The UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme has recently released its report for the 2023 season and it was a mixed bag. The results provide a picture based on recording at more than 3000 sites nationwide. Some species had very good years while others had a particularly bad year. In some cases, it was easy to put the poor showing down to the impact of the summer drought of ’22. Those butterflies associated with damp conditions, such as the Green Veined White and the Ringlet, did particularly badly last summer. Their larvae probably found it difficult to find sufficient plant material on which to feed in the parched landscape. Particularly disappointing is the continued decline of the Small Tortoiseshell, a lovely looking insect, familiar to most but becoming increasingly uncommon. As it is faring better in the moister north and west of the country, this decline could be a result of climate change. That impact may be expressed on the insect itself or it may be that the parasites that attack it are favoured by the changing climate.
One species which did well in ’23 was the Holly Blue. On my transect outside Tisbury, I recorded more than twice as many in ’23 than in any of the previous 8 years. I only saw one there in ’22. It is another butterfly that is regularly affected by parasites, and this leads to a boom-and-bust cycle every 4-6 years. The caterpillars may be attacked by two species of parasitic wasp, which lay their eggs into the larva’s body where they hatch and feed. When the wasps are rare, the population of Holly Blues is able to increase but soon, with increased numbers of caterpillars to prey on, the population of the parasitic wasps grows. Eventually, the parasitic wasps become so abundant that they cause the population of the host butterfly to plummet. That then causes the wasp populations to crash for lack of larvae and the cycle begins again. Now is the time to look out for Holly Blues in sheltered sunny gardens, hedgerows and woodland glades. They will often be seen flying amongst the tops of bushes and hedgerows, often where there is holly or ivy present. Although by no means a certain guide, if you see a small blue butterfly skipping around at height, amongst bushes and trees, it will be a Holly Blue; other blues are more likely to be seen close to the ground. In spring, eggs are often laid on holly flower buds. These give rise to a second brood flying later in the summer and, by contrast, the females of this brood generally lay their eggs on the flower buds of ivy. A Holly Blue flitting around the garden is a sure sign of spring and it will be interesting to see if the numbers of last year are exceeded or whether this season brings a crash. Andrew Graham For those of you have registered for the guided bird walk on Mon 6 May please note that the postcode is SP3 6NA if you are driving straight there for 5:30pm start, otherwise meet at the Nadder Centre for 5:15pm departure with car share. Follow the signs for the farm and park at the farm buildings. There is a limited number on this trip, so if you'd like to join it, please email us first, via the contact page.
This Saturday CPRE are celebrating Earth Day with three interesting talks in the beautiful surroundings of Langford Lakes. Earth Day talks
Lynn Trigwell Lynn is a Landscape Architect who has worked in both the private and public sectors. Since 2018 she’s been Head of Climate and Environment for Wiltshire Council. She oversees a wide range to services delivered by the Council in partnership with local communities and local interest groups, landowners and managers, statutory bodies and 3rd sector organisations such as Wiltshire Wildlife Trust and the RSPB. These areas include Archaeology, Landscape, Urban Design and Ecology and in February this year Climate was added. Lynn will be speaking about some of the activities that her teams are working on and share some of the exciting new pilot work they are supporting on the council’s own landholdings. Balancing the challenges and opportunities for our natural environment in Wiltshire. Alex Atkinson Alex oversees the management the Wiltshire Wildlife Trusts 20 southern reserves, including lowland bog, ancient woodland and everything on the successional scale between the two. Restoring natural processes - practical examples for a managed landscape. Peter Thompson Peter Thompson originally trained as an agronomist, advising farmers for 10 years. He then went on to work for the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, as their Farmland Ecology adviser, giving guidance to land managers across UK farms. He covers a wide range topics on countryside issues in the talks he gives and leads many training events related to the management of habitats and the wildlife that lives there. He ran the pilot scheme looking into the potential of “Farmer Clusters” for Natural England – which of course has now been widely adopted across the UK. Now “retired”, amongst many other activities, Peter is Chair of the Salisbury & District Natural History Society. The countryside’s future – my shot at seeing the wood through the trees For the last in our winter series of indoor meetings, in the Victoria Hall, Tisbury High Street, at 7:30pm on Thursday 11 April, what more appropriate topic – after such a wet winter - than that of Wild Fish, and the work of the Wild Trout Trust? The Wild Trout Trust provides expert advice and practical project delivery across the UK and Ireland, as well as working to inspire others and give them advice and practical skills, to improve and maintain lakes and rivers for the benefit of trout and all wildlife. We shall hear from Shaun Lennard, an unashamed ‘fish bloke’ whose childhood was spent in and on the Indian Ocean and in the trout streams of southern Ireland. Shaun’s whole professional life, after degrees in marine biology and pollution, has been spent in fishery management; he was Head of Fishery Studies at Sparsholt College near Winchester until 2009. Since then, he has been Director of the Wild Trout Trust. The threat to wildlife from pollution of the River Nadder is not a new topic for the Society. We’ve heard previously from David Holroyd, one of our members, and last year we heard from the Director of the Wessex Rivers Trust. The issue matters particularly here in Wiltshire and Hampshire where most of the planet's chalk streams are located; the reason the River Nadder as a tributary of the Hampshire Avon is a 'Special Area for Conservation'. Shaun is the ideal person to tell us more on these things, about the continuing pressure on our rivers more widely, whether from sewage treatment, from farms or other sources, the potential role of the government’s recent initiative to create Local Nature Recovery Strategies and a host of other topics. As with all our events, this meeting is free if you’re a member of the Society or under 21, and you’ll be very welcome to come as a guest visitor for the payment of £2. Dick Budden I love to hear skylarks singing on sunny days above the downs and the fields around Tisbury. It must be one of our most well-known birds, as there must be few who do not recognise its song, delivered from high in the sky. An inspiration to artists, poets and composers, the skylark is often easier to hear than see, and when on the ground, its drab inconspicuous plumage can make it difficult to spot. It may only be up close that you can spot its distinctive crest, which clearly separates it from the somewhat similar, but less stocky, meadow pipit, which has a far less exuberant song.
Although there is a good handful of lark species to be found on the continent, there is just one other that you might see in the UK, the rarer woodlark. This is a bird of the heaths, so the best place to look for them near here would be in the New Forest. Slightly smaller than the skylark, with a short tail that makes it look a bit like a bat when in flight, the woodlark shares the same brown streaky plumage as the skylark. The plumage of larks and pipits provides effective camouflage for the birds when feeding and nesting on the ground. This is a common adaptation for ground nesting birds and serves well to protect them from conventional predators. Unfortunately, it does little to protect them from challenges brought by the loss of stubbles, and other changes to agricultural practices. Numbers have dropped by 15% over the last 30 years and the bird is now Red Listed in the UK. Ground nesting birds are particularly vulnerable to straying dogs. This is one of the reasons why the Countryside Code makes it a legal requirement to have your dog on a lead on open access land between 1 March and 31 July, and under effective control for the rest of the year. Responsible pet owners will help our endangered birds to have a successful breeding season. Andrew Graham Unfortunately, due to the stormy weather we need to cancel this event. We shall let you know if we are able to put it on at another time.
Peter Shallcross' page is now on the website, with handy tips of places where you might find certain butterflies and helpful information about their habitats and seasonal appearance. Go to the Butterflies section under the Resources menu, within Local Wildlife.
On Monday 25th March at 6pm, we will be screening Ed Scott-Clarke's documentary ‘E-Life’ at the New Vic (Victoria Hall) in Tisbury. Doors and bar open at 5.45 pm. All welcome...it's £1 per ticket for members and non-members. Free for the Under 21s.
Ed Scott-Clarke will be there to answer questions afterwards. E-Life investigates the social and environmental consequences of our electronic waste. Computers, mobile phones, TVs and home appliances have become an intrinsic part of our daily lives revolutionising the way we interact, communicate and view the world. Keeping up with the latest models and lifestyle products has firmly positioned consumers as the driving force behind a constant cycle of technological advancement. But what exactly happens to our broken computer when we throw it away? Where does that old phone go when we upgrade? From the US to the UK, Accra to Amsterdam, E-LIFE provides the answers. Mike Read is a wildlife photographer and he (and his wife) have spent many hours traversing the Somerset Levels recording the flora and fauna of this ancient land. For over 5,000 years, people have visited this area. Bordered by the sea at Bridgewater Bay, receiving the rain run-offs from the Mendips, Quantocks and Blackdown Hills, and being the flood plains of several low gradient rivers (the River Parrett, for example, declines by 11.5 inches over a stretch of 11 miles) the water levels are now more controlled than in ancient times and a variety of nature conservation organisations manage the land to support and encourage a wide and varied array of wildlife.
Having set out the parameters of the area, Mike introduced us to an ancient walkway, said to date from 3806 BCE precisely! This raised boardwalk was known to our ancestors as the Sweet Track and helped them to navigate their way through the reeds and vegetation, above the water while hunting and gathering their food and resources. Peat continues to be cut from the nutrient rich soils and reeds harvested for use in basket making and for thatch. Mike’s favourite product of the area is the apples used in cider making and having been drunk by everyone instead of the unclean water. Our talk started with a photograph of a telegraph pole with a curious carving of a bird on top. The bird was a dalmatian pelican. Remains of this species have been found preserved in the peat and so they must have lived there. We were treated to a selection of superb photographs of the Somerset Levels through the seasons, starting with spring and alder catkins, marsh marigold, lapwings, 6 species of heron, egrets, marsh harrier, peregrine, the heronry at Swale Wood (visited by several members last spring), the early nesting mistle thrush while it’s cousin, the song thrush, is still singing to attract a mate, and the first migrants, chiff chaff and blackcaps. Nestled down in the reeds, we saw images of bittern and then a series of shots of great crested grebe doing a cat display followed by a weed dance, all part of their courtship rituals. The number of curlews has increased since the nature bodies have had a say in the optimum level of the water. The first butterflies and dragonflies were photographed among the water lilies and iris while a hobby was captured with a dragonfly in its beak. In summer, the bees are swarming and the yellow and white flowers of spring are superseded by the darker, richer colours of great willowherb, purple loosestrife and tufted vetch. Swallows arrive and the great egret chicks fledge. Kingfisher, moorhens, mallards and others are hunted by buzzards and marsh harriers. Towards the end of the summer, apples ripen, ditches are cleared and migrants pass through including the whitethroat and osprey. Hops, hips, elderberries and blackberries glisten in the autumn sunshine and provide food for speckled wood and red admirals. Fungi appears including fairy ink caps and glistening ink caps. Flocks of lapwing grow in number day by day. Golden plover arrive from the northern UK and Iceland. Mike told us about the successful reintroduction programme of the common crane and how many pairs are now breeding on the levels and some pairs have moved away to South Wales. In winter, lapwings, golden plovers, black-tailed gobwits and cormorants can be seen and wetland fowl of all kinds will be displaying and wing flapping in order to attract a mate. During the winter months, it is the best time to see bearded tits, short-eared owls and barn owls and also the now world famous murmurations of starlings. All captured through Mike’s lens and accompanied by interesting and amusing anecdotes, we are eagerly anticipating our visit to the levels this summer. The society’s visit to Ham Wall is on Saturday June 8th, 2024. Emma Procter On the Field Trips page you can now access the document which shows the postcode location of the destination, distance, difficulty, footwear and picnic advice for each field trip.
We also indicate the times for meeting at the Nadder Centre, as we encourage members to share lifts, plus the start and estimated finish time at the location. We have limited numbers on only one field trip: on Bank Holiday Monday 6th May. 5.30 pm. Guided bird walk at Chicksgrove. If you would like to sign up for this one, do let us know on the Contact page. |
Photo: Avocets (Izzy Fry)
The headers display photos taken by our members. Do get in touch via the Contact Form if you'd like to submit a photo for selection.
Archives
April 2024
Categories
All
|