“I want other people to enjoy nature, too!”
Student Anna Webberley has been leading her university’s ornithological society
Alongside studying for her biological sciences degree, Anna Webberley is the president of the Cardiff University Ornithological Society and was awarded the British Trust for Ornithology’s (BTO) Marsh Award for Young Ornithologist of the Year in 2022.
What does your volunteering involve?
As president of the society, my role involves running and organising the society and its events, with the help of two committee members – Maddie Davis (secretary) and Lili Tarrant-Snedden (treasurer). Events include regular birdwatching walks, socials, and trips both in the local area and further afield, such as a Q&A session with Iolo Williams and a residential camping trip to Pembrokeshire. We encourage our members to get involved in citizen science, too.
I also regularly help out with the BTO’s monthly Wetland Bird Survey in Cardiff’s Roath Park each month. This involves counting and recording the numbers of different species of wetland birds. This data is important for informing conservation decisions. During spring, I volunteer as a nestbox volunteer, which involves monitoring the nestboxes in a local woodland and checking the progress of the chicks nesting there.
Why do you volunteer?
I really enjoy getting out and about in nature and wildlife, and doing things to help the environment where I can. I want other people to have the opportunity to enjoy it, too! The more people that are passionate and care about these species, the more they will work to conserve and protect them.
It has been great to see the society get re-established (after it shut down in 2020, due to the pandemic) and have such a good increase in members over the last couple of years – we now have nearly 40 members. It’s also amazing to see more people helping out and getting involved with the local volunteering activities.
What has been your proudest moment as a volunteer?
It was receiving the BTO’s Marsh Award for Young Ornithologist of the Year last year for my work with the ornithological society and vounteering. I felt incredibly honoured to receive the award.