Northumberland Wildlife Trust - Roebuck 137

oebuck R

The Wildlife Trust Magazine for Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland

Issue 137 November 2015 - March 2016

Our Wildlife 2015 Getting people closer to nature

Dynamic Druridge Laying the first bale at Hauxley

Every Child Wild

Campaigning to get children involved with nature plus news from around the UK

Hedgehog Appeal

How you can help save a regional favourite

Restoring Ratty One step closer to returning

Our promise to you Give with confidence as Trust joins FRSB

Contents celebrations thanks to Charity Lottery

4

red squirrels the work continues

5

our wildlife a huge success for the Trust

steve lowe

Local News

6-7

ted smith an inspiration passes

8

photography competition is back

9

Funding trust joins Fundraising Standards Board

10

santa’s en route to Northumberlandia

11

9

Reserves & Volunteers dynamic druridge updates and news

12-13 13

Alex lister

round-up updates from around the region

Virgin Beach Clean

Corporates packing up succesful fundraising at ASDA

14

the loneliest hedgehog needs you

15

Conservation living wetlands new project launched

16

seasonal bogs well worth a visit

17

restoring ratty a step closer to return

18-19 20

beaches & bags affecting us all

21

UK News gannets flight paths revealed

22-23

ospreys to beavers national news

24-25

marine conservation statistics & update

26-27

every child wild get down and dirty

28-31

meadows on their way back

32-33

Saltmarsh top 10 to visit

34-35

Patrons: Conrad Dickinson, Bill Oddie, Chris Packham & James Joicey President: Chris Mullin Vice Presidents: Charles Baker-Cresswell, Angus Lunn Vice President & Founder: Tony Tynan Chairman: Sandra King Vice Chairman: Ian Armstrong Honorary Secretary: Nigel Porter Honorary Treasurer: Sue Loney

Fuelled by NestlĂŠ

Captured on Film richard clark

black poplar needs your votes

14

12

21

A Bag for Life

Chief Executive: Mike Pratt Head of Marketing & Fundraising: Sheila Sharp Head of Conservation: Steve Lowe Head of Land Management: Duncan Hutt Head of Business Management: Jane Speak EcoNorth: Vicki Mordue, Managing Director Red Squirrels Northern England: Nick Mason, Project Manager

34-35

Salt Marshes & Estuaries

Find us on: northumberlandwt

@NorthWildlife

Chief Executive’s Comments quorum business park

Quorum Honey alex lister ian cameron-reid

Northumberland Wildlife Trust Ltd Garden House St Nicholas Park Gosforth Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 3XT Tel: (0191) 284 6884 Fax: (0191) 284 6794 Web: www.nwt.org.uk

richard clark

11

Wildlife can’t stand up for itself

At the Trust’s Our Wildlife 2015 event at Kirkley Hall at the end of September, wildlife presenter and naturalist Iolo Williams was one of the most friendly and approachable, wildlife ‘celebs’ I have ever met - taking part in every part of the day from the workshops and presentations to delivering an inspiring speech on his own lifelong connection with all things natural and the pure inspiration we get from nature, that can Iolo Williams entertaining the then fuel a passion for conservation. crowd at the ‘Our Widlife 2015’ event Woven into his positivity was a message for us to act upon, a gentle challenge even, which I am keen for harriers have bred in Northumberland this year, Northumberland Wildlife Trust to take up. He did some of very few nationally. We expect hen not pull his ‘punches’ in highlighting problems harriers to return next year and even spread out as with those intent on persecuting birds of prey they are colonial nesters. and other animals, often under the protection of The Trust, along with the RSPB, Forestry the government, and he asked that we are bold Commission and Northumberland National Park, in defending wildlife and standing up for it when and many others, will be strongly defending their necessary as wildlife does not have a voice, and, right to return and be quick to point out where any I have said many times, if we don’t stand up for unacceptable behaviour threatens their presence. wildlife, then who will?

The same will apply to ensuring marine species Of course, as a Trust, we do that in many ways enjoy proper protection offshore and where Local already, from buzzards to red squirrels, to badgers Wildlife Sites and other protected areas and and hen harriers, and many more. Sometimes important places for wildlife are threatened by though, we are not as strident and direct as insensitive developers. we might be, partly because we are naturally Rest assured, when things get tough for wildlife partnership players, but we seek to work with we will get tough too. The rest of the time we will others to persuade them to our cause - ours is a be strong in partnership, with whoever it takes, to reasonable approach and we are respected for it. make a difference and be the wonderfully friendly In a place where we will never own much of Northumberland Wildlife Trust everyone loves, but the land where wildlife thrives, cooperation and things are sometimes difficult and we can’t always diplomacy are essential, we need to get on with be nice. everyone even if we don’t always agree with them, Thanks Iolo, Chris Packham and the other except, of course, where the law is flouted. defenders of wildlife who have reminded us of this There is no doubt that the way in which hen need to be strong, and not to be defeated, in these harriers and some other protected raptors and difficult times. species are being targeted by an unlawful few is unacceptable, and we need to shout this from the rooftops. We also need to voice loud our concern when, as now, laws to protect green space, habitats and species are being challenged and potentially weakened or withdrawn.

Mike Pratt We are proud to say that with this Trust’s careful Chief Executive and secretive protection and that of others, hen Northumberland Wildlife Trust

Registered Charity No. 221819 Registered Company No. 717813 Registered in England & Wales VAT No. 556 103264 Roebuck Editor: Fiona Dryden Roebuck Designer: Richard Clark Thank you to all contributors.

Large text version available

Northumberland Wildlife Trust is a member of the largest voluntary organisiation in the UK concerned with all aspects of wildlife protection - The Wildlife Trusts. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the Trust or the Editor. Whilst every effort is taken to check accuracy of the information contained herein, no responsibility can be taken for errors or omissions.

The contents are Copyright.

Front cover photo: Hedgehog © Tom Marshall All other photos © NWT unless otherwise stated

Roebuck is printed on

Local News

Alan Rapley We are very sad to report that Alan Rapley, the Chairman of the Coquetmouth Group passed away on Monday 3 August after a long illness. He was 67 years old.

Described by Mike Pratt, Northumberland Wildlife Trust Chief Executive as “a keen and effective chair of one of our local groups”, Alan was so dedicated he even attended Mike’s talk to the Coquetmouth Group the night before he went into hospital to start his cancer treatment. He maintained a strong and pragmatic attitude to life throughout his illness, helped by his strong Christian faith.

Alan was a very enthusiastic and gifted wildlife artist and photographer, and, more than anything, an all-round community focused person who went out of his way to help others. He started early in his life with missionary work before working with the ‘Churches Together’ group and a number of other community causes including setting up and coordinating the Amble Food Bank.

His presence and influence in the group and his personal contribution to wildlife conservation will be much missed.

Messy celebrations

(L-R) Tra People & cy Evans Wildli , Lauren Ogilvie & fe Officers Emma C raig

Airplay

In July, the Trust received £200,000 from the players of People’s Postcode Lottery, taking the total received to a whopping £894,940.

So what better way to celebrate than with a wet and messy day on our East Chevington reserve?

Armed with pump action water pistols and mud bombs, staff from our People & Wildlife Team joined forces with RAF Boulmer’s Airplay Youth Support Project, which is supported by the RAF Benevolent Fund, and helped bring out the inner ‘wild child’ in over 20 children.

With activities ranging from den building, rope making and campfire cooking to a full-blown water fight, everybody had a great time enjoying what the great outdoors has to offer.

Airplay

A huge thank you to local stand-up comedian and Trust supporter Steffen Peddie for hosting the Giggles for Grasslands comedy evening in October.

Perhaps best known for playing lovable Big Keith in the 2012 BBC sitcom ‘Hebburn’, Steffen and his fellow comedians had everybody roaring with laughter. Who knew grass could be so entertaining?

The Trust is one of 63 charities set to receive an extra £25,000 award from players of the charity lottery.

The £25,000 ‘Impact Award’ awarded to the Trust is a valuable tool that will enable charities to grow, to develop and to assess their own impact on society. In our case it will help us prove how effective we are being in saving wildlife and conserving the wildlife gems of our region and help us ensure we are putting all our efforts in the right places.

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mike snelle

Treading the boards Red Squirrels Northern England (RSNE) had a great time in 2015 with the children of Stannington First School putting on the world premiere of ‘Squirrels! The Musical’.

The musical has now been published and it is highly recommended for children of primary school age - it’s brilliant!

Grumpy Sheep Music will make a donation to RSNE for every copy sold.

To find out more log on at: www.grumpysheep.com

The reds are united £1.2m National Lottery grant to protect UK’s red squirrels looks promising.

A unique new project to secure the future of the native nutkin in the UK is on the way to receive £1.2 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF).

HLF has endorsed outline proposals and awarded £75,400 up front to help develop the project with the full grant amount being

The ongoing plight of the red squirrel is perhaps one of the most alarming and well-known conservation issues that this country has seen… thanks to National Lottery players, we now have a great opportunity to capitalize on all the local work and build a co-ordinated, national response to the threats faced by this endangered species.

Tom Tew, Trustee Heritage Lottery Fund

considered at a later date, following a secondround application The much-loved, endangered native red squirrel and its habitat which Red Squirrels Northern England (RSNE) has been working tirelessly to save since 2011, will be protected and promoted through ‘Red Squirrels United’, a new four year programme bringing together eight partners from across the UK. Led by The Wildlife Trusts in partnership with Newcastle University, Forest Research, Lancashire Wildlife Trust, Red Squirrels Trust Wales, Northumberland Wildlife Trust, Ulster Wildlife and The Wildlife Trusts of South & West Wales,‘Red Squirrels United’ will operate directly in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and work with the Saving Scotland’s Red Squirrels partnership on cross-border conservation action and skills-sharing to achieve the development of a truly UK-scale red squirrel conservation initiative for the first time.

The project will deliver key national conservation objectives with the aim of protecting red squirrels through communication, education and conservation activities. It is supported by Government nature conservation agencies and the 32 organisations within the UK Squirrel Accord Group.

Community-based rapid response teams will be created involving 1,250 volunteers who will be

trained to conserve key red squirrel populations threatened by their interaction with non-native grey squirrels. These volunteers will be supported by partner organisation staff, building the large networks of red squirrel champions essential for conservation success.

Partners will maintain grey squirrel-free habitat where it already exists, for example on the island of Anglesey and in Kielder Forest in northern England; extend current red squirrel protection zones in mid-Wales and Merseyside and implement a new whole country approach in Northern Ireland.

All conservation work will be rigorously monitored contributing to robust scientific research and evaluation to be undertaken by academic partners.

At a local level, the money will help us to continue and expand our work in Kielder, Kidland and Uswayford Forests to protect red squirrels; it will also enable us to share ideas with our project partners and learn from what they are doing in their own geographical areas.

Through the ‘Red Squirrels United’ project there will also be the opportunity for wider engagement with communities across the UK through workshops and events including mass participation squirrel monitoring.

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 5

Our Wildlife 2015 Connecting with wildlife On Sunday 27 September, the Trust hosted ‘Our Wildlife 2015’ at Kirkley Hall, Ponteland with the Welsh wizard of wildlife Iolo Williams delivering the keynote speech of the event.

The sun shone, people turned out in droves and, all in all, it was a wonderful day.

Iolo is best known for presenting on BBC series such as Springwatch, Countryfile and Iolo’s Special Reserves, as well as writing for BBC Wildlife magazine.

Throughout the day, people were given the opportunity to get ‘hands-on’ with the wildlife of Northumberland from small mammals including shrews, voles, mice, garden birds, bugs, moths and butterflies, pond life and wild flowers to meeting an Exmoor pony from the Moorland Mousie Trust (part of the Flexigraze conservation scheme) and watching Peg the sheepdog work the field.

Experts were on hand with tips on where to watch wildlife, how to draw their own wildlife creations, and how to improve their wildlife photography skills as well as building bird boxes and learning how to encourage wildlife into their garden.

But it wasn’t all about the adults - there was plenty to keep youngsters occupied with face painting, campfire cooking, making mink rafts and spotting sea creatures using extremely high powered microscopes with the Living Seas team.

Annual General Meeting This year’s AGM was incorporated into the Our Wildlife event with members approving the annual report and accounts for the year to 31 March 2015, re-electing David Jones and Sandra King Directors, and electing Ian Jackson onto the Board.

Caroline Stewart stood down as Chair, having completed her maximum 9 years’ service with the Trust. Sandra King, Chair Elect, gave a vote of thanks for Caroline’s exceptional input, most notably in successfully steering the Trust through a difficult period financially, and also playing an active role in the Wildlife Trust movement nationally.

6 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

photos: richard clark

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 7

Local News

Farewell to an inspiration tom marshall

It is with much regret that we note the passing of Ted Smith at aged 90 years - one of the pioneer naturalists of the early twentieth century who helped inspire and initiate the Wildlife Trust movement as a whole and in particular Northumberland Wildlife Trust.

It was Ted who, in February 1962, came up to Newcastle from his already well established Lincolnshire Naturalists’ Trust to meet with me, the then Curator of the Hancock Museum, and to discuss the need for similar conservation organisations across the United Kingdom.

The meeting led to the formation of the Northumberland and Durham Naturalists’ Trust, the forerunner of Northumberland Wildlife Trust, just one month later. After amicably separating from Durham, Northumberland would go on to be the first, in 1971, to take on the title ‘Wildlife Trust’ and the rest, as they say, is history.

Much of what our wonderful Trust is today is directly down to Ted, a quietly spoken and humble man, but truly inspirational, a diplomatic visionary and even a revolutionary thinker, ahead of his time.

As early as the 1940s he recognised the urgent need to save Lincolnshire’s special natural places and became the then Naturalists’ Trust’s founding Honorary Secretary in 1948, going on to become Chairman and eventually President, fighting to save unspoiled coastlines, ancient meadows and heaths and halt the destruction of ancient woodland.

He served as the first General Secretary

for the Ted Smith (right), a key figure rough nbo Atte id Dav Sir Wildlife Trust movement with

of the Royal Society of Nature Conservation (forerunner of the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts) and was Chairman of the England Committee of the Nature Conservancy Council (now Natural England). He was made an OBE for his services to nature conservation in 1963, advanced to CBE in 1998, the year he also received an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Lincoln. He was also the first recipient of the Christopher Cadbury medal for services to nature conservation.

It was Ted’s determined, quiet energy and

nwt

Estates Officer Alex Zeller (back left) and Angus Walker (back right) with four of the Depaul UK team members

8 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

massive personal commitment, fed by his real passion for the conservation cause, that helped inspire our organisations to ensure local protection and local support throughout the four corners of the United Kingdom. His is a truly enduring, natural legacy.

Tony Tynan Founder and Vice President Northumberland Wildlife Trust

Charities working together A team from Depaul UK, the national service which works with local communities to prevent youth homelessness and helps young people who are homeless, has been busy clearing ragwort on Weetslade Country Park in North Tyneside.

Ably led by our newly appointed Volunteer Estates Officer Angus Walker, the team collected from three acres of ragwort over four hours, which is pretty amazing.

patrick bibby

Photo competition returns

Natural History

Good Food, Good Life

HA

NC OC K

Society of

Northumbria

The 2016 North East Wildlife Photography Competition has just launched with the three north east Wildlife Trusts, the Natural History Society of Northumbria (NHSN), the Great North Museum: Hancock and Alan Hewitt Photography joining forces for another year.

With Nestlé Fawdon as the main sponsor and prizes being offered including photography workshops and wildlife viewing trips, it is well worth entering.

As well as a chance to win a fantastic prize, your entries will also help to highlight the wonderful wildlife that can be found in the north-east, from white beaked dolphins to red squirrels.

There are six competition categories, prizes for each category winner and runners-up, plus

an overall winner prize of £250.

To enter and for further details on the competition, log on at www. northeastwildlifephoto.co.uk or if you wish to submit entries by post you can send them to Steve Ashton, Tees Valley Wildlife Trust, Margrove Heritage Centre, Boosbeck, Saltburn, Redcar and Cleveland, TS12 3BZ. Entry is free and open to everyone, but photographs must have been taken in the North East. If you submit your entry early you might spot it on marketing materials or in the magazine.

Closing date: Midnight Sun 15 May 2016.

Winners announced: Thur 14 July 2016.

steve lowe

martin kitching

Life’s a beach… and Virgin staff cleaned it

What is wildlife photography?

For some, it’s a game of long lenses and heavy camouflage, for others it’s about capturing the beauty and detail of insects and flowers from a much closer distance.

Some see frame filling pin-sharp portraits as the epitome of wildlife photography, while others aim to capture wildlife in its habitat and develop a more environmental portrait approach.

If you spend a lot of time behind the lens, it’s likely that eventually you’ll settle on a regular approach to your photography sessions. If you find that you gravitate towards a particular subject you’ll have opportunities to investigate the effects of

lighting, shutter speed, aperture and all of the other things you have control of in the image making process.

Practice makes perfect and those hours should lead to a style that is identifiably yours.

Some may be familiar with Malcolm Gladwell’s book, ‘The 10,000 hour Rule’, which argues that you need a lot of deliberate practice to become really good at anything.

That rule may be an oversimplification, but the one thing that will make you a better wildlife photographer is going out with your camera and photographing wildlife. Sounds so simple, doesn’t it?

Martin Kitching Senior Guide Northern Experience Wildlife Tours www.newtltd.co.uk

The Virgin volunteers at Seaton Sluice

Staff from Virgin Money stepped out of their day jobs in the bank and headed out to clean part of the beach at Seaton Sluice with the Trust’s Steve Lowe and Aurelie Bohan.

In a little over two hours, the Team from the Company’s Gosforth office mastered their litter-picking equipment and cleared a whopping 300kg of waste from Collywell Bay on the lowest tide of the year.

So enjoyable was the event, another two groups from Virgin Money have booked in for beach clean-up sessions with Steve and Aurelie before the end of 2015.

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 9

Funding

Two of the Trust’s fundraising stalwarts, Rosemary and Peter Newton from Stocksfield, have decided the time has come for them to hang up their dancing shoes.

For over 20 years, Rosemary and Peter, keen Scottish country dancers have run an annual country dance evening with the proceeds being donated to the Trust.

Due to the complicated nature of the dances, the evening could not be advertised to the public but, despite this, they have been able to raise in excess of £6,000 for us.

Despite many of the older dancers persevering with hip and/or knee replacements, numbers dropped to the point where, after room hire costs, it is not going to be viable, so they have reluctantly decided to call it a day.

They are very grateful to the country dancing clubs in the area for their support over the years and the Trust is saddened to see the end of the event, but as they say in show business, “Quit while you’re ahead”.

Sister act!

Many thanks to the 17 runners who took part in this year’s Great North Run on our behalf - as always, your support is much appreciated.

Sisters Jesse and Norah Davies had a great run this year, gaining a joint personal best of 1:55:35.

The duo, who hail from Leeds, but who now live in Dunfermline and Sheffield respectively, wanted to support a charity local to the Great North Run. Anybody wishing to take part in the race next year on our behalf can register their interest with Christine O’Neil at the Trust on: (0191) 284 6884 or email her at: christine.o’neil@northwt.org.uk

This year’s runners:

davies family

The last reel

Norah Davies (left) and “big sister” Jesse (right)

Continue giving with confidence The Trust has become a member of the Fundraising Standards Board (FRSB), the self-regulator of charity funding in the UK which ensures charities are accountable for how they fundraise.

Despite fundraising since our formation in 1971, we feel FRSB membership is increasingly important given the activities of ‘chuggers’ and the rise in the number of people falling victim to street operators and poor marketing practices – you may have come across a number of media stories about charity fundraising recently.

Without the support of our members, we would not succeed; you give Northumberland Wildlife Trust the ability to stand up for nature both locally and nationally through your voice, your time and your money.

It helps us buy land like Cresswell Foreshore and Hauxley, which are both part of our wonderful Dynamic Druridge Project, protect red squirrels, search for elusive species such as pine martens and dormice and educate the next

10 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

generation of conservationists.

To help us recruit members and fundraise, we have worked in partnership with a small number of agencies for a long time – their staff are an extension of our team. We draft in their skills during times when we need extra help or where they have specific expertise.

Our agencies must comply with the same high standards that we have defined and adhere to. Our team helps train the staff and ensures that all member interactions are appropriate based on your preferences.

We have introduced a Supporter Care Charter on our website www.nwt.org.uk to re-enforce our promise and commitment, and included the confidence tick logo on our new fundraising campaign materials.

As an organisation, we are constantly looking for ways to improve. We welcome all feedback and our team investigates all concerns promptly.

We know we couldn’t save any of the special places that we do without you.

Geraldine Beeson Elena Bell Stewart Bullock Andrew Cosham Jesse Davies Norah Davies Rebecca Dougill Kirsty Douglas Lee Hollings Liz Jaggs Jonathan Lodge Craig McFadyen Angie Okell Matthew Preston David Snowdon Russell Tait AndrewThirlwell Nick Woods

Our promise to you We will never sell your details You can change how you hear from us at any time - just let us know by telephone or email We follow the strict code of conduct set out by the Fundraising Standards Board

quorum business park

A legacy in our sights Richard clark

Thank you to Trust member Mrs Karen Ward of Gosforth for the amazing gift of three telescopes which had belonged to her late father.

The scopes will help us bring wildlife closer to people, especially on our reserves, and will make a huge difference to the coastal survey work we are undertaking to record whales and dolphins off the Northumberland coast.

Honey, honey…

The Trust has received £68 from the Quorum Business Park Hub Team.

Quorum Business Park has five hives on site with all honey produced being put into jars and sold to staff on the site for as little as £1.50. All money raised is donated to the Trust, but it’s great that bees are getting extra support too.

Lauren Ogilvie (People & Wildlife Apprentice) testing out one of the scopes

Kind donations The Trust is delighted to have been named as a beneficiary in two recent legacies.

Barbara Matthew, who most latterly resided in Bury, has bequeathed a £31,375 legacy to us

specifically for squirrel conservation.

David Middleton of Westmoor, North Tyneside has bequeathed £1,000 to us.

This selfless generosity is hugely appreciated and, it goes without saying that the money will be used carefully to continue our valuable conservation work.

If you are inspired by the wildlife and landscapes in our region, please consider leaving us a legacy to safeguard them for future generations.

Visit our website www.nwt.org.uk/legacies for more information.

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 11

Reserves & Volunteers

As part of the first tour of her constituency, newly elected Berwick-upon-Tweed MP, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, called in to our Hauxley reserve this summer.

Whilst there, the MP gladly rolled up her sleeves and helped install a few straw bales, as well as enjoying views of the new extension and wetlands, finishing off with some birdwatching in the hide and a much welcomed cup of tea with the Hauxley volunteer building squad.

Having previously visited the reserve in 2014 with Environment Minister, Liz Truss MP, she was amazed at the changes on the reserve in little over one year, the innovative build project and the huge level of commitment from volunteers and staff Following her visit, she sent a letter to the Trust outlining her ongoing support for the project.

Up on the roof

(L-R) Mike Pratt (Chief Executive), Christine Hall blue (Hauxley Volunteer), Henry Amos (Architect - Bright of Chair and ent Presid (Trust Studio) and Chris Mullin the Heritage Lottery Fund’s North East Committee)

Chris Mullin, Trust President and Chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund’s North East Committee had the honour of placing the first straw bale on the foundations and officially starting the construction of our new centre.

The bale was placed on a wooden base plate and held in place by a row of wooden spikes made from hazel trees grown on the reserve.

The base plate rests on a gabion baskets filled with stone from Howick Quarry, which in turn sits on top of a foundation trench.

This is going to be a brilliant facility. I can’t wait to see it up and running.

Chris Mullin, Northumberland Wildlife Trust President

Captured on film Visit the Hauxley Nature Reserve Straw Build Facebook page www.facebook.com/ HauxleyNatureReserve to watch a short film on the project, made by our Hauxley volunteers Tim Mason and Alan Dodds, which was shown at the Wildlife Trust’s UK conference in October.

Staff and volunteers from the Trust have been working with a team from The Northumberland National Park installing erosion gullies over an area measuring 1.5km on Carter Fell, to the west side of our Whitelee Moor reserve (between Catcleugh Reservoir and Carter Bar).

Over 700 cotton grass plug plants have also been planted.

The work was funded by Natural England.

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HauxleyNatureReserve

alex lister

The Trust has received an award of £5,000 from Esh Charitable Trust. The money will be put toward the green roof of the Hauxley Discovery Centre which is set to be one of the focal points of the building.

The Charitable Trust, was set up in 2005 by the shareholders of Esh Group, with the aim of supporting the causes in the North of England that have always been dear to the heart of the original founders of the Group - young people, lifelong learning, the environment and the local community.

President lay the first bale duncan hutt

A political visit

RESERVES ROUND-UP

This year at Hauxley

Holywell Pond: The estates volunteers managed to produce good quality hay on the reserve again this year, but continue to struggle to find a buyer!

Otters have been a welcome, regular feature on the reserve over the summer and early autumn.

West Fleetham: The estates volunteers have again spent several days removing invasive species from Long Nanny Wood and Farm Pond. Both Himalayan Balsam and Water Soldier are still abundant on the reserve, but are much reduced compared to last year.

Briarwood Banks: A number of products have been created on the reserve this year. Douglas fir, deliberately retained for the purpose, was converted into new nest boxes (many thanks to volunteer Jeff Garret for these) and cladding and roof supports for the new Wildlife Discovery Centre at Hauxley.

Newsham Pond: There has been a recent spate of incidents of swans becoming entangled and/or ingesting fishing line. A planned major clean-up of the pond and a meeting of interested parties will hopefully resolve the issue.

photos: tim mason duncan hutt alex lister

Whitelee Moor: Volunteers and staff have been trialling the installation of coir logs to block areas of erosion on the blanket bog.

St Swithin’s day if thou dost rain For forty days it will remain St Swithin’s day if thou be fair For forty days ‘twill rain nae mair It wasn’t only St Swithin who kept an eye on the weather on 15 July this year, but the Trust, as work started to improve drainage on our Hauxley reserve.

The outlet pipe on the site, left behind after former opencast works, had a tendency to become blocked by seaweed and other debris, leading to occasional flooding, both on the reserve as well as downstream areas.

Working with Northumberland County Council (and with funding from the Environment Agency)

the top of the culvert has been removed, allowing debris to be easily cleared. As an additional benefit, the works allowed us to install another section of the circular footpath around the reserve.

At the same time, we worked with Northumberland Rivers Trust to create additional areas of low lying land within the reserve’s newly acquired extension, adding further areas for wading birds and the reinstatement of sluices will allow for management of the water in the main lake.

This wonderful co-operative working has also initiated some additional wetland works along Druridge Bay as part of the wider Dynamic Druridge project and more are “in the pipeline”.

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 13

Corporates

Volunteers working on our Hauxley Wildlife Discovery Centre are being ‘fuelled’ by monthly supplies of free biscuits from Nestlé Fawdon, a valuable supporter of the Trust.

From July 2015 until the end of the project, during summer 2016, Breakaways, Blue Ribands, Rolos and Toffee Crisps will be rolling

richard clark

Keeping the volunteers fuelled onto the site, and, needless to say, are going down well with the building volunteer squad.

The Company, based in Fawdon, Newcastle is no stranger to the Trust being the main sponsor of our annual North East Wildlife Photography Competition and host of a number of family wildlife days. alex lister

Good Food, Good Life

A huge thank you to customers of ASDA Gosforth for their continued support.

In October, volunteers raised £236.24 in a four hour Saturday morning bag pack. We’ll be using the money to improve our reserve at St. Nicholas Park. Also, on Wednesday 28 October ASDA staff and Trust volunteers litter picked the grounds of our Gosforth headquarters, making it safe for hedgehog hibernation, as part of the national Wild about Gardens Week celebrations.

Megan Gilfillan, Nestlé Safety, Health & Environmental Sustainability Advisor with the Hauxley volunteers

Northumberland Wildlife Trust offers three levels of corporate membership which are designed to enhance your Corporate Social Responsibility commitments, provide year-round benefits to your business and support your staff development, PR and marketing strategies. You choose the level that you feel reflects your company’s commitment to the local environment.

To find out more about becoming a corporate member contact our Marketing Office on 0191 284 6884 or via email to sheila.sharp@northwt.org.uk

BRONZE

SILVER

GOLD

A-one + www.aone.uk.com

Howick Hall Gardens www.howickhallgardens.org

Elanders Ltd www.elanders.com

Esh Group www.esh.uk.com

Albion Outdoors www.albionoutdoors.co.uk

NCFE www.ncfe.org.uk

Harlow Printing Ltd www.harlowprinting.co.uk

Lafarge Tarmac www.lafargetarmac.co.uk

Bell Ingram www.bellingram.co.uk

Northern Experience Wildlife Tours www.northernexperiencewildlifetours.co.uk

Karpet Mills www.karpetmills.co.uk

Mears Ltd www.mearsgroup.co.uk

Northumberland County Council www.northumberland.gov.uk

North East Chamber of Commerce www.ne-cc.com

Nestlé Confectionery Ltd www.nestle.co.uk

Blyth Harbour Commission www.portofblyth.co.uk

Ord House Country Park www.ordhouse.co.uk

Port of Tyne www.portoftyne.co.uk

Colton Excavations www.coltonplanthire.co.uk

Percy Wood Leisure Ltd www.percywood.co.uk

Potts Printers Ltd www.potts.co.uk

Croft Veterinary Hospital www.croftvets.co.uk

Poltross Enterprises www.poltross.com

Riverside Leisure www.riverside-leisure.co.uk

Geoffrey Lurie Solicitors www.geoffreylurie.com

Sykes Cottages www.sykescottages.co.uk

Gustharts www.gusthart.com

Wardell Armstrong www.wardell-armstrong.com

Hexham Steeplechase Co Ltd www.hexham-racecourse.co.uk

Whitley Bay Golf Club www.whitleybaygolfclub.co.uk

Berwick Holiday Park www.haven.com/parks/ northumberland/berwick

14 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

Northumbrian Water Ltd www.nwl.co.uk The Banks Group www.hjbanks.com Thermofisher Scientific www.thermofisher.com

The Loneliest

Hedgehog

in the North East?

Even just ten years ago, the hedgehog was a common sight in your garden, hedgerows and parks. This quirky, snuffly little creature was a familiar part of our landscape but it’s currently disappearing from the British countryside at an alarming rate.

Help save the hedgehogs, please donate.

Donate to Northumberland Wildlife Trust today and you’ll be helping to save the hedgehog and other local wildlife. Every penny stays within the region!

Here’s how your gift could help: • A donation of £10 pays for 2 metres of hedgerow to help restore lost hedgehog habitats.

• £50 pays to co-ordinate and provide materials for a volunteer task improving habitats for hedgehogs.

• A gift of £100 will go towards running our hedgehog awareness events programme in schools and communities.

Go to www.nwt.org.uk/hedgehog to donate.

Spread the word. If you’ve received our Loneliest Hedgehog illustrated booklet through your door, please pass this on to a friend or family member and encourage them to join the Trust. Together we can choose how this story ends!

illustration by daniel weatheritt

With your help we can give hedgehogs a fair chance.

Conservation

e Dene, Litter pick at Blackclos Park ide ers Riv ck be Wans sarah beeson

Volunteers bridge building at Catch Burn, Morpeth

on sarah bees

Earlier this year, the Trust was awarded £31,000 from the Environment Agency’s Catchment Partnership Action Fund (CPAF) enabling it to deliver the Northumberland Urban Streams Project in the Northumberland Rivers catchment, by working in partnership with organisations such a Northumbrian Water Group (NWG), the Environment Agency and the Tyne and Northumberland Rivers Trusts.

Aptly titled Living Wetlands, the work is similar in nature to its predecessor, the Living Waterways project.

Trust Conservation Officers, Emma Craig and Sarah Beeson, have been working hard to come up with new and exciting ideas for projects The watercourses identified for practical habitat improvements for wildlife include the Wallsend Burn, Lemington Gut, the Seaton Burn, Horton Burn and Brierdene.

As well as creating reed bed habitat to help with water pollution, the Officers have been working to ensure invertebrates, birds and fish have a helping hand, with floating islands and biohabitats.

Working with the Scottish company Biomatrix which specialises in floating Ecosystems and project management for waterway restoration & wastewater treatment., Emma and Sarah have approved the installation of ‘re-naturalised’ riverbanks or ‘bio-havens’ in the canalised section of the Wallsend Burn and the positioning of two artificial nesting-islands for birds utilising Lemington Gut. Many of our region’s watercourses suffer from increased urban pressure, such as misconnections from household appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers or road ‘run-off’ and as a result end up with artificial banksides, made of concrete or corrugated metal.

Such artificial structures contribute to the decrease of natural habitat for insects, mammals and birds, which has a knock-on effect for water quality and food sources for fish; they also increase the incidents of flooding as the natural ‘soak-away’ provided by wild banksides is removed, so water shoots quickly down these straight man-made structures.

It is hoped the ‘bio-havens’ will provide much-needed natural habitat to combat some of these problems and bring wildlife back to the Lemington and Wallsend areas -which is great news.

If you want to find out more or want get involved, contact Emma Craig or Sarah Beeson on emma.craig@northwt.org.uk or sarah.beeson@northwt.org.uk or follow us on Facebook.

sarah beeson

Waterway improvement work continues

r at placing a wei Volunteers re urn, Morpeth Catch B

conservation ROUND-UP N’land Otter Project: The Project is now moving forward with first sites allocated and surveyed.

A number of training days have been delivered, and dates have been added to the diary.

White-clawed crayfish: A survey of non-native signal crayfish is being undertaken in partnership with Northumberland Rivers Trust on the rivers Blyth and Pont. The Trust is continuing to assist in the translocation and

16 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

introduction of native crayfish to the Waren Burn in the north of the county.

Living Seas: Aurelie Bohan, Trust Living Seas Officer, spent the summer and early autumn on a successfully focused marine campaign

around The Wildlife Trusts’ National Marine Week.

Relations with Newcastle University’s Dove Marine Laboratory remain as strong as ever with Aurelie and NWT’s People & Wildlife Team delivering a summer school for 11-14 year

olds. Great feedback was received from pupils and parents, so we hope this will become an annual event.

People & Wildlife: People & Wildlife events have proved to be very

popular with most of the spaces being filled almost as soon as they were advertised.

In July, the Conservation and People & Wildlife teams hosted a team building day for the local Heritage Lottery Team (HLF) and was reportedly,

Greater Sundews

Sphagnum naomi waite

Naomi Waite Conservation Officer Northumberland Wildlife Trust

Cranberry

naomi waite

These natural wonders are nestled in a bed of springy sphagnum mosses that come in every colour of the autumn palette from burnt orange to a deep crimson.

Above the sphagnums there is an orange hue that drifts across the landscape, created by one of our most beautiful deciduous grasses, purple-moor grass, as it rests until spring and, punctuating the grasses are the spikes of deer grass whose green leaves appear to have been dipped in ochre.

So, if you’re in need of a nature fix this winter, why not visit one of the many peatland bogs Northumberland has to offer. Log on at: www.nwt. org.uk/reserves for details on all our reserves.

duncan hutt

In the winter months it feels a little like wildlife has gone to sleep, indeed for some species it has, but up in the moorlands the peat bogs are alive with vivid colour.

Autumn and early winter are perhaps some of the best times to see our peat bogs, for it is then that the colours of sphagnum mosses become their most vibrant.

The general image of moorland is desolate and dismal, if a little scary, should you have read the Hound of the Baskervilles, is nothing like the reality of a peat bog on a sunny winter day.

The Trust works with partners on the management of 57 peatland sites, known as the Border Mires, which are fantastic habitats supporting autumn and winter’s jewels; tiny glistening red and black beads of wild cranberry and crowberry, with a sprinkling of glitter as tiny water droplets hang from our very own Venus fly-trap, the round-leaved sundew.

duncan hutt

A bog for all seasons

Mire in winter naomi waite

Sphagnum naomi waite

Cranberry naomi waite

duncan hutt

Round-leaved Sundew Pools at Bell Crag Flow

the best team building day they have ever had.

N’landia: The Northumberlandia Visitor Centre has been fully up and running over the summer, open every day and with 6 committed volunteers and a part-time

café assistant.

Events have been taking place and have been a great opportunity for us to engage with members of the public adults, children and wildlife lovers.

Prestwick Carr: The land we manage at Prestwick Carr comes to the end of its Entry Level Stewardship next spring and we have therefore applied for Higher Tier under the new Countryside Stewardship.

We were successful in getting accepted for this scheme and are working with Natural England to draw up an agreement, which should also cover Cresswell Pond.

Save our Magnificent Meadows SOMM volunteers have cleared the majority of the Partridge Nest site of Himalayan balsam and have been busy with the bracken and thistles at

Keepershield Quarry An exhibition of meadow art by school children will be running at Great North Museum: Hancock between November 2015 and January 2016. Log on at www. greatnorthmuseum.org. uk for more details.

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 17

Conservation

Restoring Ratty

As he sat on the grass and looked across the river, a dark hole in the bank opposite, just above the water’s edge, caught his eye, and dreamily he fell to considering what a nice snug dwellingplace it would make for an animal with few wants and fond of a bijou riverside residence, above flood level and remote from noise and dust.

As he gazed, something bright and small seemed to twinkle down in the heart of it, vanished, then twinkled once more like a tiny star. But it could hardly be a star in such an unlikely situation; and it was too glittering and small for a glow-worm. Then, as he looked, it winked at him, and so declared itself to be an eye; and a small face began gradually to grow up round it, like a frame round a picture. A brown little face, with whiskers, it was Ratty.�

tom marshall

Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

18 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

For so long now, so many of those holes have been empty, absent of the very creature made famous by Grahame’s classic and timeless novel: ‘The Wind in the Willows’.

I am very fortunate, I still know where ‘Ratty’ lives and, as such, I can often witness the glint in his eye, or hear the ‘plop’ as dives for cover, or the chomp of his chewing some succulent herb. For too long however, I have seen him struggle to survive. For too long I have visited river banks where he once swam and found his empty burrows devoid of life.

Like Mole and Ratty, our friendship has grown over the years. Water voles were a common and nonchalant sight in my youth, and it has only rekindled my fondness by their absence. Since a fleeting glimpse in Allendale over 10 years ago, it has almost been my own personal quest to see them return to a wider audience.

Now after many years of working with various parties, we may be in a position to finally restore the water vole back to his place on the river banks of Northumberland. We have, with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and the support of partners in the Forestry Commission and the Tyne Rivers Trust, been carrying out a project to restore water vole populations into the Kielder water catchment.

In order to re-establish a species back into its former haunt, you have to get rid of the reason they aren’t there in the first place. In the case of the water vole, it is the north American mink.

Throughout the summer, a group of enthusiastic volunteers and other partner operatives have been monitoring for the presence of mink in the Kielder Water Forest Park. For a number of years we have been recording this operation whilst at the same time collecting valuable data and collating community heritage involvement.

But the decline of the water vole is long and complex and has many facets other than the two common evils, that of non-native species intervention and habitat constraints; in the case of northern water vole, the blame for their demise lies firmly at the feet of the North American mink, its true nemesis.

We have plenty of suitable habitat for water voles across northern England… we just don’t have the water voles, in fact their last strongholds are in the upland reaches of the north Pennines where game management keeps predators, such as mink, in short supply; so it is no coincidence that we see water

voles survive and thrive in habitats where gamekeepers manage predators. Although what we have also recorded is the inability of water voles to spread out within these areas, despite habitats still being available.

The problems lie with the water voles’ ecology; its life style. Water voles breed at a phenomenal rate and can disperse over reasonably long distances for an animal the size of a small guinea pig but it’s what happens after they have dispersed that is the problem.

They may disperse, and indeed, do disperse, beyond what can be termed ‘core areas’, at will but if there are no other water voles there to make little water voles, then they are alone isolated and vulnerable to all sorts of issues.

Water voles need a helping hand to reestablish them into their former homes and this is where our long running project has reached its next phase.

In September the Trust received a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to help develop the next vital phase of the project, in partnership with Forestry Commission and the Tyne Rivers Trust.

Once the development phase is complete, it will lead us to deliver the next part of the project which aims to re-establish a sustainable population of water voles within the Kielder Water and Forest Park (KWFP).

Throughout this element of the project, we will be applying for a licence through Natural England to capture water voles for captive breeding. Working with a number of large estates in the region, the project will also be developing the conservation plan detailing, and working with communities in a number of areas, to pave the way for the future re-introduction and safeguarding of the re-introduced populations in their new homes.

It is all very exciting and will be the culmination of many years hard work by myself and many others, who have long sought to reestablish the water vole back where it belongs, where everyone can enjoy its presence.

“It’ll be all right, my fine fellow” said the Otter. “I’m coming along with you, and I know every path blindfold; and if there’s a head that needs to be punched, you can confidently rely upon me to punch it.”

Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows.

Kevin O’Hara Conservation Officer Northumberland Wildlife Trust

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 19

Conservation

Acklington Black Poplar needs your votes The Acklington Black Poplar in the grounds of Acklington C of E First School in Northumberland is very special.

Earmarked for felling in 2010, Steve Lowe, our Head of Conservation was alerted to this threat by local resident John Davison. Spurred on by this potential conservation disaster, and his passion for trees, Steve helped to obtain a DNA profile of the tree and was able to prove it is one of the rarest native trees in the UK. It is one of only 2500 in the whole country, is the most northerly black poplar in the UK and is estimated to be between 250 and 300 years old – it was there before the school was built in 1852.

Armed with this information, the decision to fell

was reversed… much to the relief of the pupils, the nature lovers in the village, not to mention the bats and birds living in the branches and the wildlife living underneath.

Now this remarkable tree is in the running to take the prestigious title of England’s tree of the year. It is the only tree in the north east of England to have reached the final, but it is up against some other formidable entries from around the UK. The on-line public vote to select the winner is now live, via The Woodland Trust’s website, so please cast your vote and encourage all your family, friends and work colleagues to do the same.

Cast your vote for England’s tree of the year Log on at: www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visitingwoods/tree-of-the-year/england Alternatively, visit Acklington Parish Council’s website: www.acklingtonparish.org.uk where you will find more information about the tree and an easy link to voting.

john davison

The Acklington Black Poplar

20 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

Marine litter: a challenge for all of us that there are nearly 2,500 items of rubbish for every kilometre on a beach.

Since 1994, plastic litter on beaches has increased 140%. It never biodegrades, simply breaking down into small pieces but does not disappear, with some microplastic particles being found inside of filter feeders on our beaches.

Seabirds mistake floating plastic litter for food, and over 90% of fulmars found dead around the North Sea have plastic in their stomachs. A fin whale found dead on Druridge Bay recently had nothing in its stomach except a beach ball!

The annoying thing is, this is all preventable!

We just need people to stop littering.

Now, I am sure no-one goes to the local tip for a picnic, but the sheer amount of rubbish on some of our beaches after people have been enjoying a day at the coast suggests otherwise.

Disposable BBQ’s, cans & bottles, sandwich wrappers, even full nappies all await the next tide when they will sweep out to sea only to arrive back on the next flow. Lately, cigarette butts, cotton wool buds and torn up bouncy balls seem to be on the increase and don’t get me started on those little plastic parcels of dog mess!

How about some simple personal actions then?

1. Always take away whatever you bring and bin it 2. If you spend just 2 minutes picking up beach litter during your visit it will help 3. Did you know that only toilet paper, pee and poo should go down the loo?

4. Celebrate birthdays or other events without balloons 5. Keep a lid on your bin to stop things blowing out 6. Recycle your waste 7. Report fly-tipping to your local authority or the Environment Agency 8. Join Northumberland Wildlife Trust, or another conservation group, on one of our regular beach cleans Take that as an appeal from my partner - that way she may enjoy our beach walks without me lugging bin bags of collected rubbish along behind us!!

Steve Lowe Head of Conservation Northumberland Wildlife Trust

steve lowe

There is something about the sea that resonates within my core being. It draws me at every opportunity, in all weathers and throughout the year. It offers a myriad of experiences; it is constant, dynamic, beautiful, inspiring, frightening, soothing, inspirational and a host of other sensations, sometimes all at once.

Perhaps it’s part of every Briton’s genetics (or it may be the results of a near drowning experience in Wales when I was a small child), but I am obviously not alone. A tiny bit of sunshine sees our seafronts alive with throngs of people and, even in the depths of winter, a beach will be enjoyed by dog walkers, birders and people who just want to escape for some natural refreshment.

Why then, do we use our seas as a dumping ground, plastering our beaches with waste, most of which create hazards for wildlife and people alike? Broken bottles, plastic bags, tyres, sanitary waste, cans, rope, clothing and flip flops from every part of the globe. It’s everywhere!

Litter is choking our oceans and is washing up on even the remotest beaches where it kills wildlife, looks disgusting, is a hazard to our health and costs millions to clear up.

The Marine Conservation Society reports

we would now like the law to include all retailers and all types of bags.

To mark this conservation milestone, the Trust has produced its own canvas bag. Priced at £3.00, it is currently available from our Gosforth headquarters, Northumberlandia, Trust events and externally organised shows which we are attending. It is also available for purchase via our online shop at: www.nwt.org.uk/shop

richard clark

Shoppers in England are now being charged 5p for every plastic bag given out at supermarkets and large stores. This is a positive move by the government to help conserve our natural environment.

The number of plastic bags given out by seven major supermarkets in England rose by 200 million in 2014 to exceed 7.6 billion.

It is hoped the levy will cut the 7.6bn bags given to shoppers at major supermarkets every year. Whilst we welcome the move,

rvation Steve Lowe, Head of Conse nts 5p me ern gov celebrates the carrier bag charge

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 21

UK News

Gannet flight paths revealed To minimise the disruption caused by planned offshore wind farms, Alderney Wildlife Trust is tracking its gannets with GPS

A project run by the Alderney Wildlife Trust, the British Trust for Ornithology and the University of Liverpool has shown the huge distances covered

by Britain’s biggest seabird.

Researchers attached tiny GPS devices to 26 northern gannets nesting on Alderney this spring and summer. The resulting signals showed the birds foraging throughout the English Channel.

One individual went as far as the middle of the 22 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

North Sea, and another travelled more than 500 miles in 36 hours.

The Track A Gannet (TAG) project is the first to provide real-time tracking of seabirds to the general public. It also has a GannetCam, allowing views of the gannets’ breeding colony in season.

The Trust hopes the data will influence the planning of wind farms in the future. In years to come the project will study the effects of these

installations on the behaviour and productivity of seabirds.

“TAG increases our understanding of how dependent seabirds are upon areas proposed for development. After this year’s research has been assessed the Trust plans to redesign and repeat the study in 2016,” said Roland Gauvain, Manager of the Alderney Wildlife Trust.

david chapman

Northern gannets are increasingly having to share their environment with wind farms. The new research may reduce any negative impacts

How it was done Researchers taped tiny GPS transmitters to the tail feathers of 26 birds captured on Alderney last June. These devices relayed the positions of tagged birds every three hours whenever they were in range of a 3G signal. After about two months the transmitters fell off. To watch the webcam, or sponsor a TAG and name a gannet, visit teachingthroughnature.co.uk/t-a-g/

The tag lasts two months

Welcome

Lat newsest UK-w ide wildl and issue ifetru s org/n sts. : ews

I used to love reading to my children at bedtime.

The song about Mike TV’s fate in Charlie and Chocolate Factory was a favourite. In it Dahl vents his wrath on the hated television: “They sit and stare and stare and sit until they’re hypnotised by it”. The intensity grows until he shouts “IT ROTS THE SENSES IN THE HEAD! IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!” What would Roald Dahl think now? Not only does the average child watch 17 hours of TV a week; they spend 20 hours online.

People have probably always looked at the next generation’s lifestyle with horror, so as I join the ranks of parents struggling with screen addiction I try desperately to be objective. The facts are that children only roam 300 yards from the house, not six miles as my grandparents’ generation did, and 30% have never climbed a tree.

That we are not designed for this is borne out by shocking evidence of the near incurability of serious obesity, and terrifying graphs of mental health admissions for children and young people. We need love, support and companionship, but the need to be close to nature is in our DNA too.

Your Wildlife Trust is working with as many children as it can to reverse these trends: in schools, in parks, in wild places. A ‘wild’ childhood is good for health, wellbeing and nature. We want every child to be wild. Your support as a member is critical in helping us to reach this ambition. Thank you.

Stephanie Hilborne OBE Chief Executive of The Wildlife Trusts

Together The Wildlife Trusts have more than 800,000 members. We are the largest voluntary organisation dedicated to conserving all the UK’s habitats and species. Contact us on enquiry@ wildlifetrusts.org or 01636 677 711. To join your Wildlife Trust, visit wildlifetrusts.org/joinus.

Natural World, The Kiln, Waterside, Mather Road, Newark, Notts NG24 1WT. Editor Rupert Paul Communications officer Emma Websdale.

Layout editor Dan Hilliard twitter @wildlifetrusts facebook.com/wildlifetrusts

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 23

UK News

What next for Nature Act? Pre-election campaign won’t result in legislation yet, but it has borne fruit You may remember our pre-election campaign for a Nature and Wellbeing Act. More than 10,000 people and a range of organisations supported a joint Wildlife Trust and RSPB e-action, creating a combined and passionate voice for nature’s recovery. Thank you.

Every MP in England was asked to support the Act. We believe that this helped ensure there was reference to nature, and the need for its recovery, in the current government’s

manifesto as well as those of the Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green parties.

The Conservatives have promised to produce a 25-year plan for nature’s recovery.

This falls short of an Act, but it gives the government the opportunity to produce a far-reaching plan. The Wildlife Trusts will be watching all the way, and will contribute to its development. We will keep you informed of any opportunities for input.

We continue to talk to MPs from all parties, pointing out that nature’s recovery is vital not only for its own sake, but because of what it contributes to our lives, our society and our economy. More than 25 organisations think the same, and continue to support our campaign.

■ Learn more: wildlifetrusts.org/ naturewellbeingact

Did ? now you k scientifically

100th chick for Rutland’s ospreys

leics & Rutland WT

This summer the Rutland Osprey project – a partnership between Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust and Anglian Water – saw its hundredth chick fledge. Four generations of Rutland birds were at the reserve for the first time, and 15 young birds fledged from eight nests.

The chick prepares for its first flight

24 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

Abundant wildlife is the best indicator of a healthy local environment jack perks

terry whittaker / 2020Vision

1 the ystem In 201 tional Ecos l a iety wil N c t o s robu said s rebuild t n e m s e Asses ealthier if w ded egra be w d s m th ste ecosy g the 20 durin tury cen

Worcestershire rivers to imp Worcestershire Wildlife Trust has secured £80,000 for catchmentscale plans to improve water quality and wildlife habitats in Bromsgrove, Redditch and the Teme Valley. The Trust, which has years of experience in river restoration, will work with local authorities and communities to install sustainable drainage, protect river banks, create fish refuges, monitor wildlife and establish wetlands. The funds come thanks to the Catchment Based Approach project.

Lyndsey young

Back on the Meon It’s the UK’s biggest water vole reintroduction – and it’s working.

This summer 190 animals were released on the River Meon in Hampshire. They join 450 released at Titchfield Haven in 2013 and 600 further upstream in 2014. Volunteer monitoring shows the voles are breeding at all three sites, sometimes more than a mile upstream.

The project is led by the South Downs National Park

Customers and Wildlife Trust staff appreciate VHF

Vine House Farm donates £1m

Have river. Will breed

Ted Smith 1920-2015

prove

Ted was an inspiration to generations of conservationists

scottish WT

Scottish beavers produce two kits

Fish such as perch will benefit from cleaner, more varied water flows

See mum and her three month-old kits on the vid eo

Video from the Scottish Beaver Trial at Knapdale shows two young kits playing by their mother – a first for the project, which aims to bring back beavers after 400 years. Led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, the Trial finished this year. The Scottish Environment Minister will now decide whether the beavers can stay.

■ Video: youtu.be/gli8pWaOlBI November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 25

sarah pitt

Ted Smith CBE, founder of Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust and a leading light in the Wildlife Trusts movement, has died. He saw the need to conserve our country’s coast, heaths, meadows and woodland as early as the 1940s, and was widely recognised for his services to conservation. In 2012 he was presented with The Wildlife Trusts’ Centenary Award

by Sir David Attenborough.

Vine house farm

Not every Lincolnshire farm has marsh harriers

jamie hall

A huge thanks to award-winning bird food producer Vine House Farm, whose donations to The Wildlife Trusts have just passed the £1,000,000 mark. This incredible sum is the result of a partnership which began in 2007. Since then, the award-winning family business in Lincolnshire has donated five per cent of each bird food sale to each customer’s local Wildlife Trust.

VHF founder Nicholas Watts has been a pioneer of wildlifefriendly farming since the 1980s. Thanks to his generosity we have been able to protect and restore more areas for nature, and to inspire more people to experience wildlife first-hand.

■ More on wildlifetrusts.org/blog/vinehousefarm

Authority, the EA, Natural England and Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. It has turned around the factors which wiped the voles out in the Meon Valley: habitat loss, pollution and predation by non-native American mink. The improvements will benefit the whole river ecosystem.

“The voles haven’t been able to return naturally to the Meon, so they need a little extra help,” said the Trust’s Ali Morse.

UK News

More MCZs please England’s network of Marine Conservation Zones is taking shape. But, as Maya Plass points out, it can’t properly protect all the wildlife in our seas until it’s ecologically complete they rely on and the habitats they live in or visit. If these threads became visible we would see what a wonderfully complex and connected ecosystem they share.

So to conserve the highly mobile white-beaked dolphins, for example, takes more than just protecting the open water they swim in. We need to protect the fish, crustaceans and molluscs that they feed on – and the habitats which are essential for their survival too.

Moreover, we need more than one patch of a particular habitat. Should an oil spill occur, we have then still got a similar, healthy, protected habitat not too far away which could, in time, reseed the damaged area.

This vitally important patchwork of habitats around the British Isles, protecting a huge array of species, is what we call an ‘ecologically coherent network of Marine Conservation Zones’. At the moment there are 27 designated areas, and that is simply not enough. We need to follow the recommendations of scientists and fill in the gaps.

And the protection must be more than a shaded area on a map. It must mean protection from activities which would damage the quality of the sites. We need to monitor the sites so that we can measure how well we are protecting them.

And we need to explain to others why our seas are so very important.

We only have 27 designated Marine Conservation Zones, and that is simply not enough

John Carnell, northumbria mammal group

Iwas recently asked, “Why do you particularly love the British coastline?” Where to begin?

Common dolphins leaping towards a boat of Lundy day-trippers. Frolicking with seals off the Farne Islands. Staring in awe at tiny nudibranchs while diving in Devon. Finding Montagu crabs with impressed school children. I could go on.

We have an incredible variety of coastline and creatures in our waters. But we’re not just lucky to have all of this. We actually need healthy, diverse seas for our commercial fisheries, our tourism, our economy, our sense of identity, even our health and happiness.

We need to ensure our children continue to enjoy all of these benefits. And that means setting aside enough parts of the sea to safeguard all our marine life.

The UK’s marine plants and animals are not just a vast collection of weird or wonderful species. They are all joined together by invisible threads through the food they eat, the nutrients

The little-known white-beaked dolphin ranges widely, but has only two special areas where it breeds and feeds. They should be protected

26 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

Maya Plass A marine ecologist and guest presenter on BBC Springwatch, Maya runs Learn to Sea in South Devon.

Marine Protected Areas can only work if they are:

3. Representative

2. Close enough 1. Big enough

4. Numerous enough

England’s missing MCZs So far the Government has approved 27 Marine Conservation Zones in English waters. A second tranche is expected late in 2015.

This map shows some of the biggest gaps that still remain: 1. Irish Sea mud habitats 2. Offshore Wales 3. White-beaked dolphin areas 4. English Channel seagrass

■ Add your voice:

5. Actively protected

it’s a devolved process

1

3

2 3

This map shows potential Marine Conservation Zones in English and Secretary of State waters, where the process of designating protected areas is partially complete. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own processes. Full update on wildlifetrusts.org/MPA.

4

Help us complete the network of Marine Conservation Zones: sign up to our mailing list. You can also get up-to-date information on progress towards a complete network: wtru.st/ACTION4OURSEAS

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 27

UK News Encouraged by Avon Wildlife Trust’s Kate Marsh, Bristol children meet some of the creatures they share a planet with

Dirty?

Scary?

Dangerous?

For most children today, messing around outside comes a distant second to screens and sofas. Our Every Child Wild campaign aims to change that 28 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

james beck

Emma Websdale Wildlife Watch leader Emma has visited many Wildlife Trust events for children around England. james beck

A humble meadow grasshopper

Grand Theft Auto and grubby hands: more real than

London Wildlife Trust’s Camley Street Nature Park is a little oasis of bursting greenery just behind King’s Cross station – a much-needed break from whizzing trains and towering construction work. It’s also an outdoor classroom with an impressive range of resources: quaint pockets of urban woodland, beehives, a ponddipping platform, mighty bug hotels and a homegrown produce area.

A group of children from Devonshire House School are sitting comfortably on a large insectdecorated mat.

“Who’s been here before?” asks the Trust’s Helen Burton. No hands make it to the air. This might be the first time some of these children have ventured into a wild green space within London.

Helen takes the class around the reserve, and they identify the four elements all wildlife needs: food, water, shelter and air. They quickly understand the concept of different habitats, and have dramatic success with their bug hunt, turning up a woodlouse-eating spider and an impressive female stag beetle. As they prepare to leave, the children collect petals, feathers and leaves, decorating their memory sticks in wild jewels to remember this special visit.

The children collect sticks, leaves, feathers: wild jewels to remember their visit

Devonshire House is just one of many schools who visit this reserve each year to rummage under logs, witness a swarm of honey-making bees or spot millipedes and toads for the first time. In doing so they are experiencing something that modern childhood has all but lost.

The real value of finding a beetle, or climbing a tree, is that children are developing a connection to nature, a love for it. And they instinctively know it’s important to them.

Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust run regular Forest School sessions with inner-city primary children at Brocks Hill Country Park – a beautiful setting and a playground of discovery and adventure. Once a week these five to ten year-olds leave the traffic and concrete which define their lives and spend an afternoon in a small clearing surrounded by ash, silver birch and rowan trees.

I sit with Ali, a year six pupil who has recently moved to England from Pakistan. Beaming from ear to ear, he finds a little birch sapling. He decides to build a twig fence around it.

“I want to keep it protected forever!” he proclaims. We decide to name the little sapling after him. “You could come back to see it with your mum and dad,” I suggest.

“I can’t,” he replies. “My father works all of the time and my mother is too scared to leave the house as she gets bullied for being Pakistani.

This is the only time I get to come outside.”

Later, as I talk to one of teachers, she wells up. “See Sebastian over there?” she points to a young lad running around with a magnifying glass. “I’ve been teaching him for years and I’ve never heard him talk until today.” With uncanny timing, he runs up to us. “Miss! Miss! Look at this November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 29

UK News Research shows that experience of nature has huge benefits for children. This is London Wildlife Trust’s Camley Street, a few hundred yards from Kings Cross

emma websdale

tiny snail I’ve found!” Being with nature has helped build his confidence and ability to express himself.

Sofia, who has Asperger’s Syndrome, is another pupil who has changed dramatically, smiling ferociously as she focuses on finding as many mini-beasts as she can. For her and Sebastian this is just their second outdoor visit.

I’ve watched ten school visits this year. In every one the children loved submerging themselves in nature. From year tens concentrating as they observed tadpoles developing in their classroom, to nursery children making mud pies in their outdoor mud kitchen, wherever nature was happiness and confidence flourished.

The Wildlife Trusts will have reached more than 400,000 children this year, but there are 800,000 children in every school year. If nature makes children happier and healthier, then shouldn’t we be doing more of it? An overwhelming body of evidence (see opposite page) suggests we should.

“Contact with nature should not be the preserve of the privileged,” says Sir David Attenborough.

“It is critical to the personal development of our children. We will be physically, mentally and spiritually impoverished if they are deprived of 30 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

My mother’s too scared to leave the house.

This is the only time I get to come outside contact with the natural world.”

Let’s create a future generation which loves wildlife – and which, when it grows up, will cherish and conserve it.

■ Children’s names have been changed

Every child wild How can we ensure future generations grow up with a love of wildlife?

We believe children need to connect with, love and care for nature – it’s good for them, and it’s good for nature, too. Our Every Child Wild campaign will raise awareness of the gap between children and the natural world and what we can do about this.

Together we must find the solutions: who else will look after our wildlife tomorrow?

How you can help ■ Take a child you care for somewhere wild to play and explore.

■ Join your local children’s nature club with your Wildlife Trust – make friends, discover wildlife and get muddy!

■ Tell us what you think needs to happen at #everychildwild ■ Continue to support your Wildlife Trust’s work with local schools and children through your membership

wildlifetrusts.org/everychildwild

Nature versus modern childhood

16% of girls exercise an hour or more

21% of boys exercise an hour or more a day

REFERENCES: 1 Derbyshire, 2007. 3 Department of Health, 2011. 3, 7 Health and social care information centre, 2013, In Bragg, et al., 2014. 4, 5 Moss, 2012. 6 National Trust, 2008. 8 Wells, 2000; Wells and Evans, 2003, in Bragg, et al., 2014. MacKerron et al., mappiness.org, 2013.

children’s Roaming range, 1915-2015 1

Physical exercise 3 Government recommends that children should exercise for an hour a day

1915 Six miles 84% of girls take less than an hour of exercise a day

2015 300 yards

28% 7 Obesity

Percentage o of UK children wh are overweight or obese

10%

Walking to school 5

Fewer than 10% of children play in natural areas. When today’s adults were children the figure was 40%

7 and 8 year-olds

1971

80%

1991

10%

Green v Grey 8 Screen time 4

90%

of children can’t tell a bee from a wasp

40%

access to nature

Wasps v Daleks 6

50%

79% of boys take less than an hour of exercise a day

Today’s 11-15 year-olds spend around 7.5 hours a day looking at screens A study of 20,000 people showed they felt happier in green areas than in urban ones.

■ Nature close to home increases a child’s ability to cope with stressful events, and improves cognitive function.

■

of children can identify a Dalek

What The Wildlife Trusts are doing to help

248 271,331 300,000 11,000

Wildlife Watch groups nationwide, giving 10,669 children experiences of nature each year

150,000

junior members of The Wildlife Trusts

people visit a Wildlife Trust nature reserve as part of a school, college or society.

There are over 15,000 of these visits every year, the vast majority by young people pupils and students spent time with The Wildlife Trusts in 2014

events a year are run by The Wildlife Trusts – the vast majority family focused

our outdoor leaders

456 environmental educators 1,487 volunteers devoted to Wildlife Watch and other children’s work

193,922

people a year (mostly children) attend Wildlife Trust forest schools, workshops and activities

UK News

Meadow comeback

Since 2013 the Coronation Meadows project has created 62 locally-seeded wildflower meadows.

Cumbria Wildlife Trust

It’s a warm summer evening and you’re doing something you’ve not done since you were a child – lying down in a flower-rich meadow. All around you grasshoppers are chirping, bees are bumbling and overhead the song of the skylark rises and falls. The air is warm with the scent of flowers: sweet floral tones from clover and vanilla from the orchids. Butterflies flit between the blooms, a soft mist of buttercups punctuated by pink ragged-robin.

But this scene is now incredibly rare. Over 97% of wildflower meadows have been lost since the 1930s – nearly 7.5 million acres – and with them have gone our experiences of what these astonishing places are like.

Fortunately, tiny fragments of ancient wildflower meadow survive. Scattered across Britain, a few farmers have maintained the traditional pattern of hay making, cutting the grass in late summer once the flowers have set seed, and then grazing hard with livestock until late winter. Although these

Trevor Dines Plantlife’s Botanical Specialist has been finding and mapping wild plants for more than 30 years

32 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

fields are small – about 2ha on average – their long history of continual management means they are exceptionally rich in wildlife.

Every meadow is different, though. Each species of flower is a thread and the tapestry they weave is as multicoloured and diverse as any fabric. This is really what makes these ancient meadows so special, giving them local character and identity. It’s what makes a Carmarthenshire meadow, with butterfly orchids and whorled caraway, different from an Oxfordshire meadow with snake’s-head fritillaries and cowslips, or an Argyll meadow with frog orchids and wood-bitter vetch.

It’s these precious fragments, these jewels in the landscape, that contain hope for the future.

The Coronation Meadows project, launched

by HRH The Prince of Wales to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation, aims to halt the tide of continuing meadow loss by realising the Prince’s vision to create new meadows in every county of the UK. The idea is that donor Coronation Meadows provide seed to create or restore receptor meadows in the same county. This is done by taking a crop of green hay, or seed collected using a brush harvester, and scattering it on specially prepared ground.

The process is slightly tricky – you have to juggle the weather, the hay cut and transporting the seed to the receptor site immediately so that it doesn’t heat up and cook the seed – but it

It’s these precious fragments, the jewels in the landscape, that contain hope for the future

Progress so far

12 completed 2013 28 completed 2014 24 completed 2015

Soil: a whole new habitat karl ritz, nigel cattlin / flpa, jan van arkel / FLPA, harry green

works beautifully.

These techniques, called ‘natural seeding’, establish many more species of flower more quickly than if commercial seed mixes are used. The meadows not only take on the local character of the original Coronation Meadow; they also rapidly become havens for other wildlife too.

By the end of 2015, 555 acres of meadows will have been created or restored in 44 counties. Over 150 volunteers have helped bring the meadows back to life, for example by haymaking, scything, spreading green hay, hand collecting wildflower seed or surveying meadows for orchids and other flowers.

At the end of the project, in 2017, many more people will have the chance to lie in a meadow once again, and savour the unique sights, sounds and scents of these precious habitats.

The Coronation Meadows Project, led by Plantlife and in partnership with The Wildlife Trusts and the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, is creating new meadows using seed from existing local sources, many of them Wildlife Trust reserves.

With Biffa Award funding, 91 of these ancient, species-rich donor meadows have been identified across Britain.

Did you know?

A cubic metre of meadow soil can contain: Tens of thousands of bacteria species Thousands of fungal species ■ Hundreds of insect and worm species ... a biomass equal to 2,000 sheep per hectare!

■ ■

Visible to the eye

visible under a microscope

Hundreds of invertebrate species live in meadow soil, including soil mites (top), springtails and tardigrades (above)

Yellow rattle and sheep’s sorrel at Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s Eycott Hill – one of 62 new places enriched by the Coronation Meadows project

We tend to think of meadows as the aboveground bit: the mix of flowers, invertebrates, birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians which makes each one unique. But it’s in the soil where the biodiversity really kicks off. Worms, weevils, beetles and larval insects burrow and feed among roots and accumulated organic matter. On a smaller scale, roots develop

Soil particles linked by fungi are habitat for predatory nematodes (top), amoebae and bacteria (right) intimate associations with vast networks of mycorrhizal fungi, as well as producing sugars which feed protozoa, and thus mites, springtails and tardigrades. Smaller still, fungal strands bind individual soil particles, whose film of water is a habitat for bacteria, amoebae and predatory nematodes.

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 33

UK News

10 places to see

Salt marshes and estuaries

1

A glimpse of one of Britain’s six reptile species adds a thrill to

4

Farlington Marshes comorant and oystercatcher.

Fingringhoe any walk.

Here’s where to find these ancient,The mysterious and Wick Hants & IOW WT woodland has tawny owls, wrens Essex Wildlife Trust long-lived animals A coastal grazing marsh and lagoon and polecats.

One of the finest saltmarsh which attracts thousands of brent Where is it? W of West Williamston, panoramas in the region, and just geese in winter, and large numbers S Pembrokeshire. extended with a sea wall breach. It’s of shoveler, wigeon, pintail and teal.

Grid SN033 058 a haven for knot, dunlin, grey/golden You can also see short-eared owls plover, avocet and godwits. Raptors, and peregrines. wildfowl and divers too.

South Walney Where is it? Between Cosham and Where is it? Visitor centre is on S Cumbria WT Havant S of A27. Grid SU 685 045.

Green Rd, Fingringhoe, CO5 7DN. A shingle island with pools and Grid TM 048 193. intertidal areas, and lots of waders West Williamston and wildfowl. Many of the 250 WT of S&W Wales species recorded are stopping to Welwick Saltmarsh Tidal creeks and saltmarsh, rest and refuel: Wheatear, redstart, Yorkshire WT limestone outcrops and woodland. willow warbler and goldcrest.

Marsh with extensive tidal creeks.

Expect curlew, little grebe, grey Where is it? S of Barrow in Look for short-eared owl, merlin heron, shelduck, mute swan, Furness. Grid SD 225 620 and marsh harrier, and hundreds of

3

2 ian cameron-reid

5

s Saltmarshel! are specia

brates cies of inverte f them o 0 15 arshes – occur on saltm niquely u d flat can of mud or san umbers of ■ A cubic metre e g s hu n 0 worms, plu hold over 100 molluscs than 1.5m active to more ttr a so re a s K ese area birds in the U ■ This is why th and roosting g rin te in rw e ov storm energy, rb wave and nces so b a ly si a e s ■ Marshe al defe natural coast m e th g n ki a m store, ortant carbon nge p im n a e b ■ They also may climate cha le in reducing and have a ro r geese visit: winter fo mmer to s e m ti d t, su Goo spring for thrif and waders, a lavender. for se

Stephen trotter

■ 250-300 spe

34 ROEBUCK 137 November 2015 - March 2016

curlew, grey plover, knot and dunlin feeding on the mudflats. You’re restricted to a path so binoculars are essential. The saltmarsh itself is dangerous.

Where is it? N bank of the Humber: Side Lane, Welwick, Patrington, Hull HU12 0UX.

6

Montrose Basin Scottish Wildlife Trust The vast mudflats attract thousands of waders feeding on lugworm, ragworm, snails and shrimp. If the tide is out, watch from the visitor centre (binoculars provided). Arrive at dawn or dusk to see up to 80,000

pink-footed geese.

Where is it? On A92 30 miles N of Dundee. Main car park is at the Old Mill, grid NO669 591.

7

Dawlish Inner Warren Devon Wildlife Trust A long spit of sand curving across the mouth of the river Exe. Thousands of dunlins, curlews, ringed plovers, black-tailed godwits and shelduck gather to feed in the mud, moving gradually closer to the bird hide before the rising waters drive them off.

Where is it? 1 mile E of Dawlish, post code EX7 ONF. Grid SX 981 787.

8

Ribble Estuary Lancs Wildlife Trust A hotspot for wintering wildfowl: more than 250,000 overwintering ducks, geese, swans and waders are an astonishing sight. The Wildlife Trusts are working to get the estuary designated as a Marine Conservation Zone.

Where is it? NE of Southport, off the A565.

9

Rye Harbour Sussex Wildlife Trust An internationally important wetland of shingle, saltmarsh, saline lagoons, grazing marsh, freshwater gravel pits and reedbeds. 280+ bird species recorded; most famous are the breeding colonies of little, common and Sandwich terns.

Where is it? 20 miles SW of Ashford on A259. Post code TN31 7TX, grid TQ 942 189.

Where to find these places 6

10

Salthouse Marshes Norfolk Wildlife Trust Shingle ridge (on the Norfolk coast path), reed-fringed dykes, marshland and shallow pools.

There’s a huge variety of birds on the sea, shingle and inland marshes, plus common and grey seals.

Where is it? Between Weybourne and Cley. Use Salthouse Beach car park. Grid TG 083 443.

â– Access/transport details for each

site: wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife/ reserves

3

For our full listing of places to see saltmarshes and estuaries: wtru.st/ saltmarshesestuaries

8

5 10 4

2 7

1

9

Winter at Farlington Marshes, a reserve for the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust

a one-minute guide tO

Saltmarshes Saltmarshes develop over mud flats, where pioneer salt-tolerant plants gradually establish when flows are slow. Regular tides deposit more mud and the marsh gradually accumulates around roots and stems. Many UK saltmarshes are eroding due to rising seas and increasing storms. matthew roberts

Salt marsh creeks flow from the sea upwards to the land

November 2015 - March 2016 ROEBUCK 137 35

People’s Postcode Lottery reaching out to wildlife lovers across the Region Throughout 2015, players of People’s Postcode Lottery have supported a number of events, including one of the Trust’s biggest events ever - Our Wildlife 2015 - hosted by wildlife broadcaster and naturalist Iolo Williams.

Georgina Moroney, Northumberland Wildlife Trust volunteer and Iolo Williams fly the flag for People’s Postcode Lottery. Photo: Fiona Dryden

Over the past eight years, thanks to players of People’s Postcode Lottery, £919,940 has been raised for Northumberland Wildlife Trust.

By playing you support hundreds of good causes.

Find out more at www.postcodelottery.co.uk People’s Postcode Lottery manages multiple society lotteries promoted by different charities including Postcode Green Trust, a charity registered in Scotland (SC042544) and regulated by the Gambling Commission under licences 000-030268-R-311787-007 and 000-030268-N-311788-006 . For details on each week’s society lottery visit www.postcodelottery.co.uk/society. Ticket price £2, with 5 draws each month and minimum £10 payable in advance.

For a full list of prizes available visit www.postcodelottery.co.uk/prizes Maximum ticket prize is 10% of draw proceeds up to £400,000. Players must be 16 years or over. Only available to play with postcodes in England, Scotland and Wales. Not available in NI. Conditions apply. See www.postcodelottery.co.uk Postcode Lottery Ltd is regulated by the Gambling Commission under licences 000-000829-N-102511-010 and 000-000829-R-102513-009.

Registered office: Postcode Lottery Ltd, Titchfield House, 69/85 Tabernacle Street, London, EC2A 4RR. Company reg. no. 04862732. VAT reg. no. 848 3165 07.