Author: Wildlife Warden

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Wildlife Warden Update – Verges

Many of you will already know that we are managing the Bridford verges – those up Pound Lane and near Butts Close- for wildflowers and we are happy to report that the Parish Council has given the go ahead for another year of managing them this way.  This means that the verges are left to grow from January until the plants drop their seed in August/ September, bar a 1.5 metre path by the road for access and visibility.

We have sown the area with yellow rattle seed, which parasites on grass and allows wildflowers the space to grow. Over a few years you will see that the grasses lessen and wildflowers increase and there is a maintenance plan to help this along, which includes:

  • Mowing in late summer/ autumn and taking away the grass (with thanks to Graham Dicker) – taking away the grass is vital so that this is not allowed to over fertilise the ground, as wildflowers like nutrient poor soil. The paths are regularly mown with cuttings taken away.
  • Weeding out docks and nettles in the early summer. Although these plants have their benefits for wildlife, they could take over in this case, so need to be pulled out/ cut so they are not allowed to seed.  You may see us out doing this in May/ June.
  • Ensuring that dog faeces are picked up – again these can over fertilise the ground and we appreciate you picking up any of your dog faeces and using the bins in the village provided.
  • The grass on the Butts Close verge is still growing through strongly, which is partly due to the ground being very fertile. This year the Wildlife Wardens have put some wildflower plugs including yarrow, oxeye daisy and knapweed to help this area along a bit. These should make the verge more visually appealing.

You may ask why we are doing this?  Wildflowers are vital to a healthy ecosystem, supporting insects, birds and small mammals.  Meadows of wildflowers used to be part of traditional farming, but 97% of these have been lost since the 1930s (including throughout the countryside) and this has had a significant impact on the species dependent on them.  The UK is in the bottom 10% of nations for biodiversity and though there are many factors, the loss of this habitat is one of them.  We can all help combat this, and areas such as the Bridford verges link up through the wider landscape with nature friendly farm margins, gardens and parks etc to become a corridor for wildlife.  This biodiversity is not just vital for itself, but vital for society, as it has wide ranging effects on food production and human health, both mental and physical. Having seen the swallows turn up again in the last few weeks, I am also glad that these verges and similar areas are supplying a bounty of flying insects for them after their long journey.

If you have any comments or suggestions for other ideas that would help wildlife in the area, please do let us know at wildlifewarden@bridfordvillage.co.uk

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Wildlife Warden Update – FREE TREES AVAILABLE

January is a time for new beginnings.  We are heading back towards the longer days, the earth rich with autumn’s decaying foliage, ready to spring to life again with the first of the year’s flowers.  What better way to celebrate this time than with planting a tree!

We will be giving out free trees from 10am on Saturday 20 January at the Bridford Woodland Park.  These trees have been grown as part of the Devon Wildlife Trust Devon Treescapes project. The project is looking to get Devon’s communities, landowners and business involved in combating the threats to Devon’s trees, such as Ash Dieback. There will be a variety of trees available including crab apple, wild cherry, rowan, field maple, hazel, so whether you would like to plant a small hedge or just tuck one in the corner of your garden, please come along and pick a tree up.  The trees available are all great for UK wildlife whether this is through its flower’s pollen, it offering a leaf to nibble or nest on, or fruit for hungry birds and mammals.

Trees are available on a first come first served basis, and depending on how many people turn up we may be able to offer up to 20 trees per person.  We hope to see you there.  There is also a tree hub in Dunsford on 3rd February if you are unable to make the 20th January.  If you have any questions, please let us know at wildlifewarden@bridfordvillage.co.uk

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Wildlife Warden Update

December’s wildlife challenge – let the ivy grow

Playing second fiddle to holly in the famous Christmas carol and often maligned for causing damage to trees, ivy should not be underestimated in terms of its importance for wildlife.  Though ivy can undermine a damaged tree, it should not cause an issue for a healthy one where it grows up and alongside it with the ivy’s roots in the soil.  The ivy clings to the tree reaching to the light so that it can flower.  The flowers and berries come at a vital time for insects and birds as they are available later than many others, so bridge the hunger gap.

Ivy flowers in autumn after many blooms are on the way out and on a bright day can be abuzz with bees, flies, wasps, hoverflies and late butterflies.  The berries that start forming before Christmas are ready to eat in January/ February and are a highly nutritious calorie packed meal at exactly the right time in the year when they are needed by birds and small mammals.  Blackbirds, blackcaps, thrushes and redwings will all flock to feast on bountiful ivy.  Other than that, has it any benefits?  Yes, many!  A dense thicket provides great nesting opportunity for birds and also hibernating habitat for insects.  Many caterpillars will eat the plant, including those of the holly blue butterfly and yellow-barred brindle moths.

I hope this convinces you of the qualities of ivy and this month’s challenge is if you see it in a tree or a hedge to let it grow, allowing it to provide all these benefits, or if you are looking for a climber in your garden consider planting some.  It is also, to my mind, a beautiful plant – if you have a lot of it, maybe celebrate it this Christmas by making a wreath out of some strands of it, possibly incorporating it into a Christmas wreath for the birds.

Tree hub- free trees available!

February’s challenge was to plant a tree.  We are now at a good time of year for planting trees again so if you have a little bit of space in your garden, or know someone who does and would like one, why not consider planting a tree that can provide pollen and a food source for years to come.  I am pleased to say that we will be running a tree hub on 20th January in the Woodland Park where we will be giving out free broadleaf tree whips. This is part of the Devon Wildlife Trust Saving Devon’s Treescapes scheme and thank you to David Price and The Bridford Trust for agreeing for us to run this from the Woodland Park.  There will be further details in January’s Unity.

wildlifewarden@bridfordvillage.co.uk

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Wildlife Warden Update – November

November’s wildlife challenge – provide a highway and home for a hedgehog

We are pleased to report a few sightings or signs of hedgehogs in the area. These prickly little animals are under threat in the UK where there are thought to be fewer than 1 million left, so it is great that some of them are still snuffling around the parish.  Gardens, hedgerows, woodlands, grasslands, parks and cemeteries are all good habitats for hedgehogs.   As with many birds and wild animals they can fall victim to a ‘tidying up’ of gardens and the countryside, where there is not enough connected rough grassland, bushy hedgerows and sheltering woodland and scrub for them to live in.  It is vital that these areas are connected as an adult hedgehog can travel between 1 and 2 km per night, with home ranges as large as 20 hectares.  There are a number of ways you can help them:

  • Do not use pesticides in your garden, including slug pellets. Slugs are a vital part of the hedgehog diet so they need plenty of them to stay healthy. Have a hedgehog in your garden and it will help you keep down the slugs naturally.
  • Have you got a fence separating you and your neighbours? Why not make a hole in the fence (13cm x 13cm), or dig a channel beneath it, so that visiting hedgehogs can move through an area without having to go on to roads.
  • Leave a pile of logs and leaves as hedgehogs will use them to nest in with their young and to hibernate in. You could go one step further and build a hedgehog home – see the advice on doing this at building a hedgehog home. 
  • Check an area before mowing/ strimming or burning a bonfire to make sure there are no sleeping hedgehogs in the area.
  • And lastly, create an environment in your garden that attracts the invertebrates that the hedgehog eats, whether this is through planting, leaving some long grass and leaves or making a small pond. Embrace a little natural ‘mess’.

We hope that by taking these actions together we might create an area in which hedgehogs can thrive.  Please do let us know if you see a hedgehog near you.

Hedges

Hedges are now coming into fruit, creating a winter larder of berries for birds and wild animals.  If you have a hedge in your garden or bordering it (if it doesn’t impact road access/ visibility) please consider cutting this back on a 2 or 3 year rotation, targeting different sections each year. The flower buds and fruit often form only on second year growth so by rotating the cycle and leaving some untouched for a year or two you can ensure this vital winter bounty is available.  According to the Wildlife Trusts, hedges cut every three years can produce two and a half times as much blossom and fruit as those cut annually.

wildlifewarden@bridfordvillage.co.uk

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Wildlife Warden Update – October

October’s Wildlife Challenge

Put up a nest box for house martins and swallows

Did you see many house martins and swallows up around Bridford this year? These migratory birds travel from Africa to breed in the UK every year, arriving around March/ April and staying until September/ October.  British swallows spend their winter in South Africa, travelling up across the Sahara, through Morocco and then into Europe across the Pyrenees and up through France.  Surprisingly it is not known for certain where house martins over winter, but it is thought that they might spend it flying over the equatorial forest canopy catching tropical insects.  The journey that both species make to and from the UK is fraught with peril, where they are at threat from storms and starvation on the way.

Once in the UK, they need flying insects to feed on and a nest in which to bring up their young.  Sadly, they are struggling with both of these requirements. Changes in land management over the last 60 years have negatively affected the number of insects in the UK dramatically, this including changes to farming practices, use of pesticides, unsympathetic development of land, pollution of rivers and trends in gardening. Nesting sites have been affected by the way in which houses are built and renovations made and also by a changing climate;  the once predictable April showers that would produce muddy earth with which the birds could make their nests, are no longer so predictable.  There are a number of ways of helping provide more insects which I have been suggesting in these updates, including not using pesticides and embracing a wilder kind of gardening.  Another way of helping the birds though, is by providing a nest and that is this month’s challenge.

Swallows like outbuildings that they can easily access – have you got an open shed, or one that you could put a small hole in (50mm high and 200 mm wide) under the eaves?  If so, you could make a platform from four flat pieces of wood and they will then use this as the basis of their nest. House martins make their nests under the eaves of buildings.  North and east facing walls are ideal and they need to be high enough that they can fly in and out comfortably.  You can buy a nest cup for both breeds that can be placed in the correct area or also there is advice on the RSPB website about how to make these.

Are you living somewhere where there used to be a lot of nests and you would like to recreate these?  If so, please do let us know as we will be looking into funding for buying up some nest boxes.

We of course do not know if swallows and house martins will take up these boxes and it can take some years for the birds to come, however I think it is worth trying to help these vulnerable and hard working birds. We have also heard of a good number of nest boxes being taken up by house martins near to Bridford so we know it has been effective nearby. If the nest boxes are not taken up by these birds, there is also a good chance they make be taken up by sparrows, so helping another species that is currently listed as being in critical decline.

wildlifewarden@bridfordvillage.co.uk

 

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Wildlife Warden Update – September

September’s Wildlife Challenge

Create a bug hotel

This month’s challenge is to build a bug hotel.  An average garden can support more than 2000 species of insect and a good balance of insects is a great way of managing your garden naturally, for example ladybirds, lacewings and hoverflies will eat aphids so protecting your plants from them. These insects are part of the foundation of a wildlife friendly garden and looking closely at these mini lives amongst the flowers and shrubs can be a fascinating insight into a very different world.  Providing a bug hotel helps many species reproduce and over winter.  You don’t need to go out and buy one of these, but can make one using reclaimed wood, old pallets, hay, bamboo canes, dried out hogweed stems.  See building a bug mansion on the the Wildlife Trust website for great advice on putting one together.

A simple way to create a quick bee hotel is to get a log and drill holes between 2 and 6mm diameter and about 15 mm deep into a log.  Put this slightly angled down (so it’s protected from rain) and in a sunny south facing position. Alternatively, if you have a few logs you can create your own wood sculpture and then leave this to rot in the garden.  Rotten wood is a crucial habitat for many insects, including beetles and centipedes.

Another thing to remember is not to cut back all your stems and flower heads at the end of summer, as leaving some of these means that insects can over winter in them.  The common knapweed, for example, is a prime bit of real estate – the Epiblema cirsiana moth larva overwinters in its stem, the Metzneria metzneriella moth larva and the Urophora sp fly stay in the seed head. Another example is the Endothenia gentianaeana moth larva which uses teasel heads to hunker down over winter.  Visually the bare bones of these plants can give a bit of winter interest to your garden.

It is great to see that a more insect friendly approach to gardening is being increasingly widely embraced and promoted.  The Royal Entomological Society Garden at Chelsea Flower Show won a silver medal and showed how incorporating insect habitat into a garden can be both ecologically important and beautiful. See RHS Chelsea for further information about this garden.

Hedgehogs in Bridford

We are pleased to say there have been various hedgehogs sightings recently in Bridford.  Have you seen any?  If you have, please do let us know where, as it will be good to keep a record.

By Lucy Smerdon (with thanks to Sam Gray for his moth expertise) wildlifewarden@bridfordvillage.co.uk

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Bridford Wildlife Warden – July update

Monthly Wildlife Challenge – July’s Challenge

This month’s challenge is to provide a water source for wildlife. Whether this is a dish of water, a bird bath or a small pond, providing a water source is one of the most important things you can do for wildlife.

After a wet spring, we have had a prolonged dry spell in May and June. Collecting rain water when it falls, is a great way to conserve water and provide it for your garden plants and wildlife. Connecting a water butt to a roof gutter is the most effective way to do this and there are many cheap water butts available second hand through websites such as Gumtree. Another good way to keep water topped up is by putting a bucket in the shower, particularly while the shower heats up, and using a washing up bowl to collect run off in the kitchen sink. Avoid getting soap in the water. This water can then be added to a butt, watering can, or bird bath.

A little refreshment
A shallow dish of water on the ground outside provides some vital refreshment for wildlife and could be used by birds, invertebrates or if you are lucky, a hedgehog. Alternatively you could use a shallow old pot as a birdbath. Have you got any teasles? The leaves of these plants growing up the stalk create a natural cup for water, creating a fly by pit stop for passing birds and insects. For more advice on providing water see the Wildlife Trusts advice at how to provide water

Create a pond
Creating a pond is one of the main things you can do to increase biodiversity where you live. Many invertebrates depend on a water source to complete their life cycle, with flying insects such as dragonflies and some species of hoverflies starting out as water dwelling larvae. Amphibians such as newts will also thank you for a pond in which they can spend their mating season and lay their eggs.
The pond does not need to be complex or big. In fact, larger ponds are best made in autumn/ winter when there is more water. Put out a large water tight container (such as a Belfast sink) and collect water in it. You could dig this into the ground or build up the ground it. Create a shallower end with rocks and gravel so that amphibians, birds and small mammals can get in and out. And then just leave it and see what finds its way there, it is amazing what does. Please see creating a mini pond for more details.

The Bridford Verges
The Wildlife Wardens spent a morning on the verges in June. We are pleased to report that the Yellow Rattle that was sown in autumn 2022 has taken well. Though much of the winter was quite mild, we also had a few colder spells with temperatures below 0 degrees at night which the Rattle needs to germinate, so this has given it a good start. This annual plant will parasite on the grasses, enabling space for a wide range of wildflowers to take hold. We also took out thistles and docks – though these plants have value for wildlife, we are taking these out on the verges to make sure they don’t out compete the flowers while they become established.

[email protected]

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Bridford Wildlife Warden – May update

Monthly Wildlife Challenge – May’s Challenges

No Mow May

This month’s challenge is to put away the mower for the month of May. Letting your lawn grow gives flowers such as daisies, dandelion, selfheal and clover the chance to flower, providing much needed nectar for a wide range of insects including bees, butterflies and beetles.

No Mow May is a national campaign to encourage people to leave their lawns for a month. A tight clipped weeded lawn has little value for wildlife and collectively, lawns cover a large area of land in the UK (approximately 988,421 acres, which is bigger than England’s national nature reserves combined), so by reversing the trend for manicured lawns, we create a significant area of habitat. The campaign has really taken off over the last few years, with many people now choosing to mow less.

If you’re not keen on the longer grass, a mown path through it creates a more managed look and in fact different lengths in a lawn provide a great range of habitats – the longer grass gives nesting sites for species such as hedgehogs and toads, a mid length meadow mowed 2-3 times per year outside of April-August allows knapweeds and scabiouses to flourish, and the shorter grass allows Bird’s-foot-trefoil to flower, providing a fabulous food source.

If you don’t have a lawn, why not encourage someone you know to let it grow, or have a look at where you work and see if there is any scope there. Bridford is taking part in No Mow May with its verges, which will remain uncut other than paths, till later in the year. We will be doing a survey of the flowers on the verge in May/ June. See No Mow May for more information and resources.

Give pesticides a miss

A recent study has shown that pesticide use in gardens is having a negative impact on bird populations. The study found that there were 25% fewer house sparrows when glyphosate was used regularly. It also found that where the recently banned metaldehyde slug pellets were used, house sparrow numbers were down by almost 40%. Bird populations are under threat on a number of fronts including habitat loss and bird diseases, with breeding UK populations down by 19 million since the 1960s. Pesticide use is a relatively new addition to garden management and re-embracing a wilder garden with a few nibbled leaves, gives these birds a haven that they very much need. There is useful advice on gardening without chemicals at DWT chemical free gardening

[email protected] / 01647 253641

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Bridford Wildlife Warden Update – April

Monthly Wildlife Challenge

In response to last month’s challenge, the first sighting of a celandine was reported by Jacob from Bridford who spotted this on 27th February on the green lane near Windhill Gate. It is interesting to compare these first sightings year on year as it gives an insight in to how the climate is changing, with spring flowers now appearing on average a month earlier than they did in the mid 80s.  A record of first sightings of flowers, tree blossom, frogspawn etc is useful for scientific data and everyone of us can help with this.  Why not record your findings through out the year on the Woodland Trust Nature’s Calendar

Old and New

This month’s challenge is to re use and re cycle old containers such as walking boots, wellie boots, pot and pans, jugs etc, and use them as plant pots. Drainage holes might be needed in some containers. Be as creative and original as you can and plant your containers with a selection of flowers attractive to pollinators. Please do send a picture of your creation.

Welcome the Weeds

Sometimes leaving what is already there is as good as rethinking an area for wildlife. Many plants that are perceived as weeds offer an invaluable source of food and shelter to insects, small mammals and birds throughout the year. As part of this month’s challenge, leave the dandelions growing through some paving or in your lawn, let the nettles grow in a corner and even embrace a clump of the humble dock. So, what particular benefits do these plants offer?

  • Dandelions are rich in pollen, offering bees, butterflies, hoverflies and beetles a spring time banquet. Goldfinches and house sparrows eat the seed.
  • Stinging nettles are great wildlife attractors: caterpillars of the small tortoiseshell and peacock butterflies eat the leaves, ladybirds feast on the aphids that shelter among them and amongst other birds, chaffinches like to eat the seed.
  • Docks host a wide range of insects, and over 80 species of moth and butterfly caterpillars eat the leaves, including the garden tiger moth and small copper butterfly. Birds, including the elusive Bullfinch, will eat the seed later in the year.

It can take a change of outlook to accept these plants when eradication has been promoted over the years, but once you see the life that comes with them hopefully they will become a welcome addition to your garden. Do send us a photo of your patch and any creatures that they attract in.

wildlifewarden@bridfordvillage.co.uk

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Bridford Wildlife Warden Update -March

Bridford Wildlife Warden Challenge

It’s wonderful after winter when new life begins to show itself. We would like to challenge you to look for those first signs of spring in the countryside when you are out walking through the lanes in the parish. We would like to know when you see the first lesser celandine which is one of the earliest flowers to emerge. It is common and widespread, often found in hedgerows, open woodland or bare ground, sometimes forming clumps or patches. Their leaves are heart shaped and glossy, the flowers are between 20 and 30 mm across and only open in sunshine. Lesser celandines can also appear in gardens but we would like to know when the first one is seen in the countryside. So why not take a walk around some of the lanes surrounding the village and let us know what you see.

There are other firsts to look for, wild strawberry, a tiny white flower hiding in the grassy banks. Common dog violet, bluish violet flowers often seen in woodland rides, grasslands and hedgerows. Most people can identify a primrose and many will have them growing in their gardens, but can you find the first wild primrose in the parish?

Please send us a photo of your sightings and details of where and when you saw it.  We will publish the results in next month’s Unity and set another wildlife challenge.

The Bridford Verges

The Parish Council have given the go ahead for another year of managing the verges for wild flowers.  This will mean that the verges are left to grow from January until the plants drop their seed in August/ September, bar a 1.5 metre path by the road for access and visibility.  We are hoping to see lots of yellow rattle in later spring, which will start to thin out the grasses and let the wildflowers through.  The first couple of years will still see a lot of long grass, but with ongoing management this will lessen and the amount of flowers will increase.

Bird feeding

Last month we included a challenge to make birdfeeders in Unity and just wanted to add that these were meant as temporary feeders.  Due to bird diseases such as trichomonosis which are adversely affecting bird numbers, if you are using permanent bird feeders please make sure you follow BTO advice that you clean feeders weekly with soapy water and rotate the position of feeders.  There is good advice on bird feeding and the impact of this on the BTO website . Providing plants that provide seeds and berries and encouraging insects through offering them food, shelter and not using pesticides is the best way to feed birds long term. We will be offering suggestions throughout the year on ways to do this.