Who we are:

We are Naturalists and Ecologists Recording Data (NERD Club). A club for teenagers and young people up to University age interested in nature recording and wildlife. We are based at Upper Woodburn, an oak woodland at the foot of the Campsies near Milton of Campsie north of Glasgow.

What we do:

We have a plan to document and record the wildlife through the year in the woodlands, colour-ringing birds, putting up nest boxes and monitoring the breeding birds, surveying the bats and badgers, and having specialists in to help us survey the fungi, plants and other taxa.

Our aim is to use recognised recording systems to ensure that our records go into the National Biodiversity Database and take part in other citizen science work like the Breeding Bird Survey. We will also have one meeting a year where we will do some physical conservation work in the woods, removing rhododendron or Himalayan balsam.

Who can join:

We welcome young people interested in nature and wildlife recording, whether you have a special interest already, perhaps in birds, or you want to learn more. Participants need to be 14 years old or over, we also welcome young people studying at University to be part of the group as young leaders.

General Seasonal Plan

We will follow the seasons with our meetings with a plan for a general monthly meeting and then additional activities, for example the nest box monitoring that will need a rota for covering weekly nest box checks early April – mid June (but we can share these out between us and go in pairs – younger members with a parent)

In the future we may start to organise a yearly weekend away to see wildlife in some of the really spectacular parts of Scotland, however the first year, at least, we will be spending close to home getting to know the wildlife of the wood at Upper Woodburn. It looks like we have a packed timetable.

What to Bring

Any time of year it is sensible to bring waterproofs and stout footwear or wellies, and warm clothing (depending on season!) Bring binoculars and/or a hand lens if you have them and a notebook for notes.

Getting here

There is a bus to the end of the drive (the 89 from Buchannan Street Bus Station that goes through Bishopbriggs, Lenzie and Kirkie to Kilsyth) but if you don’t have access to a car we will try and find someone who can share a lift with you.

About me

I’ll be relying on the help of lots of people to make the group a success, experts in various things, co-leaders, helpers. But here’s a bit about me.

Running this club is very much a hobby, but in my professional life I am currently the Director of APRS, Scotland’s countryside charity. I previously led Stop Climate Chaos Scotland’s hosting and welcome work during COP26, worked for RSPB for seven years and NatureScot (formerly SNH) for a decade. I am a keen ornithologist and have a PhD in the Lesser Black Backed Gull.

Back in the 1980s when I was a (rather nerdy) teenager, obsessed by bird-watching, I was part of a fantastic group called The Heath House YOC, led by the aptly-named Mrs Ann Bird. She, and her co-leaders, guided our disparate flock of young people, to an enduring love of nature, by way of groups called The Mammal Mob, The Butterfly Bunch, The Camera Crew and the Conservation Commandos (and I don’t even think I have remembered all of them). Generations of children and young people with muddy boots and second-hand binoculars, who went through that group, emerged with a determination to work in conservation or brought a lifetime’s love of nature into their careers.

Now I have a bit of time put to it, and we live in an incredible habitat stuffed full of wildlife, I hope I can bring a little of that feeling of belonging to today’s young wildlife enthusiasts, and and do a bit of justice to the legacy of Ann Bird, Ginny Duncanson, and the others.

Kat Jones, November 2024

Join NERD Club

If you are interested in joining please do get in touch.