About Jupiter Urban Wildlife Centre
Managed by Scottish Wildlife Trust in the heart of Grangemouth, Jupiter is an amazing example of how urban green spaces can be created from urban wasteland
Jupiter Urban Wildlife Centre Description
Jupiter Urban Wildlife Centre is managed by the Scottish Wildlife Trust.
We are open all year round -
April to September: Monday to Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm;
October to March: Monday to Friday, 10 am to 5 pm.
Entry is free! Why not come along and try one of our self led activities. . . borrow a net to see what you can catch in the pond, tackle the tree trail, go on a minibeast safari or discover a whole new side to Jupiter with our sensory experience.
There's also a year round programme of events on everything from bird box building, bush-craft and wild food. For nature nuts aged between 8 and 12 there's the Jupiter Watch Group which meets monthly. For more information on any of these, contact the Rangers at falkikranger@scottishwildlifetrust.org. uk or 01324 486475.
Reviews
Feeling autumnal yet? Check out our latest blog, discovering the last signs of summer: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/…/ last-of-the-summer-…/ 🍃🌿🍁🍂
Some snaps from our late summer events! Watching our veggies grow from our raised beds that our volunteers manage; making tea with a Kelly kettle and creating hapa zome at Wild Ways Well; having a peek at the world in miniature; Plantlife taking us on a Great Jupiter Wildflower Hunt and making dragonflies at our last event with Andrea from British Dragonfly Society! 😃 Our next two events are sold out! 🦇🐾 More events can be booked here: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/even ts/ 🍁🍂
Here is the poster for our Autumnal events! Is it that time of year already?! 😮🍁🍂 Our next event will be a batty bonanza! A twilight walk through Jupiter, looking for creatures that come out at night! 🦇🐾🦔 Hot drinks will be served from the visitor centre 😁☕🍪 book here: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/even t/batty-bonanza/
Jupiter is closing early today at 4pm. Apologies for any inconvenience caused. We will be open from 10am tomorrow! 🌿🌞😀
We have a new opportunity starting at Jupiter. Wild Ways Well meetings focus on mental wellbeing and enjoying being in nature. The Wild Ways Well project aims to demonstrate what most of us already know instinctively. Spending time outdoors, amongst nature, makes people feel better about themselves and their lives. Whilst out in the reserve participants get a chance to slow down, relax, and participate in a variety of environmental and conservation related activities designed... to fit in with the Five Ways to Wellbeing. Each session will involve a walk, time to chat over a hot drink and be able to immerse yourself in a nature themed activity. Activities will vary by season but will always reflect an aspect of the five ways and will always have nature and the outdoors at its heart. Wild Ways Well is inclusive and welcomes people (18+) from all areas of the community. It is particularly aimed at those interested in improving their mental wellbeing. Sessions are free, all you require is a basic level of fitness and clothing suitable for the Scottish weather. See the poster for more details and how to book your place. Next meeting is 30th August 1-3pm 🐾🍃☕🍂
See More
The Jupiter rangers ran a Great British #WildflowerHunt event with Plantlife Scotland. We did a survey in the meadows and woodlands with some hapa zome and seed bombs afterwards! 36 species of wildflowers were found, with everyone getting to take their sheets home afterwards so they could have a go at home. Check out https://www.plantlife.org.uk/wildflowerhu nt/ to find out more! #wildflowerhunt #plantlife
Dragonflies and damselflies belong to the Odonata order of insects. Both spend a large part of their lives underwater, first as eggs and then as larvae or nymphs. They are predatory and prey on other invertebrates. As they grow they shed their skin several times. Once ready, the nymphs climb out of the water and emerge from their larval skin as young adults. The ponds at Jupiter are important for dragonfly and damselfly reproduction and larvae. Hedgerows and woodland clearin...gs also offer sheltered areas where the adults can breed and hunt flying insects. There are four details that even the most inexperienced bug hunter can use to identify if the insect is a dragonfly or a damselfly. They are the eyes, body shape, wing shape and position of the wings at rest. Want to find out more and see them up close? Then book tickets for our next event at Jupiter!
See More
For Augusts’ species of the month I chose the wildflower, Tansy, Tanacetum vulgare. This pretty yellow flower grows at the back of Jupiter’s visitor centre amongst many other wildflowers in the garden. Tansy is the food plant for the rare Tansy beetle, a rare leaf beetle only found in two places in the UK! Myth has it that the wing cases of these beautiful beetles were so admired by Victorians, that they were used as sequins. Adult Tansy beetles are active around the tops of... Tansy plants from April until June where they feed, mate, and lay eggs. The pupae hatch in mid-July and can be seen on Tansy plants until September. Tansy is an aromatic plant of disturbed ground, rough grasslands, riverbanks and roadside verges. It has fern-like foliage and yellow flower heads that appear in clusters from July to October. The yellow flower heads (consisting of lots of tiny flowers) look like small, rounded buttons and cluster together. It has a long history of use for medicinal purposes and was cultivated by the Ancient Greeks. Tansy leaves were traditionally eaten at Easter to help kill off the worms that the diet of fish at the time caused. They were quite bitter, so were mixed with eggs, milk and flour in a kind of pancake or omelette. If you want to learn more about wildflowers and how to identify local species, come to our event tomorrow; Jupiter’s Great Wildflower Hunt! Last few tickets here: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/…/ jupiters-great-wild…/
See More
The Jupiter ranger will be hosting some activities at Carron Dams as part of the Dam fine day out! Hope to see you there!
July’s species of the month is all about a species of Leaf beetle from the family Chrysomelidae, which includes approximately 35,000 species of beetles. They are oval-shaped, short-legged, with the antennae about half the body length, and tend to be less than 12 mm long. Many are leaf-feeding pests that feed on crop and ornamental plants.. One fantastic species is the Bloody-nosed beetle (Timarcha tenebricosa). The Bloody-nosed beetle is a large, flightless species, which ear...ns its common name from its peculiar form of defence. When threatened it exudes a drop of bright red foul-tasting fluid from the mouth. The extraordinary defensive behaviour serves to deter potential bird predators from eating one of these beetles. The Bloody-nose beetle is fascinating, but our chosen species is a new find in Jupiter and Scotland! Bromius obscurus is a type of leaf beetle which is critically endangered. At our most recent event, Chris Packham’s Bioblitz, we had a range of helpers including Suzie Burgess from Buglife, who discovered and identified this rare find. The beetle may be boring to look at, as it is small and black, however it is a red data species and Jupiter is the only place in Scotland it has been recorded! It has previously been recorded at a disused railway embankment which matches Jupiter’s habitat as the reserve was an old railway siding before it was taken over by the Scottish Wildlife Trust. It’s host plant is rosebay willowherb (Chamerion angustolium), plus other willowherbs which Jupiter has many of! To learn more about the Bioblitz at Jupiter, and find out what other fascinating species we recorded, check out our new blog: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/…/ red-data-species-re…/
See More
Some pictures of our most recent events at Jupiter! Chris Packham chatting to a family that came to our Bioblitz last week; one of our slimy finds from our Super Slimers event; some butterfly creations and a Green-veined White butterfly; learning all about compost and Wiggling Worms and more slippery snails found in the woods! Our next event 'The world in miniature' is sold out! However, we have more events coming up in August: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/even ts/ 😀🌺🌿🐾🦋🐌🐞🐝
Catch up on the first day of Chris Packham's Bioblitz, when Chris visited Jupiter!
The Jupiter rangers will be at Carron Dams on 19th August! Drop by to take part in some fun nature activities!
Upcoming events at Jupiter! Booking via the website: https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/even ts/ 🌞
brilliant place with so many activities going on and a nice nature walk as well
We enjoyed our afternoon at Jupiter yesterday pond dipping! Kids and adults had great fun. Very informative and educational, thank you.
Took my 2 kid's for something to do,we had a picnic,and did some pond dipping,the kid's loved it,my son was especially pleased at catching a LEECH!!!Lol!
The rangers were brilliant with the kids so knowledge about
Thankyou to Clare and Katherine for a fantastic Bowhouse Bairns Day! Always so welcoming and nothing is too much trouble! A fabulous setting to get our wee ones out and about in nature! Thankyou! �
Really enjoyed our wee walk around with our 2 year old son
Really enjoyed our relaxing stroll through the centre today. It’s given us lots of ideas on what we can do for the wildlife in our own garden. Really enjoyed sitting on the bench, looking out onto the water and just listening to all of the birds that live there. Will be back again, thank you!
My 4 year olds and I really enjoyed our visit today! We’ve kicked off the outdoor book challenge with a bang and I don’t think we’ll ever read A Squash And A Squeeze the same way again!
I was really impressed with the range of activities (crafting, den building, mud work, face painting, play doh) and how well organised the event was(catering was perfect!) , and the staff were just so lovely and helpful. thank you very much, we were all thoroughly entertained and delighted! You can tell that lots of thought went into the event, and I really appreciated it!
My 2 daughters (age 4 and 6) and I attended the 'Get Crafty' session today. It was incredibly well organised with lots of activities to suit a variety of ages. We were happily kept busy, despite rotten weather, for the entire 2 hours. The activities were structured but with freedom for participants to be creative too. First time I'd been to Jupiter (despite living in Bo'ness!) and we'll definitely be back...probably on Saturday for pond-dipping! Thanks.
Just back from Minecraft event!! Our 7yr old and 9year old loved it! So much that they gave it 5 . Well organised event and got kids outdoors! Fab!
Great time had by Leon. Wonderful volunteers, keep up the awesome work.
Great place, had a great day pound dipping this weekend and exploring the center
Great find for me. Hidden little wildlife sanctuary in the middle of Grangemouths industrial land
A great adventure for my 5 year old
Fantastic for kids of all ages po d dipping and bug hunts loads of fun friendly staff and it's free
Chernobyl Children's Lifeline Forth Valley Link, we have 8 children and there teacher her here from the Ukaine area for a three week recuperation holiday. This is our fourth year visiting Jupiter Urban Wildlife Centre. Every year we are made so welcome and the children just love the fun and experience they have when we visit. It's s fab place and would highly recommend it to family and groups .
Brilliant place, and great staff. Kids have been to a couple of the craft making events and have had a great time.
Brilliant little wildlife garden. We go often..pond dipping, nice scavenger walks, bug hotels etc. We went on a bat walk tonight...so well organised and very good fun. Lovely indoor classroom. And it's all FREE!
A real hidden gem of a place. Kids have had wonderful days out here, pond dipping, bug hunting and den building. Birthday party’s are really great value and all the children (and adults) had a blast. Thank you.
A fantastic place to take children. My three had a superb time there today, the staff are very friendly and helpful. They can't wait to go back.
brilliant place with so many activities going on and a nice nature walk as well
We enjoyed our afternoon at Jupiter yesterday pond dipping! Kids and adults had great fun. Very informative and educational, thank you.
Took my 2 kid's for something to do,we had a picnic,and did some pond dipping,the kid's loved it,my son was especially pleased at catching a LEECH!!!Lol!
The rangers were brilliant with the kids so knowledge about
Thankyou to Clare and Katherine for a fantastic Bowhouse Bairns Day! Always so welcoming and nothing is too much trouble! A fabulous setting to get our wee ones out and about in nature! Thankyou! �
Really enjoyed our wee walk around with our 2 year old son
Really enjoyed our relaxing stroll through the centre today. It’s given us lots of ideas on what we can do for the wildlife in our own garden. Really enjoyed sitting on the bench, looking out onto the water and just listening to all of the birds that live there. Will be back again, thank you!
My 4 year olds and I really enjoyed our visit today! We’ve kicked off the outdoor book challenge with a bang and I don’t think we’ll ever read A Squash And A Squeeze the same way again!
I was really impressed with the range of activities (crafting, den building, mud work, face painting, play doh) and how well organised the event was(catering was perfect!) , and the staff were just so lovely and helpful. thank you very much, we were all thoroughly entertained and delighted! You can tell that lots of thought went into the event, and I really appreciated it!
My 2 daughters (age 4 and 6) and I attended the 'Get Crafty' session today. It was incredibly well organised with lots of activities to suit a variety of ages. We were happily kept busy, despite rotten weather, for the entire 2 hours. The activities were structured but with freedom for participants to be creative too. First time I'd been to Jupiter (despite living in Bo'ness!) and we'll definitely be back...probably on Saturday for pond-dipping! Thanks.
Just back from Minecraft event!! Our 7yr old and 9year old loved it! So much that they gave it 5 . Well organised event and got kids outdoors! Fab!
Great time had by Leon. Wonderful volunteers, keep up the awesome work.
Great place, had a great day pound dipping this weekend and exploring the center
Great find for me. Hidden little wildlife sanctuary in the middle of Grangemouths industrial land
A great adventure for my 5 year old
Fantastic for kids of all ages po d dipping and bug hunts loads of fun friendly staff and it's free
Chernobyl Children's Lifeline Forth Valley Link, we have 8 children and there teacher her here from the Ukaine area for a three week recuperation holiday. This is our fourth year visiting Jupiter Urban Wildlife Centre. Every year we are made so welcome and the children just love the fun and experience they have when we visit. It's s fab place and would highly recommend it to family and groups .
Brilliant place, and great staff. Kids have been to a couple of the craft making events and have had a great time.
Brilliant little wildlife garden. We go often..pond dipping, nice scavenger walks, bug hotels etc. We went on a bat walk tonight...so well organised and very good fun. Lovely indoor classroom. And it's all FREE!
A real hidden gem of a place. Kids have had wonderful days out here, pond dipping, bug hunting and den building. Birthday party’s are really great value and all the children (and adults) had a blast. Thank you.
A fantastic place to take children. My three had a superb time there today, the staff are very friendly and helpful. They can't wait to go back.