Pupils from primary schools in the Italian Karst also tried their hand at making nest boxes, bird feeders, insect hotels and bat boxes in two workshops organised as part of the Kras4us project. The first two workshops took place on 4 and 11 December 2024 at the France Bevk primary school in Opicine, and were attended by 47 pupils from grades 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Before they started their practical work, Tomaž Zorman, nature conservation officer at the Škocjan caves Park, explained to them, accompanied by photographs, how we can help the birds that overwinter in our region to get food, which is scarce in nature in winter. They got to know more about the different species of birds typical for our region, their feeding habits, reproduction and nesting.
The pupils also learned that, in addition to the lack of suitable nesting sites, the use of pesticides in gardens and orchards is a major threat to birds today. The diversity of insect species is also decreasing due to pollution, overgrowth and the loss of flowering plants. The pupils learnt that they can help them by setting up suitable habitats, such as hotels for the insects.
Insects are an indispensable part of nature as they pollinate plants. The entire natural environment depends on their existence, and so do humans. We therefore shared with the students another important lesson: "If insects disappear, humanity will disappear."
