DURSLEY BIRDWATCH ING AND PRESERVATION SOCIETY

SEPTEMBER 2020 BULLETIN

Welcome to the September Bulletin which we hope you will enjoy and thank you to all of our members who have helped by sending in articles etc. During the next few month’s which will probably be difficult we shall be looking at the best way to run the Society for your bene- fit. In the meantime, get out on your daily walks and enjoy the birdlife you can find. – MGR.

‘Toad in the Well’.

Lockdown eased and we scampered off immediately in our camper van to our favourite location on the edge of Highnam Woods. On arrival we were impressed by the work that the farmer Jeremy had done during the lockdown-improving the campsite to include five hard standings making the site viable for twelve months of the year and allowing visits during the beauty of all seasons. It can be very wet as we know on the forest edge in , in fact on some occasions the landscape seemed far more suited for planting rice than winter wheat. Down the grassy track from the campsite to the corner of the next field Jeremy had dumped some fifty tons of top soil from the excavations of the hard standing. There had always been a very soggy wet hollow here so the plan is to landfill, level and remove the hollow. Jeremy knew there was a well in the locality dating from eighteen hundreds but on investigating found beautiful clear water thirty foot down so decided to make a feature of it, unfortunately during this investigation and moving of the cover the family heard a loud plop. Looked down to see a Toad swimming thirty feet below them. Now the rescue plan swung into action, two eighteen foot ladders were fetched, lashed together and lowered

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into the well, Jeremy climbed down complete with a bucket which he immerses in the water and the Toad swam straight into the bucket to be transported thirty feet vertically back to ground level and then released adjacent too his pond home, a lovely happy ending for toad and quite an adventure for Jeremy who was cheered by the family. On this visit we got sunburnt and monsooned, we saw good birds to, Whitethroats, Buzzards and Swallows all being good sightings. The hot shafts of sunlight on bramble patches produced wonderful display of butterflies including the stunning Silver Washed Fritillary, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Ringlet, Marbled White, Red Admiral and Peacock. Jeremy had a pretty bad year crop wise with the total failure of two crops due to much wet and rain which ruined his winter wheat and to much sun and drought which ruined the oil seed rape crop. Part of the farming cycle is for arable fields to be rested every four years and be planted with beans, a good crop which when harvested goes to the cattle food market, after the beans are sorted the good quality ones go for human consumption in Egypt and Africa. The other extremely important feature of this bean planting is that the beans put nitrogen back into the soil, which is tired after four years of producing wheat. Now the surprise, due to crop failures. Jeremy looks for an alternative late start crop and plants six acres of Canary Seed! Jeepers that is a lot of Canaries!! But then I was astonished to read that in Saskatchewan, Cana- da out on the big prairies they harvest nine million tons of canary seed a year but they are not sure of a brand name to market Canary seed for human consumption — 'Singing for your supper’ takes on a new aspect. Keep safe friends – Tony and Yvonne.

T&Y did not get a picture of the toad but have provided a drawing instead, we are desperate for ideas for your bulletin so is there any other budding artists among you.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS ¤ Because of the present situation we had to cancel most of August fixtures. As we believe we have a good programme the month’s we have cancelled will be transferred to next year’s season subject to availability. Your committee have decided for various reasons that we are unable to proceed with our September indoor meetings but hopefully after intense ne-

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gotiations and speaker approval we may be able to make a start in October. Depending on rules and regulations which may change we may have to limit numbers to a maximum of 20 on a first come basis - on our booking system with Simon. To help with the extra work load and rules could you please book with our booking system if you wish to come to Cate Bar- row’s talk about Butterflies of the British Isles on Monday October 12th. This is important as we can then contact everyone who books with full details of the measures we have to take by law and of course knowing if you are interested. MGR.

Sunday September 6th – Leaders Mike Robinson + Ken Cservenka. Meet at Lower Moor Visitor Centre at 9.30am. We did a walk at this reserve to find out available details. Most of the hides were open but social distance is in force with sanitizer stations at the entrances. Loos not available at the moment but talking to a staff member they could be available in September. - Dursley to Tetbury. Take the Cirencester road (A433) after you pass The Trouble House Cafe on the left-hand side of the road take the first minor road on your right to Culkerton and then on to Oaksey. Go Through Oaksey, over a high railway bridge, around a few bends and Lower Moor Visitor Centre is on your right. Easy walking. Will keep you informed if you book to come on this walk. Titchfield, Hampshire -- Cancelled because of car share regulations for distant venues etc.

Friday September 18th – Monday September 21st -- North Norfolk - Leader Simon Ashley Well we're all set now with a slightly smaller group and no car sharing - it's a shame more couldn't make it. There are six of us going and at least four are making a full week of the Norfolk area. I really enjoy our group birding trips, the company is great and with more eyes and more experienced birders I get to see more birds. So hopefully there will be nice socially distanced bird watching at the many reserves and wildlife spots. Fingers crossed that Snettisham lives up to expectations. Cheers for now. Simon Ashley - Leader

All these events are subject to restrictions due to present circumstances, Please, contact leaders to see if they are still available

If any trip is in doubt because of bad weather or unexpected circumstances For bookable events, we will try and contact everyone by telephone if an event has to be cancelled. We will also put a notice on our website and inform members who get their bulletin by e-mail. It is im- portant therefore that we have your contact details. M.G.R.

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OUTDOOR MEETING REPORTS P July 27th Lower Woods -- On Wednesday the 22nd of July, my Granddad and I left for the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust nature reserve Lower Woods. I have visited this woodland many times before with my two brothers to play in the Little Avon that flows through it but this time, we were going in search of a different nature treat. On this walk, we were joining members of the Dursley Birdwatching and Preservation Society with the aim of spotting the beautiful White admiral limenitis camilla butterfly. Once everyone had arrived, we set off in a ‘socially distanced group’ into a nearby meadow. Here our steps flushed up Meadow brown Manijola jurtina, Ringlet Aphantopus hyperantus, Gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus and finally, Large white Pieris brassicae. After a great intro- duction to the walk, we moved on with antici- pation down a dark, shaded ride created by the trees that arched over our heads. As we came out of the cool, there was a flowering bramble bush crowded with butterflies making

the most of the sunlight. On this dark green mass of prickly bush, the colourful collection of butterflies included our first sighting of: Holly Blue Celastrina argiolus, Silver-Washed Fritillary Argynnis paphia, Peacock Inachis io along with more Meadow Brown. As we were about to set off towards our next destination, we noticed Roxy the dog, who was walking with us, had sneakily gone off and coated herself in mud! Obviously, she wasn’t as impressed by the butterflies as we were. Our next location was a hidden overgrown meadow where the grass reached over my head. As we trekked through the tangled grasses and flower’s we saw an unidentified dragonfly that Granddad and I think was a type of hawker. We were now heading home and coming to the end of our walk which finished off with a walk through another sunny meadow accompanied by a glimpse of a Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria and a Skipper. This magical, and its wonky meadows provided us with a good list butterflies for our records. My favourite butterfly of this diverse collection was the Holly Blue because of

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its striking blue colour! The rare White Admiral managed to escape our sight this time but we will be back to find it! By Annabel Shipp

A Walk around Frampton – Leader Nick Goatman - Sunday 9thAugust The morning was overcast, as opposed to the sunshine that was expected, when four of us joined Nick in the little car park. Before we set off, we had seen Swifts overhead, a fly-past by a Cormorant, and heard a Coal Tit calling in the nearby trees. At the sailing lake there were hundreds of Swallows, Sand Martins and House Martins overhead, presumably feasting on insects flying high. Mute Swans were still in abundance on the water, with Nick’s friend, the Yellow-Legged Gull, on its usual platform. During the rest of the walk we were able to count Black-Headed, Great and Lesser Black-Backed, Common and Herring Gulls as well as Common Terns over the water. Further round the lake were Gadwalls and Mallards in flight, a few Tufted Ducks with energetic youngsters swimming along behind, and a pair of Great Crested Grebe. Over on the far side were a Little Egret and a Grey Heron. For me, it was a walk where hearing rather than seeing was the order of the day. Some days I find my eyes don’t work as well as on others, so sound is particularly important and helpful. And of course, at this time of year, the leaves do get in the way. Along the hedge- rows and in the trees all around the walk we could hear Reed Warbler, Blackcap, Robin, Wren, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Tree Creeper, Long-Tailed Tit, Chaffinch, Blue Tit, Goldfinch and Goldcrest (picture by Tony Hamblin), with intermit- tent sightings as they flitted up in the branches. In one clearing several of us fleetingly saw a bird that Nick thought could possibly be a Wood Warbler. In another clearing there were two juvenile Green Woodpeckers foraging for insects. We stopped for a while beside an overgrown pool where Nick had seen a Spotted Crake a couple of days earlier, but we only saw a Dunnock – not to be discounted, though, as it was one more for the list. Just as Court Lake was reached, we could hear the calls of one, or maybe two, young Sparrowhawks that had been bred there, a Kingfisher perched on one of the platforms, and on the water in addition to the large numbers of Mute Swans, there were Barnacle, a few Canada, and a couple of Greylag Geese as well as Coot and Moorhen. Sharp-eyed Dot spotted a Stock Dove in a dead tree, and later on, the final bird, a Collared Dove on a roof. Thanks to Nick for taking the time to lead the walk and educate us about the birdlife of Frampton. Anne Nuttall - Bird list: Great-crested grebe, Cormorant, Little egret, Grey heron, Mute swan, Greylag goose, Barnacle goose, Canada Goose, Gadwall, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Sparrowhawk, Buz- zard, Coot, Moorhen, Black-headed Gull, Common Gull, Lesser black-backed Gull, Herring Gull, Great black- backedGull, Yellow-legged Gull, Common Tern, Stock Dove, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove, Swift, Kingfisher, Green Woodpecker, Great spotted Woodpecker, Sand Martin, House Martin, Swallow, Wren, Dunnock, Robin,

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Blackbird, Reed Warbler, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Goldcrest, Long-tailed Tit, Coal Tit, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Treecreeper, Magpie, Rook, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Bullfinch. - Dot Jones – Species Total 54

INDOOR MEETING REPORTS B **PLEASE NOTE**- Indoor meetings are held at the Dursley Community Centre. September to March. Details are on the DBWPS website & your Program Card

‘Sales Table at Indoor Meetings‘ The sales table that we had a couple of years ago at indoor meetings proved to be popular, with many items sold to help society funds. This will continue in 2020 if we can find a volunteer. If you have any good quality items you could donate for sale it would be much appreciated. Items could include books, DVDs, CDs, preserves, fruit and vegetables in season, cakes or any other suitable items. ¨ DBWPS Library There is a vacancy for this post please contact 01453-842566 if interested ¿ Website ¿ Our Secretary Simon Ashley has agreed to be in charge of the website and IT. Please contact if you have a Society IT related query. ó Dursley Pet Shop ó The Dursley Pet Shop are again supporting the Society and we are pleased to announce that if you show your membership card in the shop you will now be entitled to a 10% discount on a wide range of gardening items sold in the shop, such as seeds and bulbs, as well as the discount received on bird related items. Just right for the new gardening season! FROM MEMBERS and FRIENDS — Articles, For Sale, Comments etc. This is your spot please use. Last month we again asked members to send in any interesting sightings or stories. Also, any picture including you favourite bird etc. I received these pieces from our Jaquelin Hill, Simon Ashley and our Vice Chairman for this month’s bulletin

Favourite birds. - Subject: Skylark by Jaquelin Hill of all the birds I like, I think the skylark is my favourite. One of my earlier memories of English birds after coming back from India is of larks singing on Mal- don Hill on Dartmoor, and I am always grateful to any birds which are easy to see. However, the main reason for my choice is that nothing gives me more pleasure or a greater thrill than larks spiralling singing upwards and then descending in stages till the final fall down, not, as

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Wordsworth suggests, directly to its nest but sensibly a little way away. I remember being pleased when I first saw the bird on the ground; not colourful, but a very neat attractive bird with its crest. (picture by Simon Ashley). Sadly, the numbers of Skylarks in the U.K have de- creased by about 50percent It is thought this is largely because more cereals are planted in the autumn making it harder for a ground nesting bird to nest safely. As the Skylark usually nests in late April and each of its 2 or 3 broods takes about a month from being laid until they fly. I expect the change from haymaking to silage also plays a part. Almost half the Skylark's diet is animal matter, mostly larvae of insects (the rest is seeds), so perhaps the decrease in insects also affects them. A farmer friend also blames the increase in the number of badgers. Whatever the reasons, happily the numbers in Gloucestershire have been maintained. May we continue to hear and see them! In this bulletin we have had a good response from members so we are hoping for your articles and pictures for next month.

Moths are boring, brown and scary

Nothing could be further from the truth, some families are brightly coloured, while the so- called boring brown moths often have exquisite markings on the wings when examined at close quarters. As for being scary, they are not capable of hurting you even when flying around the light in your bedroom at breakneck speed. The family I want to illustrate in this article are the Arctiinae known in English as the Tigers, Ermine and Footman moths.

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Concentrating on the Tigers, they are brightly coloured as a warning to birds that they are distasteful and the most familiar member of the family is the Garden Tiger. Or at least they were up to a few decades ago, as they have been in serious decline in recent years. Most people are probably more familiar with its hairy caterpillar, known as the Woolly Bear that can often be seen galloping across the pavement in late summer when they are looking for a suitable pupation site. The adult moth has a white fore-wing with an attractive pattern of brown markings, while the hind wing is bright red with black spots edged with yellow. The Scarlet Tiger has if anything increased its distribution in recent years; in fact, I have a colony in my own garden. It flies in daytime as well as at night. At rest, it appears to be black with yellow and white spots on the forewing, but as soon as it flies it shows off its scarlet or sometimes yellow hind wings. The Jersey Tiger is a spectacular moth that has been slowly spreading north from its original stronghold on the Devon coast. It has now reached South Wales, London and other southern counties and has been found as far north as the Sharpness area of Gloucestershire. The colour palette is similar to the Scarlet Tiger but the pattern of the markings is totally different, making it distinctive. The Ruby Tiger, as its name suggests is ruby red and is the smallest of the tiger moths found in Gloucestershire. - Ken Cservenka

Lockdown – A longer perspective On the 16th March, the day the first COVID-19 case was reported in Stroud, 2020 took a sharp swerve off course. The following day I was sent home from work, with a car full of computer equipment, and told to self-isolate for 12weeks. It’d been sneaking up on us all for a few weeks and then suddenly it all was very real and very strange. Fortunately for me I’d only recently moved home and was in a great location, just a 5 min walk from Rodborough Common and although I’d walked there dozens of times over the years, it was time to get to know it really well.

The outdoors and appreciating everything nature related has always been core to me, so I resolved to turn this dreadful state into an opportunity and see what I could find on my doorstep. Over the past few months, I’ve done early morning walks, lunchtime walks, after- noon walks, evening and sunset walks, walked out on weekdays and weekends. I now know almost every inch of Rodborough Common, it’s become a second home. I’ve racked up a rea- sonable bird list, encountering plenty of birds of prey: Peregrines, Kestrels, Sparrow- hawks, a couple of Red Kites and lots of Buzzards. In the early spring it was fairly common to see thermalling Buzzards congregating in groups, I counted 14 together on one sunny morning, soaring ever higher in the sky. I’ve watched all the spring migrants arrive, a Wheatear on the way through to a Scottish moorland, Swallows trickling through on April mornings. I found several Willow Warbler territories and heard their little songs as they sang to attract a mate. As the spring progressed Skylarks, Meadow Pipits, Linnets and

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Blackcaps all added their song and colour to the landscape. I’ve been able to watch the tides of flowers sweep across the common, the early purple orchids and cowslips were fan- tastic in the early spring and gave way to Common spotted, Fragrant and Pyramidal Orchids. I even managed to find some Pasque Flowers around Easter. The sum- mer has marched on with Thyme, Rose- mary, Knapweed and Thistles all in full bloom. There’s one group of insects, but- terflies, that the Common has been in- credible for; I’ve seen 31 species of but- terflies so far this year – the vast major- ity of them on Rodborough Common. Af- ter four fruitless years of searching I finally found Duke of Burgundy, I’ve had Common, Small, Adonis, Chalkhill, Holly Blue and Brown Argus (another blue in spite of name and col- our). I’ve also found Green Hairstreak, one of my favourites, and huge numbers of Small Heath, Meadow Brown and Marbled White. I’ve really enjoyed finding them and trying, with a little success, to photograph them. The seasons are changing again now – Swifts have stopped screaming and I May

only see them once or twice more this year. Autumn is just around the corner – Over the next few weeks, I’ll get to see the rip- ening blackberries and fruits on the trees. Birds will begin their migration back to their southern winter homes. The trees and grass will turn a rich golden colour, all things to look forward too. The Common has been a place of wonder and solace for me, somewhere to sit and contemplate and appreciate the things that matter most. It’s kept me sane; it’s kept me happy.

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And now as the lockdown is easing, I’ll continue to visit to find new plants and animals. I’ll always hold it dear as a special place and the lockdown has allowed me to get to know it a

little better. Article and pictures (Pasque Flower, Chalkhill Blues & Willow Warbler by Simon Ashley

Although frustrated in not being able meet as a group it is refreshing that members have been busy. I was asked to include this article from Caroline Sandrey our membership secretary who is very efficient with the duties of the club but also busy helping other charities. “I have been sewing face masks for a charity in Bath. We started off providing scrubs and hats to the NHS and care homes. Now we are making masks, and bags for 'dementia packs'. I have also sold some locally to help pay for some of the supplies which I need- elastic etc. If anyone would like to buy one, (£5.00 each) please let me know. I have a variety of fabrics, or can make one with your own fabric” Caroline Sandrey (07972 125959)

GLOUCESTERSHIRE BIRDING HIGHLIGHTS * At the moment we suggest you e-mail The Gloster Birder for up to date news of interesting birds etc. seen in the County. We are happy to include any of your interesting articles or sightings in this column in the future.

FROM YOUR EDITOR ! Thank you to Ken Cservenka, Tony&Yvonne Johnson, Jaquelin Hill, Annabel Shipp, Simon Ashley, Caroline Sandrey and Anne Nuttall for their contributions to the Bulletin this month. It is nice to have pieces from our members to include, so if the mood takes you, please do send something in and we will try to include it. Please can I have all articles for the next bulletin by 15th of the month. Mike Robinson [email protected] (acting Bulletin editor) Dursley Birdwatching and Preservation Society – Officers & Committee 2020/2021 ”

Chairman: Mike Robinson 45 Parklands, Wotton Under Edge, Gloucestershire GL12 7LT 01453 842566 Vice Chair: Ken Cservenka 19 Overhill Road, Stratton, Cirencester GA7 2LG 01285 656480 Treasurer: David Wood Garden Cottage, Commercial Rd, Chalford Hill, Stroud. GL5 3QZ 07870 553249 Secretary: Simon Ashley 7 Bramble Lane, Stonehouse, Gloucestershire GL10 2, 07825 668389 [email protected] Programme Secretary Mike Robinson 45, Parklands, Wotton Under Edge, Gloucestershire 01453 842566 Membership Secretary: Caroline Sandrey 15 Spey Close, Thornbury, Bristol, BS35 2NR 07972 125959

Bulletin Editor: Position needs to be filled Bulletin Distribution: Jacquelin Hill 37 The Quarry, Dursley, Gloucestershire, GL11 6JA 01453 542303

IT & Communications: Simon Ashley [email protected]

Librarian:

General Committee: Michael Oates, Peter Steele & David Lyness

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