Next week's walk is a General Interest walk led by John Enfield to Beachern Wood We meet in the car park (as detailed below) in time to set-off at 10:00
What3Words: budding.titles.tweaked
Grid ref: SU 284 026
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Walk report: Franchises Lodge RSPB with Richard Smith and Saul Alonso
Franchises Lodge is a nature reserve covering almost 1000 acres. In 2018 it was acquired by RSPB, whose impressive long-term vision for habitat restoration of the woodland, and development of open heath is already evident. An important objective is the development of a “bridge” between Langley Wood to the north and the wider New Forest to the south. (1 on the map)
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| Saul Alonso giving us an introduction to the reserve © Tina Vaughan |
On a bright sunny morning, a group of us gathered to meet Saul Alonso, the RSPB Warden in sole charge of the reserve. Saul provided us with a background to the estate and the geography of the surrounding land before heading off down the bridleway and onwards into the private reserved area. Walking through the mixed broadleaf woodland we heard numerous birds including Blue, Great and Coal Tits, Wren, Blackbird, Chaffinch, Firecrest, Siskin and Blackcap, though we often had only fleeting glimpses of bird life through the growing canopy of leaves.
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| Nest boxes at Cameron's Cottage © Tina Vaughan |
We paused at Cameron’s Cottage; a formerly derelict building that has been completely refurbished by the Cameron Bespolka Trust in partnership with the RSPB (2). Much of the restoration has taken the cottage completely “off grid” using solar powered heating and electricity as much as possible. Bat, Swift and House Martin boxes have been installed during building. A hibernaculum for reptiles and a very well appointed bug hotel (formerly an outside lavatory) have been built in the surrounding grounds. A Grey Wagtail flew in carrying food and obligingly perched in a nearby tree for the photographers.
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| Grey Wagtail with food near Cameron's Cottage © Chris Robinson |
Following down the footpath we came to an area of Scots Pine where the sheer scale of Rhododendron clearance and the challenge ahead were evident. This non-native, invasive species has engulfed large swathes of the woodland, much to the detriment of the habitat. This is being systematically removed and burned on site with a long-term plan for eventual eradication which is expected to take many years to complete. Radical management and culling of deer, predominantly Fallow doe has already been undertaken. An initial survey suggested as many as 2000 deer were entering and grazing the reserve preventing any woodland regeneration.
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| Small-flowered Wintercress © Richard Smith |
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| Herb Robert © Chris Robinson |
Further on, we stopped for our coffee break at what had been dump where fly-tipping had been a major problem in the past. Much of this has been cleared and the remaining rubble, and mounds of earth are already colonised with Buddleia and wildflowers plus some probably garden escapes. A long-term plan is to develop this are for reptiles and for a butterfly bank. Goldfinches were seen feeding amongst the nettles and waste ground. The botanist in the group identified numerous wild plants including Small-flowered Wintercress, Dove’s-foot Cranesbill, Herb Robert, Verbascum sp, Ivy-leaved Toadflax, Spear Mint, Lemon Balm and Hedge Garlic.
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| Germander Speedwell © Tina Vaughan |
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| Yellow Pimpernel © Chris Robinson |
Walking along the path beside the pylons that thread across the lower part of the reserve, we saw more Greenfinches and a Common Buzzard circled overhead, Along the path, we identified Tansy, Germander and Wood Speedwells, Lesser Trefoil, Marsh Thistle, Silverweed, Yellow Pimpernel, Greater Stitchwort and Wood Spurge.
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| Speckled Yellow (moth) © Richard Smith |
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| Carder Bee © Tina Vaughan |
We returned to the cars up a steep climb, passing behind Cameron’s Cottage where we saw more Blue and Coal Tits and a Dunnock. An enjoyable and inspiring visit to this site which is already providing access and education for young people and has an ambitious and exciting future development plan.
References
1/ ‘Secret forest’ becomes one of the RSPB’s most significant purchases : https://www.rspb.org.uk/about-the-rspb/about-us/media-centre/press-releases/franchises-lodge/
2/ Cameron's Cottage In partnership with the RSPB in the New Forest : https://www.cameronbespolka.com/cameron-s-cottage
Franchises Lodge route
© Crown copyright 2022 Ordnance Survey. Media 005/22. The licence is valid until 31 December 2022.
This week's walk: 12 May 2022 RSPB Franchises Wood with Richard Smith and Saul Alonso of the RSPB
Field meeting visit to RSPB Franchises Lodge - 12 May 2022
This week's walk will give many of us our first visit to this recently acquired RSPB reserve on the northern side of the New Forest. We meet in the car park (as detailed below) in time to set-off at 10:00
Limited car parking spaces for a maximum of 20 cars has been made available on the day. To access, turn off the B3078 onto the gravel path at Hope Cottage and take the right hand fork along a short track passing through a 5-bar gate. Parking can be found in a clearing on the right hand side - double parking is likely to be necessary.
Please consider
car-sharing wherever possible for this visit.
What3Words: Carting.fond.bandwagon
Grid ref: SU 228 165
What3Words: reshape.rectangular.vertical
Walk report: 28 April 2022 Anderwood with Claire Kidger
It was a cold morning when we gathered for the walk and a Cuckoo was heard briefly during the introduction.
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| Bilberry flowers © Chris Robinson |
We walked into Anderwood and heard and saw a Song thrush on the top of an oak tree. Blackcaps and Wren were singing adjacent to the path but not seen. Walking through a mixed confer and deciduous wooded area we reached Church Moor, where there were several old Beech trees. Some had been pollarded; a large number were rotting and had fallen to the woodland floor. On one particular trunk someone spotted an old Nuthatch nest hole, whose entrance was plastered with mud to reduce the size to fit for the Nuthatch. Possible Owl pellets were found nearby, with fur and bones.
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| Tormentil © Claire Kidger |
Beeches were beginning to come into leaf, displaying a beautiful lime green foliage. The woodland floor was mainly grazed grass, with low patches of Brambles, where Bracken fronds were beginning to unfurl and Common Dog Violets, Tormentil and Wood Sorrel bloomed. Foxgloves, yet to flower, were in groups across the area and a male Redstart was heard, but not seen!
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| Wood Sorrel © Chris Robinson |
We walked from Church Moor to a path between Mark Ash (left) and Barrow Moor (right), stopping for a coffee break on some fallen trees. Nearby a fallen Larch’s fresh bright green deciduous needles were soft to touch. After the break we passed an old Rowan that had fallen and formed a tangle of roots and multiple trunks.
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| Siskin - male © Richard Smith |
Walking down to the small stream and along the bank we found new Hard Ferns emerging, more Wood Sorrel and large areas of liverwort Pellia epiphylla. Along the path following the stream there was a carpet of Bilberry in flower attracting bumble bees. Beech seedlings had germinated with two cotyledons also two year/three old beech seedling were seen. One mature Beech showed a broad arrow depicting the ‘King’s mark’, used to identify trees reserved for the building of navy ships. Before we crossed the stream a group of Siskins was seen in the tall Larches. On the trunks of Alders by the stream two Treecreepers were seen and nearby was a Wren. There was more Wood Sorrel, Water Mint and liverworts.
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| Thyme-leaved Speedwell © Richard Smith |
This week’s group safely managed to cross a bog without anyone falling in! Near the road was a Beech with a large hole, where the previous evening a Tawny Owl had been seen sitting looking very cute. Probably it was sleeping as we passed today.
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| Tawny Owl site © Claire Kidger |
After crossing the road, we followed a gravel and grass track through a conifer area. We walked back through a deciduous woodland to the cars, passing small patches of Bluebells and remains of what could have been a bomb crater. CK
© Crown copyright 2022 Ordnance Survey. Media 005/22. The licence is valid until 31December 2022
Walk report: Further notes from the Vereley walk
Further notes from the Vereley and Ridley Woods walk by Andy Skarstein
Ridley Wood is ancient, coppiced from the
1500’s until 1698 when the practice of pollarding Oak and Beech trees was
forbidden in the New Forest by an Act of Parliament ,so as to safeguard long timber
for the navy.[1] The woods have many fallen and dead trees,
mainly beech, but some oak too, both providing valuable habitat.
“From medieval times the wood was used for
coppicing. Ridley Wood is mentioned in Norden’s 17th
century survey of coppices as a place where land was leased to tenants for
exploitation of the underwood only. In
1571, the tenant of Ridley Coppice was accused of pollarding 200 trees and
selling the cut wood, thus exceeding his rights. To compound his crime, he also
cut young oak to make fences.”[2]
Beech
trees are not usually long lived, 300 years on average. They are very thirsty, so suffer from lack of
rain, though don’t like water logged soil either. In the New Forest they are vulnerable to being
blown over as their wide spreading roots don’t enter the clay below.
Information of where to find
Ancient and Veteran trees in the UK can be found at https://ati.woodlandtrust.org.uk/?_gl=1*1rra7da*_ga*NjQ4ODAwMjg0LjE2NDQ4NzA4MDU.*_ga_YYKVQEPV0X*MTY1MDczOTk3MC4xNi4xLjE2NTA3NDAxNDEuNTU Just put a place
into the search facility, then click on a highlighted tree, a small box will
pop up telling you what the tree is, click on the box and more info and photos
will come up regarding that particular tree.
A PDF can also be downloaded
from the Woodland Trust explaining what ancient, veteran and other trees of
interest are: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/publications/2008/11/what-are-ancient-trees/?_gl=1*d8bs8*_ga*NjQ4ODAwMjg0LjE2NDQ4NzA4MDU.*_ga_YYKVQEPV0X*MTY1MDczOTk3MC4xNi4xLjE2NTA3NDA4MDYuMTI.
Mill
Lawn Brook was
crossed twice. It rises just south of
the A31 and is fed by additional tributaries rising from Harvest Slade Bottom
before flowing through Burley and then eastward via Markway Bridge and
Puttles Bridge where it becomes known as Ober Water. The Ober Water continues to flow eastwards to
the north of Brockenhurst where it joins the Lymington River at Bolderford Bridge. [3]
Ridley Bottom: In the brook itself we spotted
Water-crowfoot. We had some discussion
about whether or not we were looking at Ranunculus
novae-forestae– named for the New Forest, where it was first found. A crib sheet separating out the different
Water-crowfoot species can be found at https://freshwaterhabitats.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/THREE_LOBED-WATER-CROWFOOT-CRIB-SHEET.pdf
The
other notable plant seen was Petty Whin, which was just coming into
flower. It has decreased drastically
across the UK and apart from the New Forest is found only in eastern Scotland,
south Wales and Devon. It grows in moist
open grasslands and heathland on acid soils. It likes areas where the ground
does not get too dry and where the soil is a little richer. The drier fringes
of bogs and acid pasturelands are ideal for it. This is a species that
definitely requires grazing. One of the
main reasons for its decline has been a lack of grazing in many places where it
used to grow. [4]
One
of the fungus we saw was the miniscule Grey Disco which is a ‘spore
shooter’. It is common in Britain and is found on dead wood, usually on the
underside of logs when rolled over.
Another fungus was Split Gill, a small fan like wood rotting fungus (below). Interesting information about this common fungus can be found at https://botit.botany.wisc.edu/toms_fungi/feb2000.html
The slime mould ‘False Puffball’ (below) was seen
in its reproductive phase as a white 'swelling' on a branch of a fallen
tree.
This week's walk: 28 April 2022 Anderwood with Claire Kidger
Our next field meeting is on Thursday 28 April, Claire leads this General Interest walk at Anderwood setting off from the car park at 10am.
Grid ref: SU 249056
Three words:
wealth.those.peachy
Walk report: 12 April 2022 Vereley with Andy And Sue Skarstein
We walked from Vereley car park, where a Skylark was heard, through the woods, observing two Wrens, down to Mill Lawn Brook which flows onto Ober Water and then the Lymington River. Round-leaved Water-crowfoot grew in the ditches along the path.
Numerous veteran and ancient trees, as
listed in the Woodland Trust’s Ancient Tree Inventory, many coppiced and
pollarded are in Vereley & Ridley Woods.
The sighting of inosculation
(from the Latin "to kiss"), where an Oak and a Beech had fused
together, generated some discussion. Alongside
was a veteran pollarded Oak looking like many pencils standing in tight
formation; it must be quite
old, because in 1698 Parliament banned pollarding oaks in the New Forest to
prevent a shortage of long timbers for the navy.
Between the two Woods there were a few of the increasingly scarce Petty Whin coming into flower; Bog Myrtle and one solitary Dog Violet were also spotted. A Common Buzzard could be seen spiralling upwards.
Skirting Ridley Woods we spotted a
veteran Holly, whose girth was 2.4m, quite decayed, but alive and coming into
flower.
Our tea and chocolate biscuit
stop was by fallen trees. Here we saw an
unoccupied bee’s nest in a hollowed out log, Wood Sorrel was flowering next to
it and Southern Brackets were on a dead tree beside it. In the distance a Stock Dove called.
Honey comb © Sue Skarstein
Ridley Woods produced several birds, Robin,
Great & Blue Tits, Nuthatch, Blackbird and Song Thrush. Also here the morning’s only butterfly was
seen, a Brimstone.
Grey Disco fungus © Sue Skarstein
Dead trees supported a wide variety of
fungi, including Common Grey Disco, Beech Woodwart, Split Gill and Turkeytail. Also spotted was a False Puffball also known as Cauliflower Slime Mould.
Pollarded Beech © Sue Skarstein
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| Beech cotyledon © Sue Skarstein |
We then followed the hollow way where
smugglers sold their goods and near to medieval earthworks that mark the ‘old
hedge’ of Ridley Copse. From there we
went out onto the open heath, in the wet boggy ditches an abundance of bog
pondweed grew and here one of our group took an unplanned dip in the bog,
fortunately she came out unscathed.
Crossing the brook again at Ridley
Bottom, Pond Skaters were seen on the pond. A Willow Warbler sang in the trees and stayed
long enough to be spotted. Bog Myrtle
grew beside the wet areas and tadpoles swum
in a flooded area.
More water-crowfoot showed, generating some discussion about
whether or not some could be the rare hybrid New Forest Water-crowfoot Ranunculus x novae-forestae which is known to be in this area, we may never
know.
probable New Forest Water-crowfoot Ranunculus x novae-forestae © Sue Skarstein
Walking back to the cars Creeping Willow and more Petty Whin was seen, a Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard drumming and three people heard a Woodlark sing.
Vereley - our route
This week's walk: 14 April 2022 Vereley with Andy and Sue Skarstein
Our next field meeting is on Thursday 14 April, when Andy and Sue Skarstein lead a General Interest walk at Vereley setting off from the car park at 10am.
Grid ref: SU 196051
Three words: shackles.heaven.ambition
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