Billhooks & Biscuits. Events. May April Spring is here!...or is it summer?!.. Billhooks & Biscuits. .Introducing Kevin! The new trainee...

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1 Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust April 2014 Badger Watches at Rutland Water When: Wednesday 2nd April 2014, 19:30 p.m. Where: Egleton car park, Rutland Water Summary: Badger watching at Rutland Water. Enjoy an evening watching badgers with our Trainee Reserve Officers. Meet in the Egleton car park. 10 pp. Booking essential, six people max. Phone or The Myths surrounding Badgers and Bovine TB When: Thursday 10th April 2014, 19:30 p.m. Where: Leicestershire & Rutland Badger Group - Midlands Co-Operative Society Sports and Leisure Club, Birstall Rd, Birstall. Summary: An informative and illustrated talk on bovine TB. Jack Reedy, Media Spokesman for the Badger Trust, will present an informative, illustrated talk on this important subject. Admission 1 refreshments included, unless otherwise stated. Contact Dr David Duckett on Brown s Hill quarry and its Importance for Bats When: Tuesday 29th April 2014, 19:30 p.m. Where: Leicestershire & Rutland Bat Group Event - Age UK, Wigston. Summary: Trust Conservation Officer Jenny Harris will talk about the reserve and its importance for wildlife and bat conservation. Brown s Hill Quarry Nature Reserve was one of the Trust s earliest acquisitions. In the 1980s hibernating bats were discovered in the old mine workings. talk about the Trust Conservation Officer Jenny Harris will importance for bat conservation. reserve s history, wildlife and its To be held at Age UK, 51 Paddock Street, Wigston, LE18 2AN. For further information jharris@lrwt.org.uk Events May 2014 What happened at the Woodhouse Parish Bioblitz When: Wednesday 14th May 2014, 19:30 p.m. Where: Woodhouse Eaves Village Hall Summary: An update on the discoveries made at the 2013 Bioblitz. The team will update us with an illustrated talk about the discoveries, how the records will be used and memories of this inspirational event in Admission 2 for members, 2.50 non members, refreshments included. Contact Pam Darby on , Maggie Morland on or John Spencer on Visit to Grace Dieu Woods When: Friday 16th May 2014, 19:00 p.m. Where: North West Group Event - Bulls Head Car Park, Thringstone Summary: Enjoy the rare rare flowers and insects of Grace Dieu woods. Take a walk with Steve Woodward around these woods to enjoy the rare flowers and insects of this hidden gem. Meet in Bulls Head car park, Thringstone. Contact David Maltby on or Jim Footit on Visit to Launde Park Wood Nature Reserve When: Saturday 17th May 2014, 14:00 p.m. Where: Rutland Local Group Event - Launde Park Wood Summary: A guided walk around Launde Park Wood. A guided walk at this woodland nature reserve with Trust Conservation Officer Andy Lear. To find out what your Local Group or Wildlife Watch Group are doing in the coming weeks, check out the website: Hi everybody! Spring is here!...or is it summer?!.. Welcome to our latest edition and wow has it been a busy couple of months! Coming in to this role in January seemed a pretty daunting task but all of you have helped me get my feet firmly under the table and allow this busy period to proceed without a hitch. So, a HUGE thank you to you all for your patience and hard work; We couldn t have done all that we have without you all chipping in., Kevin and the LRWT Staff.Introducing Kevin! The new trainee... Excited is how I would describe myself as I look forward to joining the team at LRWT. As the new Conservation trainee I am looking forward to getting to know all of the staff and volunteers at the trust, I hope that from you I can learn a lot of the next twelve months. I am sure from my accent that many of you will pick up that I am not a local lad. Born and raised in Liverpool I am now looking forward to stretching out and exploring a new city. I have always had a keen interest in wildlife and the natural world. My interests stem from an early childhood spent fishing and camping. My more recent background that has lead me to this traineeship is that I completed a degree in Zoology at Liverpool John Moores University. I have then spent the last eighteen months volunteering for the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in Lancashire whilst working full time in a supermarket. During my time volunteering I have gained much practical, identification and surveying experience that I hope to put to good use over the next twelve months. My interests and hobbies are all things outdoors, bird watching, hiking, camping, photography and getting muddy are to name a few. All the volunteers I have met so far have been warm and welcoming, readily accepting me into the group. The enthusiasm and wealth of knowledge I have seen in my first week has shown that this trust is going to be a great place to be a part of. I look forward to meeting everyone over the coming months and hope that we can enjoy and learn from nature together. Kevin. Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust April 2014 Inside this issue: A new face at the Trust! 1 Task news 2, 3, 5, 8 & 9 One minute interview 4 April task list 6 May task list 7 Sunday news 10 & 11 Events 12 Contact details: ley Smith, Reserves Officer LRWT, The Old Mill, 9 Soar Lane, Leicester, LE35DE. Phone: Mobile: stansmith@lrwt.org.uk Web:

2 Page 2 Page 11 A day down t pit, Great Bowden Borrow Pit that is... February saw the mid-week team head down south for our annual visit to Great Bowden Borrow Pit SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest). The site was created as a result of clay removal in the mid 19 th Century to build the nearby railway embankment and has since developed into a nutrient poor fen and supports a locally uncommon tall fen plant community and is home to some locally rare beetles. Being a wetland site that is only fed by rain, one of the main concerns is scrub encroachment as this will inevitably lead to drying of the site and a loss of the important habitat character. So our aim for the day was to tackle some of the encroaching scrub in the pit and to clear areas of the south facing bank. We met at the site entrance on what was a dull, windy but not wet (...yet...) day and our little gang was soon joined by a few extra local volunteers. As we had a little walk and to negotiate Life s a drag eh? James helps me clear up. a locked gate, we quickly dished out the kit and trudged across to the work area. Some of the scrub was on the larger size, so whilst went through the introductions and necessary safety info I checked my chainsaw ready for getting stuck in! Being a restricted site, that is very little area to hide cuttings...our first task was to get the fire going and whilst the gang searched for some suitably combustible material, I cleared the fire site ready for Peter B and to start it. Most of us then spread ourselves along the bank, clearing as we went and the lucky few with wellies joined me in the pit to clear what had developed there. With the fire going by tea-break, we settles for a quick cuppa before heading back in to ensure we kept the fire fuelled as the day was starting to cool and clouds were gathering... Again with the banks well covered by our team, I headed into the pit to tackle some of the larger encroaching willows. Buzzing away with the saw and helped by James to clear away my cuttings, by lunchtime we had really started to make an impression and with the fire going full swing, we could afford ourselves a more relaxed break! Peter B keeps the fire in good order As we got ourselves ready for another round in the pit, the weather started to take a turn for the worst so we focussed on a bit of tidying to finish any cutting we had started and getting the last of the brash burnt up. As Peter B kept a watchful eye on the fire, the rest of the gang collected in the kit. All that was left to be done was turn the fire in before our now soggy team headed off site and home. Thanks to James H, Peter B and the Great Bowden Volunteers for a good days work! John Feeling the heat at Charley Woods On a wonderfully sunny day, I was pleased to get a chance to catch up with the Sunday team during our annual visit to Charley Woods as we had some chainsaw work to do and an extra. With the sycamore now well and truly under control, our attentions were now focussed on some routine tasks and further habitat improvements for the reserve. Ably assisted by our friends of the Leicester Conservation Volunteers, we met up by the entrance track leading to the Reserve before heading down in convoy. Once on site, we did the hellos and explanation of the work, in this case expanding a small glade by coppicing the encroaching woody vegetation and clearing back the access paths. dished the tools out and set everyone to work and I fired up the saw! Being such a warm sunny day, the last thing we wanted was a roaring fire but we needed to dispose of the brash and some poor souls had the duty of fire lighting..but being typical of the Sunday tasks (some may remember my numerous failed attempts to light fires over Winters past.) we had some respite as the fire just didn t want to go! However, as expected everybody was putting in some hard graft and with the chainsaw on the go as well, brash was soon beginning to pile up! With a little teasing, the fire was soon crackling away and brash soon being consumed a rate of knots. As the sun rose higher, we broke for lunch for a well earned rest, cuppa and slice of lovely cake (thanks Liz!). But our rest in the sunshine wouldn t last..i still had a few trees to drop which meant lots of brash! Whilst the team stepped back for a moment, I knocked a tree over and did most of the cutting before the gang got into the brash both dragging and cutting before loading the fire. With time soon catching up with us, we continued in this production line but were soon picking up the pace to get the last cut and cleared before the end of the day! As the last tree fell, we all felt the heat and exhaustion creeping up so we opted to stack the last of the brash for another day. After a few minutes rest (and we needed it!)..we collected in the tools before heading off site and home. So big thanks to John S, Ian, Sharon, Tony R, Richie, Liz, Peter S, Sharon and the LCV s for your hard work! John

3 Page 10 Page 3 Sunday group news Times: Charnwood Sunday group: 10.00am pm Oakham Sunday Group: 9.30am 1.00pm Felling on Flat Hill! The Sunday task in February had us up at Charnwood lodge in an area of the reserve not often visited by the volunteers. Flat hill, oxymoronic in its name as it certainly could not be both, is right up at the northernmost edge of the reserve. It is an area of acid grassland interspersed with some silver birch trees. It was these trees and their seedlings that we were there to tackle. The day threatened rain but was holding off when we arrived but it was incredibly windy, luckily flat hill being a hill and not flat we were able to circle around and work on the most sheltered side, even so, definitely no fires for us that day! The team worked methodically, spreading out to cover the ground effectively armed with loppers and bowsaws taking out any small birch they could find. I followed behind with my special paint to prevent the stumps from re-growing. The team were so efficient that by early afternoon it was becoming difficult to find any more birch to cut! By the time we finished for the day we had cleared a huge area hopefully allowing the meadow plants to flourish and thankfully for us the rain held off all day! Many thanks to Kim, Sharon, Tony, Liz and Stuart for all your hard work. A Windy day on the Warren Hills On a bright but chilly day in late February, the gang met up at Charnwood lodge for some scrub clearance on the Warren hills. After all meeting up in the usual spot we all rejigged ourselves into a few cars and made our way round to the final destination just below the Warren Hills. Keen to get going and shake off the morning chill the gang raced up the hill and began scampering all over the rock faces cutting down the birch scrub. Some stayed in the field below to start the fire, others went in hammer and tongs with the bowsaws and the rest followed around Neil who was felling some of the larger trees. By the time I was kitted up in all my stump painting garb I had some serious running around to do to keep pace with the gang. We worked along the hillside spreading northwards as we went. It wasn t until we reached the top of the hill that the strength of the wind could really be felt, it Roger C and Bob dragging logs was at that point I realised how glad I was to be in the down the hill lee of the hill. With help from Rob J, the kettles got lit (in spite of the wind) for tea and everyone clambered back down the hill for a well deserved break. After that it was back to the job at hand which continued onto what seemed like ever steeper slopes until by the end of the day we had got through all that we set out to do. Are we up to date? Have you kept us informed of any changes of address or situation since you registered? Now is the time to update your details! Along with this newsletter I have attached a volunteer registration form for you to update your details with us. If in doubt fill it out! Don t worry about duplicates it s much better to be safe than sorry. Many thanks! The whole gang next to the roaring fire Many thanks to Russell, John, Conrad, Andy, Roger, Bob, Dave y, Dave C, Ted, Geoff, Rob J, Sandy, Steve and Nick for a job well done. Words: Photos: Nick C

4 Page 4 So, who are you again..? The One Minute Interview Name: Paul Broughton Role: Enthusiastic volunteer, Chief litter-picker & trough cleaner How long been volunteering? 8 years I think only exceeded by Conrad What sparked your interest in volunteering/ conservation? Loved nature since a kid. Best part of volunteering? Worthwhile work in great company Your favourite task? It s got to be rhodie clearance. Most exciting sighting of flora or fauna? Muntjac at. I was the only one to see it running across the path chased by 2 cows! Favourite time of year to be out working? Love it all but got to be spring Any special interests? Everything but especially woodland, coastal, birds, reptiles & amphibians. In no more than 15 words, how would you persuade someone to join you in volunteering! Worthwhile work, fresh air, exercise & great company. What s not to like? Some questions, just for fun! Photo: Nick C If I weren t talking to you right now I d be. Gardening, reading or watching TV I wish people would take more notice of. The beauty of nature AND NOT DROP LITTER! A common misperception of me is I m Mr Happy-go-lucky, but I m very serious about environmental issues. The most surprising thing that ever happened to me was I once captained Sebastian Coe in a cricket match. Page 9 Continued Before long the Cedars started tumbling everywhere, somehow everyone managing to stay on their feet over the maze of tangled brambles and fallen branches. So was this method proving more popular than digging out the stumps? Well if the rate of work was anything to go by I would say yes as we moved through the wood at an excellent pace, but there was something strange about this work party we could hear the birds tweeting and talk to one another that s because there were no chainsaws or machines of any type for once, just the noise of bowsaws moving to and fro and the occasional brumming noise from Ron who was clearly suffering from Ron brumming with Louise and Mitch helping. chainsaw-withdrawal symptoms. We carried along in the same vein all day with the usual tea and lunch breaks providing a welcome relief from what was still a difficult task (even with the new improved method) Let s just hope that this will stop those Cedars from regenerating (at least for a bit longer) only time will tell! So a good days work on a nice dry day just count yourselves lucky at looking back to the task from 4 years ago the weather was described as; Our endeavours were almost literally washed away as the heavens opened and torrential rain fell on us for the next half hour the trees were bending over at almost 45 degrees as they were lashed by the extreme winds I m just glad I missed that one! Many thanks to Louise, Alan, Kelvin, Richard, Jon L, Michael D, Ted, John C, James, Mary, Marian, Mitch, Ron and especially to David D for his piece on this task from 4 years ago. What advice would you give to newcomers in your profession? Take it seriously BUT HAVE FUN. I m not a politician but They should take the environment more seriously. I m good at mixing with people I m very bad at.working against the clock. I take my time to do a good job. The ideal night out is..a few pints of real ale followed by a curry. You know me as a volunteer but in a truer life I d have been a writer or an actor The best age to be is the age you are provided you re healthy In a nutshell, my philosophy is live & let live, humans & wildlife we all share the same world. All the gang tucking in to lunch.

5 Page 8 Page 5 Launde Park Wood, tackling Cedar...Then and now. The first Thursday in March and the first day of the year for the midweek team to head over to Launde Park Wood. Quite unusually we hadn t been there over the winter due to most of the large felling work being completed last year and Andy s band of Wednesday volunteers carrying out a few other tasks that needed doing, but some jobs call for the Midweek team! Altering Gorse at Altar Stones Mid February saw the volunteers back up at Altar Stones for a round of Gorse bashing. This little reserve not often visited by the Midweek team as it is grazed by cattle through the summer has importance for it s geology and grassland habitat. As such it was our job to keep the rock faces and meadow areas clear from encroaching gorse scrub so that the cattle can get in and do their work. The task? To clear the Red Cedar saplings that were regenerating from where they were felled some years ago. A few old hands may have recognised this task and even dreaded its onset. David Duckett in fact once wrote an article on this task from 4 years ago, does this sound like a good advertisement for volunteering? Michael D ready for cutting! Whilst most of the team got to work with slashers, loppers and bowsaws, James started the fire which quickly lept into life (was it experience or the nice dry weather we were having for a change). Before I knew it the team had cleared a large area and moved it down to the fire site so it was time for me to dash around after them with my special paint and treat the stumps to stop them regenerating (we don t like to create too much extra work for the volunteers). This sight being near to a village is frequented by many local dog walkers, unfortunately not all of them are as conscientious as we may like so Conservation Officer Nathalie went around and sprayed all the mess they d left fluorescent pink to highlight the problem... The results were quite shocking! Let s hope the message gets through!... We tripped over old conifer brash left on the ground from the clear felling, shredded our legs on the brambles, which seemed to grow so profusely just where we needed to go, and slid down the steep slopes of the stream valleys. Worse was to come we soon found that a number of the smaller cedars had been knocked over in the previous felling operation and had layered themselves amazingly each forming a multi-stemmed row of rampantly rooted young trees great if you are a horticulturist but for us a nightmare! Kelvin cutting, James treating and Alan posing However this year we had a new plan of attack! Less digging, more cutting and treating with weed-killer. Now most of you will be familiar with cutting small scrub and having me or John running all over the place to keep up with you all but this terrain was just too tricky for that! Instead it was time for some deputies. The lucky few were Mitch, James H, Ted, John C and Marian, and they took on the task with relish! So at the start of the day the 5 deputies were briefed on how to paint (stumps not frescoes) and all donned their rubber gloves and safety glasses. Then it was time to team up, each of the deputies grabbed a couple of lopper and bowsaw wielding volunteers and started off into the undergrowth. Before long it was time for tea which gave Paul a chance to put down his litter pick-which he d been putting to good use all over the site- and relax with a nice cuppa. Of course not ones to rest on our laurels we quickly got back to the business at hand clearing more of the gorse scrub. After lunch the team split up with Bob, James and Roger heading off with Nathalie to cut back a large holly bush that was providing a little too much shelter for people. This meant a good deal of dragging back to the fire site which they seemed to manage impressively quickly. Peter supervises as Felicity toils away Spot the difference! Peter supervises as Felicity toils away Many thanks to; Bob, Paul, Felicity, Roger, Peter B, Peter S, James and Stuart.

6 Page 6 Page 7 April Tasks start at the times indicated below and we aim to finish about 3pm May Tasks start at the times indicated below and we aim to finish about 3pm Tue Wed Thu Sun Tue Wed Thu Sun 1. Start 9.30am 2.Start 9.30am 3.Start 10am 6. Start 10am 1. Start Narborough Bog Ketton Quarry The Old Mill Scrub Clearance /Water supply /Track Repairs Tools maintenance 8. Start 9.30am 9. Start 9.30am 10. Start 10am TASK TBC 7. Start 9.30am 8. TASK TBC 11.Start 10am Cossington Meadows Lea Meadows Merry s Meadows Charley Woods Charnwood Lodge Task TBC Building Repairs 15. Start 9.30am 16. Start 9.30am 17. Start Start 9.30am 14. Start 9.30am 15. Start 10am 18. Mountsorrel Marshes The Old Mill NO TASK Loughborough Big Meadow Charnwood Lodge Ketton Quarry Litter Picking /Water supply Workshop Maintenance Task TBC Building Repairs 22. Start 9.30am 23. Start 9.30am 24. Start 9.45am Start 10am 21.Start 9.30am 22. Start 9.30am 25. Start 9.30am Cossington Meadows Launde Big Wood Merry s Meadows Tilton Cutting Launde Park Wood /Water supply Guided walk Orchid Count Stump clearing Guided Walk 29. Start 9.30am 30. Start 9.30am 27. Start 10am 28. Start 9.30am 29. Start 9.30am Wanlip Meadows Charnwood Lodge Ketton Lower Priory Tilton Cutting /Litter picking Building Repairs Stump clearing