February 5th. The 2015 programme of events got off to a flying start with a very well attended meeting. It did require a team effort to gain access to the Village Hall, but once we were in , John Andrew treated us to his Illustrated Talk of a visit to Islay and Mull. He and Anna had been on a Naturetrek wildlife holiday in the Autumn of 2014 where they saw lots of indigenous and migrating populations of birds, and other wildlife, many of which were photographed.There was group participation in identifying some of the birds, always more difficult in their eclipse plumage. There were many flocks of geese: white fronted, pink footed, greylag and of course those brave Barnacle geese who have to tumble 100ft down a cliff from the nest within a few days of hatching in order to find food.There were many ducks and divers, waders and sea birds: eider, goldeneye, greater scaup, great northern diver, black throated diver, turnstones, redshank, green shank, chough to name but a few, not to mention redwing and snow bunting. They saw about 75 species of bird in all. There were mammals too. Several kinds of deer--fallow, red and roe were seen and brown hare, but what stole the show was the otter. Great close up views! Mull is famous for it's eagles, and did not disappoint. We saw photos of the massive white tailed sea eagle and my personal favourite, the golden eagle being mobbed by a hooded crow, beautifully framed to give a sense of scale.
TJ

A number of guests came to the meeting and hopefully they will join us on the field trips too as their participation was much appreciated as was the presentation by all who attended.

5th March 2015. Our first field trip of the year was held at Newport Wetlands. Thirteen members turned out on a cold and grey day, and braved the weather for the duration of the tour. Mike Skelton from the RSPB showed us the Reserve which is owned and managed by the Countryside Council for Wales. The visitor centre opened seven years ago and is managed by the RSPB from the comfort of which we saw the reed buntings on the table feeder and not surprisingly , on the reeds. Mike was very generous with his time and gave us the history of the development of the Reserve. Before it was created the area had been full of pulverised fuel ash from the nearby Power Station.The reserve is also straddled by numerous pylons of great variety which apparently arouse interest in pylon enthusiasts. The birds here were not numerous, but we saw amongst other things cormorant, Canada goose, many curlew, a flock of redwing, gadwall, grey heron , lapwing , a flock of linnet, little egret , moorhen, mute swan, oystercatcher, starling, stonechat, greenfinch, tufted duck and wigeon.Heard, but not seen, were Cetti's warbler and water rail.

Most of us stayed for a well earned lunch in the cafe after thanking Mike for his time and expertise. We are grateful to Steve and Val Monaghan for arranging the trip which everyone enjoyed.
As an addendum after refreshments, five of us moved on to Goldcliff, about 2 miles away and were greatly rewarded and delighted to see from the hides 33 avocet,100 lapwing, 150 wigeon, teal, shelduck, shovellers,grey heron, egret, little grebe, curlew and a small flock of black-tailed godwit. The latter took flight and nicely demonstrated their trailing legs in flight--a useful feature which helps to distinguish them from the bar-tailed godwit.
TJ

2nd April 2015.This month's field trip was to Coed-y-Bwl, a SSSI by virtue of the fact that the only truly wild variety of daffodils, Narcissus pseudonarcissus has grown here for over one hundred years. Thirteen members attended and had the benefit of the experience of two guides from the Trust, for the walk through the 6 acre reserve. Richard and Roy, the guides, have both tended the wood for 40 years. We learned of the history and the hard work which is required for maintenance and although the daffodils were past their peak we were able to enjoy them, as well as primroses, wood anenomes, and the occasional dog violet. The wood is also home to a number of fungi, including the Scarlet Elf Cup (or is it the much rarer Ruby?)We heard rather than saw the birdlife too -including greater spotted woodpecker, great tit, chiffchaff, and wren.We were encouraged to return in another month or so when the bluebells should be in bloom.
We were all very sorry that Pam Robbins was unable to join us but are very grateful to her for organising the trip.
TJ

7th May 2015. Ten members turned up for a delightful tour of Coed y Bedw, lead by Vaughn Morgan of the Wildlife Trust. It was a beautiful day following a spell of very wild weather and we learned a lot about the management of the reserve which is an SSSI. The Geology creates an unusual combination of alkali soil in places where the ramsons (wild garlic) thrive and acid in others which the native bluebells prefer. Each soil type in turn supports it's own niche ecosystem, the different butterflies being of particular interest. Birch(Bedw) trees are quite short lived and are the commonest casualties in high winds and this broadleaved woodland also has Ash, Oak, Beech and Alder. There was evidence of a large variety of bird life too. We spent some time listening to the calls of the goldcrest, great tit, blackcap, blackbird, mistle and song thrush, chaffinch,robin and wren but for most of us it was difficult to pick out the individual songs. However we all heard the tawny owl! One of the projects of the Trust has been to build otter holts in the hope of attracting them to this part of the river which has a plentiful supply of brown trout. There are also foxes and badgers in the wood and they share living accomodation sometimes. Foxes above and badgers below. Even otters move in too sometimes! Another highlight were the wetland areas where the marsh marigolds were beginning to flower.
In short there was something for everyone and it was another very successful trip. Thanks to Steve and Val Monaghan for organising it and for recommending a local pub for lunch which most of us repaired to after thanking Vaughn.
TJ

4th June 2015. Fourteen members attended the meeting on a perfect day, at Aberthaw Nature Reserve,lead by Rob and Linda Nottage who constantly impress us with their wide and varied knowledge of all things related to wildlife. We strolled around the reserve while they pointed out many things which many of us would have otherwise missed. Whilst hearing blackcap and chiffchaff we saw clematis(old man's beard) smothering even the bramble, a native viburnam and black bryony (a native perrenial climber).
Coming to the meadow area, which is in danger of being overtaken by hawthorn, we saw common blue butterflies on the birdsfoot trefoil which provides them with food. Later we saw the duller browner female common blue also.

Linda is adept at catching insects in a pot and so we all had a close-up of several insects including a male thick legged flower beetle. The female has thin legs. Under a corrugated metal refugia was a small common toad.
Moving on to a wetter area, we found stinking iris (aka roast beef plant because it smells of bovril,) southern marsh orchid, hemlock water droplet and the somewhat invasive sea buckthorn.

When we reached the lagoon, Rob told us how long ago, there was a thriving lime industry, as witnessed by the still huge ruins, where the lime was burned and exported from the estuary which was still there at the time, across to Devon in exchange for importing dairy products. With the arrival of the cement works, the river was diverted and a sea wall was built creating the saline lagoon which is an unusual habitat in Wales and an important site for the reed warbler.

On the lagoon there were coots with chicks, moor hens , tufted ducks and a family of mute swans with 6 cygnets.

Making our way to the shoreline we observed the cigar gall of the common reed. This is equivalent to the oak apple gall being a reaction to a fly rather than a wasp. By then, there were also sky larks in evidence and buzzards and the pale blue flower of the pale flax.

At the shoreline, it took some of us a while to pick out the birds, but there were shelduck, a family of ringed plover, and we agreed in the end after some debate, both a whimbrel and a curlew.

This was a busy area for the birds as we also had good views of the common whitethroat, linnet, stonechat and swallow amongst others.

In the shingle we could see yellow horned poppy and as we headed inland again, the tiniest of very low lying plants--the (pink)birdsfoot clover, then large clumps of scarlet pimpernel, a couple of fruiting cherry trees, and the foliage of ploughman's spikenard on the ground disturbed by rabbits,yellow wort, long stalked geranium, creeping and meadow buttercups, marsh orchid and hemp agrimony, woody nightshade and common vetch.
There were still more insects to discover, especially around the pond--nettle weevil, dingy skipper butterfly , a burnet companion moth and a broad bodied chaser .Finally, looking like a wood louse on steroids,firmly attached to a bit of goose grass, was the larva of a bloody-nosed beetle.
Nearly everyone was able to stay for lunch in the Blue Anchor where Rob and Linda were warmly thanked by Geoff Jones on behalf of us all.

Our thanks in turn to Geoff for organising an excellent day.
TJ

2nd July 2015.
After morning coffee, ten of us set off on a Ranger led walk through the Porthkerry Park
The park is steeped in history and a special place of natural beauty. There are many trails to explore and fascinating wild life to see including Butterflies and Dragonflies. We discovered hidden ‘Slow-worms’ and adders and were made aware of the existence of the rare ‘True Service Tree’, also the Purple Gromwell flower.
Everyone can enjoy the park – if you are having a picnic, walking the dog, going to the beach or strolling along the woodland paths. There are many hidden trails, also, a series of graded walks – the walks are graded from easy to advanced.
You can also learn about the biodiversity of the ‘amphibian’ or ‘Reptile’ pond life.
The Ranger was thanked for her contribution to our enjoyable walk!
KB

6th August 2015
Only five of us made it to Brynna Woods for the tour conducted by Rob Parry of the Wildlife Trust and he was accompanied by Moira from the Trust also, but we had an excellent time in the sunshine walking mainly along the made path which despite all the recent rain was only wet and muddy in one patch. We learned a lot about dormice which inhabit the woods. Four or five individuals need about 1 hectare of woodland (the size of a football pitch). They are nocturnal animals and are active in the tree tops. They need connectivity between the trees to avoid genetic isolation, so the trees overarching the path are ideal. By day they go into a state of torpor and are therefore rather vulnerable. They hibernate on the ground. All in all they spend most of their lives asleep. We were shown how to identify hazelnuts which have been eaten by dormice. We didn't find any fresh samples--only ones that the squirrels had had.
Other creatures of interest are the bats. They roost in places such as the old mine buildings, the old railway bridge and in cracks in the mature oak trees. Nationally rare and declining bats such as the Lesser Horseshoe Bat and Barbastelle Bat have been recorded, so it would be well worth attending a Bat Night.
We explored the meadow areas and looked for the Highland cattle grazing in the Lowland Raised Mire--the rarest habitat in RCT. Without the low level grazing this habitat would be lost as it is soon taken over by willow. Beavers would be ideal here we were told, and as they have been successfully introduced elsewhere, maybe we'll get some too. Watch this space!
Brynna Wood has a variety of wooded areas within it including the wet woodland which is alder dominated. Here the trees tend to be of similar age and size so they tend to die at the same time. Standing deadwood is left in situ if it is away from paths (Health and Safety!)as it makes an excellent habitat.
Two plants on the walk that were new to everyone were Mugwort (smells of mint and lavender) and Enchanters Nightshade (a poisonous relative of the potato).
We are grateful to Hywel and Fran Davies who organised the day, and Hywel thanked Rob on our behalf for his time and expertise which was greatly appreciated by us all. Rob recommended that we return in the Spring which is a very good idea for next year's programme.
TJ
10th September 2015
Ten members gathered on a fine early Autumn morning in the Physic Garden in Cowbridge and had a conducted tour by one of the volunteers--Sue Duffield.After a brief rundown of the history of the garden and the layout we looked at the beds and learned the folk lore medicinal properties of the various plants.
The garden originally belonged to the Edmunds Family who lived in what is now the Old Hall from 1740-1932. Subsequently it became a kitchen garden for the boarding school until 1975 and then was used briefly by the council to grow trees for the Queen's silver jubilee after which it was abruptly abandoned and left to become derelict in 1977. In 2004 Dan Clayton Jones took it on and it gradually developed into the splendid walled garden that we can see today, using only plants which were in the county by 1800 and no modern hybrids.There are 12 beds of medicinal plants; a dye bed; pleached fruit such as apples and damsons and plums (used for preserves and sold to boost the funds)and grape vines of two varieties; a fragrant bed with roses, pinks and stocks; a shrubbery, a shade area with bulbs; a pergola with roses and a sundial donated by the Rotary Club.
There were information sheets for sale with lists of all the plants arranged in their various categories and matching the layout of the beds eg bones, childbirth, digestion. The common names, the latin name,the Welsh translation and a summary of the remedies used in folk lore are listed. Some appear in several categories.
Here are a few examples. Lavender was brought by the Romans and given to the monks. It was used as a strewing herb and is said to have insecticidal and bacteriacidal properties. The oil was used for burns and skin complaints and when added to bath water was helpful for joints.
Fennel seeds were believed to aid digestion and indeed fennel used to be a constituent of gripe water. Roman ladies used to chew the seeds to allay the pangs of hunger.
An ointment derived from Marigold (calendula) was used for blood related problems such as bruises, varicose veins and haemorrhoids. Both marigold and mullein were used as dyes such as for butter and cheese. Mullein was also used to dye hair but its unclear what colour might result. It's hairy leaves were used in shoes to keep warm apparantly and this long spikey plant was also used as a candle in funeral processions.Chicory roots were used as a coffee substitute in the war.Liquorice is used to darken stout and also to counteract the taste of bitter medicines. Lungwort (pulmonaria)is a classic example of doctrine of signatures whereby in the 16th and 17th Centuries it was believed that if a plant looked like a disease it could be used to treat the complaint. The mottled leaves suggested diseased lungs to the monks therefore it was used for all sorts of respiratory diseases.
There were many more examples.
Sue was thanked warmly for her time and effort and members bought information sheets, cards and preserves which will have provided a small, additional help in the upkeep of this lovely garden.
TJ

29th October 2015
We only just squeezed this meeting into October due to clashes with various other events but despite it being half term there was a good turnout of 14 members. We met in The Cowbridge Community College for the theory part of the session where Barbara Brown from OPAL (Open air laboratories)and who is based at the Museum, talked to us about 9 common tree lichens.We learned that there are over 1000 lichens in the UK so we were confining ourselves to learning about how to identify a small number of indicator lichens: Three nitrogen sensitive ones--Usnea, Evernia, and Hypogymnia.
Three intermediates----Melanelixia, Flavoparmelia, and Parmelia.
Three nitrogen loving (or tolerant)ones---Leafy Xanthoria,Cushion Xanthoria and Physica.
We also used some drops of bleach (sodium hypochlorite) and Potassium hydroxide to look for colour reactions. Many lichens contain chemical compounds, some of which have been used to make dyes, and others as sunscreen products. The spot tests can help to distinguish similar looking species.Eg Cushion Xanthoria changes instantly to blood red with Potassium Hydroxide.
After about 1 hour, we ventured outside, armed with both a metallic and a soft tape measure, a piece of chalk and a hand lens. We gathered around a small tree in the Waitrose car park area just outside a cafe.Using the metallic tape measure, heights from ground level of 50cm, 130cm and 150 cm were marked with the chalk on the tree. The girth at 130cm was recorded, and the type of tree. Using only half of the tree--usually the South facing half--between the 50 and 150cm marks, the lichens were recorded by type and by what proportion of the area they covered. Also recorded was the presence of any additional lichens beyond the marked area, and any lichens on the twigs. The same process was carried out on trees in Twt Park and in Old Hall Grounds.
We concluded that there was a significant amount of pollution (heavy presence of nitrogen tolerant lichens)where there was a lot of traffic and very little pollution in the park areas.(Nitrogen sensitive or intermediate lichens)
We re-grouped and discussed our findings, and thanked Barbara for a very interesting morning. Armed with leaflets to help us ID our local lichens, we were encouraged to carry out our own surveys and to upload the results to www.OPALexplorenature.org
TJ

5th November 2015
Seventeen members attended the first of the Indoor Meetings today.It was a good choice to be in the hall as the weather was wet and miserable. The AGM consisted mainly of a review of the activities through the year by myself,and a summary of the finances with the suggestion of a £12 sub for next year by Steve.The group also started putting together a programme for 2016 which can be "firmed up" next month. In addition we had three presentations. Val showed photographs of Wildlife that she had seen during a walking holiday in North America. I talked about trials and tribulations of creating a wildlife garden pond. John Andrew showed us some of his bird photos taken this year, starting with local birds but he also whet our appetite with a few shots from more exotic places---to be continued in the February indoor meeting!
TJ

10th December 2015
On a wet and windy Winter's day we were very pleased to be indoors again. Eleven members turned up to a presentation by Verity Lunn, a 3rd year student from Falmouth University, studying Marine and Natural History Photography. Verity showed us her wildlife pictures from field trips she had undertaken in Iceland and the Cairngorms.There was a range of dramatic, artistic and picturesque, scenes with the sea, snow and ice from Iceland. There were pictures of the Northern Lights and wondrous shapes and patterns created in the ice and snow. Wildlife in Iceland included a pair of snow buntings, a humpbacked whale (with a perfect shot of its tail fluke) surrounded by dolphins. There was more wildlife to be seen for the sufficiently intrepid, in the Cairngorms, including Crested tits, red legged partridge, red grouse, black grouse and ptarmigan, as well as two varieties of pheasant.Verity explained how the students staked out the lekking black grouse to take their much prized photos. There were two students in each of two tiny hides, settled in by 7pm (in case the birds chose to do an evening lek). They were then awakened by the very noisy birds around 4am.Verity also had some wonderful shots of many birds of prey which were from a nearby sanctuary. We saw snowy, barn, tawny and long eared owls as well as a peregrine and a golden eagle. One day at a wildlife park they also photographed a wolverine and a red panda--not your everyday sort of animal. Even the expected mammals were a challenge---the brown hare was easy enough to spot, but the mountain hare was so well camouflaged. Verity has a particular interest in red squirrels and has written her dissertation on the subject so not surprisingly there were plenty of pictures of these extremely cute animals.
Throughout the presentation there was a lot of interaction with the audience as there was a good deal of interest in the subject and the technical side of the photography. At the end, Verity was warmly thanked for her efforts.
TJ