A tale of 5 BioBlitzes – by Richard Bland

An interesting  bit of documental evidence from Richard Bland, on the importance of Bristol99’s work for our heritage…..

During May and early June this year there were five events supported by the Friends of the Downs and Gorge, supported by the Bristol99 project and the Gorge and Wildlife project based at Bristol Zoo. One was rained off, three were poorly attended as a result of my publicity failures, and the last involved a class from Clifton College lower sixth. The Downs is both a very substantial SNCI site consisting of some 200 hectares and the gorge edge is an SSSI. The Bristol 99 visits were designed to survey the common plants of twenty specific hectare squares, covering a variety of different habitats. They used tick lists as a simple way of producing an accurate but not complete species list. In the event 15 of the squares were covered at the time, and sub sequentially, inspired by the success of the scheme, all 200 of the tetrad squares of the SNCI were surveyed.

 

The Bristol99 visits were based on lists of some 30 common species expected at each site, and subsequent work has shown that this is indeed roughly the average number of plant species, excluding grasses, in each hectare. The extremes are 88 species and 7 species The survey also showed the extraordinary variety, and fragility of the Downs species list- over 70 species were found in a single hectare square, and a similar number were present in ten percent or less of the regions one-km squares. There were six very different habitat types present, the cliff face itself, parkland, ie essentially grass and trees, closed canopy woodland, scrub, football pitches, and limestone species rich grassland. This is the rarest habitat both on the Downs and in the region and it dominated as few as 14 of the squares. There were some 42 uncommon species associated with the limestone grassland, eight of them only found in a single square, but Catsear, the commonest found in 58.

 

This survey has shown the wonderful botanical diversity of the Downs and its extraordinary variety, and will act as a yardstick for the process of change which is continuous on the Downs, partly the result of the spread of scrub, partly a response to differing mowing regimes, partly a more natural response to varying weather conditions.

Bug Pots and BioBlitzes on Troopers Hill – by Susan Acton Campbell

It was great to be invited to be part of Bristol 99.  Our event on Troopers Hill was a mini Bio-Blitz.  This was a first for Friends of Troopers Hill but Bristol Natural History Consortium (BNHC) made it very easy.  A training session for volunteers was provided at Brandon Hill.  Our attention was slightly diverted as a Gromit was wheeled past but soon we were having all our questions answered and much useful information was shared.

Emails were exchanged with lists of needs (a toilet was top of our list), timings, useful forms and the all important risk assessment.

The day came with bright sunshine.  We had packed two events into the day, so for us the day started with a tree gazing walk with Tony Titchen.  Just after lunch volunteers met, put up two gazebos, arranged information displays, bug pots, nets and clipboards and settled back to wait for interested people.

Along they came and expert naturalists Tony Smith, Ray Barnet and Matt Postles worked hard to keep up with the stream of questions.  Volunteers were kept busy recording, photographing, meeting and greeting, giving out nets and bug pots.  Photos can be seen on http://www.troopers-hill.org.uk/events/13Br99.htm

So what happened next?  Wonderful volunteers collated all the data and put it on spreadsheets, so we have a snapshot of some of the species on Troopers Hill on the day.  We also made use of contacts made for the event.  Tony Smith has been back and carried out a plant survey of 3 compartments on Troopers Hill and given some training on grass and fern recognition to two volunteers.  The all important toilet was so successful that we have used the same company again for which many people were very grateful when they came to Troopers Hill to watch Bristol’s Balloon Fiesta on the same day we were holding our Bugs and Beasties event.

Thank you BNHC and happy 10^th birthday!

Ben Connor discovers Hawkfield Meadows, yet another hidden wildlife haven!

One of the most rewarding aspects of the Bristol99 project has been discovering hidden pockets of wild nature in the most unlikely of places. And so it was that I stepped through a hedge off busy Hengrove Way, and into the hidden oasis of Hawkfield Meadows.

Leading our exploration of this hidden gem was Bristol City Council ecologist Justin Smith, accompanied by a bunch of Bristol99 volunteers and a group of Horizons students and their tutors from next-door South Bristol Skills Academy. As we moved away to the road and into the heart of the meadow, a mix of species-rich grassland, scrub thick with hawthorn, and small patches of woodland, the sound of traffic was replaced by the trill of a blue tit, and the chiffchaff’s slow waltz.

Everyone soon got stuck in to exploring the site, as the volunteers helped the students to identify some of the most common species, including ash and hawthorn trees, cow parsley and cuckoo-pint. Sitting atop the numerous buttercups were a number of the wonderfully monikered swollen-thighed beetle (also known as the fat-legged beetle or the knobbly-kneed beetle).

So if you find yourself visiting the sparkling new Hengrove Park Leisure Centre, finish your swim, cross the road, and spend a few minutes exploring the meadow. You never know what you might find!

 

Thanks to BNHC’s Ben Connor, for this article

The Wild Men of Stoke Park (there is more than one you know!) by Matt Postles

 As the street lights began to flicker into action in Lockleaze, a strange gathering hunched against the drizzle outside the Cameron Centre. These twenty blokes left the comforts of their homes and families to come out into the rain and pit their wits against nature in a testosterone fuelled demonstration of the ancient art of survival…. and in the process learn how to make a lovely salad!

 After the briefest of health and safety briefings and armed with nothing but a few carrier bags we were led into the wilderness of Stoke Park by Steve England, local legend, wild food fan and all round outdoors guru.

 On hitting the park’s central meadows, Steve immediately put us through our paces.  We identified and collected wild sorrel and other delicious morsels before descending into the darker woodlands where the guys were at least sheltered from the rain, if not from the dew that had been slowly creeping up their jeans. Here we learned about more plants and how Dogs Mercury would prove a potentially lethal addition to our dinner if we failed to distinguish it from amongst the Wild Garlic for our salad.

As the darkness crept in we turned our attention to fire and the atmosphere changed tangibly. As we gathered wood and fungus fire lighters, you could almost hear the ‘Dawn of Man’ music building in the trees around us with every spark from the fire-sticks and every snap of kindling. The atmosphere was somewhat broken when one of the guys lit his cigarette with the lighter stashed in his pocket but we got a fire going eventually, for a well earned supper of wild salad and slightly less wild sausages.

 Each of us urbanites had a great time, learned a lot about wild foods and fuelled our masculine egos sufficiently to return to our wives and girlfriends – or as I call mine, The Boss.

 To find out more about Stoke Park visit Steve’s website: www.steveengland.co.uk

Matt Postles visits Glyn Vale, buzzing with wildlife on the Northern Slopes

As the sun beat down ferociously, Zeke and I slowly dragged our heavy bug hunting kit up Glyn Vale before emerging on to Wedmore Vale where we are greeted by a huge archway marking the gateway to a hidden world behind the houses.

The Northern Slopes are a band of low hills across Knowle West which, in spite of the suburban surroundings, have remained in keeping with their rural history. A patchwork of wildflower meadows and scrubby woodland, the south facing slope is alive with insects soaking up the rays of the latest freak heat wave – a good day for bug hunting!

A big shire horse casts a lazy eye in our direction as we pant our way up to the top of the hill where we meet our intrepid explorers for the day – two classes from Parson Street Primary School and Ruth Worsley who was in charge of proceedings.

Our mission: To explore the slope of Glyn Vale in search of invertebrates and the plants that they like to feast on! As well as valuable Bristol99 records we were specifically on the lookout for some key species to help with some big national surveys: PlantLife’s Bee Scene survey and OPAL’s Bug Count.

In a frenzy of bug pots, identification charts, sweep nets and sun cream we managed to discover 37 species in just a few short hours including some huge mounds of yellow meadow ant nests (Lasius flavus). These ants are specialists of open meadows, building nest mounds over several generations, so are a good indicator that the slopes have been used for pastoral grazing for hundreds of years.

We also collected some very noticeable tan lines.

Find out more about the Northern Slopes and how you can enjoy and protect this beautiful green space at http://www.northern-slopes-initiative.co.uk.

Thanks to BNHC’s Matt Postles, for this article.

Ben Connor goes a bit batty as he joins in for The Big Commute!

Every evening in Bristol, dozens of commuters travel silently, speedily, almost unnoticed by the rest of the population as they soar above the city. A new cycle flyover? Not quite. For these commuters are small, furry, and in search of an insect feast. I’m talking, of course, about bats.

On a drizzly evening in June, about 40 people gathered for The Big Commute, an evening of bat watching in St. Andrew’s graveyard, Clifton, led by Dr Marc Holderied, Senior Lecturer in Biology at the University of Bristol, and an expert authority on bats, their behaviour and ecology. Despite being just a stone’s throw from the city centre, the graveyard is one of the main commuting routes for bats in Bristol, as they leave their roosts at dusk to head off to their feeding grounds in search of insect prey.

As the crowd – including one enthusiast donning the full Dracula – gathered expectantly, and Marc and his team set up their bat detectors, there was just one problem: the incessant rain. Bats hunt by echolocation, emitting calls inaudible to the human ear that rebound off their surroundings, enabling them to map their surroundings and hunt insects in the dark. Fill the air with raindrops, and this process becomes increasingly difficult.

Despite the less than promising conditions, the brave crowd stuck it out, and Marc gave an entertaining introduction to Bristol’s bats, their behaviour and ecology. St. Andrew’s graveyard may just have the most studied bats in the county, providing researchers from the University with a convenient study site, and is home to a number of species, including common pipistrelles, as well as rarer Leisler’s and barbastrelle bats. Marc explained some of the latest research into and the ongoing evolutionary arms race between bats and their prey, from bats ‘whispering’ to avoid detection, to moths planting distractions with tail streamers.

As the night drew to close we were finally rewarded, as a solitary pipistrelle flew overhead, recording a rapid chatter on the bat detectors. While on this occasion this solitary bat was our only record, many of our participants were determined to return on a clear evening, when up to 200 bats can be seen heading out into the city night.

 

Article by Ben Connor

“It’s like seeing the same place but with different eyes” Lamplighters Marsh gets the Bristol99 treatment!

“It’s like seeing the same place but with different eyes”. So concluded one of our enthusiastic participants after Bristol99’s morning expedition to Lamplighter’s Marsh, amazed at the wealth of wildlife to be found on her local patch.

Alight from the Severn Beach Line at Shirehampton, head towards the sadly abandoned Lamplighter’s Pub, and you soon find yourself at the entrance to the marsh, a thin sliver of land wedged between the railway and the River Avon. One of Wild City’s flagship sites, Lamplighter’s Marsh is a mosaic of saltmarsh, grassland and scrub offering fine views across the river estuary.

Led by naturalist Rupert Higgins, with support from Wild City’s Helen Adshead and our trusty Bristol99 volunteers, we teamed up with a group of a dozen over 55s from LinkAge Shirehampton, led by the indefatigable Ricky, to explore the site and record as many species as we could find within a tight two-hour window. Setting off slowly, we snaked through the marsh on the well-used footpath as Rupert identified some of the rich variety of plants to be found on the site, from the everlasting pea to the sea aster.

However, the fun really started once the sweep nets and bug pots were handed out, and our participants were transformed into an army of committed invertebrate hunters, sweeping through the verges and beating tree branches with enthusiasm. Before long our species tally was shooting upwards, with multiple click beetles, a green shieldbug and dark bush crickets all recorded. Orange-tip butterflies abounded, their fluorescent wings catching everyone’s eye. Birds were also out in force, with a whitethroat flitting between the bushes, and numerous cormorants gliding downriver.

While the 79 species recorded was an impressive tally from a short walk through the site, the most memorable part of the morning was listening to people’s own stories of the site and their connections to nature. Many of the participants had lived in Shirehampton for most of their lives, and regularly walked through the site. Whilst some were able to impart their own local knowledge as to the best place to find certain species, others were delighted to discover that the marsh held such a diversity of species, and equipped with their new understanding felt able to appreciate the site anew. Perhaps most revealing were the stories of a post-war Shirehampton where nature was marked by its abundance; a place where finding adders on the doorstep was unremarkable, and the meadows were alive with insects.

Bristol City Council is currently reviewing the management plan for Lamplighter’s Marsh, with the eventual aim of securing its status as a Local Nature Reserve, ensuring the protection of this important site for future generations to enjoy.

Thanks to BNHC’s Ben Connor for this article.

Wildlife on wheels, LifeCycle visit Manor Woods Valley Nature Reserve

My last event of Bristol99 was absolutely lovely.  It took place in the meadow at Manor Woods Valley Nature Reserve, on a pleasant (if not a little grey) June afternoon.  Ed Drewitt, again was leading it, but this time, our audience were 2 groups from LifeCycle UK – the Silver Cyclists (over 55 age group) and Bike Minded (for people with emotional and/or mental health problems).  They were joining us, of course, by bicycle, travelling along the Malago Greenway Cycle Route, and, but for the encumbrance of my large trolley of kit, I would have accompanied them.  But never mind.  It was nice to sit in the long grass awaiting their arrival, me, Ed and Steph Gillett, one of BNHC’s most longstanding volunteers, talking about our recent wildlife experiences.  A little while later, we saw them appear in the distance, a long snake of cyclists winding their way along the path through the green fields towards us.

Helen Adshead from Wild City was leading the way, followed by about 20 cyclists on a range of bicycles.  Helen was the only one not wearing a helmet (tut tut) and looked rather girl-like with her long blonde ponytail flowing behind!  After parking their bikes, everyone gathered around for Ed to explain what we were going to do.  There was a mixture of people from both groups and everyone was keen to join in.  The activity was simple, find as much wildlife as possible, in and around the meadow over the next 40 minutes!  And so, with sweep nets distributed, white umbrellas to shake trees into and guide books laid out on the grass, 20 people spread out over the site with bug pots at the ready, to see what exciting finds they could uncover.

Not surprisingly, a meadow so rich in wildflowers and grasses proved to be a haven for invertebrates, and all sorts of creatures were brought back and thrust in front of Ed for identification.  This included for me, some never before seen on a Bristol99 event, such as the grey mining bee, comb footed spiders and a moth with a very long snout, called the garden grass veneer.  Ed, Steph and I also made a record of the plants themselves, assisted by Andre Coutanche, chair of the Malago Valley Conservation Group (who knows just about everything there is to know about the site).  We noted long stalked cranes bill, birds foot trefoil, water dropwort, pale and blue flax and ox eye daisies to name but a few.   I was joined by a tiny girl, on her way home with her mum and baby brother, who had picked up a discarded net and was desperate to catch a bee or a butterfly with it.  Eager to encourage this interest, I stopped to help her, whilst our group sat down to enjoy a rather lovely picnic with home made cake and elderflower cordial.

Picnic concluded, records collected, it was time for LifeCycle to go home, and the end, for me at least, of 6 weeks of intensive activity on some of Bristol’s best wildlife sites.  It was clear that LifeCycle had enjoyed doing something a little bit different and proof that it’s easy enough to incorporate a bit of wildlife into other activities.  That is, unless you have a huge trolley of kit to consider!  Trailer please someone!!!

Clifton College tick all the boxes for conservation, as part of Bristol99

I don’t know if I was more, or less worried when I turned up at Bristol Zoo for Bristol 99 on the Downs School Day – and the school turned out to be a load of sixth formers from Clifton College, rather than the ‘little people’ I was expecting!  I just remember what I was like as a teenager – if I wasn’t interested, I wasn’t interested, and that was that.  We were doing a wildflower transect on Clifton Downs, which, in my head, might not be an easy sell.  But then, it was an afternoon out of school!

The event had been organised by Mandy Leivers of the Avon Gorge & Downs Wildlife Project, and for the first activity, we were being joined by wild flower expert Richard Bland, who had marked out areas of the Downs with white flags, within which we would use his now, well trialled ‘tick list’ system to record the plant species.  Richard explained why this was important, and how the data collected would be used by the City Environmental department to advise the Downs Committee on future management of the site.  I then gave some background information on Bristol99, and we walked out to the area.

On arrival, the first thing we needed to do was teach the students how to identify the different plants on their tick lists.  Some were really interesting to identify, like beaked hawksbeard, which has a number of distinguishing features, such as orange stripes on the underside of its petals, roughly hairy stems and leaves, and most importantly, a bract under each branch along the stem.  I have to say, I was very impressed by the interest they all showed in learning, and the questions they asked.  Eventually, they were confident enough to be set free with their own tick lists and off they went in little groups, to challenge their new found knowledge.  They discovered plenty that weren’t on the list, and rather than dismissing them, asked what they were.  Heads bowed in concentration, there was quiet chatter but no messing around, not even from the boys (who, I was surprised by now, weren’t wrapping the superfluous quadrats they were carrying, around each other’s heads!)

When more scarce species were found, like twayblade, the excitement was contagious, as they all gathered round to see this rarity that hadn’t made the tick list, and likewise, they all appreciated the beauty of the common spotted and southern marsh orchids.  Just when everyone seemed to be really getting into it, it was time to switch activities.  At this point, the weather, (as it had on almost every event on the Downs) let us down again, and a wind came out of nowhere and blew the rain in.  This was unfortunate, as the next activity was a butterfly transect with Martin Collins from the Friends of the Downs and Avon Gorge group.  Martin seemed determined to go ahead, despite the darkening sky and shivering audience, talking at length about all the different butterflies that could be found on the Downs, none of which, unfortunately, were to be seen.  Eventually, and sadly, he had to admit failure and we scurried into the shelter of the gully, abandoning all hopes of seeing anything airborne.  Instead, we walked to see the goats and he explained their important role in keeping the scrub down, so that the wildflower rich grassland has a chance to re establish.

Sadly, by the time the squally shower had blown through, it was time to say goodbye to our lovely young group.   It was clear that their brief afternoon on the Downs, had left them with some new found knowledge, and a feeling of satisfaction, from having contributed something important for the conservation of this special site.  On my part,  I felt very encouraged by their enthusiasm, and it certainly demonstrated that engendering an interest in the natural world isn’t something that has to be done at birth!

Callington Road Nature Reserve gets a medical check up!

With all the recent publicity surrounding ash die back disease and acute oak decline, there is more than ever, a growing interest in the importance of monitoring our trees.  Opal (Open Air Laboratories) have devised an excellent and very comprehensive survey explaining exactly how to do this, results of which can be sent back to them, allowing a picture to be built up about the state of our natural environment.

Wild City and Friends of Callington Road Nature Reserve decided they wanted to do this as part of Bristol99, so on the evening of June 6th, I met a small group of members, together with Wild City’s Paula Spiers and Beth Garman, Bristol City Council Tree Officer, at the reserve’s Dew Pond to learn how to do a tree health survey.

We did a couple of trees together to get the hang of it.  The survey is very good and assumes no prior knowledge – which for a lot of people, including me, will be very important! It provides guidance on tree identification and explains how to measure its height, the girth of the trunk and what sort of crown it has (the spread of the branches and leaf canopy).  It then goes into all sorts of detail about the amount of dead wood in the crown, percentage of leaf cover, condition of the leaves, evidence of any wildlife using the tree as a home and evidence of bark or leaf damage through pests or diseases.

After a couple of examples, we were let loose in the reserve to do our own surveying.  I paired up with Pam, a retired lady (who I seem to recall was wearing bright, bright red lipstick!) and in her hands, was led off, away from the crowd, deep into the reserve to (for some reason) find the most difficult, inaccessible tree to survey!  Surrounded by nettles and brambles, and so intertwined with other trees, it was nearly impossible to discern which tree we were supposed to be surveying, but we managed, with some trouble (and a small amount of injury) to take all the measurements, identify that it was an ash and, apart from being completely eclipsed by its neighbours, was a perfectly healthy specimen with no incipient diseases.

Pam talked volubly about the history of the site, which was formerly a large area of surplus allotment land, part of which was sold off for the development of a hospital, not without some controversy.  However, the hospital developer did provide funds, as a condition of their planning approval, to establish the nature reserve, which was granted its status in 2009.  Pam really has no need to visit the reserve, living as she does in her own wildlife oasis in Knowle, where seemingly, the wildlife visits her, and together with her 30 guinea pigs and hobby of puppy fostering, it’s amazing she ever has time to leave the house!

Concerned about the time we had taken to walk out and find the ‘difficult tree’ we wondered back, where Pam chose an even more ‘difficult tree’ which was stuck in a corner, up a steep, windy path and therefore impossible to measure (at which point I decided Pam just didn’t like the measuring element of the exercise!)  We did the best we could, then joined up with the other members of the group, who had had a lovely time with ‘easy trees’ and no doubt felt a lot more confident about the accuracy of their surveys then we did!

It was a lovely evening out and I met some great people, including former chair of the Friends Group, Denis Stuckey and his wife Angela.  The overall conclusion seemed to be that the trees were a healthy lot in Callington Road, which was encouraging and I went away, happy, that once again, I had found another beautiful space on my doorstep, from which to escape the hustle and bustle of the city.