The event is organized by HU biology students and aimed mainly at kids and families. It attracts between 6 000 – 12 000 visitors annually, offering a wonderful opportunity for scientific outreach. This year’s theme is “Finnish nature”, and our research group will give the visitors a chance to experience the daily life of our study species first-hand – what is it like to be a reed warbler nesting in Finland?
In our activity, the participants will build their own nest, search for food items, ‘lay’ eggs and finally try to detect an egg of a brood parasitic cuckoo that has appeared among their own clutch. The game imitates the decisions and interactions that reed warblers are involved in during their short but important breeding season here at the species’ northern range edge, thus introducing key questions studied in the group (within Organismal and Evolutionary Biology research programme OEB/Helsinki Institute of Life Sciences HiLife and the Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences).
At the event you will also find other OEB research groups presenting their work among kids’ activities, live animals, pancake sales etc., so lots of things to see and enjoy in Kumpula gardens between 10-17 on Sunday 1st of May. Prepare for a small entrance fee (2e adult / 4e kid, gathered by the biology student organization Symbioosi who direct part of the money to nature conservation) and – depending on the weather – some queueing!
More information: http://www.vappushokkelo.com/