KENFIG NATURE RESERVE. 4 November 2021

We could not have asked for a better November day. Ten of us turned up for a DIY bird watch in the Autumn sunshine at Kenfig and made straight for the pool. It was remarkably quiet---a few distant swans, a cormorant, mallards, coots a moorhen and a few teal and not much more. There was probably a common gull amongst the herring gulls and black headed gulls on the posts, where they tend to perch. We left the hide and took a long route towards the sea passing a woodland area from which a great deal of birdsong was emanating. As we approached, a mist net was spotted which explained the calls---they were artificial, designed to entice birds in to be caught and ringed. We left them in peace and continued on our way. The path was quite wet in places after recent heavy rain and we put up a snipe which had been taking advantage of the conditions.
When we reached the beach, the tide was right out, and the mussel beds were clearly visible with mainly gulls having a feeding frenzy, but we also picked out curlew and oystercatchers, and watched a presumably inexperienced crow dropping shells from a height onto the sand. It hadn’t yet worked out that the shell needs to land on a hard surface to crack it open.
Making our way over to Sker Point we were delighted to find about 20 golden plover supremely well camouflaged on the rocks. We did not approach them but left them undisturbed, so we didn’t see them in flight .
We took the route back via Sker House , crossing over the golf course . It was firmer and easier to walk on than the sandy path through the dunes. We must have seen a record number of stonechat, and there were flocks of starlings, woodpigeons and jackdaws throughout the morning.
Many finished off with a snack and a hot drink outside the Visitor Centre before we dispersed after a very pleasant morning.

TJ

GOLDCLIFF. 9th September 2021

Only 5 members were available for this trip, and given the heavy rain and forecast of thunderstorms it was hardly surprising that only 2 of us actually made it to Goldcliff. There are a series of hides and open air platforms to visit and the best time to go is at high tide when the birds, mainly ducks and waders, can be seen feeding. Between the showers we dashed between the hides----sometimes having to stay longer than we wished, and it was possible to see a number of different species, although at times it was a matter of picking out brown/grey ducks in their eclipse plumage against a cloudy grey background. But things improved! The rain relented and there were many varieties of waders visible from the furthest hide, including several knot and a wood sandpiper –“not” the sort of thing you see every day. There was a whimbrel amongst the many curlew—very conveniently demonstrating the difference in size between them. As expected there were plenty of bar-tailed and black tailed godwit, and also ruff and an unusual view (for me anyway) of a lovely stripey -backed snipe feeding away instead of flying away.
After a good couple of hours in total, we left the hide just as the flocks were beginning to return to the estuary as the tide had gone out sufficiently, but there was plenty more to see on the walk back to the car, as the hedgerows were full of berries and many lingering summer visitors, such as the whitethroat and blackcap, chiffchaff and willow warbler.
At the end of the morning, we were only slightly damp at the edges and we both agreed it had been well worth the effort as we had seen or heard at least 47 species. Not a bad total for two and a half hours of watching , whatever the conditions.

Thanks to John Cook for organising the trip.

TJ

LAVERNOCK POINT 1/7/21

There was a very good turnout of 13 members on a fine day for this field trip around the Nature Reserve at Lavernock Point. We were led by one of the volunteers, Jeff Curtis and accompanied by Kerry Rogers, Conservation Manager from the Wildlife Trust. Much of the reserve is designated SSSI by virtue of the diversity of its plants and butterflies. As with most things in life, the restrictions associated with the pandemic have affected the management of the site. Less work has been possible and more visitors, more dogs and vandalism have taken their toll. For example, meadowsweet is rampant in one area excluding everything else,as it has not been possible to cut it back over the last year and more. But at least it leaves a pleasant perfume in the air. We saw far too many flowers to name but the common spotted, heath spotted and pyramidal orchids abounded. It was a little late to see the twayblade and the bee orchid in flower, the specimens we saw had “gone over”.
Unspectacular to look at, but a local specialty was the adder’s tongue fern. Two plants used for dyeing were the striking bright yellow dyer’s greenwood and madder (the latter was described like cleavers /goosegrass on steroids). We learned about sedge and ladies bedstraws and enchanters nightshade (not related to other nightshades, but a member of the willow herb family). We discussed anthills--- the work of the yellow meadow ant---- providing food for many species no doubt, including the green woodpecker.
A number of different butterflies and moths were spotted----including large skipper, common blue, ringlet, tortoiseshell, six-spot burnet moth.
The reserve extends from the caravan site to the coastal path, from which there is a great view of St Mary’s Well Bay, before the path turns back through some unlovely concrete relics of WW2 which are being preserved.
It was a very enjoyable morning. Jeff and Kerry were thanked and a generous contribution was made on behalf of the group to aid the work being done on the reserve.

Photos from Lavernock can be seen here

Many thanks to Steve and Val Monaghan for organising the event.

TJ

Craig Cerrig Gleisiad and Nant y Bedd 3rd June 2021

As with many events this year the trip to Nant y Bedd gardens was planned about 2 years ago, but the 9 members who attended would agree that it was well worth the wait. It was to be a 90 minute drive up to Powys meeting for a picnic lunch so it seemed like a good idea to 4 of us at least, to start early and call in at Craig Cerrig Gleisiad on the way ( sort of) to see if we could find the ring ouzels. The steep route up is challenging and as we ascended the cloud descended and so we kept our expectations of achieving our goal low. Fleeting, tantalising glimpses of blackbird -shaped silhouettes were seen and before too long a female ring ouzel appeared amongst the rocks and crevices. Soon after that, a male was heard calling nearby and traced to its perch on a ridge of vegetation, giving us plenty of time to see and photograph it. Success!
We descended by the easier route and continued our journey to Nant y Bedd down some fairly narrow lanes and met the rest of the group for lunch in the Potager garden, after which Sue Mabberley gave us an introductory talk telling us of the 40 year history of how she developed the gardens and their gardening ethos: editing nature. The conditions dictate careful selection of plant varieties to survive.
By then the weather was perfect for wandering around and enjoying the profusion and confusion of growth. Wild flowers and weeds are allowed to grow and blend happily with the planted crops of organic vegetables, described as cultivated chaos creating a wonderful and fascinating spectacle. The woodyard provides willow, hazel and birch for bean poles and other plant supports. The pond was a special point of interest as we could see many newts (palmate and smooth) swimming and other, as yet unidentified creatures. The river forms the border between Gwent and Powys and the River Walk was magical, with the bluebells on the bank still at their best, and a waterfall tumbling into it.
Having admired all this and more, including a flock of siskins on a birdfeeder, we re-convened in the garden room for tea and home-made cake, thanked our hosts and gave them our contribution to the cause, £10 per head to cover the entrance fee and refreshments. Well satisfied, we set off on our return journey.

Many thanks to Roger Jones for organising this highly successful event so thoroughly.

TJ

Dawn Chorus Walk . Hensol Forest 5am 26/4/21

At about 4.30am it would have been possible to hear a collective mumble of " Whose idea was this?" across the Vale as 9 members gathered themselves to meet at Hensol Forest for a 5am start by the light of a nearly full moon. We made our way to the Pysgodlyn Mawr to start and it was the robin we heard first. We then spent the next 2 hours and a quarter listening and trying to identify the ever increasing bird calls. It was a little cold --about 4C, which encouraged us to keep moving, but there was no wind and there was a glorious sunrise which lit up the trees and allowed the birds to be seen in all their glory--especially the siskins which conveniently perched on the very tops of the conifers.
These are the birds we heard +/or saw between us:
Robin, blackbird, song thrush, black cap, great tit, blue tit, Goldcrest, goldfinch, whitethroat , chaffinch, willow warbler, wren, wood pigeon, crow, mallard, chiffchaff, siskin, great spotted woodpecker, long tailed tit, nuthatch, moorhen, jay, heron, coal tits, dunnock, geese.
John Andrew took a number of photos which are available to see on the link below.
Special thanks to John Cook for leading.

Photos taken on the walk can be found here

TJ

Another Wildlife Recording hour, followed by a Zoom meeting 1/4/21
Here are the results. It was a windy morning and with BST technically it was an hour earlier than the previous one, and there were 15 of us not 17 as before. Anyway the bird numbers were well down. The numbers in brackets are the figures from last month.
Jackdaw 97 ( 152)
Rook 39 (18) House sparrow 38(78) Wood pigeon 34 (67) Blackbird 32 (40) Carrion crow 28 (26 Goldfinch 21(50) Dunnock 21(37) Blue tit 21(36)
Great tit 15 (30) Magpie 15 (23) Robin. 14 (24) Chiffchaff 13 (0) Canada geese 12 (8) Gulls 10 (18) Mallards 9 (15) Wren 7 (6)
Greenfinch 6 (9) Moorhen 6 (3) Buzzard 6 ( probably 2 seen by 5 people)(0)
Long tailed tit 5 (21) Nuthatch. 5 (9)
Coal tit 4 (14) Starling 4 (4) Blackcap 4 (0)
Pied wagtail 3 (1) Pheasant 3 (5) Red kite 3 ( probably 1 seen by 3 people)(0)
Willow warbler 2 (0) Great spotted woodpecker 2 (8)
Song thrush 1(4) Green woodpecker 1 (2) Jay 1(1) Heron 1(1) Treecreeper 1 (1) Goldcrest 1(0) Bullfinch 1(0) Little grebe 1(0) Cormorant 1 (0)

Siskin 0 (2) Yellow hammer 0 (1) Dipper 0 (1) Raven 0 (6) Collared dove 0 (5) Grey wagtail 0 (1)

The wildflowers seen were: Bitter cress,Bluebell, Celandine, Cowslip ,Daisy, Dandelion, Dog’s mercury,Ground Ivy, Primrose, Violet, Wild garlic, and various tree blossom including—Prunus, Hawthorn , Blackthorn.
No-one mentioned seeing any butterflies and there were a very few un-named insects and several bumble bees.
I forgot to ask about any mammals. The usual squirrels and rabbits were absent for me. Afterwards, Roger emailed to say he had seen a sparrowhawk before the watch hour and had had a hedgehog in the garden the night before.

Thanks to all who took part.
TJ

Bird and other wildlife recording followed by Zoom meeting to collate and discuss results. 4/3/21

This meeting involved members doing their own bird count during a specific hour, namely 9.45-10.45am either in their garden or out on a walk in the area with a view to getting a snapshot of the wildlife which we will be able to use to compare with results at other times of the year.
Sixteen members and one guest took part. It was a dry but grey day and not windy.
Number of bird species recorded———————————37
Number of mammal species recorded———————— —1 ( 10 squirrels)
Others———Scarlet elf cup fungus
Leaf miner moths—holly and bramble.

Many of the bird numbers were boosted by 2 members who were out walking for the recording period and saw flocks of birds which means that some of the numbers are approximations . The numbers also include some birds which were heard but not necessarily seen. The grand total was 743 birds.
Far and away the most numerous were the jackdaws, thanks largely to a flock of 100 that were seen. The list is in descending order of the totals and can be seen on the link. Birdwatch List.

TJ

Back from the Brink Zoom Meeting 4/2/21

It was quite a coup to engage the services of Jennifer Gilbert , the Community Engagement Officer from the Back from the Brink project , Limestone’s Living Legacies, based in the Cotswolds. A definite advantage to weigh against the many disadvantages of lockdown, as it was only reasonable to have this talk online.
After introducing herself and the aims of the project, Jennifer explained how since the 1930’s when 40 of the Cotswolds was covered by unimproved limestone grassland that figure is now <1.5. Lost habitat results in a loss of species, and bearing in mind that this greatly reduced figure represents > 50% of the UK’s total unimproved limestone grassland. The aims of the project are to restore, manage, and ensure recovery and long term viability of the environment, whilst raising awareness and enabling people to take part. There are 30 target species. In the talk, Jennifer focused on the Large Blue Butterfly and the Rugged Oil Beetle.
Step one is to understand the very complicated, precarious , not to say convoluted life-cycle of the insect.
The large blue butterfly requires to be adopted by a specific species of red ant. It deceives the ant into taking it underground to the nest where it eats all the ant grubs. The parents seem not to notice.
The Rugged Oil beetle practice a similar deception. Adults emerge in Autumn or Winter. It excavates the earth to lay eggs which hatch in Spring. This larval stage is known as triungulins. These tiny beings, about 1mm long, need to hitch a ride on the hair of a female solitary bee, and hope not to be dislodged before reaching her nest where it feasts on pollen and nectar before it emerges as an adult.
We were left wondering how any of them survive as it sounds completely hit and miss, but after the hard work of the team and the volunteers, progress is being made even with the constraints of the pandemic and it is hoped that this year there will be good reason to celebrate success.

The Zoom talk was very well received. It requires a very lively speaker to keep an audience engaged for nearly an hour, which Jennifer did with ease having a fascinating subject and youthful charm and enthusiasm , and although it is difficult to express one’s appreciation with applause, many participants sent messages later which were relayed to Jennifer. A donation was also sent to boost the funds of the project.
Many thanks to David Webb for organising the meeting.

TJ