Science & Nature

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Image: Gillian Nash

DRAWN TO THE LIGHT

Merveille Du Jour Griposia Aprilina Gillian Nash

Autumn moths now flying include one of our most striking and unusually patterned resident species. The aptly named Merveille du Jour, with the French translation of ‘marvel of the day’ is always a joy to see, even for those who record them annually. Each individual sports a variable and unique arrangement of black and bright mint green, whiteedged intricate patterns on its forewings, often with a slightly darker midway horizontal band. This design provides efficient camouflage in its daytime resting place, often among lichen on the bark of trees. In common with other ‘green moths’ the colour of newly emerged individuals fades quickly. The hindwings are slate grey, edged white.

You may see the adult moth by torchlight feeding on ivy flowers or overripe berries and fruit during its short single flight season of September to October – a truly autumnal species.

Larvae feed on various oaks, hatched in spring from eggs laid on twigs in bark crevices of these trees in the preceding autumn. Early growth stages coincide with those of tender shoots and flowers. Later as they grow, the larvae feed at night, consuming larger leaves. When fully fed, they descend to form a pupa just below ground level, remaining there until the emergence of the adult moth the following year.

Merveille du Jour is a species unlikely to be encountered in urban areas where the tree species required to complete its life cycle are absent. It is, however, fairly common where it does occur in many areas of suitable habitat throughout the UK, the highest numbers being in central and southern counties of England, Wales and Scotland. Locally, it is frequently recorded in rural gardens, parks, woodland and hedgerows, with the first Dorset records in 1940. Sightings appear to have become more common and still increasing since 1970, indicating good news for such a beautiful species.

ROOK AND MORE ROOKS

Rooks are often disliked, but I find them the most magical of birds. Rooks have, for many generations, been shot at as they are seen as vermin, but, like much of our native wildlife, they are misunderstood. Rooks are both very intelligent and very social; in the winter months they gather with other corvids, such as jackdaws, forming impressive noisy flocks. We are lucky to have one of these colonies on the edge of the village. If you get to this site at just the right time, you can see hundreds of these black birds returning home to their treetops after a day foraging for food. Seeing this massive flock as the light is getting low is truly spectacular not only for the beauty of such a sight but also for the sheer volume of noise.

An extract and scraperboard illustration from Wild Light by Angela Harding (Sphere Books)

(See Literary Review page 129)

___________________________________________ Tuesday 8th November 6.30pm for 7pm Talk and Book Signing with Angela Harding The Butterfly Room, Castle Gardens, Sherborne Tickets £5, available from Winstone’s Books or online at shop.winstonebooks.co.uk

Image: Olga Fontanellaz

ADORNED BY NATURE

EXPLORATIONS IN THE SOUTH SEAS Wolfgang Grulke

Ihave met many of you fellow residents through my talks or books about the future impact of technology, life in ‘Deep Time’, or as visitors to my fossil museum. No wonder then that I have heard some of you call me ‘The Fossil Man of Oborne’! Well, I’m actually not that old, but I do love nature and natural things. Looking back on it now, I have always collected stuff. Curiosity seems to be my defining characteristic. I have always surrounded myself with my own cabinet of curiosities. Each new focus fuels my imagination – it is always my way of ‘learning by doing’.

But there is another side to me: I have had a lifelong passion for marine life and for almost 30 years, in parallel to running a global consulting practice, I have been diving and exploring the islands of the remote Pacific Ocean with my wife Terri. We always sought out the most remote places and fabled ‘never-dived’ coral reefs.

But, even the most avid divers must come to land sometimes. It was in New Guinea, the second-biggest island in the world, that started our interest in local cultures. New Guinea has almost no roads but is said to have more airstrips than France and Germany put together. There are more than one thousand languages. It was astonishing to think that people living just over the next mountain might speak a different language and have a completely different culture from one’s own. This was the only place on

earth where you could still meet someone who could remember what human flesh tasted like.

We would commune with the locals and watch them use natural resources to craft magnificent objects to support their everyday needs – physical, social or spiritual, but always eminently practical. Often these objects would end up being worn – to adorn, to celebrate or to display status, and bring prestige to their clan. Terri and I were captivated. Memories of astonishing adornments and celebrations stayed with us long after we returned home. Of course, on each trip, some items also came home with us. They inhabited shelves, cabinets and drawers until we realised that we had ‘a collection’.

What started as a passion for marine life, fossils and photography slowly morphed into a love of the exotic adornments that the islanders crafted from shells, plants and other natural materials. South Seas islanders had little access to metals or precious stones so they crafted superlative and fabled adornments from nature. They created currencies and ground-breaking trading networks that nurtured relationships and redefined value. In my latest book Adorned by Nature - a celebration of South Seas cultures, history and art, I tell their fascinating story.

We sometimes forget that these tropical islands were the centre of a dramatic theatre of war towards the end of WWII. In some cases, it was the first time locals saw a ‘whiteman’. When soldiers returned home from the war in the Pacific, they brought with them strange souvenirs from the beautiful and mysterious islands of the South Seas.

Enter Samuel George Meyers Adams (known as ‘Meyers’ all his life), renowned medal maker who produced one of the first medallions commemorating Churchill’s death. He recounted that, after WWII, he would seek out soldiers at train stations in London as they returned from the Pacific. Few of them carried any money but were happy to have him buy some of their ‘South Sea Souvenirs’. This was where he developed the taste for what he called ‘curious money’ – primal currencies made of shells, teeth and other exotic materials. I acquired some of his lovingly annotated collection when it was sold at auction. It amplified my interest in the existing South Seas objects we had collected on our trips. Gradually my collection expanded to include the social traditions and myths that gave the objects context.

The experiences of returning soldiers inspired myths of a Paradise in the South Seas, inhabited by beautiful men and women, and easy-going exotic lifestyles that became the stuff of movies – such as South Pacific.

We found the actual lifestyles, myths and magic of these islands to be much more exotic than these imagined 1950s perceptions could ever be.

Adorned by Nature is a celebration of these cultures, traditions and myths. It’s about the consequence of curiosity and the thrill of discovery. It is unapologetically anecdotal and selfishly visual. That’s my way of understanding, loving and learning. I do hope you will share some of that passion with me – either in the book or at my talk at Oborne village hall later this month.

The book is a not-for-profit project and the many expert contributors have given their time, images and creative input pro bono. We have committed to giving something back to the people whose material culture we are celebrating. We are donating 100 copies of the book to local community groups, museums and galleries in the South Seas. It is our hope that this will help inspire young artists and crafters in some specific new projects – a reminder that a simple act of showcasing the culture can lead to its appreciation, and even preservation, by future generations.

Tribal Art is big business in ‘The West’. There is a certain irony in that the 40 million people of the South Seas islands, who speak more than 1000 languages, do not have a word, in any of those languages, for ‘art’.

Everything is made to be functional, to serve a specific purpose, celebration or spiritual need. There is no ‘art for art’s sake’ here.

adornedbynature.atone.org

___________________________________________ Friday 18th November 7pm for 7.30pm Adorned by Nature: Explorations in the South Seas – A Talk with Wolfgang Grulke Oborne Village Hall, DT9 4LA. Tickets £10 per person. 100% of proceeds go to the Village Hall Charity. Includes a glass of wine, nibbles and a £15 discount on the book. Tickets via oborneevents@gmail.com or 07866 933736

PROPOLIS

Paula Carnell, Beekeeping Consultant, Writer and Speaker

As I’ve been writing this, I have also been creating new recipes for lip balms and skin care products for myself as well as clients. As the bees are less demanding on my time, I have the freedom for creativity, which I love! The bees produce many wonders from the hive and propolis has to be my favourite – even more so than honey. I am often asked what it is, how I collect it, and what it is used for – I will address these questions one by one.

What is propolis? I have written much about this wonderful product and yet there is still much to learn and understand about it. There is no standard as each sample, from different seasons, hives, and countries contains differing properties, much like honey. The bees collect resins and balms from tree buds and bark, then mix it with their own beeswax and pollen and use it to disinfect the hive. Most beekeepers think of it as an easily staining, dark orange inconvenience which sticks the hive together making honey extraction tricky and sticky! In 1907, a German bee researcher suggested that propolis was instead largely derived from pollen granules. He believed that the pollen granules would swell up to five times their original size inside the bees’ intestines, and then burst to release a plasma. The remaining pollen husks would be processed into a balsam which, when excreted, it would be mixed with wax and other products forming propolis. Although largely disputed, it does have some grounds for truth as propolis can be found inside hives where they have no access to trees. In addition, maximum propolis production occurs when there is also maximum pollen production. Other researchers during the 20th century noticed that bees were collecting resins secreted by trees, using their mandibles (see last month’s article ‘Do bees have teeth?’). It is now accepted that there is still more to learn and that both types of propolis exist. Another bee researcher in the 1930s, Phillip, suggested that the pollen form of propolis was used inside the hive to line the cells before eggs were laid by the queen, and that the tree resin propolis was used to line and protect the hive from outside threats, also strengthening the internal structure. Resins from trees, even without any input from bees have had a medicinal reputation – think of frankincense and myrrh, the most famous of tree resin gifts. We do know that bees add some magic, be it in their saliva, or whatever else they mix it with inside their hive. The list of medicinal properties is endless including anti-inflammatory, anaesthetic, bacterial, antiviral, antioxidant, anti-fungal, anti-parasitic as well as being an immuno-stimulant, which is particularly relevant at this time of year as our immune systems struggle to fight off winter bugs.

I collect propolis from my hives using various techniques. Firstly, during the summer months, when opening a hive, the still sticky propolis can be scraped off using a hive tool and put into a glass jar, which I try and remember to always have with me. If your bees aren’t producing much propolis, then you can stimulate it by placing metal queen excluders inside the hive along the walls. Many bee hives are planed to

Kosolovskyy/Shutterstock

be smooth inside which means the bees have nothing to attach the propolis to. By making the surfaces rough or adding the metal excluders with their many holes, the bees can’t resist filling the holes in. You can later pull the metal sheets out and freeze them which in theory helps the propolis to just drop off! You can also buy fine plastic mesh sheets which you can place above the supers and the bees will again fill in the small holes with droplets of propolis. When extracting honey, or removing the super boxes from hives, you spend the autumn (as I do), scraping the propolis from all the frames and edges of the box. It’s amazing how the tiny granules build up in your pot over time. If a colony dies out, you could have even more propolis to harvest. I have found that on the inside of hives by the entrances, there can often be large blobs of propolis, used to manipulate into ‘curtains’ when the bees needed to reduce the hive entrances. What I really love about propolis, is that it doesn’t harm the bees when you harvest it. I wouldn’t take any from July until next spring from which time the bees can more easily refresh it and replace what I have taken. In the wild, bees will line their entire cavity with propolis, acting as a protective ‘skin’, not only with all its health-giving properties but also as a waxy resin. It can collect and distribute moisture, preventing mould growth and giving the bees a source of drinkable water.

When I have a reasonable pot of propolis I make it into tinctures. Mixing with alcohol and leaving for several weeks or months, the properties are preserved in the alcohol, ready to be used in lip balms, skincare and even as a pure propolis spray or dropper. I always carry a propolis spray in my handbag – I can spray it directly in my throat if I ever feel a pre-cold tickle or on a cut or wound. More often I spray it onto the hands of those wondering what propolis is so they can lick and sniff this incredible gift from the bees. Because propolis contains so many benefits, it is said that breathing in the air of a bee hive gives beekeepers a longer healthier life than other professions, and I have to say, the worst part of winter for me is not being able to lift the lid of a bee hive and take a deep breath of their delicious air!

LISTENING TO YOUNG VOICES IN A CHANGING CLIMATE

Peter Littlewood, Director, Young People’s Trust for the Environment

What a scorcher! The summer of 2022 was England’s joint hottest, tying with 2018 and reaching an average summer temperature (covering June, July and August) of 17.1C. Four out of our five hottest-ever summers in a series of data stretching back to 1884 have happened since 2003, so it’s pretty obvious that climate change is happening.

This summer was also the driest since 1976 – a summer that I vaguely remember, as I was in my first year at primary school, sweltering both indoors and out in my Aertex shirt. That summer stretched out in endless hot, sunny and rainless days, at a point in my life when a week felt like a very long time. I remember the scorch of hot car seats on the backs of my thighs and the feeling of being slowly cooked whenever the traffic slowed, ending the cooling breeze that had been blowing through the open windows. Air-conditioning was considered a completely pointless thing in 1970s Britain.

So what about today’s young people? How do they feel about the way the climate is changing and what are their concerns? Towards the end of the summer term, YPTE helped Ellen Wingrove, a student completing her Masters in Global Environment, Politics and Society at Edinburgh University, with a survey. It asked young people - specifically those aged 10-11 - about their concerns regarding climate change. Did they feel that their voices were being listened to? What did they think they and the adults in their lives were doing

Ink Drop/Dhutterstock

to help? A small selection of primary schools from England, Scotland and Wales took part in the survey.

Today’s young people are going to be disproportionately affected by climate change in the future so they should have the opportunity to voice their opinions about the kind of world they want to inherit from the current generation of adults. Among our survey group, only 3% of children said that they were not concerned by climate change and only 5% said that protecting the planet for the future was not important to them.

A majority (57%) felt that their voice was important when it came to climate change, and only 13% thought it was unimportant. But in a significant mismatch, only 18% felt that their voices were being listened to, with 40% stating that they felt they weren’t being listened to. When expanded to a global scale, 30% thought children’s voices, in general, were being listened to, while 43% felt that children’s voices were being ignored.

The children’s verdict on adults, in general, was pretty damning, with only 16% thinking that adults were doing a good job of looking after the environment and 60% stating that they were not. At a family level, things got much better for the adults, with 53% of children saying that the grown-ups in their lives were making at least some efforts to improve the environment, whilst an additional 34% thought their parents were making a lot of effort.

We also asked the children to think about the efforts they themselves were making and 66% felt that they were actively doing something to help, 22% said they were making a lot of effort and only 3% admitted to making no effort at all. Almost three-quarters (71%) said they would like to get more involved in protecting the environment if they had the opportunity.

Interestingly, the vast majority (95%) felt that protecting the environment should be a high priority for governments, which is something that politicians everywhere should take note of.

So, what can we learn from all this? That young people are concerned about environmental issues in general and climate change in particular; that they don’t feel like enough adults are listening to their concerns; that they want adults to do more, and to be able to take more action themselves. Today’s generation of adults must take note of the thoughts and wishes of generations that will follow them.

In order for young people’s voices to really matter, the challenge we face is to ensure that they are equipped with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions about climate change, both while they’re still at school and as they grow to adulthood. Children are hopeful, but in many cases anxious about the future and they want to be a part of the solution to climate change. We should be allowing them to have an input into what that future might look like, for them and their children. The more young people feel their input matters, the more inspired they will become to do more to help. And that has to be good news for the climate and the planet.

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