PRESIDENT OF THE LINCOLNSHIRE WILDLIFE TRUST

I am delighted to report that Mr David Robinson OBE has been elected President of the LWT. David has been involved with the trust in so many ways since its foundation when he was appointed Secretary. He was also the founder of the Louth Area Group and set up its inaugural meeting on 9 January 1970.

I am sure that all members of the LAG join me in offering David our sincere congratulations on his appointment.

Ray Woodcock Chairman LAG

LAG EVENING VISIT TO THE ELMS FARM SWABY VALLEY 10 JUNE 2016

A Red kite soared over sixteen LAG members as our host Phil Gibson told us that his great grandfather had bought the farm in 1912 for the sum of £2,300 and the family have run it ever since. Currently The Elms Farm has a mix of arable and cattle with a cash crop of wild flowers. Phil is a man with many agricultural facets. As well as managing the farm he acts as an adviser to other farmers about water management and how to cope with the chemical balances that the crops need whilst adhering to the regulations set down by various authorities.
Our planned two hour walk around the farm’s fields and meadows lasted over two and a half hours, mainly because of our questions and Phil’s full responses. The almost three-mile circuit really brought home to us the complexity of modern farming. Even though much of the planning is carried out by computer it still takes seventy years to create a meadow!

The walk under a grey sky took us over a hillside where the dominant umbellifers changed from Cow parsley to Pignut. The grazing cattle viewed us disdainfully as we watched the carp rising to snatch insects from the surface of a relatively new pond whilst the Yellow flag provided bright patches of colour around the edges. Throughout our walk over a swathe cut through the lush grasses at the edges of the fields we had wonderful vistas of the rolling Wolds and for me the variation of green vegetation of all shapes and sizes was quite breath-taking: so many wild flowers and grasses.
We paused to look at a the glaciated Swaby valley and learnt that the farmland was based on the site of a terminal moraine. Further on we noticed the clarity of the stream which led Phil to describe the ways in which chemical imbalances were still being adjusted as a result of the days of acid rain over forty years ago. A fact that sticks in my mind is that nitrates have to be controlled to five parts in a billion – that is equivalent to a drop of water in an Olympic sized swimming pool!

We moved past a badger sett to an area where the Early purple and Marsh orchids were beginning to emerge. This location was near to the source of the Great Eau. We crested the hill to a blaze of Cornflowers to our left with Buttercups and Michaelmas daisies to our right. This was where Phil drilled and sowed the wild flower seeds which were harvested and sold by ‘Grow Wild’ near Boston.
As we trudged over another hill and then steeply down to the farm yard we heard a Skylark. He was the harbinger of the rain that had held off for the evening. The hat was passed round as a way of saying thank you to Phil who spent a long time with us and did not charge for his services. Phil was pleased and told us that the cash collected would go to the local church whose land abutted his farm.
A great outing that was rounded off by heavy rain as we drove out of the farm gates. RW

Our next LAG event is the National Meadows day at Red Hill on Saturday 2 July.
Just drop in between 1000 and 1600hrs.

Middle Marsh Farm Visit

Jane and I were delighted to be able to introduce a dozen LAG members to a new area. None of them had visited Middle Marsh Farm before where we had sunshine, a cooling breeze and good company.

We heard the gulls on the mere behind the first hide from over 200 metres away.  When the hide shutters were opened there were white birds all over the banks and the small islands – gulls, avocets, shelduck and greylag geese. On closer inspection by eye and optics we realised that the smudges on the water and the shore were baby birds. I counted 47 greylag geese chicks formed up like a raft behind a couple of adults. Another fluffy mover became a lapwing chick. There were gulls nesting and oystercatchers were flying and shouting to establish territory and mates whilst the black-headed and lesser black back gulls added their voices to the clamour. We gave up trying to identify the host of immature gulls and just enjoyed the spectacle.

During our walk along the wonderfully grassy and completely litter free path to the next hide we kept stopping. There were hares in the field a marsh harrier and common terns in the sky whilst the elegant pale mauve flowers of ladies-smock stood out amongst the grasses, meadow buttercups and dandelions on the bank of the drainage dyke. A reed bunting announced its presence form the top of a large bush but we not able to catch more than a glimpse of the sedge warblers singing in the reeds.

There were not so many species around at the second hide but some anxious lapwings were drawing attention away from their chicks. More hares dashing across the ploughed fields and an avocet overhead made the walk back to the car park interesting. It was time for lunch – a picnic for some and for others a chance to try out the catering facilities at the newly opened Visitors’ Centre at Gibraltar Point.  RW

Many thanks to Julie for the bird list:

Little egret, Mute swan, Greylag goose and goslings, Canada goose, Shelduck, Gadwall, Mallard, Tufted duck, Marsh harrier, Buzzard, Kestrel, Pheasant, Moorhen, Coot, Oystercatcher and chick, Avocet, Lapwing and chick, Redshank, Black-headed gull, Lesser black-backed gull, Herring gull, (various immature gulls), Common tern, Feral pigeon, Wood pigeon, Skylark, Swallow, Swift, Pied wagtail, Sedge warbler, Magpie, Jackdaw, Carrion crow, Reed bunting. 33.

National Meadows Day

Good morning,

INFORMATION AND VOLUNTEERS

The notice below tells you about an exciting event that will take place at the LWT Red Hill Reserve on Saturday 2 July. LAG has taken on the responsibility for running the event. It will be great to see you there.

A small group of us from LAG are working with the LWT and the National Meadows staff to plan the day. We do not know how many visitors will arrive. It all depends on the weather.

What we need now are a few volunteers. The tasks will be helping with the sales of LWT goods and  the manning of a stall to give out leaflets relating to children's activities. We also need two or three 'marshals' to give out programmes  and to answer very general questions about the day's events. 

Some of us will be there from 0930 until about 1600 but I would love to hear from any of you who will commit yourselves for a half day session 0930- 1230 or 1230- 1530 or even for the whole day. The site is remote and the toilet facilities somewhat rural or even alfresco. Plus you will need to bring your own sustenance as there are no refreshment facilities on site. Please let me know if you can assist by 12 June.

Best wishes

Ray

NATIONAL MEADOWS DAY

AT LINCOLNSHIRE WILDLIFE RESERVE REDHILL

The LWT is working together with the ‘Save our Magnificent Meadows Project’ to host a National Meadows Day.

This is a day when you have the opportunity to visit and explore the reserve. The emphasis is on looking at wild flowers and enjoying yourselves. Children are especially welcome.

·         WILD FLOWER IDENTIFICATION BOOKS & CHARTS FOR SALE

·         CHILDREN’S ACTIVITY SHEETS AVAILABLE

·         ASK THE EXPERTS ABOUT

o   FLOWERS

o   BUTTERFLIES

o   BIRDS

·         STROLL FREELY OR WITH A GUIDE

o   GUIDED WALKS leave the main entrance at 1030hrs and at 1400hrs

·         SOME DOES AND DON’TS 

o   You will have to climb stIles to gain access to the meadows. Do be sure that you are fit enough.

o   Please do tread carefully – there are many delicate flowers underfoot.

o   Do take pictures but don’t pick the flowers.

o   Do be aware that dogs are not permitted on the Coronation Meadow.

o   The long grass may be wet. So you need to wear appropriate footwear.

The early orchids seem to be doing well in Lincolnshire this year.

Watch Group

We were lucky to have a fine afternoon for the launch of the new Louth Area Watch Group at Red Hill Nature Reserve on May 15th 2016.
We were initially uncertain as to how many children might attend. So it was exciting that eight children were there at the beginning of the event and more arrived later.
The first activity was to place hoops down in the coronation meadow. The children looked very closely and wrote down and drew what they could see in the circles:- flowers, leaves and insects. We then all walked together very quietly down the hill into the valley and were lucky to see lots of rabbits running home.
Using our hoops we examined another area with different flora etc. We then explored the woodland on each side of the valley to try to find clues as to who lived there. There was much interest in an animal skull that was found. The consensus was that it was most likely a badger skull. Another clue was the badger latrines on one side of the hill near several large holes.

Leaving the coronation meadow we crossed the road and went into the quarry. The children were given 'spotting sheets' so that they were able to explore and tick the items on the list. We finished the afternoon by crossing back again and walking toward Badger Farm to view the red chalk that gave the area its name.

A Crane.

UNEXPECTED SIGHTINGS AT SALFLETBY

On Monday evening Jane and I decided to go to the hide at Elm House Farm to see if the Ruffs were still there; no Ruffs but lots of Shelduck and a Lapwing.

As I was watching a hare run down the path in front of the hide  I heard a honking that I associate with Spain and Portugal. The noise came from a Common crane that flew around the ponds escorted by 17 Shelduck. We willed it to land - but no luck. It sailed off north towards Donna Nook. Jane managed to take some photographs to prove to the Bird Recorders that we had seen it. It was seen again on Tuesday in the Covenham area. This is a very rare sighting for Lincolnshire. For once we were in the right place at the right time.

A short time later we became aware of crows mobbing a brown smudge on the ground. This turned out to be a fox sneaking towards the ducks and waders on the ponds. 

As we left, accompanied by bullocks in the field to the right and by cows and calves in the field on the right, five Little egrets  dropped out of the sky. Ray W

LAG CHAIRMAN’S JOTTINGS MAY

The wonderful display of Cowslips and Dandelions in the verges match the yellow of the Oil seed rape in so many fields. Look carefully by the roadside for the blues of the last Bluebells and the emerging Speedwell as well as the spotted leaves and flower spikes of the Early purple orchids.

On 12 May I learned that there are now 3 Peregrine nestlings on St James’s church tower. Stand by for a noisy summer in Louth!

EVENTS

On this Sunday 15^th May from 2pm to 4pm there is an opportunity for children aged 6 to 14 years with an interest in nature to explore on the Red Hill nature reserve. The newly formed Louth Watch Group have arranged an afternoon`s programme of fun wildlife activities for the children and suggest that you bring a picnic to finish the day. The event is open to all and free. Children must be accompanied by an adult. More details and directions on how to find Red Hill are given on Lincolnshire wildlife trust website http://www.lincstrust.org.uk/events/2016/05/10/louth-wildlife-watch-group-launch-event. Booking is not essential, but it would be helpful to know who is coming. If you are interested and for more details, then please contact Avril Huke at p.a.huke@talk21.com or phone 01507 605158

If you know of any families with children who might be interested, then please can you let them know about this event.

Saturday 22 May at 1030 am. A visit to Middle Marsh Wetlands led by Ray Woodcock and hopefully the resident ranger. This venue is not far from Skegness. To reach the start point drive through the Pine Trees Leisure Park, PE24 4RE to a large car park beyond some fishing lakes. The area is flat and there are two hides within 200 metres of the car park, both with wheelchair access. The area is a haven for waders, gulls and geese whilst a walk along a rutted path to a third hide will take us past hedges where warblers and other song birds establish their territory and serenade their mates. We shall be about two hours on site.

HELP is needed with the delivery of the LWT Lapwings magazine; 6 in the in the South Elkington area and 10 in the Alvingham area. If you are able to spend a little time helping out, please let me know on lag2014rrww@aol.com

Enjoy the outdoors – there are so many daylight hours for external activities at this time of the year. Jane and I are off to Gibraltar Point tomorrow to look at birds, wildflowers and the progress on the visitors’ centre.

Ray Woodcock Chairman LAG