It’s that wonderful time of year when everything is springing to life; the birds are singing, flowers are beginning to bloom and frogs and toads are on the move. It’s a great time to get outdoors and see what spring has to offer – you might be surprised to see just how much life there is all around you!
Here are a few things to look out for:
Bumblebee
After spending the winter in hibernation, queen bumblebees start to appear – feeding on the flowers to build up her energy ready to begin the search for a suitable nest. Once she’s found the perfect place, she’ll then start to collect pollen from the blooming flowers around her to bring back to her nest.
Find out how you can get your garden buzzing with bees here.
Frog and toad spawn
Adult toads begin to come out from their winter hide-outs to start travelling towards a pond ready to breed. Males wait close to the pond and ‘piggy back’ on females. The females lay strings of spawn (eggs) which get wrapped around vegetation in the pond.
Here’s how you can encourage frogs and toads to your garden.
Bluebells
The vibrant sight of blue fields is a sure sign of spring! Bluebells tend to flower from April onwards, attracting plenty of insects that are on the hunt for food. Look out for long, drooping leaf fronds and bending flower stems.
Don’t forget to record what you see too – it’s so important to record what wildlife we see throughout the year. The information collected helps conservationists to spot any changes or decline in species and to take action before it’s too late. For more hints and tips on watching and recording wildlife, watch this short video.
Fancy taking part in some wildlife watching challenges and putting your wildlife spotting and recording skills into practice? We have a series of fun challenges at the zoo for you to take part in over the next week using our Wildlife Spotter Kits, find out more here.
If this inspires you to take action to help protect our local wildlife, then you can find out how you can make your garden or local green space more wildlife friendly here.