Birds & Flowers

Last month's meeting saw what must have been a record attendance of both members and non members for the current venue. They enjoyed a most interesting talk on the Upton Warren nature reserve by the always-popular Gordon Forrest. He described the history of the reserve from the creation of the pools as a result of the salt extraction in the area, it's donation of the reserve, which now bears his name, by Christopher Cadbury and it's development over the years into the county's premier bidwatching reserve. The talk, which was interspersed by many humerous anecdotes, was illustrated by Gordon's superb photographs of the birds seen at the reserve over the years. Of particular interest was a series of slides showing Gordon building the hide at the Flashes lagoon; he was rather sad as it it had now been demolished to make way for the new double decker hide which has recently opened.

This month's meeting on Friday 30th March will welcome another of our favourite speakers, Roy Mantle from Bridgnorth, already well known for his fungi talks and walks. He will be giving us an illustrated talk on another of his specialities, "Wayside Flowers".

The meeting commences at 7.30 pm at the Eco Centre, Ridgewood High School, Park Road West, Wollaston, Stourbridge, DY8 3NQ where there is ample free parking in the grounds and disabled access to the lecture room. Admission is £2 which includes light refreshments. Members and non members equally welcome we're looking forward to seeing you!

John, Stourbridge local group

Of deep ploughing & sheep!

The Heathland restoration at Blackstone Farm took another important step forward last Tuesday when the first of the newly acquired arable fields was deep ploughed to bury the nutrient-rich top soil and bring the nutrient-poor sub soil to the surface. This required the use of a much more powerful tractor unit than would be used for normal ploughing. The operation was not just appreciated by the Trust as part of its plan but also by the ever hungry black headed gulls.

The Devil's Spittleful monthly volunteers work group spent last Thursday morning cleaning the scrub from alongside the boundary fencing with the Severn Valley Railway track and fitting stock-proof netting ready for the introduction of rare breed (Soay) sheep to the Reserve. The sheep will help to keep the existing grass meadows suitable for the Reserve's unusual flora. The photograph shows the group taking a well deserved lunch break before moving on to upgrade the field gates and collect litter from around the rock outcrop.

John, Stourbridge local group

Owls in Stourbridge

The October indoor meeting of the Stourbridge Local Group was a little different from our usual illustrated talks. We were visited by 6 owls, rescued and reared by the speaker, Gillian Hales. They were very well behaved, as we learnt about the threats and conservation of these magnificent birds in the U.K.

A fascinating evening.

Carol, Stourbridge Local Group