Guidance: Wildlife incidents on campus
This page provides advice on what to do in different situations. Please always follow the guidance below and avoid handling wildlife to prevent injury to yourself and the animal.
Dead wild animals on campus
Please report sightings of dead animals on campus on Invida ResolveLink opens in a new window by selecting "New Ticket>Waste & Recycling>Deceased Animals". Do not touch or handle the animal; should it pose a health and safety risk, it will be safely removed by the appropriate team.
You are also welcome to let us know what species you found (e.g. hedgehog run over by a car on Gibbet Hill Road, What3Words location ___) by emailing sustainability@warwick.ac.uk.
If you spot a dead wild bird off campus, please also report it at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/report-dead-wild-birds Link opens in a new windowto aid the monitoring of Avian Flu.
Have you noticed dead bumblebees around lime trees? ResearchLink opens in a new window suggests that this is due to a natural phenomenon. These observations need not be reported via Invida. Please note that the current advice from expertsLink opens in a new window is to not offer large amounts of sugar water as it can harm not only bees but other wildlife as well. We are incorporating the findings from research studies into future landscaping designs on campus.
Injured wild animals or an abandoned baby animal on campus
Wildlife rehabilitation is a specialist area, and best left to the experts. The University does not have the in-house expertise to help injured or abandoned wildlife found on campus, however there is a wealth of relevant information available online, such as from the RSPCA Link opens in a new windowand Warwickshire Wildlife TrustLink opens in a new window.
- For injured bats, please contact the Bat Conservation Trust Link opens in a new windowdirectly. It is particularly important not to handle bats yourself due to the risk of rabies transmission.
- For assistance with hedgehogs, please contact Warwickshire Hedgehog RescueLink opens in a new window. For general FAQs and further contact information please visit Summer FAQ - Hedgehog Street.Link opens in a new window
- For any badger-related information and advice please contact the relevant local badger group via Badger Trust and visit Helping a Sick or Injured Badger - RSPCA.
- For injured swans, please visit MK Swan Rescue Link opens in a new windowfor further information and contact details.
- For grounded swifts, swallows and house martins please contact Swift SOS- Coordinating Rescues (Swifts, Swallows and Martins). Link opens in a new windowFollow instructions in this video Link opens in a new windowon how to safely handle the birds until a "swift taxi" collects them.
- For advice on how to help a baby bird, please see Found a baby bird out of a nest - RSPCALink opens in a new window.
Please do let us know what you found, where, and which organisation assisted you by emailing us on sustainability@warwick.ac.uk. This information helps us to keep accurate records and aid the future monitoring of wildlife on campus.
Wild animals in a building
If there is a bird in a building, best practice is to open as many windows and doors as possible to allow the bird to leave of its own accord. It is also recommended to darken the rest of the room so that it is more obvious to them where the escape routes are. Birds have hollow bones to aid flying and can be injured very easily. They can be gently guided towards the opening but should not be handled or caused to panic so that they fly into walls or windows at high speed. For more information, including advice on birds trapped in awkward places, please visit Trapped birds - RSPCALink opens in a new window.If attempts to guide the bird out of the building have failed, please contact the Estates Help Desk via Invida ResolveLink opens in a new window.
Other wildlife such as mammals, e.g. grey squirrels, can become aggressive when trapped. If they do not leave through open windows or doors of their own accord, please report the issue on InvidaLink opens in a new window: Create New Ticket > Estates Maintenance > Pests.