Habitat Mapping Project

The project aims to: 

1. Improve people’s engagement with nature, by providing citizen scientists with the necessary skills to recognise and record habitat type and condition.
2. Build a map which would support local engagement in nature recovery.
3. Ground-truth and augment existing habitat maps so that we develop a better understanding of habitats in Shropshire. 

Habitats of principal importance (HoPIs) are high biodiversity value habitats and receive consideration and protection in nature recovery policy and strategy documents at local and national levels.

Volunteers on the project have access to an online hub containing training and mapping resources. Each year a training session, led by a professional ecologist, is organised so that beginners and experienced surveyors alike can refresh and learn new skills in habitat surveying.  

During the winter the field survey side of the project dies down. Paper maps are digitised and analysed and progress is presented to volunteers at the annual review event. 

The NRN project has: 

• Fed into the development of the Shropshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS). Data from the project has supported the development of the mapping and will be key to further ground-truthing the strategy when it is reviewed.
• Helped identify important habitats that have not been mapped in other datasets. By walking the ground, NRN habitat mapping volunteers can identify small pockets of habitats which may act as ‘stepping stones’ in the development of a local nature recovery network.
• Successfully supported a recent connectivity modelling project, with the trust working in cooperation with Harper Adams University, to identify opportunities for wetland restoration in the peatlands in north-east Shropshire.
• Fed into other nature-based activities. Volunteer groups have developed the mapping resources further to plan well-informed and localised nature recovery strategies at the parish level and use the mapping to effectively engage landowners.
• Facilitated an associated hedgerow condition mapping programme to support funded restoration works in the Clee valley. 

Surveys often take place off the beaten track, and many of our current volunteers enjoy the experience of finding good habitats in less travelled areas. Training sessions are held in the field and provide an informative and fun guide to habitat surveying. We can also organise group survey sessions to provide a gentle introduction to the wonderful world of habitat surveying. 

Watch the video below to hear about the experiences of Habitat Mapping Volunteers and click here for the full playlist showing you how to identify a variety of Shropshire's habitats. 

Volunteer applications to the project are currently open – please see our Volunteer with Us webpage for further details on how to apply. If you would like to find out more or have any queries regarding the project then please contact Fraser Baker, Evidence and Data Specialist Officer (fraserb@shropshirewildlifetrust.org.uk ).