Volunteer Focus – Wessex – Nick Adams

Volunteer Focus – Wessex – Nick Adams

Nick is based in the Wessex area and has been involved in the project since the beginning through hearing about the opportunity through the RSBP.

He started off doing individual surveys which led to taking part in reintroductions. The main reason he got involved was because of the wider Back from the Brink project - “I have worked for conservation organisations for 15 years and volunteered for 30. A lot of that has been for species on the brink of extinction so the chance to bring something back from the brink was a very positive and good thing to be doing. I feel like I’ve had a chance to do that through the reintroductions as well as finding cool places and enthusing people on the farm.”

He’s loved enthusing land owners to get them interested in working with him – “A lot of them have been trying to get rid of them [arable weeds] for years - to have an impact on that they then say “I don’t mind having it back on my land” is a huge win.

(c) E.L. Cooke

Nick has learnt a lot more about arable plants through volunteering as well as the management required for individual plants – “the management plans have taught me a lot”.

The arable habitat is important to him as he has worked with farmers and the arable habitat for most of his working life and he more he learns about it the more fascinating he finds it. He also thinks the project is making people think about the arable landscape a lot more and what others can do to help – “farmers and landowners are seeing the value and are wanting more knowledge which is great”.

If you want to volunteer for the Colour in the Margins project, then please email colourinthemargins@planlife.org.uk

Would you like to help these incredible species? There are numerous ways in which you can: