Wimbledon and Putney Commons Monitoring Report Spring/Summer 2016 Contents Context 1 A. Systematic Recording 4 Methods 4 Outcomes 8 Reflections and Recommendations 21 B. BioBlitz 24 Reflections and Lessons Learned 28 C. References 29 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Location of The Plain on Wimbledon and Putney Commons 3 Figure 2 Standing water at the entrance to The Plain from the Office area at BioBlitz time, late June, 5 2016 Figure 3 Location of reptile refugia showing the number found at each sample site 7 Figure 4 Baling on The Plain in early August 2016 10 Figure 5 The Plain: a general vista with orchids among lush grass - June 2016 11 Figure 6 The Hogweed Patch - Late June 2016 11 Figure 7 Peacock Butterfly caterpillars at the Nettle Patch 11 Figure 8 Dartford Warbler on Gorse –September 2016 12 Figure 9 New signs at relocated uncut area within the Conservation Zone autumn/winter 2016-17 13 Figure 10 Clouded Yellow Butterfly 3rd July 2016 17 Figure 11 Wood mouse captured during the small mammal capture-release survey, October 2016 20 Figure 12 Hedgehog at Putney Lower Common, October 2016 20 Figure 13 Bioblitz Route 2016 24 Figure 14 BioBlitz Blackboard 25 Figure 15 Lime Hawk-moth 25 Figure 16 Beating for Insects - inspecting the catch 27 LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Mowing dates for the Conservation Area of The Plain 2008-2016 4 Table 2 Comparison of sward eight data from spring 2014, 2015 and 2016 9 Table 3 Habitat patches included in floral survey to support the BioBlitz 12 Table 4 Birds of The Plain Spring-Summer 2016 14 Table 5 Typical Birds of The Plain in terms of frequency of observation 15 Table 6 Summary of insect recording 2016 16 Table 7 Butterflies on The Plain and others from assorted Commons locations but not on the routine 17 transects Table 8 Comparison of the most abundant Butterfly species recorded in 2015 and 2016 18 Table 9 Summary of mammal sightings 2016 19 Table 10 Comparison of BioBlitz results 2014-2016 28 LIST OF APPENDICES A1 The Wildlife and Conservation Forum (W&C Forum) and Volunteer Recorders 30 A2 WPC Wildlife and Conservation Events 2016 and associated W&C Forum activities 31 A3 Sward Height Data from the Conservation Zone of The Plain - Spring 2016 32 A4 a Floral Records for The Plain 2016 34 b Bioblitz Plant Communities - beyond the main area of The Plain - 2016 39 c Heathland walkabout - September 2016 41 A5 Birds on The Plain, Wimbledon Common, 2016 42 A6ai Wimbledon Common, Butterfly transect records - re-established long-term transect, 2016 45 A6aii Wimbledon Common Butterfly transect records –'New' Transect, 2016 47 A6bi Damselflies and Dragonflies at the Commons ponds and Beverley Brook, 2016 48 A6bii Supplementary Dragonfly and Damselfly records, 2016 49 A6c Moths recorded at 1 Thatched Cottage, Wimbledon Common, 2016 51 B1 BioBlitz Programme Flyer 2016 69 B2 BioBlitz Fauna and Overall Species Totals 71 B3 Identification guide sheet used for BioBlitz 2016 74 C1 Farm Bog records - assorted invertebrates especially moths 2016 75 C2 Stag Beetles sightings Wimbledon and Putney Commons and environs 2014-2016 77 C3 Air Quality Measurements in Merton, 2016 78 THANKS ARE DUE TO EVERYONE WHO HAS CONTRIBUTED RECORDS FOR THIS REPORT; TO THE WILLING VOLUNTEERS; FOR THE SUPPORT OF WILDLIFE AND CONSERVATION FORUM MEMBERS; AND FOR THE RECIPROCAL ENTHUSIASM OF WIMBLEDON AND PUTNEY COMMONS STAFF. A SPECIAL THANK YOU GOES TO ANGELA EVANS FOR HER HELP WITH PROOF READING, CHASING MISSING DATA AND ASSISTANCE WITH THE FINAL FORMATTING, COMPILATION AND PRINTING OF THE REPORT. Wimbledon and Putney Commons Monitoring Report Spring/Summer 2016 ECOLOGICAL MONITORING AT WIMBLEDON AND PUTNEY COMMONS SPRING – SUMMER 2016 CONTEXT 2016 has been busy. In particular it saw: the third year of detailed monitoring on The Plain; the third BioBlitz event; the continued incorporation of wider monitoring activities across the Commons; an externally commissioned National Vegetation Classification (NVC) survey and Habitat Assessment; and the inaugural Wildlife and Conservation Forum (W&C Forum) ‘Winter Talk’. There was further development of the programme of walks with the public, especially new staff-led events, to highlight different areas of the Commons, their history, wildlife interest and current management objectives; and the expansion of the programme of volunteer conservation management activities. Work on The Plain and the BioBlitz event was overseen by the Wildlife and Conservation Forum) which by 2016 had become well-embedded in the structure of Wimbledon and Putney Commons (WPC) life. In the summer 2016, members of the proto-Volunteer Forum were incorporated into this group. This brought together oversight of the wildlife volunteer recording efforts and the contributions of conservation working parties, such as the ‘scrub bashers’, organised by the Conservation and Engagement Officer (C&EO) (Appendix A1). This link is important since evaluation of volunteer-aided conservation management activities in terms of plant and animal response is an essential follow-up activity for good long-term management and for feedback to volunteer participants. The inaugural W&C Forum ‘Winter Talk’ was held in February 2016. These meetings aim to reach out to engage a wider pool of participants in discussions about wildlife and conservation issues for management of the Commons. The guest speaker for 2016 was James Adler from the Surrey Wildlife Trust (SWT) who has been central to building up a successful grazing herd used for heathland and grassland management across the sites managed by SWT. Around 100 people attended the talk which prompted a lively discussion. Later in the summer, a small group from WPC joined with a Birkbeck Ecological Studies Group to visit the herd’s headquarters at Wisley Common, Surrey, and learn more about the practicalities of grazing management. Building on these events and further prompted by public interest, Conservators and staff at WPC have agreed to explore more fully the possibility and practicality of short-term seasonal grazing management on the Heaths and Acid 1 Grassland areas of the Commons, while acknowledging the challenges presented in an open access location. During early summer 2016, Penny Anderson Associates (PAA) were commissioned to undertake a Phase 1 Habitat Assessment and National Vegetation Classification (NVC) survey of the Commons. This work will give a systematic basis around which to plan new monitoring activities and, very importantly, help to identify and prioritise conservation management actions. Analysing and interpreting the final feedback report (received in January 2017) is likely to form a major activity for W&C Forum members working with WPC staff during 2017. 2016 also saw a pilot small mammal survey in the vicinity of The Plain, again linked with an expert from the Surrey Wildlife Trust. This was the first such survey since 1996 and since all ran smoothly it is planned to incorporate further studies in a wider range of habitats as part of the BioBlitz event for 2017. Other W&C Forum public events in 2016 also included night-time sorties, such as the Pete Guest Bat walk and moth ‘trapping’ in scrub woodland near The Plain. Early morning seasonal bird walks were again popular and an autumnal fungal foray gave some new monitoring data (Appendix A2). In autumn 2016, the now expanded W&C Forum agreed to a routine pattern of 6 meetings per year at bi-monthly intervals with the winter evening meeting, in the form of a ‘Winter Talk’, open to the wider public and volunteers additional to this programme. Ad hoc informal opportunities to explore key issues as a group would be convened as appropriate when specific issues arose. In 2016, one such extra activity was the visit by Seb Dance, an MEP working on revision/evaluation of EU conservation strategies such as the Habitats Directive and feeding into the revised Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). He was championing Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and WPC’s importance as a habitat for Stag Beetles (Lucanus cervus). A diversity of wildlife and conservation organisations were represented at the meeting, including the Peoples’ Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), Greenspace Information for Greater London (GiGL), the London Wildlife Trust (LWT), Natural England (NE) and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB). This gave staff and W&C Forum members a valuable opportunity for informal engagement with potential key strategic partners at local, national and even international level. Subsequently a small group of W&C Forum members visited GiGL HQ to explore potential links and data sharing. Monitoring activity in 2016 followed a similar pattern to 2015. Priorities were to:- • Consolidate the records from The Plain initiated in 2014 using the same methodology as reported in Monitoring the Plain, Summer 2014 and Wimbledon and Putney Commons Monitoring Report Spring/Summer 2015 • Review the impact, if any, of the continued use of an earlier summer mowing date for The Plain, as adopted in summer 2014, (Table 1) on ground nesting song bird species and fauna and flora more generally • Continue monitoring public response to the Conservation Zone (Table 1, Footnote1) of The Plain • Note general environmental features such as soil conditions and weather • Whenever practicable incorporate wider recording activity led by specialist groups so that a fuller picture would emerge of WPC wildlife 2 • Continue to engage and enhance public participation in wildlife observation through a weekend of focal BioBlitz activities • Introduce an extended programme of public participation activities through staff, volunteer and visiting expert-led walks and other activities • To offer opportunities to participate in ecological management under the guidance of the C&EO or his delegate. The main focus of this report is the wildlife and associated recording undertaken from March to September/October 2016 by assorted volunteers coordinated through the W&C Forum.