Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust Newsletter March 2016
Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust
: m a e T e h t M e et
What Makes Our Communications Officer Tick?
It’s Been A Particularly “Rubbish” Couple Of Months! Flotsam & Jetsam; Rubbish or Treasure?
Like the rest of the country Scilly has been battered by storms this winter; since Christmas we’ve had visits from Frank, Gertrude, Imogen and Jake and it seems the weather gods aren’t finished with us yet. However, Islanders are a pretty hardy bunch; we batten down the hatches and ride out the storms; much like limpets clinging to rocks! When the storms are over (or even when the winds have just dropped from Storm Force to Gale Force!) we venture outside to see what the seas have deposited on our shores. It takes a certain type of person to live on an island, and if when you go to the seashore after a storm all you see is rubbish then maybe it’s not for you. Yes, I agree there is some “rubbish” but there is also treasure, endless possibilities and stories just waiting to be discovered and explored.
Beachcombing... I’ve always loved beachcombing; I find it fascinating and in many respects quite therapeutic. Walking the coastline, collecting rubbish, some of which gets disposed of in the conventional way (i.e. I make sure it goes in the bin) but other bits end up in the many jars I have dotted around my house, or in pieces of art, features in the garden and even as gifts to my loved ones (lucky them!). I always wonder where things have come from; how far they have travelled; what their story is and with the power of the world wide web it’s now often possible to find out! Over the past few months the internet and social media in particular has been my friend; I’ve learnt a lot about the flotsam and jetsam which has been washing up around our coastline and on our beaches; it really does get you thinking. Not only has it been an education but it’s also been a great way to meet like minded people, share knowledge, stories and treasures (wow, a positive use for social media!)
www.ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk
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Flotsam & Jetsam; Rubbish or Treasure? continued.... It all started with Nurdles... A few months back I was online and came across the Nurdle Hunt website and it was a bit of an epiphany; I’d always found these small, lentil sized bits of plastic in a variety of colours on our beaches (ever since I was little) but didn’t realise what they were, where they came from or that they actually had a name and people hunted them! I did a bit of research and wrote a blog about them for the website and through the Great Nurdle Hunt FaceBook Page I ended up making some new friends and opening up a whole new world! If you want to know a bit more about Nurdles then do check out the blog! http://www.ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk/blog/isles-scilly-wildlife-trust/2016/01/11/were-all-goingnurdle-hunt Since the Nurdles I’ve become an active member of the online beachcombing community and it really does open your eyes to what is being washed up on our shores; it also becomes a little addictive and probably makes you sound a little crazy!
Lego... Did you know that in 1997 a container ship lost some cargo off of Land’s End and since that time Lego has been washing up on Cornish and Scilly Beaches? The Lego cargo consited of various items but, somewhat appropriately, Lego octopus, seaweed, flowers, flippers, lifejackets, pirate cutlasses and boat rigging are all washing up on our shores. Through the Lego Lost at Sea FaceBook Page it has been possible to track Lego from this spill and it’s been turning up in places as far afield as Australia and Texas!
HP Ink Cartridges... Again from a cargo spill but this time more recent; HP have confirmed that there was a cargo spill sometime last year but they are unable to confirm numbers of cartridges lost or the exact location of the spill. However, cartridges have turned up in Scilly all over the Cornish coast, Scotland, France, Portugal and the Azores! HP have joined forces with the Marine Conservation Society and Newquay Beachcombing to provide not-for-profit organisations, individuals and local authorities funding to help with beachcleans!
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Flotsam & Jetsam; Rubbish or Treasure? And there’s more.... “Vanish” Bottles... Another of the more recent cargo spills and this one hit the national news so you may have heard about it! Pink “Vanish” bottles washed up in their hundreds and thousands along the Cornish coastline in Janaury of this year - thought to have been as a result of a cargo spill in May last year combined with Storm Frank in December. Although none seem to have washed up on the inhabited islands to date I am reliably informed by our Ranger Team that there are definitely luminous pink plastic objects on some of the uninhabited islands that they have visited over the past few weeks. We are planning to arrange beach cleans on St Helen’s, Tean and Samson when the weather improves and access is easier! So keep checking back to our website, FaceBook and Twitter feeds to find out details.
Lobster Trap Tags...
“Lost” fishing gear ends up on our shores quite regularly and it’s often assumed that it’s been lost by fairly local boats. However, over the past winter a lot of these types of tags have been turning up, along with bits of traps, buoys etc and they’ve made quite a journey! Because of the “markings” they are identifiable and fairly easy to trace back to their owners. These ones and many others have come from “across the pond”, from places such as Maine, Massachussets, Rhode Island and Newfoundland. The Canadian and American Lobster fishing fleets lost a huge amount of their gear as a result of a storm damage over a year ago and it’s been turning up here this winter!
So, I’ve taken you for a brief walk in my shoes, or probably more appropriately a barefoot bimble across the beach! I think it’s fairly safe to say that when I organise a beachclean event I probably get a little more excited about it than the average person - not only are we doing something positive for our environment and our wildlife by removing “rubbish” from our beaches but you never know what treasures you may discover.! Everything that ends up on our shores has a history and it’s a challange to try and find out what that is.
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If I’ve piqued your interest and you want to know more about this addictive pastime why not check out our website, see what events we have running and come and join in? You can also find out how the “Great Scilly Spring Clean” Event went by following the link below.! http://www.ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk/news/2016/03/09/great-scilly-spring-clean-success - Page 3 -
Ranger Team Update
“Out of Office Reply On” ~ On the Un-inhabited Islands The Ranger’s haven’t been around much over the past few weeks; I don’t mean that they’ve all been on holiday, just that they’ve been less visible in our community. When the weather has permitted they’ve been doing a lot of work on the uninhabited islands, particularly St Helen’s, Tean & Northwethal;. this presents a challenge in itself as not only do they have to get themselves to the islands but they also have to take any machinery and tools that they may need too; additionally if the weather changes, which it invariably does, they are incredibly exposed and have few, if any, places to shelter. To find out about some of the work that they have been doing and why it’s so important check out our Blog & News pieces on our website. http://www.ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk/blog/isles-scilly-wildlife-trust/2016/02/22/ teans-teeny-tiny-tenants
Working with the Community on Bryher The Rangers have also spent a bit more time on Bryher supplying their expertise and a few helping hands to the tenants of Veronica Farm who have become inundated with Pittosporum. Many of you who live on or visit Scilly will recognise the beautifully carved bench which is sited on Timmy’s Hill looking down Tresco Channel. It was placed here so that people could sit and admire the view but in recent years that view has become more and more blocked by these fast growing trees. The Rangers have done some clearance work around this area, cutting down some trees and clearing some scrub, and there is now a bit more of a view to enjoy than there has been recently!
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Goings on on Gugh Another of the islands which has been receiving some special attention over the past few months is Gugh. The Ranger’s have been busy clearing some of the non-native Pittosporum in order to manage its spread and restore and maintain habitats for our wildife. Again this work has had it’s challenges in terms of accessing the island due to weather and tides; with the Rangers walking equipment across the Bar at low-tide and on occasion being collected and making the return journey in a small dingy. at high-tide when the Bar is covered. To find out more about the work that the Rangers have carried out on Gugh and the reasons behind it, why not visit our website and read the News article by following the link below? http://www.ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk/news/2016/01/08/gugh-get-star-treatment
When the Rangers first arrived on Gugh back in January it was clear that the Pittosporum was doing incredibly well and encroaching on the heathland; their aim was not to remove it all but to begin a programme of work that will manage it and prevent it from spreading, destroying habitats and covering the whole island.
Pics ~ BareFoot Photographer
During Before As you can see from the before and during photos Gugh was once farmed and old hedges and field boundaries have become visible. On Islands such as Gugh, Tean & St Helen’s this type of work is really important. As they are no longer grazed, habitats are changing and being lost; some of our smaller less dominant, and often rare species, are failing to thrive and in some cases may sadly no longer exist.
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The Islands’ are Buzzing All over the winter we have seen a lot of Winter BumbleBees; when the days have been gloomy and wet they’re snuggled up in hedges but as soon as the sun shines they appear and the hedgerows are buzzing with these fuzzy, sometimes not so little, bees.
Buf f-Ta iled Bu
Pic ~ Ba reFoot P
The Bees, Wasps & Ants Recording Society (BWARS) are running a Winter Bumblebee Project and are asking anyone who sees an active Winter Bumblebee to record it via their website - it’s quick and easy to do and will help to monitor the bees winter activity.
hotog ra ph er
The noise can be amazing and they appear to feed on anything that is flowering; three-cornered leek, gorse, echiums, pittosporum, to name a few things that have been flowering here in Scilly this winter.
m bleBee on Ech
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For anyone who’s interested follow the link below! http://www.bwars.com/content/winter-active-bombus-terrestris-data-gathering
About Your Membership Just a repeat of the gentle reminder from the last Newsletter; with effect from 1st October 2015 membership subscriptions changed. We would be very grateful if members would upgrade to the new rates as soon as possible by going into their bank and amending their standing order. Please remember, that to keep administrative costs as low as possible, we do not send out renewal letters.
For every £1 we spend, 98p goes directly to nature conservation on the Isles of Scilly.
If you can’t remember when your membership is up for renewal and would like to know then please do not hesitate to give us a call! Additionally we would also like to apologise in advance as we will be making contact with all of our members over the coming months. As a result of changes in legislation we have to make contact with all of our members in order to review your preferences regarding how and when we make contact; even if you have already given us this information the new legislation overrides this and we unfortunately need to ask again. Please bear with us through this process and accept our apologies.
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Other news
Community archaeology
The Community Archaology Group (CAG) has recently announced a list of event dates for 2016. These clear-up sessions are open to everyone so whether you live in Scilly or are just visiting make sure you take a look and, if you are able to, come and join in! It’s an excellent opportunity to find out a little more about Scilly’s historic past and a great day out!
CAG Events 2016 Saturday 12th March ~ Halangy Entrance Grave, St Mary’s Saturday 16th April ~ Guided Walk on Bryher, (led by Katharine Sawyer and Charlie Johns ) Saturday 21st May ~ Clapper of Works Entrance Grave and Cairn, Gugh Sunday 26th June ~ Cottage, Chapel, etc, Tean Sunday 31st July ~ Cairns and Hut circles, Great Ganilly Saturday 20th or Sunday 21st August (tbc) ~ Salakee Down, St Mary’s Sunday 11th September ~ Cottages and Entrance Graves, South Hill, Samson Sunday 23rd October ~ Signal Station, Chapel Down, St Martin’s November (date tbc) ~ entrance graves, Kittern Hill, Gugh
Pic ~ BareFoot Photographer
Sa mson
As events take place outside they are weather dependant and can be subject to change or cancellation at the last minute - to ensure you stay up to date with the CAG events check back to either the Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust’s FaceBook Page or “like” the CAG one; detials of which are below.
For more information about the work that CAG are doing check out their FaceBook Page : www.facebook.com/groups/473127096149620/ - Page 7 -
W M I L St af f &
Seabird Recovery Project
Vol u nt ee rs on th e
Ba r
The Isles of Scilly Seabird Recovery Project have had an exciting couple of months; starting with their colleagues from Wildlife Management International (WMIL) arriving on the 6th Janaury 2016 to begin the final checks for rats on St Agnes & Gugh in order to achieve “rat-free status”.
Pics ~ Pro vi d ed
by Ja clyn Pea rs
F la voured wa x fo r
In the final week of monitoring checks a variety of different flavoured waxes were used; just to make sure that there weren’t any “fussy rats” out there and the good news was that only signs of shrews, birds and slugs were recorded. No rats!
m on ito rin g
The final check for rats on St Agnes & Gugh took place over a period of six weeks with Biz Bell, Alex Cropper and two volunteers setting up monitoring points around the coastline of both islands as well as a selected number “inland” through farms and central area.
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On Friday 12th February 2016 at 18:00 the Isles of Scilly Seabird Recovery Project made the anouncement that everyone had been waiting for. St Agnes & Gugh were officially declared “rat-free”! “Getting to this stage is a fantastic achievement and everyone involved is delighted that the islands are now officially rat free. io ns on St Agn es “R at-Fre e” Ce le brat
This, and the recovery of the seabirds so early on, is testament to the hard work of the team and the 100% support from the local community. We look forward to continuing to work with the community for the next two years of the project and beyond.” Jaclyn Pearson ~ Seabird Recover Project Manager
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@seabirdrecovery Isles of Scilly Seabird Recovery
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AONB
Marine Conservation Zones! In January 2016 the government announced the second phase of 23 Marine Conservation Zones (MCZ’s); this follows on from the inital 27 MCZ’s announced in 2013 of which 11 are around our Islands. Amongst this second phase a number of the newly designated areas are off the coast of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly; including Land’s End, The Gannel and NorthWest of Jones Bank. For more information regarding this check out the news piece on our website! http://www.ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk/news/2016/01/17/ second-wave-marine-protection-welcomed-wildlifetrusts
The Wildlife Trusts What The Wildlife Trusts think about the UK’s membership of the European Union Over the past few days The Wildlife Trusts (TWT) have issued an article regarding the UK’s membership of the European Union, additionally Stephanie Hilborne OBE (TWT’s Chief Executive) has also published a blog on the subject; both of which make for interesting reading. For those that are interested in reading either of these articles, you can do so by following the links provided. http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/EU-Ref http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/blog/thewildlifetrustsblogger/2016/02/20/uk%E2%80%99smembership-european-union-%E2%80%93-why-it-matters-wildlife
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Last Word... You may have seen rather a lot of “charity bashing” going on in the media recently, which portrays all charities in a very poor light. As a donor to charity myself, I have been left wondering whether the charities I support are behaving appropriately. So can you rely on this charity, the Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust, to act responsibly? As has already been mentioned earlier in this newsletter, I will be writing to all paid up members of this Trust later in the year to outline our approach to fund raising and to ask for your permission to contact you. We are being asked to do this in line with new legislation to protect donors and prevent unwanted communication. But before that, I wanted to reassure you that we do act responsibly; we do not sell your personal data or use agencies to make fund raising calls to you and we will continue to operate in this way. As I have said before, this Trust needs more support from its members, particularly as the current grant funding comes to an end. But I can and will make a personal promise to you that we will ask for your support in the right way which is in line with your preferences. The recent criticism of charities in the press is potentially very damaging to small organisations such as this and I feel very strongly that we shouldn’t be tarred with the same brush as those larger charities which have acted irresponsibly. I hope that our small membership will see the great work that this organisation is carrying out and will continue to support us financially in any way they can. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your commitment to this small, independent charity and the landscapes and nature of the Isles of Scilly it works so hard to protect.
Sarah Mason, Chief Executive
Keep in touch We’d love to hear your feedback about this newsletter or on any topic: 01720 422153
@ScillyWildlife
www.ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk
enquiries@ios-wildlifetrust.org.uk Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust, Trenoweth, St Mary’s, Isles of Scilly, TR21 0NS
Registered charity number 1097807 Registered company number 04726698