Wildlife Recording Kits

This kit provides you with a trail camera that can be set up to observe the wildlife on your site and to spot animals you may not have noticed before. It is fantastic for spotting badgers, foxes, hedgehogs, birds, mice and much more!

This kit provides you with a bat detector which is designed to pick up the echolocation calls of the bats. This detector will let you know if bats are present, but may not be able to help identify the species. The Pirbright kit contains additional echometer detectors, which can be plugged into a smartphone to help identify the bat species. 

A number of our bat species are important indicators that can tell us about the health of our ecosystem. Changes in population numbers can indicate when there are declines in insects, or when habitats are poorly managed or destroyed (https://www.bats.org.uk).

This kit provides the equipment for pond dipping, allowing you to discover the invertebrates that live beneath the surface. Freshwater invertebrates provide valuable insights into the health of your pond, helping you determine what actions to take. You can also identify what species you are missing and work towards making your pond more inviting for them.

The kit will allow you to conduct sweep netting surveys and provides pots to identify minibeasts and invertebrates. Insects play a vital role in underpinning many day-to-day ecological processes. Surveying invertebrates can help inform conservation and land management decisions that are best for wildlife. Sweep netting is also a great activity to engage families and younger children and is a great addition to a BioBlitz! 

This kit provides you with simple plastic tunnels that contain some tempting food, inkpads and paper, so that when a mammal comes to investigate the food, they leave inky footprints behind. These are particularly great for surveying Hedgehogs. 

Footprint traps are a fantastic way of discovering which mammal species live in your neighbourhood or garden. By knowing what you have on your site, can help you make better decisions on what actions to take to help nature.

This kit enables you to test the soil moisture and soil pH. The Pirbright kit contains additional kits for testing the nutrients of the soil, such as nitrogen, potash and potassium (N, P, K). Knowing the type of soil you have on site is very important as it determines what plants and wildlife will thrive. It can also be useful for establishing whether you can grow a successful wildflower meadow. 

This kit provides you with the equipment to undertake plant surveys. Conducting a plant survey can help you gain insight into the species that exist in your area and can help you work out the best management regimes for your green space. Knowing the plant life in your area can also help you identify the potential invertebrates and insects that inhabit it. For example, most butterflies have specific food plants. Recording all this information can be useful when preparing management plans. 

The Pirbright kit also contains tape measures and hand lenses to help with transect surveys and more in-depth identification.

This kit provides you with a moth trap which involves the use of an artificial light source to attract moths during the night. In a moth trap the bulb is suspended over a box into which the moths fly, and from where they can be examined and identified before being safely released. Moths play an important role in ecosystems as pollinators and as prey for other animals. Monitoring moths can help us to determine how biodiverse our sites are and can support decision making in regards to future actions.

You can borrow any of our kits by booking them through the Library of Things websites, or you can borrow them directly from us and collect the kits from our Pirbright HQ. Please select where you would like to loan the kit from and check they have it available when booking. Before loaning the kit, please read the T&Cs of the relevant Library of Things, or the SWT Hire Agreement, depending on who you loan the kit from.

Book via ZERO Carbon in Guildford

Book via Circular Dorking Library of Things

Book via Surrey Wildlife Trust Pirbright HQ

We ask that you give us at least three days' notice to borrow the kits. Please note that we only have limited equipment and if it has already been booked out, you will need to be flexible with dates.

The kits will need to be collected from, and returned to, Guildford Library of Things, Circular Dorking Library of Things, or SWT Pirbright HQ, depending on who you loan the kits from. The kit will then need to be dropped back to the same location you picked it up from. When the kits are returned, they will need to be cleaned and returned in the same condition they were received in.

The kits are free to borrow.

Please follow the Hire agreement to borrow the SWT Pirbright kit.

Please follow the T&Cs of the relevant Library of Things, which can be viewed on their websites.

The kit can be used to monitor wildlife in your area. It can also be used to inspire and engage your community with local wildlife, such as at Bioblitz or local family events. Understanding what lives in your green space, or the surrounding area, can help you make informed decisions and help protect nature.

If you do not own the land, please ensure you seek the landowner’s permission to undertake surveying.

We provide a ‘how to’ guide with each kit, please refer to this in the first instance. If you need further assistance, please get in touch with us at communities@surreywt.org.uk and we will do our best to help you.

These kits can be borrowed by any Surrey-based community group. They can also be used by Surrey-based individuals but we will prioritise bookings from community groups.

Yes, you can! However, this is only possible if the kit has not already been booked out. Please check with the Library of Things or SWT Communities team, depending on who you loan the kits from.

Our kits hosted by The Library of Things are checked regularly by maintenance volunteers, and our Pirbright kit is checked by SWT staff, however, if something doesn't seem right, please stop using the item and contact the original lender.

Before loaning the kit, please read the T&Cs of the relevant Library of Things, or the SWT Hire Agreement, depending on who you loan the kit from.

We understand that mistakes can happen and we are careful not to charge people unfairly. However, we may charge a repair fee or up to the full replacement cost of the item if it has been lost, used improperly or unreasonably damaged. To find out more, please see the full terms & conditions, depending on who you loan the kits from.

For the SWT Pirbright kit, please see our Hire agreement for further details.

We do not charge late fees at this time, however, if you are going to be late returning the kit, please contact the original lender in advance, as others may have items booked and be affected.

For either of the Library of Things, please see their terms and conditions, which can be viewed on their websites. 

If you have any questions about the kit, please contact the Communities team at communities@surreywt.org.uk.