The Hamilton Wildlife Project

Monitoring and recording Hamilton's wildlife

Hamilton is lucky to have plenty of green space, including hedgerows with mature trees, woods, and wetlands. Not only does this make Hamilton a more pleasant place to live, it also helps to protect Leicestershire's threatened wildlife.

Surprisingly little of Hamilton’s wildlife has ever been officially recorded.

Searching on the Leicestershire and Rutland NatureSpot wildlife database shows that, even for some of the commonest animals and plants, very few records have been submitted from Hamilton and its immediate surroundings. 

Why this matters

Hamilton’s green spaces cannot be taken for granted. The lack of wildlife records suggests either that there is no wildlife in Hamilton or that it exists but is not being monitored or protected. 

There is a continuing demand for land for construction and other uses. The online animal records on NatureSpot (and similar databases) are freely available to politicians, planners, and developers who want to identify areas of poor-quality greenspace that could be used for other purposes. 

The lack of recorded wildlife in Hamilton could mean that Hamilton will lose its greenspaces.

How you can help - Spot it. Record it. Protect it! 

NatureSpot promotes the identification, recording and conservation of Leicestershire and Rutland’s wildlife. Hamilton Residents’ Association is keen to encourage this locally. Detailed guidance for recording wildlife can be found on the NatureSpot website.

To obtain an initial idea of the variety of wildlife found in Hamilton, the Hamilton Residents’ Association is compiling a list of local wildlife. This already shows an encouraging number of species and will be updated with further lists as these become available.

If you are interested in this but don't know where to begin, or if you have any other questions concerning Hamilton's wildlife, please contact Alan Bevington (email 57rrd1955@gmail.com).