The March edition of .....
There has been quite a number of environmentally related tasks undertaken by various NCVs during the last month so, without any further ado, let's have a look at what's been going on.
Well - it wouldn't be a lockdown blog without a rubbish photograph from Anita, would it? By rubbish I am talking litter - not photographic quality. A first prize in the photo competition showed just how good Anita's skills are in that quarter!
One can only hope that this bag was not hung there on purpose.
Let's give the local residents the benefit of the doubt and blame the wind.
Thanks to Anita for removing it.
The annual maintenance of the sand martin wall up at Gouthwaite needed to be undertaken before the nesting season got underway. Tony and Ros E. spent a wet morning cutting down the vegetation along the top and at the base. We don't want the young sand martin chicks getting pounced on by a sneaky stoat while they are feeding on the tip of the wall, do we?
Here's Tony in action with his trusty slasher.
And here's the finished job - all the trimmings
raked off and piled by the wall.
On the same soggy day a small number of NCVs helped out a friend of Ken's who is in the process of planting 5000 trees (mainly oak, alder and willow) at Little Studley, alongside the River Ure, near Ripon. With the end of the tree planting season almost upon us, time was of the essence.
The start of the day.
And they're off!
Husband and wife team Ros K. and Nick took great
pains to ensure that the tubes were perpendicular.
Julia, the tube mule, trudged back and forth
supplying everyone with tree guards.
By 3pm the weather stopped play but much had been achieved. Ros K. thinks 300 trees were planted. Both Ken and Dave estimate 550-600.
However many they planted Ken looked very
pleased and gave everyone the thumbs up!
The same group returned to continue the job the following week, on a much sunnier day. Could the provision of pies and cake on day one be partly the reason for them embracing this task?
They carried on along the riverside, leaving a forest in their wake.
Unable to help themselves, this group also agreed to help out with another of Ken's friends - also on a two day tree planting mission. This time it was at a newly established camp site near the beautiful Eavestone lake, hidden away between Ripon and Pateley Bridge. Medals all round tree planters!
Three garden developments have been undertaken during March.
Liz sent in an update on progress with the construction of her greenhouse. As you can see - it is coming on a treat (?) and is almost ready for planting out her 2021 seedlings. Or should that read 2022? Apparently they have discovered that a piece critical to its construction is missing......
Ros E. was trying to do something to help wildlife on the top patio in her garden.
These are the patio edges before the arrival of some planters
and plants - devoid of any food for foraging pollinators.
Come on bees. These plants will soon be flowering!
Actually - a third trough has now been added, next to trough
number 1 but is still awaiting the arrival of plants.
Anita and her husband have removed a bank of laurel bushes and replaced them with some bee friendly alternatives.
Apparently this bank is a lot steeper than it looks in the picture.
It will certainly look better once it is covered in flowers.
Anita has also been working hard at Bramhope scout hut, removing the scrub that was encroaching on the playing area. Judge for yourselves the difference her and her assistant have made.....
Before....
...and after. Amazing.
Pats on the back for both of you!
Paul, too, has been doing his bit in Hackfall Wood. He has cleared some gullies and paths and created a brash pile. He reports that it is looking dry and spring like at the moment.
This fallen tree just had to go.
That's one nice neat brash pile Paul!
During March the NCVs have been taking part in 2 Zoom training sessions - the first about Moorland Management, given by Tracy and Mick Johnson of the Nidderdale Moorland Group,
This session was very interesting and heartening to listen to. The amount of conservation work that the Nidderdale gamekeepers do to protect and encourage wildlife on the moors is commendable.
The following week was the first of two on pond management from Ann Carter of the Freshwater Habitats Trust. It covered a number of topics including:
- The state of the country's freshwater habitats. This part of the session contained some disappointing data regarding the state of the country's fresh water habitats. Apparently it is ponds that are the cleanest freshwater habitats.
- Pond surveying - quite a few of us are now very keen to get out with some testing kits!
- Pond Management Risk Assessment - here we learned about the need to take a 'precautionary approach' rather than going in with loppers and dredgers willy nilly. The most unlikely looking ponds are often the ones that should be left, as they are as they can contain rare species.
Everyone is looking forward to Ann's second training session.
Our honorary NCV, Harry, had his 7th birthday recently and was given a very surprising, but completely environmentally related, present - a wormery!! Not many children would relish the prospect of opening one of those on their birthday but Harry did. He was also given 250 worms to put into it. If you look closely you can see some wiggling their way through the layers.
Cooey wormies. Say "Cheese!"
On second thoughts - say "Happy Belated Birthday Harry!"
Liz, Ros E., Ros K., Brenda and Anita have been carrying out a Springwatch of their own (who needs the BBC?) On the 16th March four of them spotted frogspawn in four different locations. Three of these are pictured below. Can you spot the site that was problematic for any overweight tadpoles that may hatch out?
Yes - you got it - site 2.
Anita reported:
"I'm in the kitchen watching frogs coming from all directions. They have been silly enough to lay their eggs on top of the duck netting over the pond. I managed to move the first lot of spawn into the water, it's very slippery and tough.
They don't seem to be the most sensible of creatures. They still spawn on my neighbour's lawn where she used to have a pond. It was filled in 3 years ago!!
Perhaps it's just Wetherby frogs that are this careless with their progeny?.
The following day Anita sent an update. There were 26 frogs busy spawning in her pond (outside the netting this time). Click HERE for live action spawning!
Her neighbour had also delivered another load of spawn that had been deposited on her lawn.
Anita's pond is fast approaching frogspawn saturation
point and turning into a gelatinous mass.
Andy's pond is also teaming with frogs and spawn and other creatures....
Synchronised swimming.
Can you spot the duck sitting on her nest?
And finally - are any of the blog readers interested in fossils?
If so perhaps you could help the AONB office respond to the following query they were sent:
"Hello... I'm hoping someone can tell me a little bit about some fossils I found in a landslide in my local forest in Dacre Banks please. Here is a photograph:"
If anyone has any idea about the kind of creature that this fossil used to be then please send in a comment below!
We are hoping to be back to normal volunteering from 20th April so normal blog service should resume at that time. In the meantime - have a lovely Easter weekend!
