july-august 2017 bristol naturalist news · sat. 19 aug. shooting summer pictures – photography...
TRANSCRIPT
Contents / Diary of events
JULY-AUGUST 2017
Bristol Naturalist News
Discover Your Natural World
Bristol Naturalists’ Society
BULLETIN NO. 562 JULY-AUGUST 2017
Photos © Steve Hale
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CONTENTS
3 Diary of Events
4 SOCIETY Walks
Richard Bland’s Downs Walks
Joint BNS/University programme
5 Roger’s Notes; Phenology
Bristol Parks Crisis
6 A New Avon Flora – Monadics wanted!
Purple Sycamores; Palm Trees; Rainfall Data
7 Joint BNS/University Meeting Reports
8 Society Midweek Walk Report Reading Group
9 Badock’s Wood ‘Bugs & Butterflies’
10 BOTANY SECTION ‘Other’ Field meetings; Botanical notes: Plant Records
13 GEOLOGY SECTION Field Meeting Report
14 INVERTEBRATE SECTION
Notes for this month.
This month’s Poem
16 ORNITHOLOGY SECTION Field Meeting Report; Recent News.
Ed Drewitt/Bristol Ferry
18 LIBRARY Mammal resources
19 MISCELLANY Botanic Garden; Gorge & Downs Wildlife Project
20 BNS leading role in Westonbirt BioBlitz;
Pictures of the month
Cover pictures by Steve Hale: 1 May,
House Martin gathering mud; 12 May, Meadow Pipit, Aust Warth (‘many birds seen carrying food to nests’); 28 May, Great Crested Grebe
and chick.
HON. PRESIDENT: David Hill,
BSc (Sheff), DPhil (Oxon).
ACTING CHAIRMAN: Stephen Fay
HON. PROCEEDINGS RECEIVING EDITOR:
Dee Holladay, 15 Lower Linden Rd., Clevedon,
BS21 7SU [email protected]
HON. SEC.: Lesley Cox 07786 437 528
HON. MEMBERSHIP SEC: Mrs. Margaret Fay
81 Cumberland Rd., BS1 6UG. 0117 921 4280
HON. TREASURER: Michael Butterfield
14 Southdown Road, Bristol, BS9 3NL (0117) 909 2503 [email protected]
BULLETIN DISTRIBUTION Hand deliveries save about £800 a year, so help
is much appreciated. Offers please to:
HON. CIRCULATION SEC.: Brian Frost, 60 Purdy
Court, New Station Rd, Fishponds, Bristol, BS16
3RT. 0117 9651242. [email protected] He will
be pleased to supply further details. Also
contact him about problems with (non-)delivery.
BULLETIN COPY DEADLINE: 7th of month before
publication to the editor: David B Davies, The Summer House, 51a Dial Hill Rd., Clevedon,
BS21 7EW. 01275 873167 [email protected]
Grants: BNS typically makes grants of around
£500 for projects that meet the Society’s
charitable aims of promoting research &
education in natural history & its conservation in
the Bristol region. Information and an application
form can be downloaded from:
http://bns.myspecies.info/search/site/Grants
(and bristolnats.org.uk) Email completed
applications to [email protected].
Health & Safety on walks: Members
participate at their own risk. They are
responsible for being properly clothed and shod.
Dogs may only be brought on a walk with prior
agreement of the leader.
BULLETIN NO. 562 JULY-AUGUST 2017
Bristol Naturalists’ Society Discover Your Natural World
Registered Charity No: 235494
www.bristolnats.org.uk
Bristol Naturalists’ Society Discover Your Natural World
Registered Charity No: 235494
www.bristolnats.org.uk
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Diary of events Back to contents Council usually meets on the first Wednesday of each month. If you plan to attend please check date & time with the Hon. Sec. (from whom minutes are available to members). Any member can attend, but must give advance notice if wishing to speak.
Visitors & guests are welcome at any of our meetings. If contact details are given, please contact the leader beforehand, and make yourself known on arrival. We hope you will enjoy the meeting, and consider joining the Society. To join, visit http://bns.myspecies.info and click on membership. Members are members of ALL the sections.
JULY 2017 Sun 2 Goblin Combe Invertebrates 14:00 page 14
Thu 6 Midweek walk: Bleadon Hill Society 10:00 page 4
Fri/Sat 7/8 BNS at Westonbirt + BioBlitz Society TBA page 15
Sat 8 Downs Walk Society 10:00 page 4
Sat 8 Forest of Dean Ornithology 18:30 page 16
Sun 9 Bommie/Glyn Vale & Novers Hill Invertebrates 14:00 page 14
Wed 12 Lawrence Weston Botany 19:00 page 10
Sun 16 Sand Bay Invertebrates 14:00 page 14
Sun 23 Hanham Hall Invertebrates 14:00 page 14
Sun 30 Flowers & Pollinators BNS/University 14:00 page 4
Sun 30 Badock’s Wood Invertebrates 14:30 page 14
AUGUST 2017 Thu 3 Midweek walk: Frampton Mansell Society 10:00 page 4
Sun 6 Old Sneed Park Invertebrates 14:00 page 14
Sun 6 Nature Survey BNS/University 14:00 page 4
Sat 12 Middle Hill Common Botany 14:00 page 10
Sat 19 Writhlington Colliery Tip Geology 14:30 page 13
Sun 20 Calllington Road NR Invertebrates 13:00 page 14
SEPTEMBER 2017 Sat 16 Dundry Hill Botany 11:00 page 10
Thu 21 Yate – urban ‘pot luck’ Botany 11:00 page 10
OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST Pliosaurus! at Bristol Museum & Art Gallery until 7 Jan.– exhibition & events showcasing the huge fossil specimen Pliosaurus carpenteri named after BNS member and ex-President Simon Carpenter.
Sun 2 July Downs Butterflies Gorge & Downs 14:00 page 19 Sun 2 July Selsley Common GlosNats page 10
Sun 2 July Poors allotment GlosNats page 10 Thu 6 July Pollinator walk Botanic Garden 18:00 page 19 Sun 9 July Hellenge Hill SRPG 11:00 page 10
Sat 22 July Botany for Gardeners Botanic Garden 10:00 page 19 Mon 24 July Pollinator walks : 10am/11.30/2pm Botanic Garden page 19 Thu 27 July Fabulous falcons (Children’s event) Gorge & Downs 10:00 page 19
Thu. 3 Aug. Wild works of art (Children’s event) Gorge & Downs 10:00 page 19 Fri. 4 Aug. Bristol Moth Group, Badock’s Wood. Details: Ray Barnett. [email protected] Sat 5 Aug Foxes Bridge Bog NR GlosNats 11:00 page 10
Sun 6 & 20 Aug Drawing Courses Botanic Garden 17:30 page 19 Thu. 10 Aug Ladybird spotters (Children’s event) Gorge & Downs 10:00 page 19 Sat. 12 Aug Beekeeping taster day Botanic Garden page 19
Sun. 13 Aug Spiders of the Avon Gorge - walk. Gorge & Downs 10:30 page 19
Thu 17 Aug Cleeve Hill (nr. Cheltenham) GlosNats 11:00 page 10 Sat. 19 Aug. Shooting summer pictures – photography day Botanic Garden page 19
Thu. 24 Aug. Science picnic: Honey a magical medicine Botanic Garden page 19 Sat 2 Sep Ed Drewitt down the Gorge Bristol Ferry 14:25 page 17 Tue 12 Sep Upper Lode Lock, Tewkesbury GlosNats 11:00 page 10
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SOCIETY ITEMS
SOCIETY MID-WEEK WALKS Contents / Diary
Thursday, 6 July
Bleadon Hill about two and a half miles. Parking at the pub is a bit tight but there is room to park at the bottom of Shiplait Road, almost opposite. Meet at the Queen’s Arms (BS24 0NF), ST340570 in the village of Bleadon at 10 am. We climb over Hellenge Hill, noted for its calcareous flora and wonderful views via the West Mendip Way and return via South Hill and the (straightened) River Axe. The paths are well-maintained but it is exposed on the top so suitable outdoor clothing and footwear is advisable.
Thursday, 3rd August 2017
Crown Inn, Frampton Mansell & Sapperton Valley, about 2½ miles. This is a highly recommended walk which I have not had time to go over before writing this note, so details might be changed slightly following my recce. We are promised a rich blend of woodland and waterside habitats and only gentle climbing. Meet at the Crown Inn, Frampton Mansell (GL6 8JG) SO923027 at 10 am. It is a bit of a journey so car sharing is
recommended. Please keep in touch. Tony Smith: tel. 0117 965 6566. Email: [email protected]
DOWNS WALK IN JULY – RICHARD BLAND LEADS HIS 8TH WALK
10am, Saturday 8 July: Leader Richard Bland. Meet at 10.00am at Proctor’s Fountain. We will examine the trees, among them one of the
rarest in Britain, and look at the potential site of the proposed footbridge We will talk about
the old toll house.
JOINT BNS/UNIVERSITY BIODIVERSITY EVENTS Contents / Diary All members are welcome but booking is essential.
Contact Lesley Cox on 07786 437528 or e-mail: [email protected]
FIELD MEETINGS FLOWERS AND POLLINATORS Sunday, 30th July
At a Private University Site. 2:00pm All biodiversity meetings have a theme, in this case Flowers and Pollinators but, as good
naturalists, all items of interest from the natural world encountered during event will be
incorporated into the meeting. The leader is an exceptional naturalist and the meeting
offers all attendees a substantial opportunity to extend their knowledge.
All members are welcome but booking is essential: contact Lesley (Hon. Sec.) for
further details.
NATURE SURVEY Sunday, 6th August
At a private university site 2:00pm This is another opportunity to search out less obvious species and to see what can be
found at this interesting site.
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ROGER’S NOTES Contents / Diary n my final ‘Roger’s Notes’, I would like, first of all, to thank those who volunteered to
represent the Society at the Festival of Nature. Although, as I write this, the Festival is
yet to happen, I am sure that it will be the usual success.
July and August bring the holiday season – at least for those with children and
grandchildren, involved. This year we had our holidays early, as a family event took all of
us to eastern Canada. Visits to that part of Canada are a finely judged affair. Last year we
went for the ‘Fall’, and we missed the ‘bugs’ – vicious biting insects – Deer flies and Black
flies to name two sorts that have bitten me. This year we had ‘bugs’ on only the last two
days, and that was more than enough. Here we are mercifully free of this sort of attack,
but there is still a nasty condition that is increasing – Lyme disease. It is spread by the
Deer-tick and needs immediate action. I have known two people who have had it – one
was treated immediately and was fine (though she still has a scar). The other not so
lucky. If you see evidence of a tick feeding on you, or believe that they might, go and see
your doctor at once, and insist that it be taken seriously. Here is the NHS link about
it http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Lyme-disease/Pages/Introduction.aspx
After spreading doom and gloom, let me wish you good holidays, or at least days
out. If you are going to a new area, look out to see the differences. Canada gave us
Ospreys overhead, all over the place. A trip around Paris might reveal Crested Tits (as we
saw in the grounds of Rambouillet). Even a visit to a neighbouring county can reveal
something different from home.
Have a wonderful summer!
Roger Steer
PHENOLOGY ay had an average maximum temperature of 19.2°C, slightly below the record of
19.6°C set in 1901. Since 1853 there have been nine years when May has been
above 18.5°C. The 30-year average, May’s climate, is now 16.8°C, an increase of
one degree since 1985, but only just above the figure of 16.6°C in 1945. The overall spring
average has increased by a degree since 1997, but is almost identical to the previous
record set in 1957. May was also dry, with 52mm, below the average of 62mm. Spring has
been the driest since 2011, but the past twelve months have seen the lowest rainfall since
1976, and there have only been five drier years since 1853.
As a result this has been an early spring, and my standard walk has found 123 species
that have come into flower, compared with only 102 last year. However, the difference in
the timing of 180 events has only been three days early.
Richard Bland
BRISTOL PARKS CRISIS s many members know Bristol is having to cut public funding for parks & trees by
2020. During July and August there will be a consultation on the city website about
proposed future plans for parks & tree maintenance. Details of the plans and the link
to the city website are not available at the time of writing, but it will be very important that
everyone concerned about the future of the wildlife of the city becomes involved. As soon
as the details are available I will put an appropriate comment on the BNS website. Please
feel free to contact me for more information. Richard Bland [email protected]
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A NEW AVON FLORA Contents / Diary
oin the monadics. A monad is a single kilometre square, which is the basic unit of the
Flora that was published in 2000 and is now being updated. There are 1500 monads
in the region and there are 85 of them which have only been surveyed once or twice
since the origin of the Flora survey in 1984. I have appealed in the past two bulletins for
volunteers to resurvey these squares, and so far have five volunteers. But surveys can be
done until the end of October, and they are easy and fun. Step one; contact me and offer
to help. I will send you details of the squares that need surveying near you, and a tick list
and instructions. Step two; Find a parking place in your square. Step 3; walk the lanes and
paths and habitats of the square, ticking every plant you identify, and writing in new ones.
Might take two hours. Step 4; do it again in two months’ time. Step 5; send the results to
me.
Most of the squares have records of only around 100 species - you will find over 150 in
even the most boring square, and the best in the region has over 600, and this is in Clifton.
Don’t think you are not a good enough botanist. You will learn by doing and if in doubt look
it up or leave it out.
Richard Bland 0117 968 1061 rlbland673@gmail .com
PURPLE SYCAMORE TREES or the third year I am appealing for sightings of the Purple Sycamore. This is a
normal Sycamore, but the underside of the leaves is purple, not green. It is an
uncommon natural variant. The purple colour becomes more obvious as autumn
approaches. I now have a list of some 23 trees, some just saplings, and they can turn up
anywhere. The purple colour can show up in windy weather, and makes the tree look
darker than normal. Please send details - preferably a six figure grid reference, or road
address. Please note I am not interested in Norway Maples that have all sorts of colour
forms.
PALM TREES o you grow palm trees in your garden? Perhaps the Chusan Palm or something
more exotic?. If so a student at Reading University would like to hear the details.
Go to https://reading.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/palms-and-allies-in-uk-cultivation
RAINFALL DATA is conducting some research into the impact of drought, as part of a wider
scheme to assess the potential impact of climate changes. Sarah Ayling
([email protected]) would be very interested in any private records kept, perhaps
by a gardener, especially if it relates to the S Gloucester area, over any period in the past. I
have sent her the records that GF Burder began collecting in Bristol in 1853, that are
published in the BNS proceedings, and the records I have collected from my own garden
over the past twenty odd years.
Rainfall is notoriously varied over quite small differences, and official data, now
recorded at Luslgate, may have little relevance to the River Frome catchment where her
study plots are. Please send any information direct to her.
J
F
D
UWE
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JOINT BNS/UNIVERSITY MEETING REPORTS Contents / Diary
Two quite different, highly successful events have taken place since our last Bulletin in
which an increasingly diverse audience has greatly enjoyed the topics offered and the
variety of sights and sounds seen, identified and explained.
Report On Tree Gazing in The Royal Fort – 12:30, Tuesday, 9th May Twenty-six of us, including BNS members, garden staff,
students, lecturers and the general public, gathered to explore
the varied tree species gracing this surprisingly spacious,
popular, urban site owned and maintained by Bristol
University. Whilst students decked the grassy slopes to
sunbathe and others adorned the plentiful benches munching
their lunchtime fare, our audience listened attentively, or took
copious notes, on common and rare species alike. Grand
oaks, common sycamores, unusual ‘handkerchief trees’ and
the very rare Mayten serve to give a flavour of the breadth of
species under discussion at the meeting. Everything from
identification keys to pests, plus a wealth of varied additional
information on species distribution, dispersal, deployment,
timber uses, fashion and ideas on propagation and
management were included, which led to very clear
demonstrations of pleasure and thanks from the audience that were both individually and
communally expressed.
Lesley Cox
Report on Insect Netting – 2:00, Sunday, 14th May A much smaller group of eight met for this stroll through the sprawling meadows within the
private grounds of one of Bristol University’s prime halls of residence but the lower number
was most definitely outweighed by the intensity of the interest shown that was a pleasure
to see. Some had returned following the moth-trapping event. Netting on the grassland
couldn’t quite match the range of species caught last year when the meeting had been held
nearly a month later, although interestingly we
seemed to bag a greater range of spider
species this year. Inevitably, given the
relatively early date and coolness of the
weather, specimens were quite small in the
main and the species displaced from the
branches of the Oak and Hawthorn, for
example, were no different. Nonetheless, a
knowledgeable and enthusiastic audience
enjoyed a splendid few hours with ‘The
Master’ whilst many different trees, such as
the Paulownia and the Hawthorn were in
flower and the sweet song of the Blackcap
accompanied us and there is no doubt that we
shall see these lovely people again.
Lesley Cox
A Victorian tree grafting fashion Photo: © Lesley Cox
‘The Master’ (Ray Barnett) at work with an attentive
audience Photo: © Lesley Cox
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Society Midweek Walk Report Contents / Diary The Butterfly walk, the Collard Hill walk on Thursday, 1
st June.
arly birds on site for this walk were almost lured into carrying out Large Blue butterfly transects on Collard Hill by the National Trust. And when we, following my late arrival (!), caught up with these mostly young and energetic experts in population
ecology, they were in a state of repose, seated beneath the shade of oak trees near the summit of the hill, seeming to need liquid refreshment (tea and coffee) brought up the hill, as they were, by four-wheel drive vehicles. Mind you, some of them had already also visited Green Down and mapped the distribution of the same species earlier. We, in spite of expert tuition in where to look, found none! But we noted many of the plant species on this delightful hill, a small amount of Common Thyme, Common Centaury, Mouse-ear Hawkweed, Yellow-wort, Fairy Flax, also Common Milkwort showing a range of colours from mauve and pink through white and blue, the flower colour being shared by two of the sepals and three petals.
But we were not down-hearted travelling all this way and some of us mingling with slow traffic going to the Bath and West Show and not to see the Large Blue butterfly. It is sad to think of the ecologists being taken by car to their surveying work. To get to Collard Hill we walked through two amazing, long, narrow fields. Invisible to the motorist, formed in a dip were grasses such as Upright Brome, Soft Brome, False Oat, Meadow Fox-tail, Sweet Vernal grass, Quaking Grass, in abundance but these remarkable fields were coloured yellow with Cat’s-ear, Rough Hawkbit, Yellow-rattle and Agrimony, and pink and red, browny-white and greeny-brown by several members of the orchid family. Some orchids were spotted on the leaves, some were plain, some had a spotted lip. There were so many individual plants and each species in great profusion. Strangest is perhaps the Twayblade, a mucky green colour with two paired, horizontally ordered thick leaves supporting a slender green stem with numerous, tiny, narrow, yellow-green flowers. These are attractive to a wide range of insects, including click beetles, flies and parasitic wasps but not bees, as I found out later
1. The Greater Butterfly Orchid was in profusion but
seemingly hiding among the grass stems, their large white flowers each bearing a conspicuous long spur with nectar. These flowers are pollinated by night-flying moths and the pollinia are affixed to the compound eyes of the pollinator.
One stood, letting the pale green leaves and pallid flowers form a search image in one’s mind so that their actual numbers gradually became clear, vastly exceeding the first, cursory glance.
Then off to a not too memorable meal at the nearest pub but very good company and a nice setting.
1 ‘The Natural History of Pollination’ by Michael Proctor, Peter Yeo and Andrew Lack,
New Naturalist (no. 83) Harper Collins (1996).
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READING GROUP / BOOK CLUB
The Reading Group welcomes new members
Contact: Tony Smith 0117 965 6566 [email protected] Our new book is ‘The Moth Snowstorm: Nature and Joy’
by Michael McCarthy, John Murray (2015) London.
Contact the above for details of meeting places and times
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‘Bugs and Butterflies Event’ with Friends of BADOCK’S WOOD, Sunday, 14 May led by Nicky Davies and Tony Smith. Contents / Diary “Never work with children or animals!” they say. But, at times, it is a very great pleasure to be reminded of the enthusiasm, dedication and single-mindedness of young people. In the bright sunshine that had been warily predicted, they were responding to the instruction they had received on how to see, not just a butterfly but the pattern on the wings, the pattern seen on the hind wings that identified it as a female of the Orange-tip species, even though she had no orange tips to her wings.
Photo © Robert Muston
In the minutes before we assembled we found a quite flower-ful meadow area but no butterflies and then found a breezeless glade with several butterflies, including Holly Blue, Orange Tip and Speckled Wood, and a good buzzing of flies and bees. It was a good job that we had stopped short of promising Purple Emperor and White-letter Hairstreak when we finally got started because, in that twenty-five minute interval before we found ourselves in the glade again, with the sun still streaming down and the adrenaline flowing, they had gone! But we soon had their tiny hearts beating (children’s not insects’) searching the material dropped out of the sweep net into the white trays to find Flower beetles from the buttercup flowers and the Nettle Weevil from the Stinging Nettles, Flower Bugs from other flowers, ants and lots of tiny flies, and a large Ichneumon wasp and some small ones so that our young clients would have a broader view of the name ‘wasp’ in future and hopefully realise and remember their importance in controlling numbers of other insects by
laying their eggs directly into the bodies of caterpillars and maggots that one might regard as ‘pests’. Lots of tiny weevils, Pea Weevils and others were swept from the vegetation and I collected a Long-legged fly with a golden-green iridescence but it wasn’t until I got it home that I noticed the characteristic (enormous) male genitalia of the species Dolichopus ungulatus. I am not sure what term I would have employed, perhaps ‘sex organ’, to explain the feature, but it might have come up embarrassingly in teacher-led discussion on the Monday morning.
Photo © Robert Muston
Tony Smith
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BOTANY SECTION PRESIDENT:- Vacant Contents / Diary
HON. SEC:- Clive Lovatt 07 851 433 920 ([email protected])
FIELD MEETINGS – Discovering the wild plants of the Bristol Region We have one or two field meetings each month in the Bristol region from April to September. Our meetings tend to concentrate on Bristol’s green spaces and with an occasional foray into urban
botany. We also hold some meetings in conjunction with the Somerset Rare Plants Group and the Plant Group of the Gloucestershire Naturalists’ Society and those meetings are more likely to include botanical recording for Atlas 2020, organised by the Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland.
LAWRENCE WESTON MOOR Leader: Clive Lovatt Wednesday 12 July, 7.00 pm A summer’s evening walk into this Avon Wildlife Trust Reserve. Wellington boots are recommended for this species rich site with dry and wet meadows, reedbeds and rhynes. Some 250 species have been recorded in ST5479 since the publication of the Flora of the Bristol Region but recent records for a good few of the species noted in the site account on page 31 are wanting, including the Slender Spike-rush, Eleocharis uniglumis, according to the Bristol Botany archives, seen at GR ST548795 in1973 by Miss Gravestock, and in 1988 in a specified field by Rupert Higgins in 1988.
Park at the end of Lawrence Weston Road by the Social Club, ST545788, (postcode BS11 0ST for SatNav users) turning northwards off Long Cross.
MIDDLE HILL COMMON, Weston-in Gordano David Hawkins Saturday 12 August, 2.00 pm An afternoon ramble around this fragment of species-rich limestone grassland overlooking the Gordano Valley, along with surrounding woodland and hedgerows. Purportedly, Horseshoe Vetch (Hippocrepis comosa) used to occur here but it may be that the sward is now too long – will we able to re-find it?
Park on Valley Road (postcode for SatNav users BS20 8JU) and convene at the top of Blackberry Lane (ST44457495).
ADVANCE NOTICE of BNS Botany Section meetings for
September 2017 On Saturday 16 September at 11am Helena Crouch will be leading a meeting on a part of Dundry Hill which has no recent records, north of Dundry and west of Highridge.
On Thursday 21 September 2017 at 11 am Clive Lovatt will be leading a ‘pot luck’ recording meeting looking at urban plants of north and central Yate.
OTHER FIELD MEETINGS Sunday 2 July. Poors Allotment. Identification of grasses of acid soils. A Gloucestershire Naturalists’ Society Plant Group meeting for GNS members. Sunday 9 July 2017. Hellenge Hill, near Weston-super-Mare, 11 am. A Somerset Rare Plants Group meeting. Contact the leader Liz McDonnell [email protected]. to check if any non-member places are available or for membership (£8). Further details on the SRPG website: somersetrareplantsgroup.org.uk. Saturday 5 August. Foxes Bridge near Speech House, Forest of Dean, 11 am to record Foxes Bridge Bog Nature Reserve and the newly cleared area nearby. A Gloucestershire Naturalists’ Society Plant Group meeting led by Clare and Mark Kitchen. Bring lunch,
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wellington boots advised. Non-GNS members please contact Clive Lovatt in advance for meeting details (email preferred [email protected] or text 07 851 433 920). Thursday 17 August 2017. Cleeve Hill near Cheltenham. 11 am. A ‘pot luck’ botanical survey for arable weeds around the Cotswold edge. A Gloucestershire Naturalists’ Society Plant Group meeting to which BNS members are invited. Meet in the Quarry car park at SO989271. Bring lunch. Tuesday 12 September 2017, 11.00am Upper Lode Lock, River Severn, Tewkesbury to look for riparian species including Limosella aquatica, Mudwort and several Persicaria, Knotgrass, species. A Gloucestershire Naturalists’ Society Plant Group meeting led by Clare and Mark Kitchen. Bring lunch, wellington boots advised. Non-GNS members please contact Clive Lovatt in advance for meeting details (email preferred [email protected] or text 07 851 433 920).
BOTANICAL NOTES Contents / Diary
Field meeting report AVONMOUTH, led by Clive Lovatt, Saturday 20 May Five of us met to explore the botanical diversity of ST5278. The leader had done a reconnaissance the week before and found that Tall Ramping-fumitory Fumaria bastardii was there for the third year but reduced by a general overgrowth of vegetation and then the remnant of the flower bed had been tidied up, leaving our rare fumitory dying or dead.
The loss was soon more than made up. I've done it myself (see the BNS Bulletin for October 2016) but Clare and Mark Kitchen reported that they had serendipitously parked under the true Black Poplar, Populus nigra ssp. betulifolia, finding five apparently unrecorded pollards on First Way, and we later added a sixth just around the corner on Avonmouth Way. White knew one below Clifton Down but as it had only recently been distinguished from planted hybrid Black Poplars (such as the Poet’s Tree beside the path up to the Clifton Observatory) he suspected that more would be found, remarking that it is easily recognised by the burred trunk and wedge-based leaves with a long point. It is strongly associated with river, stream or ditch sides and was evidently often planted in hedgerows or beside field or farmyard gateways. More recently it has been something of a fashion tree. These ones looked older and we wondered if they were a relic of the pre-industrial field boundaries and they do seem close to the ditches and footpath leading to the oddly-named T. Farm shown on 20th Century OS maps. Other Black Poplars have been found in the Avonmouth industrial area including close to the Poplar Roundabout on Poplar Way! The name seems to come from the once nearby Poplar Farm, and perhaps the farm was named after the tree.
The second big find was the Small-flowered Buttercup, Ranunculus parviflorus. It doesn’t occur in Gloucestershire this side of Stroud though it does grow in the Gordano Service Station which belongs to North Somerset. I had missed it through focussing on the edges of the verges where adventive annual Mouse-eared Chickweeds and Knotted Hedge-parsley grow, but this was in the turf. Further on, we were puzzled by a dense growth of Spring Sedge, Carex caryophyllea and wondered was this a relic too, or another introduction.
We then hopped over a stile and were in an older landscape of fields and ditches, with hedges of many sorts of willows and poplars. We walked along Ballast Lane and beside the Shirehampton Rhine. Abandoned industrial land close-grazed by rabbits had interesting plants such as Viper’s Bugloss, Echium vulgare, Yellow-wort, Blackstonia perfoliata and the Little Mouse-ear Cerastium semidecandrum, the last in great quantity. It had taken us several hours to wander there, but only 20 minutes were required to get back to our cars.
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PLANT RECORDS Contents / Diary It is a particularly good time of year for botanical work, as the spring plants mostly remain visible and the summer grasses and other plants come into flower. I've mostly been working under-recorded parts of VC34, West Gloucestershire, often close to the River Severn, puzzling hard over riverside populations of foxtail grasses, and eventually with the help of Richard Lansdown determining near Arlingham the hybrid of the Bulbous Foxtail, Alopecurus bulbosus, and its commoner relative Marsh Foxtail A. geniculatus, new to Gloucestershire.
Closer to home, John Martin and I have been looking at the re-seeded verges by the Seabank Power station on the main road northwards out of Avonmouth in ST5382. The highly visible powder-blue Phacelia (P. tanacetifolia) initially attracted our interest and amongst the ryegrass there were at least eight yellow crucifers including six-foot-high Brassica juncea “Brazen Brass”. The quantity of gaudy poppies is of less botanical interest than the alien Cowherb, Vaccaria hispanica which I don’t think has been seen wild in our area for many years. It belongs to the Pink family and has distinctive winged sepals as seen in John’s photo.
David Hawkins reported another plant in the same family wild on the streets of Bedminster (ST5871). Night-flowering Catchfly, Silene noctiflora is a sticky annual with creamish flowers which near us is still occasionally found as an arable weed on the edge of the Cotswolds. I believe it is not unknown in wild flower seed-mixes and sadly it seems likely to be the case that this delightful plant came from a packet rather than field full of “rank fumiter” and the like. But what a wonderful plant to find wild anywhere and it really does flower at night as David’s photo shows.
Helena Crouch was out botanising near Bath with Dave Green and got some 270 species in ST7165, without, as she said, anything terribly exciting, but with several species
that are always a delight to find, like Common Restharrow Ononis repens and Crosswort, Cruciata laevipes. They also found some tiny remnants of nice calcareous grassland – something that seems to be how it is these days.
Rupert Higgins has been looking at Bithynian Vetch, Vicia bithynica near Chew Valley Lake, partly spurred by his recent find not quite tallying with the grid reference on older records (and falling vanishingly close
to a grid square boundary). Realising that it seems to benefit from disturbance he looked at a verge that had been somewhat scrubbed over and then was heavily mown, and found it (ST5560) with four other excellent legumes (members of the pea family): Dyer’s Greenweed, Genista tinctoria; Zigzag Clover, Trifolium medium; Common Restharrow, Ononis repens; and Grass Vetchling, Lathyrus nissolia.
At Hengrove Park Rupert also found some garden plants on disturbed soil on the site of an old tip including Brunnera macrophylla, Cotton Thistle Onopordum acanthium and Yellow Foxglove, Digitalis lutea, adding that it wasn’t clear whether they had been recently sown or had come up from the soil. Natives nearby included large amounts of Grass Vetchling, Lathyrus nissolia and Corky-fruited water-dropwort, Oenanthe pimpinelloides,
Photo: © John Martin
Photo: © David Hawkins
13
and smaller amounts of Dyer’s Greenweed, Genista tinctoria and Narrow-leaved Bird’s-foot-trefoil, Lotus tenuis. The nearby roundabout had Corn Parsley, Petroselinum segetum, Knotted Hedge-parsley, Torilis nodosa and Changing Forget-me-not, Myosotis discolor.
Rupert also responded to my call for records of Cordyline australis, so-called Cabbage-palm, having had one under observation in Redland ST5874 for several months. Another turned up in the gutter 10 yards from my house the other day. My old favourite Sea Pearlwort, Sagina maritima, turned up in another cobbled gutter, close to the Bristol University Library (ST5873), presumably transported on the rotary brush of a gutter-sweeper. There really is no finality in field botany. If you've found some interesting plants in the Bristol area, let me know. Happy Botanising.
Clive Lovatt, Shirehampton, 7 June 2017
GEOLOGY SECTION
PRESIDENT: David Clegg [email protected] HON. SEC.: Richard Ashley, [email protected] Tel: 01934 838850
FIELD MEETING Contents / diary
WRITHLINGTON COLLIERY TIP, Radstock Sat. 19 August 2.30pm The purpose of this meeting is to give an opportunity to collect plant and if we are very
lucky insect fossils from the tip of the former Writhlington Colliery near Radstock. It is
hoped that, by the time the meeting is held, plans to turn over the tip with an excavator to
expose more material, will have come to fruition but this can not be guaranteed. The
Secretary hopes to have more information on this nearer the date but the meeting will go
ahead in any event.
Meet up in the car park opposite Radstock Museum ST 690 550. There will be an
approximately 1.5 km walk along roads and the Colliers Way to the site. If time permits we
will also look at Radstock Museum, which has a collection of local fossils. Please let the
Secretary know if you wish to attend.
FIELD MEETING REPORT Clevedon, 31
st May, Leader Richard Ashley
e had a very pleasant evening stroll on Clevedon beach, with a good turnout of 12 BNS members together with Professor Susan Marriott and Dr Shaun Lavis from the University of the West of England and the Geologists’ Association. Being in
such a public place, rather than tucked away in a quarry, even meant that other beach users came to ask what we were looking at, with three young, potential geologists, also engaging with us.
After investigating the main fault by the pier, with its associated mineralisation, we studied the unconformity between the rocks of the Lower Carboniferous Avon Group and the lacustrine limestone facies of the Triassic Mercia Mudstone Group. We were looking at micro/macro scale geology, with miniature faults, folds and slickensides showing well along the beach. There was so much to see that we only covered about 100m of beach.
We saw lead, copper and iron minerals and a few fossils, especially some very delicate undamaged crinoid stems.
Thanks to Richard Ashley for organising the session, David Moore for producing maps to include in the handouts and the other members whose expertise contributed greatly to what we have learned about the geology of this compact and very interesting area.
David Clegg
W
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INVERTEBRATE SECTION PRESIDENT: Robert Muston 0117 924 3352 Contents / Diary Hon. SECRETARY: Moth Broyles [email protected] 07809 281421
FIELD MEETINGS GOBLIN COMBE Sunday, 2 July Leader: Sarah Ayling 2pm Meet at Plunder Street car park, off Cleeve Hill Road, near Lord Nelson pub (BS49 4NR) on A370. This is calcareous grassland, scrub, rocks, hedgerows, etc.
BOMMIE/GLYN VALE & NOVERS HILL (Lower Knowle, BS3) Leaders Len Wyatt and Tony Smith 2pm, Sunday, 9 July Meet at footpath off Glyn Vale, ST595706. This is a botanically interesting area (note the Botany Section visit 7pm on 15
th June, starting at Parson Street), but without much in the
way of invertebrate records, but we should find many interesting creatures.
SAND BAY, Kewstoke for strand-line invertebrates Sunday, 16 July Leaders: Robert Muston & Tony Smith 2pm Meet at car park at ST330631 off Crookes Lane, Kewstoke.
HANHAM HALL Sunday, 23 July Leader: Peter Smithers 2pm Meet at Malpass Drive, off Whittucks Road, ST645716 (Nearby postcode: BS15 3FG). The site is a housing development with a nature reserve and management conducive to a diverse range of invertebrates and others.
BADOCK’S WOOD Sunday, 30 July Leaders: Tony Smith and Robert Muston 2.30pm Meet at the Northern Gateway to Badock’s Wood, off Doncaster Road (BS10 5PU). This site has a good and continuing record of plants, invertebrates, mammals and birds and an active Friends group and they are members of BNS, collectively.
OLD SNEED PARK Sunday, 6 August Leaders: Robert Muston and Tony Smith 2pm Meet at entrance to the nature reserve on Glenavon Park, ST555756. The site consists of four meadows with four different aspects, slope and dryness/wetness and hedgerows. There is a lake and we will decide how we are going to divide the time, closer to the date.
CALLINGTON ROAD NATURE RESERVE Family Fun Day. Leader: Tony Smith 1–3 pm, Sunday, 20 August Meet at the Friends’ stall, just inside the entrance to the reserve. There is a bit of parking just east of Wootton Park on north side of Callington Road at ST611701 and also at Tesco’s before you get to the site. In previous years BNS and BNHC have supported this festival and there have been many interesting finds, including Bishop’s Mitre shield-bug and Poecilobothrus nobilitatus a dance fly, by enthusiastic participants.
15
INVERTEBRATE NOTES FOR JUNE 2017 Contents / Diary
Britain’s Spiders: A Field Guide by Lawrence Bee, Geoff Oxford and Helen Smith was published at the end of May. It follows a very similar format to that in the hoverfly book of the same series with excellent photographs alongside extremely useful information on habitat, similar species and distribution and status as well as a description. The emphasis is on the species which can be identified in the field but it does point out where this is not possible. As well as the species lists there is much information on spider biology and morphology and on webs and egg sacs etc. A section helps identify which family a species belongs to which is a good start to sorting out which species is in front of you. A thoroughly recommended book.
Ray Barnett 06/06/17
This month’s Poem, from Tony Smith: Contents / Diary
The Tables Turned
Up! up! my Friend, and quit your books; Or surely you’ll grow double: Up! up! my Friend, and clear your looks; Why all this toil and trouble?
The sun, above the mountain’s head, A freshening lustre mellow Through all the long green fields has
spread, His first sweet evening yellow.
Books!, ‘tis a dull and endless strife: Come, hear the woodland linnet, How sweet his music! On my life, There’s more of wisdom in it.
And hark! How blithe the throstle sings! He, too, is no mean preacher: Come forth into the light of things, Let Nature be your Teacher.
She has a world of ready wealth, Our minds and hearts to bless- Spontaneous wisdom breathed by health, Truth breathed by cheerfulness.
One impulse from a vernal wood May teach you more of man, Of moral evil and of good, Than all the sages can.
Sweet is the lore which Nature brings; Our meddling intellect Mis-shapes the beauteous forms of things:- We murder to dissect.
Enough of Science and of Art; Close up those barren leaves; Come forth, and bring with you a heart That watches and receives.
William Wordsworth
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ORNITHOLOGY SECTION PRESIDENT:- Giles Morris, 01275 373917 [email protected] HON SEC.:- Lesley Cox 07786 437528 [email protected] Contents / Diary
July is the mid month of summer and the long evenings
remain to get out into the countryside looking for important
species like the Nightjar - see the field meeting on the 8th
–
or, maybe even the Puffin. If you are on holiday on the
coast, for example, you could join the ‘Puffarazi’ on behalf
of the RSPB which is asking people to submit photographs
of Puffins carrying food as part of a survey to explore
whether changes or variations seen can help to explain the
declining population. (See: RSPB/Puffin Project). However,
if you’ve taken to the hills, look out for the Curlew. One
farmer has fenced off an area of his field to protect a
nesting Curlew from his herd of cattle - good news since our
declining Curlew population is considered internationally
important. Many thanks to those who passed on
information on Skylarks and Swifts. It is wonderful to hear
from members in this way. Hon. Sec.
FIELD MEETINGS FOREST OF DEAN Saturday, 8th July Leader: Mike Johnson (0117 9532545) 18:30 This will be a joint meeting with the Bristol Ornithological Club. Meet in the car park at New Fancy View (Grid Ref: SO 628 095) at 18:30 hours. Go through Parkend on the B4234 and turn right on to Fancy Road. Turn left after just under a mile and the New Fancy View car park is on the right after a quarter of a mile. We will have a short walk here and possibly at Cannop Ponds and then move on to a location near Speech House with a view to hopefully hearing and seeing Nightjar. You may wish to bring insect repellent.
AUGUST: Birds seem to ‘disappear’ in August. Since people also disappear during
this month to varying holiday destinations around the world, often to see foreign species of
birds, the section takes a break from its busy schedule in August and we will look forward
to seeing old friends, both avian and human, in September.
Forward Meeting Dates Field: 9
th September; 15
th October; 18
th November;
Lecture: 11th October; 8
th November; 13
th December.
FIELD MEETING REPORT Contents / Diary
Somerset Levels: Sunday 14th
May 2017 Just one member joined the Leader in the RSPB car park on a bright, warm morning. Even though it was 10 a.m. the “Dawn Chorus” was still in full flow with Song Thrush, Cetti’s Warbler, Blackcap, Wren, Dunnock and Chiffchaff, all prominent. There had already been a report of a Spoonbill on Meare Heath so we decided first to head up to the scrape. This is a lagoon of flooded old peat workings drained down by Natural England to produce good areas of exposed mud. On the way, the first of Bittern Photo: © Martyn Pratt
Curlew sitting pretty and fenced off from
grazing cattle in the Shropshire and Welsh
Marches Curlew Recovery Project.
Photo: © Lesley Cox
17
many “booms” from the resident Bitterns were heard. It is incredible how this species has recovered from just nine males heard in the whole country in the mid-nineties to over forty on the Somerset Levels alone. A flock of about twenty Black-tailed Godwits flew overhead and landed on the scrape. Just a few minutes later the Spoonbill appeared at the back of the scrape together with both Little and Great White Egret and Grey Heron. From Noah’s Hide we had good views of several Hobby chasing dragonflies and other flying insects. A Cuckoo called from close by and it was good to compare the song of Garden Warbler with Blackcap, sometimes singing close together. On Ham Wall we had the first of several views of Marsh Harrier gliding over the reeds in search of prey. Goldfinch and Goldcrest were seen in some willows and Willow Warbler and Bullfinch were heard. It was quality morning of birding with over forty species encountered.
Mike Johnson.
ORNITHOLOGY RECENT NEWS Contents / Diary
AY was in many ways a disappointing month for migration in a poor spring.
Wader passage was very thin with numbers of common species such as Dunlin,
Ringed Plover and Whimbrel well below average; terns were very scarce and
skuas again barely registered. Numbers of various passerines also seemed extremely low
with Yellow Wagtail and Wheatear especially poor. Others such as Wood Warbler had a
good year by recent standards including one in Bristol at Whitehall on 5th and two at
Oldbury Power Station.
While some of the earlier Wheatears might have been taking advantage of the settled
conditions and gone directly to their breeding grounds, many of the later birds are heading
for Greenland and they need to stop off somewhere. Are their numbers depleted or did
they pass through other areas? The cries of 'poor spring' have been widespread so it's not
just a local phenomenon.
There were, as always, some really good birds by way of compensation. 2 Wood
Sandpipers at Northwick's 'Pilning Wetland' on 5th were eclipsed by Severnside's first (and
Avon's fourth) Black-winged Stilt there from 7th to 9th. This is one species that seems to be
increasing, presumably in response to climate change and news later emerged of at least
one successful breeding pair in England. A series of Spoonbill records there from 13th
proved popular and involved at least two individuals, although only one at a time. This is
another species that is on the increase and recently recolonized England. A male Red-
backed Shrike at Horton on the evening of 29th was a great find of a very rare migrant that
was a local breeding species within living memory. Chew had high water levels as usual in
spring but a Cattle Egret was seen until 9th following last month's influx. Fingers crossed
for some kind summer weather and a decent breeding season for a change!
John Martin
Ed Drewitt on the Bristol Ferry Boat – 2 September On Saturday 2
nd September (2.25pm) Ed Drewitt will be showing people wildlife from a
Bristol Ferry Boat as it travel downs the Avon Gorge - a wonderful way to experience the
journey from the docks to the River Severn. A chance to see nesting grey herons,
peregrines, ravens, redshanks, roe deer, foxes and beautiful landscapes. To book or find
out more contact the Bristol Ferry Boat Company, 0117 927 3416 / www.bristolferry.com.
M
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LIBRARY
BNS Library at Bristol City Museum & Art Gallery, BS8 1RL. HON. LIBRARIAN: Jim Webster [email protected]. Open: Wed. 1.15pm-2.15pm, Sat. 10.15am-12.15pm. Contents / Diary NB: closed Saturdays associated with Christmas, New Year or Easter Bank holidays.
Committee member on duty: 0117 922 3651 (library opening hours).
Access to the Society’s Proceedings and Nature in Avon online We are grateful to the Biodiversity Heritage Library and its participating institutions (Harvard and the Natural History Museum in particular) for digitising our Proceedings and Nature in Avon without charge and making them publicly available. To access them you can google “Biodiversity Heritage Library” and use the search facilities, or you can go
direct to our own index pages at: http://biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/98898#/summary (for the Proceedings, i.e. up to 1993); and http://biodiversitylibrary.org/bibliography/99328#/summary (for Nature in Avon, from 1994 to date)
Special Interest:- Mammals in the Library s it worth your time coming to see mammal items in the Society’s collection, perhaps to borrow some? That depends on your interest of course. We have about 200 books and separates specifically on mammals. We also have others such as overseas field guides in
which mammals are included. In addition we have the main publications of the Mammal Society, especially the journal Mammal Review, and Mammal News. In the early years (from about 1954 onwards) of the Mammal Society they published a Bulletin and a newsletter with copies of published papers on mammals. We probably have a major proportion of these publications, some bound. We also have mammal reports from other natural history societies.
The books include most of the major works on British mammals, from Bell’s British
Quadrupeds (1837) to the magnificent Britain’s Mammals, published recently in the Wildguides
series by Princeton University Press, which has surely set the gold standard for field guides. Books on overseas mammals include titles such as Mammals of Malaysia, and Mammals of
Algeria, but many other field guides to specific countries include mammal identification also. The topics included in the books and separates (reports, etc.) include biology, conservation,
distribution, surveys, management. The authors are nationally (some internationally) known experts. Looking down the list of authors of post 1960 publications makes me quite nostalgic as
I met and knew many of them in my professional work as a wildlife biologist for the government. The reports are from very mixed sources. Over the years I have tried to obtain hard copies of official reports that I thought would be of interest to naturalists and which are unlikely to be available easily otherwise and we do have an interesting selection of these. Now long retired, I still keep an eye open for other hard copies of such reports - though many are available online.
With my own lifelong interest in mammals, and especially in distribution and conservation and management it does so fascinate me to see how the early authors assessed the status of
mammal species in their areas and to consider how valid their opinions were then. The arrivals of introduced species like grey squirrel, mink and coypu are well documented, and estimates of abundance of some species such as badgers seem incredibly low compared with today, but then legal protection has changed the fortunes of many of our mammals. We have limited literature on marine mammals of our coasts but there is some interesting stuff. It is interesting to look at old and recent publications on individual species to compare the amount of refereed
scientific papers listed in the references in recent times. The changes in the way illustrations were presented are an interesting study.
So you will gather that I enjoy the BNS Library, and have done so since about 1965. What is important for the Library Committee to know is what you think is missing from the collection. Can you suggest items we should have, or indeed have you anything relevant that you might consider donating? Finally, I am aware that a number of mammal books seem to be missing.
Please look at your bookshelves and see if any BNS items are sitting there, overlooked for return. The contact for library matters is Jim Webster, our Librarian.
I hope to see you there soon! Roger Symes.
I
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MISCELLANY
UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL BOTANIC GARDEN The Holmes, Stoke Park Rd, Stoke Bishop, BS9 1JG.
Booking: 0117 331 4906. www.bristol.ac.uk/botanic-garden Email: [email protected]
Contents / Diary
Thu. 6 July 6-8pm. JANE MEMMOTT SCIENCE PICNIC: Pollinator Walk & Talk. Bees, pollinators and the impact of their work. Adults £5.50. Free to Friends, university staff & students, children under 18. Sat. 22 July 10am-4pm BASIC BOTANY FOR GARDENERS. Julie Henderson takes you through basics of botany related to your own garden. £40 admission incl. light lunch. Mon. 24 July 10am/11.30am/2pm. 3x 1hr. POLLINATOR WALKS with Steven Falk Life cycle, pollination, food production, identification, mimicry. Adults £10, children £3.50 Sun. 6 & 20 August 5.30-8pm DRAWING COURSES: Appreciate nature with pencil & paper (Pupgroup) and artist, Sheena Vallely. Details in June bulletin. Wed. 2 Aug. Incredible Insects workshop (5-11 years) Sat. 5 Aug. Encouraging Pollinators workshop Sat. 12 Aug. Beekeeping taster day Wed. 16 Aug. Love your mini beasts workshop (5-11 years) Sat. 19 Aug. How to shoot summer pictures – photography day Thu. 24 Aug. Science picnic: Honey a magical medicine with Dr. Rowena Jenkins
Avon Gorge & Downs Wildlife Project Contents / Diary Booking and further information: Contact the Project on 0117 903 0609 or e-mail [email protected]. Pre-booking essential for all events. Details of meeting points are given on booking.
Thur. 27 July Fabulous falcons (Children: 8–12 yr olds). Discover amazing facts about
the Gorge’s fastest & most beautiful predators; have fun playing peregrine falcon games.
Afternoon: Tony O’Hare swoops in to show you how to make origami falcons & other
birds. Drop off children 10am, pick them up 3.30. £15 per child. Children need to bring
their own packed lunch.
Thu. 3 Aug. Wild works of art (Children: 8–12 yr olds). Create cool sculptures & 3D
pictures out of wild things! Later, craft your own paper from natural materials like petals &
leaves with artist Bridget Ely. Drop off children 10am, pick them up 3.30. £15 per child.
Thu. 10 Aug. Ladybird spotters (Children: 8–12 yr olds). Spend the morning searching
for lovely ladybirds with Rhian Rowson. Go dotty playing our ladybird games and make a
minibeast hotel for your garden. Drop off children 10am, pick them up 3.30. £15 per child.
Sun. 13 Aug. Spiders of the Avon Gorge walk. Explore the Gully with Mark Pajak and see the variety of spiders living in the Gorge. Search for signs of the elusive purse web spider (a relative of tarantulas!), jumping spiders as well as many other species. 10.30am - 12.30pm. £5. NB: Very, very steep slopes and uneven ground on this walk.
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The BNS at WESTONBIRT ARBORETUM: 7/8 JULY Contents / Diary
The Society is delighted to announce that
Westonbirt Arboretum has asked the BNS
for its help with an important project in
early July. The Forestry Commission has
restored an area of calcareous grassland
within the estate and wants to celebrate its
success with an extensive survey of the
new and pre-existing species to be found
within and around it. Everything from
Accentors to Zikadens (or Birds to Bugs)
will be incorporated, including trees. A
team of BNS specialists will be surveying
the site on Friday, 7th
July and the public
will be offered guided walks on Saturday
8th to see the species found and to give
members the opportunity to find more if
they can. ALL MEMBERS ARE
WELCOME, whether additional specialists
and walk leaders to help with the practical
side, or general members coming to enjoy
the fruits of their labours. If further
information is required, please contact
Lesley on 07786 437528 or
PICTURES OF THE MONTH Contents / Diary
An unexpected daytime badger at Blagdon, 18
th May.
Photo: © Steve Hale
Submitted by BNS Hon. Sec., who writes: ‘Mating Green Dock Beetles (Gastrophysa viridula). The females become incredibly swollen with eggs. Taken on 31st May near Iron Acton.’
Photo: © Lesley Cox