UNNC community takes action for campus biodiversity

A bird sound map, bird-safe window stickers and a long-running tradition of student-led conservation are helping protect wildlife at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC).

During the summer holiday, graduate-to-be Keting Zhang braved the heat to record birdsong for the UNNC Bird Sound Map, a WeChat mini programme developed as part of her graduation project. The map features photographs, calls and common locations of birds found on campus, including Chinese bulbuls, red-billed blue magpies, blackbirds and spotted doves, and invites staff and students to contribute their own photographs.

Meanwhile, fellow student Xianchu Meng has been installing bird-safe stickers on the glass of UNNC buildings. Their dotted patterns help birds recognise transparent obstacles while allowing natural light into buildings, reducing the risk of bird-window collisions.

The students are continuing a tradition of environmental awareness at UNNC. In 2018, when the site of the new library was home to a 6,219-square-metre woodland, students and staff raised concerns about its trees and wildlife. The University responded by relocating trees around campus, while a student-led bird photography project collected more than 200 photographs from the UNNC community and turned them into an educational exhibition.

The campus’s biodiversity has also inspired staff member Sam Newbould, who first took up birdwatching after watching birds from his accommodation balcony in 2020. He has since recorded more than 520 bird species across China, including the nationally protected crested goshawk at UNNC.

“Every time I see birds flying freely, breeding and making their homes here, I can truly appreciate the beauty of different species living in harmony,” says Sam.

As Keting prepares to continue her studies at the University of Cambridge, she has handed over the bird sound map and bird-collision prevention project to UNNC’s NottinGreen environmental student society. The students will continue the work, passing the baton of conservation from one generation to the next and helping people and wildlife thrive together at UNNC.