On Thursday 14th May, we have an additional indoor meeting (the last of the season) starting at 7.30 pm at the Victoria Hall. Our speaker is Inés López-Dóriga presenting ‘Antarctica on a tall ship’, a report on the wildlife and landscape characteristics of Antarctica, as encountered during a recent trip sailing through the Drake Passage from Tierra del Fuego, Argentina.

The talk will illustrate the unusual wildlife (micro and macrofauna
and, incredibly, flora) that can be found on the white continent and
the ocean around it, as well as the landscape characteristics
of geography, sea currents, ice, icebergs and volcanoes that make it so special.

​As always, doors and bar will be open from 7pm, free for members and people under 21 years of age and £4 for guests. ​​

There has been a change to the programme for our April meeting which will now hear from local resident, Nick Radford.

Nick, whose home is in Sutton Mandeville, has more than a decade’s experience working on conservation in Africa, where he spends a large portion of every year. For his employer, the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society, he is the Markets & Conservation Finance Lead for Central Africa & the Gulf of Guinea. His work involves finding ways to deploy private sector investment that can simultaneously mobilise capital and deliver nature-positive outcomes.

In his talk, titled ‘Conservation at a Crossroads: The Future of the Congo Basin in One of the World’s Most Overlooked Regions’ Nick will explain what he does, and reflect on how conservation in Central Africa is changing, and on the growing role of investment, markets, and private sector partnerships in supporting conservation. Drawing on more than a decade of experience in the region, he will discuss how sustainable finance, tourism, and responsible supply chains are helping to fund conservation, while pressures on forests and wildlife continue to grow.

As always, doors and bar will be open from 7pm, free for members and people under 21 years of age and £4 for guests. ​We look forward to seeing you then.

Our indoor meeting this month is a talk on Thursday March 12th at 7.30pm by Gareth Harris talking about Wiltshire bats. Gareth is the Wiltshire Recorder for Wiltshire Bat Group and Wiltshire Mammal Group.

This talk will highlight the importance of dark skies for these amazing mammals.
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As always, doors and bar will be open from 7pm, free for members and people under 21 years of age and £4 for guests. 

The programme for 2026 is now available for viewing!

Thanks to our hardworking volunteer committee for preparing this.

Download a PDF here. 

Our next meeting is on Thursday February 12th at 7.00pm (please note earlier start time to allow time for the AGM before the talk) at New Vic Hall, Tisbury. The first part of the meeting will be the Annual General Meeting where we will unveil the new programme for both Tisbury and District Natural History Society and Tisbury Young Nature Watch.

This will be followed by a talk by Alison Levy who will be sharing insights into the Local Nature Recovery Strategy. Below is the introduction to this important document setting out the plan for the future in Wiltshire and Swindon.

What is the strategy? In short, this LNRS is a roadmap designed to guide nature recovery initiatives throughout Wiltshire. Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRS) are a key measure from the Environment Act 2021, designed to reverse biodiversity decline and restore ecological connectivity across England. Wiltshire Council, with delegated authority from Swindon Borough Council, and The New Forest National Park Authority, was tasked by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) to lead the development of Wiltshire’s LNRS. This document is one of 48 strategies being produced across England. The LNRS provides a framework for local action, mapping priorities for nature recovery, identifying key habitats, and proposing practical measures to enhance or restore them. Collaboration is central: landowners, communities, organisations, and neighbours work together to ensure each intervention delivers maximum benefit. Oversight and Steering groups helped in guiding the strategy and ensured robust decision-making.  

Doors and the bar will open at 6.30pm. No charge for members. Guests will be asked to pay £4 each at the door.

Our first speaker of the new year was Jonny Cooper, from the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, who gave us a presentation on the topic “Lapwing & Friends: Understanding and Conserving our Farmland Birds”.

The presentation covered WWT’s support of the Lapwing (or Peewit) under Project Peewit, and local conservation efforts for other farmland birds specifically the Tree Sparrow, Corn Bunting, Yellowhammer, Kestrel and Barn Owl.

Farmland birds are defined as species that fit in the following groups:

• any species dependent on the complex bird landscape that makes up a farmland  habitat
• species that are red listed, such as Corn Bunting and Turtle Dove
  
• where there is a local priority, for example Tree Bunting in Cranbourne
• farmland health indicator species, as defined in the national dataset of 19 species.
  

Nationally, since 1970, farmland bird species have suffered a 60% decline, with “specialist” species (that is, those most closely tied to a dependency on agricultural landscapes) suffering the most, while “generalists” (those species able to adapt to a variety of conditions) have fared better while facing challenges of their own, such as the Greenfinch that has succumbed to disease.

The WWT’s strategy to support farmland birds begins with finding out what is going on, and understanding what is required to improve matters. The issues include the consequences of farming changes to which birds cannot adapt, unsatisfactory management of hedgerows, negative impacts of development, and post-Brexit uncertainty over farming policies, funding and clear guidance.

Project Peewit was started in 2024 to investigate the cause of the sharp decline in Lapwings, and began by collecting data to help target conservation efforts. Three key issues were identified as predation, food availability, and decreased breeding density.

Locally, long established farmers and landowners have reported Lapwings being commonplace on their land in the 1970s, but the decline has been noticeable, and the absence of the species from the farms is something that they lament. Indeed, some farmers expressed the pride they had felt in their land being associated with the Lapwing, and consequently have been very supportive of the project, with practical initiatives such as scheduling the timing of grass cutting to leave breeding pairs of this ground nesting bird undisturbed. With Lapwing chicks able to walk around from day one, they are vulnerable to predation by Red Kite, among others. The Lapwings are very protective of their chicks, and breeding in groups helps with defence. Lapwing can live 10-15 years, and will return to their nests year on year.

Other farmland birds face their own problems. Tree Sparrows, differing from Lapwing in being short-lived but breeding in high numbers, have declined by 95% nationally, with food shortage and lack of suitable nesting sites being key. Conservation initiatives include nest box provision and connecting existing colonies.

Corn Bunting and Yellowhammer have suffered significant national decline, but are doing well in Wiltshire with support from farm clusters.

Kestrel and Barn Owls have suffered from a lack of small mammal prey and suitable nesting sites. Nest boxes have been provided and work done to ensure networks of rough ground within the farmed landscape.

In conclusion, Wiltshire maintains a special place for farmland birds against a gloomier national backdrop, and while the outlook for Lapwing is bleak, conservation successes on sites in neighbouring counties suggest that continuing efforts engaging with farming groups and working with landowners gives some hope for the future.

John Procter

Jonny Cooper, from Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, is delivering the first talk of the year, which will be about Peewits (or lapwings) and other farmland birds. This will be, as usual, on the second Thursday of the month, which this month is really early! So we hope you can join us on the 8th of January at 7.30 pm at the Victoria Hall (doors open 7 pm).

October's was talk was given by Connor Goddard, Freshwater Delivery Manager at the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust (WWT). The WWT’s Water team comprises 10 staff members, who coordinate projects in Wiltshire with volunteers and other organisations.

Connor came to talk specifically about the Wylye Valley Landscape Recovery Project. This is a long term project which has four aims; to improve the river Wylye’s climate resilience to extremes of flow and temperature, restore habitats, restore species abundance and reduce the pollution load. Connor gave an outline of the project, which was in the 2nd tranche of competitive Defra tenders, with a two year scoping phase, followed by a ten year implementation stage. Wylye Valley Farmer Cluster members are involved, pledging land along a 20 km stretch of river to be involved in several different regenerative actions.

Connor outlined how the river will be re-connected with its floodplain. Where the banks have been raised to stop water overtopping them in times of high flow, water will once again flow into the meadows presenting flooding further downstream. In places, the river has been straightened or diverted, so where possible, meanders will be reinstated. In several places, the river will be allowed to regain its old path at the bottom of the valley, rather than perched on the side of it.
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Finally, Connor showed us slides of other works the water team do, such as pegging woody material into the river in strategic places, to narrow the bed, and as a consequence to increase the flow to enable the water to scour the river gravels clean, for spawning Salmon.

Shortly after the talk, it was announced that WWT’s Water team had won the prestigious Sanctuary Environment Enhancement Award for the West Chisenbury river restoration and wetland creation from the Ministry of Defence. Follow this link to see Alice Eley and Connor Goddard receiving the award from Senior Ecologist Jenny Bennett.

Peter Shallcross

The topic this month is Pine Martens in the New Forest and will be presented by Marcus Ward, manager of the Guided Tours side of Wild New Forest,  a not-for-profit Community Interest Company which was established in 2016. They "support the conservation of threatened and poorly understood species in the New Forest by conducting surveys and research, sharing the data generated with key stake holders in the New Forest." They also run a Wildlife Explorers group for young nature enthusiasts. 

​If you scroll down on the Guided Tours website you can see Marcus on BBC Countryfile. 

The talk will take place in Victoria Hall on Thursday November 13th at 7.30pm. The bar opens at 7pm.

No need to book. As usual, free for members and £2 for visitors.

Connor Goddard, Head of Freshwater from Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, will be talking to us about restoring rivers on Thursday October 9th at 7.30pm in the Victoria Hall, Tisbury.

About 7 years ago, part of the River Nadder near Salisbury was restored by Wiltshire Wildlife Trust. This link will take you to a brief video explaining what they were doing then.

Improvement Works On The River Nadder In Salisbury
Come along and find out what has been happening since! The bar opens at 7pm.

No need to book. As usual, free for members and £2 for visitors.