Crisis + Christmas + Countryfile + Craven!

This month saw the final Crisis 'Creative Conservation' course trip of the year. Creative Conservation is attended by Community Science volunteers who are members of Crisis South Yorkshire's Skylight training programme.  Each month we take a trip somewhere in the Peak District, and undertake a Community Science activity such as surveying Bumblebees, Sphagnum moss or brushing up on our navigation skills.

This time it was a festive celebration taking a ramble around Blacka Moor on the outskirts of Sheffield, stopping for mince pies, before ending up at the Moorland Discovery Centre on the National Trust's Longshaw Estate.

We timed it just right - and arrived back as John Craven and the BBC Countryfile crew were filming a piece about Christmas Trees for this year's Christmas show - to be aired on Christmas Eve.

If you watch it, look out for us as we may be 'extras' in the background of John's piece to camera. He was kind enough to join our team photo afterwards!

BBC Countryfile hare-piece

Community Science's Hare Survey was featured as part of a wider piece about the mountain hare population in the Peak District and South Pennines on last night's BBC Countryfile.

Countryfile presented Ellie Harrison and Community Science Project Manager Sarah Proctor meeting on Bleaklow

The piece covered some background information about the hares and their adaptation to cold and inhospitable conditions (which were certainly in evidence on the day of filming), before talking about how you can get involved in our survey; and how sending in your sightings of hares can help us to understand the implications of climate change for this charming upland mammal.

Ellie and Sarah talk mountain hares, climate change and citizen science!

 The episode was broadcast on 13/12/15; and will be available on iPlayer for 30 days. To catch-up, visit: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06sphxz

To take part in the survey, visit: http://www.moorsforthefuture.org.uk/community-science/haresurvey

Mountain hares on BBC Look North

Yesterday morning didn't look promising -  a thick fog hung over the summit of Black Hill as the Community Science team set out with Danny Carpenter from BBC Look North and Dave O'Hara from RSPB to film mountain hares for a piece about our new hare survey.

A very stealthy Danny and Dave filming a hare

Luckily, the fog started to clear as we reached one of the areas where we had seen hares previously - and hoped we would see them again. 

Pretty quickly they started to appear, but filming them proved a little tricky - as one of the UK's fastest land mammals they could exit the frame at top speed! One particularly accommodating hare, still in its brown summer coat, posed very nicely; but another hare with a patchy white 'transition' coat was very camera shy and determined not to be filmed.

Sarah being interviewed by Danny

Sarah Proctor (Community Science Project Manager) spoke to Danny about the project, why we are interested in recording sightings of mountain hares and their coat colour, and the possible implications of climate change for hares. 

Once we know when the piece is going out, we will let you know. In the meantime, if you have seen any hares and want to let us know, or you'd like more information about getting involved in our surveys, please head to our website: http://www.moorsforthefuture.org.uk/community-science/haresurvey