Issue 1 Winter 2016
The Local Environmental Records Centre serving Cheshire, Halton, Warrington and Wirral
Issue 8 Autumn/Winter 2019
1
Migrant hawker dragonfly ŠMark Peters
RECORD Newsletter. Issue 8: Autumn 2019 Contents RECORD Round up
3-5
Staff Changes
6
Wales Expedition 2019 with Chester Zoo by Elina-Marielle Doss, Leanna Dixon and Eric
7-13
Fletcher Species Spotlight by Elina-Marielle Doss
13-14
Ash Dieback by Dr Hilary Ash
14-16
Wildlife on your Doorstep by Lisa Reeves
16-18
Overview of Data held by RECORD by Elina-Marielle Doss
18-19
Hedgehogs and the University of Liverpool by Zoë Chapman
20-22
Count Me in Graduates by Richard Rowlandson
22-23
Our Orchid Occasion by Sarah Bird
23-25
Upcoming Events in Cheshire
25
A note from the editor… Welcome to the RECORD Autumn Newsletter—what a busy and eventful year to look back on! This year
the RECORD crew joined Chester Zoo staff conserving local wildlife in mid Wales as part of Chester Zoo’s yearly expedition. In line with the expedition, this issue has a slight drift towards marine wildlife recording. However, there is more to explore : plants, hedgehogs, invertebrates and some data highlights. We hope that everybody enjoys the quieter period and we wish everybody a happy festive season! Elina-Marielle Doss (Database Officer, Elina@record-lrc.co.uk)
2
RECORD Round Up Take a look below to find out what we have been up to at RECORD‌.
Chester Zoo Nature Reserve - Top: Invertebrate recording day. Left and Middle: Wildflower meadows. Right: Male Tawny mining bee
Left: New Ferry Butterfly Park Open Day - showing visitors bugs under the microscope. Middle & Right: RECORD team at Port Sunlight River Park birthday event.
Spring and summer at RECORD have been as busy as ever. Leanna has been continuing with monthly bee and hoverfly surveys on the Chester Zoo Nature Reserve. The meadow was looking great earlier in the year (pictured above) which meant that there was a lot to record! RECORD volunteers also assisted with recording on the Reserve on an invertebrate recording day at the end of May. We kicked off the events season with a stall at New Ferry Butterfly Park where we tried out our new microscope (courtesy of the Community Nature Hub project) to engage with visitors (pictured above). At the beginning of June we attended Port Sunlight River Park Bioblitz and we went back to the Park in August for their annual birthday celebration (pictured above). 3
Left: Wales Expedition with Chester Zoo. Right: Emerald damselfly at Risley Moss Green Safari
Left: Longhorn beetle specimens at the drop-in session. Right: Shieldbug drop-in session
Cleaver Heath
In June, RECORD staff were invited to take part in Chester Zoo’s Wales Expedition; to find out more about what we got up to go to page 7. We have also been continuing with our monthly Wildlife Exchange and drop-in sessions in collaboration with Chester Zoo and the North West Invertebrate Project, keep an eye on our events calendar for details of upcoming sessions. We also surveyed Cleaver Heath Nature Reserve, once a month between May and August; amassing 461 records of 205 different species. 4
Above: Bug-hunting activities at Whitby Park fun day and Live! Fest.
Left: Bug Basecamp activity at Chester Zoo Wildlife Connections Festival. Middle & Right: Migrant hawker dragonfly and Painted lady butterfly at the Summer Gathering.
Left: Wildlife recording in the RECORD ‘triangle’ at the Summer Gathering. Right: Summer gathering picnic.
We have been working closely with Cheshire West Voluntary Action this year; supporting them at various events. We ran a stall and children’s bug-hunting activities (pictured above) in Whitby Park, Ellesmere Port and two at Live! Cheshire community centre (Live! Fest and Love Kingsway). In July we ran an invertebrate recording day in collaboration with the Tanyptera Trust at Bickerton Hill, a report from the day can be found here. Our annual volunteer summer gathering was held at the end of August and this year we mixed our eating and socialising with a bit of recording in the RECORD garden/triangle. In September we attended the two day Wildlife Connections Festival at Chester Zoo where we ran the ‘Bug Basecamp’ stall on phase 2 of the nature reserve. 5
Staff Changes In May this year, Elina-Marielle Doss started as Database Officer at RECORD. The Database Officer role is a new position at RECORD. Elina is responsible for the maintenance and analysis of the RECORD data holdings, including capture and management of GIS datasets and compiling reports on species, sites and habitats as well as assisting with events, surveys and volunteer management. Elina says ‘Since I have started in my position, I have been developing health checking routines for our database to ensure that, for instance, erroneous records are corrected and duplicates are deleted. I have also created a new volunteer role, the GIS volunteer, who will work on digitising habitat maps. Furthermore, I have had a close
look at our data, identifying trends (see pp. 18-19), and I have started examining under-recorded areas and species to then encourage recorder effort. Since the expedition in June (see pp. 7-13), I have developed an interest in marine wildlife recording. I noticed that we do not hold many records of marine species so I am in the process of developing a strategy to change this. I wouldn’t say I have a particular specialism; however, I have started some training on identifying plants, attending wildflower and grass identification workshops. I am also working towards obtaining a Dormouse license (and in the future Bat and Great crested newt licenses) and I am always interested in acquiring new skills and expanding my knowledge by carrying out a variety of surveys (including Pine marten, Common lizard, Dormouse, Great crested newt, Bats, Badger, etc.). I have an MSc in Wildlife Conservation from the University of Chester and have been volunteering with a variety of organisations, such as the Cheshire Wildlife Trust, The
Cheshire and Wirral Badger Group and RECORD, and I have been involved in setting up a wildlife rescue centre on the Wirral’.
At the end of October we said goodbye to our Data Services Officer, Leanna
Dixon, who had been with RECORD for over 4 years. Leanna has taken up the role of ‘Assistant Entomologist’ on the North West Invertebrate Project at the World Museum, Liverpool. She said ‘This is an excellent opportunity for me to progress my career in entomology, combining my love for invertebrate recording, conservation and museum collections. I am very sad to
leave RECORD as it is a unique place to work, with a fantastic, friendly working environment. I have very much enjoyed my time at RECORD and I have learnt so much. I particularly enjoyed managing the Community Nature Hub project last year and all the recording days and events that I have been involved with. I would like to thank you all for all your help and support over the last 4 years’. The North west Invertebrate Project works closely with RECORD so I’m sure we will still see Leanna regularly at recording days and other events in the North West!
6
Expedition team for the first week
Coastal Bioblitz in New Quay
Wales Expedition 2019 with Chester Zoo Week 1: Marine Mammals by Elina-Marielle Doss Before starting my role at RECORD, I was working as a Guest Experience Assistant at Chester Zoo. It was during this time that I put my name down for the Wales Expedition 2019 – the Zoo sponsors one expedition per year that employees can get involved with – and I was lucky enough to be picked to join it. Shortly after, I received the fantastic news about my new job at RECORD. It was uncertain whether I could still take part in the expedition but fortunately we found a good compromise so that both Leanna and I could go for one week each and thus the RECORD office could stay open for volunteers – perfect! Since it was a UK destination, Eric, Helen and Sarah were part of the core team as local experts.
The accommodation was anything but a normal hostel. It was run by three elderly ladies and some younger helpers, the food was home-cooked and all dietary requirements were catered for – yum! The location was also rather unusual: surrounded by gardens and wildlife near the River Rheidol – a beautiful little spot. The rooms, however, reminded us all of old school trips – bunk beds! In the evenings, we discussed the plan for the following day. We were split into four teams and each was given different tasks, which were swapped throughout the week so that every team was involved in all of the tasks. The first week was all about helping with the Living Seas Project, aiming to conserve marine wildlife as well as to educate and excite people about native marine species that have seen a massive decline as a result of overfishing, pollution and unsustainable development. On our first day, we met Nia, Laura and Dawn, from the Welsh Wildlife Trusts to receive training on the activities and surveys we were going to carry out over the next few days. We went down to Aberystwyth first where Laura was talking us through the Land-based Dolphin Surveys at possibly the windiest spot in the whole of Aberystwyth! Thankfully, we found a nice café in which to warm up and have lunch in afterwards. The second part of the day, Nia and Dawn took us to Llanrhystud beach where they taught us how to carry out Shore Search Surveys. On the second day, my team went to New Quay for a coastal Bioblitz, which was very exciting! The team consisted of Eric, Helen, Anne (Penguin Lady), Chris (Giraffe Keeper) and myself. Highlight of this walk was a very loud scream from Helen, which made us believe she had fallen down the cliff, whereas actually she had made a pretty impressive discovery: a Drinker moth (Euthrix potatoria) caterpillar, which was, to be fair, very exciting. Other personal highlights included House martins flying very close to our heads, as it was a rainy and therefore insects were also flying a bit low, and some Badger hair on a fence. 7
After the Bioblitz, we went for a beach clean. I was very excited to have a go at nurdling – nurdles are small raw plastic pellets that nearly all plastic goods are made of and are lost at sea from ships or when handled at a port. After my tenth attempt or so I gave up as I could not find any and the sand was very wet and thus hard to sieve. We did find some other treasures though, including a shoe and a very old poster that I tried to unroll without success as it was too smelly. After lunch, we went for our LandBased Dolphin Survey – it was as if the dolphins had prepared a show for us. One even came all the way up to the harbour to say hello – truly amazing! Every 15 minutes we had to record what species we saw, how many individuals, where (mapping them), their behaviour, any boats in the vicinity and weather conditions. On our third day, we went to Aberystwyth. It was very windy, cold and slightly rainy and therefore not very easy to spot anything. All we saw for the first 1 ½ hours were buoys until I spotted a very strange-looking buoy with a snout – a Grey seal! We then went for another beach clean. It was really shocking to find out that the most littered item was cigarettes. In the afternoon we went to carry out a Shore Search. The idea is to map out large quadrats and then randomly select the quadrats that we would survey. There were different layers that we had to uncover and record the species in them. It was so much fun and very exciting as we just did not know what would come next. Commonly found species included limpets, periwinkles, rock leaf, barnacles and seaweeds.
Shore Search at Aberystwyth beach
On the fourth day, we went out to New Quay for another LandBased Dolphin Survey, a quick beach clean and, lastly, we split into two groups to carry out a Sea-Based Dolphin Survey on a boat. This survey was a bit more challenging as there were many more factors to include and if these changed we needed to fill in a new record, thus we were recording every 1-2 minutes! We saw a few Grey seals again and then a group of dolphins passed us and went to the other boat engaging curiously with the other team. Marine Mammal Survey at Cardigan Bay, New Quay
On the fifth day, we mainly prepared for World Oceans Day, which was taking place on the next day. However, because we were all working together like a welloiled machine by then, we went for some extra treats that day. First, we visited Dyfi Osprey Project where we not only saw Monty and Telyn with their three chicks but also rescued tiny froglets on the way to the viewing point as – you guessed it – it was raining. This was followed by a quick visit to the Submerged Forest in Borth – the remains of a former fenland/woodland landscape – where we rescued two Spider crabs that had got washed out onto the beach and got trapped in some of the rock pools. To round up this first week and share all of the knowledge we gained throughout this time, we invited people to join us and celebrate World Oceans Day on Saturday 8 th June in Aberystwyth. We had a variety of activities from limpet stacking, slime making, mini rock pooling, craft activities, playing the filter feeding game and listening to interesting talks from our colleagues, finishing off with the Umbrellyfish Parade. 8
Top : View over the Welsh countryside at one of our survey sites. Bottom left: Our accommodation at CAT. Bottom middle: View from accommodation. Bottom right: Two-banded longhorn beetle.
Week 2: Surveys by Leanna Dixon For the second week of the expedition, the team made their way northwards to Machynlleth where we stayed in bunk style accommodation at the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT). Although the accommodation was basic, it had wonderful views over the Welsh countryside (pictured above) and a fantastic vegetarian cafÊ! We spent the first day working with The Woodland Trust in an ancient woodland (Cefn Coch) removing two invasive species - rhododendron and western hemlock. It was hard, physical work but very satisfying and we saw lots of wildlife including the Two-banded longhorn beetle, Rhagium bifasciatum, (pictured above). For the rest of the week we spilt into three sub-groups - surveys, walking routes and building, I was, of course, in the surveys team! Participating in the expedition was a great experience for me as it enabled me to share my skills in wildlife recording and insect identification whilst exploring beautiful sites in the Welsh countryside. Throughout the rest of the week, we visited three sites with the aim of carrying out bat, moth and small mammal surveys. Unfortunately, we chose what felt like one of the wettest weeks of the year, so we weren’t able to carry out all of the surveys at each site but we still gained an impressive total of nearly 400 records. We also did some general recording, identifying as much wildlife as we could as we made our way around each site. The broad skillset of the survey team meant that we were able to quickly record a variety of species, e.g. Anne was impressively reeling off a list of birds she was able to identify from their calls, Liz was keeping a close eye on the wildflowers in the hope of spotting bumblebees, Helen kept her eyes close to the ground looking for signs of our elusive mammals, Sarah was focusing on the plants and excitedly seeking out orchids whilst I was net in hand on the hunt for invertebrates, particularly anything with six legs and wings! Little recording had been done previously at these sites so it is great to know that our efforts will feed into site management plans as baseline data for future surveys. One of the highlights for me was the moth trapping, we have an amazing variety of moths in the UK, they come in many different shapes, sizes and colours but few people realise this due to the majority being nocturnal. A favourite with the expedition team was the Buff-tip moth, Phalera bucephala, which has amazing camouflage and looks just like the end of a birch twig! The Elephant hawk moth, Deilephila 9
elpenor, a regular visitor to our traps, was also a crowd pleaser with its large size and vibrant pink colouration. The Puss moth, Cerura vunula, a favourite of mine, was found at our second survey site. It is so called due to the cat-like ‘fluffy’ appearance of the adult and I am particularly fond of the rather artistic wavy grey lines it has on its forewings and its impressive feathery antennae. Another highlight for me was getting to see the Bilberry bumblebee, Bombus monticola, (pictured left) for the first time. Liz had been searching for this bumblebee for the whole week and on the last day of surveys we were lucky enough to spot it, unsurprisingly in a patch of Bilberry! It is a very attractive bumblebee with bright yellow bands on the thorax and a vibrant orange-red tail, which covers Bilberry bumblebee two thirds of the abdomen. It is a localised and declining species which is associated with moorland and stands of Bilberry. During the expedition it was very humbling to see the high level of enthusiasm for UK wildlife across the team, everyone was keen to share their insect findings with me, even after a long day’s work. The expedition was a great opportunity for me to get know more staff across different zoo departments. I feel that more people will now be aware of who RECORD are, what we do and the importance of recording A few of the moths recorded on the expedition. Top left and middle: Buff-tip moths. Top right: Poplar hawk moth. Middle left: White ermine moth. Middle middle and right: Elephant hawk moth. Bottom left and middle: Puss moth. Bottom right: Blood vein moth
10
Week 2: Walking Routes by Eric Fletcher As well as collecting and collating survey data and assisting with species identification on Chester Zoo’s 2019 expedition to Wales, RECORD was also asked to help develop a long distance walking route to highlight the ecological diversity of the Dyfi estuary area. My role in this would be to join the dots and create a route that would appeal to long distance walkers and perhaps even act as a rite of passage for families. I spent some time ahead of the trip identifying and downloading the relevant data for use in the Geographical Information System (GIS); in this instance QGIS. The downloaded content allowed me to identify public rights of
way; roads and tracks that could make up our eventual route. The desired route was to be circular and include a number of pre-identified sites of conservation interest as well as access to public transport. In the end, we settled on a route that takes in the wildlife haven of Ynyslas, spectacular views of the Dyfi Estuary, the amazing smells and sounds of Borth Bog (it smells better than you’d think!), the wondrous, and wildlife rich, Llyfnant Valley (left), the stunning views from Moel Y Llyn, before heading down the lush green Ceulan Valley, through Talybont, back to Borth. There were five members of the expedition team who had put their names forward to help plan and track the proposed walking route and now we had a rough idea where the route should go, we set about walkLlyfnant Valley
ing it to see how it would work as a long distance, circular walk.
On the 11th of June we set out to check the route, according to the weather forecast it was set to be unsettled and unseasonably cold, turning wet later in the day. However, we were all familiar enough with walking in the UK to tackle the inclement weather. We made our way to our start point; a tiny hamlet called Glaspwll, made somewhat famous as a filming location for the Welsh crime drama Hinterland. We
put on our warm and wet weather gear and started on our way. Having walked a total of 600 m into a 50 km route we hit our first snag — one of our team pointed out that we ought to be on the other side of the valley, another said we hadn’t reached the path leading us to it yet! Fortunately, we had both GPS and mobile phones to get our exact position, what we didn’t have was a chainsaw to clear our route along the path hidden by many years’ rhododendron growth. Still, we were not to be deterred, we would mark it down as an ‘issue’ requiring path maintenance and battle on. Once past the rhododendron growth, we reached a brook we needed to cross to make our way up the next valley. Sadly, we didn’t have a bridge to hand so we could traverse the rather swollen river at the valley bottom, instead we had to fashion a crossing point from large stones. Fortunately, we all managed to cross unscathed, save a sog11
gy boot, but that would mend given time.
We pushed on up the valley, onto the hills and into upland forest, where we stopped for our lunch (hunkered down in the dense conifer trees). We were sitting chatting when our attention was taken by something moving on the track in front of us, we had just enough time to see a Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) land in front of us. I’m not sure if we or the Goshawk were more stunned – those are the times I live for; that chance encounter with wildlife, where you get to see something for the first time or something completely unexpected. We continued on a further 12 kilometres that day, in pretty much constant rain, buoyed by our chance encounter.
Left: The first wet day of checking the route. Right The ossil forest on Borth beach
The weather on the following days turned out to be much more forgiving and at times very pleasant indeed. The remainder of the route was relatively straight forward, compared to our first day. As a result,
we were able to appreciate our surroundings that much more. The scenery in this part of the country is beautiful; rolling hills and the upland moors, picturesque beaches and their extensive sand dunes and the steep valleys wrapped in ancient woodland. Another highlight from along the route was Borth Bog, covered in Bog myrtle or Sweet gale (Myrica gale), filling the air with its delightful aroma. It is at this point that we found Royal fern (Osmunda regalis), an uncommon, conspicuously large, fern that would look at home on the set of Jurassic Park. Our route also took us right along the shore at Borth, where we were fortunate enough to see the fossil forest; essentially the remains of a forest, pre-dating the last ice -age, that has been pickled in a peat bog and only recently uncovered by the shifting sands of Borth beach. Over the course of a 50 km walk it is also necessary to plan in some pit stops to re-energise, warm up
and rest. We sampled the coffee, cake and rarebit in Cletwr; the community run café in Tre’r-Ddol; a great place to stop en route with friendly staff, good food and a shop to stock up on supplies for the ongoing journey. The part of the route that sees us climb from Tre’r Ddol, up above Furnace and Eglwys Fach and eventually round to Llyfnant Valley offers some of the most spectacular views across Borth Bog, Ynyslas and the estuary to Aberdyfi. The tail end of the route, back to Glaspwll, took us along the Llyfnant Valley; it is an otherworldly place, steep sided, mature plantation woodland covering both sides of the valley with the Llyfnant River at the bottom. The trees towered above us like a huge natural cathedral, whilst the river’s raging torrent filled the air with a loud rumble below as if to herald the completion of our travels. 12
The long-distance (50 km) walking route we developed during Chester Zoo’s 2019 expedition in Wales
Species Spotlight Small-spotted catshark (Scyliorhinus canicula) by Elina-Marielle Doss Description The Small-spotted catshark, also known as the Lesserspotted dogfish or Rough hound, got its name from being covered in dark spots and blotches. It has greyish-brown skin on the upper side and is lighter greyish
-white on the underside. The skin is very rough and very coarse, like sandpaper rubbed the wrong way. Its body is slender with a blunt head, rounded snout and two dorsal fins towards the tail end of the body. The nostrils and mouth are connected by a curved groove on the underside of the snout. It has five pairs of gill slits, the last two overlapping the pectoral fins. Males tend to have larger teeth than females. Small-spotted
Adult small-spotted catshark (Styliorhinus canicula)
catsharks can reach a length of 75 cm. 13
© Lisa Reeves
Ecology
The Small-spotted catshark is commonly found in inshore, shallow waters and on mixed substrates (sandy, coralline algal, gravelly or muddy bottoms) all year round in depths of up to 100 m. Their diet includes molluscs, crabs and small fish. When in danger, they curl up into a doughnut-shape making them look bigger and more difficult to eat. Females can lay up to 100 eggs per year. The eggs are laid singly in a horny capsule, which has long curly tendrils on the corners and is 5-7 cm in length. They are commonly called ‘Mermaid’s purses’.
Distribution
©Lisa Reeves
The Small-spotted catshark is the most common shark in the UK, widespread and locally common, except along the East Coast. There are at least 21 species of shark in the UK all year round including the Critically Endangered Angelshark, Squatina squatina.
Shark, Skate and Stingray Recording If you are interested in recording sharks, skates or stingrays, the Shark Trust has released a great App, called the ‘Great Eggcase Hunt’, to help with identifying various egg cases and to report your findings. You can also send them pictures if you are struggling with identifications. Please also submit your records to us at info@record-lrc.co.uk.
Ash Dieback by Dr Hilary Ash Ash dieback, sometimes called chalara, is a disease of the common ash Fraxinus excelsior, which also affects some other species of ash that are planted in the UK as ornamentals, e.g. Narrow-leaved ash (Fraxinus angustifolia). However, “Mountain ash”, better called Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia), with white flowers and red fruits, is an unrelated tree and is not affected by this disease. There are an estimated 1.8 million common ash trees in the UK. Ash dieback is caused by a fungus (Hymenoscyphus frax-
ineus). It has been long known in Asia, where the ash species are resistant to it, but started moving west around 2000 and has proved very severe for our ash species, with 50-90% death rate in continental Europe. The infection was first confirmed in England in 2012, but was present before then, and has now spread across nearly all of Cheshire (see map on Forest Research website below). This disease will have serious consequences for the species of insect, moss, liverMature ash tree suffering from dieback
wort, lichens and fungi which depend on ash. 14
The fungus acts by blocking the water transport systems in the tree, causing leaf loss, lesions in the wood and on the bark and, ultimately, the dieback of the crown of the tree. The disease is spread by windblown spores from tiny white toadstools, which develop on the central stems of the fallen leaves in autumn. It probably reached here partly by wind-blown spores, but mostly by importing infected trees from the continent into the UK. In the last two years in Wirral we have been seeing infection mostly in saplings, coppice shoots and young trees. The first symptom seen is usuBunches of dead leaves ally the “dieback� where young twigs lose their leaves, with bunches of new leaves sprouting behind. Often bunches of leaves die and hang down, going brown but still hanging on the tree. Where the infection site is accessible, look for diamond or triangle-shaped lesions on the bark round the infected shoot (see picture below). Over time the whole crown dies; this can take several years in a large tree, so will become visible over the next few years in Cheshire. It is also possible to get infection at ground level (see photo in Ash Dieback Toolkit, p. 14), making discoloured areas of bark in an inverted V-shape. This opens the door to infection by other fungi, such as honey fungus and giant polypore, which can rapidly make the tree unstable.
Left: Lesions on the on the bark round an infected shoot. Right: An early symptom of dieback, young twigs losing their leaves
What to do: 1) Please send records of ash dieback to RECORD so we can gather information on how fast it is progressing. 2) Photograph ash trees that you see regularly, so that, if and when they get infected, it is possible to assess the foliage loss in the crown. 3) If you own/manage ash trees or advise on them, please do NOT cut them all down asap! We need to find and keep the small percentage that will have partial or complete resistance to the disease, to breed the next generation of ash trees. Forty years after Dutch elm disease swept 15
through, we are now finding wych elms, Ulmus glabra, with sufficient resistance to the disease to be reaching canopy height in woodland. We need to encourage that process in ash. 4) Many ash trees will have to be felled – keep an eye on national and local guidance. We and other volunteer groups cannot advise on individual trees because of liability and insurance, so go to a good arboriculturalist for advice. Make sure you employ one registered with either The Arboricultural Association or The International Association of Arboriculturalists. 5) Lobby the Government to put proper strict bio-security controls in place on all imported plant material against future pests and diseases, e.g. Emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis). Also ask it for money to support the huge costs that dealing with diseased ash will impose on local authorities and other land-owners. Replacing ash:
In woodlands, please allow natural regeneration – some of those many ash seedlings will prove resistant. Some canopy gaps will benefit wildlife; most of our woods are darker than they have been for millennia. A lot of dead wood lying or, where possible, standing, will benefit fungi, insects and birds. In amenity areas or where re-planting is needed, perhaps to control erosion, please plant only trees which are UK sourced and grown, to reduce the risk of importing more pests and diseases. Plant a variety of species; this will lessen the impacts of future diseases or pests. The Tree Council guidance has ideas on suitable species to try to replace the ecological role of ash, by having either similar shade or bark, or supporting some of the same invertebrates, lichens and bryophytes. Natives included in that list are rowan, limes, disease-resistant elms, birches, field maple, whitebeam and oaks. Keep at least
some sycamore, as it has similar bark to ash. In urban areas, with climate change upon us, there are good reasons for planting some non-native species which will cope better with urban heat islands in the future. More information and the latest updates: The Tree Council: Ash Dieback Action Plan Toolkit Forest Research: Chalara Ash Dieback
Wildlife on your Doorstep by Lisa Reeves
The many exotic colours of summer may have faded from the garden but now it’s time for the leaves to show off. I love this time of year when red and golden leaves cascade gently down from the trees covering the ground in a warm blanket. The dry leaves crunch beneath my feet as I walk through the garden and they rustle as the wind swirls them around the base of the trees. 16
Of course, at this time of year the leaves don’t stay dry for long, with blustery rain, mists and dewy mornings. Around the compost heap and wild area of the garden, fascinating fungi poke their heads above the damp leaf litter. They come in so many different shapes, colours and sizes, and it’s amazing how many you can spot once you start looking for them amongst the damp earth and rotten wood. I spot a Squirrel and Magpie chasing each other around the garden, fighting over half an apple that they’ve found, while a shy Jay stays out of sight and hides an acorn under some Colourful autumn leaves
leaf litter. I suddenly hear Rooks squawking loudly from high up in the tree
tops as a Buzzard starts to slowly circle above the garden. A large group of chattering Starlings watch from the telephone wire as the Buzzard soars upwards, higher and higher. Luckily for the garden birds, the Buzzard isn’t hunting. I watch as birds flit from the hedge to the feeders for a tasty treat of suet mix and peanuts that I’ve put out for them. Blue tits hover by the shed roof, picking up spiders that have made their webs there. I love walking into the garden after a dewy autumnal morning and noticing all the delicate spider webs glistening with tiny water droplets. This is just one of the reasons I leave tall grasses and plants with seed heads over winter, so spiders can weave their webs between them, and they also give shelter to insects, as well as provide food for birds.
Rooks in the tree tops
With many damp days, though, comes the invasion of slugs. They don’t hibernate until it is below 5oC, so are happy to keep munching until the cold winter finally arrives. Thankfully there are some little helpers that visit our garden that love to eat slugs. On drier nights, a Badger visits to forage for the slugs, as well as fallen nuts and berries, whilst, when it is damp, hedgehogs rush around noisily chomping on slugs, trying to fatten up for their approaching hibernation.
Left: Grasses in the garden. Middle: A slug on the prowl. Right: Spider web glistening with water drops 17
I love to be out in the autumnal weather even if it is raining or windy as it helps me feel part of nature, so get out and embrace the cooler wet weather and see what you can spot in your garden. Learn more about garden wildlife by visiting Lisa’s Blog Ljay Nature
Overview of Data held by RECORD July/August 2019 by Elina-Marielle Doss
2,166,539 records
© Leanna Dixon
© Steve McWilliam
© Steve McWilliam
© Greg Osborn
© Jeff Clarke
© Steve McWilliam
18
Figure 3: Total Breakdown of Records in Cheshire by Local Authority Area
Data explained Figure 1 shows all of the records that we hold in Cheshire as of July/August 2019, divided into different species groups. The record totals 2,166,539, which changes weekly as data get imported into our database on a weekly basis. The groups with the most records are Invertebrates (35.36%), closely followed by Birds (31.11%) and Vascular plants (26.67%). Then there is a big gap before the next groups: Mammals (3.08%), Other (1.16%), Fungi (1%), Bryophytes (0.67%), Amphibians and Reptiles (0.65%) and Lichens (0.29%). Figure 2 shows the top six species (each from a different species group) in our database with the most
records (not highest abundance): On the top of the list is Speckled wood butterfly, Parage aegeria, with a total of 31,723 records, followed by Blackbird, Turdus merula, with 30,795 records, Common hawthorn, Crataegus monogyna, with 12,344 records, Large yellow underwing, Noctua comes, with 9,450 records, Badger, Meles meles, with 9,032 and Common frog, Rana temporaria, with 6,195 records. Figure 3 shows how our records are distributed between the five different Local Authority areas in Cheshire: Cheshire West and Cheshire (33.83%), Cheshire East (28.55%), Warrington (13.26%), Wirral (12.85%) and Halton (11.51%). Given the different sizes of the districts, the data seem to be fairly evenly distributed. 19
Hedgehogs and the University of Liverpool by Zoë Chapman My interest in hedgehogs has grown over the last year or two from a casual interest to a more deeprooted desire to help these charming, prickly mammals. As well as leading on the Hedgehog Friendly
Campus scheme for the University of Liverpool, acting as their Hedgehog Champion, I also volunteer at Wirral Animal Sanctuary’s Hog Centre in a variety of roles, ranging from the care and treatment of hedgehogs, collecting unwell hogs and transporting them to the Centre or the vets and supporting the release team getting healthy hogs back out into the wild. It is satisfying but often heart-breaking work, and is tremendously valuable to the ailing hedgehog population, which is thought to have declined significantly since the 1950s leaving us with perhaps 1.5 million hedgehogs living in the UK currently (Wilson and Wembridge, 2018). In 2018, the British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS) in collaboration with the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) launched the Hedgehog Friendly Campus scheme, which is designed to improve existing campus environments for hedgehogs and centring them at the heart of new buildings and
campus developments (University of Sheffield, 2018). Through my interest in hedgehogs, I approached the University of Liverpool with a view to bringing the scheme to the University, something I am pleased to say that was agreed and supported. The University of Liverpool is fortunate to cover a diverse range of spaces, ranging from the urban environment of the main campus in Liverpool, the semi-rural locations of Ness Botanic Gardens and Leahurst, to the semisuburban environments of Greenbank Student Village and Wyncote Sports Centre. The Hedgehog Friendly Campus scheme works by university project groups coming together to undertake various accredited tasks to gain bronze, silver and gold accreditations. As we are at the start of our hedgehog journey, the University of Liverpool is aiming to gain bronze accreditation in 2019 . The tasks encompass the holding of project meetings, fundraising initiatives and the sharing of information about hedgehogs, most notably with gardening and grounds teams who can have a critical impact on hedgehogs on a day to day basis. In addition to this valuable work, we are also undertaking tunnel surveys across key sites across the estate. A workshop was delivered to the project group, which focussed on the building of survey tunnels and the setting out of the initial main campus survey. Each tunnel holds a removable inset which includes a small dish of kitten biscuit in the middle with pads on either side covered in a mixture of a charcoal-based food colouring and sunflower oil. The end of each tunnel holds a sheet of A4 paper. The theory being that the hedgehog is tempted by the kitten biscuit, walks through the non-toxic colouring and, on its way out, leaves prints, which can then be analysed. Of 20
Left: Survey tunnel at Ness Botanic Gardens. Right: Tunnel inserts being prepared
course, other animals are tempted by the lure of an easy meal and we hope that, as well as giving us a better picture of hedgehog activity, it may tell us more about other mammals and their interaction with
the estate. The surveys are undertaken in collaboration between staff, students and volunteers to ensure that the tunnels are placed in suitable locations and are checked on a daily basis, as well as capturing critical knowledge and expertise from various groups. As I write, this work is ongoing and we hope to have the results by the end of October, just in time for the start of the hedgehogs’ hibernation period. We can then use the autumn and winter period to review the findings and plan next steps, looking at how we can best support hedgehogs across the University of Liverpool’s estate. In the meantime, there is plenty we can do to support hedgehogs: Create hedgehog highways in our outdoor spaces Hedgehogs can travel up to 3 km in one night and it is critical that they can wander between spaces. (Hedgehog Street, 2019). A hole 13 cm x 13 cm is sufficient and can be created by making a gap
in existing fencing. Gravel boards with pre-cut holes are also now available. Gardening for hedgehogs Leaving a small patch of overgrown plant life and dead leaves attracts insects, which is good news for hedgehogs and other wildlife. Such areas, along with hedges and compost bins, can also provide wonderful nesting sites. Don’t use pesticides or slug pellets as these are toxic to hedgehogs and can cause irreversible damage. Keeping litter and netting off the ground. Ensuring that hedgehogs cannot get into recycling boxes and ensuring that any gardening or sportrelated netting is at least 20 cm off the ground will minimise the chance of hedgehogs getting stuck and injured.
Feeding hedgehogs Setting up a hedgehog feeding station with some milk-free kitten biscuit and a saucer of water will be of huge help to hedgehogs as they enter hibernation. Hedgehogs will often wake up to feed and drink water during the hibernation period. Being careful on the roads It is estimated that around 100,000 hedgehogs are killed on UK roads each year and it is not known if this is sustainable (Wilson and Wembridge, 2018). By driving more slowly and more carefully we could help reduce the number of deaths.
21
Know what to do if you see a hedgehog out in the day time Hedgehogs are nocturnal and, aside from female hedgehogs who are pregnant or feeding young, seeing them out in the day means there is something wrong. If it is summer time and you see a hog out and about moving with purpose then it is probably a female hog taking care of hoglets. However, if you see a hog out and it is not moving well, it is wobbling or is laying out then please take it to your local rescue as quickly as you can. Hedgehogs do not ‘sun bathe’ or rest out in the open. If you are interested in hearing more about the project, please do get in touch: University of Liverpool Hedgehog Champion, Zoë Chapman, Business Manager, Ness Botanic Gardens Email: ZChapman@liverpool.ac.uk
References: Wilson, E. and Wembridge, D. (2018) The State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2018 University of Sheffield (2018) Hedgehog Friendly Campus. Hedgehog Street (2019) Where do hedgehogs live? Hedgehog at Wirral Animal Sanctuary
Count Me In Graduates (CMIG) by Richard Rowlandson Sunday 18th August 2019 The River Clywedog through the Errdig Hall Estate, Wrexham
Left: Beautiful Demoiselle, Calopteryx virago (male). Right: Ruddy Darter, Sympetrum sanquineum (male).
For the August meeting of CMIG, members ventured tentatively out of our normal territory of Cheshire and into Wales. Our venue was Erddig Hall Estate, owned by the National Trust since 1973 and situated just south of Wrexham. The River Clywedog runs through the estate for over a mile, and the plan for the day was to walk along its banks and into the neighbouring meadows and nearby woodland. 22
The source of the river is up near Minera and it eventually joins up with the River Dee. For most of the
time, it flows gently along its meandering course, but after periods of prolonged or heavy rain it can become quite a gushing torrent. It is a picturesque area and is popular with walkers – well worth a visit. Eight members came to the event and we were fortunate to have fine and dry weather. Whilst we were assembling in the car park, we observed at least half a dozen Swifts swooping around above us. Our first stop of the day was at a pond a short distance from the car park. Here we were treated to an excellent view of a very inquisitive male Southern hawker dragonfly, Aeshna cyanea, which came to inspect our group a couple of times, hovering just a yard or two away. The area is quite good for dragonflies and damselflies. During the day we saw several Migrant hawkers, Aeshna mixta, a Brown hawker Aeshna grandis, a Ruddy darter, Sympetrum sanguineum, and a Large red damselfly Pyrrhosoma nymphula. Beautiful demoiselles, Calopteryx virago, are often to be seen here, but they were not present during our visit. Notable butterflies seen were several Painted ladies, Vanessa cardui, two Small coppers, Lycaena phlaeas, and a mating pair of Common blues, Polyommatus icarus. There were plenty of busy hoverflies about, including the Great pied hoverfly, Volucella pellucens, and the grey-spotted Leucozona glaucia. After lunch, we stopped at the side of a large lake, Llyn Errdig, which has a vast expanse of bulrushes at one end. On the lake we saw a Mute swan with one cygnet, a Heron, and some Common darter dragonflies, Sympetrum striolatum, ovipositing. We also heard the call of a Little grebe.
At the furthest point of our walk, we stopped at another pond. Here Steve Ryder spotted a Grass snake slithering quickly across the surface of the water. At this point, Paul Mulligan and Jeff Pinnington decided to take in the view from a nearby bridge and were rewarded with the sight of a Dipper at the side of the river below. Throughout the day, Jack Swan, who is the group’s mentor, identified the less familiar plants that we came across, including Lesser water parsnip (Berula erecta), Rough hawkbit (Leontodon hispidus), Thyme-leaved sandwort (Arenaria serpyllifolia) and Marsh willowherb (Epilobium palustre). Details of all the species recorded were added to the RODIS database.
Our Orchid Occasion by Sarah Bird Having ‘met’ Sean Cole on Facebook (Native Orchids of Britain and Ireland) and benefitted from a tip off for a Coralroot site from him, I was convinced that he had more to give for orchid hunters in Cheshire. So, a few conversations later we had a plan, and Sean kindly came to visit us in the middle of July. The visit started with a very entertaining Wildlife Exchange talk exploring the allure of orchids, which for some people becomes an all-consuming addiction. 23
The following morning, Sean lead a field visit to two local sites to look at marsh orchids (Dactylorhiza) and heleborines (Epipactis) – both genera are challenging to identify. Around 20 of us met at Alyn Waters Country Park, which seems an unlikely site for rare wild flowers, much of it being an old landfill site, but it hides some real gems. We quickly found Common twayblade (Neottia ovata), Common spotted orchid (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) and Broad-leaved heleborine (Epipactis heleborine), and, with a bit of effort, Dune and Green-flowered heleborines (E. dunensis and E. phyllanthes). Sean pointed out the key features – foliage colour, shininess of leaves and ovaries, ribs on leaves and ovaries – and we discussed pollination strategies that are also important in distinguishing heleborines. Our second site for the day was Minera Quarry, recently purchased by North Wales Wildlife Trust and recently opened as a reserve. The quarry is vast, and has been used for over 200 years, as the old lime kilns attest. I was told that the last stone taken from here was used for the M56 motorway. In June and July this
is my favourite place in the world because of the orchids. Sean had never been before, but even he had to admit it was awesome! Here we found more than 10 different orchids – some species and some hybrids:
Left: Dune heleborine (Epipactis dunensis); Right: Pyramidal orchids (Anacamptis pyramidalis)
Marsh fragrant orchid (Gymnadenia densiflora), Pyramidal orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis), Common spotted orchid, Broad-leaved heleborine, Northern marsh orchid (D. purpurella), Southern marsh orchid (D. praetermissa), Frog orchid (D. viridis), Common twayblade and Bee orchid (Orchis apifera). Hybrid marsh orchids were suspected to be Common spotted x Northern marsh, Common spotted x Southern marsh, and everything in between! The hybrid marsh orchids were a bit of a headache, but we certainly learned a lot about what to look for – the most important thing being what else is growing nearby. And… at the end of the day we had a bit of extra excitement, when we found a particularly straggly looking dark purple marsh orchid. We all really wanted this one to be the rare Pugsley’s or Narrow-leaved marsh orchid (D. traunsteinerioides). The nearest known site for this species is on Anglesey. Photos were taken and we ended the day on a high. Expert verdict on the photos is that its ‘just’ a straggly Northern 24
Left: Common-spotted orchid (Dactyorhiza fuchsii) and a Small skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris); Left: Purple march orchid (Dactylorhiza purpurella)
marsh, but it was nice to dream! A great day was had by all, and we thank Sean profusely for his time and expertise. P.S. Sean is currently writing a new book on British Orchids and has promised to come back to Chester to talk again when the book is launched in spring 2020. Watch out for this!
Upcoming Events in Cheshire You can now view upcoming events in our online RECORD Calendar. This calendar allows you to view RECORD and our partner events in one place and copy details to your own google calendar. Keep an eye out for our Wildlife Recording Days, Drop-in and Wildlife Exchange Sessions which are bookable through Eventbrite here. You can also sign up to our mailing list to be the first to hear about our upcoming events.
25
RECORD LRC, Cedar House, Chester Zoo, Caughall Road, Upton, CH2 1LH. Tel: 01244 383749 E-mail: info@record-lrc.co.uk Web: www.record-lrc.co.uk
Record all your Cheshire, Wirral, Halton & Warrington wildlife sightings on our online recording system - RODIS
Follow us on Facebook & Twitter
www.facebook.com/recordlrc
www.twitter.com/recordlrc
All photos are copyright of the article author unless otherwise stated.
A company Limited by Guarantee. Registered in England No: 4046886. Charity No: 1095859. Registered at: AGP, Sycamore House, Sutton Quays Business Park, Sutton Weaver, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 3EH.
26