How to Deal With Retirement

We had a glorious morning in Chance Wood last week.  Last month's work party was cancelled because snow made it impossible to get the tools up to the wood and for weeks previously it has been so wet and dreary.  After a weekend's sunshine the snowdrops started to show well and we can expect lots of visitors; time to top up the leaflet dispenser!

Although the air is still frosty the birds seem rejuvenated by the sunshine and the wood is full of activity as the tits chase each other through the branches and the other woodland birds sing their hearts out.

The main job last week was to arrest the wood's encroachment over the boundary and across the public path; anything that will encourage the cyclists to avoid using the path through the wood.  We don't work long before our cake break and soon we were sat either side of the partially cleared path putting the world to rights  (Might the country be in less trouble if WWT volunteers took over Westminster? We certainly think so!) when a cyclist appeared struggling up the path, pushing his bike.  As he regained his breath he was drawn into conversation: "Are any of you retired?  Don't you feel guilty and a bit lost for things to do? I do."  Poor man, he was met by astonished cries: Friday had been taken in preparation for the local group meeting, today was our work party, tomorrow another local work party and a visit to Smite farm needed, later in the week some were volunteering for the National Trust, another work party on Saturday, walking to do, birds to see, sunshine to enjoy…. how can you be bored when you are part of the Wildlife Trust?

Coming up to retirement?  Don't bother with those courses - £3 a month and join Worcestershire Wildlife Trust!

Roger, Chance Wood

Searching for British orchids

As a welcome break from this winter weather, John Tilt gave us a hint of summer in a most interesting talk, accompanied by some stunning photographs, on his search for the 51 British orchid species. Finding the smaller ones in long grass is no easy matter as some, such as the musk orchid, are only 5 cm tall. However, common spotted orchids can be present in large numbers and the lizard orchid grows to a height of 90 cm.

Orchids are extremely dependent on ground fungi. Their seeds are tiny, like clouds of dust, providing little protein, so specific fungi are necessary for their germination. The widespread use of fungicide in gardens and the countryside has, therefore, been a real threat. Orchids are protected by law but those that are illegally removed rarely survive because of this fungal dependency. In culturing British orchids, Kew Gardens is doing much to ensure that rare species do not become extinct.

Orchids have three petals; the markings on the lower one, the lip, aid identification that otherwise can be very difficult, particularly as some species readily hybridise.  Orchids grow most often in calcareous, flower-rich meadows and, therefore, these meadow-types need protection.

early spider orchid (c) John Tilt

 John described a number of sites around the country, each with its own orchid species. Early purple, common spotted, heath spotted and less common species can be found in Worcestershire at Grafton Wood, Trench Wood, Hipton Hill, Castlemorton Common, Bredon Hill, Big Meadow (Knapp & Papermill) and Eades Meadow. A little further afield are Cleeve Common, Hornsleasow Meadow, Cricklade Hill and Fish Hill. However, the orchid capital of the UK is Kent where the rare lizard and monkey orchids can be found as well as fly, man and lady orchids.

In conclusion, there is much that is not understood about this beautiful plant and more recordings and biological records are needed.

The next meeting of the Malvern Group is at 7.30 pm on Thursday March 7th at Malvern Evangelical Church. Iain Green, wildlife photographer, will give an illustrated talk: On the wild side: from Downing Street to our local high street.  We look forward to seeing you there.

Derek, Malvern Local Group

Mistletoe Miscellany

Apologies for the belated posting of this write up of our December meeting.

Jonathan Briggs, who has studied mistletoe for 30 years, gave a most interesting and amusing talk on this peculiar shrub. There are about 1500 mistletoe species worldwide but his talk concentrated on “our” mistletoe, Viscum album.  It is unusual in that it is a hemi-parasitic, evergreen shrub that grows on deciduous trees; mostly on apple but also on lime, hawthorn and poplar. It is the only native white-berried species in northern Europe. Because it does not grow on the ground, it forms a spherical growth and each branch bifurcates every year to give an exponential growth. It's such a unique shrub and has attracted myth and legend through history. It has pagan associations and is rarely seen in churches although it is common in churchyards.

In the UK, mistletoe is found predominantly in Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Somerset. It grows in much of Europe but is not found in northern countries. England is on its northern edge and it is rare in Scotland. Despite growing in orchard counties, its connection with orchards is in question and its success in these counties may be due to climatic conditions. Mistletoe’s preferred growth areas may be moving to the north and east, perhaps caused by climate change.

Mistletoe (c) Jonathan Briggs

There are only a few birds that will eat the berries: mistlethrush and blackcap are the most common. Blackcaps are the most efficient propagators of the seeds as they don’t eat them but wipe them from their beak onto a branch, from where the seed has a good chance of germinating. Trees are killed if too much mistletoe is allowed to grow on them because the nutrients are diverted away from the host. Its management is important so it is marketed around Christmas time, when there is a strong demand for it and the berries are approaching their best. However, the male non-fruiting shrub should also be removed.

We hope to see you at our next meeting on 7th February when Peter Garner will be talking about Notable Trees of the Malverns.

Derek, Malvern Local Group

A Taste of the Falklands

king penguins

By popular request, the first talk of 2013 was given by the chairman, Margaret Vernon.  A year ago, in January 2012, she was invited by friends to go to the Falkland Islands, where she was promised exceptional experiences of the amazing wildlife there. The collection of photographs and videos shared was truly stunning.

After an 18 hour flight from Brize Norton with the RAF, she landed at Mount Pleasant Airport and immediately started exploring. The bird life is the main attraction of the islands and at that time of the year the resident penguins are joined by many summer visitors including black-browed albatrosses. The white-rumped sandpipers had travelled all the way there from the Arctic, and two-banded plovers, steamer ducks, imperial shags and South American terns were in abundance. 

The penguins are the stars of the show however and there were many amusing close-up pictures of them daring each other to swim, jumping the rocks, feeding their chicks and running around on the white sand beaches. 

rockhopper penguin

A helicopter trip to Bleaker Island led to an encounter with enormous sea lions; dolphins and elephant seals were spotted playing in the sea around Carcass Island. 

Life on the Falklands is tough and basic and the wind howls ceaselessly across the landscape. The San Carlos cemetery is a moving reminder of the war of 1982. Let us hope that the residents of the islands, including the wildlife, will be forever left in peace.

The next talk will be at 7.30 pm on February 7^th at Malvern Evangelical Church. John Tilt will talk about Searching for British Orchids (a change to the published programme). 

Alison, Malvern Local Group

Wettest year for wetland reserve

This year has been disappointing at Feckenham Wylde Moor in terms of very low butterfly, dragonfly and damselfly numbers. We had hoped that after last summer's good conditions that everything would have done well this year. This was not to be the case. However, we did get relatively good numbers of various warblers.

The reserve has been very wet all through the summer and is now the wettest I have ever seen in all the years that we have had the reserve. I places there's up to 12" of standing water and the public footpath alongside the Mouch ditch is virtually impassable. The footbridge is under water and very difficult to cross. I have never seen this before!

The meadows are under significant surface water and this does not bode well for next spring, particularly if we get more rain. Any creatures that over-winter underground will be struggling. Plants, too, are waterlogged. However, FWM is a wetland so we hope it will manage to get back to normal...only time will tell.

We were unable to mow and bale so this has meant that the meadows have been left virtually untouched. We did manage to get a couple of days with the roving volunteers, who worked hard to cut the margins, which will make a difference. We have had up to 20 Hereford cattle on site but these are currently away for TB testing and we don't know, as yet, when they will return. They had, up to a few weeks ago, done a magnificent job in eating most of what we could not cut but we have had to be selective where and for how long they graze particular areas.

These photographs, taken on Wednesday 12 December, show the frost which always make the reserve look very picturesque.

Anyone planning to visit will struggle to negotiate the bog that, in places along the trail, is very sticky and will hold onto your wellies or even steal them from you. Our new kissing gates that have replaced some of the stiles have suffered following the heavy rains and we now have plans to try to change them or at least make them easier to negotiate. Please take extra care if visiting.

All the best for the New Year!

Paul, Feckenham Wylde Moor

Soggy Grafton Wood

It's a bit wet out there, isn't it?!   

At Grafton Wood this Wednesday we had 26mm of rain during the morning.  Despite the conditions 10 people attended the work party working on the north coppice.  It was almost impossible to get to the container to get the tools but, undeterred, a large chunk of coppice was cut and a good fire lit. This helped drying out the coppicers in the afternoon!

And then more rain fell...

John, Grafton Wood

Deer talk

It's always exciting to spot deer when out for a country walk and it was fascinating to gain more insight and knowledge from Peter Watson’s well illustrated talk.  Peter Watson is Director at The Deer Initiative and his talk to the Malvern Local Group last week gave us an insight into the UK's deer populations.

In England and Wales there are six kinds of deer roaming the countryside but only two of them are native species, the red and the roe. Both of these are rapidly increasing in numbers and range and they represent a remarkable conservation success story. In 1972 there were a few red deer and now there are about 40,000; the roe were wiped out by 1750 and now there are over 500,000. 

Fallow deer were introduced to this country by the Normans and were protected in the hunting forests for centuries; many escaped during the two wars. Muntjac deer were introduced at Woburn Abbey by the Duke of Bedford and now there are over 200,000 roaming our woodlands. Chinese water and sika deer were also originally introduced on the big estates, escaped, and are growing in numbers in many places.

Why do we need to manage these deer? They are valuable in many ways, aesthetically, historically, as venison, and as trophies. However, they also impact on our environment in undesirable ways - eating trees, crops, native flora and bulbs, and causing problems for nesting birds. Some are infected with diseases like bluetongue, bovine TB and ticks. About 60,000 deer a year are involved in road traffic accidents. 

The purpose of The Deer Initiative is to deliver a sustainable, well-managed deer population, in balance with its habitat. Groups as diverse as the Wildlife Trusts, National Trust, the RSPB and shooting organisations are involved in and support the Initiative. Management includes infrastructure support, population and impact monitoring, and collaborative culls. Interestingly, in some areas the number of traffic accidents reduces hugely after relatively small numbers of deer are culled. Fallow deer and muntjac are the main problems nationwide and need to be controlled.  

Our next meeting is on December 6^th at 7.30 pm at Malvern Evangelical Church. Jonathan Briggs will present “A Mistletoe Miscellany”. We look forward to seeing you there.

Alison, Malvern Local Group