7 ‘Random Acts of Wildness’ for Nature-Loving Families to Try

McRobert, who has just written the book 365 Days Wild (William Collins, £16.99, available now), explains: “Just like getting your five-a-day and exercising regularly are important for your health, so is spending time in nature. Wildlife and wild places are all around us waiting to be explored, so pack up a picnic and head outside with the whole family. ”

The new book expands on the 30 Days Wild initiative, encouraging families to carry out even more Random Acts of Wildness – where they experience, learn about or even help nature.

On sunny days over green spaces, keep your eyes to the skies and search for a majestic buzzard circling slowly. Buzzards are big birds of prey, with a wingspan of around 1.2m. They drift upwards on warm days, and when flying closer to the ground, they have powerful, slow wing beats. Before you notice them, you might hear a cry, which sounds like the mew of a cat, only much louder. They repeat this call as they fly higher, like a foghorn.

In one night, a hedgehog can move around 2km, with a home range of 10–20 hectares, constantly foraging for food like worms and beetles. A hedgehog living on a housing estate needs to range over the whole estate for food, but every garden is surrounded by fences and walls. Team up with neighbours to cut small holes in the bottom of fences – they just need to be 13cm x 13cm, and not high off the ground. A hedgehog will find those holes and make his way through. If you can do this across your neighbourhood, it’s much safer for the hedgehogs. If you can’t cut a hole, dig a small channel underneath. You can even add your hedgehog highway to the national map created by Hedgehog Street (hedgehogstreet.org).

Around March, the queen bee will build her intricate home and lay her first brood. These are the worker bees, and once they’ve developed into adults (in early summer) they’ll help tend the nest and collect pollen, to feed the next brood. In late summer, the second brood – mostly new queen bees and males – will emerge, disappearing from the nest to reproduce. Watch as they buzz between bushes, flowers and trees, and see if you can keep up. Map which flowers are their favourites, and how far they travel around the garden. Some will have bright yellow or orange sacs on their hind legs, carrying the pollen. Don’t worry about being stung: keep your distance and don’t disturb them.