excited and terrified at the same time.
“I love learning and seeing new places and species but I fear that I will also bear witness to a landscape in huge trouble. I want to spread an awareness of the successes and failures and to raise some money to help combat the latter.”
The UK Bioblitz team includes hundreds of experts, species specialists, young conservationists and film makers all working together to highlight the state of our wildlife and the need for urgent centralised action to ensure we have wildlife everywhere.
The campaign is crowd-funded, with all monies raised being distributed back into grass roots front-line conservation projects visited throughout the campaign, as well as The National Autistic Society.
Philip Parker, who runs Kings Dyke Nature Reserve, said, “We’re really looking forward to Chris and his team’s visit, and will be working throughout the weekend to gather information about local wildlife. We hope to also welcome visitors on the day, and learn about the natural environment by exploring our nature reserve.”
To find out more about the nature reserve, visit www.kingsdykenaturereserve.com. Visit www.chrispackham.co.uk to follow the Bioblitz across the UK. To join the Facebook event, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/221259578624823/. To follow Chris on Twitter, visit: https://twitter.com/ChrisGPackham?lang=en