Gibraltar National Museum supports St Bernard’s wildlife conservation project

Before the summer break, the Gibraltar National Museum was pleased to support an environmental education and conservation project developed by Year 2 pupils at St Bernard’s Lower Primary School.

As part of the project, Gibraltar National Museum Senior Researcher Tyson Lee Holmes visited the school to introduce the pupils to Gibraltar’s bats, their ecology and the importance of providing suitable places for them to roost.

The children then put what they had learned into practice at the school’s outdoor education area in the Upper Town, Discovery Fortress. Pupils were joined by parents and other family members to design and build wildlife boxes, including bat roost boxes, swift nest boxes and insect hotels. The initiative formed part of a wider STEM Challenge combining science, technology, engineering and mathematics with environmental awareness.

Tyson joined the pupils and their families during the building activities, alongside Steven Warr from the Department of the Environment, Sustainability, Climate Change and Heritage, providing practical advice and guidance as the boxes took shape.

The project also reached a wider audience when Tyson joined some of the Year 2 pupils and their teachers on GBC’s Gibraltar Today radio programme to talk about the initiative, Gibraltar’s bats and the children’s work to create new roosting opportunities for local wildlife.

The project culminated in a presentation at Discovery Fortress, where the pupils presented their completed wildlife boxes to the Minister for Education, Heritage, Environment and Climate Change, Professor John Cortes. The boxes were handed over to the Department of the Environment for installation at suitable locations around Gibraltar, allowing the children’s work to make a practical contribution to local biodiversity conservation.

The initiative provided an excellent example of how environmental education can move beyond the classroom, bringing together children, families, teachers, researchers and conservation practitioners, while giving young people the opportunity to make a direct contribution to Gibraltar’s natural environment.

The Gibraltar National Museum is always pleased to support initiatives that encourage young people to engage directly with Gibraltar’s wildlife and develop an understanding of its conservation.

Find out more:
GBC News coverage
Gibraltar Chronicle coverage
HM Government of Gibraltar press release
Listen to the Gibraltar Today interview