‘Madagascar – magic and mystery or disaster?’

After years of planning a trip to see  and hopefully photograph some of the world’s most incredible animals and plants , things started to get a little worrying ……a devastating cyclone , a coup , widespread unemployment , out of control deforestation and lots and lots of other  threats to the endemic animals and plants .Would we be able to find an indri , a sifaka , the largest chameleon in the world ,  the blue eyed frog, the giraffe necked weevil and the leaf tailed gecko ????

Let me take your pupils to this magical land .

Frogface Presentations

Rainforest talks and much , much more !

Since coming back to the UK after spending a year in Costa Rica I have been offering talks and small group activities to children all over the North West of England . From some of the smallest primary schools in rural Lancashire to huge secondaries, I have ‘taken’ children to the rainforests of Central America, the dunes of the Namib Desert in Namibia , the incredible forests and coral reefs of Madagascar , Bandhavgarh in India in search of  the ultimate predator  ……the Bengal tiger , the Philippines and Borneo where we witnessed the fantastic work of the Sepilok Orang-utan Sanctuary , to Guyana on a fruitless search for the jaguar and most recently to the Sea of Cortez to look for the largest animal that has ever existed ….the blue whale . Click on ‘details of presentations’ for more on what I offer and let me bring the natural world to your pupils !!!

‘Water bugs’

A small group activity in which I introduce some of our common water creatures . Working with small groups allows your children to see the animals in close detail and to even hold some of them – leeches are always a big hit !

Appropriate for all age groups – the emphasis of the activity can vary from ‘respect for living things’ , adaptations  , feeding relationships or diversity .

Before the activity I would send you a risk assessment which would help you to decide if you want your children to handle some of the creatures or not.

Animals typically include stickleback, water scorpions, water boatmen , diving beetles , dragonfly nymphs , caddis fly larvae , leeches , frogs , newts and the very popular toads !!!  Depending on the time of the year frog spawn and/ or tadpoles can also be included .

‘Treasure in the Rainforest’

Let me take your pupils with me to the rainforests of Costa Rica in Central America in search of the elusive red-eyed tree frog. Check out the amazing animals we find on the way and see how they are adapted for life in the rainforest.  A one hour presentation – suitable for all ages .

Secrets in the sand

Looking at the adaptations of the amazing animals of the Namib Desert in Namibia  - how do they survive when there are only 10mm of rain per year ?  What do they eat ? What eats them ? A one hour presentation – suitable for all KS2 – KS4.