Welcome to a review of the year from Moss Safari.
Moss Safari was originally a hobby where I was observing organisms that live in my roof moss using my microscope at home and I continue to do so. Being a science educator, I shared this with my trainee teachers and now, as you will see, I am actively spreading the word of Moss Safari to encourage an appreciation for hidden nature, the use of microscopes as a hobby and in schools and learning about the microscopic world. Observing these organisms can be overwhelming, particularly for teachers who are non-specialist. Moss Safari highlights the Big Five organisms to identify at low magnifications and high magnifications and tells a story about each of those organisms lives.
Below I summarise the outreach of Moss Safari face to face, online via Twitter, online Moss Safaris, a podcast, and a guest blog. Highlight the resources for doing your own Moss Safari and look forward to opportunities in 2023.
Outreach – face to face
The main focus of Moss Safari is to encourage as many people as possible to experience a Moss Safari and hopefully take it forward as a hobby or even take it forward as a career. Outreach remains the most effective way to do that. This is what I have done in 2022:
Moss Safari as a Science Club activity (secondary school) (Longhill School, Brighton, 15 students)
Primary School morning session (Holbrook School, Surrey, 30 children)
Secondary School Science Week Morning (Durrington High School, West Sussex, 90 Key Stage 3 students)
Primary School after school enrichment ‘Science Spectacular’ (30 students from 6 schools, based at Loseley Fields, Godalming, Surrey)
Science Technicians Sussex and Surrey Learning Partnership Conference (Worthing Sixth Form College, 40 technicians) 28 June 2022
Surrey & Sussex Science Learning Partnership Heads of Science Conference (Amex Stadium, 40 attendees) October 2022
As you can see, from the face to face events this year, I have introduced over 250 children or adults to the organisms that live in moss.
Spreading the word – online and more
Spreading the word about Moss Safari to equip teachers to do the activity, technicians to set up the activity, and enthusiasts to do the activity themselves has been central to my mission this year.
Primary science network, Surrey and Sussex, online (18 attendees) Video here January 2022
Moss Safari – Live and Online: Family Edition (24 viewers), March 2022
Royal Society of Biology (Beds, Essex and Herts) Online Moss Safari (15 viewers). Tuesday 26 April 2022
So a further 57 people reached through online sessions.
In addition:
Moss Safari had a center-fold feature in School Science Review in Practice, June 2022, encouraging teachers to ‘Find a Tardigrade’. Image below.
In the audio world, Moss Safari had it’s debut Podcast experience in June 2022 with 113 listens to date. This was with Andy Woods, the host of the Pearson Edexcel Science Podcast. Press image below to listen.
Finally, I wrote a guest blog for Phillip Harris: Explore Microorganisms on a Moss Safari
In Focus – Online Outreach: Biology week 2022
One of the biggest challenges of spreading the word of Moss Safari is physically getting to schools, I am after all, just me and have a ‘proper job’ as well! So for the Royal Society of Biology Biology Week this year, I launched ‘Moss Safari ID‘ on Twitter.
School teachers and pupils could post their Moss Safari findings on Twitter using the hashtag #mosssafariid. I could view the images and help with identification if needed.
I wrote a report and shared it with the RSB, here.
This has continued to happen since Biology Week in October, about one ‘tag’ every week or so. I keep a look out and respond as soon as I can.
People are most happy with their tardigrade finds, but there have been several other curiosities being shared.
In last years review, Moss Safari had 176 followers, during Biology Week, it passed 500 followers. As of today we have 608 followers. Providing Twitter survives, it would be great to surpass 1000 followers in 2023.
Resources and technical support
I have a collection of free downloadable resources for students, teachers and technicians and have written some blogs on topics that people ask questions about.
This year I have produced:
Primary: Moss Safari Booklets for the Big Five at low Magnifications.
Science Technician Notes sheet for Moss Safari
Secondary: Instruction sheet for students preparing a slide
Copies of primary and secondary PowerPoints to download.
All freely available here.
Specific topic blogs include:
Response from the 2021 Moss Safari Article.
From the publication in School Science Review of my ‘moss squeeze method’ and findings from trialing Moss Safari with trainee science teachers (Chandler-Grevatt, 2021) I have had several emails and enquiries about Moss Safari and at least one application I stumbled across from The Quekett Microscopical Club where Alan Wood tried the Moss Squeeze approach, details and link at the end of the report here.
Chandler-Grevatt, A., (2021). Moss Safari: inspiring interest in nature under the microscope. School Science Review, 102(381), pp.49-55. Reprinted in: ASE International, 12, 6-14. Available at https://www.ase.org.uk/resources/school-science-review/issue-381
If you don’t have access, let me know and I’ll send you a copy. Contact.
Personal learning and development
For every blog post I have written there are three half written drafts.
I embarked on a project of taking one branch covered in moss and lichen and did a weekend of Moss Safari’s on each type of moss or lichen. It was a bit ambitious, but I did write ‘Tardigrade Ghosts‘ as a result.
I have developed a fascination for the shelled ameoba ‘Arcella’ and continue to ‘collect’ images and read about Arcella. See the image below.
I have become a member of the Royal Microscopical Society (RMS) and enjoy reading their journal and updates.
Today I joined the Quekett Microscopical Club and look forward to seeing what I learn from them.
I read a lot of articles, scientific papers and books to do with moss and it’s inhabitants.
I am learning about how to identify moss itself and learn more about it’s natural history, it is after all the place where these organisms survive. The relationship between moss itself and its inhabitants is incredible.
Then, there is the academic edge. I am curious in the role of microscopes at home being a instrument of ‘science capital’. That is, that if you have a microscope in your house as a child, you may be more likely to see science as something you can do, have access to, rather than being for ‘other’s a mysterious instrument that only scientists can use. Could Moss Safari increase Science Capital and increase STEM uptake?
The ecology inside a moss cushion and the connection between mosses and lichens is fascinating me more and more. Reading more about moss mites and how they use moss for shelter from UV rays, but move on when things get tough as moss dries out. The idea that micro-arthropods and tardigrades have a role in ‘pollination’ of moss itself in that they transfer moss’s male sex cells to the female sex cells. And that such organisms may also hitch rides on snails to disperse.
I’m also interested in how we can make identification accessible to more people, primarily through Moss Safari, but also in general.
What does 2023 hold?
In early January I will be presenting the academic side of Moss Safari at the Biological Education Research Group’s symposium at the Association for Science Education’s annual conference in Sheffield Hallam University. “I will never look at Moss in the same way again.” Moss Safari and STEM.
I have a couple of secondary school Moss Safari’s lined up and I will do my annual one with my trainees in February.
Another podcast has been recorded and will be released in early 2023 – more to follow.
I am planning on doing a podcast on the Big Five, inviting guests to talk about each organism. Sound interesting?
A Moss Safari book is in progress, need a publisher!
I’ve signed up to the 250th Anniversary of the Discovery of Tardigrades – Tardigrade Online Series 2023 to improve my knowledge and understanding of this incredible organism that inhabits my roof!
I also have received a binocular microscope for Christmas of x20 and x40 magnification to help me ‘sort through’ moss squeeze samples and isolate organisms of interest. Watch this space.
Happy New Year and enjoy your Moss Safari adventures.
Moss Safari 