Bug Hunting
15 May 2014
The Festival of Nature Community Events begin this weekend with an event at Oldbury Court Estate.
An Explorers Day will be held at Oldbury Court Estate this Sunday to kick off the Festival of Nature’s community events programme, which will encourage children and families to explore their local patch and discover nature in their neighbourhood this summer.
The event will be the first of 13 community events to take place across Bristol over the next ten weeks, which will give families the chance to go on bat walks, do craft activities, find peregrine falcons, go bug hunting and try pond dipping, all in the heart of the city.
The Explorers Day at Oldbury Court Estate is packed with exciting activities including the chance to track the history of the estate, do a river survey to find some aquatic beasties, discover the many trees of the area and join a bug hunt to find nature’s tiny marvels.
Savita Custead, Chief Executive, Bristol Natural History Consortium which organises the festival says:
“We are really excited to expand and move beyond the Harbourside to reach out into the city. Bristol has so many beautiful sites that are packed with wildlife so why not come along to find out more about nature in your neighbourhood.”
The Festival of Nature 2014 will be bigger, better and wilder than ever, featuring more than 20 events across Bristol and the West of England.
The Festival of Nature Wild Weekend takes place on 14th-15th June across Bristol’s Harbourside. It is the UK’s biggest free celebration of the natural world, with two days of free interactive activities and live entertainment.
There will also be events in Bath and Chew Valley on the 7th and 8th of June respectively, as well as a series of talks and events in Bristol in the week building up to the Festival, including a talk by Germaine Greer at At-Bristol on 12 June, in partnership with the Bristol Festival of Ideas.
The majority of events are free to enter, but some may require advance booking so visit www.festivalofnature.org for a full listing and more information.
The Oldbury Court Explorers Day runs from 12 noon – 5pm on Sunday 18th May, visitors should meet to the left-hand side of the main entrance.
ENDS
For more information and high res images, please contact Max Boon at Spirit PR on 0117 944 1415 or email mboon@spiritpublicrelations.co.uk
The Festival of Nature is an initiative of the Bristol Natural History Consortium, which is a charitable collaboration between 12 of the biggest natural history organisations in the city, and it is the strength of this partnership that has helped the festival to flourish for the past decade.
The current members of Bristol Natural History Consortium are Avon Wildlife Trust, BBC Natural History Unit, Bristol City Council, Bristol Zoo Gardens, Defra, Environment Agency, National Trust, Natural England, RSPB, University of Bristol, University of the West of England and Wildscreen.
The Festival of Nature is supported by Bristol Water, IOP Publishing, At-Bristol, Heritage Lottery Fund, Clifton College, Science and Technology Facilities Council, UK Space Agency, Bath & North East Somerset Council, Company of Biologists, Earth Timber Stone and The Ove Arup Foundation.
The Festival of Nature aims to:
• Inspire greater engagement with and action for nature through accessible, celebratory public events that attract new audiences and widen participation;
• Raise awareness of further opportunities to engage with and take action for nature;
• To recognise and enhance the region’s reputation as a leading centre for conservation, environmental research and public engagement with nature.
