Northumberland National Park is one of 15 in the country to have created a new project to help the public record different species of plants and animals.

The new scheme, named Look Wild, has been designed to help the public when out in about in national parks across Britain when they spot unfamiliar wildlife.

With help from visitors to the parks, the national parks will be able to create and grow a database of information that will help continue to maintain the park’s landscapes while also supporting both plants and wildlife too.

“One of the undoubted silver linings of the past difficult year has been how people have valued and sought out a connection with the countryside, with many new visitors discovering Northumberland National Park for the first time,” said Tony Gates, Chief Executive of the Northumberland National Park Authority.

“The Look Wild project will take the connection between people and the countryside a step further, giving visitors the opportunity to learn more about their beautiful surroundings via the free to use app.

“By using the app, the National Park Authority and our partners will learn more and together we will help the natural environment to thrive.”

The Look Wild project has been designed for anyone to be a part of, no matter whether they’re an expert naturalist who can spot a wide range of different wildlife, or are brand new to the outdoors hobby.

It’s hoped that everyone involved will be able to enjoy themselves while out spotting a number of rare and unique wildlife, while at the same time they will all help contribute to the scientific research that is being carried out by the national parks.

The app, named iNaturalist, can be downloaded from both the Apple App Store as well as the Google Play Store for Android users.

It is also able to be used without a mobile data connection once it has been downloaded, meaning no matter the location of the user, the software is able to be used.

As well as helping users to spot different wildlife, the Look Wild project is also encouraging people to take photos of what they see.

Whether it be an animal they don’t recognise or a sound they haven’t heard before while out and about, by taking a photo or audio recording of what has been seen or heard, this again helps with the information wanted to be gathered by the group of national parks.

“We are expecting another record year of visitors to National Parks as lockdown restrictions continue to ease,” added Tegryn Jones, lead National Park CEO for Volunteering and CE of Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority.

“Some of these people will be new to us and we think Look Wild is a great way for them to really build a connection – with nature and with us.

“Not simply a visitor, but part of the team.”

As well as helping create the new database, recent Office for National Statistics data shows that spending time with nature has a positive impact on both physical and metal health and the Look Wild project has also been designed to help continue that trend.

Anyone wanting to sign up for the #BeWild project is able to do so online at www.nationalparks.uk/lookwild.