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SHAPWICK HEATH Shapwicknational HEATH Nature Reserve National Nature Reservenewsletter Newsletter SHAPWICK HEATH SHAPWICKNational HEATH Nature Reserve National Nature ReserveNewsletter Newsletter ISSUE: 23 (Oct – Dec 2016) Volunteer and Reserve News The autumn season started off very mild and dry, in mid- October we were still busy topping and strimming footpaths. The weather also helped us to get an early start on getting into our mire restoration units on the Lows, removing scrub, much of which was chipped to provide top-ups for our miles of footpaths, which inevitably get muddy over the winter. routes across our suite of Somerset NNRs aswell as completing an audit of all our built infrastructure, which we are now working through – from a million small fix-it jobs to planning major hide refurbishment. Our Shapwick NNR Firewood project has really taken off this winter and has seen us sell-out of loose-loads by the beginning of December and a number of local shops stocking our small hessian sacks: our on-site café Eco- Friendly Bites, Londis in Ashcott, The Good Earth in As well as getting on top of our footpath maintenance Wells and Earthfare in early we have also installed new signs for the footpath Glastonbury. We are now route along the Sweet Track and on to Decoy Hide, well on the way to selling-out hopefully this should help the less seasoned visitors to of these too by the end of the our reserve orientate themselves. cold season, raising much-needed funds for the reserves with this sustainable, locally-produced ethical product. Heavy rain at the end of November called a halt to our work on the Lows and our attention has now turned to other areas of scrub clearance on the drier parts of Shapwick Heath and to the top of Ebbor Gorge in the Mendips, where we are restoring an area of limestone grasslands, which sports spectacular views across the Avalon Marshes. A few days were also spent clearing an area at the base of Gully Cave for this important and continuing archaeological dig. At the end of last summer a second, lower entrance to the cave was discovered In November staff undertook a thorough programme of which will be excavated this coming summer. tree safety surveys of important public areas and access 1 SHAPWICK HEATH National Nature Reserve Newsletter At the end of December volunteers were treated to the annual slap-up thank-you BBQ, this year hosted by Phil Thorpe’s SWT team on Westhay Heath. After a bit of morning work it was burgers & sausages galore, with Reserve Manager Jon Macaulay’s legendary super- hot chilli-con- carne being cooked on one of the Shapwick teams ‘Swedish Torches’ (that we are developing for sale this summer). The volunteers just about survived the chilli… I think we need to go a touch hotter next year Jon ;-) Back at Shapwick we hosted our ‘Winter Education & Events Wild Day Out’ where October kicked-off with our annual ‘Explore Ebbor’ visitors got to explore event – part of the ‘Mendip Rocks’ festival organised by some of the heritage the AONB. Local visitors had a themes of the Avalon chance to go for guided walks Marshes – the with site ecologist Bob Corms reconstruction Roman and a visit to the Gully Cave dig Villa and Saxon with Prof. Danielle Schreve. Feasting Hall were There was also a range of open for tours, there information stalls and children was a working water- activities ranging from a mock model of the Somerset archaeological dig with county Levels for children archaeologist Dr. Richard young and old to learn Brunning, peat ‘ruckle- how the drainage building’, storytelling with system works, a mock Michael Loader, to a display of chainsaws and peat dig, pottery- equipment from Whitebeam Tree Services that making, as well as the demonstrated what we use to maintain the site. usual favourites – pond-dipping and trailer rides across the reserve. 2 SHAPWICK HEATH National Nature Reserve Newsletter Young Wardens Our Young Wardens group took part in a Wildlife ID day with volunteers from RoAM (Recorders of the Avalon Marshes) where they looked for all kinds of bugs, birds, amphibians and reptiles and learnt how to identify them to ‘species’ level. Local families enjoyed more ‘Forest School’ sessions in our picnic spot in Decoy woods, where they built dens, learnt simple hand-crafts and cooking skills on the campfire. The events season was finished off with a very well- attended starling Christmas-decoration making session at the centre, followed by a tour out to see the Starling murmurations on Ham wall. Up-Coming Public Events For more information and booking please contact [email protected] or call the Natural England office on 01458 860120 Sunday 26th March 8am-10am Spring Migration Up-coming Young Wardens Sessions A guided walk with Senior Reserves Manager Simon The Young Wardens group is a programme of activities Clarke, to catch some of the early arrivals, such as the for 12-17 year olds. first sand martins and warblers and hopefully the earliest of the booming bitterns. Wednesday 15th February 10am - 3pm Charge £5 per person, booking essential. Coppicing: Learn this ancient woodsman’s skill with Monday 3rd April 2pm-4pm Natural England Reserves Warden on Rodney Stoke Forest School for All the Family NNR. Weather permitting will include cooking on the Follow our trail game along the Sweet Track to discover campfire for lunch. some of its wildlife and mysteries of ancient man living £3 per young person. Places limited, booking essential. th on the marshes, ending up at the glade in Decoy woods Saturday 18 March 10am - 3pm for a picnic round the campfire. Visit to WWT’s Steart Marshes: Discover this newly Charge £3 per child, places limited, booking essential. created wetland reserve designed to protect local Sunday 23rd April 10am-3pm communities from flooding. A range of practical A Spring Wild Day activities will be undertaken over the course of the day Learn all about our native butterflies, bumblebees and to learn about the habitats and wildlife that use the other pollinators through fun, hands-on games, trails reserve. £3 per young person. Places limited, booking essential. and crafts. Find-out how to plant a wildlife-friendly th garden, have a go at pond-dipping and take a trailer-ride Tuesday 4 April 10am – 3pm across the reserve and much more. RSPB ‘Giving Nature a Home’: Take part in some FREE, drop-in family event. practical hands-on habitat creation work to benefit a range of species found on the RSPB’s Avalon Marshes reserves. £3 per young person. Places limited, booking essential. 3 SHAPWICK HEATH National Nature Reserve Newsletter For more information about Young Wardens sessions, thousands of years and salt water was slowly replaced registration and to book please contact Julie Merrett by with fresh. This enabled a wider variety of plants and email [email protected] or trees to colonise the area and their decaying remains telephone: 01458 860120 added to the layers of peat formation. In the Avalon Marshes it takes one year to form about 0.45mm of peat but in more tropical climates this can be Many thanks to Young Warden up to 1mm a year; in Somerset it took 4000 years for the Emma Pitchfork for this unusual peat to reach a depth of 1.8 metres. photo of the frog and the prince In 1820 the last moor was drained which ended the new growth of peat in Somerset. The importance of peat in the Avalon Marshes The Romans were the first people utilise peat in Somerset, they cut and dried it for fuel for the salt industry. During medieval times most of the Avalon Marshes, including Shapwick, was owned by Glastonbury Abbey. Peat was dug as use for fuel and was a valuable commodity, so much so that in 1313 and 1374 illegal turf digging was recorded. By 1515 all tenants of Shapwick had rights to dig turves for personal use but they were not permitted to sell them. During the late 1700’s enclosure acts contributed to significant landscape change and more and more land The science of Shapwick Heath Peat was drained for agricultural use and peat digging. The By Tanya Camberwell What is peat? Peat is made up of partially and fully decomposed plant material that has accumulated in an airless water saturated environment. Undrained peat is 95% water and only 5% solid matter. How was it formed? Around 10,000 years ago the last ice age ended and global sea levels rose as glaciers melted; most of the Severn Estuary and surrounding river valleys were submerged in sea water and Shapwick Heath was made up of tidal sea and salt marsh. Around 5,000BC rising sea levels slowed and reeds began to thrive in the marshes, as they died and fell into the bogs they began to form the first layer of peat. Tidal reaches over the flat Somerset Levels continued to change over the next several 4 SHAPWICK HEATH National Nature Reserve Newsletter extraction of peat increased and was a major form of 5 Archaeological facts about Shapwick Heath seasonal employment for much of the Avalon Marshes; by 1873 there were 3 turf merchants who were in NNR business on Shapwick Heath. 1. Did you know there is wooden trackway beneath the Sweet Track? It is called the Post Track and The demand for peat continued to intensify despite a pre-dates the Sweet Track by about 30 years. change in use from fuel to horticulture; the 2. There are several prehistoric trackways within mechanisation of peat extraction resulted in much of Shapwick Heath NNR including The Meare Heath the landscape being stripped leaving vast voids.
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