FIELD NOTES NEWSLETTER OF THE NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY ISSUE 13 April 2008

HNHS is Registered Charity No 218418

EDITORIAL

With the withdrawal of the proposals to develop Luton Airport, the immediate threat to the natural environment in that area might seem to be over, but we now understand that there are plans to expand the town of Luton itself eastwards, across the County boundary – including part of the same area! So our attempts to carry out some survey work of the natural history interest locally may not have been an entirely wasted effort – if there are those in the County that can

make use of the data in an effective way. Eastwick Mead Photo Trevor James

Given that Buglife have recently announced the failure of their 2-year campaign to stop the development of a Post Office depot on a nationally (internationally?) important wildlife site at West Thurrock Marshes in our neighbouring Essex – where the judge in the case blandly declared that the public duty to conserve such (legally protected) sites was of little importance – we might expect that any local wildlife sites in our area will actually count for very little.

It is a dismally depressing state of affairs. Our

Woods at Kings Walden Photo Trevor James Society does not actively campaign on conservation – its role is to try and collect Similar plans to develop the land north of Harlow reliable information, and help those who do. (also in Herts – around and Eastwick But it might be of benefit if members added their etc.) are being fought by the “Stop Harlow North” own individual voices. However, when the real campaign (take a look at their website: threats to the environment are just beginning, http://www.stopharlownorth.com/). This is also with climate change and all that, our role is also an area of “ordinary” countryside, but it does in monitoring change as well, so we need to include the ancient Gilston Park and what is left bear this in mind when planning our fieldwork. It of the old wetlands around Hollingson Meads is not just the old habitats and species we must (although now that these have largely been watch – but also the new. What comes in and destroyed for gravel and a refuse tip probably stays will depend a lot on what society at large means they don’t count). It is also taking the does with the environment. All we can ultimately developed land perilously close to do, perhaps, is to notice these things and Mead and Eastwick Mead, which most certainly highlight what the implications are. do count. Trevor James - Editor

New HNHS Books out soon: Dragonflies of Hertfordshire, p 2; Moths of Hertfordshire, p 3: Your photographs wanted for new HNHS websites, p 3; Les Borg Obituary, p 3; HNHS Recorder News: p 4; Wildlife Calendar: p 7-10; HNHS/HMWT Training Days, p 10

So opens our new book - The Dragonflies and CURRENT ACTIVITIES Damselflies of Hertfordshire – to be published by the Society on 23rd April. With The 2008 Half-day Conference: its help we can all get to know a lot more about our dragonflies, and where to find them. ‘Hertfordshire’s Breeding Birds’

This joint Herts Bird Club - BTO conference at Rothamsted in March, was a great success with over a hundred attending, despite competing with an international rugby match on TV.

Graham White’s analysis of the county’s gravel pits gave an insight of how the birds change as the pits mature. Mark Eaton presented some of the results of ‘citizen science’ projects run by the

RSPB. Ken Smith used old county bird reports to compare the birds of the late 19th century Broad-bodied Chaser Photo: Alan Reynolds with what we have now – did you realise that the first Hertfordshire bird report covered 1878! As Past and present Herts NHS County Recorders, usual Joan Thompson gave her round-up of the Tom Gladwin and Christine Shepperson, and birding highlights of the year. local dragonfly enthusiast, Alan Reynolds, Two talks covered the big new atlas projects. established the Herts Dragonfly Group in 2000. Chris Dee reported the excellent progress that Over the next six years they mobilised more has already been made in Hertfordshire (see than 100 volunteer recorders to visit every tetrad www.hertsatlas.co.uk for details) and Graham in the County and submit more than 14,000 Appleton (BTO) described the BTO/SOC/IWC records. The results have been analysed to give Bird Atlas 2007-11 national project. the first systematic information on the occurrence, distribution and relative abundance These meetings are an important opportunity to of our dragonflies across the County. It is a meet fellow enthusiasts and catch up with news major achievement and will be a valuable asset and events. We must thank all those involved in to conservation efforts. its organisation and in particular Tim Hill who coordinates all our Rothamsted meetings. For all 19 breeding species there is a description Ken Smith, Chair – Herts Bird Club and colour photo (taken locally by Alan Reynolds), a distribution map in colour and a flight chart specific to Hertfordshire. So, for the * first time, you will have accurate up to date HNHS Autumn Meeting & AGM information not only on where but also when you are likely to see a particular species. As an

illustration of how things are changing, the Small This year the Society’s Autumn Conference and th Red-eyed Damselfly, first seen in Herts in 2001, AGM will be on Saturday 15 November 2008, colonised the county during the survey. at Rothamsted Research, . If you would like to stand as a trustee/member of the management committee or add an item for discussion to the agenda, please contact the Chairman, Peter Delaloye, or the Secretary, Linda Smith. More details will be circulated nearer the day, but please put the date in your diary now!

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Dragonflies of Hertfordshire Small Red-eyed Damselfly Photo Alan Reynolds

‘Who can fail to be enthralled by the colourful The ‘Top Ten’ sites to visit in Hertfordshire, spectacle and breathtaking aerodynamic agility where 16 or more breeding species have been of dragonflies as they cavort around reed-lined recorded, are described in detail, with maps and streams and ponds on warm summer days? colour photos. Four are Herts & Middx Wildlife These enigmatic creatures have always held a Trust reserves. special place in our hearts, but most of us admit to knowing very little about them.’ 2 Hertfordshire Natural History Society

Featured on the cover is King’s Meads, an ‘The Moths of Hertfordshire’ excellent place to watch dragonflies. Eighteen of our breeding species can be found here, The waiting is nearly over for The Moths of including the Broad-bodied Chaser illustrated on Hertfordshire by Colin Plant, which records the the cover (and above). results of the ten-year county moth survey. The

book is at the proof-reading stage, but Details of all rare migrants found in Hertfordshire unfortunately is a bit behind schedule. We are since 1975 are included, with colour photos. now hoping to get it out in May. Apologies for There is also a history of all species recorded in the additional wait. I have seen the proofs and the county from 1835-2006 compiled by Tom the book looks fantastic, packed with bang up– Gladwin. to–date information and illustrated with plenty of

photos. To date, we have orders for over 450 Order your copy of Dragonflies and Damselflies copies through the pre-publication offer, which of Hertfordshire (ISBN 978-0-9521685-6-0) at means we have money in the bank towards the special offer price of £9.50 (postage and payment of printing and marketing costs. If you packing free) by sending a cheque (payable to have not yet ordered your copy at the pre- ‘HNHS’) to Linda Smith (HNHS), 24 Mandeville publication price of £26 – hurry up! See the Rise, Garden City, Herts., AL8 7JU. last issue of Field Notes or our website for more

details about the book and how to order it. * Linda Smith

HNHS Websites further update * HNHS Photograph Competition for the Society’s updated websites – Sad News – Les Borg with prizes

We have launched an appeal for photos to illustrate the re-vamped family of HNHS websites, including the Herts Bird Club and Flora Group. There will be prizes for the best photos. We need photos of:

ƒ Mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles ƒ Insects and other invertebrates ƒ Plants ƒ Fungi ƒ Habitats ƒ Landscapes ƒ Changing seasons ƒ HNHS activities

The photos can be digital, prints or slides but must have been taken in Hertfordshire. Submission of a photo implies permission for us to publish it on our website. If there are recognisable people in the photo, please make Photo by Michael Clark sure you have their permission to publish it. All those who knew him will be very sad to know th All the photos will be considered by a panel of of the death of Les Borg on 4 March 2008 at judges chaired by Jack Fearnside and prizes the Isobel Hospice, , after a brave fight with cancer. His funeral was at St awarded for the best ones. Full details will be th posted on the HNHS website. The competition Peter’s Church, , on 13 March. is in two phases, with closing dates of 30th June and 31st October 2008. Please send as many Les was a very genial and quietly inspiring photos as you like by email to member of the Society, and especially through [email protected] or on CD or hard copy by his unequalled abilities with the camera. Many a post to Linda Smith. If you would like your prints bird report has been enhanced by his superb or slides returned please enclose a SAE. bird portrait photographs, as well as of other wildlife in publications across the breadth of natural history. He was also very generous not * only with his photographs but also with his advice and encouragement. 3 Hertfordshire Natural History Society Recorder for Crustacea & Fish

He will be greatly missed, and our thoughts are Remarkably, the Society’s strengths in the with his widow, Karin, at a difficult time. A fuller aquatic area have been even more enhanced by appreciation will be published in The having the offer of a new Recorder for not just Hertfordshire Naturalist later this year the Crustacea (which lost its Recorder when Trevor James Graham Bennell retired recently), but also for fish! We have not had an active Recorder for * fish for a very long time! We wish Adam Ellis of Recording and recorders the Environment Agency at Hatfield all the very best with his work. He would, no doubt, be Hertfordshire Red Data Book - interested to hear from those with any latent interest in the subjects concerned! His contact resurrected details are in the list of Recorders appended to this Newsletter. A recent special meeting of the Records Ed. Committee discussed with representatives from the Herts Biological Records Centre what could * be done with the Hertfordshire Red Data Book, which was originally proposed many years ago, Boost for Herts beetle recording but which got ‘lost’ owing to the demands of other work, and staff changes at HBRC. This may not be strictly anything directly to do with the Herts NHS, but those who are The HBRC is keen to get this moving again, and interested in insects at all might like to take a existing text has been re-visited. Further work is look at a new website launched by a group of in hand to collate information on many species enthusiasts under the name of the groups with Recorders (although several will Coleoptera Group (www.thewcg.org./). This have to take a back seat, still, for lack of time to has come about through the combined efforts of do all the necessary work). The intention is to David Hodges and Dave Murray, long-term produce a loose-leaf printed document, although coleopterists who have been working on the obviously the opportunity now also exists for an beetles around Watford, in places like electronic format as well. The aim is for a first Whippendell Wood and Cassiobury Park. ‘edition’ to be completed by January 2009. This will then be added to and updated as necessary. They have so far added quite a few new or rare finds to the Hertfordshire records, not least the Trevor James (for Ronni Edmonds-Brown) third UK record of a strange beetle of rotten wood called Uloma culinaris that seems to prove this insect is native to Britain. The website is * specially useful in that they are steadily adding high quality images of their finds to the site, so Mosses and Liverworts that everyone can see what they have to offer. They also have very well thought out and Two interesting meetings are in the calendar this th th detailed help for identification, key features etc. year, on 10 May and 27 September. Do come along, no previous knowledge of these groups is expected.

I hope to show in May that a small and apparently mundane area can produce interesting plants. Fishery Moor, part of Boxmoor at , is well-known to botanists, but for bryophytes the interest is in the trees, stream-side and canal. while nearby is a shaded flint-and-mortar wall. The Bricket Wood area is also well-known to both botanists and bryologists. Records go back to the mid- nineteenth century. Almost any part is interesting, but if it has been wet in the previous week, then wellingtons will be essential. I hope They must be congratulated for their initiative. It to see some of you on one or other of these. also shows just what is out there to be found, if we only look! Christopher Tipper Trevor James Recorder for Mosses and Liverworts *

4 Hertfordshire Natural History Society

Notices HNHS has not set up any large-scale public outreach meetings as such, but the Calendar of th Events attached to this Newsletter does carry a National Moth Night: 7 June number of relevant meetings that week:

Butterfly Conservation, in its role of running the • 25th June – a glow-worm walk with the recently launched National Moth Recording NHS in the Broxbourne Woods Scheme, has sent round a flyer advertising th area; “National Moth Night”, this year on 7 June. • 26th June: a weekday butterfly walk at They encourage not only dedicated ‘moth-ers’ Common by Herts & Middx but all of us to get involved – by recording moths Butterfly Conservation; in and around our gardens; attending public • 28th June – a Herts NHS Recorders’ field events (see our Wildlife Calendar); and maybe meeting to look for scarce insects around searching for the special target species (if you ; and can find them!). This year, two of those perhaps th • 29 June – another Herts & Middx relevant to us that they have chosen are: Butterfly Conservation field meeting, this the Bordered Gothic and (pretty rare) the time to Ladywalk Wood, near Maple Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk-moth. It would be Cross, for uncommon butterflies. good to see the latter but pretty unlikely I So, there are plenty of things insectiferous going suspect! It is mainly a western species (and a on! Take part! UK BAP one as well) Another target for the NMRS though, is the moth fauna of orchards, which have now been made a UK BAP Habitat! Given that Hertfordshire has about 2,000 Material for the next issue of Field remnant orchards (some hanging on by a thread Notes should be sent to the Editor admittedly!), that should give us some scope. by 15th October 2008

CONTACTS

Chairman Peter Delaloye, 9A The Meads, Bricket Wood, , Herts, AL2 3QJ Tel: 01923 662456; [email protected]

Secretary and Registrar Linda Smith, 24 Mandeville Rise, Welwyn

Would’nt it be nice to see this?: Garden City, Herts, AL8 7JU Narrow-bordered Bee Hawk-moth Tel: 01707 330405; (Photo borrowed from National Moth Night leaflet Email: [email protected] original by J. Thompson) Editor of the ‘Hertfordshire Naturalist’ No doubt Colin Plant will be keen to hear from Stuart Warrington, 8 Redwoods, Welwyn you if you are planning on doing something local Garden City, Herts, AL8 7NR to take part. Even if he has produced his book Tel: 01707 885676. on the county already, he will no doubt be Email: [email protected] starting the business of collecting data for the update! Editor of ‘Herts Bird Report’ Ed. Ted Fletcher, Beech House, Aspenden, , Herts SG9 9PG * Tel: 01763 272979; Email: [email protected] National Insect Week: 23rd – 29th Editor of ‘Field Notes’ June 2008 Trevor James, 56 Back Street, Ashwell, , Herts, SG7 5PE The Royal Entomological Society, which has just Tel: 01462 742684 Email: [email protected] moved its Headquarters into Hertfordshire at Chiswell Green, is sponsoring a range of activities nationally during this week in order to encourage study of insects generally. 5 Hertfordshire Natural History Society