Jubilee Park Local Nature Reserve

Chislehurst Rd Station k How to Get There.. ar y P el 162 k Jubilee Bi c 269 can be reached using the following bus routes: Nature Trail R2 (Mon-Sat) Stn to Valley via

T o R3 to via Orpington and C T H h O is Petts Wood Stn. R le N E h T ur D W OLDFIELD R O s O t T o E R7 (Mon-Sat) Orpington to Bickley via Petts Wood CP D E N E R r N D B T

N P Stn, Southborough Lane and Blackbrook Lane A ic CP E A L k G

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D y A K N N 162 Jctn to via , O W E E

O O H O Bickley, and New Eltham R Jubilee Country Park D T B CP L R K Local Nature Reserve A CO N D A 208/N47 Orpington to Lewisham via Petts Wood Stn., N L W

B DRIVE A Bromley and EW Y I V T

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208 E

R ORO N47 C 269 Bromley to via Chislehurst, SOUTHB UGH VE LA D A R2 NE OO S W and Bexley NK FRA Q Southborough U E E 273 Petts Wood Stn. to Lewisham via Chislehurst, N S Petts Wood W Grove Park, Lee and Hither Green R3 A Station Y

R3 T o Trains: Nearest Stations: Petts Wood, Bickley and O Petts Wood r Chislehurst p in g t o n Correct at time of going to press. Latest information from Traveline: 020 7222 1234

With thanks to Andy Purcell/CEC for use of weasel and common shrew images.

If you are interested in Jubilee Country Park and would like to become more involved, there is a Friends of Jubilee Park Group. For details about this and for up-to-date information about Bromley’s countryside, including accessibility and nature trails, contact Bromley Countryside Service on 01689 862815, e-mail countrysideandparks@ bromley.gov.uk or see www.bromleybiodiversity.co.uk

EMERGENCY PHONE: 020 8464 4848 A Wildspace Project supported by English Nature The Wildspace Project Promotes Local Nature Reserves for Local People. and the New Opportunities Fund THE GREAT VARIETY OF MINIBEASTS PROVIDE FOOD What to see in Jubilee Park FOR BIRDS, AMPHIBIANS AND SMALL MAMMALS Jubilee Country Park is part of a wildlife corridor linking to open countryside via Petts Wood and along the London Loop. Its 62 acres of wildflower meadows, hedgerows and A B C semi-natural ancient woodland contain remnants of an ancient farmed landscape once common, but now rare. Look for some of IN SUMMER SEE HOW MANY BUTTERFLIES the many plants and animals which have become uncommon in AND MOTHS YOU CAN SPOT the countryside. Some you will be able to see on the way around Butterflies fly in daytime and favour brightly the nature trail indicated by posts, (tick the circles). Others may be coloured flowers; many moths are nocturnal G H anywhere in the park and are shown in some of the pictures and are attracted by pale, scented flowers. opposite. How many can you spot? Most adults of both drink nectar from a variety G Bluetits nest in tree holes and bird boxes; egg laying is timed so Score:10-20 whacky weasel, 20-30 D of flowers, but often the caterpillars only eat there are plenty of caterpillars and grubs for the growing chicks- as knowledgeable newt, over 30 awesome owl one type of plant. the chicks get bigger, adults may bring grubs and caterpillars back to the nest 600 times per day A Swallow-Tailed Moth: caterpillar camouflaged as a twig to hide from Looking Back to the Past predators lives on elder, hawthorn and blackthorn and hibernates during H Nuthatches use their chisel-like beaks to prise insects from tree bark or open acorns wedged into crevices. Land at Jubilee Park is mentioned in the Domesday Survey of winter. 1086 when it belonged to the Bishop of Rochester. Thornet Wood B Small Copper Butterfly: caterpillars eat dock and common sorrel I Newts breed in the ponds but spend most of their lives away from is referred to in early documents and the right to fell timber here water hunting invertebrates and hiding under logs and stones. was kept by the Bishops until 1845. From 1250-1400 the area was C Common Blue Butterfly (male): female is brown, caterpillars eat bird's Common Shrews have to eat every 2-3 hours and need to eat associated with a family called Blackbrook and by the 16th foot trefoil. J 70% of their own body weight in minibeasts every 24 hours. Their century some of Jubilee was pasture for sheep and cattle. In 1780 Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly on Fleabane: caterpillars eat young nettle hearts beat 900-1000 times/minute, but they only live for about a Bickley Hall was built nearby for the Wells family, wealthy D leaves growing in a sunny position. Look for butterflies hibernating in your year. shipbuilders from Deptford who rented and sublet fields at shed during winter. Jubilee for arable or pasture until John Wells was declared K Weasels hunt for mice and voles. bankrupt in 1841. In 1916 the developer who built the Bickley Park Estate turned land here into a golf course but the clubhouse IN WINTER LOOK FOR FUNGI, MOSSES AND LICHENS was bombed in 1940. The NE of the park was an army base in World War II, with anti-aircraft guns. Afterwards the land was let for grazing until it was bought in 1977 by Bromley Council, J named to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, E and opened to the public in 1981. LOOK AND LISTEN FOR BUSH F CRICKETS AND GRASSHOPPERS How to get around Young hatch in April/May from eggs laid the previous autumn. They look like The Jubilee Trail is marked by 15 numbered posts, banded in adults, but can't fly. They grow and shed their skins several times before K yellow (see inside leaflet). It is about 2mls (3km) long and the becoming mature. Adult males attract females with chirping song in summer. underlying London clay means it is sometimes very muddy but at Sometimes eaten by birds or small mammals. Live for about 5 months. other times the soil dries forming deep cracks. There are gates, Crickets differ from grasshoppers in many ways which include having long steps and though the park is fairly flat there are some short antennae and eating soft-bodied minibeasts as well as plants. gradients over 10% (1:10) as shown overleaf. Please follow the Roesel's Cricket Country Code, keep to the footpaths and remove your dog waste. E Cycling is allowed on cycle track only, horse riding only on the F Meadow Grasshopper-feeds on grass bridleway. Fishing is not allowed. Bromley Parks and Open Spaces There are at least 28 species of grass growing in Jubilee Country Park. How many By-laws apply. can you see? (one mark per grass) I Trail T ature More light reaches the woodland he Jubilee N floor where the paths meet so 4 there are many wildflowers here in summer. Look for field rose and T As you start the Nature Trail notice the goat willow and aspen to H O gatekeeper butterflies drinking from R your left. In spring both have male and female catkins on different N E T nectar-rich blackberry flowers. Hedge trees, but aspen is wind pollinated while the nectar of goat willow W O O woundwort borders the right of the attracts insects early in spring. Aspen’s flattened leaf stalks cause D Gatekeeper R O path as you go into the woodland. Its Butterfly its leaves to flutter A D leaves were used as a poultice applied when the wind blows. BROMLEY HIGH SCHOOL to wounds and contain a volatile oil with antiseptic properties. Hedge Woundwort Field Rose

Gradient 13% (1:8)

R A IL You are now in Thornet Wood. W A Y This semi-natural ancient 5 L Gradient 14% (1:7) IN woodland is dominated by Left: Goat Willow leaves E oak trees: the 2 native species and Far left: female catkins 3 Above: male catkins hybrids between them. English oak 8 THORNET WOOD 2 has long-stalked acorns, stalkless 4 leaves; sessile oak, has acorns with 6 steps 6 no stalks and long-stalked leaves.

E 7 Look for ancient woodland

AN indicator species such as L

5 K 14 15 bluebells, wood anemones O 9 Gradient 11% (1:9) O 1 and early dog violets which R SOUTHBOROUGH B 10 K STABLES flower before the leaves C

T A E grow on the trees and L Gradient 15% (1:6) N

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P shade them. Ground Right: Aspen leaf E G = Gate beetles hunt in the Left: female catkins L 11 A Above: male catkins N N E leaf litter.

This area was used as allotments from the IVE 13 DR S EW 1940s -1971 and the woodland around you OU VI 1 TH EST B R has developed since. The taller trees are OR C OU ST. JAMES R.C. Ground Beetle GH early colonizers e.g. silver birch which only live for LA PRIMARY SCHOOL NE about 60years. Look for longer-lived trees such as 12 English Oak oak and beech which are now quite small but will eventually dominate this woodland. Dead wood is broken down by fungus, returning nutrients to the Beneath the grassland here are remains soil: in spring look for scarlet elf cups; 2 of gun emplacements and buildings at other times, witches butter. dating back to World War II. Calcium in the concrete makes the soil more alkaline Common Mallow so you can find chicory and the moss Barbula Yellow Meadow convoluta. Chicory was introduced here. In Ant some places its roots were dried, roasted, ground and then used as a substitute for coffee As you walk towards during the war. At the path edge where the soil post 3 look for spindle has been disturbed look for common mallow. 3 trees planted on the Barbula convoluta Chicory left. This small tree Witches Butter Elf Cups Silver Birch likes alkaline soils and is so named because its wood was Early Dog Violet used in the past for making spindles, used when wool fibres were spun into thread. The big ant hill here is home to yellow meadow ants. Spindle Sessile Oak Migrant Hawker Dragonfly In front of you are Scots pine trees, planted Hedges provide food, shelter and safe Red Bartsia 8 in the 1930s at the golf course boundary. Note 11 passage for many different animals. 13 6 orange bark and quite short needles in 2s.The Look for wild cherry, and shield bugs cones nearest the branch tips were fertilised last which suck plant sap. Both provide food for spring, those further down the branch are 2 years old. birds. Underneath oak leaves you may find They ripen at 3 years old and shed winged seeds. Near spangle galls which mature in September and the horse paddock is Austrian pine, with grey bark, fall to the ground. Each contains the larva longer needles and onion shaped buds. Listen for the of a tiny female gall wasp which hatches This seasonal high pitched call of goldcrests as they search for insects in spring and lays eggs which develop into pond usually has in the pine tree tops. Britain’s smallest birds, they the next generation of male and female gall water for long enough for frogspawn to weigh about the same as a £1 coin. wasps. Goldfinch develop into tiny froglets which leave the pond to live in the long grass, under Goldcrest stones and in crevices. Common spike- In summer look for red bartsia near this rush grows at the back of the pond. post. This semi parasite gets some of its food When the pond dries, look for jointed from grass roots to which it is attached. In rush growing where the water was. autumn and winter goldfinch and greenfinch fly in at dusk to roost in the scrub. Common Spike-rush Jointed Rush Dragonflies can often be seen hunting here but need permanent ponds to breed. Wild Cherry Shield Bug Keep to the right hand path

This old sandy bunker remains from the Scot’s Pine & cone (far right) 14 Lucerne 7 days when this part of Jubilee Park was a golf course. The drier, acid soil in this Looking over into the horse paddock you can often area supports different plants from most of the 9 see grey herons near the pond. In winter flocks park including lesser stitchwort, tormentil and of finches come to eat oil-rich dock seeds shed nectar rich Devil’s-bit scabious. Wolf spiders hunt in autumn and redwings hunt for invertebrates once the berries in the hedgerows have been eaten. in the grass, the female carries the egg-sac under Common Spangle Gall Silk Button Spangle Gall the abdomen and in many species when the Redwing Agrimony young hatch they climb onto her back and are carried around by her at first. at end of hedge turn left Listen for grasshoppers and crickets in summer. In summer the meadows are full Agrimony on the right is an indicator of 12 of corky-fruited water dropwort, unimproved grassland. Lucerne is from the which is only found in 19 areas in Mediterranean area but was often planted in Britain. Keep to the paths, but look for the past as part of arable crop rotation to grass vetchling and common spotted orchid. improve soil fertility, because like many plants Grey Heron In front of you an old medieval boundary in the pea family, in poor soils it develops ditch and bank is marked by a line of trees, nodules on its roots which contain bacteria able mainly oak. Blackthorn here was once part to change nitrogen in the air to nitrate (plant of a stockproof hedge. food). Greenfinch Wolf Spider Devil’s-bit Scabious Lesser Stitchwort Follow the hedge laid in 2004 As you approach the 15 10 post look for soldier beetles hunting for smaller insects which have been attracted to the nectar- Grass Vetchling rich flowers of creeping thistle. Blackthorn Just over the bridge on the Common Spotted Orchid Lesser Celendine Cuckoo Pint left hand side look for midland Next to this post is a veteran English oak tree. As you walk towards post hawthorn whose flowers have Left Above: 2 stigmas and 2 seeds in each Soldier Beetles on It marks the line of the ancient boundary of 8 the grass becomes coarser berry. Common hawthorn Creeping Thistle Towncourt Wood. Nearby in spring look for Above: lesser celandine whose flowers only open in and there are less flowers to the right of the path has Midland Hawthorn Large Skipper because this area was once flowers with 1 stigma and 1 Left: on Corky-fruited sunshine, and cuckoo pint, which is pollinated seed in each berry. Common Hawthorn Water Dropwort by flies attracted to its unpleasant smell and reseeded and fertilised. Tormentil has poisonous red berries in autumn. Look for lichens... es, fences and concrete on tree trunks and branch

Lichens are made up of a fungus and a species of alga growing Some are fruticose (branched) Evernia together. Algae are very simple plants and like all other plants D prunastri. make sugars using sunlight, carbon dioxide and water. The fungus uses some of the sugar made by the algal partner and in E or have leaf-like scales at the base return helps to stop the algal cells from drying out. (squamulose) e.g. Cladonia coniocrea. F Some appear to be just a powdery mass on tree trunks, Lepraria incana. D F Lichens are used as pollution indicators. In the past sulphur dioxide was the main air E pollutant and by looking at the lichens growing near your house you could tell roughly how much sulphur dioxide was in the air where you lived. A, E and F are all lichens which will grow in areas where sulphur dioxide pollution is up to 125µg m³, B and D tolerate A maximum sulphur dioxide levels of 60-70 µg m³, while lichen C will tolerate levels up to 40-55µg m³.

A Some of the lichens in Jubilee Park are like crusts, e.g A) Now the level of this pollutant in the air is dropping and lichens like Flavoparmelia Lecanora muralis. caperata are coming back to live in Jubilee Park that were not able to live there a few others are leaf-like (foliose) e.g years ago. However levels of nitrogen oxides in the air (from car exhausts for example) are going up, so the species of lichen coming back to Jubilee Park are only those which B Hypogymnia physodes can live with increasing nitrogen enrichment. C Flavoparmelia caperata

We hope you enjoyed the trail, come again soon.

B C