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Tuesday 17th January 2017 It was a lovely sunny day, but the wind was cold and there were still patches of frost around. Four volunteers turned up together with Ranger Mark and Ranger Ashley. The main job was to replace some of the posts in the ponds for the 'deep water' notices to be attached to. (If placed on the bank they are more likely to be pulled out and thrown in the water.) Despite the recent rain, the ponds were all very low, in some cases little more than large puddles, so it was a good time to do it. Unfortunately, the mud was so deep in one of the ponds that it wasn't safe to venture far from the edge, so that will have to wait until we have better equipment (perhaps an extension ladder which can be laid across from one side or the other?). Our other task was to cut back sidegrowth along the paths at the end of the High Ridge and along Dragonfly Loop. There was little wildlife activity noticeable other than a few birds, mainly identified by Mark and Ashley by their song (blackbird, blue tit, goldfinch, great tit, magpie, and robin). The large area of scrubland in the central area of the Reserve which was recleared in Autumn is now looking more like a meadow, though it's quite damp (with clumps of reeds) and very mulchy (the remains of the shredded blackthorn branches). The small orange-brown fungi which have sprung up along the northern edge have been tentatively identified as winter twiglet (Tubaria hiemalis). Tuesday 21st February 2017 [report not available - a contractor cut down some of the trees round Fox Pond] Tuesday 21st March 2017 Four volunteers turned up with Ranger Ashley coordinating activities, Ranger Mark being away on paternity leave. It was a mixture of sun and clouds, with a bit of a cold wind blowing. The main work activity was to put up some some notices by the ponds about it being the newt breeding season (most of the heavy work banging the poles in being done by Ashley). Meanwhile there was some hedging being done along the High Ridge (dead branches being layered between a row of double posts). There was a decent amount of water in Puckles Pond, but most of the other ponds were very low, with Willow Pond being reduced to little more than a couple of large puddles, and Prewers Pond being completely dry. Smooth newts were seen in Fox Pond, and a newt was spotted in Puckles Pond, but we weren't able to identify it. The spring flowers are now out, with some of them being in advance of their usual flowering periods. The willow catkins are in full flower and are a pretty sight, especially those round Willow Pond. The primroses have come up once more by the entrance to the East meadow, where clumps of daffodils are already flowering. Tuesday 18th April 2017 Plenty of sun but a cool wind greeted the four volunteers who turned up this month. Ranger Mark was there to hand out tools and direct our activities, mainly cutting back sidegrowth and performing the usual litter-pick. We visited all the ponds (most of which are very low for this time of the year) and inspected a new gate that had appeared in the fence on the far Eastern border of the Reserve. Several orange tip butterflies were seen. They are one of the commonest butterflies found in the Reserve, perhaps attracted by the garlic mustard along the side of the paths which is one of the main food plants of their caterpillars. Also spotted were small whites and speckled woods, but none of our large more brightly coloured species have been reported so far this year. We had a few bird sightings, and (thanks to Mark) several more were identifed by their song - species recorded were blackbird, blackcap, blue tit, chiffchaff, dunnock, robin, sparrow and wren. Masses of tall white cow parsley are in flower, as well as red dead nettle, garlic mustard, herb robert and meadow buttercups. There are still some daffodils in the East Meadow, and a few bluebells in the shadier areas, while the huge lilac bushes along the path towards Fox Pond are now in full bloom. Tuesday 16th May 2017 Five volunteers plus rangers Mark and Ashley. Main activity strimming and cutting back. Fox Pond and Willow Pond very dry, Prewers Pond gone, Puckles and Meadow Pond are ok. Dragonfly nymph and newts seen in Puckles Pond. The vetch is now starting to flower. Cleared scrubland looking a healthy green. Tuesday 20th June 2017 Despite it being one of the hottest days of the year (over 30ºC), five volunteers turned up. Rangers Mark and Ashley were there to organise out activities, but not much solid work was done, apart from strimming round the benches and along the path leading to Fox Pond. Attempts to extend the length of the hedge we're building along the High Ridge were foiled by the dryness of the ground which made it difficult to hammer in the posts without splitting them. The sunny weather brought out lots of lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) and odonata (dragonflies and damselflies), so the main activity of the day was devoted to wildlife sightings. Large numbers of meadow browns fluttered along Plotlands Way and around the central area of the Reserve. Other butterflies seen included skippers (Essex and large), ringlets, holly blues, large whites, red admiral, small tortoisehell and a brimstone moth (identified by Mark). Common blue damselflies, a common darter, and a 4-spotted chaser were spotted over Meadow and Puckles Ponds which had retained their water and are quite full, whereas Willow and Fox Pond were almost dry - little more than large puddles. Other species recorded were an oak bush cricket (nymph) and an edible frog (heard croaking in the Eastern area of the Reserve). Also identified by their calls were blackcaps and a song thrush. The vetch is now out, accompanied by red bartsia, ox-eye daisies, ragwort, red and white clover and hedge (large) and field (small) bindweed. Tuesday 18th July 2017 Another lovely summer day, hot and sunny. Ten volunteers this month, perhaps boosted by the recent AGM. Rangers Mark and Ashley on hand to organise things, and Ranger Gary with three additional workers who were using heavier cutting machinery they'd brought along to clear the sidegrowth back along Plotland Way, which they did very efficiently. Some of us were busy strimming and raking while the remainder cut back overhanging brambles and small branches along the paths and the steps, where some weeding was done. Willow Pond is almost completely dry but Puckles Pond still looks healthy. There were lots of butterflies to be seen, mainly blues and meadow browns. The summer flowers are now in full bloom with fine displays of golden rod, creeping thistles, ragwort and willowherb in the more open areas. Tuesday 15th August 2017 Ranger Mark was having time off for parenting duties so Ranger Ashley took over the task of organising the eight volunteers who turned up on what was a very pleasant late summer afternoon, sunny and warm with the occasional cloud passing over, and just a light breeze. The long awaited tools storage enclosure has now been installed. It's about the size of a small garage (but more sturdily built) and has been positioned at the top of Plotlands Way, slightly set back between two of the benches so it's not too obstrusive. (It should be even less so when it has been cladded.) Ranger Ashley used a chain-saw to take down several ash trunks on the High Ridge which were a potential danger as they were likely to fall across the path at some point. They were coming from the same damaged bole and looked to be in poor health with only a few leaves high in the canopy. Some renovation work filling in gaps was done on the Spanish Steps, but the rest of our energy went into cutting back the overhanging sidegrowth, along the paths. There wasn't a lot of animal wildlife to be seen. A few white butterflies fluttered around the cleared scrubland area (now waist high in thistles, vetch and willowherb), and Ranger Ashley tentatively identified a loud squaking from high above in Camberwell Copse as possibly being the cry of a kestrel chick. Bright yellow ragwort still dominates the flora in the open areas on the Western side of the Reserve but it's starting to look a bit bedraggled. Fleabane and goat's rue are now in blossom, while the hedges are already bearing an abundance of Autumn fruits - red hips haws and honeysuckle berries, dark blue-purple sloes (of the blackthorn), and masses of rapidly ripening blackberries. Tuesday 19th September 2017 Rangers Mark and Ashley together with two assistants from Wat Tyler Country Park started cutting the grass in the near part of the East Meadow during the morning, and by the time the five volunteers for the afternoon's work party turned up there was plenty of raking to be done. We heaped the grass into large piles (which were removed the following morning by Ashley using a tractor with impressive looking mechanical grabbers). The purpose of the cut was to remove all the summer growth in order to deplete the amount of nitrogen in the soil. This helps prevent nitrogen-loving grasses from dominating the meadow at the expense of other flora. There was also some strimming done, clearing the growth round the benches and elsewhere. This seems to be a good year for fungi, and it would be useful to have someone along to identify the various species to be found in the Reserve. (The only foray we've had was in 1999, organised by Steve Prewer.) As ever, the water levels in the ponds continue to surprise. Despite the recent rain, Willow Pond and Fox Pond are both dry, though at least this gives us an opportunity to replace the 'deep water' signs without getting stuck in the mud! However Puckles Pond (the one with the dipping platform) is very full with its surface almost completely covered by lesser duckweed. Tuesday 17th October 2017 The day started off cloudy, but cleared up awhile and ended up quite sunny. There were eight volunteers this month, with Rangers Mark and Ashley plus an assistant. The major job was trimming and strimming, but we also managed a litter-pick and a couple of us did some path repair, barrowing some gravel and filling a few gaps which had appeared in the path leading to the Eastern side of the Reserve. All the ponds except Puckles are now dry or reduced to puddles, but this gave us the opportunity to remove some logs which vandals had thrown into Fox Pond. (Note, even though the ponds are 'dry', the mud is quite deep and in places it acts like quicksand, so people should not feel tempted to walk across them!) Very little wildlife was reported, but the Michalemas daises put on a brave autumn show (including a variant with white flowers). Despite being an escapee from plotland times, like the masses of golden rod by Prewers Pond, they seem to have found their niche in the Reserve. Tuesday 21st November 2017 Five volunteers turned up to help Ranger Mark on this month's work party. We had two jobs scheduled. The first was to continue adding to the section of dead hedge along the High Ridge, which we are slowly extending so as to provide a barrier to prevent dogs running down the slope and on to the busy A127. Our second task was to remove a tree which had half-fallen and appeared to be precariously perched over a path. In fact it was so securely pinned in the fork of another tree it took the combined effort of three of us to dislodge it. Eventually we managed to drop the trunk down safely, but it was unexpectedly hard work. |