Chorleywood and District Local Group Newsletter No. 78 February 2014

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1 The RSPB is a registered charity in England and Wales , in Scotland-SC Chorleywood and District Local Group Newsletter No. 78 February 2014 Group News The RSPB is a registered charity in England and Wales , in Scotland SC Firstly, we must let members know that there is a change of venue for the coach trip in May. We are now planning to visit the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust Reserve at Arundel, in Sussex, rather than the Cotswold Water Park. At Arundel there will also be a chance to visit the town or castle. Booking has now opened. The year-long survey of Chorleywood Common, undertaken at the request of the Parish Council, has been completed, with 52 species of birds discovered to be using this local nature reserve. We believe that around a half of these species probably breed in the area. Read more about it on page two. Now, another local reserve needs our help. The Ranger of the Rickmansworth Aquadrome, Damien Weller (seen here), has plans for this local nature reserve, which are described in his article on page three. He would like us to get involved in organising and leading walks around this area, which lies next to Stockers Lake and often attracts the same birds found on the better-known nature reserve. We will try to help him, so if you care to get involved, please speak to any Committee member and we will work out how we can be of use. At the Committee meeting held in January 2014, we decided to donate 300 to the RSPB. They are more in need of funds following the storm surge in December, which destroyed much of the infrastructure of the Norfolk Coast Reserves, especially at Snettisham. A special appeal has been launched. Only a couple of days before this disaster, our trip to that area had been a fabulous 1 Damien Weller at the new Aquadrome information point - see page three experience with 10 of our Group attending. We must have been almost the last people to see the famous lagoons at Snettisham between the shingle banks, which are now destroyed. In July, we will hold stalls at both Chorleywood Day and Chenies Manor Plant Fair. Perhaps you might like to do a shift on the stalls, always a lot of fun! The Committee CONTENTS Chorleywood Common Survey... Page 2 Forthcoming Events....3 Aquadrome Ranger s Plans... 3 Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital... 4 The Dunnock....4 Membership Fee Increase...4 Binoculars for Sale 5 Award for RSPB Advert Farmers Alliance Project... 6 Your Photos....7 Outdoor Meetings... 7

2 Bird Survey reveals 52 species are using Chorleywood Common In October 2013 we finished our year-long survey of this local Common, done at the request of Chorleywood Parish Council. Their need was to establish a base line for the bird population of the Common, so that the success (or not), of future management plans could be established. The result, with 52 different species seen over the year, was a surprise, but this does not mean that there cannot be improvements to the management of the Common to make it more bird friendly. Our results have been sent to the Hertfordshire Biological Records Office. Around half of these species were either just visiting (the cuckoo and meadow pipit, for example, perhaps during migration), or they were seen only once or twice (bullfinch, lesser redpoll, linnet, redwing). Around half were possibly breeding, and during the early spring walks, the sound of the bird song was truly remarkable. Wrens, robins, chiffchaffs, blackcaps, jays, all the more common tit species, green and great spotted woodpeckers were present in large numbers at this time. The sound of tawny owls kept some residents of the Common awake at night, but we do not know how many there are. Woodland The relatively young oak and silver birch woodland contains very few native berry-bearing shrubs (except the marvellous rowans). We suggested the planting of many native berrybearing bushes at any sunny south or west facing woodland edges to provide winter food, not only for the resident birds, but also to encourage fieldfares, waxwings, siskins, and redwings. Disappointingly, this idea has been rejected because, we are now informed nothing can be planted on the Common. We suggested that nest boxes could be installed for treecreepers, kestrels and owls. We also hope that fallen branches and tree trunks are not tidied away. Dog Free Area By using brushwood to keep out dogs in a limited area, it might be possible to encourage woodcocks. Cricket Pitch This is used by many species despite being near the main road, e.g. gulls and mistle thrushes. Golf Course Few birds were seen using the golf course. The greens are treated with a worm retardant, but as no chemicals are used on the fairways, this remains a puzzle. Acid and Chalk Grassland The importance of these rare habitats and their associated flora are emphasised in the current management plan. Heather and gorse areas will be extended to reinstate the original heathland. With more wild flowers, birds will benefit from the seeds, and also insects visiting the flowers can be taken by birds. We suggested planting some small trees in clumps, in the middle of the grassland, to provide perches and shelter for birds. The team who did the surveying, and who deserve our thanks, consisted of the following volunteers:- Christina Bessant, Wannie Collins, Peter Harman, Helen Livermore, Richard Livermore, Janet Lowndes, Anna Marett, Vaughan Ryall, Carol Smith, Richard Tomlin, Joan Thompson, David Witton, Linda Witton, Tony Wright. At the time of writing, the Parish Council Open Spaces Committee was considering our report and we hope that at least some of our ideas are followed up. Our report and the table of results for each month can be obtained in full if you carolsmithuk@hotmail.com. Also there are copies to be found at our indoor meetings on the display table. 52 species found on Chorleywood Common from October 2012 to September 2013 Blackbird, blackcap, black-headed gull, blue tit, bullfinch, buzzard, carrion crow, chaffinch, chiffchaff, coal tit, collared dove, cuckoo, dunnock, feral pigeon, goldcrest, goldfinch, great spotted woodpecker, great tit, greenfinch, green woodpecker, heron, jackdaw, jay, kestrel, lesser redpoll, linnet, long-tailed tit, magpie, mallard, meadow pipit, mistle thrush, nuthatch, pied wagtail, red kite, redwing, ring-necked parakeet, robin, rook, sedge warbler, siskin, song thrush, sparrowhawk, starling, stock dove, swallow, swift, tawny owl, treecreeper, whitethroat, willow warbler, woodpigeon and wren. 2

3 Forthcoming Events April 2014 RSPB Members Weekend, University of York. Fascinating talks and a choice of 17 excursions. Cost: 255, inclusive of meals. Sunday 11 May 2014 Saturday 12 July 2014 Contact: Events team Spring Chorus and Warbler Walk. Friends of Stocker s Lake. Meet on the Causeway between Stocker s and Bury Lakes at 8.30am. Chorleywood Village Day. The Group plans to run a stall. Help needed, please. Sunday 20 July 2014 Chenies Manor Plant Fair. The Group plans to run a stall. Help needed, please August 2014 Birdfair, Rutland Water. Early bird tickets available from 1 st March Encouraging Bird Watching at Rickmansworth Aquadrome Hello, my name is Damien Weller, Park Ranger for Three Rivers District Council. I was appointed Park Ranger in August Previously I had worked for more than ten years as an Environmental Consultant, specialising in native reptiles and amphibians. As a keen naturalist myself, I am always happy to pass on my enthusiasm for wildlife to others and strive to create opportunities for others to share their knowledge and experience. We have recently renovated the Information Point, within the Café in the Park at the Aquadrome Local Nature Reserve. Now we have a bird identification board, bird recording book and recent spots chalk board. Ultimately, I would love this information point to be a first stop for bird watchers visiting the Aquadrome and surrounding areas. For this to work, we need experienced bird watchers to contribute to the recording book and recent spots board on a regular basis. I would like to encourage any members of your Group to pop in and contribute if they are visiting the Aquadrome and surrounding areas. I organise a variety of walks and talks at the Aquadrome throughout the year, including bird walks. If any members of your Group would like to help lead, assist or organise bird walks at the Aquadrome, I would be more than happy to work alongside them. This could be a good platform for introducing the RSPB as a next step for those who want to further their interest. I have good links with uniformed organisations and I am hoping to work more with local schools in the future. The hope being that we can help to introduce the next generation to the spectacular world of birds. Please feel free to contact me if any of the opportunities mentioned are of interest to you and you would like to find out more. Damien Weller, Park Ranger, Three Rivers District Council damien.weller@threerivers.gov.uk

4 MEMBERSHIP FEE INCREASE Slight flexibility in the new arrangements On looking through our collection of old AGM minutes, we discovered that the last increase in our membership fee was in 1998, 16 years ago, when it was raised from 2 to 3. Inflation over that period has been 55%. Basically, we need more funds! The new fee will reflect the RSPB s own membership arrangements and will be slightly flexible, i.e. you pay what you wish within limits. Do nothing now. This is just a warning and the fee stays the same until the 2014/15 season. We will then ask you and new members to pay at least 5 per annum. This will require a letter to your bank asking them to increase your standing order payment to us. However, if you do not change your fee we will not expel you from the Group and you will still be welcome at our meetings. After all, some of you have been members since the Group was formed in 1977 when the fee was 1. But it is imperative that we can cover the ever rising costs of speakers, particularly it they need travelling expenses. The Committee The Dunnock The dunnock is a humble bird Very poor and shy. You never hear his chirp at all Though he does try. His nest is always near the ground He is afraid of heights. He faces lots of predators, Especially at night! His diet is so simple, He won't eat nuts or seeds. Just some pinhead oats, Is really all he needs. His coat is light brown, With grey flecks on his back, A grey hood over his head, And his eyes the darkest black. By Rachel Gardner, when she was 10 I know this poem is not entirely accurate - please allow me some poetic licence. Tiggywinkles Wildlife Hospital Trust A chance to get close to red kites Red Kite Aviary There is a huge aviary at Tiggywinkles. It is high and divided into two sections. The size is unfortunately necessary because of the number of red kites that it is required to hold. When I visited Tiggywinkles in late 2013, 15 red kites were inside, because they were being treated for injuries sustained either accidently for example by getting trapped in barbed wire, in road accidents, being strangled by plastic bags or injured deliberately by man. Others had disease such as trichomoniasis, which may result from eating infected columbids such as collared doves. Recovering red kites Photo: Dave Smith Most of them seemed to be in good shape. A visit here gives an opportunity to see kites swooping around the aviaries, and as you can see from these photographs, it is a chance to see them close up. Usually when we see them soaring above us, details of their plumage are always just too distant to study. Next door to the aviaries is the Red Kite 4 Information Centre, with displays on the birds biology and a skeleton display. Bird Nursery and Mammal Nursery It is possible to see young garden birds being fed every 15 minutes from dawn to dusk in the spring and summer. The Mammal Nursery Ward has a

5 viewing window through which you can see the young patients being treated and fed without disturbing them. The new Bone Exhibition has a collection of skeletons and there is a live link to the X-ray Department by which you can see the patients being x-rayed. There is a collection of old x-rays taken of many wild species who have been patients in the past. The Visitor Centre is open every day between Easter and 30 September. Between 30 September and Easter, it is open just from Monday to Friday. For emergencies the hospital is open 24/7 all the year. If you find a dead red kite in the Chilterns, helen@redkites.net. If you find an injured animal, the 24-hour phone number is Binoculars For Sale Anyone for Tennis? This from a reliable source was sent to David Baker, one of our members. Hi David, I thought you would be interested in my experience on Wednesday. We were playing tennis and three red kites were swirling around over our heads, squealing at each other, when one swooped down and picked up one of our tennis balls! He carried it around for a bit then dropped it and swooped and caught it again before it hit the ground! He did this again, then just flew around and after five minutes dropped it for good. It certainly looked like play. The ball was unharmed. Hope you are well. Margaret Prestigious Award for RSPB Advert In December RSPB staff attended the Direct Marketing Association Awards Ceremony. The recent TV Advert was short listed in two categories, - Best Use of Film and Best Brand Building Campaign. These are Opticron Classic 3, 8x32. They come with a case and are in good condition. Contact Irene Oulsnam Tel: I am delighted to say that we won Gold in both awards. This is truly remarkable, especially given the other multi-million pound brands we were up against, like Virgin, O2, Ikea, British Gas and Intel. The Chair of the judging panel was Stephen Poliakoff, so from a film point of view, we could not have had a better critic and apparently he loved our film! Sallie Crawley, Volunteer Development Officer 5

6 Produce from Hope Farm for sale in RSPB shop The first product from Hope Farm, the RSPB s model farm, is now on sale in one of the RSPB s own shops. This extra virgin rapeseed oil has not been produced on a mass scale, in which purification and grading and extraction processes remove all the distinctive character of the oil. It is crushed and bottled in Cambridgeshire and has a distinctly nutty flavour. So if you visit the Fairburn Ings Nature Reserve, near Castleford, Yorkshire, or any RSPB reserve shop or online why not buy a bottle? Sowing rapeseed at Hope Farm The Volunteer and Farmer Alliance - a successful project comes to an end The Volunteer and Farmer Alliance Project has been enormously successful. The novel approach of linking interested farmers with RSPB volunteers and following up the volunteer bird surveys with practical advice, has earned a huge amount of appreciation from the agricultural industry. In total, 6,750 surveys were undertaken. Farmers have been inspired to undertake effective conservation management to protect farmland birds. It has reached 3,000 farmers across the country and thousands of volunteers were involved. A high number of these farmers have acted on the advice they have received and have entered into agri-environment schemes. Also, farmers involved in the Nature of Farming Award Scheme have advocated wildlife friendly farming to other farmers and policy makers. Now that EU LIFE+ funding is coming to an end, a fresh approach to supporting farmers is planned. Rather than survey and provide advice across the whole of the UK, we will now be concentrating most on the face to face advice in 27 focus areas, each carefully chosen for their importance for farmland birds. Each area is home to priority species: either range restricted seed eating birds, or breeding waders. Volunteers will continue to be involved in monitoring these birds. Here are two examples of what can be achieved by applying lessons learned from places like Hope Farm, the RSPB s own farm. Set on the north east coast of Aberdeenshire, John Moir s farm is proof that successful business can go hand in hand with wildlife friendly farming. John supplies M & S and Tesco with organic beef and Waitrose with oats, yet they manage their farm with corn buntings in mind! The population of these threatened birds has risen by 157% between 2006 and Other birds, butterflies and wildlife have benefited too. Nestled in the rolling hills of Pembrokeshire, Furzy Mount Farm teems with wildlife, whilst remaining a highly productive farm. It was surveyed in 2004 through the Volunteer and Farmer Alliance, by local member Peter Kimberley. Now amongst well managed hedgerows, field margins, crops and pastured, a host of birds were recorded and the barn owls are one of the farmer s favourites. In winter, huge starling flocks come to roost at the farm. 6

7 Your photos Please send photos to Snow buntings in North Norfolk Pete Coulson Geese over Titchwell Tony Wright Maple Lodge Nature Reserve, Rickmansworth Sunday, 22 September 2013 Outdoor Meetings Access to this private nature reserve is usually limited to members, so, we were shown round by two guides who clearly loved this place. The doors are controlled by a secret code; once unlocked you find yourself in the clubroom, with kettle, chairs and tables, guidebooks and loos. All very Famous Five! Members can visit at any time of the day or night, giving opportunities for special wildlife watching at dawn or dusk. Maple Lodge is not large, but they seem to have packed everything into the reserve. They have bee hives, bat boxes (with eight out of the nine Hertfordshire species of bat being present), bee and marsh orchids, the occasional lesser spotted woodpecker, marsh harrier and osprey, etc. The list is impressive. There are many hides around the lakes and from these we had two kingfisher sightings in no time. A hobby was chasing emperor dragonflies and a buzzard sat on a neighbouring barn. Nuthatches and great tits dominated the feeders near the club 7 house. Coots, moorhens, herons, jays and magpies were also seen. Cost 17 or OAP 11. Membership Secretary: Keith Pursall or visit Rainham Marshes RSPB Reserve Saturday, 19 October 2013 As Carol, Dave and I approached the reserve on the A1306, a kestrel hovered over an adjacent field under a lowering sky and we were welcomed into the reserve by eight collared doves and about a dozen house sparrows, attracted to the food dispensed near our parking place. RSPB guide, Louise Moss, led the nine of us to the start of the walk and gave us a short talk about the reserve. About 40 Canada geese flew by, a carrion crow perched on a post, a little egret stood in the shallows, a wren and a blue tit gave voice and six goldfinches adorned some willow trees. Louise pointed out the grey steel funnels on the visitor centre roof. These are light tubes that greatly enhance the natural light levels coming in. She mentioned the six shooting butts on the site of the

8 former Purfleet Rifle Range. The whole site has a military history. As we walked round we reached the sheltered and protected old cordite store, where several birdwatchers had their sites aimed in the direction of a white blob halfway up a tree. A barn owl! There were supposedly two, but after many paces along tarmac, gravel path and boardwalk (all of the routes are wheelchair friendly), we had only another view of the same bird. In the more open area was a finch on top of hawthorn, perhaps a linnet and unmistakable on a briar were female and male stonechats. Some of us believed that we heard the abrupt song of the Cetti s warbler. From the hide, landscaped in memory of Ken Barrett ( ), we saw a marsh harrier, as shelducks, mallards, tufted ducks and other ducks plus six lapwings all became airborne to escape it. Other birds seen on our perambulation round to the shooting butts were gadwalls, pochards, shovelers, mute swans, a drake pintail, a curlew and spotted redshank flying. A buzzard was sitting on a distant post, while little grebe, teals, moorhens, coots and mallards were seen in the pools. We all were pleased with a close view of a common wheatear on a fence post. With the butts in the background are Richard, Tony, Dave, Helen, Andrew, Carol, Mary, Pete and Evelyn Photo: Tony Wright We left the reserve at a turnstile (one way) to see what birdlife the north shore of the Thames estuary was offering. The sun had come out, but alas the tide was in and all we saw to landward were three greylags on grass and ten lapwings in the middle of a small lake. We had some refreshment in the visitor centre and set about finishing the circular route. En route to the last hide we saw common redshank, lapwings, teals, wigeons, magpies and a curlew. A dunlin was pointed out to us. Finally, a small reddish brown raptor flew in front of the last hide and on to a fencepost. So fittingly for three of us, the first and last species we would see while in the area would be a kestrel! Andrew Case North Norfolk Last Weekend in November 2013 The now traditional bird watching weekend for 2013 took place over the last days of November when 10 members went off to Hunstanton in Norfolk for three days. On the way up, eight of us stopped off at Welney Wildfowl and Wetland Trust Reserve for lunch. Just as we left the shelter of the café, the rain started in a cold northerly wind. It, therefore, came as a pleasant surprise to the first-timers to sit down in the large hide overlooking the main lake to find that it was heated. We were welcomed by the sight of hundreds of whooper swans, lapwings, teals and wigeons, but no Bewick swans. Later we were entertained by a couple of marsh harriers fighting over what appeared to be the body of a mole. Not much meat on that! At dusk the staff came out with a barrow full of barley, which they spread around the edge of the lake. This tempted many more swans to come winging in through the sky with a great hooting and honking. Some of us had hopes of seeing clouds of starlings, but what were there produced only a distant and minor display. Peter Bartlett alone amongst us saw a peregrine falcon. After the evening feed we set off to finish our journey to Hunstanton, where dinner was taken in an old fashioned pub. On the Saturday all of us went to Titchwell, where the north wind did blow, at least in the morning. Luckily a rain shower soon passed and we were able to spend several hours on the beach or in some very comfortable (but not heated) hides. A lovely flock of snow buntings kept us interested, but just would not come in range of our cameras, although Peter Coulson was able to get some good pictures on the following Monday (see page 7), when the rest of us had left. The other birds of note were grey plover, avocet, pintail and ringed plover. For the evening we moved along the coast to Holkham, to catch the flocks of geese as they come in to roost in the adjacent fields. Lots of pink-footed geese and brent geese were close to the car park, giving us hope that more would come as dusk fell. We were not disappointed and from an elevated 8

9 hide we watched spell bound as thousands of geese flew in, skein by skein against the darkening sky to settle down in front of us, accompanied by more honking and hooting. To fill any lulls in the arrivals, at least two barn owls patrolled the hedgerow in front of us with their meandering, fluttering flight. To those of us for whom this was a first sighting, it was a great surprise to see just how light in colour barn owls are. This does, of course, go with their name, Tyto alba. Brent geese in Norfolk Photo: Tony Wright Sunday was the last day for most of us, so only six of us drove along the coast to Snettisham in pleasant sunshine. Yet more waders were seen on the beach and alongside the lagoon, including large flocks of dunlins, golden plovers and shelducks. As we were leaving, Tony was ambushed by a merlin, but the rest of us were looking elsewhere. While this was going on, Helen and Richard were scaring a stoat away from a rabbit, which otherwise would have been Sunday lunch for the stoat! This was just a few days before the severe North Sea storm surge and associated flooding, so once again Tony had chosen a good weekend for us. In total we saw 68 species, some just once and some in thousands. Peter Harman The River Misbourne Valley, near Shardeloes Saturday 14 December 2013 After many dark days of fogs and clouds, this was a cheering walk in the sunshine. Birds were out in force! Winter visitors like fieldfare and redwing were numerous, feeding on many hawthorn and holly berries. Ash seedheads attracted many goldfinches, while on the ground the beech mast was being eaten by chaffinches, great tits and coal tits. The route from Amersham to Little Missenden goes between Shardeloes mansion and its lake in the valley bottom. For a small lake it was popular, with many tens of black-headed gulls, several little grebes diving, gadwalls flying in, coots, mallards and a few teals. Overhead we were accompanied by red kites and a few buzzards far over on the other valley side. The tall lime trees along the valley bottom were carrying large bunches of mistletoe. We might see some mistle thrushes, said Irene. No sooner were these words uttered than we were lucky to see that very thing. In fact on three occasions we spotted mistle thrushes eating or guarding the berries of mistletoe, which they greatly favour. They will guard other berries like holly and hawthorn too. Along the riverside meadow, grazing sheep and digging crows and jackdaws were accompanied by green woodpeckers. Apart from half-breed mallards in the mill stream, we saw some pied wagtails on the roof of the watermill. We then divided into the walkers who crossed the A404 to return via a higher path on the other side of the valley, and the strollers who retraced our steps on the flat valley bottom. We all felt invigorated by this walk, which was full of life and pleasant company. Carol Smith Stockers Lake, Rickmansworth, Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust Reserve, 1 January 2014 Despite the wind and rain, we spent an interesting hour or two in the hides on the south bank of this HMWT reserve. The usual winter visitors were on the lake, for example, goldeneyes, red-crested pochards, shovelers, gadwalls and wigeons. Miserable lapwings looked at us over the rain-swept water. So far this year the goosanders had unfortunately not arrived, as the northern weather had not yet sent them down to us. Certainly, 2013 autumn and winter had been very mild. The flocks of siskins were large this year, perhaps reflecting breeding success over the fine summer. How high pitched and frantic they sounded as they sought seeds on the alders! They dashed from tree to tree and later on after more rain we found a flock of perhaps 60 to 90 siskins, carefully preening their bedraggled feathers, in brighter light this time and we could see the bright yellow of the males. 9

10 Female siskin Mike Langman, rspb-images.com It was interesting too to see how goldfinches coped in the rain. Along the path between the hides were a few ivy clad trees. We investigated the loud chattering coming from within the ivy and found out that possibly 100 goldfinches were taking shelter within, only one or two being in the open. Apart from the waterfowl and these finches, we also had a good view of a nuthatch, tits, chaffinches and a wren. Carol Smith Articles and photos for the next newsletter are welcome. Deadline: June Please send them to the Editor at carolsmithuk@hotmail.com The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) is a registered charity: England and Wales No , Scotland No.SC Any advertisements enclosed with this newsletter are not specifically endorsed by the RSPB or the Chorleywood and District Local Group 10