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Ranger Sarah Shares Her EnthusiasmToday's trip was to South Humber/North Lincolnshire to visit Waters' Edge Country Park which is situated on the South bank of the River Humber - on the other side of the Humber Bridge.  An almost full minibus of 14 members left Bradford in the hope that the amended weather forecast would be correct and that we would enjoy a dry day as opposed to the wet day that had originally been feared.  We were lucky and the sporadic bright intervals of the morning gave way to much longer spells of sunshine as the day progressed.

Waters' Edge was created about 10 years ago from the site of an old ICI chemical works and involved the removal of an incredible 400,000 tons of contaminated soil.  Our Ranger guide, Sarah, had been involved almost from the start of the project and her enthusiasm for the site was abundently evident as she showed us round.  Her guided tour was originally scheduled to last 2 hours in the morning but such was the enthusiasm of Sarah to show us the secrets of the site and to tap into the knowledge of Joan and our other experts about the plants which grow there that she finally ended up saying goodbye at 5.00pm!

Over a hundred plants were recorded - the highlight was undoubtedly the buttonweed which formed a carpet of yellow on the edge of a dry pond which Sarah was able to take us to off the beaten track.  Other interesting plants were ploughman's spikenard and marsh cudweed, whilst an abundance of purple loosestrife and pungent fennel impressed.

We're not quite into the season of mists and mellow fruitfullness but fruits abounded and as Robert was with us today he, and others, were keen to taste bramble, crab apple, sea buckthorn and bullace whilst Amanda demonstrated how to eat sloes (not something that many of us tried!)   

Knapper GallWe didn't spend much time on the banks of the river Humber which probably limited the bird count but 31 was nevertheless a reasonable total for the day.  11 butterfly species were seen, painted lady probably being the most surprising.

The cafe in the visitor centre provided lunch for some of the group but was closed by the time we finished our extended tour, although the staff in the centre stayed on after closing time to ensure that we had a comfort break before departure which was much appreciated.  So ended an enjoyable day, made more so by the enthusiasm of Sarah who fights a never-ending battle with local hooligans who do not seem dampen her spirit - an impressive lady.

Thanks to our organisors and to Sue who led today's trip.

Stuart

Where Am I?Joan and Marilyn led an entourage of 15 for today's trip to Ashberry Pasture and Rievaulx Terraces. It was a little cool considering it was August, but we were grateful that we didn't get rained on. Ashberry Pasture, managed by the Yorkshire Wildife Trust, occupies the sides and floor of a deep valley with complex geology giving arise to diverse habitats. The valley sides are mostly wooded, and moist grassland sits in the bottom where a stream runs through the reserve. We spent the morning and early afternoon exploring the site. A deer was spotted on the far side of the stream, doing its best to hide in the grass. Many butterflies were flying despite the lack of sun. We recorded about 7, including red admiral, small copper and large white. Only a dozen birds were recorded, with the highlight being a willow tit which sang and gave a good display. 114 flowering plants/ferns were recorded including marsh lousewort, fragrant orchid and pepper saxifrage, which was a first for the BEES group. While we lunched by the stream Joan was befriended by a grasshopper that took a liking to her trousers. Numerous green froghoppers were leaping amongst the vegetation and even seen swimming in the stream!

View Over RievaulxMid-afternoon we took a short drive to Rievaulx Terraces, a National Trust property, comprising grassland surrounded by woodland overlooking Rievaulx Abbey. On admission, we were advised to head for the Ionic temple, where the guide gave a very over the top, dramatic, gesticulative account of the history of the temple. We then strolled down the terrace to the Tuscan Temple whilst enjoying the stunning views over Rievaulx Abbey. At the base of the Tuscan Temple pretty little blue harebells grew alongside yellow bedstraw. Our route back took us through woodland which was dominated by dogs mercury. We enjoyed ice creams or hot drinks in the visitor centre before returning back to the bus having enjoyed another lovely day out.

Sue  

Whilst in Trench Meadows yesterday evening we saw many blue coloured froghoppers. There were two different shades - an tourquoise green and ones with darker blue wings and a turquoise head. Have a look at the links below - they identify both types as the green froghopper Cicadella viridis

http://ispot.org.uk/node/58711?nav=latest_obs_thumbnail_grid

and

http://www.plantpress.com/wildlife/search.php?name=%28search%20text%29&…

The betony and greater burnet were in full flower a the first few of devil's bit scabious were just coming into flower. There are many hundreds which promise to make a great display in the next few weeks.

Later on Ian Butterfield lead a bat walk. We walked along the canal and river and identified, with the help of the bat detector, pipistrelle, noctule and daubentons.

High Brown FritillaryA party of 14 set out on the Bees trip to Silverdale and the Gait Barrows NNR. We were uncertain as to what the weather would have in store for us, experiencing a mix of dark clouds and sunshine on the journey. However conditions turned out to be fine if not sunny and much to our relief several butterfly species were seen on the wing. It was a prolific day for wildlife. We started on the limestone trail and left it after lunch to explore the moonscape limestone pavement, returning to the trail and then onward through pasture and hay meadows to the board walk and fen of Hawes Water. We returned along the same route taking up again with the limestone trail for our return to the bus. We had a brief tea /bird watching stop at our favourite RSPB reserve Leighton Moss.

Ploughman's SpikenardIn the woodland we saw : herb paris, hemp agrimony as well as agrimony, St John's wort, spring sandwort, creeping cinquefoil, rock rose, betony, golden rod, enchanters nightshade, dewberry, travellers joy, spindle, harts tongue and hard shield fern, mountain melick to name but a few. On the limestone pavement growing in the grykes were: wall rue, maidenhair spleenwort, ploughmans spikenard, lily of the valley, herb robert, angular solomans seal and a splendid broad leaved helleborine but alas no dark red helleborine or bloody cranesbill! In the meadows of Hawes Water we saw numerous spikes of fragrant orchid.

The birds seen were limited to 13 species and include a range of tits at Gait Barrows and a marsh harrier at Leighton Moss. Mammals seen included wood mouse, frog and a tiny lizard seen on the board walk.

Butterfly species were numerous although it was not sunny however highbrown fritillary, meadow brown, peacock, comma, red admiral, small copper, speckled wood and ringlet were seen.

For those unfamiliar with Gait Barrows the visit was a sheer delight for those that had visited before it was a treat to be reacquainted with the site. A nice cup of tea,cake or sponge and custard rounded off another enjoyable outing. Thanks to all who helped in making it an enjoyable day out.

Margaret    

Walking Through The MeadowToday's visit was to Town Close Hills Nature Reserve, Kippax, commonly known as Billy Woods. The reserve, which lies on Magnesian Limestone, is managed by Leeds Council through Forest of Leeds and is a designated SSSI.  Special attention is paid to managing the meadows to encourage the growth of lots of different plant species and although we were a bit late for the orchids (although we did find a few late-flowering ones) there was a good varied display of other flowers and we did enjoy the abundant clustered bellflowers, greater knapweed and marjoram in particular amongst the 160 species recorded on the day. Amongst other botanical highlights of the day were wild basil, water figwort and gromwell - a first for the group this year.

Birdlife was once again a bit sparse but we did manage to note 19 species and we did enjoy the songs of yellowhammer and chiffchaff throughout our stay. 

We kept an continual eye on the weather as a band of heavy rain was forecast for later in the day and for this reason we decided to curtail the walk a little to try and avoid the heavy rain.  Fortunately we managed to do this but the day was overcast with light rain showers on and off throughout our visit and umbrellas were continually being put up and down.  Despite the weather conditions there was a reasonable amount of butterfly activity and we did record 10 species including a marbled white which we were very pleasantly surprised to see.

14 members enjoyed today's trip which was organised and led by Eric. 

Stuart

Tees TransporterA group of 13 participated in today's extended trip to Teesmouth which was led by Margaret and Stuart. When we set off, the weather looked very uncertain. We chose to go via the A1 to avoid the traffic heading for the Great Yorkshire Show. As we travelled further north the weather did seem to improve a little with occasional appearances by the sun. In Middlesbrough we headed for the Tees transporter bridge. There had been questions over whether we could go on this bridge with its 3 tonne weight limit. Maybe we should have had a baggage and people weigh in before we set off! We did cross on the transporter without any mishaps, and it was interesting to experience this engineering feat. Our destination, Saltholme RSPB reserve was not far beyond the transporter bridge. We stopped here briefly to use the facilities, before continuing on to Seal Sands. This was a very exposed site, and the windy conditions made it feel very cold. The Teesmouth area has a strange juxtaposition of industrial and wildlife landscapes. Pollution once wiped out the seal colonies here,but they are now back again and we enjoyed several sightings of seals at Greatham Creek and from one of the hides which looks over the mud flats. It was quite difficult to identify some of the more distant birds, as the scope bearer had unfortunately failed to bring the scope, but we did record dunlin, golden plover, avocets, shelduck, curlew and a large flock of knot. Botanical interest included sea lavender, great lettuce, perennial wall rocket and strawberry clover.

Golden PloverFollowing lunch at Seal Sands, we moved on to North Gare, an area of sand dunes and marsh. The botanists went off to botanise, and the rest of us walked along the path through the golf course and then down to the sea. Goldfinch, linnet and skylark were noted, but there weren't many birds to be seen. We continued on to the pier, before returning to the car park. The botanists stayed at North Gare whilst the remainder of the group returned to RSPB Saltholme. We got there at about 3.45, and some made a mad dash for the cafe which closed at 4pm. Just made it. There looked to be plenty to see here, but unfortunately we had little time to explore as the reserve closes at 5pm. The visitor centre is very modern and overlooks one of the lakes, where common tern, sand martin and pied wagtail were seen. It was sad to hear of the tern chicks being predated by the foxes. In the time remaining, most of us took the path to Saltholme Hide where yellow wagtails had been sighted. Initially there was no sign of them, but first a female and then a male perched on the fence posts giving us excellent views.

43 birds were recorded today. With the closure of the RSPB reserve, we set off back to North Gare to collect the botanists. They had seen an abundance of northern marsh orchids, and noted hybrid common spotted/northern marsh orchids, as well as seeing purple milk vetch. In total, 132 plants were recorded in flower/fruit across all sites. Unfortunately, butterflies were largely absent.

From North Gare we drove to Coneythorpe where we had booked our evening meal at the Tiger Inn. The food was superb and it was a lovely end to an enjoyable day out. It was raining heavily when we set off back to Bradford, arriving back at about 10pm. 

Sue 

Marbled White and Burnet MothToday we headed East to the Yorkshire Wolds to visit two YWT Reserves, Kiplingcoats Chalk Pit and North Newbould Becksies.  Kiplingcoates is a botanical SSSI and our visit was timed with the hope of seeing marbled white butterflies for which the site is famous.  We were not disappointed in either the variety and quantity of both plants and butterflies.  We recorded 1734 pyramidal orchids and numerous other flower species, including hawkweed ox-tongue which was one of those rare sightings that BEES make from time to time - a first for the day's leader, Joan Dobson.  It's not often that we can add to Joan's extensive lifetime list!  Other major highlights at Kiplingcotes were basil thyme and red hemp-nettle. 

Despite generally overcast and quite windy conditions for most of the day we were delighted to see scores of marbled white butterflies together with 10 other species of butterfly and six-spot burnet moths which together with other unidentified moths made the total of butterflies and moths greater than the bird count on the day which was surprisingly low at 13 species - the highlight being yellowhammer which sang for us for most of our stay.

Pyramidal OrchidNorth Newbould Becksies is a small wetland site and although Joan had made everyone aware that wellingtons were essential for exploring the site, some had not heeded the warning and got their feet wet!  Here there were common spotted orchids aplenty together with blue water speedwell, water figwort and marsh hawksbeard amongst many other wetland varieties.

A short stop at North Cave Wetlands also afforded a comfort break on the return journey and rounded off another very interesting and enjoyable day for the ten select members who joined today's outing. 

Stuart

Parent Feeding Spotted Flycatcher ChickA group of 14 were on today's trip to Grassington, which was led by Alice. On the drive to the Dales, we were closely watching the weather. There had been thunderstorms overnight, and big black clouds were looming. On arrival at our starting point at the main car park in Grassington, the weather still looked uncertain as were many of us about whether to don waterproofs. We headed down to the bridge across the Upper Linton Falls where we saw grey wagtails, chaffinch, starling and song thrush. Marsh yellow cress was seen on the rocks below, and winter cress was also found here. We continued our walk along the side of the River Wharfe. The highlight at this point was the views we had of common sandpipers and a dipper. The sun was breaking through the clouds, and the weather just continued to improve throughout the day. The scenery was beautiful. We reached the stepping stones across the river that lead to Linton church, but we didn't cross over. Several goosanders were seen perched on a rock on the river and the remains of a crayfish was found on the river bank - maybe one of the alien invader signal crayfish. A boggy area was found by the river path which kept the botanists busy for some time. Club moss, mimulus and lesser water parsnip being recorded. Whilst the botanists were botanising, the birdwatchers were enjoying their own delights having sighted a spotted flycatcher which was feeding chicks in a nearby tree. Wood warblers were also briefly seen, and a song thrush was seen going in and out of a hole in the stone wall. We stood and watched the birds here for quite some time. Soon after this we stopped for lunch on the edge of the river right opposite a sand martin bank. Again, we had views of a parent feeding a chick which was poking its head out of the nest.Grypocoris stysi (miridae family) In the River Wharfe we saw numerous small rainbow trout and minnow and we also saw a bullhead. Large numbers of oyster catchers were both seen and heard.We left the riverside path and followed Hebden Beck towards Hebden village. Unfortunately the little village shop was closed so ice cream was off the menu. We headed for the pub, but that was closed too!! Beyond the village we continued our walk through fields and on walled lanes. The views were wonderful and several small planes and a couple of helicopters intermittently disturbed the peace. Our route also took us through the Grasington Park Estate Meadows, a SSSI where the Grassington isolation hospital once stood. There was an abundance of wild flowers including greater burnet and common spotted orchid, but the highlight here was a vast swathe of melancholy thistle interspersed with other wild flowers. 33 birds and 141 flowering plants/ferns were recorded. Four butterflies were sighted including common blue, small tortoiseshell and red admiral.  We passed through Grassington vilaage and eagerly headed for the information centre at the car park, once more anticipating ice creams, but they didn't sell any! In spite of being denied our ice cream treats, we had enjoyed a fantastic day out.  

Sue 

Northern Marsh Orchid14 travelled in the minibus on today's trip to Semer Water which was led by Andrew and Lorna. We were full of anticipation in the gloriously sunny conditions and with a good forecast for the day ahead. On arrival at our base, Raydale Preserves in the hamlet of Stalling Busk, several of the group enjoyed hot drinks/cream teas. It was clouding over and feeling cooler and some of us were wondering if we'd brought enough clothing! However, the clouds dispersed as quickly as they'd gathered and we once again enjoyed warm sunshine which lasted throughout the walk. Our route took us through several traditional hay meadows, so colourful with the abundant wild flowers and the views were stunning. Wood cranesbill, meadow cranesbill, yellow rattle, betony, bitter vetch and even a bluebell were noted. Surprisingly, we also saw a hawthorn in full bloom today. Numerous chimney sweeper moths were flitting between the flowers. Only three butterflies were recorded today - red admiral, small heath and green-veined white. The path descended quite steeply and passed close to a beck with little waterfalls. Although pretty, this would have been more spectacular were it not for the recent dry spell that we've experienced. A strange sight was that of a bird cherry whose branch ends were all covered in a cocoon, probably the work of ermine moth caterpillars. Some areas were quite boggy and we saw different flowers here such as marsh hawksbeard, northern marsh orchid and ragged robin. The ruined 17th century church was our lunch stop, but it was nearly 2.30pm before we got there. Maybe our hunger was a factor when Joan identified a common spike-rush, and this was processed by some in the group as "common pie crust", Growleris deliciosa. I think that name will stick with our group for a while. Whilst enjoying lunch, curlews were reeling and calling overhead, and then we enjoyed a fly past of 4 oystercatchers with 2 curlews just above them. After lunch we headed for Semer Water, a SSSI nature reserve managed by the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust. The lake lies in a glaciated limestone valley. Marsh thistle, melancholy thistle, common spotted orchid and mouse-eared hawkweed were among the 133 flowering plants/ferns recorded. A ringed plover was seen on the shore of the lake, we had several good sightings of redstarts and a lapwing was seen with two chicks. At the end of the lake, we turned onto the uphill road back to Stalling Busk. Some of our day's birding highlights were on this road. 

Lapwing in FlightHere the lapwings were quite vociferous as they flew low over our heads suggesting there may have been nests nearby. The alarm call of a redshank alerted us to his presence only about 20 yards away. A skylark, treecreeper, kestrel and meadow pipits were also seen. We got back to base at about 5pm where preserves and hot drinks were purchased, and we spotted a house martin which appeared to be starting some nest building. Today was a feast for both botanists and birdwatchers, 37 species of birds being recorded.     

Sue