All posts by Chris Gibson

Way out West 3/4: St Davids & Solva…

Our day out from Haverfordwest by bus fortunately missed the rain bands that pushed through in the first part of the morning. First we were in our hotel, second we were on the bus and third we were in the St Davids Brunch House enjoying the very best meal of our whole break. This may have been open for only six months, but they certainly know what they are doing: worth heading way out west for!

Of course the main destination for our day was St Davids, and specifically the cathedral, although the Bishop’s Palace was also worth a peer from a distance.

The cathedral was lovely and welcoming, and told stories of the religious shaping of our islands. They are also trying to help shape the future, with Swift boxes and signage (and indeed we did see one), although the holy mowers out to strip the landscape of Daisies and Dandelions (noisily!) for the visiting hordes rather spoilt the message.

Inside, the ceilings were spectacular and the misericords entertaining…

… while the Welsh cake cream teas were simply delicious (I rarely photograph food, so these are the beautifully dappled surroundings!) and the secret garden a haven of quiet, light and colour.

We then took to the woods in search of bugs, and whenever we found a sunny corner sheltered from the cool breeze, there they were, all manner of flies, bugs, scorpion-flies, weevils and more…

 

Also fascinating was the fact that Navelwort was here growing on the woodland floor (not rocks and walls), and extending to 80cm in height, several times larger than the usual nutrient-starved examples elsewhere in full sunlight.

The local walls also of course also had a rich array of ferns, including Black Spleenwort, and lichens.

St Davids was lovely, if rather busy. Our next port of call, Solva, a small coastal village was similarly lovely to look at (although the sun had departed), and presumably similarly busy in the height of the season, to judge from the size of the car park. But not today: it was quiet and even the pub welcome was subdued. Or even absent. A typical ‘pub that doesn’t have to try’ because of its natural advantages in terms of location…

Still we had a (swift) drink and headed down the cove, among the rocks with maritime lichens and salt-spray-tolerant plants such as Thrift, English Stonecrop and Rock Sea-spurrey, with wind- and salt-sculpted scrub covering the slopes, lit up festooning Honeysuckle and spires of Foxglove.

And of course at least a few insects, including a Gelis ichneumon, with remarkably marked wings:

Then back to Haverfordwest on the last bus: every bus of the day was punctual, and with a day ticket for the T11 service between Haverfordwest and Fishguard, very good value allowing us to hop on and off at will. A great day out, with at least a hint of the westerly weather we had come prepared for!

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Other blogs of this holiday:

Way out West 1/4: Gloucester… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Way out West 2/4: Haverfordwest… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Way out West 4/4: Newport (Gwent)… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

The Wild Side of Essex: Hockley Woods

The largest contiguous ancient woodland block in East Anglia, Hockley Woods sit astride the ‘southern Essex Alps’, a ridge of London Clay capped with sands and gravels, and have become a traditional fixture for Naturetrek day walks at this time of year, searching especially for one of our rarest butterflies, the Heath Fritillary. This year, I spent a couple of hours the previous day there with friends and this blog is an amalgam of the two days.

I am always worried by this trip. Given the butterflies have a short flying season of only three weeks or so, and that they can start as early as mid-May and as late as mid-June, there is no date that can guarantee sightings. Having said that I have never failed, but this year’s warm, droughty spring has brought things on a little early, so the fritillaries were numerous, but perhaps a little past their peak emergence date.

A very hot and humid spell meant that insects in general were more flighty than sometimes, but the number of insects was very noticeable. From the constant hum of Honeybees visiting Bramble flowers to the mini-swarms of flittering, feeding and flirting wood sprites, bioabundance was a joy to witness, especially given the relative dearth of insect life over the past couple of summers. Nature can bounce back quickly when conditions are right!

One reason why this site is so important for Heath Fritillary is the abundance of its larval food plant Common Cow-wheat in the coppices and rides. But apart from this, there were relatively few other plants in flower, the spring flush having now faded. Hedge Woundwort, Bush Vetch, Slender St. John’s-wort and Wood Avens were just a few of the relatively sparse flowers used to demonstrate some of the more distinctive plant families.

Thank goodness for the Bramble! Lining every ride-side and filling every gap in the leaf canopy, Bramble flowers were bursting forth and feeding all manner of insects, with bumblebees and Honeybees, and hoverfly and longhorn-beetle mimics of the stingers:

There was also a scattering of Common Figworts, with their beautiful if sombre flowers, and most showing signs of the associated Figwort Weevil – adults, spherical cocoons, slug-like larvae, and the grazed leaves.

Large Wood Ants’ nests are a real feature of the wood: it is unwise to stand too still for too long! The ants are everywhere, heaving, hauling and searching, as well as tending and milking the blackfly colonies on many a dock shoot. And one of the specialities of this wood, Four-spotted Leaf-beetle, a myrmicophilous species, inhabiting the ants’ nests, and known in Essex only from one other wood apart from the Hockley complex.

Oak (two species, plus hybrids), Hornbeam and Sweet Chestnut form the bulk of the woodland cover, but there are plenty of other species, some characteristic of spring-lines (Wild Cherry and Aspen), others very much restricted to ancient woodland site (Wild Service-tree, Woodland Hawthorn). And some with their own specialist leaf-feeders and gall-causers.

Deeper in the shade of the trees, birds were singing, especially Stock Doves, Blackcaps, Wrens, Chiffchaffs and Robins, calling Treecreepers, Nuthatches and Buzzards, and noisy bands of fledgling Great, Blue and Long-tailed Tits. Following spring drought, there were few fungi in evidence, but blue-stained wood infected by Chlorociboria aeruginascens was still to be found.

At the other end of the light/shade spectrum, a walk along the woodland edge produced singing Skylarks over the arable fields. Ox-eye Daisies were flowering and Salsify fruiting in the field margins, here a trues sense of place looking down from the lofty heights, over Southend, and across the Thames to the North Downs.

A selection of other insects from the walks included the bugs Closterotomus trivialis (a relative newcomer to the UK, first found only 15 years ago), Bracken Planthopper (despite the abundance of its foodplant, only four other recorded sites in south Essex), Common Damsel-bug and Red-legged Shield-bug.

And much more!

Despite us being in the depths of the ‘June Gap’, there were a few other butterflies around, including small numbers of Holly Blue, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Painted Lady, Comma, Small Tortoiseshell and Meadow Brown…

… but it was the fantastic fritillaries that stole the show: the primary reason for our visit and the main memory we shall take away from it. Hats off to Rochford District Council for striking such a good balance between human recreation and nature!

Way out West 2/4: Haverfordwest…

And so we reached Haverfordwest, enticingly situated at the tidal limit of the Western Cleddau river, a point marked by a weir with associated fish-pass.

Bridges are naturally a feature of a town on the river, ranging from old stone ones (the historic lowest bridging points of the river) to more recent railway and pedestrian crossings.

Tidal waters mean both trade and power: trade in the form of former warehousing and wharfage, power in mills, or at least the mill races and leats that extend upstream. And it seems that the County Hall may have been built on or close to a former mill, to judge from various road names and the watercourse issuing from beneath the building.

Although completed  as recently as 1999, County Hall is really quite spectacular in its clean design of interconnected bastions.  What’s more, it is covered in Swift-boxes (with associated screamers). All credit to Pembrokeshire County Council, even though we didn’t actually see any Swifts in the airspace; however the meadow lawns around the building did have Southern Marsh Orchids!

Well provided with riverine walkways, we headed upstream where the still waters were producing squillions of mayflies, some of which were being snapped up by swooping Swallows and House Martins, or by fishes from below with an audible plop.

The dense vegetation harboured all sorts of interest, from beetles (Green Dock Beetles, both adults and larvae, were very numerous), to moths both large and small (Flame Shoulder and Woodland Sedge-moth, the latter according to the NBN found nowhere nearer than Llanelli) and galls (Dasineura ulmaria on Meadowsweet):

And then downstream, again very green, but interesting also where the river walls have ferns like Maidenhair Spleenwort, and an abundance of tenacious Alder and Buddleia saplings sprouting from the cracks. Even this far on the fringes of the nation, the leaves of the latter show signs of infection by the newly arrived Melon-Cotton Aphid, and they were also being eaten by Mullein Moth caterpillars. While this a known food plant for this moth, we have never seen it using it before. There were also lots of Two-spot Ladybirds and an Oncopsis planthopper, as well as an array of caddisflies, reflecting the high water quality: here are the Welshman’s Button and Black Silverhorn.

 

At the edge of town, we had a look round the tumbledown Haverfordwest Priory, dating back to around the start of the 13th Century, and featuring what is claimed to be the only surviving ecclesiastical medieval garden in Britain, replanted to resemble its look and fragrance in those times. Nearby wall-tops were covered in blankets of Mouse-eared Hawkweed, showing well the shagginess and stoloniferous habit.

Thence to the Priory Saltings nature reserve, the lower sections of which are tidal reedbeds. Along with masses of Hemlock Water-dropwort: we saw this plant everywhere we went during the holiday. But only here was it being demolished by the larvae of the micromoth Depressaria daucella (Water-dropwort Brown), and as-yet-unidentified spindle-shaped galls in the primary umbel spokes.

Other wetland plants in flower included Ragged Robin, Brooklime and Celery-leaved Buttercup.

The higher, drier areas had a mixture of scrub and species-rich grassland…

… which of course provided good insect habitat, including the micromoth Pammene aurana, not recorded on the NBN any nearer than Carmarthen.

The higher parts of the town have some lovely narrow, historic streets…

… along with several churches on some of the highest points. Best of all, now a private residence, was St Thomas A Becket, immersed in a churchyard of managed wilderness.

One final high point is the site of the ruined castle, with no public access apart from the southern slopes that bring wild flowers and insects into the heart of the town.

Haverfordwest was a great base for a couple of nights, in the comfortable, friendly County Hotel, very convenient for the station. And plenty of places to eat, best of which was the extremely welcoming Bristol Trader pub.

It is also, without any hint of a slight, a great place to get out of: the gateway to even more far-flung lands using the remarkably efficient bus service, as we will see in the next blog….

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Other blogs of this holiday:

Way out West 1/4: Gloucester… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Way out West 3/4: St Davids & Solva… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Way out West 4/4: Newport (Gwent)… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Way out West 1/4: Gloucester…

For our June short break, it was off to South Wales by train. As we headed out we travelled through an intense band of rain, fortunately not a portent of the days to come, and we kept completely dry – the benefits of train travel!

On the way there, Gloucester proved an ideal stopping-off point. We visited Gloucester as recently as last April, but felt there was unfinished business for us, especially missing out on the chance to stay in the New Inn, a remarkably historic, galleried pilgrims inn, all timber and wonky floors. History permeates the building: it was here in 1553 that Lady Jane Grey received the news that she had been made Queen, and so was sealed her untimely fate. But we did wonder for how much longer it will be possible to feel that history. Under new management, it feels down at heel and in need of substantial investment, but it was worth spending a night there for the aura, even if Lady Jane failed to appear for us…!

While in Gloucester of course we didn’t neglect the rest of the city, and an afternoon potter around saw us lifting our eyes above the modern shopfronts, to see the remnant history that has survived the bombs and planners of the 20th century:

Pre-eminent amongst this is of course the Cathedral. No time in our schedule to go inside (we explored it fully last time), but the surrounding cathedral quarter was really doing its bit for wildlife, the plantings (including globe-thistles and scabious) attracting all manner of bumblebees, Honeybees and other pollinators, even in overcast conditions.

Last time we loved the docks, and this year was no exception. Redevelopment from their original use has retained many of the attractive dockside buildings, all with a liberal sprinkling of Herring and Lesser Back-backed Gulls. Indeed the entire city has become a very significant year-round breeding and feeding location for these birds which in the ‘wider countryside’ are rather struggling from habitat loss, disturbance and climate change affecting natural food supplies.

And around the docksides, a plant that was to become very familiar as our holiday continued, Hemlock Water-dropwort, seemingly to be found in every damp area of the region, especially in proximity to the coast.

Next morning though it was time to move on, into south Wales. What a lovely rail journey, first along the western shores of the Severn Estuary…

… thence through Newport, seeing the sights that would become very familiar to us in a few days’ time…

… and to the coastal landscapes of Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire, to Haverfordwest, almost as far as the train tracks run.

But this was merely a prelude to the main part of the trip, to be covered in three subsequent blogs…

Way out West 2/4: Haverfordwest… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Way out West 3/4: St Davids & Solva… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Way out West 4/4: Newport (Gwent)… | Chris Gibson Wildlife

Warley Place: a nature reserve like no other

During a full career working in nature conservation in Essex, I was privileged to visit most of  the best (and worst!) bits of the county multiple times. But there is one nature reserve I managed to get to only once, Warley Place, near Brentwood. I was there maybe 30 years ago, specifically to see the drifts of Wild Daffodils.

But at the end of April, the prospect of a radio interview took me back to Brentwood. And so I leapt at the chance to see Warley Place once gain, albeit in rather dull and cool conditions.

The daffodils were all but over, but botanically it was just lovely. Not surprising, given the history of the site as the former home and garden of the noted Victorian plantswoman, Ellen Wilmott.

 

From an early age Miss Wilmott set about transforming the garden, introducing traditional features such as hothouse and a walled garden, as well as more ambitious land-shaping like the Alpine gorge, created on a natural slope with r‏ocks imported from Yorkshire.

Ellen died in 1934, almost penniless as she had spent her inherited wealth on creating and maintaining this and other gardens.  Over the 20th century the house and garden fell into disrepair; it was taken over by the Essex Wildlife Trust in 1977, and since then the garden has been managed for wildlife.

Much of the decaying building and hard landscaping remain, as do probably some of the original plantings, though sadly not Ellen’s treasured filmy ferns for which she provided a specially constructed cave.

But it is nature rewinding itself, covering the scars of the last century that left a lasting impression on me. Along of course with the sheets of Bluebell and Wild Garlic, the views over to central London, and the peace and quiet, apart from birdsong. And sadly, the intrusive road traffic noise …

A curse of our times, though who am I to judge? I drove there, and then through Brentwood High Street (a revelation to me which made me think we should pay a visit some time) and to the Phoenix FM studio. The interview is linked below for any who want to listen, about me, my life and career, my work with Beth Chatto Gardens, my new book and my involvement with the campaign to save Wivenhoe Old King George Oak. The interview begins around 25 minutes into the show…

Earth Day Special! INTERVIEW: Dr Chris Gibson

Late Spring on the Isle of Wight

A lovely smooth hovercraft crossing on a warm, sunny day brought us to Ryde by early afternoon, and the start of our four-night break in the Isle of Wight, an island I have never visited before. Be aware this is quite a long blog, with more than a hundred photos: we packed in quite a lot!

As with so many seaside towns, Ryde is a place of faded glories. Around the town there are many fine buildings, signs of former wealth, though many have seen better days. Take the former Royal York Hotel…an art deco marvel when it was built no doubt, still intact but now wasting away…

The pier and seafront had the usual facilities, including our comfortable Ryde Castle hotel, and a restaurant, Fumo33, where we had the best meal of our holiday.

And of course the views, across the Solent to Portsmouth and the ever-present interest of vessels moving along and across the channel, and weather approaching.

In terms of wildlife, there were lichens everywhere, on unpolluted bark, salt-splashed timbers and gull perching posts…

Around the town, Swifts screamed overhead, Holly Blues and Red Admirals were active in the sunlight and the walls were clothed in Red Valerian, Mexican Fleabane, Wall-rue and both Adria and Trailing Bellflowers, with figworts habouring Figwort Weevils.

After overnight rain, we headed by train for a day in Shanklin. The forecast of heavy rain proved pessimistic, but the sun was largely missing as we explored, again a run-down town but this one with a chocolate box thatched old village tacked unconformably on one side.

From here we walked around Shanklin Chine, although only skirting the gorge…on such a gloomy day it would have been doubly gloomy in the depths of the abyss.

Rylstone Gardens gave us the chance to find a few soggy insects, galls and flowers, and views along the coast from the cliff-edge. The Zigzag Elm Sawfly is interesting as the National Biodiversity Network Atlas shows it at only 3 locations on the island, all at the diametrically opposite side from Shanklin.

 

And then after taking refuge from a heavy shower in the Village Inn, we headed down to the shore. Beyond the promenade, the cliff slopes had Great Horsetail, Hemlock Water-dropwort and Sea Radish, the latter being demolished by Large White caterpillars.

And then back along the prom, looking towards the chalk cliffs of Culver Down, with Fulmars flying by, a pristine pair of Mediterranean Gulls on the beach and a Painted Lady on the Seaside Daisy flowers.

 

Next day, the sun returned and we were off to Ventnor for the second half of our stay, this time using the island’s remarkably efficient bus service. Our destination was Ventnor, which certainly felt a more appealing place than anywhere else we had been. That impression grew immeasurably while sitting in the tiny Spring Hill Garden: a Glanville Fritillary flitted around us, and sunned itself on the paths. We had hoped to see this speciality of the southern slopes of the Isle of Wight, but never expected to in the middle of town!

Ventnor Park was the next stop, for lunch and a wander along the stream, with Azure and Large Red Damselflies, Water Crickets and plants telling us we were in a climatically favoured part of the world.

Then at last the final stroll to our main reason for visiting the island (conceived when we visited the Hillier Garden in Romsey last July, another garden created and bequeathed by Sir Harold Hillier): Ventnor Botanic Garden, set in the most privileged of places, at the foot of a steep slope, facing south in the southernmost part of the island, billed as Britain’s Hottest Garden.

The plants were magnificent, from forests of Giant Viper’s Bugloss buzzing with bees to Cabbage Palms, their flowers scenting the air extravagantly.

 

There were amazing floral and foliar sights and scents at every turn:

  

But not just plants from afar – there were Ivy Broomrapes in Ivy-filled borders and Yellow Flags around the ponds, to name just two:

The environmental ethos of the garden feels exemplary, plants to match the conditions, not overly concerned with tidiness, and with many demonstrations of a holistic approach to garden sustainability.

The wildlife seemed to love it too, with all manner of bees and other insects visiting the flowers, oblivious to the far distant origins of most.

 

Galls always fascinate us and included Aculops fuchsiae (mite gall on Fuchsia), Plagiotrochus quercusilicis(wasp gall on Evergreen Oak) and Taphrina caerulescens (fungus gall on Red Oak). We first saw the latter in Dulwich a couple of weeks ago; according to the NBN Atlas it is not known from the Isle of Wight.

A Grey Heron was a regular visitor to the ornamental pond, where it fished alongside the resident Red-eared Slider terrapins.

And two of the specialities: Red Squirrels on their island refuge away from the threat of Greys,  and Common Wall Lizards, not native to Britain but reputedly washed ashore from a shipwreck and now well established.

 

And we had the pleasure of two nights staying in Smugglers’ Lodge, within the garden, one of the buildings remaining from the garden’s previous incarnation as a hospital.

Even around the lodge there were Wall Lizards along with Ivy Broomrapes and vast lines of ants. But not just any ant: apparently these are Tapinoma ibericum, native to southern Spain and Portugal. First found around a decade ago, it is assumed they were accidentally brought into the garden, transported on the root balls of plants. This represents the only known established population outside its native range. And interestingly, the species is used  there as a biological control of unwanted agricultural ‘pests’ – perhaps it plays a similar role here?

Staying in the garden gave us the opportunity to experience the surroundings, solitude, scentscape and birdsong, at times when there was virtually no-one else there. That’s what we went hoping for. Sadly, ’twas not to be. On our single full day there, after a glorious hour savoring the scents and the silence (save for birdsong) a groundsman with a leaf-blower started up at 07.45 and continued unabated until lunchtime, until we were forced off site by the aural intrusion. Was this really necessary? And was a petrol-driven blower really the only answer, given the gardens’ otherwise exemplary environmental ethos?

So it was not perfect, although we really wanted it to be. And while being picky, I should also say that as a botanical professional, I think the name ‘Botanic Garden’ is a misnomer. A real botanic garden, for me, should have an overtly educational mission, and this should include comprehensive and accurate labelling of the undeniably exciting forms. Sadly this was not the case, and it felt more like a municipal park with special plants than a real botanic garden.

Anyway, as always we made the most of adversity, and when forced out of the garden by the racket, we walked down to the neighbouring Steephill Cove. One of the highlights of our holiday, it had sea views and soundtrack, interesting insects including more Glanville Fritillaries, Common Blues and Iris Weevils (on Ox-eye Daisy!).

And from the Crab Shed, absolutely delicious crab pasty, salmon pasty and mackerel baguette. This was a perfect lunch in a perfect place, away from the annoyances of that which should have been perfect.

From there it was a short walk back along the coast path, the more natural vegetation of the cliff top (apart from the Hop plantation) a contrast to the garden. I was briefly stopped in my tracks by a broomrape that I hoped might prove to be a new site for the exceedingly rare Oxtongue Broomrape, found in a couple of spots elsewhere on the island. But eventually it proved to be a somewhat anomalous form of Ivy Broomrape, albeit a couple of metres away from any aerial Ivy. The roots do travel!

Our final morning dawned damp, dull and breezy so after a lovely breakfast in the botanic garden cafe, we headed straight out by bus to Newport. The county town of the island, one thing that distinguishes this from the other towns we visited was it has a bypass, and so the interior is not plagued by cars. Indeed, it also had a vibrant, arts feel, with the Quay Arts Gallery, a fine Minster and lots of interesting buildings. Plus the Bargeman’s Rest pub where we had an excellent lunch and a pint. So taken were we that if we ever return to explore the western half of the island, we will make Newport our base and travel out each day by bus.

All to soon it was time to head back to Ryde for the return hovercraft crossing. And here another word of warning: if you book rail and crossing together through a third party, like Trainline as we did, a booking doesn’t constitute a booking. To ensure your place on a specific crossing you need to book it additionally with Hovertravel. At no time in the booking process, nor on the outward journey were we told this. Indeed they shouldn’t have taken our money without a firm booking: that is simply deceitful, taking money under false pretences.

Of course we complained, but predictably the parties who replied blamed each other.  Hovertravel blamed Trainline, Trainline blamed everyone else, and South Western Railways haven’t yet replied. In reality of course, all are to blame for failing to be grown up and talk to each other and develop a fully integrated booking system, or at least to communicate effectively.  In this day and age, that is unforgiveable, especially as we had onward, timed rail bookings; not to have made the connections could have cost us a lot of money. But fortunately the helpful check-in man from Hovertravel just managed to get us on the intended sailing, but only due to a couple of last minute no shows.

 

 

Eleanor’s best photos – Meanwhile Garden & Wivenhoe

It’s been another lovely couple of days with Granny and Papa. We went on the train to Colchester to find bugs and other creatures in the Meanwhile Garden. There were big caterpillars and lots of bees and beetles in the flowers.

In Wivenhoe I took some pictures of insects on Hollyhocks and Daisy, and other flowers and leaves.

 

And my favourite Poppies…every year I love looking at these. Papa loves the picture at the bottom so much that he wishes he had taken it! I hope you love it too!

Therfield Heath & Hayley Wood

On the hottest day of the early May heatwave, I had a speaking engagement in Bourn, just west of Cambridge. And so I took the opportunity to visit a couple of the noted wildlife sites in the area…

Just over the border into Hertfordshire on the final slopes of the Chilterns is Therfield Heath. Renowned as one of the best UK sites for Pasqueflower, sadly I was a couple of weeks after the flowering peak, but it was still spectacular, the purple Pasques mingled with yellow Cowslips and blue Common Milkwort flowers, and harbouring several adult Cinnabar moths.

 

In the beechwood, the lime-green fresh leaves, newly emerged, already cast shade on the woodland floor, where many White Helleborines were just showing colour in the expanding flower buds (about two weeks too early for this one!).  But Sanicle was in full flower…

And then it was to Hayley Wood, made famous by Oliver Rackham, only the second time I have visited.

Actively coppiced, the ground flora is spectacular, with Greater Stitchwort, Yellow Archangel, Lesser Celandine, Bluebell and Bugle, together with Oxlips, again past their best, but always a delight and a real eco-geographic speciality of the claylands of the area of Cambridgeshire, Essex and Suffolk.

Quite a damp wood, sedges make up a good proportion of the rideside vegetation, with Wood Sedge and Lady’s Smock especially just bursting into flower, and in the shady interior, Woodland Hawthorn was blooming well.

Ash dieback has taken its toll on the wood, but dead wood becomes a resource, and King Alfred’s Cakes were sprouting everywhere.

Insects included click-beetles, scorpion-flies and munching Mottled Umber moth caterpillars…

… while singing Chiffchaffs, Willow Warblers and Blackcaps, with a single vocal Nightingale completed a lovely walk. Maybe it won’t be another 30 years before I return!

BOOK REVIEW Living with Lynx: sharing landscapes with big cats, wolves and bears, by Jonny Hanson

Living with Lynx: sharing landscapes with big cats, wolves and bears, by Jonny Hanson (Pelagic, 2025) ISBN: 9781784274955 £20

Reviewed by Dr Chris Gibson FBNA

Living with Lynx - Hanson - Pelagic Publishing - 9781784274955The whole topic of reintroduction of long-gone (or more specifically long-exterminated) predators fascinates me, and especially since my last years with Natural England, where I was responsible for liaison with the Lynx UK Trust in the run-up to an application for a licence (never granted) to release European Lynx in possibly suitable parts of our country.

I have spent much time in Lynx-country (and indeed the haunt of wolves and bears) on the continent, and seen only signs such as footprints of all three, apart from Brown Bears at an official feeding station. Nor have I expected to. But there is a visceral thrill about stepping into the unknown in the presence of large predators. Would it not be wonderful if we could experience that thrill within our own shores?

Well, many – most, even – of us in BNA might think so. But clearly others don’t necessarily, whether it be the natural prey of those predators, or the farmed equivalents thereof. And importantly, of course, the owners of those agricultural animals. Such questions form the backbone of this book, explored in depth, although I felt generally viewed from the perspective of modifying the predator presence or behaviour to suit the humans, rather than that of modifying the human presence or behaviour to suit the predators. Who was there first?

Nevertheless, the author covers important ground, from a highly informed perspective, in relevant parts of the world. For me, the dense text, lacking illustration and rather few subheads, is not easy to navigate, and I would not therefore turn to it as a manual of how to plan the approach to a large predator re-establishment and management programme.

The text comes to life in those sections where the author adopts a more conversational style, presumably verbatim, with those providing insights from their particular perspectives. As a counterpoint to the densely written passages, this makes for easier reading, though some could find the juxtaposition a little jarring. And again it means that anyone wanting a ‘reintroduction handbook’ might be disappointed: by their very nature conversations are not as information-rich as clearly crafted text.

For me, the most important paragraph is at the top of p. 127, a call to dial down the polarisation between different ‘sides’ in this debate, to employ a more nuanced approach – good advice in so many situations in a world dominated by the soundbite and social media. Unfortunately, ‘walking a mile in their shoes’ takes time, effort, and mutual willingness, all of which slows the whole process up. Which then increases the tendency for ‘guerilla reintroductions’ and the consequent pushback, such that ‘change nothing’ becomes the default.

Turning to the book itself, the cover is lovely, and oozes quality, although I think the production values of what is inside do not live up to that promise: it feels like a paperback in hardback’s clothing. The paper stock is commendably unbleached, but the typeface is for me insufficiently contrasty against the yellowish paper. Add the rather flimsy paper, through which the words from the reverse tend to bleed, those with visual limitations (such as me and my cataracts, at least when I started reading it) may find it hard going. In places, the text appears inexpertly laid out, as for example the single line of a new subsection orphaned at the bottom of p.71. Of course, no ‘blame’ for such things should be laid at the door of the author. And at least it is not a (physically) heavyweight tome, so if you are interested to explore what is a key issue of our nature-depleted times from every possible angle, working through it won’t place too much strain on your arms!

First published by British Naturalists’ Association.

The Wild Side of Beth Chatto Gardens: Wildside Walks start up again…

It was a pleasure to recommence my Beth Chatto Gardens wildlife walks for visitors a few days ago. The sun was shining, and at least when sheltered from the chill north-easterly breeze, the garden was buzzing with both people and insects!

Perhaps the greatest insect activity was around the ponds, with marginal vegetation full of resting Alderflies, flittering Small Chinamark moths (moths with uniquely aquatic larvae), a couple of dashing Broad-bodied Chaser dragonflies and everywhere, damselflies: resting, flying and mating. There are now three species on the wing, Large Red, Blue-tailed and Azure Damselflies, leaving their exuviae – the empty nymphal shells – on the leaves of marginal plants like Bogbean.

Overwintering butterflies are all but over, with only a female Brimstone and a couple of  Red Admirals seen during the morning. But spring emergers, like Holly Blues, Orange Tips, Green-veined Whites and Speckled Woods put on a good show…

… and there were several Green Hairstreaks among the pondside foliage, some by now looking very battered, although others in full iridescent green glory. A Painted Lady haunted the Reservoir Garden, perhaps presaging a good immigration year for them, and in the same area a vibrant, fresh male Common Blue ushered in a shard of summer.

During the daytime, it is possible to see both day-flying moths and night-flyers that have been disturbed from their place of shelter. The latter group was represented by a Water Ermine, almost pure white, a scarce moth in Essex found in wetland habitats especially in the north-eastern coastal fringes. And lovely day-flyer was a Small Yellow Underwing, more widespread inland in grassy places, but always a delight to see. Both are new species for the gardens, I believe… just a pity that both avoided being photographed!

No such problem with the caterpillars though, here a single Brown-tail, Mullein Moth on the Verbascum and seemingly everywhere on Euonymus, festoons of silk and associated defoliation from Spindle Ermine larvae. It looks dramatic, but the Spindle bushes will likely not be killed, and the moth may not reappear next year…

 

And looking at the few remaining Spindle leaves, I was pleased to find a new gall for the garden, a leaf-roll made by Spindle Leaf-edge Mites Stenacis euonymi. Not only new for the garden, but according to the National Biodiversity Network Atlas distribution map, scarce in the county with the only other Essex records coming from Hatfield Forest in the far west. As so often though, this might reflect under-recording rather than genuine rarity.

So much to see at every turn. A bunch of bugs (Cinnamon, Hairy Shield-, Green Shield- and Dock Bugs, plus the plant bug Harpocera thoracica)…

… the first nymphal Dark Bush-crickets I have seen this summer…

… a couple of soldier-beetles, Cantharis rustica and C. livida

… and much, much more.

And finally, a trio of interesting  sawflies, a group of wasps without a ‘wasp-waist’ that have caterpillars that munch leaves. At rest on Iris leaves, there were Iris Sawflies, parents of the larvae that will be eating a raggedy hole in the leaf-blades in a month or two. The second, with a distinct black mark on its forewings, might well be the Dark Birch Fusehorn Arge fuscipes, a black species recorded at only 22 sites nationally. And then there was the red-tinged Tenthredo (probably T. colon, though some are very hard to tell apart). This was eating an Alderfly, interesting behaviour indeed: I had no idea they were predatory, joining our army of friends maintaining balance in the garden. I am used to seeing related species in showy flowers, but it seems that some at least may not be taking nectar as I assumed: they may equally be lying in wait for other insects to arrive. I learn something new every time I visit. And again, this seems not to be a common species (the NBN map shows no Essex localities), although the under-recording caveat certainly applies here.

This summer is already shaping up to be a good one for garden wildlife, with insects more obvious than the same time last year, although we could do with some rain before an intense drought sets in!

On top of all this, Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps and Robins were in full song, together with single Greenfinch, Goldcrest and Cetti’s Warbler, the latter being the first time I have ever heard the species around our garden. The new records keep on coming in!

The next couple of Wildlife Walks are planned for 20th June. If you are interested in joining me, please book through these links – 11am and 12am. And if moths are something you would like to know more about, there’s our Moth Morning the following day…

Back to Breckland: Cavenham and Knettishall Heaths

Back in the day when I lived in Norfolk, Breckland was a familiar stamping ground, a mix of dry heathland on sands over chalk, bisected by rivers and fens, and much clad in forestry: diverse habitats, with a range of rare and interesting inhabitants. Later on I worked there, on a conservation strategy for one of the iconic Breckland birds, Stone Curlew. Interesting times which saw me spending many fruitless hours trying to persuade the then MP about their charms. Her name; Liz Truss….

So, recently, heading to give a talk in Barton Mills, I enjoyed the opportunity to return to the Brecks, to a site I had not previously visited, Cavenham Heath NNR. A sunny day helped light up the range of heathland habitats, from Heather heath, to Gorse heath, to Birch heath, to grass heath and lichen heath.

I  was enveloped by the sound of singing birds, including Stonechats and Whitethroats, Cuckoos, Skylarks and Yellowhammers … broken only by the roar of US military planes overhead. Sadly, such is Breckland.

And just occasionally, the bubbling song of ‘real’ Curlews, mingling with the wild wailing of Stone Curlews … there are a few places where both can be heard together on these ancient heaths now maintained and managed by an army of Rabbits.

Other special wildlife included Sandpit Mining-bee Andrena barbilabris, Common Heath moth and a Copper Greenclock beetle Poecilus cupreus, while Small Coppers and Speckled Woods (among a total of ten species of butterfly) and very fresh Oak Apple galls provided a welcome splash of colour on what can be rather monochrome heaths, at least until the heathers bloom in late summer.

Plants included Field Mouse-ear and Spring Beauty, although exploration of the open heaths was rather curtailed by access closures due to breeding Stonies…

At the eastern end of the heath, the dry ground drops down to the River Lark, and a very different series of riparian and fenland habitats. The first few Large Red Damselflies were on the wing, and the songs of Cetti’s, Willow and Garden Warblers and Lesser Whitethroats were added to the soundscape.

A very good day out, and so it remained after dark, when stepping out from the village hall I was immersed once again in the weird wails of Stone Curlews.

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A couple of weeks later, and I’m heading back to the Brecks to visit British Naturalists’ Association Chairman Steve Rutherford at his adopted nature reserve of Knettishall Heath. On the way there I took the opportunity to have a quick look in Redgrave & Lopham Fen, at the watershed of East Anglia, the Waveney flowing east straight to the North Sea and the Little Ouse, running west, towards the Wash.

A few kilometres down the Little Ouse is Knettishall Heath, as with Cavenhham a site previously unknown to me, where I was shown round by Steve and Sam, the Suffolk Wildlife Trust warden.

One of my first impressions was how much quieter it was than Cavenham, away from the flightlines of Mildenhall and Lakenheath Airfields. I could hear the birds without interruption! My second impression was how diverse the structure of the reserve is, and how all the people from all the cars of the car parks could simply disappear into the landscape.

It is remarkable to think that until SWT took control in 2012, much of this area was under blocks of conifer plantation, and those bits that weren’t were overrun with dog walkers as it was a country park (where access generally takes priority over nature).

Habitat restoration and management, along with effective public engagement now sees this bit of the Brecks returning to the rich, diverse heathland state it was in the early 20th century, with breeding Woodlarks, Stonechats and Curlews, while apparently Nightjars are also there along with Stone Curlews feeding at night.

We didn’t have chance to spend too much time tracking down wildlife, and indeed for insects it was very much on the cool side. But it was good to find Hound’s-tongue in flower, carpets of Mouse-eared Hawkweed not yet in bloom and localized patches of Mossy Stonecrop, only recently recorded at the site.

And a couple of interesting plant-interactions, the Anther Smut Ustilago violacea, a fungus that takes over the pollen-dispersal structures of campions and best of all, hot off the presses and kindly flagged for us by another very sharp-eyed warden David, galls of the gall-midge Geocrypta galii on Lady’s Bedstraw, a new record for the reserve, and (at least according the the National Biodiversity Network Atlas) new to the Suffolk Brecks, with just four localities shown in and around the Norfolk Brecks.

Never say never in Breckland. It always changes, has always changed. Indeed its biogeographic character was established by shifting agriculture and cultivation. And even after longer-term interruption to these cycles, such as under the deathly blanket of commercial conifers, if you give nature a chance it will return. Knettishall is proof of that! And I am sure I shall be back….

Eleanor’s photos – Wivenhoe waterfront and Colchester

Granddaughter Eleanor’s photos have featured before in these blogs – see here, here and here – and rightly so. But this is the first one of hers exclusively. No captions or commentary, just enjoy Wivenhoe waterfront, Colchester St Botolph’s and Castle Park in the sun, as seen through the eyes of an inquisitive seven-year-old. Indulgent maybe, but I am a very #ProudPapa!