BENFIELD WILDLIFEAND

CONSERVATION GROUP

SPRING NEWSLETTER

2018

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Chairman’s Thoughts

Clearing work has taken place from behind Greenleas car park with the comment “The works may appear to be rather drastic but the total area is only 0.6ha and as so much of it is infected with Elm Disease the council thought it best to go in harder than they have done in previous years and clear it all out.” So this is the council needing to take down diseased and some dangerous trees. I just hope the Dormouse had not reached this far. We met up with Richard, the manager of the new enterprise of Football Golf, one Tuesday Work day and briefly explained about the wild life on the reserve and the importance to care for this rare chalk habitat.The end of March saw the last of the scrub clearing for this winter; just the bonfire remains to be cleared. This year it was wet, cold, and windy working on the hillside. The sheep arrived later than we wished and the rather bare hillside is due to hungry sheep. It will be interesting to see what has survived the close cropping of the sheep.We look forward to seeing you all at the AGM on 9th May 2018 at 7.30 and trust you all had a good Easter regardless of the weather.

Our Events This Year

Our Annual General Meeting is taking place on Wednesday 9th May 2018 at 7.30 at the Oasis

Fellowship Church Hall followed by a talk on “The Women’s Land Army – A Sussex

Connection” by Ian Everest. COFFEE TEA RAFFLE

COME AND JOIN SALLY ON OURGUIDED FLOWER WALK ON SUNDAY 24TH JUNE AT

2 PM MEET ONBENFIELD BRIDGE, HOVE, OVER THE BY PASS

JOIN MARTIN ON OUR GUIDED EVENING GLOW -WORM COUNT ON SATURDAY 30th JUNE AT 10.30PM MEET AT THE HANGLETON MANOR PUBLIC HOUSE - BRING A TORCH AND WEAR SUITABLE FOOTWEAR

The Humble Starling.

A lot of the time the Starling is dismissed as just another brown bird descending on the garden in a flock, making a lot of noise, mess, and eating everything in sight, but I like this bumptious bird. Numbers swell in the winter with birds from the continent coming to the UK, but they are not as numerous as they were. They are omnivorous which is the reason their numbers were high, but now other factors like lack of nest sites and changes in farming practice have contributed to the decline. I love to watch them feeding in the garden on seed, raisins, fat sticks and mealworms which we put out for them (and other birds when they have a chance!) They are very messy eaters and food goes in all directions which the Collared Doves and House Sparrows kindly clear.Starlings have good memories apparently, and know which gardens to watch, and once the bird that was 'on guard' sees the food going out the message goes to the others and the mob follows. We always say "here come the heavy gang". They can be very flighty and don't stay long before zooming off somewhere else.Their plumage is absolutely gorgeous in the sunshine, with iridescent green, magenta, purple and blue. They are great mimics being able to imitate up to 20 other birds, telephone rings, car alarms etc. According to an article in The Times by Jonathan Tullock, they have 35 separate songs, plus 14 clicking sounds.Lastly who isn't mesmerised by the winter spectacle of a Starling murmuration? It is like a ballet performance with the huge flocks flying in formation over their roosting sites. Go down to the West Pier for the wonderful experience.

****************************************Signs of Spring on Benfield Hill.

Sally says,” Adders have been seen from the latter part of February basking in the sunshine as they emerged from hibernation. Walk quietly and you may be lucky to spot them. In one area on the hill six have been seen which is great. I have only managed to see four at once. Skylarks can be heard singing as they rise up from the ground and then "disappear" in the sky. There is quite a lot of bird activity on the hill as nesting time is nigh. How many of the bird boxes will be used this year? The leaves of Lords and Ladies are everywhere,together with Sweet Violets and a lovely patch of Primroses in full bloom. Have a walk up onto the hill and see what a good job the sheep have done.”

29th Biological Recorders' Seminar 2018

Here are a few points about some of the presentations.The Sussex Biodiversity Centre is now fully accredited by the Association of Local Environmental Records Centre after a very long process. The county database contains 6.7 million records!!! A lot of work goes on to process information which can be used by councils for example to either approve or refuse planning applications, but also it shows how wildlife is coping with all the pressures put upon it. You can find more information via the internet.

My favourite talk was called "The secret life of flies" presented by Erica McAlister of The Natural History Museum. When I saw this was to be 40 minutes long I wasn't looking forward to a probably dry, boring talk. I couldn't have been more wrong. It was fascinating, and delivered in a riveting way by someone who is obviously obsessed with flies! Flies are one of the biggest orders of creatures on the planet-7000 species in the U.K. They clean up dead animals and help in forensics to ascertain time of death in murder enquiries. Their maggots aid healing of wounds as they only eat necrotic (dead) flesh and leave the sound flesh alone.

There was so much fascinating data, and if you wish to know more Erica has written a book “The Secret Life of Flies" which I'm sure will be a good read.Graeme Lyons (Sussex Wildlife ecologist) talked about wildlife to be found on all Sussex Wildlife Trust reserves. Out of 40,000 records there were 1874 beetles, 1380 fungi, 1046 plants, 1368 flies, 383 spiders-142 found at Graffham Common, 1265 moths, and 317 birds. In total there are 10,093 species across the reserve network-quite impressive. Rye Harbour has 4324 species which is in 6th position in the U.K.

Sussex Seas by Sarah Wood was next. We tend to forget about the sea as they are out of sight most of the time therefore out of mind,  but as we know our seas are under constant threat. There are two projects looking at the sea  and the shore -Sea search (underwater) and Shore search (intertidal zone). Sussex has 6 Marine Conservation Zones and a further 4 under consultation. There are 11 sites for Shore search to which anyone can contribute. Check it out on the internet. We saw a short video of some of the underwater creatures like Blue Mussels, Dead Man's Fingers, flat fish and Spider Crabs.

Neil Hulme of Butterfly Conservation spoke about the plight of the Pearl Bordered Fritillary (PBF) and the Small Pearl Bordered Fritillary (SPBF). These butterflies are very specific in their needs. In the 1970s PBF were found in most woods but not now. In Sussex they like woodland clearings, glades and rides, and Common Dog Violet is necessary as it is the food plant of the larvae. Reduction in coppicing and climate change all contribute to their demise. The SPBF went extinct in 2013 . It likes wet with moist areas for oviposting.

Progress is being made by widening rides, clearing areas, using biomass for heating and also captive breeding programmes. Let us hope we can see these beautiful butterflies in Sussex again. Finally Ken Smith talked about yet another threatened species,the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, one possible cause being low breeding success. Great Spotted Woodpeckers rear on average 3.8 young as opposed to 1.5 for Lesser Spotted. If anyone finds a nest of the latter please report it to the Biodiversity Centre. L S.W. they have been known to come to garden feeders - that would be a great garden tick! There is obviously work in progress.

As always the day was interesting and informative.

HK HEDGEHOGS Spring & Summer Events – Save the Dates

Fabulous Hedgehog Fun Day Saturday 12 th May 2018, Knoll Park Pavilion 12 – 4pm

Celebrate national Hedgehog Awareness Week with us at our annual FUN DAY. Find out how you can help and enjoy hedgehogs and other wildlife in your garden, and take part in lots of fun crafts, activities and games. Refreshments available too!.

Night-time Nature Health Walks – Friday 18 th May and Friday 29 th June, Meet Knoll Park Pavillion. 8.30pm

Join us for one of two atmospheric three – mile evening walks around Hangleton and Knoll and enjoy the night – time sights and sounds. Discover the area’s parks and green spaces, try out a Bat Detector, and find out more about nocturnal wildlife.Meet 8.30 pm for registration and refreshments at the Pavilion in Knoll Park, before we set off walking, around sunsetMore details at facebook.com/hkhedgehogs

Make every street a “Hedgehog Street”

*******************************************HK Hedgehogs Spring update

Hedgehogs have been seen up and about over the winter especially when we have mild weather. An update on Gary Garage is that he has now vacated the garage and seen using an outside feeding station in the area. Remember to take care when tidying up in the garden or your allotment as these creatures will use a pile of leaves or old dead matter as a day time shelter. Make space for nature when planning your outdoor spaces. For gardening tips go to www.hedgehogstreet.org/ or www.ptes.org

Good news from the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) whose latest report “The State of Britain’s Hedgehogs” notes that an increase in awareness of the hedgehog’s plight and the creation of hedgehog paths in urban gardens appears to be having a positive effect. They state that the Hedgehog Street Project, since 2015, has led to more than 4,500 hedgehog highways where people have cut fist sized holes in the bottom of fences thereby creating linked gardens and green spaces in our urban areas.

Key quote: “Hedgehogs continue to face pressures in the rural landscape and from urban development, but monitoring numbers and actions such as Hedgehog Street and public efforts to improve garden habitats and connectivity, might be giving them a chance.”

Wilson, E. & Wembridge, D. 2018. The State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2018, British Hedgehog Preservation Society and People’s Trust for Endangered Species.

Looking Back over Winter

Sitting on a seat on the reserve I thought back to what we had been doing during the winter scrub clearing. The sun was shining and the birds around were in full song. The Robin appeared ever hopeful as usual but flitting around in the bushes I noticed two more, and waited for the inevitable scolding as the first Robin laid claim to a few crumbs from my sandwich.

I had walked down the pathway and as the sun came out from behind a cloud I found myself within inches...or so it seemed, from an Adder, as I moved quickly away and walked on another four revealed themselves all trying to warm up in that elusive sunshine.The volunteers had worked hard clearing out some of the roots of the Dog Wood which have spread up over the hillside in a strong bid to take over, along with the Brambles and Privet. I

wondered just what chalk loving flowers would be revealed in the cleared patches this summer. At the start of one of our work mornings Alan found an Owl Pellet, a leg bone was clearly showing. I felt this Pellet was worth dissecting to see if we could identify what had been on the menu.During lunch break on another work day, a very big furry caterpillar came trundling by. Looking through

the moth books at home it looks like a Fox Moth caterpillar.Just behind where I was sitting I noticed some dead wood with several

Polypores’s growing out of it. A Large Bee came by flying erratically past and the sun continued to shine and warm up my old bones.The conservation sheep have completed their work and the hillside looks quite bare with the ancient ant mounds clearly showing through, and the

reason why the hillside is grazed by sheep and not heavy cattle. The weather was so rainy when the sheep arrived and with their thick fleece the sheep were heavy to cut out of the odd long bramble which they managed to get tangled in. The snow added a pretty rural scene on the reserve with temperatures reaching a bone chilling -4 on one occasion. I just hope our early violets and Orchids survive the late browsing by the sheep.As the clouds obscured the sun, the north wind blew and my bit of quiet time in the sun was over.

The Contents of the Owl Pellet

Owls are unable to digest the fur and bone of their prey, which they usually swallow whole.Unlike other birds, the food goes directly from the owl’s mouth into its gizzard

where digestion begins. The food is separated into digestible and

indigestible parts. The indigestible parts, like the bones, fur, and soil, are compacted together into an oval-shaped pellet, which the owl regurgitates several hours after it eats. First the pellet was frozen, to hopefully kill off any health issues, then thawed and soaked in a shallow tray of cold water. Slowly the skeletons were revealed of the meal the Owl had eaten. Now back to the web site to see if we can identify what the meal was!!!! **************************************

Honeycroft HogsThree of our hedgehogs are still getting up each night to eat, the little rascals. They are a good weight but for some reason have decided not to hibernate. Our other hedgehogs are still fast asleep but will soon wake up as the temperature rises.March is the time, if the weather is good, that hedgehogs will stir from their slumber and come out to forage for food. They will have potentially lost 1/3rd of their body weight during hibernation and will be very hungry and thirsty. With their natural food source being still scarce due to slow rising temperatures, now is the time to provide food and fresh water each night to help our lovely hedgehogs prepare for the breeding season. Gardening - As the weather improves think about your gardening habits; be careful when strimming and mowing as hedgehogs could still be sleeping close to edges. Please check thoroughly before thinking about cutting down trees and bushes to avoid unnecessary disturbance to nesting birds. If you haven’t already, think about making or buying a hedgehog box for your garden. April hedgehogs should now be active and building up their lost body fat. They will be looking for suitable nesting sites so think about keeping a wild area in your garden with log piles. Keep putting out food and water as supplementary food. May is the mating season for hedgehogs and you may hear loud snuffling - like noises together with grunting at night in your garden. June this is the height of the breeding season and Mum hedgehog will give birth to around 4-6 hoglets. Mum hedgehog may be seen in the daytime gathering nesting material for her young.How you can help our Hedgehogs – keep a wild area in your garden, this will attract all sorts of wildlife and natural food source for hedgehogs. Create a log pile; avoid using pesticides; make a hole in your fence and ask your neighbours to do the same. Please call for advice if you have any concerns about hedgehogs in your garden.Carole Bean 07985 987908

Some Dates for your Diary 2018

Our Annual General Meeting is taking place on Wednesday 9th MAY 2018 at 7.30 at the Oasis Fellowship Church Hall followed by a talk on “The Women’s Land Army – A Sussex Connection” by Ian Everest. COFFEE TEA RAFFLE

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Sunday 24th JUNE 2018 An Invitation to Identify the Chalkland Flowers and Butterflies with Sally on Benfield Hill Local Nature Reserve, meet

2.00pm on the bridge beside the Information Board, at Benfield Hill over the bypass, for further details 01273 702589. Free but Donation appreciated

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June 30 th Saturday 10.30pm Join Martin for our Evening Annual Glowworm Survey on Benfield Hill. Meet 10.30pm in the evening outside the Hangleton Manor Public House, Hangleton, Hove bring a torch and wear suitable footwear, for further details contact 01273 414936. Free but donation appreciated

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Steven Teal has once again offered to have a moth survey on Benfield Hill and weather permitting it might be on Day Flying Moths. I will let you know the dates as soon as Steven contacts us.

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Wednesday 11 July10 am Midweek wildlife walk at Shipley Looking for farmland birds and Butterflies. Price: Free to Brighton local group members. £2 donation for non-members of the Brighton local group. There is limited parking in the village so please car share where possible Easy going walks, in pleasant company. Everyone welcome, bring a packed lunch and binoculars, strong footwear is advised. Please note: this event is run by an RSPB volunteer group and is organised for interested members of the local community. Directions: Shipley. Meet in the village parking area, School Lane, just east of the windmill. TQ144220 Contact e mail ed.lough@ntlworld.com

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If you have any interesting events going on in your group that you would like included in our events diary do contact me on 01273 410430