Field trip reports

 Unlike previous years when the rain has been incessant or in deluge form, today was hot – hot – hot. Renowned for its lung-busting hill at the finish it was no surprise that only eight brave souls made the effort. From the shady side of the car park we had good views of Coal and Blue Tit, but special mention to the Nuthatches that played chase into the trees directly above. Along the lane towards the Chimney, the song or rather half the song of a Blackcap was heard – ‘it must be close’ and it was, throat pulsing to produce its liquid refrain. Nothing avian on the pond, but one splendid water lily, Common Newts on the surface, (we counted ten) and a Broad-bodied Chaser, fast and furious – out from its reed stem patrol around the area and back onto the stem – what a fat, powerful, powder blue body and swept wings he had. Spotted Orchid along the path down into the woods above the farm, where the first of the Raven was heard, and the first of six Chiffchaff called close by – very brave. A welcome rest in the shade for coffee and ‘I spy Swallows and House Martins’. Into Harptree Combe with more Chiffchaff and Blackcap calling, numerous Wrens, an obliging Treecreeper posing for us all, and a Song Thrush singing us out onto the road. Up through the village and our expected scream of Swift materialised, but it wasn’t until we’d climbed off the road that we got to do a proper count which was twelve. We admired a food-carrying Grey Wagtail, who refused to dive down towards her nest until we’d all got well clear. The final climb, with frequent rests to admire the view over CVL, a final Buzzard, a single Pied Wagtail and a couple of Linnets, finished our total at 29. Well done to all the walkers for ‘surviving’ this hot day and to Geoff for leading this beautiful walk. Nick Hawkridge  

 It was a warm sunny day with a light north-easterly breeze. 20 members met opposite Hinton Blewitt church and walked through the villages of Hinton Blewitt and Coley to the reservoirs. There were all the usual birds around, plenty of nesting House Sparrows, Blackbirds, Chaffinches, Starlings, Wrens, Jackdaws and House Martins and Swallows. We saw a Mistle Thrush carrying food to its chicks. The water levels were high on the lakes. Two families of Mallard had young, Coots were nesting and a pair of Great Crested Grebes had a youngster riding on the parents’ back and being fed fish by its father. There was a dabchick but no Wagtails, Herons or Cormorants. We saw two Sparrowhawks flying high over the reservoirs and several Common Buzzards as well. A pair of Shelduck were perhaps unusual in this area. Both Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers were seen and heard. The usual route back was surprisingly muddy which meant some detours and scrambling up the banks. We did add Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Yellowhammer to the list. The green lane was good for butterflies including Brimstone, Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Tortoiseshell and Speckled Wood. It was an interesting walk of just over five miles with a total of 43 species seen. (Thanks to John and Sue Prince for leading.) Sue Prince.  

 What a treat awaited us as we 22 Tuesday walkers assembled at the car park of Woodchester Park. A deep, densely-wooded valley with sides so steep that the trees providing us with a gorgeously dappled-shaded canopy – seemed amazingly tall. Ponds, one meandering so gracefully into the distance the eye was immediately drawn to far shore. A low mellow-stoned building where we lunched whilst thinking about its construction and previous use and a magnificent many-chimnied mansion. The National Trust leaflet describes Woodchester as “beautiful, peaceful, lovely and elegant”. Matt, an NT ranger who came to talk to us about the work being done here, said it was ‘romantic and tranquil’. We learnt how they are nurturing, amongst other things, the bat population – Greater and Lesser Horseshoe bats who have a summer roost and nursery in the mansion – and that the building we were in was the kennels. And the birds? Woodpigeon, Chaffinch, Wren, Blackbird, in the valley, with Song Thrush heard. Our first sighting of a Buzzard at the top, Blue and Great Tits at our coffee stop, Coots with young, Mallard and Treecreeper at the Old Pond, Tufted Duck, Grey Wagtails (described as ‘dancing on their tails’ by one of our party) and a Hobby at Middle Pond. Swallows at the kennels and House Martins and Rook at the Mansion, plus a handsome Mistle Thrush resting on the railings allowing us time to admire him. We also met three Exeter University PhD students looking for 15 badgers who had tracking collars; they located eight of them. Thank you Nancy for leading this lovely walk, providing us with a comfortable, pretty glade for elevenses and arranging for Matt to come and share his knowledge with us. It was a beautiful and interesting day with 31 species in all. Annie Hawkridge Boc Tue 10 June 2014 Woodchester Glen Ruth Stanton Belted Galoway cattle    

 By sticking strictly to time (10 o’clock start), we couldn’t count Little Egret, two of which flew over the car park, reasoning that we’d pick them up later. That held good for the Kestrel that came over at about the same time – we had three sightings of them, but alas the Egrets eluded us. The climb to the Trig Point netted us Chiffchaff, but not a squeak from a Greenish Warbler that was here the day before. The falling tide had left four Oystercatcher and some Shelduck feeding on the mud, but few other species apart from the gulls heading out towards Flat or Steep Holm. All 16 of us made it to Sand Point and what a lovely breeze was blowing to cool our brows in the sun. The first sighting of Cuckoo was made there and we saw it (or another) three more times over the course of the walk. A few Swifts and Swallows were feeding by the point and the first flight of Linnets also came over. On towards a welcome sit, coffee and chat gave us a flight of Feral Pigeons, a lone Rock Pipit and, carried on the wind, the shrill song of a Wren. All was fairly quiet up to the lunch stop on the banks of the River Banwell where we fed, rested, and listened to the Greenfinch wheezing, Robin singing and a Garden Warbler singing a truncated version of his song. Back along Middle Hope with the estuary on our right, we heard several Whitethroats but only got a good view of one. Our last species of the 35 of the day was a Blackcap singing from the underbrush by the rear entrance to the car park. An ice-cream was most welcome at the finish. Nick Hawkridge  

 A change of plan and what a good day you missed! The weather was kind and the four members who met Gordon in the car park were soon off to Bowling Green Marsh to see a ‘lifer’ for most –a Ross’s Gull. There was also a Little Gull and Mediterranean Gull in amongst the Black-headed Gulls, summer-plumaged Black-tailed Godwits and various duck and goose species. Back at Aylesbeare Common we were joined by another member for a while as we explored the paths on the RSPB reserve; Stonechat, Yellowhammer, Linnet, Willow Warbler, Whitethroat and Blackcap were amongst the birds identified. The unmistakeable song of a Tree Pipit soon enabled us to see him, but the Dartford Warblers (previously seen in this area) evaded us. Of the 30 species of butterfly recorded on this reserve, we were only able to identify Small Heath, Brimstone and Green Hairstreak. After lunch, we visited the Axe Estuary Wetlands – more specifically Black Hole Marsh and went to the Tower and Island hides. A good variety of birds including Reed Bunting, Reed Warbler, Oystercatcher, Curlew, Little Egret and Grey Heron were seen. Four adult Canada Geese had ten young between them and we also saw young Shelduck, a Coot and Oystercatcher sitting on their nests. The Bee-eaters reported that day across the river in Axmouth did not come our way. The two webcams in the information centre showed a Blue Tit nest with young and a nest with young Kestrels. About 50 species were seen during the day. Many thanks to Gordon for leading and his local knowledge and also for driving this small group between venues. Rosemary Brown  

 A small band of twelve members set out on a sunny morning to enjoy an amble along Shapwick Heath, passing the lagoons and visiting Noah’s and Meare Heath hides. There was then time to picnic in the Ashcott car park before a pleasant hour on Ham Wall. We had lively action from the start with Reed Warbler, Coal, Great and Blue Tits at the car park edge. A Robin and juvenile were seen and in a short distance a pair of Cetti’s Warblers were displaying, waggling their wings alternately at each other, framed in a gap through the bushes. Several more were heard along the track as was a Cuckoo periodically calling and a booming Bittern, more of which were seen flying later in the day when we reached the new Ham Wall hide. The lagoons had a good variety of water birds but few waders. There was a pair of Marsh Harriers and swooping Hobbies, and a Sparrowhawk giving a ‘fly past’. Little Grebe and Great White Egret were in the middle distance and a Whitethroat moved around the scrub alongside the South Drain. We were entertained by a Great Spotted Woodpecker on the bare branches of trees in standing water near Noah’s hide. A number of different chicks were seen, with a Great Crested Grebe sheltering hers on the nest. It was lovely to see Common Tern on the Ham Wall and we rounded the day off with a juvenile Blackcap, Long-tailed Tits and a Treecreeper making 56 species in all. (Thanks to Sue for leading.) Sue Watson  

 This reserve was established in 2000 to mitigate losses of wildlife habitat when the Cardiff Bay Barrage scheme was built, and is owned by National Resources Wales. The RSPB Visitor Centre has a shop and café, and there is a good picnic area. 18 of us met up at the car park and spent the morning roaming the site. The main ponds are bordered by extensive reed beds and were established on a reclaimed fuel ash disposal site, so cannot be developed very much for fear of disturbing the underlying deposits. By contrast, the area around the Centre has been extensively managed and is now maturing very nicely. A new feature is a set of Sand Martin nesting boxes. Weather for the day was dry, with only a slight breeze – ideal conditions for seeing the Bearded Tits, but we did saw any. Nor did we see the Marsh Harrier! However, Cetti’s, Sedge and Reed Warblers were calling loudly and some good sightings were reported, a Cuckoo made a brief appearance and Whimbrel were seen on the Severn mud flats, near the East Usk Lighthouse. After a picnic lunch we went by car to Goldcliff, at the other end of the reserve. This is an entirely different habitat, constructed on flooded fields in what was formerly a farming area. There are now a number of bird hides along the bank, with good views of the scrapes. Avocets breed here and we saw several chicks. It is a good area for waders and we saw Greenshank, Redshank, Little Egret, Ringed and Little Ringed Plover, and a Dunlin in summer plumage. Shovelers, Shelduck and Gadwall swam around to keep us entertained. This is a good venue and well worth visiting every year to see the improvements and growing number of birds being attracted to the site. Total number of species seen on this occasion was 56. Ray & Margaret Bulmer

 We met Mike Smart on a warm sunny evening for a guided walk around this wetland meadow alongside the canal. Brimstone butterflies were flitting around us as Swallows flew overhead to the sound of Skylarks. We took the circular walk through the SSSI spotting many plants before overlooking the first scrape. There were two Avocets feeding and the Oystercatchers had a chick following them about. Further on we heard the sound of Cuckoo and then it flew into the top of the nearest tree and gave us great views of it calling. The pond had lots of Mallards with their ducklings. Coming around to the other side of the scrape a Sedge Warbler sat on the fence post a few metres from us and gave us a serenade. We waited for dusk to arrive watching the wetland and were rewarded with a Whimbrel flying in and landing next to the Curlew; I didn’t realise there was such a size difference. This was a great end to an evening walk with 47 species seen. Thank you to Mike for leading. Louise Bailey  

 The wet, slippery and very muddy conditions of the previous week had fortunately dried up well in the sunshine and we were able to avoid the worst of it by keeping to the main path rather than the usual side track. Blackcaps were singing everywhere, also Wrens, Robins, Chaffinches and Goldcrests, though only one or two Chiffchaffs. On a thin downward-facing branch of a tree beside the path sat a Mistle Thrush, which I assumed to be a juvenile as it didn’t move while everyone traipsed past. Green and Great Spotted Woodpeckers were heard in the distance and a Song Thrush was singing. When we eventually arrived at the Bluebell area we found them to be profuse and stunning amid the green bracken. AWT had kindly left some sawn tree trunks nearby for us to sit on so we stayed there for our break, but when we reached the slope leading down to the stream we almost wished we’d waited. It was paradise – Bluebells and Bracken, surrounded by a forest of green and some Copper Beeches and a blue blue sky. Orange Tip butterflies and one Brimstone added to the colour. We only lost two people before the climb up to the fields above Noah’s Ark where our first Swifts were flying. Towards the end of the walk a Sparrowhawk was noted by the frontrunners and we heard one Whitethroat. In the village at the start we had 12 House Martins, House Sparrows, Starlings, Jackdaws, Blackbird, Collared Dove and Goldfinch. Rain threatened at one point but stayed away, and we ended up with 35 species (24 people). Judy Copeland

 What a pity only four members turned up for this meeting on a lovely sunny morning! Lower Woods is one of the largest oak-ash woodlands on heavy clay soils in England. Bill Heslegrave, a volunteer with Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, led us through some of the grassy trenches, rides and 23 coppices in this ancient wood. Birds were surprisingly scarce but we did see or hear Swallow, three species of Tit, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Jay, Grey Partridge, Buzzard, Nuthatch, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Mistle Thrush. Song Thrushes appeared to be present in most areas we visited. Sadly we did not hear or see any Nightingales – there are only one-two pairs here now compared to 12-15 pairs ten years ago. We walked through some beautiful flower-rich areas where we saw Early Purple Orchids, Twayblade, Pignut, leaves of Meadow Saffron and large swathes of Bluebells. Bill showed us some Cotham Marble as we walked along the Little Avon River and we learnt a lot about the history and management of this lovely area. Thanks to Bill for leading. Rosemary Brown