Friends of the Brierdene required additional equipment for use by volunteers and schools, to survey the Brierdene Burn and to carry out its hoverfly survey. The small grant allowed us to purchase two lightweight sweep nets for collecting and recording hoverflies, and a pond dipping net.
The survey work was carried out throughout the year by our regular volunteers, Duke of Edinburgh students who were working with us and visiting schools. The equipment was also used every Saturday during our Summer Holiday Nature Hour in the Brierdene.
No previous survey work had been done on Hoverflies in the Brierdene. 10 surveys were carried out at various times throughout the year and a total 15 different species of Hoverflies were recorded.
The survey work in the Brierdene Burn allowed us to confirm the species that were known to be in the burn, and to record a new species a Water Cricket which had not been in the dene before seen before.
The equipment purchase though the small grant will continue to be used in in survey work and to monitor the life in the Brierdene Burn as well as supplying Records to ERIC NE.