DOCSLIB.ORG

VOLUME 101 • 2007 CONTENTS IS the GRASS ALWAYS GREENER? Presidential Address by Mr David Beeson

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
VOLUME 101 • 2007 CONTENTS IS the GRASS ALWAYS GREENER? Presidential Address by Mr David Beeson TRANSACTIONS OF THE LEICESTER LITERARY & PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY. VOLUME 101 2007 Charnia – – 50th Birthday Is the Grass Always Greener? Dinosaurs & the Modern Biodiversity Crisis The Peaceful Use of Nuclear Energy Multiculturalism & Community Cohesion Victoria Park & New Walk, Leicester Alexander Walker: an Obsessive Collector A Grid for Literary Greatness Pheromones & other Scents Muriel Spark in Tuscany Juggling: Theory & Practice The Magic of Oxygen Architecture: Significant & Challenging Olovnikov’s Clock & CHD Re-introduction of Birds & Mammals TRANSACTIONS OF THE LEICESTER LITERARY & PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY. VOLUME 101 • 2007 CONTENTS IS THE GRASS ALWAYS GREENER? Presidential Address by Mr David Beeson ...........................................................................2 DEVELOPMENT OF THE PEACEFUL USE OF NUCLEAR ENERGY: A JUSTIFIABLE OBJECTIVE? Mr Peter Riley......................................................................................................................7 VICTORIA PARK LEADING TO NEW WALK, LEICESTER Dr Helen Boynton .............................................................................................................10 A SEVEN POINT GRID FOR LITERARY GREATNESS Dr Jane Mackay.................................................................................................................11 MURIEL SPARK IN TUSCANY Professor Martin Stannard..................................................................................................15 THE MAGIC OF OXYGEN Dr Mike Batham & Dr Rob Janes.......................................................................................16 OLOVNIKOV’S CLOCK AND CORONARY HEART DISEASE Professor Nilesh Samani ....................................................................................................17 THE SIXTH EXTINCTION? WHAT DINOSAURS CAN TELL US ABOUT THE MODERN BIODIVERSITY CRISIS Professor Norman MacLeod ..............................................................................................20 PROSPECTS FOR MULTICULTURALISM AND COMMUNITY COHESION Mr Ted Cantle....................................................................................................................24 ALEXANDER WALKER: AN OBSESSIVE COLLECTOR Mr Richard Cork................................................................................................................27 PHEROMONES AND OTHER SCENTS FOR THE ALLEVIATION, WORLDWIDE, OF MANY PEST PROBLEMS IN PLANT, ANIMAL AND HUMAN HEALTH Professor John Pickett ........................................................................................................29 JUGGLING: THEORY AND PRACTICE Dr Colin Wright.................................................................................................................33 WHY ARCHITECTURE SHOULD BE OF HIGH QUALITY, SIGNIFICANT AND CHALLENGING Mr Michael Wilford...........................................................................................................37 RE-INTRODUCTION OF BIRDS AND MAMMALS Mr Roy Dennis ..................................................................................................................41 PROGRAMME AND ANNUAL REPORTS ..........................................................................42 Cover picture:‘Charnia: life restoration’ by Mark Evans, Leicester Museums and Galleries, New Walk, Leicester. (cf. Geology Seminar pp. 46-58) Colour versions of the illustrations in this Volume are available in the online edition of these Transactions (www.leicesterlitandphil.org) © Copyright 2007 The Leicester Literary & Philosophical Society, c/o Leicester Museum, New Walk, Leicester. LE1 7EA ISSN 0141 3511 Transactions of the Leicester Literary & Philosophical Society. IS THE GRASS ALWAYS GREENER? Presidential Address by Mr B D Beeson Delivered on 2 October 2006 In April 1953 my father and I walked the herd of cows from their home at Welford to the Hollies Farm, Frolesworth, some 13 miles; at the time animals were regularly walked to the local market. In recent years with increased traffic and open plan gardens it has become essential to use a cattle trailer to move animals a quarter of a mile from the farm to a field on the edge of the village. This is just one small change that I have seen in over 50 years of farming and my father in his lifetime saw many more. In this evening’s lecture I intend to look at the their eggs. The pigs, milk and poultry together with changes in British agriculture from the beginning of home-grown vegetables and rabbits shot on the farm, the 20th century to the present day, covering his and meant that providing food for the family was not a my experiences in farming. problem particularly during the two world wars. Crops grown included oats, wheat, kale and My grandfather, Joseph Beeson, started farming in the mangolds, the majority of which was used to feed the early 1900s with his brother Fred at The Chestnuts in animals. All of this was typical of thousands of small the village of Arnesby. A few years later he rented farms until the 1950s. Hubbards Farm, Ashby Magna. With the break up of the estate in 1918 he was able to purchase it. The When we came to The Hollies as well as the dairy introduction of Estate Duty in 1894, the fiscal threats cows and beef cattle, we had sheep, hens and a few to landowners in the 1909 Budget and the death of pigs, not much different from Grandfather’s day. My many landowners in the First World War further mother kept hens which ran loose around the encouraged the sale of estates, often to sitting tenants. orchard. Later the hens were loose-housed in a large In Great Britain during the 1890s, between 85 and shed and the eggs were sent to an egg packing station 90% of agricultural land was farmed by tenants, in Leicester for distribution to shops. The pigs were declining to 82% by 1922. By 1950 only 62% of land kept purely for our own consumption of ham and in the UK was tenanted, falling to 39% by 1980. In bacon. We grew crops of wheat, oats, barley, the following years until 1995 between 60,000 and mangolds, kale and grass for grazing and hay. 90,000 acres per year returned to the landlords, since when this trend has reversed with around 35,000 All these crops were grown to provide feed for the acres a year returning to the tenanted sector. animals and any surplus of wheat and barley sold. After the harvesting of the cereal crops the straw My father was one of six children. He was born in would be baled for either feed or bedding for the February 1909 and when old enough helped to milk animals. In the fifties we only had one small grass the cows before catching the train to go to school in paddock next to the farm and, as the pasture was on Leicester, milking them on his return in the evening. the outskirts of the village, cows were taken along the As today, prices were low and after my father left village street morning and evening throughout the school in 1925 he and his sister Jessie started a milk grazing season. delivery round in and around the south side of Leicester. Later my grandfather introduced waxed During the sixties the development of new housing in cartons instead of bottles for the doorstep delivery, for Frolesworth with open plan gardens where previously his day quite innovative. Some milk was made into there had been high walls and hedges caused conflict butter and cheese for the family’s own use and any between the farming community and the newcomers. surplus was sold, they also kept a few pigs for home The problem was solved in 1972 by an exchange of consumption and a small flock of hens provided all fields with a neighbouring farmer giving us extra 2 Volume 101 • 2007 Transactions of the Leicester Literary & Philosophical Society. grazing land behind the farm and removing the need Later the sheaves were taken to the stack yard of the for this twice daily journey along Main Street. farm or left in the field where they were stacked and the roof thatched to protect them from the winter 50 years after moving to The Hollies there was still a rain. Threshing the corn involved a small army of milking herd and store cattle but no pigs, sheep or men, who travelled from farm to farm with the hens. Mangolds and kale have disappeared from our threshing drum. rotation but wheat, oats, barley and grass for grazing and silage remain. The farm has become more In the 1940s combine harvesters came to this country specialised concentrating mainly on milk but beef from America. These have developed into the cattle and cereals are still produced. On many farms enormous machines we see today with 30 foot specialisation resulted in milking herds disappearing cutting units. One man operates it with systems completely. The 1960s saw a swing away from small controlling the height of the cutter bar and grain loss milk producers with many farmers ploughing up the monitors; some now have radar for steering alongside grassland and changing to the production of cereals the crop, the ultimate system being one steered by and other crops. No more early starts to the day and satellite navigation. As the crop is cut the yield can no cows to be milked twice a day seven days a week be monitored across the field and the information fed resulted in an easier lifestyle. As arable farmers, they into a computer back in the farm office. Having were able to relax a little during the winter months produced a yield map of the crop, the information after the harvest had been safely gathered in and next can be programmed into the fertiliser application year’s crops had been sown. system
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Charnwood Forest Regional Park : Topic Paper 3 : Governance : Stakeholder Consultation Responses
    APPENDIX CHARNWOOD FOREST REGIONAL PARK : TOPIC PAPER 3 : GOVERNANCE : STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION RESPONSES CFRP = Charnwood Forest Regional Park LDF = Local Development Framework LCC = Leicestershire County Council Name/organisation Comments by question number Response Max Hunt CC TP3/1 Loughborough NW Division, LCC I agree No response required. TP3/2 None, I believe the steering group should be consultative, but decisions Noted. are best made by the parties outlined in the paper TP3/3 None at this time No response required. Roy Denney TP3/1 Chair Leics Local Access Forum I cannot help but fear we are just creating more tiers of bureaucracy. Previous stakeholder The Environment Hub is in effect already a steering group at the strategic events and consultations Chair Leics & Rutland Ramblers level and if we feel we need a stakeholder group we already have one have identified a need Association in the Leicestershire Local Access Forum for a group with a Charnwood Forest focus. Member National Forest Access There must be a tight operation team of officers and an Executive to The Environment Hub is 1 E:\moderngov\data\published\Intranet\C00000135\M00003125\AI00028537\$aqiv131u.doc APPENDIX & Recreation Group oversee their day to day activities. There are pros and cons as to whether still under development. this should be one individual or a small executive committee of no more Although it will cover Member Leics Orienteering Club than 7. If we decided on a committee it would in effect be your steering “Natural and Historic Committee group. Environment” issues this will be at a strategic I note the feeling that parish councils should be involved but do not level, which will not know how many parishes there actually are within the Charnwood Forest necessarily be an area as we have defined it.
    [Show full text]
  • Newtown Linford Village Design Statement 2008
    Newtown Linford Village Design Statement 2008 Newtown Linford Village Design Statement 2008 Contents Title Page Executive summary 2-6 The Purpose of this Village Design Statement 7 1. Introduction 8 The purpose and use of this document. Aims and objectives 2. The Village Context 9-10 Geographical and historical background The village today and its people Economics and future development 3. The Landscape Setting Visual character of the surrounding countryside 11-12 Relationship between the surrounding countryside and the village periphery Landscape features Buildings in the landscape 4. Settlement Pattern and character 13-15 Overall pattern of the village Character of the streets and roads through the village Character and pattern of open spaces 5. Buildings & Materials in the Village 16-26 1. The challenge of good design 2. Harmony, the street scene 3. Proportions 4. Materials 5. Craftsmanship 6. Boundaries 7. Local Businesses 8. Building guidelines 6. Highways and Traffic 27-29 Characteristics of the roads and Footpaths Street furniture, utilities and services 7. Wildlife and Biodiversity 30-32 8. Acknowledgments 33 9. Appendix 1 Map of Village Conservation Area 34 Listed Buildings in the Village 35 10. Appendix 2 Map of the SSSI & Local Wildlife Sites 36 Key to the SSSI & Local Wildlife Sites 37-38 “Newtown Linford is a charming place with thatched and timbered dwellings, an inviting inn and a much restored medieval church in a peaceful setting by the stream - nor is this all, for the village is the doorstep to Bradgate Park, one of Leicestershire’s loveliest pleasure grounds,... … … with the ruins of the home of the ill fated nine days queen Lady Jane Grey” Arthur Mee - “Leicestershire” - Hodder and Stoughton.
    [Show full text]
  • Reusable Templates for the Extraction of Knowledge
    Reusable templates for the extraction of knowledge by Paul J Palmer A Doctoral Thesis Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of Doctor of Philosophy of Loughborough University © Paul J Palmer 2020 November 2020 Abstract ‘Big Data’ is typically noted to contain undesirable imperfections that are usually described using terminology such as ‘messy’, ‘untidy’ or ‘ragged’ requiring ‘cleaning’ as preparation for analysis. Once the data has been cleaned, a vast amount of literature exists exploring how best to proceed. The use of this pejorative terminology implies that it is imperfect data hindering analysis, rather than recognising that the encapsulated knowledge is presented in an inconvenient state for the chosen analytical tools, which in turn leads to a presumption about the unsuitability of desktop computers for this task. As there is no universally accep- ted definition of ‘Big Data’ this inconvenient starting state is described hereas‘nascent data’ as it carries no baggage associated with popular usage. This leads to the primary research question: Can an empirical theory of the knowledge extraction process be developed that guides the creation of tools that gather, transform and analyse nascent data? A secondary pragmatic question follows naturally from the first: Will data stakeholders use these tools? This thesis challenges the typical viewpoint and develops a theory of data with an under- pinning mathematical representation that is used to describe the transformation of data through abstract states to facilitate manipulation and analysis. Starting from inconvenient ‘nascent data’ which is seen here as the true start of the knowledge extraction process, data are transformed to two further abstract states: data sensu lato used to describe informally defined data; and data sensu stricto, where the data are all consistently defined, in a process which imbues data with properties that support manipulation and analysis.
    [Show full text]
  • Charnwood Forest
    Charnwood Forest: A Living Landscape An integrated wildlife and geological conservation implementation plan March 2009 Cover photograph: Warren Hills, Charnwood Lodge Nature Reserve (Michael Jeeves) 2 Charnwood Forest: A Living Landscape Contents Page 1. Executive summary 5 2. Introduction 8 3. A summary of the geological/geomorphological interest 13 4. Historical ecology since the Devensian glaciation 18 5. The main wildlife habitats 21 6. Overall evaluation 32 7. Summary of changes since the 1975 report 40 8. Review of recommendations in the 1975 report 42 9. Current threats 45 10. Existing nature conservation initiatives 47 11. New long-term objectives for nature conservation in Charnwood Forest 51 12. Action plan 54 13. Acknowledgements 56 14. References 57 Appendix – Gazeteer of key sites of ecological importance in Charnwood Forest Figures: 1. Charnwood Forest boundaries 2. Sites of Special Scientific Interest 3. Map showing SSSIs and Local Wildlife Site distribution 4. Tabulation of main geological formations and events in Charnwood 5. Regionally Important Geological Sites 6. Woodlands in order of vascular plant species-richness 7. Moth species-richness 8. Key sites for spiders 9. Key sites for dragonflies and damselflies 10. Evaluation of nature conservation features 11. Invertebrate Broad Assemblage Types in Charnwood listed by ISIS 12a Important ISIS Specific Assemblage Types in Charnwood Forest 3 12b Important habitat resources for invertebrates 12c Important sites for wood-decay invertebrate assemblages 12d Important sites for flowing water invertebrate assemblages 12e Important sites for permanent wet mire invertebrate assemblages 12f Important sites for other invertebrate assemblage types 13. Evaluation of species groups 14. Leicestershire Red Data Book plants 15.
    [Show full text]
  • Science Journals — AAAS
    RESEARCH EARLY ANIMALS years. For instance, hopanes are the hydrocarbon remains of bacterial hopanepolyols, whereas sat- urated steranes and aromatic steroids are diage- Ancient steroids establish netic products of eukaryotic sterols. The most common sterols of Eukarya possess a cholester- oid, ergosteroid, or stigmasteroid skeleton with the Ediacaran fossil Dickinsonia 27, 28, or 29 carbon atoms, respectively. These C27 to C29 sterols, distinguished by the alkylation as one of the earliest animals patternatpositionC-24inthesterolsidechain, function as membrane modifiers and are widely 1 1 2 3 distributed across extant Eukarya, but their rela- Ilya Bobrovskiy *, Janet M. Hope , Andrey Ivantsov , Benjamin J. Nettersheim , 3,4 1 tive abundances can give clues about the source Christian Hallmann , Jochen J. Brocks * organisms (24). Apart from Dickinsonia (Fig.1B),whichis The enigmatic Ediacara biota (571 million to 541 million years ago) represents the first one of the most recognizable Ediacaran fossils, macroscopic complex organisms in the geological record and may hold the key to our dickinsoniids include Andiva (Fig. 1C and fig. understanding of the origin of animals. Ediacaran macrofossils are as “strange as life on S1), Vendia, Yorgia, and other flattened Edia- another planet” and have evaded taxonomic classification, with interpretations ranging from caran organisms with segmented metameric marine animals or giant single-celled protists to terrestrial lichens. Here, we show that lipid bodies and a median line along the body axes, biomarkers extracted from organically preserved Ediacaran macrofossils unambiguously separating the “segments.” The specimens for clarify their phylogeny. Dickinsonia and its relatives solely produced cholesteroids, a Downloaded from this study were collected from two surfaces in hallmark of animals.
    [Show full text]
  • Cephalonega, a New Generic Name, and the System of Vendian Proarticulata A
    ISSN 0031-0301, Paleontological Journal, 2019, Vol. 53, No. 5, pp. 447–454. © Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 2019. Russian Text © The Author(s), 2019, published in Paleontologicheskii Zhurnal, 2019, No. 5, pp. 14–21. Cephalonega, A New Generic Name, and the System of Vendian Proarticulata A. Yu. Ivantsova, *, M. A. Fedonkina, A. L. Nagovitsynb, and M. A. Zakrevskayaa aBorissiak Paleontological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 117647 Russia bArkhangelsk Office, Russian Geographical Society, Russian Academy of Sciences, Arkhangelsk, 163001 Russia *e-mail:[email protected] Received December 29, 2017; revised November 9, 2018; accepted February 14, 2019 Abstract—Due to homonymy, a new name Cephalonega Fedonkin, nom. nov. was proposed for the genus of Vendian macroorganisms, Onega Fedonkin. The improved diagnosis of this genus and evidence that this genus belongs to Proarticulata, an extinct phylum of Metazoa, are given. A detailed characterization of the phylum and all Proarticulata classes is given for the first time. Keywords: Late Vendian, Ediacaran, Proarticulata, Vendiamorpha, Dipleurozoa, Cephalozoa, Onega, Ceph- alonega DOI: 10.1134/S0031030119050046 INTRODUCTION the genus and the description of the species were mod- In 1972 the first large locality of Ediacaran-type ified. In order to substantiate the systematical position fossils in the Upper Vendian natural outcrops in the of the taxon the refined characteristics of Proarticulata north-west of the East European Platform was discov- and subordinated high-rank taxa were formulated. ered on the Onega Peninsula along the banks of the Syuzma River (Keller et al., 1974). At the early stages DISCUSSION of studying the Syuzma locality, several impressions of a small organism were found and this organism was The phylum Proarticulata was distinguished in the described as the monotypical genus Onega Fedonkin, composition of the Vendian fauna on the basis of 1976 (Keller and Fedonkin, 1976).
    [Show full text]
  • Ecological Assessment Report 2019
    Charnwood Borough Council Local Plan 2020-36 Ecological Assessment Report Ecology Evidence Update June 2019 1 Contents 1. Introduction 2. Conserving and Enhancing Charnwood’s Ecology in a National Context - National Planning Policy Framework - The Lawton Review - Understanding Significant Ecological Impacts - The Concept of Ecological Value - The Measurement of Ecological Value 3. The Natural Character and Ecology of Charnwood - Background to Charnwood - Ecological Aspects of Charnwood’s Landscape Character - Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Biodiversity Action Plan - Charnwood 2011 Borough Wide Phase 1 Habitat Study - Designated Sites in Charnwood - Priority Habitats and Species in Charnwood - Local Priorities for Charnwood 4. Charnwood Ecological Assessment Methodology - Desk Top Study - Field Survey Methodology - Mapping of Sites - Assessment of Sites - Detailed Case Studies - Limitations to the Methodology 5. Main Results - Continued Validity of the 2011 Borough Wide Habitat Study - Field Surveys and Grading of Sites - Impact on Statutory Designated Sites - Impact on Non-statutory Designated Sites 6. Other Findings - Identifying Ecological Networks in Charnwood - Restoring and Enhancing Ecological Networks in Charnwood - Summary and Conclusions 7. Appendix 1 – Case Studies Appendix 2 – Site Assessments 2 1. Introduction 1.1 This ecological assessment report has been prepared by the Senior Ecologist at Charnwood Borough Council (CBC) to provide up to date ecological information in support of the emerging Local Plan for the Borough of Charnwood. 1.2 The new Charnwood Local Plan will, amongst other things, allocate land to meet the Borough’s need for new homes and places of work. The Plan is being prepared in the context of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) which sets out requirements for the preparation of Local Plans in terms of the evidence which should inform them, and the range of matters that each plan should address.
    [Show full text]
  • Charnwood Forest LCA Chapter 5
    Chapter 5.0 LANDSCAPE CHARACTER AREAS Area 1: Bradgate, Beacon Hill and Outwoods Heathland and Forest Area 2: Ulverscroft Wooded Valley Area 3: Charley Heath and Pasture Area 4: Swithland/Woodhouse Farmland Area 5: Groby Estate Woodland Area 6: Thringstone/Markfield Quarries and Settlement Area 7: Loughborough/Shepshed Mixed Farmland Area 8: Quorn/Mountsorrel/Rothley Settlements, Quarries and Farmland Area 9: Rothley Brook Lowland Farmland Area 10: Groby/Ratby Wooded Farmland Area 11: Thornton Plantation Farmlands LANDSCAPE CHARACTER ASSESSMENT Charnwood Forest 57 Chapter 5.0 LANDSCAPE CHARACTER AREAS Introduction The overall character of Charnwood Forest is of a rolling Transport infrastructure includes the M1 motorway landscape with an elevated topography and areas of corridor which runs north to south through the woodland and agriculture closely related to geology area. The influence of the motorway varies. In some and hydrology. There are contrasts between upland and areas traffic is visible while in other areas, the heavily lowland which is closely associated with watercourses vegetated embankments screen views of moving and water features within the area. traffic. Noise from traffic is a more regular feature along the corridor and affects tranquillity in areas closer to Settlement is varied with some small vernacular villages the motorway. Other main roads include the A511 such as Newtown Linford and Woodhouse and larger which provides a link from Coalville in the west to the settlements such as Markfield, Groby, Anstey and M1 and the A50 which links the M1 to the A46 and Mountsorrel as well as the fringe of Loughborough. Leicester City to the east.
    [Show full text]
  • The Craneflies of Leicestershire and Rutland (VC55)
    LEICESTERSHIRE ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY The Craneflies of Leicestershire and Rutland (VC55) John Kramer* Tipula maxima – Graham Calow LESOPS 26 (2011) ISSN 0957 - 1019 *31 Ash Tree Road, Oadby, Leicester LE2 5TE 1 Introduction It is necessary to say at the outset that, since craneflies are not a scientific group, its meaning has changed over the years. It seems to be synonymous with daddy long-legs , meaning all long-legged two-winged flies. These, in the past, have included Winter Gnats (Trichoceridae) Fold-winged flies (Ptychopteridae) and Dixidae. The present meaning, used here, is restricted to the super-family Tipuloidea (Order Diptera) which, for the past 20 years (Starý 1992), has been composed of four families - Tipulidae, Pediciidae, Cylindrotomidae and Limoniidae. I have tried to provide a firm basis for further work on craneflies in VC55, and to suggest what that work might be. There are voucher specimens for most, though not all, of the records and wherever there is only a single record, more records are needed to firmly establish that species on the county list. Pioneering work in Europe Before any meaningful lists of craneflies could be produced it was necessary to have fixed and unambiguous names for them. The genus-species naming system for doing this was first provided for the then-known craneflies by the 1758 volume of Linnaeus’s Systemae Naturae , published in Sweden, so this date provides a starting-point. Linnaeus named 14 of the more conspicuous craneflies on the British Checklist. Johan Christian Fabricius was a student of Linnaeus and did more work than his mentor on insects.
    [Show full text]
  • A Review of Freshwater Fish in Leicestershire and Rutland by Andrew Heaton, County Recorder for Fish, 2013
    A Review of Freshwater Fish in Leicestershire and Rutland By Andrew Heaton, County Recorder for Fish, 2013 1. Introduction 1.1 The Historic View Lacking the trout-haunted chalk streams or salmon-spawning upland rivers, Leicestershire and Rutland (L&R) have tended to be little regarded in fishery terms. Even the main coarse rivers (Soar, Welland) were not seen as measuring up to the Severn or Thames. In “The Compleat Angler”, Izaak Walton’s only reference to Leicestershire is to name it as one of the counties through which the Trent flows (forming the county boundary for a relatively short distance near Castle Donington). 1.2 Previous Studies There appear to have been few previous reviews or studies of fish populations related specifically to Leicestershire and/or Rutland. Browne (1889) listed L&R’s fish (also including details of fossil fish from the two counties). The wording used in the 1889 document was repeated almost exactly in Browne’s contribution to the Victoria County History (1907), though there is differentiation of River and Brook Lamprey in the 1889 publication, a distinction that was slightly confused in the VCH. Through the 20th Century, fish surveys were undertaken by the various water authorities, providing the information relevant to Leicestershire and Rutland mapped in Maitland (1972) and Davies et al (2004). Onions (2008, 2009) gave an overview of Leicestershire fish. 1.3 Recording Fish Whilst the bulk of fish surveys are undertaken by Environment Agency (EA) fisheries teams, utilising techniques such as netting and electrofishing, other people are recording fish and generating distribution maps.
    [Show full text]
  • Newsletter 54
    NEWSLETTER 55 LEICESTERSHIRE September 2016 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY VC55 The Campanula Bee As its name suggests the Campanula Bee Chelostoma campanularum specialises on feeding from flowers of the Campanula genus. This includes Harebell, the native bellflowers and the garden varieties, of which there are many. It may also be seen visiting Geranium flowers. This solitary bee is only 6 or 7 mm long and is easily overlooked as it resembles a small, black fly as it flits around the flowers – the feature to look out for is the white fuzz of pollen-collecting hairs underneath the abdomen of the female (p 3). The male (below) is smaller and narrower, with two small, blunt prongs on the end of the abdomen which are said to help to anchor itself in flowers when sheltering from adverse weather. The female nests in tubular beetle borings and other small holes in wood or in hollow dried plant stems where it provisions each cell in the tube with pollen before laying an egg in the cell and sealing it up with a mud and nectar mix. The flight period is June to August – when the flowers are out. This tiny black Chrysomelid beetle (3 mm long) is unlikely to be noticed by anyone other than a beetle specialist. Fortunately Graham Finch is on the case and we can enjoy more of his stunning close-up photos on pages 10-12. Until our recent search, the only records for VC55 were from Jenny Owen’s garden Malaise trap in Scraptoft Lane, Leicester. There were three species of Campanula growing in the garden.
    [Show full text]
  • NHS Newsletter Spring 2015
    Newsletter LEICESTER LITERARY & PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY Spring 2015 Number 100 The longer days will soon be upon us when we will be resuming our summer pro- gramme. Once again, I want to thank everyone for their fantastic support related to the Newsletter. I have received a large number of articles for this edition and it has been impossible to include them all and therefore they will be published next time. I hope you enjoy this Newsletter as much as I enjoyed putting it together. Since it is our 100th issue, I am going to hand over the front page to Jan, our presi- dent who works tirelessly for the Natural History Section, to tell us about the history of the Newsletter. The copy date for the Autumn Edition is 23 August 2015 Celebrating the100th issue of the Newsletter: Jan Dawson The first number of the Natural History Newsletter was brought out and edited in spring 1963 by Ian Evans, who had arrived in Leicester in 1959 as the then Assistant Keeper of Biology at the New Walk Museum. Dynamic and with a strong commit- ment to community service, he set about promoting the relevance of the Museums Inside this issue: Service within the local natural history scene. At that time, the Botany and Zoology Sections were the only two Sections of the Page Leicester Literary and Philosophical Society dealing with natural history. A third, the A Winter’s Tale 5 very popular Ornithological Section had split off from the Parent Body in 1946 as a society in its own right. In 1962, Ian suggested the two biological sections should Hawk-moths 6 amalgamate as the Natural History Section and the following year inaugurated the Toadlets on the march 7 first Newsletter.
    [Show full text]