Community Commons Project Harold Common Contents

Foreword and Acknowledgements 3 Map of Common 4 Introduction 5 History of the common 6–11 Geology 12 Habitats 13 Wildflowers 14–15 Trees 16 Fungi 17 Butterflies 18–19 Birds 20–21 Reptiles and amphibians 22–23 Glow-worms 24 Mammals 25 Management of the common 26 Care of the common 27

Cover photos : Goldfinch (NA) Common centaury (JH) Adder (CH) View of common (JH) Common spotted orchid (CH) >

2 Ewyas Harold Common Foreword

Ewyas Harold Common is unique, and it is with great pleasure that I commend this wonderful booklet describing the common’s many features and delights. It is the work of many hands, but chiefly Judy Hart who has gathered together all the information. I hope that you who visit the common, whether local or visitor, will find this booklet useful, not only to help you appreciate the common as it is now but also to understand its history.

I trust therefore that you enjoy your time on Ewyas Harold Common.

John Rogers May 2010

Acknowledgements

This booklet is based on information gathered from publications and survey work carried out by many dedicated individuals, including: Graham Sprackling (history of the common); Sheila Spence (fungi); Ian Hart (butterflies); Mike Porter and Les Smith (wildflowers); Nigel Hand (reptiles); Felicity Burge (small mammals); Peter Parkes (ecology) and Michael Wright (birds). Tim Breakwell and Peter Jinman have also given help and advice.

Three views of the common (JH) >

Ewyas Harold Common 3 Map of Ewyas Harold Common

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Key Ewyass Harrolld Common boundary Trail 164 m Highest point

4 Ewyas Harold Common Introduction

Ewyas Harold Common is one of more than 200 commons in Herefordshire. It covers an area of 50.8 ha (125.5 acres) on a plateau above Herefordshire’s Golden Valley, and rises to 164 m at its highest point. The common is owned by the Lord of the Manor but some local people enjoy commoners’ rights to graze animals.

To the north is the village of Abbey Dore, with the magnificent Dore Abbey restored from a Cistercian monastery, and to the south is the village of Ewyas Harold, linked to the common by a deep sunken lane with wide steep banks. The picturesque valley of the Dulas Brook lies to the west.

From the top of the common there are wonderful views of Garway Hill to the southeast, the Skirrid to the south, and the Black Mountains and Hay Bluff to the west. The common is a magnificent wild space and an important local amenity. It contains numerous relics of past use, including quarries, lime kilns, orchards and abandoned house sites. And it is a wildlife oasis, rich in butterflies, flowers and fungi, and an excellent site for bird-watching.

In this booklet, information on the history of the common comes from a publication called Ewyas Harold Common: A Local Study , written by the Ewyas Harold and District Workers’ Education Association Research Group in the 1980s. With the help of one of the author’s of this publication, Graham Sprackling, this current booklet has been written by Judy Hart, Community Commons Project Officer at Herefordshire Nature Trust. Information on the ecology and wildlife of the common has been gathered from many sources.

Spring on the common (JH) >

Ewyas Harold Common 5 History of the common

Commons are remnants of a system of land land, often on high difficult ground, left over use that dates back at least to medieval times after the Lord of the Manor had taken the best and sometimes to pre-history. In the Middle fertile land for farming. The common was Ages they provided summer grazing for sheep owned by the Lord of the Manor, but was to supplement the income of local people used communally by local cottagers to graze who had rights to the grazing. In monastic their animals and gather brushwood. These times the Cistercian monks of Dore Abbey ‘rights of common’ were recognised by the used upland commons on the Brecon courts, thus preventing the Lord of the Manor Beacons as summer pasture for their large from enclosing and ploughing the common flocks of sheep. without authority from Parliament.

There are more than 200 commons in Most common land is still privately owned, Herefordshire, ranging in size from 0.02 ha to and ‘rights of common’ are attached to farms 439 ha (Hergest Ridge Common), and 3% of and properties close to the common. and 9% of is common land. However, nowadays many of these rights are not exercised and many commons, including Many commons, including Ewyas Harold, are Ewyas Harold, have become semi-wild areas relics of the medieval manorial system. of high nature conservation value because Described in ancient documents as the waste they have not been ploughed or fertilised. of the manor, the common was the poorer

View of the common (JH)

6 Ewyas Harold Common There are six main rights of common. Pasture is the right to turn stock onto the common to graze. There are rights for different types of stock, including cattle, sheep, horses, goats, geese, ducks and poultry. Pannage is the right to turn pigs out to eat beech mast. Estovers is the right to cut brushwood and branches for firewood and collect bracken and gorse for animal bedding. Turbary is the right to dig peat or turf for fuel. Piscary is the right to fish in ponds or streams, and common in the soil is the right to take sand, gravel, stone or minerals.

On Ewyas Harold Common there are commoners with rights of pasture, pannage and estovers, and one with the right to take slate. All commoners have rights of access to their properties and some have the right to draw water from St Martin’s Well. Since 2000 Sheep grazing on the common (JH) and the CROW Act (Countryside and Rights of By the early 17th century, cottages and Way Act), the public has been granted a ‘right smallholdings, each with their own enclosure of access on foot’ to all common land in of 3–4 acres began to spring up around the England and Wales. edge of the wood. With the passage of time the rights of these properties to use the In early Norman times Ewyas Harold Common common became established by custom, and was part of Lord’s Wood, a large area of in fact were called ‘customary rights’. Many of woodland used by the Lord of the Manor for the settlements were on the east side of the game and hunting. People from Ewyas Harold wood, sheltered from the prevailing winds village had the right to turn out their pigs into blowing from the Black Mountains, and thus the woods in autumn to graze on acorns and suitable for orchards, for which Herefordshire beech mast. It is not known how quickly the was beginning to be renowned. Interesting common lost its trees but it is likely to have old varieties of apple, such as Sam’s Crab and been a gradual process. Prince’s Pippin, still grow in local orchards today. Lord’s Wood common land was part of the estate of the Marquess of as far It was in the quiet and prosperous agricultural back as the 16th century. Only one lease of days of the first three-quarters of the 18th land in the wood has been traced back to the century that the common came to life and reign of Queen Elizabeth I. This was in 1573 became home to at least one-fifth of the and it grants a parcel of four acres within the inhabitants of Ewyas Harold. With a Lord of ‘Lord’s Wood in Ewyas Harold’ to Thomas the Manor ready to grant reasonable leases Morgan of Ayleston Bridge (now ). (usually for three lives) there was sufficient

Ewyas Harold Common 7 ‘wood pasture’ during this period, and the commoners’ livestock would have grazed the pasture between the well-spaced mature trees. The 1851 census gathered a great deal of information about the dwelling place, occupation, age, birthplace and status of everyone in the parish.

In 1887 a group of plane and lime trees were planted near the Cwm Hill entrance to the common to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee. When WWI ended in 1918, Armistice Day was celebrated with a bonfire on the common.

On 22 and 23 January 1920 the 2670 acres of the Marquess of Abergavenny’s Herefordshire Estate were sold by auction at the Angel Hotel in Abergavenny. All the properties bordering Commemorative trees (JH) the common would have been affected, and security of tenure for the initial outlay for a some locals took the opportunity to buy their smallholding to be worthwhile. Some of the own smallholding or cottage. men with holdings were labourers, tramping

soon after sunrise to neighbouring farms to View across the burning ground (JH) work for the day. Others granted leases were craftsmen. There were weavers, tailors, a carpenter, a cordwainer (shoemaker) and a mason. All of these had their three or four acres. And several Ewyas Harold commoners seem to have been involved in the main organised industry in the district – the spinning, carding, fulling and weaving of wool and hemp.

By the time of the 1851 census there were probably about 30 occupied dwellings on the common, home to about 100 people, which was more than a quarter of the population of the parish. More than a third of the parish tradesmen lived on the common, including men working in wood, metal and stone, as well as clothing manufacturers and shoemakers. The common was probably

8 Ewyas Harold Common Top: Black-and-white photograph from the 1970s. Bottom: The common today, showing an increase in scrub vegetation (JH)

Ewyas Harold Common 9 the end of the war VE Day was celebrated with a bonfire on the Burning ground.

An aerial photo from 1946 shows the common to be grassland with some bracken, but essentially devoid of trees and scrub. However, reduced grazing since the war has allowed the pendulum to swing back, with the development of extensive areas of scrub.

Today parts of the common are bounded by ancient sunken lanes, particularly on the southern side. In other parts the edge coincides with medieval parish boundaries. There are several old boundary stones on the common bearing the letters E H (Ewyas Harold) and A B (Marquess of Abergavenny). These stones were always placed in greatest numbers at sensitive points where there was a WWII track made from concrete slabs (JH) need to clearly define the boundary in case of disputes. So there are several close to the At the beginning of WWII a munitions depot local water supply at St Martin’s Well and was built close to Ewyas Harold for the others marked the boundary between the Ministry of Supply. They needed an area of ground away from the main depot for the Old boundary stone (JH) disposal, by burning, of waste explosives. The sandstone quarry close to St Martin’s Well was chosen and commandeered by the Ministry in the name of national defence. The quarry was cordoned off and large signs were put up telling people to ‘Keep out’. During the war years the crackle of exploding cordite became a familiar sound. Local people still call this site the ‘Burning ground’. A special roadway of concrete slabs was built to allow access for lorries carrying the waste. These remain to this day, although many worn slabs have been replaced. It is possible to see a manufacturing date on some of the slabs, etched at the time into the setting concrete.

During WWII Ewyas Harold Common was used by the army for practising manoeuvres, and at

10 Ewyas Harold Common common and pastureland belonging to the monks of Dore.

The spring that rises through limestone outcrops on the common is known as St Martin’s Well. It has supplied water to many generations of people living close to the common. In 1894 the first pipes were laid to carry spring water to houses around the common and in Ewyas Harold village. By the early 1960s the increased demand for water meant that it was necessary to connect the village to the mains water supply, but several houses around the common are still supplied with spring water. Close to St Martin’s Well are the remains of a WWII windpump that pumped water to the Ministry of Supply depot.

The common contains various other relics of past use, including quarries, orchards, charcoal-burning platforms, abandoned house sites and enclosures. The production of lime for agricultural use was also a major activity in the south of the common. The site of a single large lime kiln, where limestone from this part of the common was burnt to make lime, can still be seen.

The production of lime was a major activity on the common in the 18th and 19th centuries. The lime kilns would originally have been about 5 m high. Limestone extracted from quarry delves on the common was burnt in the kilns using local wood or charcoal. The pure lime that was produced had many uses: large quantities were spread on fields to make the soil less acid; it was also used for lime mortar and lime-washing the walls of houses, as a bleach in paper-making and for sprinkling in cesspits to kill germs. It was even piled in heaps next to field gates to prevent foot-rot in livestock. Remains of WWII windpump (JH)

Ewyas Harold Common 11 Geology

Ewyas Harold Common is part of the Black ‘mountain building’, and later eroded, Mountains Massif, forming the lowest of the particularly during the ice ages. mountains’ three flat blocks. It forms the boundary between the Black Mountains and The three main rock types are red marl, the hill country of the Upper Monnow. Most limestone and sandstone. The layer of of the common is over 120 m (400 ft), rising to limestone separates an impermeable red marl 164 m (538 ft), and is tilted southwards. It is bed (clayey silty sandstone) below from a bounded by the Dulas Brook and the River permeable pure sandstone bed above. Where Dore, which both flow south-eastwards into the limestone comes to the surface there is a the Monnow. line of springs and patches of marshy ground.

Geologically the common is made up of three The three different underlying rocks have rocks belonging to the Old Red Sandstone or influenced the physical environment. The old Devonian period. During this period the area red sandstone gives rise to acidic conditions would have been covered by sea. Over while the limestone forms alkaline soils. millions of years the sea was replaced by Different plants thrive in the different soil estuarine then fresh water, in which a great types, allowing the common to support a depth of sediment accumulated. The area wide range of species. The limestone areas was then uplifted during the period known as have a particularly rich flora.

Ewyas Harold Common (JH)

12 Ewyas Harold Common Habitats

The mosaic of habitats on Ewyas Harold typical of acid grassland thrive. Where the Common makes it home to a wide range of underlying rock is limestone, the soils are species. The vegetation over almost half of more alkaline and an interesting range of the common is dominated by bracken. Some lime-loving plants can be found. The different of it is dense with a thick layer of dead grassland habitats support a wide range of bracken litter. Few flowers grow in these fungi, insects and other species. conditions, but it is an important habitat for reptiles. In other places the bracken is less Towards the centre of the common, areas of dense, particularly where it has been cut in marshy grassland remain damp all year and the past. Here violets and other spring support a range of plants and other species flowers thrive, providing an important habitat that thrive in wet places, including sedges and for fritillary butterflies. Adder’s-tongue fern, a rushes. Other parts of the common are small fern of old damp pastures, can also be dominated by scrub and there are small found in a few places where the bracken is pockets of mature broad-leaved woodland. sparse. These areas, including the woodland edge habitat, provide nesting sites for many birds, Grassland covers about a fifth of the common. and are home to several small mammal Where the underlying rock is old red species, including hazel dormouse. sandstone, the soils are acidic and plants

Bracken and scrub habitat (JH). Inset: Adder’s-tongue fern (CH)

Ewyas Harold Common 13 Wildflowers

More than 200 species of wildflowers and ferns have been recorded on Ewyas Harold Common. The wide range of habitats and soil types in different parts of the common allow many species to flourish, including some that are rare elsewhere in Herefordshire.

In early spring, various species flower before the leaves appear on the trees and the bracken starts to grow, including bluebells, early purple orchid, sanicle, bugle, sweet woodruff and violets, especially common dog violet. The purple–blue flowers of bugle are an important food source for pearl-bordered fritillary butterflies. In damp grassy places, lady’s smock or cuckoo flower (named Common dog violets (JH) because it coincides with the song of the caterpillars. The tall magenta spikes of cuckoo) and lesser celandine are widespread, foxgloves are widespread in clearings and in while red campion, cowslip and barren bracken-dominated areas and are an strawberry prefer drier conditions. important source of nectar for bees and other insects. In late spring and early summer the common puts on a magnificent display. The beautiful Several species of climbing plant scramble in pink flowers of ragged robin thrive in damp the scrub: the scented pink and white areas, along with the tall spikes of flowers of dog rose are widespread; the meadowsweet. Common spotted creamy-white scented flowers of traveller’s orchids are widespread, and the grassy joy, our native wild clematis, are a good rides are bordered by heath bedstraw, nectar-source for night-flying moths; and heath speedwell, tormentil and the fragrant flowers of honeysuckle not only milkwort. The purple flowers of attract moths but are also eaten by selfheal, used in the past as an dormice. Honeysuckle bark is also stripped astringent for healing wounds, are by dormice and used to make also abundant, including an unusual pale their intricately woven nests. pink form. Twining hop plants, with their yellow–green flowers, can be Enchanter’s nightshade is a found on the common in common plant in the moist and summer. Hops are the shady wooded areas. It flowers after food-plant of the rare the leaves appear on the trees and is buttoned snout moth which has the food-plant of elephant hawk-moth been recorded on the common.

Early purple orchid (LH)

14 Ewyas Harold Common bedstraw, named after its use in the past as a sweet-smelling mattress stuffing, flourish in the grassland, along with fairy flax, wild thyme, wild basil, salad burnet and dwarf thistle. These plants grow in parts of the common where the soil is rich in limestone, although the number of lime-loving species has declined in recent years as grazing has reduced. In other grassy areas, creeping cinquefoil, harebell, common and greater bird’s-foot trefoil and germander speedwell are just a few of the many species that flourish in summer.

Devil’s-bit scabious, agrimony and betony grow in long grass where the soil is more acid or neutral. In damp areas, the yellow flowers of lesser spearwort and sneezewort, the blue flowers of brooklime and the pink flowers of lousewort, a partial parasite on the roots of other plants, are common. The creeping silvery leaves and yellow flowers of silverweed are also frequently seen on damp tracks.

The spectacular pink flowers of meadow saffron are widespread in autumn. They appear from the bare earth, hence they are also known as naked ladies. Their long strap-like leaves grow in abundance in spring and summer, but die back before flowering. Winter flowers on the common are few, but gorse and ivy provide important sources of nectar for insects, and the tiny yellowish–green Wildflowers (from top left): Betony (CH), Common bird’s-foot trefoil (JH), Devil’s-bit scabious (CH), Harebell (CH), Cuckoo flower (CH), flowers of mistletoe appear in Ragged robin (AK), Meadowsweet (JH), Dog rose (CH), Selfheal (CH), Common spotted orchid (CH) late February. A small area towards the middle of the In high summer the pink flowers of common common where the gorse has been centaury and the yellow spikes of lady’s cleared is now covered by heather. Meadow saffron (LH)

Ewyas Harold Common 15 Trees

Parts of Ewyas Harold Common are covered by deciduous woodland and scrub. The canopy is mostly ash, English oak, silver birch, sycamore, field maple and wych elm, while the understorey includes hawthorn, hazel, blackthorn, spindle, gorse and guelder rose. Holly, yew, alder, crab apple, wild cherry, elder, goat willow and crack willow are also found.

Towards the southwestern boundary is an area of large old coppiced hazel. These produce an impressive crop of hazelnuts in autumn, a vital food source for the dormice on the common. A search through the empty shells under the trees reveals nuts eaten by dormice, wood mice, field voles and squirrels. Nuts chewed by dormice can be distinguished by their neat hole with a smooth inner margin and teeth marks on the surface at an angle to the hole.

Several groups of commemorative trees were Silver birch tree (JH) planted on the common in the 19th century to celebrate Queen Victoria’s jubilees, the wide range of species, including dogwood most noticeable being the group of plane and and wild plum (bullace). lime trees close to the Cwm Hill entrance. Some of the boundary hedges are newly An aerial photo from 1946 shows the centre of planted while others are old and contain a the common to be extensive grassland with some bracken. Reduced grazing since the war Spindle berries (JH) has allowed large areas of scrub to develop, dominated by silver birch, blackthorn, gorse, sycamore and ash. The recent introduction of Exmoor ponies to graze the common will help control the spread of scrub and maintain the diversity of habitats for wildlife and open areas for people to enjoy. English oak (LH)

16 Ewyas Harold Common Fungi

The grassland towards the top of Ewyas Harold Common provides an ideal habitat for waxcap fungi. These brightly coloured mushrooms with their shiny waxy caps can be seen in autumn and are good indicators of high-quality species-rich grassland. Six species have been recorded, including the rare pink waxcap – the only pink mushroom found in Britain. The other species are golden, scarlet, spangle, blackening and snowy waxcaps!

Three different puffballs have been recorded in the grassland – dusky, pestle and meadow puffballs. The yellow fingers of two different fairy club fungi – meadow coral and golden spindles – grow in the short grassland and woodland clearings. And a tiny rare yellow cup fungus found nowhere else in Herefordshire has recently been recorded on the common.

Silver birch trees are fast growing and one of the first species to colonise new areas. They have associations with many species of fungi where both the tree and the fungus benefit from the relationship. Three species associated with the birch trees on the common Top: Birch polypore (JH). Bottom: Fly agaric (CH) are the birch bolete, the greasy green brittlegill and Other fungi, such as birch polypore, only grow the bright red fly agaric – the on dead birches, and help to break down the fungus well-known as tough cellulose in the wood. The white the toadstool in antlers of the candle-snuff fungus are many children’s widespread on dead rotting wood, as are illustrations. All birch woodwart and the orange bracket three species fungus known as hairy stereum. The colourful appear in bracket fungus called many-zoned polypore is autumn. also frequently found on fallen dead hardwood. Pink waxcap (LH)

Ewyas Harold Common 17 Butterflies

Ewyas Harold Common is a haven for butter - flies. Species that are rare elsewhere in Britain, such as pearl-bordered fritillary and grizzled skipper, thrive on the common. Green hairstreak, dark-green fritillary, marbled white and silver-washed fritillary are also among the 34 butterfly species recorded on the common in recent years.

Parts of the common are being managed to improve the habitat for pearl-bordered fritil - laries. Hawthorn and birch scrub has been cleared, leaving a mosaic of grass and dense bracken with plenty of common dog violets, the most widely used food plant for pearl-bor - dered fritillary caterpillars. Pearl-bordered frit - illary is one of the earliest butterflies to emerge in spring, flying close to the ground and stopping frequently to feed on spring flowers, such as bugle. The colony of pearl- bordered fritillaries on the common is of na - tional importance.

The caterpillars of dark-green fritillary and sil - ver-washed fritillary also feed on the leaves of common dog violets but the adults only fly in summer. Green hairstreaks can be seen in early summer as they search for places to lay their eggs on a wide range of species, includ - ing bramble, gorse and common bird’s-foot trefoil. The underside of their wings give the illusion of being green, an effect produced by the diffraction of light on the lattice-like struc - ture in their wing scales! Marbled white but - terflies prefer to feed on purple flowers, especially thistles, and their caterpillars feed on various species of grass.

Butterflies (from top left): Green hairstreak (SC), Marbled white (PP), The different habitats on the common provide Pearl-bordered fritillaries (TH), Grizzled skipper (CH), Common blue (BS), Small copper (AK), Speckled wood (NA), Wall (CH), Gatekeeper ideal conditions for other unusual species. (CH), Silver-washed fritillary (CH) Wall butterflies prefer short sparse vegetation

18 Ewyas Harold Common spring, when the adults feed on spring flowers such as bluebell, dandelion and bugle. Or - ange tips also emerge in spring and share the same nectar sources. They lay their eggs on plants belonging to the cabbage family, in - cluding cuckoo flower and garlic mustard.

Small tortoiseshell, painted lady, red admiral and peacock are four of the largest and most colourful butterflies found in Britain. They are all quite common but painted lady and red admiral are migrant species that are unable to overwinter here. The caterpillars of all four species feed on the leaves of nettles. The two blue butterfly species recorded on the com - mon are common blue and holly blue.

Several small brown-and-orange species are found on the common. They include small heath and meadow brown in the open areas of grassland and gatekeeper in the scrub. The caterpillars of these species all feed on various grasses that are widespread on the common. Comma butterflies favour the woodland areas, where they lay their eggs on nettles. Speckled woods, as their name suggests, also live in woodland and lay their eggs on grasses. And the bright copper-coloured wings of small coppers are a welcome sight in summer as they search for the leaves of common and sheep’s sorrel, the food plant of their larvae. Top: Painted lady (CH). Bottom: Comma (SC)

with patches of bare ground and their larvae feed on various grasses. Grizzled skippers also like short sparse vegetation and their caterpil - lars feed on plants that belong to the rose family, such as agrimony, cinquefoil and bar - ren strawberry.

Pale yellow brimstones are among the first butterflies to brave the weather in early Dark-green fritillary (LH)

Ewyas Harold Common 19 Birds

The mosaic of habitats on Ewyas Harold Linnets and yellowhammers are found in the Common, including woodland, scrub and low open scrub adjacent to the grassland open grassland, provides food, shelter and areas and neighbouring farmland where they breeding sites for many species of birds. A feed. The distinctive total of 58 species have been recorded, song of the including 13 species on the RSPB’s 2010 Red yellowhammer – ‘a- List (most threatened): skylark, little-bit-of-bread- yellowhammer, linnet, lapwing, song thrush, and-no-cheese’ – is fieldfare, cuckoo, spotted flycatcher, starling, one of the most familiar marsh tit, house sparrow, redwing and turtle sounds on the common

dove; and 14 species on the 2010 Amber List in summer. Yellowhammer (LH) (unfavourable status): redstart, green woodpecker, stock dove, meadow pipit, The laughing ‘yaffle’ of the green woodpecker bullfinch, swallow, swift, house martin, can often be heard. This large green bird with dunnock, mistle thrush, whitethroat, red kite, its bright-red head markings and willow warbler and grey wagtail. characteristic undulating flight is associated with both woodland and grassland, where it Bird species diversity is often highest in feeds on ants from anthills on warm summer woodland edge habitats. On the common, days. The song of the nightingale, which the blocks of woodland and scrub lying in requires a woodland habitat with dense open areas of grassland and bracken provide undergrowth, was also a familiar sound on the plenty of woodland edge for species such as common in the past. spotted flycatcher, cuckoo, mistle thrush and goldcrest. Dunnocks and willow warblers Great spotted woodpecker (SW) prefer scrub and woodland edge, where they nest in dense cover close to the ground. Song thrushes are found in trees and bushes but have a preference for woodland edge, while bullfinches need dense low bushes for their nests.

Chiffchaffs, whitethroats and long-tailed tits are not uncommon. The small olive-green chiffchaff looks similar to a willow warbler, but is readily distinguished by its song, from which it gets its name. Great spotted woodpeckers also live and breed in the woodland. These striking black-and-white birds with their bright red markings announce their presence in spring with their distinctive ‘drumming’ display.

20 Ewyas Harold Common The common is a favourite hunting area for tawny owls and little owls. The haunting call of buzzards is frequently heard on still days as they soar high in the sky, and recently local people have been delighted to report the return of red kites. The song of the cuckoo is always welcome in spring, and the sight of a dunnock feeding a huge young cuckoo in summer is one of the more bizarre natural wonders seen on the common in the past. Cuckoos are summer visitors but their recent population decline has made them an RSPB Red List species.

Lapwings, meadow pipits and skylarks are associated with the open grassland areas, but are less frequently seen than in the past. Nightingales and nightjars used to nest on the common before the 1960s, and snipe and curlew have also been recorded, but not in recent years.

In late summer and autumn small flocks of goldfinches can be seen feeding on the seeds of thistles and other tall weeds. The hawthorn, holly and bramble scrub, and the species-rich hedgerows along the common boundary, provide food and shelter for many species including winter visitors such as redwings and fieldfares. The houses and old buildings bordering the common provide nesting sites for house martins, starlings and swallows.

Meadow pipit (LH) From top: Chiffchaff (IR), Spotted flycatcher (SJ), Fieldfare (SJ)

Ewyas Harold Common 21 Reptiles and amphibians

All four of the common British reptile species Most reptiles lay eggs, but common lizards, have been found on Ewyas Harold Common – slow-worms and adders give birth to live grass-snake, adder, common lizard and slow- young. Newborn common lizards are only worm. The mosaic of habitats on the 3 cm long! Grass-snakes are the only reptiles common is ideal for reptiles: groups of small living on the common that need an trees; banks and slopes; thickets of bramble, incubation heap to hatch their eggs. These gorse and bracken; tussocky grass; and open heaps must be in a sunny warm site and are grassland with dipped areas exposed to the made up of branches, brash, bracken litter, sun. All reptiles like to bask on the leaf mould and dead leaves. The eggs are edge of thick stands of bracken, laid between May and July and usually and grass-snakes lay their eggs hatch in September. under deep layers of bracken S low litter. -w Slow-worms may look or m ( LH) like shiny snakes but Reptiles are cold- they are really legless blooded and in lizards. They feed winter they on slow-moving hibernate under prey, particularly bracken litter, bramble and logs, or in small slugs. deserted burrows. Their hibernacula are Grass-snakes are usually on south-facing slopes, and they often associated with remain faithful to the same hibernaculum all water; they swim well and feed mostly on their lives. In spring and summer grass-snakes amphibians and small fish. They are the bask in the morning sun to warm up their longest British reptile and can grow up to a bodies, but retreat to damp shady places later metre long. Common lizards feed mostly on in the day to prevent overheating. Common spiders and insects, and adders feed mostly lizards also like sunny open places, but slow- on rodents and lizards, striking their prey to worms prefer to hide under stones or wood inject venom and then following the scent that has been warmed by the sun. trail of the dying animal.

From left to right: Adder (JH), Grass-snake (NH), Common lizard (JH)

22 Ewyas Harold Common Common toad (PP) Five native amphibians – great-crested newts, times, which limits them to habitats close to smooth newts, palmate newts, common frogs freshwater or places that stay damp and common toads – have been found in the throughout the summer. Common toads are ponds on the common. The skin of common far more tolerant of dry conditions in summer frogs is smooth and needs to be moist at all but require large ponds for breeding. They

Top: Common frog (NW). Bottom: Palmate newt (SJ) can live for many years and captive individuals have reached the age of 50!

Smooth and palmate newts are found in ponds in their breeding season between February and June. Outside the breeding season they come onto land and live in damp places where they are often found under logs. Great-crested newts are Britain’s largest and most-threatened species of newt. They are also found in ponds in the breeding season but spend the rest of the year on land where they require extensive good wild habitat with plenty of invertebrate food. In the breeding season the males develop an impressive jagged crest along their backs, giving the species its name.

Great-crested newt (LH)

Ewyas Harold Common 23 Glow-worms

On summer evenings after dusk, the fluorescent green light of glow-worms can be seen on Ewyas Harold Common. Glow-worms are actually beetles and only the adult females glow to attract a mate. Glow-worms thrive in a mixture of unimproved grassland and scrub, and places that are dark at night, with no artificial lights to distract the males.

The glow-worm begins its life in autumn as a pale yellow spherical egg which hatches after about a month. The newly hatched larva devotes most of its life to feeding on a diet made up almost exclusively of snails and slugs. Larvae prefer damp habitats, the favoured sites of their prey, which may be up to 200 times their size!

Glow-worm larvae are mostly nocturnal. When they find a snail they attack it with a bite that injects a toxic paralysing fluid. The

larval stage lasts for two years, during which Glow-worm (LH) time a glow-worm may eat up to 70 snails.

The larva pupates in early summer and, after one or two weeks as a pupa, the adult glow- worm emerges in June or July. The female is larger than the male and is unable to fly or eat. All adult glow-worms live entirely on their food reserves. The underside of the female’s abdomen glows at night to attract a mate. The glow is a type of bioluminescence produced when a substance called luciferin is oxidised to form oxyluciferin.

The female is very sedentary but often climbs up some long grass to start her display just after dusk. The male is smaller and has wings so that he can fly around in search of females. Once the female has mated she turns out her light, lays her eggs and dies. Glow-worm habitat (JH)

24 Ewyas Harold Common Mammals

Many of the larger native British mammals have been recorded on Ewyas Harold Common, including foxes, badgers, stoats, weasels, brown hares and rabbits. Small mammals thrive in the woodland, scrub, bracken and long grass. Wood mice, yellow- necked mice, pygmy shrews, common shrews, bank voles and field voles have all been recorded. Bats, including the common pipistrelle, can be seen at dusk in summer as they forage for moths and other insects on the wing.

Hedgehogs live on the common, so the cattle grids at the entrances have been adapted to allow hedgehogs to climb out if they are unfortunate enough to fall in! Grey squirrels are also found on the common. They were introduced to Britain in the mid-19th century and during the 20th century spread rapidly to displace native red squirrels. They cause

widespread damage to the bark of young Hazel dormouse (IP) trees and eat birds’ eggs and nestlings. can be distinguished from other mice by their Hazel or common dormice live in the scrub orange-brown fur, thick bushy tail and big and woodland edge on the common. They beady black eyes. They are one of Britain’s most endangered mammals because much of Weasel (ES) their habitat of deciduous woodland and hedgerows has been lost. They are nocturnal and spend their days sleeping in nests beautifully woven from honeysuckle, grass, moss and leaves. When they are active at night they spend most of their time above ground in shrubs and trees searching for berries, flowers and insects to eat. In autumn, hazelnuts are their favourite food. They hibernate to conserve energy when food is short and may spend up to three-quarters of their life asleep!

Hedgehog (LH)

Ewyas Harold Common 25 Management of the common

The Ewyas Harold Commons Society, the And the whole common is being managed for Ewyas Harold Graziers’ Association, and the the endangered hazel dormouse. Lord of the Manor Mr John Rogers have managed the common since the 1960s. In Fences and hedges around the common have 2005 they unanimously agreed to work with been improved with funds from an Herefordshire Nature Trust’s Community Environmental Stewardship grant, and Commons Project to draw up a management bracken in parts of the common has been cut. plan for the common to improve conditions But when land is not grazed it soon becomes for wildlife and people. covered by bracken and scrub, reducing the range of habitats for many species. One The management plan written by Project staff commoner allows sheep to graze in winter and local people allows parts of the common and the Community Commons Project has to be managed for rare pearl-bordered arranged for a group of Exmoor ponies to fritillary butterflies. This work is being carried graze all year. They are very hardy and will out in close consultation with Butterfly help reduce the spread of scrub. A watchful Conservation and involves clearing hawthorn eye is kept on the ponies by a group of local and blackthorn scrub to connect areas of the volunteers called ‘welfare wardens’. common favoured by the butterflies. The Project has also encouraged the long- Other parts of the common are being term use of the common as an educational managed for reptiles, providing basking sites resource by Ewyas Harold Primary School. and hibernacula for grass-snakes, slow-worms And interpretation panels have been installed and adders. This work is being carried out at entrances to the common to inform walkers with help and advice from HART and visitors about its history, management (Herefordshire Amphibian and Reptile Team). and fascinating wildlife.

Ponies grazing on the common (JH)

26 Ewyas Harold Common Care of the common

Ewyas Harold Common is a beautiful wild • Please do not disturb or collect wildlife, place. People are welcome to enjoy the com - and treat all wildlife with respect. If you mon and are encouraged to care for it by fol - see an unusual species, record the date, lowing a few rules: the place, your name and the species name and send it to Herefordshire Biologi - • Ewyas Harold Common is a registered cal Records Centre (HBRC), PO Box 230, common and the public has a legal right HR1 2ZB. All records are very of access, but only on foot (CROW Act valuable. 2000).

• Vehicles (cars and motorbikes) may only Ponies in the snow (JH) be driven across the common with per - mission from the landowner or a house - holder for access. A small area is available for parking at the northern entrance to the common (within 15 yards of the boundary). • Dogs must be kept under control at all times. They must be kept on a short lead during the breeding season for ground- nesting birds, between March and July, and when close to grazing animals. Please remove all dog waste from the common. • Horse-riding is only allowed on the com - mon with permission from the Lord of the Manor. Guided butterfly walk on the common • Collecting and removing wood, plants or any other material from the common is not permitted. • Fires are not permitted on the common. They are a major hazard when the bracken is dry. • Fly-tipping and leaving rubbish on the common is illegal and can cause serious injury to grazing animals and wildlife. • Grazing sheep and ponies are essential to the management of the common. They should be treated with respect and any problems should be reported.

Ewyas Harold Common 27 Community Commons Project

This booklet has been written and produced by Illustrations: Lizzie Harper, Herefordshire Nature Trust’s Community www.lizzieharper.co.uk Commons Project. This project aims to help local communities increase their understanding and Designed by CJHGraphics, appreciation of Herefordshire’s commons, and www.cjhgraphics.co.uk take practical action to preserve and protect the HEREFORDSHIRE wildlife associated with them. For further Printed by Reprodux Printers, information, please contact Herefordshire Nature www.reprodux.co.uk Trust. Tel: 01432 356872, or visit The Community Commons Project wishes to www.herefordshirewt.org acknowledge the financial support of the Heritage Lottery Fund, with additional support Photographs: Neil Aldridge (NA), Sue Crookes from Natural England and Herefordshire Council. (SC), Nigel Hand (NH), Chris Harris (CH), Judy Hart (JH), Trevor Hulme (TH), Stefan Johannson (SJ), Andrew Kerr (AK), Ian Pratt (IP), Philip Precey (PP), Ian Rose (IR), Bruce Shortland (BS), Elliot Smith (ES), Neil Wyatt (NW), Steve Waterhouse (SW).

Printed on recycled paper using soya based inks. www.herefordshirewt.org