Summer 2020 , Wild &

GREEN SHOOTS Time has come for wildlife’s revival

60 YEARS YOUNG! BBOWT celebrates its diamond jubilee

SUMMER SPOTTING Bug’s eye view There’s a miniature jungle to be explored

Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Spring 2020 1 BBOWT at 60 RUDMER ZWERVER/SHUTTERSTOCK Six decades Welcome 10 fighting for wildlife Your wild summer Time for a new normal The best of the season’s wildlife, and Covid-19 has shaken our world. Like all charities, where to enjoy it on your local patch BBOWT has taken a financial hit, as our education and visitor centres had to close, losing us vital income. Our conservation work has also been impacted – you can

RIC MELLIS RIC read more about this on page 6. Lockdown was tough on everyone, but with it came a seismic 8 Timeout change as more people fell under nature’s spell. The rumble of traffic Escape to the great outdoors quietened, flights were cancelled, the air cleared and we migrated to our gardens and parks. We started to walk and cycle, to live in the present. Many of us found solace in nature; wildlife undoubtedly Green shoots contributed to our physical and mental wellbeing as we reconnected New priorities post You are helping Bats are under increasing threat with the rhythms of the natural world. Personally, it not only helped me 14 Covid-19 from habitat loss. As a member cope but reminded me why I love this job so deeply. your support helps protect them Could this be the turning point, when humanity realises its utter – including very rare species such dependency on nature? Have our values shifted to a more balanced, as the Bechstein’s bat. Find out less frenetic pace of life? Let’s hope so! The bounce-back begins here what else your support means at and, like everyone, we expect a new normal to emerge. bbowt.org.uk/about Yet the battle for nature’s recovery and climate stability rages on. We will continue the local fight, playing our part in this global challenge. We’ve made the case for more ambition on nature’s recovery, and will of course do our utmost to protect precious wild places and the wildlife found within them (see page 14 for more on this). We look forward to welcoming back our army of volunteers and reopening our centres soon. In the meantime, thank you so much for sticking with us – the battle to safeguard the wildlife of our three SUMMER SPECTACLE counties would be lost without you. Swooping bats

When you think about it, bats are mammals to be revered, not feared. The smallest UK species, the pipistrelles, weigh no more than a 2p piece and yet, like Estelle Bailey, Chief Executive every other bat it’s a masterpiece of design: capable of producing milk for its young, with on-board sonar and wafer-thin wings that unfold in an instant to enable it to agilely swish, swoop and glide with uncanny precision. There are 17 types of bats resident in the UK, and they all eat insects – the common pipistrelle can get through 500 an hour! They feed at night using echolocation, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust Get in touch pinging sound off their prey to work out where they are Wild Berks, Bucks & Oxon is the membership Wherever you are in the country your Wildlife Trust A large-print version of Wild Berks, before swooping in to nab them. At this time of year magazine for Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust is standing up for wildlife and wild places in your Bucks & Oxon (text only) is available feeding really picks up; it’s a race against time to fatten area and bringing people closer to nature. Contact 01865 775476, [email protected] on request. Call 01865 775476 or up before hibernating for winter. Membership 01865 788300, email [email protected] [email protected] Wild Berks, Bucks & Oxon brought to you by SEE THEM THIS SUMMER Address The Lodge, 1 Armstrong Road, Editor Ben Vanheems † The shadiest areas of the wood are UK Consultant Editor Sophie Stafford Enjoy the extended version of Littlemore, OX4 4XT roosting sites for rare Bechstein’s bats. Website www.bbowt.org.uk UK Consultant Designer Tina Smith Hobson Wild Berks, Bucks & Oxon online at † Daubenton’s bats swoop low across President Steve Backshall Design Yorkshire Wildlife Trust Design Studio bbowt.org.uk/publications Bats like the common pipistrelle have the surface of the Letcombe Brook. Chair Joanna Simons Print CKN Print Ltd a busy schedule. They must feed as Chief Executive Estelle Bailey Cover Stephen Dalton/naturepl.com † Loddon Nature Reserve Bats gorge on the rich insect much as possible to prepare for winter, life found at this flooded gravel pit. Registered Charity Number 204330 Company Registered Number 006800007 while mating also occurs in autumn.

WildWild Berkshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire & &Oxfordshire Oxfordshire | Summer | Spring 2020 3 2 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 YOUR WILD SUMMER STAY CONNECTED

Summertime’s easy living We’re going on a bug hunt Spend an afternoon Leave the trials and tribulations of modern life behind hunting for bugs. Look Enjoy even more from BBOWT under leaf litter, in the compost heap, among the Cool, calm and composted herbaceous perennials... Can’t get out as much as you’d like? Want to do more to help local wildlife? Or Woodlands offer a shady retreat on hot summer days. universe of fungi, beetles, worms and microorganisms simply craving more nature-themed nuggets? Here’s how to stay connected, Walk beneath their leafy boughs and a sense of calm convert autumn’s fallen leaves into a rich layer of Green shieldbug instantly descends. These are secret places, secluded humus, fuelling the food chain from the ground up. Often seen sunbathing in up-to-date and enjoy even more from your local Wildlife Trust refuges from the mad and busy world outside. late summer, this sap- Woodlands are blessed with their own very special ESCAPE THIS SUMMER sucking bug is sometimes wildlife. Woodpeckers drum their urgent staccato † with Pavis Woods Pavis Woods called the green stink bug Nature Notes What’s on? beats, making nests in the holes they painstakingly is home to old boundary beech trees and sunken because of the smell it Signup to Nature Notes, our regular free newsletter, to receive The situation regarding Covid-19 is rapidly evolving which, as excavate or, if lucky, find. Owls like the tawny owl add tracks, both centuries-old features of these secretes when disturbed. emails packed with feel-good activities that bring wildlife you can imagine, makes planning exceptionally hard! We hope to a further sense of mystery; their familiar ‘twit twoo’ remarkable woods. and wild places to you. resume our busy events programme as soon as it is practical and call is in fact two – the first part from the female, † Bowdown Woods This ancient woodland has The lockdown has seen us share encouragement, wildlife safe to do so. the second the male’s reply. Then there’s the legion glorious views across the Kennet Valley. Watch sightings, and nature-based facts and fun guaranteed to The best way to stay up-to-date with the very latest situation of thrushes, warblers and tits seeking cover in the for basking butterflies like the white admiral in inspire and uplift. Featured topics is to sign up to Nature Notes, so you are among the first to be undergrowth or living high up in the canopy – a the clearing. include projects to ignite your informed when our events restart. You can also visit bbowt.org. refuge within the refuge. children’s interest in nature, advice uk/events for details of what’s on, when the time comes. We look RACHEL SCOPES RACHEL Marvel at the canopy above but take time to scan Go behind the scenes of our magnificent on how to enjoy garden wildlife forward to seeing you in person again very soon! the woodland floor. Its earthy smell Finemere Wood with volunteer warden Violet ground beetles and green-fingered gardening is the product of nature’s Charlotte Karmali’s regular blog: bbowt.org.uk/ These shiny black beetles tips, with inspiration for those composting miracle. Here a blog/charlotte-karmali are typically found under who don’t have a garden too. logs and stones by day. At There’s lots to read, watch GUY EDWARDES/2020VISION night they hunt for slugs and listen to, including know- and other insects, making how from our team of experts Old school them superb garden allies. and enthusiasts, so you can Just 1.2% of the help wildlife and get involved country is covered in no matter what the restrictions

ancient woodland. RIC MELLIS imposed by coronavirus.

Sign up at bbowt.org.uk/newsletter MARGARET HOLLAND Field grasshopper Look and listen out on Social butterflies their gardens. These are joyful moments sunny days for the chirrup of During the lockdown we created a that people will hold dear long after the the males among the grass. range of online activities to encourage lockdown. They make their courting members to tune in to wildlife at You can catch up on anything you sound by rubbing their legs home – and help people find solace in missed and look forward to plenty

against their wings. nature during these tough times. more fresh and engaging content by SHUTTERSTOCK Wildlife experts usually found following our social media channels leading school visits, events or talking and subscribing to the BBOWT YouTube Camp in the garden to visitors on reserves have turned channel, where you’ll also find our to leading online family wildlife popular wildlife gardening videos

The lockdown saw many of us escape to the wilds BURKMAR RICHARD ID events, blogging about how to and podcasts. of our gardens. If you’ve not tried a night under become a citizen scientist in your own canvas in the garden, give it a go! It’s a great way back garden, producing video insights youtube.com/BBOWildlifeTrust to experience the sights, sounds and smells of into native trees, or running guess- neighbourhood wildlife up close and personal. the-pollinator quizzes. facebook.com/bbowildlifetrust From the reactions and messages received on social media, it was twitter.com/bbowt DO THIS DIG THIS apparent that people were treasuring flickr.com/photos/bbowt Dry weather is tough on birds, so put out some water. Bird Fish-free ponds are one of the best features for attracting the wildlife they found close to home, baths need to be somewhere with good visibility, with cover new wildlife. Autumn is a great time of year to dig one. with people getting in touch to tell us pinterest.com/bbowt close by for nervous birds. Change the water regularly. Discover how to make and plant one at bbowt.org.uk/pond when they spotted their first instagram.com/bbowt

MARGARET HOLLAND butterflies or to share new visitors to

Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Spring 2020 5 4 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 There’s more… Keep up to date. Sign up to our e-newsletter UK NEWS at bbowt.org.uk/ WILD NEWS newsletter At The Wildlife Trusts, we want to see 30 All the latest local and national news from The Wildlife Trusts percent of our land and sea being managed HS2 proceeds for nature’s recovery by 2030. That’s the In April, in the midst of the coronavirus bare minimum needed to restore nature in RIC MELLIS crisis, the Government announced that the abundance to the UK and to start getting our HOT TOPIC first phase of HS2 could proceed. The news ecosystems working properly again; capturing once again shines a light on the devastating carbon, pollinating crops, storing water, impact the works will have on our natural rejuvenating soils and cleaning our rivers. Beyond the pandemic environment. We continue to urge the We want to work with farmers and other Government to land managers to create a Nature Recovery UK UPDATE Looking after nature reserves became unusually peaceful start to the season, rethink its Network, using field margins, river valleys, difficult during the pandemic as vital while many more of us humans sought approach. hedgerows, roadside verges, railway conservation work had to be put on hold. solace in nature to relieve the strain Keep up cuttings and back gardens to protect, “The lockdown meant volunteers of lockdown. Lots of our nature reserves to date at Leading connect and restore nature across our were unable to help,” explains Ecology saw a dramatic increase in footfall bbowt.org. countryside, and into our towns and cities. Manager Debbie Lewis. “This has left as people made the most of their uk/hs2 And we want a comprehensive package more competitive plants like bracken or daily exercise. the change of policy measures put in place to help bramble to their own devices, choking As life begins to return to normal we this happen. That includes improvements out delicate wild flowers.” look forward to welcoming back our Virtual AGM needed to the Agriculture Bill, the Fisheries The good news is that many animals, much-missed volunteers and catching up This year’s AGM is on 10 October from was delighted to start in the role of little too much on the identification, Bill and the Environment Bill (all of which such as breeding birds, enjoyed an on all of that essential work. 10.30am. Due to the current Covid-19 Chief Executive of The Wildlife Trusts categorisation and conservation of rare are going through parliament in the next restrictions the event will be hosted online, this spring (even if it was in rather species and habitats, and not enough on the few weeks and months) but also better with the Conference and Volunteer of odd circumstances given the Covid-19 abundance of nature everywhere, and the use of planning policy to make sure new the Year Awards that usually accompany lockdown).I preservation and restoration of ecosystem developments help nature’s recovery, rather the AGM held separately at a future date. I’ve long seen The Wildlife Trusts as the processes. than speed its decline. Please refer to the leaflet that came with most powerful movement for nature in the Don’t get me wrong; we owe a huge debt Our vision is one where nature is in full, this magazine for details of how to attend UK. Made up of 46 individual Wildlife Trusts, of gratitude to the conservation pioneers healthy abundance all around us; skies the AGM virtually, visit bbowt.org.uk/ ranging from those covering urban areas, to that identified the first nature reserves and filled with birds, snowstorms of butterflies AGM2020 or call 01865 788303. county Wildlife Trusts, groups of counties, protected these sites for future generations. and moths, armies of invertebrates, vast the devolved nations and finally island But we all know that nature conservation expanses of wetland and wild landscapes, Trusts — we are embedded into the heart is no longer enough; we now need to put and seas teeming with life. Our newest meadow of our communities. nature into recovery. And our vision is also one where there’s BBOWT is delighted to announce the Together, we care for over 2,300 nature Much as we like to imagine we live in a a positive relationship between humanity purchase of Arncott Meadows in Oxfordshire, reserves ranging from Camley Street Natural green and pleasant land, the truth is that and nature, rather than a nine hectare hay meadow with a diverse Park right by London’s Kings Cross station, the UK is currently one of the most nature constantly behaving as if range of rare wild flowers, such as dyer’s to the spectacular Skomer and Skokholm depleted countries in the world. we are almost enemies. greenweed and saw-wort. We would like islands off the coast of Pembrokeshire. I’m 48 years old and the science is clear; This won’t INVESTORS IN WILDLIFE to thank the following for their generous In total, we directly manage or provide in my lifetime 41 per cent of wildlife species happen help buying the land: Banister Charitable management advice on 332,697 hectares in the UK have suffered strong or moderate overnight, but it Berkshire Botanical invests in wildlife Trust, Biffa Award, EBM Charitable Trust, The (822,112 acres) of land for nature. We all play decreases in abundance. could happen over Bouttell Bequest, The Helen Roll Charitable our part — but it’s worth mentioning that Species that were once common have the next decade if BBOWT has signed an Investors in Wildlife the beautiful area of Yattendon. Trust, The Trust for Oxfordshire’s Environment, this collective effort amounts to even more become rare and with that the role or all of us, people, partnership with a local artisan spirits maker. Berkshire Botanical Gin is handcrafted in and Roger and Jean Jefcote CBE DL. land cared for than by the National Trust! function they are performing in our politicians and

Berkshire Botanical is based around the small batches in ‘Harry’, the handsome pot But what matters to me most is that our ecosystems has also declined. business leaders ANDYCOLLINS stunning 9,000 acre Yattendon which resides in the Royal Oak Public House federated structure means that the majority We’ve all experienced it. As a five put our minds to it. Estate in West in the heart of Yattendon. of this is close to where people live; over 60 year old, if I left my bedroom light on at And if it does Berkshire. Its The Investors in Wildlife initiative per cent of the UK population live within night with the window open it would be happen, it will be thanks philosophy is to encourages businesses and organisations three miles of a Wildlife Trust nature reserve. swarming with moths 30 minutes later. — in a very large part — to create enduring, to actively support wildlife conservation, so And it’s clear that, during the Covid-19 Now, I’d be lucky to see one. Similarly, your support as one sustainable it’s wonderful to have received the support lockdown, millions of people have come to when we went on family holidays and of The Wildlife Trusts’ botanical of Berkshire Botanical, thank you! a new realisation of just how important local drove up the A1 for five hours, the 850,000 members. spirits and Indeed we are grateful to all our corporate nature is to them. windscreen would be covered in squashed liqueurs using members who support the future of wildlife, I sometimes wonder if, over the last insects by the time we arrived at our Craig Bennett the inspiration from long-time supporters like Anne Veck 100 years or so, the nature conservation holiday destination. Now, there might Chief Executive, The Wildlife Trusts

of botanicals Hair to new members such as Hindsight HAWKINS JON © KNAPWEED ON BLIUE COMMON TRUSTS, WILDLIFE THE BENNETTCRAIG © movement in the UK has focussed a be one or two. @craigbennett3 growing within Consultancy.

Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Spring 2020 7 6 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 ANDY FAIRBARN

GET OUTDOORS THIS SUMMER

Take a virtual stroll BANBURY Fancy a wander from Thanks to you! MILTON KEYNES the comfort of your Your membership means we BUCKINGHAM armchair? We will soon can continue to protect rare be launching warden-led virtual lowland heathland such as tours of some of our most , together popular reserves and sharing with the fragile wildlife that depends on it. BICESTER them on our YouTube channel: youtube.com/user/ BBOWildlifeTrust

AYLESBURY WITNEY Discover nature reserves OXFORD THAME on your doorstep at 2 bbowt.org.uk/reserves 3 CHESHAM

ABINGDON AMERSHAM

DIDCOT BEACONSFIELD

SLOUGH WINDSOR Wildmoor Heath flushes pink READING and purple in late summer, with a sweet scent to match THATCHAM BRACKNELL the visual splendour 1 NEWBURY

Find peace on a nature reserve 2 3 Nature is a healer; 1 Postcode OX44 7PP yellowhammer, skylark and grey Postcode HP27 0NB bastion in the UK of this rare, star- Wildmoor Heath after a difficult time in the 2000s. Great for… Farmland birds partridge. Wide field margins and Great for… Awe-inspiring views shaped wild flower, so any visit in she soothes the soul Postcode RG45 7PW The heathland is an important habitat for Best time to visit Spring to autumn a grassy bank full of tufted grasses Best time to visit Summer and August or September demands Great for… Unusual variety of habitats many other animals too. Lucky visitors might Size 64 hectares support a plethora of insects, autumn an eye to both the ground and lifts the spirit. Find CREED PETER Best time to visit All-year round happen across a common lizard or perhaps Map ref SP 621 008 spiders and small mammals that Size 27.5 hectares and horizon. your solace on one of Size 91 hectares an adder taking advantage of a break in the help to keep crop pests under Map ref SP 767 002 BBOWT’s 85 wildlife-rich Map ref SU 838 630 clouds to sun itself. And then there are the If you are unsure whether wildlife control – naturally. A small brook incredible heathland birds! and farming can exist in harmony, between two ponds is where you’ll Need to press the reset button? nature reserves Late summer is when heather bursts into Look out for the small, brown Dartford pay Wells Farm a visit. This working find moisture-loving frogs, toads This Chilterns escarpment reserve bloom, turning heathland into a rousing warbler, perched on top of isolated stands farm grows arable crops like wheat and dragonflies, while a recently should do the trick, sending carpet of pinks and purples. Wildmoor Heath of gorse as it belts out its scratchy tunes. and barley, while also playing planted hedgerow will grow on to spirits soaring as high as the red has all three of the most commonly occurring Stonechat consider gorse a prized perch too; host to numerous farmland offer valuable shelter to many of kites and kestrels that wheel types: heather (ling), bell heather and cross- a little smaller than a robin and with a paler, birds, including corn bunting, the farm’s wild residents. overhead. With far-reaching leaved heath. Together they form a vivid orange breast, their call is like two stones views over the Vale of Aylesbury, tapestry serving up a feast of nectar for insects being struck together. Dartford warblers can Wells Farm Chinnor Hill is a place of timeless like bumblebees and the rare silver-studded often be seen following stonechat about. beauty. The ancient Ridgeway blue butterfly. Ground-nesting nightjars are almost passes through, and its flower- Like many species found here, silver- impossible to spot, though you might hear rich chalk grassland offers a studded blues have benefited from careful the unmistakable ‘churring’ call of this master glimpe of a once-common management that uses a combination of of camouflage if you head down at dusk. Chilterns scene. At this time of grazing by cattle and clearing by hand to keep One tip to potentially – just maybe – catch a KELLY THOMAS year the floral show is drawing to

ANDREW MASON the heath free of invasive birch and scrub. glimpse of this elusive bird is to flap a white a close, but not without a rousing Surveys confirm the silver-studded blue is handkerchief about in a bid to tempt the finale courtesy of the Chiltern making a comeback across the nature reserve curious males out of their cover to investigate. gentian. The Chilterns are the last

Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Spring 2020 9 8 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 BBOWT AT 60 BBOWT AT 60

2015 It’s a record year for snake’s-head fritillaries at 60 years and counting… MARSHALL TOM Oxford’s . This year is BBOWT’s diamond jubilee! Let’s celebrate as we take a look back More than 85,000 are counted, up from just at some of the incredible achievements of the past six decades 500 when we took over management in 1983. The Trust was founded by a group of forward-thinking ecologists who As well as protecting these special places, our work with children 1992 could see the extent of harm being done to the local environment. and the wider community has inspired countless thousands of people We launch otter habitat Work got underway in 1960 and it wasn’t long before we took on our to discover the wildlife on their doorstep, while our partnership with restoration projects. first nature reserve, . Since then the area of reserves in landowners and farmers means a significant area of land beyond our Otters can now be our care has increased steadily, and today we manage some of the last reserves is now managed in step with nature. Meanwhile our tireless spotted throughout the wildlife-rich gems found in our local area. campaigning and lobbying continues to deliver benefits for local wildlife. Thames Valley. 1998 1959 1977 BBOWT sets up the first Water Vole Recovery 2010 BBOWT (then the Berks, Bucks & Only six military orchids Project in Britain. Surveys Oxon Naturalists’ Trust, or BBONT) flower at Homefield Silver-studded blue confirm that local is founded on November 14 by Wood, but by 2016 more butterflies breed again at water vole populations local ecologists. Activity begins than 720 are counted. Wildmoor Heath, thanks

continue to expand. FAIRBARN ANDY apace the following year. to volunteers who cut heather and clear birch ANDY FAIRBARN in this rare habitat.

1985 1968 College Lake was a cement Ragpits, a quarry when volunteers rubbish tip in a quarry, is started a project to restore saved to restore to chalk the site. It is now one of our downland. By 2015 more most popular reserves, with than 24,000 flowering a visitor centre and more KATE DENT than 1,000 wildlife species!

orchids are counted. BENNETT GAVIN

1960s 1993 PARKER LAURA 2020 Generous donors help us buy The Berkshire Heathland 2003 BBOWT continues to work with Hurley Chalk Pit (1964), Chinnor Hill other Wildlife Trusts to ensure Project launches, We buy Chimney (1966) and Warburg Nature Reserve nature’s recovery, campaigning restoring and recreating Meadows, a 198 hectare (1969), all important for chalk MAKEPEACE SUSAN hard for improvements to the habitats at Inkpen arable farm, to convert to grassland flowers and butterflies. Agriculture, Environment and 1981 Common, Decoy Heath traditional hay meadows. JESS GALLAGHER JESS Fisheries Bills, and promoting and Wildmoor Heath. Chimney expands in 2017 BBOWT buys Long the benefits of a Nature to include Duxford Old Herdon meadow, the Recovery Network to both River, creating the first first of our 10 floodplain 2014 people and wildlife. nature reserve to span the meadow reserves in the 1989 Nine . Upper Ray Valley. Rare Bechstein’s bats Council nature reserves, Towards now make their home in including Greenham and A Wilder 1975 Finemere Wood, which Britain Crookham Commons Creating a Nature Recovery Network to bring back wildlife to every is left was bought this year and and the Nature Discovery neighbourhood to BBOWT in a Will. transformed into a bat Centre transfer to BBOWT. More woodland and and butterfly haven. meadows are added

in 2006. ANDY FAIRBARN ANDY

ANDY FAIRBARN A report for the Westminster Government by The Wildlife Trusts

TERRY WHITTAKER/ 2020VISION Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Spring 2020 11 10 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 JIM ASHER JIM BBOWT AT 60 WILD THOUGHTS

The next 30 years BBOWT today Special places We now manage Green, happy, healthy: Our vision sees Berkshire, 85 nature reserves, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire transformed covering an area of 2,636 hectares. for the benefit of nature – and people Beyond our reserves we work with farmers, If you think we’ve achieved a lot over the past natural ecosystems are functioning properly. landowners and other partners for 60 years, our ambitions for the next 30 are It’s not only nature that will be thriving – the benefit of nature. even greater! people will be too. They will feel healthier and Imagine it’s 2050, and our local landscapes happier; there will be less stress and anxiety. People power Melissa are made up of a rich patchwork of woodland, The next generation will simply understand More than 1,800 meadows and hedgerows, humming with bird that the natural world is fundamental to our volunteers Harrison and insect life. This is the vision BBOWT has for very existence; that we depend on it, and it and a team of nature across our three counties. depends on us. dedicated staff At the heart of this transformation is a Our proposal for a Nature Recovery Network work hard to Nature Recovery Network. At its core will be will place wildlife in the best position to protect local nature’s gems – our existing nature reserves adapt to and mitigate the effects of climate wildlife and and protected sites we are working hard to change. An ambitious Environment Act champion nature’s recovery Get creative protect. From this core, nature will extend and Agriculture Bill will provide the legal in the wider landscape. into every part of our towns, cities and foundation to develop a Nature Recovery countryside, giving nature the room it needs Network nationwide, helping turn nature’s Incredible you with nature to sustain a healthy population of wildlife recovery from aspiration to reality. Members like you and people. Given the urgency of climate change, help to support When was the last time you made loved taking pictures of the plants and A LITTLE BIT WILD By 2050, important habitats and species, we are already ramping up conservation the Trust’s something for no reason at all, save curiosity birds and insects that I saw, and by doing it such as floodplain meadows, chalk grassland, activities from our nature reserves out into invaluable work. and fun? Children, for the most part, play week-in, week-out, as the seasons changed, The Yorkshire hedgehogs, and curlew will be showing the wider countryside, looking at new ways There are 25,500 naturally and with no clear goal in sight, my ability to notice wildlife of all kinds artist James Brunt impressive population expansion and will of working with landowners to deliver memberships in and do so especially easily in natural settings. Yet, as increased, the natural world seemed more arranges leaves, be far more connected across the counties. nature-based solutions. Partnerships like this total; each one enables adults we can become results-driven: when we spend and more detailed and fine-grained, and my stones and other Even our common species, like great tits will help us restore nature at a landscape- us to do that little bit more time doing something we assess its worth by what we connection to my nearby green spaces grew natural materials to and moorhens, will be thriving alongside scale, to help halt the loss of British wildlife for wildlife. achieved at the end of it, not what it felt like to do at stronger and deeper, rewarding me in turn create breath-taking booming insect populations, a sign that while also tackling the climate crisis. the time. But one of the best ways of nurturing a deep, by bringing richness to my life. Now I write patterns and shapes. imaginative connection to nature is through creativity, about nature for a living, but I still take a lot The impermanence and at its purest and most powerful, creativity is about of pictures, and enjoy jotting down rough of this kind of natural art play. Recording the hum of bees in your garden for an descriptions and even poetry that no-one feels very liberating to Wilder towns NIK POLLARD ambient track, photographing a year in the life of a street will ever see. make, and it’s something Buzzing and cities countryside tree, keeping a nature diary, writing a seasonal haiku — Last year I had fun making cyanotypes anyone can have a go at. Green roofs, Farmland is engaging with the natural world to make something that using leaves and light-sensitive paper. A green walls, pocket crisscrossed by colourful didn’t exist before can be a powerfully rewarding act. friend does a drawing a day — usually in her garden, but parks and trees are habitat for its most The key is finding something we truly enjoy doing, sometimes looking out of her window — giving herself common. important wild residents: whatever the outcome — rather than it being a skill we just 10 minutes and not worrying about how polished pollinators. want to acquire, or an activity to excel at. A neighbour the results are. Whatever draws you pleasurably into recently took a class called ‘watercolour doodling’. The the natural world, slows down time and focuses your aim wasn’t to create an accomplished picture, but to attention is worth pursuing. Young, Melissa have fun playing with paint. It made me think of the old, or somewhere in between, playing Harrison is Green pictures I drew as a child of things in my garden, before creatively in and with nature is a truly life- a nature writer developments All new housing school taught me that ‘good’ art was detailed and affirming thing. and novelist, and other representative, and anything more offbeat or expressive and editor of development has — more fun to create — wouldn’t earn me a gold star. the anthologies resulted in a net gain When I was first finding my way as a novelist I found Spring, Summer, for wildlife. Fertile soils exploring London’s parks and commons with a camera Autumn and Nature is normal Productive land is immensely important: unlike writing, nobody was ever Discover more ways to connect Winter, produced Children grow up renewing itself. Nutrients going to mark my work, and it didn’t matter whether with nature creatively. Visit in support of The with trees to climb, are accumulating I turned out to be a good photographer or not. I just wildlifetrusts.org/nature-at-home Wildlife Trusts.

ponds to investigate instead of eroding or MACKENZIE ROBIN BY ILLUSTRATION and fields to blowing away. explore. Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Spring 2020 13 12 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 NATURAL SOLUTIONS NATURAL SOLUTIONS ANDREW MARSHALL/GOANDREW WILD LANDSCAPES

Carbon capture The bigger picture A Nature Recovery Network will put Natural solutions to locking up atmospheric carbon may be low tech, but are highly effective too. nature at the heart of our farming Species-rich and planning systems. This would Green shoots grassland stores help both wildlife and people to thrive, while also tackling climate The amount 500% change. 1,030m of carbon more carbon than locked up in UK wheat monoculture. Identify and protect of recovery tonnes woodlands. Two-thirds of nature-rich land lies outside of protected areas. To secure its future and nature’s recovery we The lockdown brought the beauty and benefits of nature into sharp focus. Soils contain more must identify, map and protect What’s needed now is a green recovery that addresses both the climate carbon than is 37% these places. stored in plants and Potential contribution and ecological emergencies, urges Matthew Stanton, the atmosphere Restore and expand of natural systems to combined. These local sites must then be Head of Planning, Policy and Advocacy. CO2 reduction by 2030. restored (where necessary) as part of a national Nature Recovery Network that links up and expands areas of ANDREW MARSHALL/GOANDREW WILD LANDSCAPES resilient ecosystems that help wildlife adapt wildlife value. to climate change. At we have converted arable land to wildflower- At land and sea rich floodplain meadow, and this conversion Farmers and other land managers has delivered four times as much value need incentives to improve their to the public than if it was a conventional land for nature and contribute to farm. The benefits that Chimney Meadows the network. A carefully considered now delivers include the locking up of network of Marine Protected Areas is Nature hangs in Sites like Chimney Meadows show carbon, flood, climate and water quality also required. the balance how we can practically address the regulation, health and recreation benefits, climate and ecological emergencies and increased wild species diversity. Sustainable farming can also play an to demonstrate how adjustments to land also increasing access to nature in both rural important role in tackling the crises. More management approaches can help create and urban settings. The importance of having s the world emerges from the 10 years left to limit a climate catastrophe. and wellbeing, and resilient ecosystems. environmentally-friendly land management measurable environmental improvements to nature on our doorsteps has come into sharp coronavirus crisis, one thing has Alongside this, wildlife continues to decline. The nature and climate emergency is a approaches, which will be rewarded under support nature’s recovery across agricultural focus during the lockdown. We have been become clear: we all rely on nature The State of Nature 2019 report found that global challenge but there are local solutions, the new Environmental Land Management landscapes. championing Nature Recovery Networks for our physical, mental and 15% of species are threatened with extinction and everyone has their part to play. Scheme, will help secure more sustainable which would direct where investment in Aeconomic wellbeing. For too long we have in the UK. Some groups are faring worse than food production, restore nature, and lock up Nature on the doorstep our natural world would be best targeted to taken it for granted, using its gifts while never others. For example, 26% of our mammals are Our local response carbon across our local landscapes. At BBOWT By increasing the area of land managed to generate benefits for wildlife, join up precious giving back. Our one-way relationship with at a very real risk of extinction. Since the 1950s At BBOWT we manage our nature reserves we are working with farmers and landowners tackle the nature and climate crises, we are habitats and bring people closer to nature. nature has caused the three biggest crises of the number of hedgehogs has declined by for wildlife and restore habitats that As a member you are actively supporting CHRIS GOMERSALL/2020VISION our lives: coronavirus, climate change and a 95%, while turtle doves have crashed by 98%, deliver multiple benefits to society. Our Sustainable farming has all of this incredibly valuable work. You should dramatic decline in nature. and even numbers of the common toad have land management a major role to play feel proud about being part of the solution But nature also has the answer. fallen by 68%. practices help Our recovery from the economic impact of lock up carbon, the pandemic must redress this imbalance. The time to act is now. and help create “A healthy natural Our recovery must be green. By investing A healthy natural environment is essential for environment is

in our natural world we can tackle climate combating the climate crisis and restoring AMY LEWIS change, restore biodiversity, reconnect nature. For instance, healthy habitats can essential for combating people with nature and create new jobs. draw down and store vast amounts of carbon Nature-based solutions can take on all these to tackle climate change and provide homes the climate crisis and challenges. for wildlife to tackle the nature crisis. They also help society and nature cope with the restoring nature.” Twin emergencies climate change that’s happening already, by Urgent action is required to halt climate providing important benefits such as flood to this complex problem. By fighting tooth change and avoid potentially irreversible mitigation, erosion control, improved health and nail for nature’s recovery we are also environmental damage resulting from it. contributing, in our own way, to the very The United Nations says we could have just survival of life as we know it. Turtle doves are a rare sight Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Spring 2020 15 14 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 HIDDEN MEADOWS Hidden meadows Marine biologist Nia Hâf Jones introduces a hidden world beneath the waves

float weightlessly on the surface, more hospitable for other species. The leaves this diverse habitat home. swaying back and forth as the gentle themselves provide a surface for marine life It’s easy to see why these rich habitats waves carry me over the meadow. to live on, such as anemones, hydroids, sea- are sometimes referred to as underwater Fish dart in and out and I notice squirts, sea mats and brown, red and coralline meadows. Just like their more familiar, snakelocksI anemones clinging to the thin, algae. Some of the rarer ‘hangers-on’ include terrestrial namesakes, healthy seagrass bright green leaves, the seagrass seemingly the weird and wonderful stalked jellyfish with meadows are a wonderful place to enjoy the unaffected by their weight. I’m enthralled and their alien-like appearance. diversity of wildlife we have in the UK. my focus softens — there’s something auroral Exploring a seagrass bed, you might spot in the way the light dances and the seagrass two of the UK’s rarest and much loved species The canary of the sea sways. It occurs to me that I had never really — the seahorses. Both short-snouted and Naturally, the extent and distribution of appreciated how lucky I was to live so close to long-snouted seahorses are associated with seagrass changes with seasonal and annual of one of the UK’s greatest habitats. seagrass, where they cling on to the leaves cycles. Physical disturbance in the form of the with their prehensile tail to stop themselves occasional storm may help keep it healthy Underwater meadows from being swept away by the tide. Long- and productive, but persistent disturbance Globally, there are around 60 species of snouted seahorses, also known as spiny and added human pressures have taken their seagrass, though only four are native to the seahorses, live amongst the seagrasses, toll. In the 1930s a significant proportion UK and only two of those are considered ‘true’ whereas short-snouted seahorses prefer sandy of seagrass in the UK died from a wasting and rocky areas disease, which attacks the leaves and prevents There’s something auroral in the way the nearby. photosynthesis, killing the plant. With added Seagrass also human impact it is estimated that we have light dances and the seagrass sways. provides the lost 92% of our seagrass in the last century. perfect nursery Researchers have dubbed seagrass beds the seagrasses. These incredible species are the for many fish, like pollack, cod, and dab, canaries of the sea — they reflect the general only flowering plants in the UK that can live thanks to the high level of shelter provided by health of our oceans and human impact is and pollinate in seawater. They have long, the seagrass itself and an abundance of food becoming increasingly clear. green, ribbon-shaped leaves and can grow in available for young small discrete patches or vast beds spanning fish to eat. Other Seagrass meadows are hectares. Like other plants, they flower, species, like lobsters, important nurseries for develop fruit, produce seeds and are anchored have also been shown young fish, like these juvenile cuckoo wrasse. by a network of interwoven roots that extract to shelter in the nutrients from the sediment. These traits sediment during their distinguish them from seaweeds, which are early life stages and often mistaken for plants, but do not have you don’t have to look roots, and instead anchor using a holdfast and for long to see signs of take nutrients directly from the water. burrowing creatures, For seagrasses to thrive, they need lots of such as lugworm or light and shelter from waves and currents. sea potato. Hermit When conditions are right, the beds they form crabs, anemones, create a fantastic habitat for a host of wildlife. pipefish, shore crabs, Seagrass meadows are important habitats for many of our marine They stabilise and oxygenate the sediment, cuttlefish and all sorts

ALEXANDER MUSTARD ALEXANDER species, including spiny seahorses. slowing down water flow and making the area of sea-snails also call

16 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 WildWild Berkshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire & &Oxfordshire Oxfordshire | Summer | Spring 2020 17 16 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 GARDENING FOR WILDLIFE

In numbers Get your garden peat free From making our own compost to thinking before we buy, Kate Bradbury reveals how we can help protect peatlands, starting from our gardens.

Tree choice Leaves of ash, beech, birch, cherry, more species can be found Snakelocks anemones are Peat forms when dead vegetation falls into waterlogged elm, hornbeam, lime, oak, poplar within a seagrass meadow one of the many species soil and doesn’t fully rot away. It’s found in wetland and willow will break down and than on the bare that can be found living habitats, such as peat bogs and moors, and grows at a on seagrass leaves. be ready to use in a year. sand next to it. rate of just 1mm per year. These peatlands are incredibly diverse habitats, home to rare bog plants and mosses, The threats are varied. Nutrient run-off is invertebrates like dragonflies and beetles, and birds such a double-whammy: whilst toxic to seagrass as golden plovers and curlews. Peatlands store masses

it also stimulates growth in algae which BAILEY HANNAH ILLUSTRATION: of carbon; over three billion tonnes are stored in British competes with the seagrass for space and peatbogs alone. light. Invasive alien species also compete with Tragically, despite its remarkable value, peat is widely seagrass and, in many places, it’s a competition used as an ingredient in potting composts. This is dug Estimates show that one hectare of they’re winning. Coastal development creates out of peat bogs in the UK, Ireland and eastern Europe, healthy seagrass can sediment that smothers the beds and damage Leaf mould damaging these wild habitats while releasing carbon by anchor chains, moorings, propellers and dioxide into the atmosphere. support up to Leaf mould is an exceptional launching vehicles is also evident where You can buy peat-free compost but if your local garden material, made from broken down centre doesn’t sell it, some suppliers offer a discount for boating activity is prevalent. Even trampling leaves. The easiest way to make it The colour-changing little by coast users can be an issue at low tide. is to fill bin bags with wet autumn bulk orders – why not group together and save money? cuttlefish can sometimes However you do it, always make sure you buy peat-free. be found in seagrass. leaves, stab a few holes into the Blue carbon bag and leave behind your shed. Peat-based materials simply aren’t worth losing our By losing seagrass we also lose the diversity of wildlife, and our planet over. species that live there. But there’s even more special habitat is protected. at stake. Seagrass beds provide a whole host Luckily seagrass is resilient and given of essential ecosystem services. They filter the chance can recover. Whilst habitat pollutants, cycle nutrients, stabilise sediments management is not easy in the sea it is Leaf piles and reduce coastal erosion. They also absorb possible! Seagrass restoration projects are A leaf pile can huge amounts of carbon and because of this being piloted in the UK, with the help of shelter moths over are increasingly recognised in the attempt to The Wildlife Trusts. Seeds are being collected winter and provide tackle the climate crisis and are considered from various sites and cultivated, ready for nesting material for an important natural solution. Seagrass beds replanting to create new meadows. Other Compost heap hedgehogs in summer. sequester carbon — known as ‘blue carbon’ work includes looking at mooring systems Start a compost heap with a mix — in two ways: through photosynthesis and that reduce the physical impact of boating of leafy materials, food waste, by trapping and stabilising particles from the and educating people around the importance kitchen scraps and woody material water column. If undisturbed, carbon can be of seagrass. Whilst these meadows may such as twigs and cardboard. locked into seagrass sediments for millennia. remain unseen by many, they have a crucial Avoid adding large amounts of It is therefore incredibly important that this role in bringing about nature’s recovery in the lawnmower clippings, which can sea. Fortunately, they feature in a number of make the compost sludgy. Hermit crabs, lobsters, shore crabs our Marine Protected Areas, but designation is Globally, even though seagrass and other crustaceans call seagrass just the first step — to ensure their long-term meadows home. occupies only 0.1% of the seafloor, future active management is essential before Wild haven it accounts for between they lose the capacity to recover altogether. Rotting waste is a buffet for many invertebrates, which themselves Find out more about our wonderful attract predators like beetles, seagrass habitats in the UK newts and shrews. Grass snakes Peat-free potting mix and the projects to save them at lay eggs in compost heaps and Make your own using equal of its annual wildlifetrusts.org/seagrass toads use them to hibernate. parts soil, leaf mould and carbon storage. sieved garden compost. For SNAKELOCKS ANENOME, LITTLE CUTTLEFISH © MARKNTHOMASIMAGES.CO.UK, JUVENILE CUCKOO WRASSE © PAUL NAYLOR, HERMIT CRAB © ALEXANDER MUSTARD/2020VISION ALEXANDER © CRAB HERMIT NAYLOR, PAUL © WRASSE CUCKOO JUVENILE LITTLE ANENOME, CUTTLEFISH MARKNTHOMASIMAGES.CO.UK, © SNAKELOCKS seed-sowing mixes use equal parts soil, leaf mould and Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshirehorticultural & Oxfordshire sand. | Spring 2020 19 18 Wild Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire | Summer 2020 Thank you! The past few months have been challenging and at times bewildering. During this period of upheaval we have continued to protect nature and those special wild places we cherish, so it’s here for when you need it. We would like to thank all of our members, volunteers and supporters for their ongoing commitment to local wildlife. Nature needs us more than ever before and your support means we can continue to do what we do.

Donating to BBOWT is easier than ever and every penny helps us do more to protect local wildlife. Visit bbowt.org.uk/donate or call 01865 788300. You can also donate by text message – and it couldn’t be easier. Simply text WILD 5 to 70460 (you will be charged £5 plus one standard rate message and opt in to future SMS marketing from us). If you would like to give more, then substitute 5 for any

whole amount up to 20. To opt out of SMS marketing, text WILDNOINFO followed LUKE MASSEY by your donation amount, e.g. WILDNOINFO 5.

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