Read on Twitter
1/ In a thought-provoking thread following the presentations on trends in moth populations at #UKMRM @BritishMoths asks "Do we need to keep focusing on gathering data to back up our claims? Does it make a difference?" https://twitter.com/BritishMoths/status/1355565172107173890
2/ Surely we know that wildlife is in trouble by now, and shouldn't we be conserving it rather than constantly monitoring its decline? And it is true that recording on its own won't conserve species and habitats.
3/ But we can both record and conserve, and I would say we need to do both those things. And there are other reasons to record as well - here is my list, I'm sure others can add to it.
4/ For me the initial motivation to record wildlife (mainly insects in my case) is simply that I love doing it. You can enjoy wildlife without recording it, but I find it very rewarding to keep track of what I've seen, where and when. Its my way of keeping a diary.
5/ On their own, my records aren't going to change the world. But by combining with many others via recording schemes so much potential opens up. We learn which species are common or rare, which are declining or increasing. We find out how they live and what they depend on.
6/ Conservation depends on knowing this fundamental information about species and their habitats. And although we do know a lot about species distributions in the UK, they continue to change and surprise us, and we need to be aware of these changes.
7/ National & local policy-makers & planners need evidence to base their decisions on, and need it to be of good quality and up to date. Maybe evidence about wildlife declines is taken less seriously than we would like, but evidence has to exist to have that conversation.
8/ Conservation research uses records, & is prompted by records, e.g. in cases of species responding to climate change, or the ways in which some species become invasive - these would have been picked up less quickly without ongoing species recording highlighting the issues.
9/ Species recording helps monitor results of practical conservation management at local level, and environment policy at national level. Recording has often led to the development of habitat management techniques, from studying how species occurrences link to habitat resources.
10/ Encouraging people to get involved in wildlife recording helps them to notice and value the species they live alongside. It's not the only way, and not everyone will want to do it, but it has enormous potential for helping people to understand and enjoy their environment.
11/ "Recording" can seem dry & repetitive, & @BritishMoths asked "Do we respond to data or do we respond to stories?" We do respond to stories, and data tells many stories about wildlife & how it is changing. Press stories are often based on results of recording/survey projects.
12/ And records are made by people! Wildlife recording is very sociable, with lots of sharing of ideas & information, & lots of mentoring & learning, that brings its own benefits & builds support for conservation.
13/ Recording on its own isn't enough, we need to conserve wildlife, but recording can & does help - many organisations use records to build cases for conservation, e.g. assessing planning applications, seeking funds for habitat management, or pushing for policy change.
14/ Lets keep looking, learning, recording and enjoying! /ends
