As part of a three-day expedition for their Duke of Edinburgh’s Silver Award, 33 students from Warwick Academy undertook two conservation projects.On the first day of the expedition they constructed 12 bluebird nest boxes which will be available for the forthcoming breeding season.Morgan Simons said: “We listened to a talk from Audubon President Andrew Dobson about the problems which bluebirds face in Bermuda and the fact that they are solely dependent on nest boxes in order to breed. It was really satisfying to think we were doing something to safeguard the future of bluebirds”.The following day’s route included a walk to the end of Cooper’s Island where the group was met by Government Conservation Officer, Jeremy Madeiros. Owen Siese explained: “Mr Madeiros told us about the history of the island, the fact it is now a nature reserve and a very important area for Longtails to breed. Many natural nesting cavities have been lost due to hurricanes and housing development, so providing ‘government housing’ seems like a great idea.”Rickai Edwards said: “I particularly enjoyed mixing the concrete which we use to fix the igloos in place and then to secure the dome nests with nearby rocks.Emi Froud said: “We put in four igloos, I’ll be back to see if any of the nests are used by the longtails this summer.”