It has been a busy year for SVBG and we couldn’t have done it without a lot of help from all of you.
The SVBG Says Thank You
The Sid Valley Biodiversity Group has had a very busy year and we would like to say thank you to all the local people and organisations that have helped to keep our valley the haven for nature that it is.
There isn’t space to name everybody but a host of individuals have rolled up their sleeves and chipped in with manual work on the food forest and other areas, and mental work writing articles for the newsletters and the Herald. Others have shared their expertise on walks and with illustrated talks
The SVBG would have struggled to do much of its work without the Town Council’s support and I think all the people of Sidmouth should be thankful for a non-partisan council that works so hard to support all the local community groups. One of our key aims is to engage people with their local nature and we have to say thank you to the Sidmouth Herald for hosting our articles.
We have been able to help recently formed groups who are working on the Knowle, Glen Goyle and Cemetery, but perhaps the most significant gain this year is to see our partner organisations the Sidmouth Community Food Forest and the River Sid Catchment Group evolving to make considerable impacts for people and nature.
Our citizen scientist volunteers have helped collect and report records of flowers, birds, butterflies and other insects and invertebrates, fungi, lichens, and even mistletoe to national surveys. We look forward to an even more productive science year in 2026 and that kicks off with the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland’s (yes it is a mouthful) New Year Plant Hunt which begins on 1st January, details are on https://sidvalleybiodiversity.org/ or just Google BSBI NYPH for more details. This will be followed with the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch on 23rd-25th January.
A happy and productive New Year to you all.
PS
Each year we try to leave the valley better than it started in January. Some years that seems harder than others, and we did battle the elements a bit during our Nature Festival, when the heavens opened and we had to move from the Byes to the Guide Hut. But still plenty of you came and it actually proved a very successful day.
Next year we are planning something a bit different. Instead of putting all our eggs in one basket (when it might rain), our plan is to bring you something every month. From walks and talks to hands on events where you can get up close to nature and enjoy the natural beauty of the Sid Valley. More on that in a future post.
For now let’s just look back on the last twelve months, which we have captured in the colourful page of past events below.
And just to make sure you are paying attention we have added a deliberate mistake (or several) in this colourful scene!
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