RECORD Newsletter Issue 9 Spring 2020 by RECORD LRC

SPRING 2020 NEWSLETTER

CONTENTS New Data Services Officer Local groups - please get in touch Have your say on our newsletter What makes up a wildlife record? Wildlife on your doorstep RECORD round-up Earthworms Owl pellets Q+A Bees and wasps at Bickerton Hill CMIG outings We know what you did last summer! Species spotlight RECORD data highlights Spring citizen science

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Thank you to all our contributors for your fantastic articles and to volunteers Caroline and Natasha for your extremely valuable help with the newsletter. If you're interested in writing an article for the newsletter please get in touch.

RECORD CONTACT DETAILS: info@record-lrc.co.uk 01244 383749 Facebook: @recordlrc Twitter: @RECORDLRC

Common Brimstone, Gonepteryx rhamni (c) Patrick Clement

NEW DATA SERVICES OFFICER Iona Cowell started in January, taking over from Leanna Dixon, as Data Services Officer.

What does the Data Services Officer do? Look after our data enquiries service, compiling reports for ecologists and others from our wildlife records. Organise events like outreach activities and our monthly Wildlife Exchange and Drop-in sessions. Work with some of our lovely volunteers to look after things like social media and the newsletter

My background is in environmental education and I most recently worked at Chester Zoo, looking after the Wildlife Connections project and inspiring the public to take conservation action. This means I know little bits about lots of topics but am by no means an expert! I’ve really enjoyed learning from other RECORD staff and volunteers so far and look forward to meeting more of the RECORD community and learning lots more about native wildlife in the months to come. I’m really keen to develop the education activities we offer and engage new audiences with the importance of wildlife recording and whilst it's been an unusual start to the job with the sudden change to home-working I've enjoyed running our My Patch campaign helping people to keep on recording wildlife during the lockdown.

LOCAL GROUPS - please get in touch Are you a member of a local wildlife group or community group? Perhaps a recording society, species interest group, friends-of group, etc. ? We're keen to support any local groups that would like to work with us. We might be able to help you with... - Advertising events - Recruiting new members or volunteers - Spreading the word on social media - Advice and help with wildlife identification or recording - Putting you in touch with other groups or individuals in the wildlife recording community Or there might be opportunities for us to work together on projects

Please email info@record-lrc.co.uk

HAVE YOUR SAY We'd like to know what you think about our newsletter, what do you like about it, what don't you like and what else would you like to see? Please fill out our online survey here to help us improve what we're offering

WHAT MAKES UP A WILDLIFE RECORD? It's a record of a species being found in a certain place at a certain time.Â

WHAT IS IT? The most important thing here is not to guess! If you're not sure what something is, ask someone else to help, use a book or the internet. Have a look on our website for useful links. It often helps to take a photo. You could upload this here to let everyone else help to ID it. Try to be as exact as you can, for example 'Butterfly' isn't very useful, but 'Painted Lady' would be perfect as this tells us the species of butterfly.

DATE THAT YOU FOUND IT If you saw something twice in one day, in the same place, just record it once. If you see the same thing the next day, you can record it again.

GRID REFERENCE

STAGE This often means how old something is - is it an adult, or a juvenile (youngster). For plants, is the plant flowering, have leaves or have buds? If you don't know it doesn't matter - just leave it blank.

HOW MANY? If you can count how many there are then that's great. Don't worry if you can't just write 'Present'.

Sign up to iNaturalist. This is an international app / website that is easy to use whilst out and about and relies on you taking a photo or sound recording. Others using it can then help to confirm that what you've seen has been ID'd correctly or suggest an alternative.

Email us with what you've seen: info@record-lrc.co.uk. You could send an excel spreadsheet, other document or just a description with the details of what you've spotted.

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It's really important that we know who you are. We won't share your name or details with anyone else without asking.

You can still enter records for things you haven't seen. You might have heard an animal (like a bird) or seen evidence of it (like poo!). You can also add here if you used any equipment, for example did you catch it in a net?

SEX

We're happy to receive wildilfe records in lots of different ways, here are some examples:

WHO ID'D IT?

RECORD TYPE

The best way to tell us where you found it is by giving a grid reference. You can download an app to help with this or use the internet. The grid reference should have at least 6 numbers in it as this gives us a more precise location.

Is it a male or a female? Often you won't be able to tell, so just leave this blank. If you see 1 male and 1 female, this should be 2 separate records.

Here's some pointers for anyone new to wildlife recording and reminders for everyone else.

Send us a message on social media with all the details. Use RODIS on our website to enter your records. This is probably best suited to those who are already used to this system rather than new users. Sign up to iRecord. This works in a similar way to iNaturalist but allows you to enter more details about the record and is less reliant on a photo.

Wildlife on your doorstep By Lisa Reeves

Despite being such an awfully wet and windy winter, spring seems to have started early. Buds have appeared on the pear tree and lush green shoots are appearing on the hawthorn hedge. The faint sun can be seen hanging low in the sky behind the silhouette of tree branches, but the sun is getting stronger each day and the days are, thankfully, getting noticeably longer. The garden has been awash with snowdrops, and sprinkled about the grass are clumps of beautiful daffodils and delicate pastel coloured crocuses. With all this wet weather, I notice stunning fungi hiding amongst the log piles and forests of bright green moss clambering over tree stumps and rocks. Broken snail shells scatter the stone path showing that a song thrush has been there eating a juicy snail. I also find a small clump of fur snagged on a low lying branch indicating that the garden has been visited by a badger too. I peer at the back of the pond and spot a frog hopping off to the water. The pond is teaming with creatures such as water daphnia and water lice, which make a tasty treat for the amphibians that live here. Up in the tree, a great spotted woodpecker hogs the peanut feeder and not even the feisty blue tits dare argue with a bird with such a powerful beak. I hear sparrows squabbling from within the hedge while jackdaws gather upon the chimney top squawking to each other as they wait for me to put some tasty food scraps on the bird table. I make sure all the bird feeders are topped up regularly as they will go down very quickly at this time of year. The birds don’t even wait for me to leave the area, within minutes there are blue tits, goldfinches and a nuthatch straight on the feeders, not wanting to waste any time refuelling their tiny bodies. So go out in the garden this spring and see if you can find any signs that wildlife visit your little patch or perhaps get up early and listen to the dawn chorus and be amazed at how many birds you actually have in your garden. (c)gardeningjules

More information from Lisa can be found at Ljay Nature

RECORD R JANUARY

We heard from conservationists from organisations across the UK at the BIAZA Native Species Conference held at Chester Zoo. Amongst other interesting talks, we heard from Tom Hunt (ALERC) about how zoos can work in partnership with LERCs and from Daniel Hayhow (RSPB) about the 2019 State of Nature Report . Both talks highlighted the key importance of biological recording in protecting wildlife.

We kicked off our 2020 programme of Wildlife Exchange Sessions with an excellent talk from Mandy Cartwright ofÂ Amphibian and Reptile Conservation. Mandy amazed us with the interesting biology of UK reptiles and we found out that all these species are very underrecorded in Cheshire. Do let us know of any scaly sightings you make!

FEBRUARY

We attended our first outreach event of Bridge Wellness Gardens in Ellesmere P half-term event organised by Cheshire W Action (CWVA). We met around 18 enth bug hunting, bird spotting and creating footprint tunnels.

We attended CWVAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s annual conference at Chester University. It was a brilliant chance to meet others from voluntary organisations across the county and attend workshops.

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ROUND-UP MARCH

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March's invert drop-in was all about soldier beetles (family Cantharidae). Despite some controversy about 1 or 2 of the specimen IDs, everyone had a great time and we were amazed at how diverse this colourful group of beetles is.

We attended a Careers Day at Chester University. We engaged with biological sciences students, telling them what RECORD does and about careers in biological recording.

We also visited Liverpool Museum to learn a bit more about woodland bird ID. What a great chance to see specimens up close and learn more from expert Tony Parker.

WHAT ABOUT APRIL AND MAY?! The end of March / start of April was an unusual time for us (as it has been for everyone!). We closed our office on 17th March and cancelled all events. However our staff are working from home and we've even got volunteers helping us out from their own homes too. To keep us, and our supporters, busy and still recording, we launched the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;My Patchâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; online campaign. Read more about this on page 25.

Earthworms

By Jessica Mehers WilderNess Are

Back in June 2018, we ran a BioBlitz at Ness Gardens and tried to engage the pubic with a range of different events. One of the most popular of our activities was worm charming. There were prizes for the longest worm found, most worms found and (at the judgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s discretion) wriggliest worm and most entertaining charming. The whole point was to try and make people more aware of earthworms and emphasise how important they are. It was great that nearly everyone got well into competition mode and lost their inhibitions about handling earthworms.

Earthworms are annelids and their bodies are composed of numerous segments - as many as 250 in a large earthworm! Each segment is fluid filled and has four tiny bristles on its lower surface. The bristles help the earthworms move by providing anchorage. Earthworms can move and burrow because the fluid in each segment cannot change volume, so when earthworms contract their circular muscles, each segment gets squashed and becomes longer, propelling the earthworms forward. If you have ever seen birds trying to pull earthworms from the ground you will have gathered that earthworms are very strong for their size! Their internal organs, including the gut, pass uninterrupted between segments. Earthworms have no teeth or jaws, so mostly they just suck things into their mouths. But they do have very mobile lips so can nibble at softer items such as decaying leaves. Their diet consists largely of dead vegetation, but they may also suck soil in and digest any organic particles within it. In the UK there are 29 species of earthworm. However, telling the species apart is tricky and for the most part requires a microscope and identification key (see Opal guide to British earthworms). But it is fairly easy to determine what group an earthworm is from: earthworms in Britain are split into four ectotypes, grouped according to their lifestyles. We have compost, epigeic, endogeic and anecic earthworms. Compost earthworms tend to be found in areas rich in rotting vegetation. They eat and reproduce rapidly and like warm and moist environments, so love compost heaps. These earthworms are usually red and stripy so are called tiger worms or brandlings.

s, Garden Technician for the ea, Ness Botanic Gardens

Epigeic earthworms live on the soil surface in leaf litter. They generally donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t burrow and are usually red, but not stripy. Endogeic earthworms live and eat in the soil in horizontal burrows. They are often pale in colour and can be grey, pink, green or blue. Some can burrow very deeply, but their burrows are not permanent, although they may travel along the same burrows more than once. Anecic earthworms also live in the soil, but they make permanent vertical burrows and they drag leaves into these to eat. These are the earthworms that make worm casts and are the largest of our worm species. They are red or brown and darker at the head than the tail. Earthworms are vital contributors to the decomposition of organic matter. As they eat, they break down organic materials into smaller particles. This allows bacteria and fungi to feed on the particles and they, in turn, make nutrients available to plants. The more earthworms there are, the more bacteria and fungi there are and the higher the fertility of the soil. As they burrow and eat, earthworms also mix soil layers and incorporate organic matter into the soil, aiding soil structural stability and its ability to hold on to nutrients and water. Earthworm burrows also create routes through which oxygen and water can enter the soil and carbon dioxide leave it, so that the roots of plants and other organisms have optimal growing conditions. It is estimated that a well established garden can support about 100,000 earthworms an acre: so at Ness (a garden of 60 acres) we are likely to be home to about 6 million earthworms! A conservative estimate is that each earthworm tunnels about 20 cm a day. This would mean that Ness is traversed by 720 miles of tunnels a day, which is pretty extraordinary. For anyone keen to learn more about earthworms, take a look at the Earthworm Society of Britain. The site has lots of useful information and the Society also runs regular ID days for those who are happy to wield a microscope. Earthworms are fascinating and they are absolutely fundamental to our soil health and, in turn, the health of everything else. They are often overlooked when it comes to recording and not enough is known about the distribution and numbers of earthworms and how human activities are affecting them. Please do consider including earthworms as part of your recording ventures!

Owl pellets Q&A What is an owl pellet? How can they help monitor species? Here are a few answers to some of the most frequent questions asked about owl pellets in the UK and how you can help.

What are bird pellets and how are they made? Pellets are masses of undigested food that has been stored in a bird’s gullet and then regurgitated. In owls this often includes fur, bones and certain parts of invertebrates. But owls aren’t the only ones to produce them - other birds of prey, gulls and birds in the crow family all produce pellets. Where can you find owl pellets? The most common place to find owl pellets is under a known roost. This could be in a man-made structure (like a barn) or a large tree that has good perching/nesting spots. Owls thrive in places with good, stable populations of small mammals (especially voles). Are owl pellets clean?

Owl pellets are cleaner than you think. As they’re the remains of animals that haven’t been digested, they are a lot cleaner than what comes out the other end! I still tend to be cautious when handling them and wear gloves, as they can sometimes carry Salmonella. You can handle them without gloves, but I would strongly recommend thoroughly washing your hands afterwards. What methods can you use to dissect pellets? When looking at owl pellets, there are two main methods of investigating – ‘Wet’ and ‘Dry’. The Wet method consists of soaking the pellets in water for 24 hours before gently peeling them apart, separating the bones from the fur. The Dry method is the same, except that you don’t soak the pellets beforehand. This method is used either when you are working with fresh pellets or have dried/baked them.The Dry method is faster and there is less chance of the pellets going mouldy. But the Wet method allows for a more in-depth look and reduces the chances of bones accidentally breaking as you pull the pellet apart.

Owl P

By Natasha Murwill What are you likely to find in an owl pellet? Now this depends on the species. A little owl, for example, tends to produce small pellets which contain mainly invertebrates; beetle wing cases often give their pellets a shiny appearance. Barn owls, on the other hand, tend to have much larger pellets as their diet is predominantly small mammals and each pellet often holds the remains of at least 3-4 skeletons.

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Do barn owls have a favourite food? Yes! Most of what you will find in a barn owl pellet is field voles. Up to 45% of the pellet can be this species, so you can see why it’s important to have a sustainable population of voles in the area. What can you do to help? Be on the lookout for owl pellets, either around your property or when you’re out for a walk. If you find one, please pass on the information to the RECORD office. This should include what bird species the pellet is from and, if you dissect it, what was inside. If you don’t want to dissect it or want some help with identification, feel free to bring it to the RECORD office and I am more than happy to help. (c) Natasha Murwill

Want to learn more about owl pellets? The Analysis of Owl Pellets by D.W. Yalden (Mammal Society Occasional Publications) Barn Owl Trust Website

Pellet Cont ents

A SURVEY OF BEES AND WA It wasn’t a surprise that the first bees I saw on Bickerton Hill in 2019 were bumblebees: well-equipped for colder temperatures, a few furry Buff-tailed bumblebee queens (Bombus terrestris) and Early bumblebee queens (Bombus pratorum) were flying around looking for nesting sites and food as early as February. It was a surprise, and a pleasant one, however, to stumble across a Hill cuckoo bee (Bombus rupestris) in April, whilst checking Red-tailed bumblebees (Bombus lapidarius) to make sure that they weren’t in fact their cuckoo lookalike. This large, impressive cuckoo bee takes over the nests of the Red-tailed bumblebee, often killing the queen, then laying their own eggs. Although they are probably under-recorded, they are still considered Nationally Scarce (Nb – found in 16-100 hectads). Over the spring and summer, it became clear that Bickerton Hill was a great place to find bees and wasps, and I visited approximately every two weeks to survey for these species. A low hill in south Cheshire, Bickerton Hill is a lowland heathland managed by the National Trust, covered in low-growing shrubs dominated by bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus), together with heather (Calluna vulgaris) and heaths (Erica spp.) which turn it purple and pink in late summer. Scattered trees and areas of woodland persist, and the sandy paths and banks provide plenty of nesting opportunities for ground-nesting bees and wasps. With few previous records from the hill – just 16 species of bees and wasps – there would be plenty more to find here, as lowland heathland is usually very species-rich.

Cutting through sandy banks; a top spot for seeing bees and wasps nesting

ASPS AT BICKERTON HILL

By Chloe Aldridge

BICKERTON HILL: Sandy soil and heather-dominated flora of lowland heath.

A little way onto the hill was a cutting where the path dropped between two steep, sandy banks. It was tempting to spend every visit in this one prime spot, which was littered with nesting holes created by several different species. In May, one resident, a Bilberry mining bee (Andrena lapponica) arrived carrying pollen, then disappeared into a hole in the bank, came out and flew off a few minutes later. This bee has been recorded only a handful of times in Cheshire previously, and never at this site. The tiny metallic Green furrow bee (Lasioglossum morio) also seemed to be nesting here, and an even tinier red and black insect flitting around the bank turned out to be Geoffreyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s blood bee (Sphecodes geoffrellus), which attacks the Green furrow bee and takes over its nest. This was also one of the places where I found, in late summer, a heather-heathland specialist, the Heather colletes (Colletes succinctus), distinctively-striped and foraging on ling. In almost exactly the same place was a small, dumpy bee which is closely associated with it as a nest parasite: the Red-thighed epeolus (Epeolus cruciger), which has been recorded only three times in Cheshire, over 20 years ago.

A SURVEY OF BEES AND WA Some of the species were spread widely across the site: it seemed impossible to walk 10 paces without coming across Field digger wasps (Mellinus arvensis) late in the season, busily going in and out of the small holes at the edges of paths, with the characteristic little volcano of sand around their entrance. At the beginning of the season, female Tawny mining bees (Andrena fulva) were easily spotted everywhere by their bright orange furry colouring, never far from little bundles of males which seemed to be jostling to reach the females In late spring, the Sandpit mining bee (Andrena barbilabris) was often to be seen on the loose, fine sand of the well-trodden paths, swimming down into the sand which closed behind them, and with their nest parasite almost as frequently present, the Sandpit blood bee (Sphecodes pellucidus), which moved back and forth over the top of the sand, before diving down to find their host.

SITE SPECIES LIST TOTAL NUMBER OF SPECIES

Previously recorded on Bickerton Hill

Number of Bumblebee species

Number of host species whose nest parasites were also recorded

Not recorded in Cheshire for at least 25 years

Less than 10 previous records in Cheshire

WASPS: Ancistrocerus nigric Crossocerus ovalis, Crossoce Crosscerus varus, Oxybelus u Miesa lutaria, Psenulus palli Myrmosa atra

BEES: Bombus hypnorum, B pratorum,Bombus terrestris pascuorum, Bombus lucorum Bombus sylvestris, Bombus r Nomada flava, Nomada goo leucopthalma, Nomada rufi Andrena barbilarbris, Andre clarkella, Andrena fulva, And haemorrhoa, Andrena lappo Sphecodes ephippius, Sphec monilicornis, Sphecodes pell parvalum, Lasioglossum mo Megachile willughbiella, Col

ASPS AT BICKERTON HILL One of the other exciting finds was another heather specialist, the Heather mining bee (Andrena fuscipes), foraging on heather at the top of the hill. This species hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t been recorded in Cheshire since 1945.

On one of the main sloping paths, I came across some tiny orange and black female wingless wasps, of the species Myrmosa atra, looking like ants as they crawled over the surface. In the same place were black and yellow wasps (Cerceris rybyensis) (pictured) which were hunting bees to provide food for their larvae, and bearing their prey, often as big as them, back to holes in the hard, compacted soil of well-trodden paths.

cornis, Crabro peltarius, erus quadrimanculatus, uniglaumis, Mellinus arvensis, ipes, Cerceris rybensis,

Bombus hortorum, Bombus s, Bombus lapidarius, Bombus m agg, Bombus jonellus, rupestris, Bombus vestalis, odeniana, Nomada iceps, Epeolus cruciger, ena cineraria, Andrena drena fusciceps, Andrena onica, Andrena nitida, codes gibbus, Sphecodes lucodus, Lasioglossum orio, Lasioglossum rufitarse, lletes succinctus

Typical habitat on site: a hot spot for the Sandpit Mining Bee and Sandpit Blood bee Field Digger Wasp (Mellinus arvensis)

Parkgate Old Baths High Tide Event Thursday 13th February 2020 (c) Mike Inger

By Elina-Marielle Doss For the first CMIG event of the year, we all met up for the yearly Tidewatch event. The plan was to see, up close, the wading birds, geese, ducks and birds of prey that were pushed upstream by the incoming tide. We were also hoping to watch a variety of small mammals being flushed out by the water. Parkgate Old Baths is a very popular location for birdwatchers and photographers and we encountered many of them along our travels. It is also one of the best wetland habitats in the northwest. Ten of us braved the cold and rainy weather, which thankfully cleared up a bit later. The majority of us initially sought shelter in the nearby Boathouse pub and recorded from there with a great view. Others in our group braved the terrible weather and were instantly rewarded for it: 3 Short-eared owls (Asio flammeurs), were flying over the golf course! The rest of us ventured out there after the skies had cleared up but we had to make do with some photographs from a photographer who had taken beautiful pictures of the Short-eared owls.

When we arrived back at the Old Baths car park, a female Marsh harrier (Circus aerunginosus) was circling around the estuary. Other interesting birds we came across include: Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus), Great egret, (Ardea alba), Grey Heron (Ardea cinera), Oystercatcher, (Haematopus ostralegus) Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus), Curlew, (Numenius aquatus), Teal, (Anas crecca), Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna), Redwing (Turdus elacus), Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola), Rock pipit (Anthus petrosus) and Reed bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus).

Just before the high tide we found a group of Ruby tiger moth caterpillars (Phragmatobia fuliginosa) as well as a Drinker moth caterpillar (Euthris potatoria) on a walk along the promenade up to the golf course. Unfortunately, we did not see the small mammals being pushed out by the high tide but be sure that we will be back next year to try our luck! We did record a good few species and learned the odd thing or two, which is the aim of these CMIG gatherings. The CMIG group has also grown this year, gaining two new members.

Red Rocks Reserve Event Saturday 21st March 2020 By Natasha Murwill Just before the UK lockdown, we had planned to go for our 2nd CMIG event of the year, to the Red Rocks Reserve by Hoylake, Wirral. The site is a SSSI, which is looked after by the Cheshire Wildlife Trust. It had also been noticed that several grid references near the area had very few records submitted. It is a beautiful area to walk round, with panoramic views of the Dee estuary and Hilbre Island. Just watch out for the wind, as you may get a face full of sand! Unfortunately, as the restrictions were starting to be put in place, we had to recommend to people not to go. Anyone who still wished to go or did not receive our notification on time, had to follow the 2 metre social distancing guidelines recommended by the government – we were 5 people in total. We also cut the event short and finished around lunch time compared to our usual ‘full day’ trips. On the positive side, we were able to add several more records to the area. The tide was out for our visit, so we were able to walk out quite far on the mud/sand flats and saw a variety of species including thousands of Common cockle (Cerastoderma edule) and Blow lugworm (Arenicola marina). Richard found some species of note, which were Eristalis intricarius (a hoverfly), Graphis scripta & Arthonia radiata (both lichens), Buck's-horn plantain (Plantago coronopus) and Danish scurvy grass (Cochlearia danica).

We know what you did last summer! By Helen Bradshaw, Chester Zoo Site Ecologist Many people know about our recording focus on Chester Zoo Nature Reserve, but behind the scenes we’ve also been working to establish what native bats we have roosting within the zoo. Last summer we spent some of our evenings, and very early mornings, standing outside buildings waiting to see what came out or went in! We knew about one roost at the start, and by the end we had found three roosts, each with different species inside. Members of the Zoo’s Twilight Team were keen to help out with the surveys (which were conducted under my Natural England licence), switching from counting the zoo's Rodrigues and Seba’s fruit bats to recording our native species, for a change. In one of the site's oldest buildings (the former stable yard), a Brown long-eared bat (Plecotus auritus) (BLE) maternity roost was confirmed, containing approximately 50 bats. The roost is directly above a small office in daily use and the bats enjoy the freedom of the large loft space above. This is likely to be a roost of county importance, as most BLE roosts in Cheshire tend to max out at around 15 to 25 individuals- we’d be keen to know of any roost of a similar size to ours. The largest number of bats was recorded in the flat felt roof of a more modern building, where the team counted a maternity colony of more than 200 individual Soprano pipistrelles (Pipistrellus pygmaeus). This is an interesting roost to watch, as the bats chitter and jostle to come out of the same hole, so you have to count quickly!

These two colonies are very close to each other in the zoo, and the bats are using buildings and roof types you’d expect for the species. Our third roost, however, is a little different.

Daubenton’s Bat (Myotis daubentonii)

Inside the Elephant house we found a Daubenton’s (Myotis daubentonii) roost, which put to rest some years of speculation! This was because the roost is difficult to access due to the nature of the building and the presence of elephants. So having tried infrared cameras and bat recorders, we collected some dropping samples and sent them off for DNA analysis. Needless to say, we were very excited when the results came back and brought the species roost tally for the site up to three. The bat work doesn’t stop at the zoo gates however. We own and manage a large area of agricultural land around the zoo and last year, thanks to external funding, we put up over 70 new bat boxes of varying types to offer suitable roosting habitat. We aim to return to these boxes this year to carry out the first monitoring checks - we’ll be delighted if any show signs of use so quickly! The 2020 bat survey season has been halted on the zoo estate owing to the global pandemic. We do know however that the bats have returned to their roosts on site for another year as evidence of fresh droppings has been found. We can't wait to get back surveying again and gather more data on these fantastic species. All data so far has of course gone into RODIS and we hope to have more to add to the system as the summer progresses.

Species spotlight - New Zealand flatworm

By Caroline Harcourt Description The mature New Zealand flatworm (Arthurdendyus triangulates) is pointed at both ends, has a dark, purplish-brown upper surface, a narrow, pale, spotted margin and a pale buff underside. It is about 1 cm wide and 6 cm long when resting but can extend to 20 cm long and is then narrower. When inactive, often resting under stones or wood, it is coiled and covered in mucus. Distribution in UK A. triangulates was first found in Belfast in 1963 and then Scotland in 1965. It needs damp, cool conditions so is now most common in Northern Ireland, Scotland and northern England. It has become locally abundant in domestic gardens and allotments. It was likely spread principally by movement of soil and plant material from garden centres and nurseries. Ecology The nocturnal NZ flatworm feeds on earthworms, wrapping itself round the worm, secreting digestive juices to dissolve it, then sucking up the resulting â&#x20AC;&#x153;soupâ&#x20AC;?. The earthworm species that come to the soil surface at night are most likely to be preyed on. The flatworm can survive for a year or more without eating. Its egg capsules, which are mostly laid in spring but can be found throughout the year, are black and shiny, about the size of a small blackcurrant. After 6 or 7 weeks, 5-8 creamy white/pink flatworms, 6-8 mm long, emerge. The flatworm poses a threat to our native earthworms so could have an impact on wildlife species that are dependent on them. Depletion of the earthworm population could have a harmful effect on soil structure. There is no way to control the flatworms. For more information and photos, see the article from the NNSS (Non-native Species Secretariat).

2017 RECORD DATA HIG

In the previous issue, I reported some of the data highlights of our tota to see whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s changed. We often receive data in the present year that from 2017, trusting that most records for that year will have been rece might, in the future, review older records to compare them with more The proportion of records belonging to each of the taxon supergroups for the year 2017 (Figure 1) is very similar to that of the whole dataset (see last issue). The three most commonly recorded groups remain plants, invertebrates and birds, which is not at all surprising. The other species groups see only small increases/decreases for the year 2017 compared to our total records.

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GHLIGHTS

By Elina-Marielle Doss

al records in Cheshire. Here, I’m comparing 2017 data with that analysis relates to sightings in previous years, which is why I am analysing data eived by now. I didn’t want to look too far back into the past, although I recent data. As of now, we’ve received a total of 53,663 records for 2017.

Looking at the data a bit more closely, the top three scorers for our 2017 data all belong to the same order, Lepidoptera. Other invertebrate species appear much later in the data, apart from the Harlequin ladybird in 20th place. The list continues with a ew more species from this group but et’s move on to the next highestscoring group – birds. The number one recorded bird is the Blackbird (Turdus merula) in 6th place, followed by the Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) in 8th place and the Woodpigeon (Columbus palumbus) in 10th place. The Eurasian badger (Meles meles) is the top record scorer for mammals in 7th place, ollowed by the Common pipistrelle Pipistrellus pipistrellus) in 12th place and the Soprano pipistrelle Pipistrellus pygmaeus) showing up a bit later in 27th place. The first plant record appears in 13th place and is the Common nettle (Urtica dioica), ollowed by Common hawthorn Crataegus monogyna) in 15th place and Pedunculate oak (Quercus robur) n 21st. Looking at amphibians and reptiles, the Common frog (Rana temporaria) makes the first appearance in place 88 followed by the Great crested newt (Triturus cristatus) in place 95. The Common toad (Bufo bufo) doesn’t appear until place 182. The first lichen to appear is n place 348 and is the Common orange lichen (Xanthoria parietina).

RANK

SPECIES

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 16 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Speckled Wood Small White Red Admiral Green-veined White Meadow Brown Blackbird Eurasian Badger Mallard Comma Woodpigeon Hedge Brown Common Pipistrelle Common Nettle Large White Hawthorn Orange-tip Peacock Blue Tit Robin Harlequin Ladybird Penduculate Oak Small Tortoiseshell Magpie (bird) Sycamore Swift Yorkshire-fog Soprano Pipistrelle Ash Elder Indian Balsam

NUMBER OF RECORDS

966 768 764 747 686 535 521 513 499 460 456 446 438 426 401 376 368 360 346 345 335 324 306 302 296 293 292 291 270 270

2017 RECORD DATA HIG FIGURE 2 TOP 5 SPECIES WITH THE MOST RECORDS 2017 (PER TAXON SUPERGROUP)

Invertebrate: Speckled Wood

Bird: Blackbird

Plant: Common Nettle Plant: Common Nettle

Mammal: Badger

Amphibian: Common Frog

The top recorded species per taxon supergroup in 2017 (Figure 2) are almost the same as the top recorded species per supergroup for the total records breakdown (as of July/August 2019, shown in the last issue). The only change is that Common nettle replaces Hawthorn as the top plant in 2017, not by much though. Both are very common species, easy to spot and identify. Ranking each supergroup topper using their record number we can see that, interestingly, the top recorded species of all the groups in 2017 and overall remains the Speckled wood (Pararge aegeria). Similarly, second place is still the Blackbird (Turdus merula). Third place in 2017 is Common nettle (Urtica dioica), replacing Common hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) which came 3rd in the overall analysis. These are followed by the Eurasian badger (Meles meles) and Common frog (Rana temporaria) as top 4 and top 5 recorded species respectively.

FIGURE 3: WHERE ARE OUR RECORDS FROM?

Looking at where our come from within our (Figures 3 & 4) we can there are some differe between the overall d and that of the 2017 d seems to indicate slig improved record num Cheshire East in 2017 overall, but a decrease and Warrington numb

GHLIGHTS Looking at the data in more detail can tell us a lot about its distribution and where our expertise lies within the county as well as where the records might come from, i.e. certain recording or conservation groups. Sadly, it also shows us gaps in the data that could be easily avoided, for example, a lack of common species records like European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus), Common frog (Rana temporaria), Eastern grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) and so on. In terms of the latter, mapping Eastern grey squirrel records helps to create distribution maps, which can in turn help with Red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) conservation projects. It’s also very important to record common species, even if they are ‘everywhere’ and (for some people perhaps) not as exciting to record. We are then able to draw robust conclusions backed up with scientific evidence and data about a species' decline or increase (for example of nonnative species). Moreover, under licence conditions, records of certain protected species must be passed on to local environmental records centres. This includes Great crested newt records, which we mainly receive from ecologists and partner organisations. We also have close links with people from certain conservation groups, such as the Cheshire and Wirral Badger Group, which explain the high number of Eurasian badger records. High numbers of Lepidoptera records can be explained by our very active moth and butterfly recording groups, who send us their records on an annual basis.

FIGURE 4: 2017 DATA BY LOCAL AUTHORITY

Warrington 8.53% Wirral 13.21%

r records r boundaries n see that ences distribution data. This ghtly mbers in compared to e in Halton bers.

Halton 6.48%

Cheshire West and Chester 33.45%

Cheshire East 38.33%

On behalf of RECORD, I would like to thank you all for recording wildlife in Cheshire and submitting data to us; we could not do what we do without your generous support!

SPRING CITIZEN SCIENC As well as submitting records to us, there are lots of other specific surveys you can take part in, helping scientists to understand UK wildlife. Here are some you might like to try this year.

SPITTLEBUG SURVEY 2020 Scientists at the University of Sussex are seeking help from local naturalists to record cuckoo-spit and the plant species it’s spotted on. They’re looking to understand the distribution of different species of froghopper (spittlebug) in the UK and learn what they’re feeding on. Froghoppers are known to spread plant-disease due to the way they feed, so this research is crucial for understanding how disease might spread if introduced to the UK. Find out more and submit your sightings at www.spittlebugsurvey.co.uk

BIG BUTTERFLY COUNT

This nationwide citizen science survey has been taking place since 2010 and is probably the world’s largest butterfly survey! Butterflies act as indicator species, often reacting quickly to environmental changes and warning scientists that other wildlife is likely to be affected soon. Results from the Count help butterfly conservationists to monitor trends and protect species and habitats. This survey is quick and easy for anyone to take part in, so is perfect for beginners, including children. Find out more and print a free butterfly guide here: www.bigbutterflycount.org/

UK POLLINATOR MONITORING SCHEME

Many of our UK pollinators are in trouble, facing threats such as loss of meadow habitats, pesticides and agricultural intensification. Monitoring their populations is now more crucial than ever. Help out by doing a ‘Flower-Insect Timed Count’, involving recording which pollinators visit patch of flowers. There is no need to identify to species level and handy guides provide help with what features to look out for and how to identify flowers. The survey is simple enough for beginners, including older children, to do and takes only 10 minutes to complete. Find out more here: https://www.ceh.ac.uk/our-science/projects/pollinator-monitoring

n ta h

RUBUS OF BRITAIN AND IRELAND To many people, Rubus spp. (otherwise known as brambles) may not seem like the most exciting or inspiring plants. But brambles are key elements of our ecosystems, providing habitat and food for everything from hedgehogs to hoverflies. The diversity of UK brambles is astounding, with experts estimating that there could be over 300 UK ‘microspecies’. Help is needed to record and monitor these plants. The best way to do this is to take detailed photos and upload your sightings here: www.inaturalist.org/projects/rubus-ofbritain-and-ireland for experts to review.

LIVING WITH MAMMALS SURVEY The People’s Trust for Endangered Species are aiming to find out more about urban mammals that share our neighbourhoods. Many different species are now found living in green spaces within our towns and cities. Help to monitor how they are doing by spotting mammals and their signs during Spring 2020. Find out more here: https://ptes.org/getinvolved/surveys/garden/living-withmammals/

#MyPatch Campaign At the start of 'Lockdown' we wanted to come up with something to keep ourselves and our supporters busy and encourage people to keep recording. We also thought it was a good chance to try and reach out to new audiences, taking advantage of the number of people with more free time to spend in their gardens! We launched the 'My Patch' campaign with the aim of encouraging garden and 'out the window' wildlife recording and providing help along the way. More information about it is here. Thank you to everyone who has joined in, here are some quick snapshots of what's been happening... Observations made by members of our #MyPatch iNaturalist project now stand at over 2000 records of over 700 species! This is not including hundreds of records sent to us through other means. Some unusual species have turned up, for example a scarlet tiger caterpillar spotted in Chester (only the 5th Cheshire record we hold!) We've got over 40 downloadable resources on our website to help naturalists of all ages enjoy and record their local wildlife We ran our first 'mini-blitz' over 24 hours and together gathered around 466 records. This was followed by a 3-day mini-blitz gathering around 644 records.