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The Ancient and semi-natural woodlands LBAP group have been very active this year. The Forestry Commission Jigsaw Challenge scheme has seen four possible projects submitted by FWAG and one from the Woodland Trust. The group are also producing a leaflet and display boards about ancient woodlands and the work of the group. Download your copy of the new Ancient Semi-Natural Broadleaved Woodlands leaflet by clicking HERE!
The results of the fourth national otter survey for England, conducted mainly by the Wildlife Trusts, show there has been a five-fold increase in the area occupied by otters in the twenty-five years since the first national otter survey in 1977-79. Otters were found to be present in every region in England with signs of otter habitation in 34% of the 3,327 sites surveyed in 2000-02. There is still much work to be done to consrve this beautiful creature and its habitat but the results are encouraging. The survey shows that given favourable conditions a healthy breeding population can recolonise large areas very rapidly. Joining up populations via the network of waterways is crucial. The key areas identified for work are catchments in Wessex, North Shropshire, South Cheshire and the Lower Severn as they provide links from strong populations in Wales, the South West and Cumbria to areas where recolonisation has, so far, been slow.
Diane Bennet is a Wirral MBC ranger based at Leasowe, which is the only site in England that is home to the belted beauty. As a reward for seventeen years of conservation effort for this moth Diane has been awarded membership of Butterfly Conservation. In conjunction with David Hinde she has produced nationally important research on the moth's habitat and ideal conditions. This is the first year adult moths have been seen emerging in the experimental plots set up by Diane. Up to 40 of the flightless females have been spotted.
The UK BAP - "Tracking Progress, Results of the 2002 Reporting Round" has just been published on the UK BAP website - www.ukbap.org.uk Countdown is included in this report and the results of this can be seen together with other reports and lots of useful information about progress in LBAPs across the UK. For example, the results show that 6 of the national habitats and 25 of the national species are increasing (including cereal field margins and bittern), 6 habitats and 76 species are stable, however, 17 habitats and 97 species are declining - for more details see the full report online at www.ukbap.org.uk/2002OnlineReport/2002Report.htm. Overall, the results of this reporting round show some good news, but there is still lots to do at the local level before the next national round in 2005.
The inaugural meeting of the new Gardens and Allotments LBAP Action Group was held on Friday 2nd May 2003. The Coordinator is Mandy North of English Nature and she is hoping to attract members of the public onto the Group, as well as some of the larger garden centres in Cheshire. Since then further meetings have been held and it is hoped this LBAP will play a part in the theme of the next 'Tomorrows World for Wildlife' Conference, due in October 2004.
Interested in insects?
Curious about carnivores? Want to know what a depressed
river mussel looks like, and how it got its name?
The Natural History Museum
launched 'Nature Navigator' on November 16th 2003. It is a new online guide
to British wildlife and biodiversity, featuring 1,000s of artworks from the
Museum's collections.
To find an answer to all your wildlife questions visit Nature Navigator at www.nhm.ac.uk/naturenavigator
Wirral Biodiversity Partnership hosted a launch for itself which took the form of a talk by Ted Green MBE, expert on ancient trees and Conservation Officer for the Crown Estates. Mr Green is an excellent speaker, a pioneer of work on the value of ancient trees, and a champion of many aspects of our wildlife. The event was at Bebington Civic Centre on Thursday November 20th 2003.
The next meeting is
7.30pm Thursday 25th September 2003 at Wirral Country Park Visitor Centre,
Station Road, Thurstaston. Guest Speaker is Fiona Angwin, Merseyside &
West Lancashire Bat Group.
The Group's September newsletter is now out, featuring updates on local sightings,
the national picture and rats & secondary poisonings.
Check out their website at www.wirralbarnowltrust.org/
Children and young adults aged 13-20 were invited to the first youth conference for Cheshire biodiversity. The conference is part of a year of events funded by the HLF. Projects on biodiversity are running across the county and more projects are availbale if anyone has a school or youth group interested in taking part. Further details are available from Dee ap Simon at Cheshire Wildlife Trust on 01270 610180.
Dave Kitching, Paul Hill, Richard Gabb, Paul Derbyshire and Mike Robinson took a stroll along the Dee at Aldford on Bank holiday Monday to survey for Club-tailed Dragonflys . The trip was succesfull and they found a female . Images can be seen at www.brocross.com/dfly/news/sight.htm. The trip also included a visit to Churton where they found a pair of Hairy Dragonflies in-cop along with a few variable damselflies, then they went onto Abott's and Shemmy Mosses to find downy emerald and white-faced darter. Gail Butterill also reports finding a single exuviae at Farndon Bridge and another further upstream which was on a vertical sand cliff about 6m above the current water level although you could see the water had previously been much higher.
Cheshire Wildlife Trust has welcomed the launch by the Rt. Hon. Michael Meacher (Minister for the Environment and Agri Environment) of the new entry level agri-environment scheme, which aims to help create a 'greener' farming industry. Initiually it will run as a series of pilots acrss England. The scheme rewards farmers and landowners who manage existing wildlife habitat and create new habitat. Farmers will be awarded points for existing or created wildlife habitat on an area and linear distance basis. Farmers who fall short of the required points will be able to create habitat from a menu of options. This scheme should have a hugely beneficial effect on biodiversity.
Wirral's Biodiversity Website is now up and running at www.wirral.gov.uk/ed/biodiversity/home.htm It can also be accessed through Wirral Borough Council Site's A-Z.
Children at around 30
Wirral primary schools will learn first hand about the value bats
have for Wirral's biodiversity. Youngsters
will be taking part in presentations and workshops in which they actually get
to meet live captive bats. They will also be given information about local open
spaces and what they can find there as well as taking part in a workshop learning
about the topic through a variety of games.~
The scheme is being run through
Wirral's Biodiversity Partnership and aims to increase children's awareness
of their local environment- in particular its biodiversity - using the example
of the fascinating and endangered bat.
The workshops are being run
by Fiona Angwin, a licensed bat worker who has worked for many years with both
British and foreign bats in schools around the country.
It is one of several events
being organised as part of Wirral's Biodiversity Action Plan - a plan that aims
to promote and protect the huge variety of wildlife on the peninsula.
Christine Smyth, Wirral Council'
s Biodiversity Officer, said: "It is important to remember that Bats are
not pests but that all 16 British protected species of bat are protected so
it is illegal to cause them harm. Many, however, suffer persecution because
people are misinformed about them. "We
hope projects like this will turn the tide for bats by educating the next generation
as to why they are so important."
Other events that have been
planned as part of the Biodiversity Action Plan include:
A dolphin watch involving schools
A barn owl webcam
Sand dunes education project
Pond creation
For more details on what the free biodiversity workshop entailed click here
for further details.
A new school scheme
'Adopt a Species', focusing on the great crested newt, has been launched by
the Education Department of Cheshire Wildlife Trust. The portfolio, which schools
will receive once they have adopted the newts and taken part in a field visit
to a pond, was developed with sponsorship from Transco. The company has a special
interest in the newt, as its engineers find colonies of them whilst laying pipes.
Transco hopes that in helping young children to study and understand endangered
species, it can influence their attitudes to wildlife in the future.
The portfolio contains information on the newt's natural habitats, appearance,
ecology life cycle, threats to survival, adaptations, guidelines for pond development,
worksheets with art work, games and further suggestions to cover many other
aspects of the national curriculum. Attention is also drawn to the laws protecting
endangered species to discourage collection.
Small individual diaries accompany
the portfolio to ease report writing for each child's records. A certificate
is awarded to the children who complete the worksheets or contribute to the
development or management of a pond. Members of the CWT education department
will initially visit a school to give talks on endangered species. This is followed
by class work to make a model pond, plants and animals with newts forming the
focus... and more!
Duke of Edinburgh Award students
at The Grange, Hartford, are conducting a year-long investigation following
gradual colonisation of a new pond with minimal humn interference. Nearby is
a small old pond which is helping to seed the new one.
Also, a great crested newt
outfit has been developed with the artistic aid of James ap Simon to promote
the Newt project.
Come and learn about the history of the apple. The Cheshire Orchard Project is holding its 2nd conference on Saturday 13th September 2003 at Tatton Park, Knutsford from 10am to 4pm. cost £15.00 per person and includes a buffet lunch. Guest speaker will be Prof. Barrie Juniper, Leverhulme Post-Retirement Emeritus Fellow at Oxford University, Department of Plant Sciences, who will talk about the far eastern origins of the apple. There will also be a guided walk around Tatton Park's recently renovated Kitchen Garden and contributions from orchard groups from around the UK. Anyone with an interest and enthusiasm for orchards and fruit is welcome to attend.
Children from Willaston CE Primary School on the Wirral recently planted a hedgerow at Willaston Wildflower Meadow with Willaston Residents' and Countryside Society, Groundwork and the local Tree Warden. Plants for the new hedgerow, which runs alongside Jacksons Pond, were donated free of charge by Cheshire Landscape Trust. The children went on to write poems about the trees they had planted. In addition to the new hedgerow there have been a wildflower meadow and trees planted. Cheshire Landscape Trust recently planted a tree at the Meadow to makr Willaston's success in winning its category in the Best-Kept Village/Civic Pride competition in 2002.
New research, carried
out on behalf of English Nature, Mammals Trust UK and Center Parcs, has revealed
that hedgerow management can have a dramatic
effect on dormice, one of our most threatened
mammals. If farmers cut their hedges less often, not only will they usually
cut costs but they may help dormice too. The research shows that 65% of Hedges
known to have dormice in the late 1970s no longer do so. The decline is bacuse
modern hedge management practices that rerate poor habitat for dormice. The
dormice like thick, tall hedges with a wide range of trees and shrubs such as
hazel, hawthorn, honeysuckle, dog rose, brambles and black thorn. These species-rich
hedgerows are also good for other wildlife including birds, voles and shrews
and many insects. The annual cutting now practiced on mnay farms leads to thin,
short hedgerows with poor flower, nut and beery crops, providing little food
or nesting cover. Earlier reserach commissioned by English Nature from Silsoe
College showed that oif hedges are cut once every two or three years, this saves
money. The savins on the contractor costs usually exceed the amount lost through
increased shading of crops, often by a large amount.
With thanks to Smallholder for this article.
The Jigsaw Challenge
has continued to provide the means for the creation of new ASNW
areas. Three of last years schemes that were delayed have now been completed.
These include Hobhey Wood Extension,Weaverham Farm Wood and Rossendale Wood.
Eight schemes are in the pipeline for 2003/4. All bids have to be in by 28.2.03
and judging panel will meet mid March.
ADAS and BASC are holding a
joint event focusing on farm woodlands to be held on 25th February. A FWAG farm
walk is also being planned.
The ASNW Inventory review/ Cheshire's Forgotten Woodlands (CFW) was discussed
and ECOnet and EN will be invited to the next meeting to try to progress and
breath some life back into this important project. There are plenty more forgotten
woodlands out there!
As part of the Local Biodiversity Action Plan for Ancient and/or Species-rich Hedgerows, Cheshire Landscape Trust, in partnership with others, has been undertaking a Hedgerow survey across Cheshire. Using CPRE's Hedgerow Action Pack, volunteers have been recording hedgerows in their local area. The latest report on progress has just been published. This includes details of how and why the survey began and the main findings so far. 61% of Cheshire parishes were taking part in the survey by the end of 2002!
Did you know that:
10% mark a parish boundary
67% are regularly maintained
60% are regarded as a key component of their area
28% are species-rish (i.e. they contain 5 or more woody species)The commonest species to be found are:
Hawthorn - in 97% of hedgerows
Elder (in 58%)
Dog Rose (in 52%)
Blackthorn (in 51%)
Hazel (in 47%)
And the average number of standard trees per hedgerow surveyed is 7.
If you would like a copy of have any questions about the survey then contact Katie Lowe at Cheshire Landscape Trust on 01244 376333.
The Bluebell LBAP Project has received funding from WREN to carry out survey work, seed collection and bulb planting in a number of woodlands in Cheshire. 11 woods have now been surveyed as part of the project and 6 found to be suitable for seed collection and community planting schemes. Several of the sites surveyed were found to be not suitable for seed collection at all due to the high incidence of hybrid or alien bluebells present.
A report will be produced in due course as part of the analysis and assessment stage of the project to detail the extent of hybrid bluebells found during the fieldwork survey and the implications for bluebell conservation. In summary, no woodland surveyed in Cheshire was without some hybrids. From this initial survey work it is, therefore, apparent that future work will need to look at the genetic stock of bluebells in the region.
The Bluebell LBAP Action Group hope to organise 12 seed collecting and 12 bulb planting events involving the community next year, 6 in the spring and 6 in the summer, using the funding provided by WREN. There are also 2 community planting events planned for later this month at Owley Wood, Northwich and Old Covert Wood, Wistaston, using chipped, native bulbs supplied by Landlife, the national wildflower centre.
For more details about these events or any of the other work being done for bluebells in Cheshire, please contact the Bluebell LBAP Action Group Chairman, Mrs Julia Hancell on 01928 573697 or e-mail [email protected]
Small Pearl-Bordered Fritillary
The Hedgerow Regulations were under review following an initial review in 1997. A copy of the Hedgerow Regulations consultation document is available at www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/hedge Comments on the proposed changes to the Hedgerow Regulations were sent to DEFRA in April 2003.
CWT's application to DEFRA for Countryside Stewardship of the Gowy Meadows site has been successful. The Gowy meadows are floodplain grazing marsh. This grant will allow the re-instatement of 11km of fencing, to coppice/lay and gap up hedgerows and to manage the ditch network on a rotational basis to ensure every successional phase is maintained on the site. Special attention will be paid to encourage populations of water voles, water violet, great crested newts and the recently discovered mud snails and lesser silver diving beetle
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