REPORT.

Well, storm ‘Bert’ did its worst overnight and through the early morning, with brisk winds and copious amounts of rain, topping up the Don, the Eaubeck and the Went, and saturating the types of vegetation we were aiming to investigate … so thanks everyone for turning out on such an un-promising morning.

However, by our starting time of 11am, the skies cleared and the SSW airflow flushed away the freezing air-mass of the previous week and lifted temperatures to a pleasant 14^oC.

Our little team consisted of 6 keen and experienced Harvest Mouse nest searchers, including John S; Tim & Louise; Paul & Joyce.

On our various routes to this northern perimeter of our recording region we all experienced flooded roads, very soggy landscapes and a very conspicuous road casualty Badger, killed on the bridge on the western entrance to Sykehouse (SE/620161). It’s very large size [was it a Herdwick sheep or was it a badger?] suggested it to be one of the adults from the population which for generations has lived in the area of Manor Farm and which our good friends Deena and Gwyneth knew all about [see A Year at Manor Farm by Deena Robinson (2003) Donc. Nats. Publication].

John’s early contribution to the day was a fresh Barn Owl pellet from his barn, and a bag of Walnuts from his farm which this year the Grey Squirrels have obligingly left! 

Our first project was to visit the ‘pond field’ of the Carstairs Conservation Trust on the west side of North Lane. In the days when horses hauled barges along the New Junction Canal, this field was apparently used to safely corral off duty barge horses. Although Harvest Mouse nests have been found on casual visits to this site, our first project was to undertake a timed search for abandoned nests in the tall riparian vegetation. Sadly, the wet weather had beaten down suitable vegetation and after 30 minutes searching, we found no sign of nests.

Fresh and glistening Rodent droppings on nibbled wind-fall crab-apples indicated vole or wood-mouse presence. John, however found a little elevated matted platform of vegetation amongst a clump of Willow-herb, indicating that a rodent had been harvesting and feeding on Willow-herb seeds. The presence of a tiny mouse dropping was possible evidence of Harvest Mouse.

Birds noted here included Blackbird, Song Thrush, Redwing, Robin, Dunnock, and a woodpecker (species unknown) was busily tap-tap-tapping the bark of a large Oak.

Since no suitable beds of tall vegetation were in the larger of the CCT field, we drove off to the second angler’s car park and from 11.30 to 12.00 searched the tall ruderal vegetation (mainly Cock’s-foot grass) adjacent to the canal tow path, sadly without success.

Lunch was had on the Barrier Bank, overlooking one of the species-rich hay meadows and its very sedgey ditch.  While having lunch, birds from the flooded fields adjacent to the Went were actively flying around, these included a Buzzard, two Whooper Swans, a skein of Greylag Geese and flights of duck including Mallards. Paul & Joyce had to leave us at this point to return to Brockadale to tend the Nature Reserve Cattle.

After lunch we commenced searching the ditch-full of Carex riparia we’d just been looking down on  and in 15 minutes, came up with our one and only Harvest Mouse nest of the day at SE/6478 1808.

We then crossed the canal via the aqueduct footbridge. This enabled us to see how flooded the went corridor was and that our proposed searches for otter footprints would have been impossible. We joined the track linking the SSSI Hay Meadows to the east of the canal, examining tussocks of Deschampsia cespitosa along field edged for mouse nests but without success. John and Louise took cuttings to propagate from a wild Pear Tree growing in the boundary of one of the CCT hay meadows.

At 2pm we re-assembled back at the 2^nd Angler’s car park after an enjoyable day out in the fresh air and in this remarkable landscape, which I was first introduced to by William Bunting and Peter Skidmore during a ‘European Conservation Year’ event back in 1970!

CAH 24.11.2024.
 

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Title : Flight. A Talk by Francis Hickenbottom
Meet : 1:30 pm at Parklands Social Club.

Report : 
 

 

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Venue : Moss Walk, Austerfield Mosaic Trust Reserve
Leader : Steven Heathcote.

Report : 

Recording took place in SK6594 and SK6595

The walk commenced from the car park on the southern haul road and crossed the short mildly acidic turf of the Rose Bowl, past the western end of the larger pond and up the slope northwards to open lichen bryophyte heath beside the main path at SK65939506 .

Heading west we searched (in vain) for the Ptilidium ciliare (Cilated fringewort) on the ride to the west of the conifer plantation.  The group crossed Christmas Tree Wood and stopped for lunch on the short acid turf on the western edge of the wood.  After lunch the group inspected and new Polypodium colony at SK65849504 and then headed west across the haul road and southwards on the path from SK65719499.

After a short excursion into the acid oak woodland in SK656949 (past a limestone marker boulder) the group headed eastwards through two open acid heath clearings which lie to the south of the large mound covered by Carex arenaria and Ulex europaeus.

Island Pond and Clare’s Pond were visited before the group emerged onto the main southern track and then headed eastwards back to the quarry haul road, taking a short diversion up a zig zag path onto a large linear sandy mound on the southern boundary of the site before returning to the cars.

Species recorded in chronological order.  Grid references provided from memory.

Identifications by Steven Heathcote.  Recorder Jim Burnett.

Other members present Paul and Joyce S, John N, Kevin G and Trustee, Sue R

Report prepared by L Hill

Species list by Stephen Heathcote

Table 1

Scientific Name	Synonym	Grid Ref (where known)	Description
Calliergonella cuspidata		SK65959485
Brachythecium rutabulum		SK659948
Lophocolea heterophylla		SK659949
Ceratodon purpureus		SK659949
Brachythecium albicans		SK659949
Pseudoscleropodium purum		SK659949
Didymodon fallax		SK659949
Dicranella varia		SK659949
Dicranum scoparium		SK659949
Lophocolea bidentata		SK659949
Aloina aloides		SK659949
Cephaloziella divaricata		SK659949
Polytrichum juniperinum		SK659950
Syntrichia ruralis var. ruralis		SK659950
Streblotrichum convolutum	Barbula convoluta	SK659950
Hypnum lacunosum var. lacunosum		SK659950
Hypnum cupressiforme		SK659950
Atrichum undulatum		SK659950
Lewinskya affinis	Orthotrichum affine	SK659950
Lophocolea semiteres		SK659950
Thuidium tamariscinum		SK659950	West of Christmas Tree Wood
Pogonatum aloides		SK659950	West of Christmas Tree Wood
Rhynchostegium confertum		SK659950	West of Christmas Tree Wood
Polytrichum formosum		SK659950	West of Christmas Tree Wood
Bryum rubens		SK65709496
Tortula muralis		SK65709496
Cryphaea heteromalla		SK6594
Frullania dilatata		SK6594
Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus		SK6594
Campylopus introflexus		SK657948
Drepanocladus aduncus		SK657947	Island Pond
Ulota bruchii		SK6594
Fossombronia incurva (cf.)		SK65929479	Path on top of high mound. Not fertile so can’t be confirmed. F. incurva is known from the site, so this is the most likely species.
Hypnum andoi		SK657950	Conifer plantation
Pseudotaxiphyllum elegans		SK657950	Conifer plantation
Fissidens taxifolius		SK657950	Conifer plantation
Bryum dichotomum		SK657950	Track edge
Didymodon luridus		SK657950	Track edge