Watch Meeting Sunday July 24th 2pm

Hello Wildlife Watch Members

The fascinating thing about Wildlife Watch meetings is that you get to visit places you wouldn't normally consider, and there's nearly always something totally unexpected happens at some point while you're there! For example, at our last meeting we discovered the truly beautiful South Elkington Church and its immense Victorian trees. And just as we opened the door to go inside, a bat unexpected flew out of the rafters above our heads and dashed for cover into a dark corner of the nave. Wow, what a shock!

Our July meeting takes us to yet another interesting place which many of you will not have had an opportunity to explore yet - Red Hill Nature Reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) owned by the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust and not far from Louth. You will be able to investigate Coronation Meadow with its abundance of colourful wild flowers, insects and butterflies. Then on the other side of the valley, the disused quarry with its distinctive red chalk and chalk plants, including pyramidal and bee orchids. You might even see a common lizard or a grass snake if you look carefully!

Our next meeting is: ‘Magnificent Meadows.'

Date: Sunday 24th JulTime: 2pm

Place: Red Hill SSSI Nature Reserve. Full directions and parking instructions will be sent with your booking confirmation

Please bring suitable clothing with strong footwear and be prepared to spend time outdoors. As the weather is likely to be hot, bring a hat and a good supply of drinking water.
Access to toilets and seating is available.

This is a free event.

Please book in advance by email to keithjpalmer@mail.com so we have a good indication of how many people are likely to attend.

Our Watch Leaders are looking forward to seeing you there!
Keith, for the Louth Wildlife Watch Team

Watch Meeting Sunday June 19th

Hello Wildlife Watch Members

Wow, what an amazing afternoon our meeting at Brackenborough Hall Farm turned out to be! I hope you all found it as fascinating and informative as I did!

 

But it doesn’t end there as our next meeting is going to be equally or even more enjoyable! This time we will be exploring the unspoilt grounds of South Elkington Church, guided by local expert Jill Day.

A wide range of mature trees are to be found here, some of them quite rare or unusual and we will be finding out more about them. Then, although not nearly so large or as imposing but probably just as mysterious and intriguing are the many different types of Lichen that are to be found in the grounds, thriving in every corner, and we will be finding out lots of facts about these interesting life forms too. 

Our next meeting is: ‘Churchyard explorers.'
Date: Sunday 19th June
Time: 2pm
Place: South Elkington Church. Full directions and parking instructions will be sent with booking confirmation

Please bring warm waterproof clothing and strong footwear and be prepared to spend time outdoors.
Access to toilets and a seating area is available.

This is a free event.

Please book in advance by email to keithjpalmer@mail.com so we have a good indication of how many people will be attending.

Our Watch Leaders are looking forward to seeing you there!
Keith, for the Louth Wildlife Watch Team

Watch Meeting 'Farming and Nature Connections' Sunday 22nd May 2022

 Hello Wildlife Watch Members

We are back with what promises to be a fascinating afternoon of nature and farming after the disappointment of our April meeting which was cancelled due to covid.
This time we are meeting at Brackenborough Hall Farm and exploring connections between farming and nature. We will be guided around the fascinating working farm by owner Paul and have opportunities to explore different aspects of farming and nature during the session. 

Can you identify some of the many bird calls you will hear? Will you be the first person this year to hear a cuckoo, or see a swallow on the farm?

Our next meeting is: 'Farming and Nature Connections.'
Date: Sunday 22 May
Time: 2pm
Place: Brackenborough Hall Farm, full directions will be sent with booking confirmation

Please bring warm waterproof clothing and strong footwear or wellington boot and be prepared to spend time outdoors.
Access to toilets and a seating area is available.

This is a free event.

Please book in advance by email to keithjpalmer@mail.com so we have a good indication of how many people will be attending.

Our Watch Leaders are looking forward to seeing everyone there!
Keith, for the Louth Wildlife Watch Team

What Makes Chalk streams Special? Watch Meeting 24th April

 Hello Wildlife Watch Members

For our April meeting we return to Louth's local area of outstanding natural beauty, Hubbard's Hills!

Spring and new life is bursting out everywhere, all around us, but this time we intend to delve below the surface to find out more about chalk streams and what it is that makes them such a special place for life and living things. Chalk stream expert William Bartle will be leading us and sharing hisn knowledge with us and there will be opportunities to engage in pond dipping and other nature related activities.

Our next meeting is: 'Exploring Chalk Streams: What makes them special?'
Date: Sunday 24th April
Time: 2pm
Place: Hubbard's Hills, meeting in front of the wooden cafe building

Please bring warm waterproof clothing and strong footwear or wellington boots for paddling and be prepared to spend time outdoors.

Access to toilets and seating areas is available.

This is a free event, but there may be a charge for the car park. 

Please book in advance by email to keithjpalmer@mail.com so we have a good indication of how many people will be attending.

Our Watch Leaders are looking forward to seeing everyone there!
Keith, for the Louth Wildlife Watch Team

Wildlife Explorer Day at Far Ings Saturday 2nd April 2022

 Hello Wildlife Watch Members

Below are details of a special event which is taking place at the Far Ings Nature Reserve and visitor Centre on Saturday 2nd April and which may be of interest to our members. It sounds like an enjoyable and fun packed event and if you've never had a chance to visit this very special reserve you'll be amazed by the nature and Humber views!

It's a bit of a drive but thoroughly worthwhile.

Best Regards

Keith, for the Wildlife Watch Team

 

Wildlife Explorer Day at Far Ings

Saturday 2^nd April 11am-3pm

Our Wildlife Explorer Day is a special day with the promise of wild discoveries! Join us at the Visitor Centre for free family activities and a trail to follow. We are also launching our new and very exciting Wildlife Explorer Backpacks!

The Wildlife Explorer Backpacks are filled with activity ideas to help families explore the Tadpole Trail at Far Ings. Be one of the first families to hire a backpacks! They are available for families to hire for £5.

 

No need to book but for more information contact Leanne at faringscentre@lincstrust.co.uk

Watch Meeting Sunday 20th March 2pm Snipe Dales

 Hello Wildlife Watch Members

Our next meeting is: ‘Signs of Spring!’
Date: Sunday 20th March
Time: 2pm
Place: Snipe Dales Nature Reserve PE23 4JB

Reserve Warden James Forrester will lead us on an exploration of this fascinating reserve. We will be keeping a special lookout for signs of Spring, new life and in the natural world around us. There will be opportunities to engage with nature related activities along the way.

Please bring warm waterproof clothing and strong footwear on the day. There is access to toilets and seating areas, but we will be mostly exploring outside areas of the natural environment.

Please note that we will be meeting at the nature reserve car park and not the nearby country park entrance.

This is a free event, but there is a £1.00 charge for the carpark.
Please book in advance by email to keithjpalmer@mail.com by Friday 18th March so we have a good indication of how many are likely to attend.

Note to children: If you have results from ‘The Big Garden Birdwatch’ please bring them along with you so we can share your viewings (we had hoped to do this at our February meeting which was cancelled)

Our Watch Leaders are looking forward to seeing everyone there!
Keith, for the Louth Wildlife Watch Group

Watch Meeting Saturday 19th February 2022

 Hello Wildlife Watch members

Our next meeting is Tracks and Traces!
Date: Saturday19th February
Time: 2pm
Place: Kenwick LRAC Centre

Note that this meeting is on Saturday 19th February and not our usual Sunday!
Please bring warm waterproof clothing as we will be outdoors for the whole meeting.

We will be exploring the woods and wild areas of the centre looking out for tracks and traces of wildlife and engaging with nature activities along the way.

This is a free event. Please book in advance by email to keithjpalmer@mail.com by Friday 18th so we have a good indication of how many are likely to attend.

Note to children: If you have results from ‘The Big Garden Birdwatch’ please bring them with you so we can share your viewings.

Also of interest to children and adults: The Natural History Museum is holding a slug and snail survey over the half term break for wildlife watchers to take part in! Find the link to the survey together with several pages of fascinating information on the many types of slug and snail you are likely to discover at https://www.nhm.ac.uk/take-part/citizen-science/slime-search

Our Watch Leaders are looking forward to seeing everyone there!
Keith, for the Louth Wildlife Watch Group

Watch Meeting, Sunday 23rd January 2022

 Hello and a Happy New Year to all our Wildlife Watch members

Our first meeting of 2022 will be held in the attractive outside grounds of Louth’s Spout Yard on Sunday 23rd January. We are hoping for good weather, but bring warm clothing and footwear just in case as we will not be working indoors!
The meeting begins at 2pm and concludes by 4pm. It is a free event. Please book in advance by email to keithjpalmer@mail.com so we know how many are likely to attend.
The theme for the meeting is ‘Feed the Birds’ and everyone will have an opportunity to make and find out about different foods and why they are important to various types of bird. Learning to identify common garden birds is an easy and interesting way to engage children with nature, and you can usually rely on at least a few to put in an appearance, especially when you know which seeds and grains they like most!
Our Watch Leaders are looking forward to seeing everyone again after the long break!
Keith, for the Louth Wildlife Watch Group