Compared to past centuries, we live in a bright, highly illuminated world where even our nights are bright.  Apart from the lights in our homes and offices, there are thousands of street lights. In many places, the natural 'night time' environment is no more.  This 'artificial light' pollution  has increased significantly in recent times (as indicated by research led by the University of Exeter).    Street lights, especially the newer LED ones, may be affecting various night flying insects.   It is a fact that insect populations in general are under threat from  The loss of woodlands, forests, heathlands and meadows (often to agriculture) The intensive use of pesticides Climate change / extreme weather events Pollution of rivers / lakes (eg. Nitrate / phosphate pollution leading to eutrophication). Now the intensive use of artificial light is thought to be affecting night flying insects, such as moths. Moth populations are in decline, for example, the Buff Arches population, has declined in number by 62% since the 1970s. However, the effects are not limited to moths but also birds, bats and wildlife that feed upon them (or their caterpillars). The UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology suggests that streets bathed in light may:- Deter nocturnal moths from egg laying. Make the night flying moths ‘easier targets’ for predators (such as bats). Affect the feeding habits of moth caterpillars. A number of investigations have been initiated by CEH, Newcastle University and Butterfly Conservation. The work involved surveys of grassland and hedgerows in southern England (Thames Valley) some lit by streetlamp, others unlit.  The areas that were exposed to night time lights had roughly half the number of caterpillars as compared to the unlit areas; (the hedgerows reduction was 47%, and 33% in grass margins).  In another investigation, LED lighting was set up in fields, caterpillars numbers in such fields were reduced.  It would seem that night time light affects the feeding behaviour of caterpillars. Quite how and why is to be determined. LED lights are being using more and more, as they are brighter, cheaper to run and more energy efficient. LEDs emit more blue light than older forms of lighting. It is likely that the impacts of light pollution on night flying insects will increase. This, in turn, will effect of other species, such as hedgehogs which need many, many caterpillars to feed themselves and their young.  The loss of insects, such as bees, ants and beetles is occurring at a worrying rate, indeed faster than the loss of mammalian, avian or reptilian species.  The loss of insects has far reaching consequences for ecosystems - as they provide food for many vertebrate species and they acts as pollinating agents for many flowers and crops.   https://youtu.be/Rnsz7JtBmJw

Reports on pollinators. Research by workers at the University of Reading and the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology has shown that various ground level pollutants (nitrogen oxides and ozone) have significant effects on the pollinating activities of bees, moths, butterflies and hoverflies.  The number of flower visits by these insects declined, as did the level of pollination and seed production. The University of Göttinggen has published a study that bumblebees need a diverse pollen diet, collected over a variety of habitats.  A varied pollen diet contributes to better colony growth, more offspring (particularly young queens).  It also helps offset the effects of infestation with wax moth larvae.  Wax moth caterpillars feed on nest debris, but as they grow they switch to feeding on the food stores and even grubs / larvae, effectively destroying the nest. Recent work by an Irish postgraduate student on insect pollinators in Dublin suggests that a “less is more’ approach  might be effective when it comes to natural green areas in cities.   Emma King looked at the pollinators present in Areas of planted meadows or sown with wild flower mixes. Areas with reduced mowing that were allowed regenerate naturally. She found that though insects like bumblebees and hoverflies were more frequently recorded in planted meadows, statistically there was no significant difference in the numbers; and the community of pollinators was similar in both types of green areas.  The advantage of allowing green areas to develop naturally is that it reduces labour and material (seeds) costs.  They may take a bit longer to establish a diverse flora but they will offer resources to pollinators. Such green spaces promote habitat connectivity within the urban environment. Sunflower update Work by staff at the University of British Columbia has revealed that sunflowers (like many other flowers) helps bees to visit by invisible (to us) ultra-violet patterns - usually in the form of a ‘bulls-eye’.   They observed that sunflowers growing in drier conditions had flowers with larger UV ‘guides’.  Furthermore, it was found that a particular gene was responsible for the nature of the bulls-eye pattern, and this gene was also associated with the production of flavonol compounds.   Quite how the gene and the production of flavonols is related to the capacity of sunflowers to retain water is not known. [Full details of the work of Dr M Tedesco et al here].

Wetlands. In the past, many areas of wetlands have been drained and ‘dried out’.  Now it is recognised that this is counter-productive in terms of carbon storage / sequestration and biodiversity, so there are now measures to restore wetlands. The hope has been that restoration of wetlands will do much to restore the variety of plants and animals (and help carbon storage).  However, research by the University of Copenhagen suggests that such projects might be ‘struggling’. The study examined ten wetlands (near the River Odense) that were restored between 2001 and 2011.  The restoration involved the removal of drains and ditches, and allowed streams to meander again instead of flowing in ‘straight channels’.  The aim of the project was primarily to reduce the leaching of nitrogen and phosphorus from adjacent farmlands, and hope to see greater diversity of plants (e.g. marsh orchids, globeflower, tussock-sedge and ragged-robin).   The ‘restored’ wetlands were botanically poor (whether restored in 2001 or 2011), they had only a quarter of the plant species compared to natural wetlands.  This may be due to  the continued input of nutrients (from agriculture), which encourages species that are ‘nutrient hungry’ at the expense of others. the ‘difficulty’ of wetland species to disperse from one area to another. It may be that future restoration programs will need to include planting / seeding of additional wetland species. It has been suggested  that it could take the best part of a hundred years for the restored wetlands to resemble natural wetlands. Redwoods and relatives. Previous posts have talked about the special features of the giant redwoods (their height, age etc).  Over the last 150 years, they have ben subject to the pressures of commercial logging, clear felling and more recently high intensity fires.  Indeed, the fires have been of such an intensity that seed banks in the soil have been destroyed. Now they have been subject to genomic analysis, that is their DNA has been analysed and sequenced.  The first conifer genome to be sequenced was that of Norway Spruce, then that of loblolly pine.  These suggested that conifer genomes are large (3 to 10 times larger than the human genome), with repetitive sequences.  Coast Redwoods are hexaploid, that is, they ave six copies of each chromosome (we are diploid, that is, have only two copies of each chromosome).   The DNA of a coast redwood has  27 billion base pairs of DNA, the giant sequoia has 8 billion; by contrast we have circa 3 billion.   It is hoped that the Redwood Genome project will see the restoration of areas of coast redwood and giant sequoia that have been lost over the years. The genomic analysis will help inform and guide management strategies, ensuring genetic diversity in the newly planted tree seedlings. Such a strategy will (hopefully) enable newly planted areas to survive and thrive — in the Anthropocene. More on chromosomes Just as it has recently been shown that Coast redwoods are polyploids (i.e. have extra sets of chromosomes), so recent research in the Czech Republic has shown that the common nettle [Urtica dioica] has different ecological ‘preferences’ depending on its chromosomal status.  Nettles can be diploid (2n = 26) or tetraploid (2n = 52).  The tetraploid nettles seemingly have a broader ecological tolerance and a wide geographical distribution, whilst the diploid nettles occur in a narrower range of ecological conditions. Details of this research can be accessed here (note link opens a PDF) and Plants for a future has lots of information on nettles.    

When I say I get a buzz out of detecting I mean it literally: a good detector device makes a different buzzing sound for different metals.  A low note or deep buzz means it's probably iron and not worth digging up, saving the detectorist wasting time digging out old nails or fence wire.  In contrast, a higher/lighter tone means you are more likely to be finding bronze or even maybe the detectorist's dream - gold or silver coins. Today I did my first day of metal detecting with an expert detectorist, Joe Green, part of the "dynamic trio" as he and his team call themselves.  Joe took me around a woodland where he has permission to detect and we spent three hours scanning the ground and digging out finds.  In that short time we found: two old bullet cases as the wood had been used for army training in WW2 one bullet one musket ball probably dating from around 1800 CE, might be earlier two Georgian buttons one thrupenny bit / threepence, from the 1930's a buckle a worn Georgian halfpenny Less usefully we found one ring-pull, some foil, and about half a dozen discarded shot cartridges from pheasant shooting in recent years.  All the items we found were within six inches (15cm) of the surface and in good flinty/chalky soil they will usually be even nearer to the surface.  Clay soils are more difficult and objects often escape detection by sinking down over the years. According to Joe, my guide and mentor, it's a logical but probabilistic game where you look for features and ancient tracks and if you detect something interesting you should concentrate on that area as finds are often concentrated into "hot spots".  High ground is often promising and sites of ancient settlements can be rewarding.  Joe has been really successful and has found some gold and silver coins some of which are currently at the British Museum which may be bought from him.  As any detectorist will tell you, there is always a moment of optimistic anticipation between the moment when the metal detector bleeps and when you have excavated and brushed off your find.  After the tell-tale bleep it's not always quick to track down small finds and many detectorists use a small handheld device for the last bit of close-range finding, called a "metal detector pinpointer". Joe showed me how to use the detector so that the head of the device, the coil, was parallel to the ground and I swept the head in wide, overlapping arcs so that no stone is left unturned - if it's got a coin under it.  Some of these devices have larger coils which enable more area to be covered and give the coil a better reach.  For our detection we used a Deus 1 detector, costing about £750 but Joe is about to invest £1,400 to get the Deus 2. "The UK is remarkably liberal for detectorists and although you need the landowner's permission you don't have to be qualified to detect', says Joe. In France,  a detectorist needs a special license from Authorities to search an area of land, as well as permission from the landowner. In Poland, detecting is banned.   Joe adds that "you can't detect on Sites of Scientific interest, Ministry of Defence land or Historic Monuments.   Also, if you find "treasure", such as gold or silver over 300 years old - you have, in England and Wales, to give first refusal to the authorities in case they want to buy it from you for a museum.   Usually if they do buy you find, the proceeds are shared equally between the landowner and the detectorist". For my metal detecting outing I had done some armchair homework by watching Mackenzie Crook's BBC Four series called "Detectorists".  It's a magical introduction to metal detecting, the club rivalries, nighthawks (illegal night-time detectorists), and the use of detectors to find lost objects.  It also has some scenes where Toby Jones portrays a character who finds gold "treasure" which gets displayed at the British Museum. Joe has a real ear - and eye - for the metal detecting hobby and he's been doing it for 13 years.  On our outing he found a shiny city livery button which he has dated to 1825 and was bought from a London Taylor's shop.  Livery buttons were part of the uniform that was worn by servants to a particular estate / household.  May be it was lost whilst searching the area for firewood. My half day of detecting left me astonished to find just how much metal there is in an ancient woodland.   It made me realise just how much unrecorded history exists in every part of Britain and how much of life used to happen outdoors.  In our three hour session, we must have detected about 20 interesting objects over just a very small part of the woodland - in the whole wood there must be hundreds, perhaps thousands, of hidden objects.  History may be unrecorded here but it has left traces and detectorists have an important role in exposing the past life of woodlands. Treasure may be 2 or more silver or gold coins found together that are more than 300 years old, or if they contain less than 10% gold or silver there must be at least 10 in the find for it to qualify Any object that is more than 300 years old that contains more than 10% precious metal 2 or more artifacts which are base metal (not gold or silver) that are found together.  

Crust fungi is a generic term referring to those species that grow flatly in patches that spread out against their substrate, typically on dead wood such as logs (on the side and underneath), or on stumps and fallen branches, although a merciful few may appear as unwanted guests in domestic settings, like the notorious Coniophora puteana (“Wet Rot”). Examples of crust fungi can be found throughout the whole year, but a few species are particularly noticeable around the winter months, when there’s little else of apparent interest around. The term ‘resupinate’ is often used to describe these types, which means that the fertile surface, or hymenium, from which they release their spores faces outwards, unlike conventional cap-and-stem types, where the hymenium is spread out over the gill area and faces downwards from beneath the cap.  With many of these species also forming shelves, with their uppermost margins projecting horizontally depending on the orientation of their substrate, some often find themselves described also as bracket fungi: indeed, a Facebook group dedicated to their identification, recording and photography is called Crust Fungi and Polypores. The most salient example is the Hairy Curtain Crust (Stereum Hirsutum), which is a common sight in broadleaf woodlands in January and February. (Note however that the terms ‘resupinate’ and ‘bracket’ are just descriptive categories which don’t have any meaning when ordering the various species in strict biological terms.) Crusts don’t have gills, but the hymenium can either be totally flat, in species described as corticioid, or it can be covered in pores, as for example species like the Cinnamon Porecrust (Fuscoporia ferrea). They also might be covered in warts, wrinkles, teeth or fine hairs that you might need a hand lens to discern properly. Different species can be a variety of colours (including salmon pinks, vibrant yellows and fiery oranges to the more nondescript white and not-quite white types), while other distinctive features might be their toughness, thickness, and how easy they are lifted from their substrate. I’ve covered a number of these different forms in more detail in previous posts on Elder Whitewash (Hyphodontia sambuci) and my rare find of Antrodia carbonia, as well as those linked already in this post. Identifying crust fungi can be a daunting business, with literally hundreds of species in the British Isles alone. Most might be happy to pass them by unnoticed. After all, they have no culinary value. This makes them a much understudied groups of fungi among amateur naturalists. For those that care to take a closer look however, the can do show up some very attractive aspects. The Netted Crust is one such example. It is very prevalent during the early part of the year and relatively easy to recognise. From my experience, it tends to grow on, and indeed along, fallen branches and twigs that are quite thin, with the hymenium facing down but the margins of the fruitbody projecting outwards in long extended wings, a bit like a flatworm.  On thicker branches, it might also form brackets.  The flesh is white and soft: it is easily torn and removed from the branch, although with age becomes tougher, with the underside hymenium also tinging yellow-brownish. The upper side, if looked at closely is covered in fine downy hairs, which you might need a hand lens to see properly. It is, however, the underside where this species really shows off its most magnificent aspect. It is covered in a much more discernible intricate pattern of low, irregularly shaped grooves and ridges, a surface that mycologists refer to as ‘meruloid’ – hence the ‘merulius’ part of its Latin name, Byssomerulius corium, and the ‘netted’ part of its common name. The Netted Crust is one of the most commonplace and readily identifiable of the crusts, and as such provides a wonderful gateway into looking more closely at this surprisingly fetching domain of fungi. As ever in the woodlands, it’s a case of look closely and you’ll find a whole new world of interest, and undoubtedly one of the best points about resupinate fungi is that you can find them across the entire year.  

So!  My story begins many, many years ago when I had a dream to own my very own woodland.  Of course I didn’t believe it would ever come true, however, a dream’s a dream and one day I decided to go for it.  I sold my house and downsized in a big way so that I had funds to realise my dream.  Then the search began, three years of searching. Everything I found was too far away, too expensive, too big, too small……!! Then, I fell on one for sale with Woodlands.co.uk, just five minutes from home and 6½ acres – perfect! I will never forget the day of completion.  I was soo excited and couldn’t wait to get the key to my gate so I could officially walk through my very own woodland.  As I struggled through the bracken and brambles, which in themselves were a delight…. Little birds popping out, discovering little plants, blackberries, raspberries, self-set holly bushes, oak trees… It was just wonderful.  The majestic Silver Birch trees towering over me giving sneak previews of the sky above.  The smell was just amazing…. Was it my imagination or was the air so pure with subtle scents of the tree and plant species. I was truly in my element. My intention was to spend as much time there as possible so setting up camp was a priority, along with a pathway so as not to disturb any wildlife/budding growths when clambering through the dense overgrowth. I cleared an area for the ‘camp’ which was soon to consist of a fire pit, stumps from the larger fallen trees for seats, a frame from cut off trees to throw a sheet of tarpaulin over - should the rain come. This little secret area became a huge part of the early days at the woodland. There’s nothing quite like boiling a kettle on an open fire, cooking lunch using the branches collected.  The smell, the warmth not to mention the smoke to keep the unwelcome little bug visitors away!!! Imagine my excitement when 7 deer came strolling past for the first time which gave me the idea to have an area to encourage them to visit so that we could hopefully see them regularly. Over the next few months, pathways were developed so that all areas of the woodland could be accessed with various areas of interest including a sensory garden, allotment, orchard, natural pond, various picnic areas, deer watch area, an ‘observatory’ to shelter us in the evening / night where we hide out and watched the night wildlife (deer, rabbits, owls), and our very own 'Hartley Hare' !!!).  On clear nights, watching the stars through the telescope is just amazing… there’s no light pollution so the sights are just amazing. Then there’s the memorial garden, inspired by my sister who I lost to Covid in March 2020. And, who could have a woodland without a bit of Winnie the Pooh – a tribute to Hundred Acre Wood!!! I have put bird boxes up to encourage varieties including Tree Creeper, Blue tits, Great Tits, Sparrows,, Nuthatches, Owls and baskets for Sparrow hawks, Hobbits and Buzzards. The original disappointment as squirrels moved into the Barn Owl box and Pigeons into the Tawny Owl box soon became delight as the babies arrived. It was so lovely watching the busy parents rearing their young. Then, the following season, guess what….. yes!!…. A Barn owl nested!! Friends and family just love to visit the woodland to enjoy the magical relaxing atmosphere; to explore the pathways leading to the various little nooks and crannies to search for plants, insects and just to sit quietly, listening to the birds and the rustle of the leaves. To anyone who has never thought of owning a woodland before, just imaging the freedom, the space, the never ending discoveries of plant life, tree life, wildlife and with imagination, you can make more than one dream come true.  To anyone who is thinking of owning a woodland…. Do it!  You will have nothing but pleasure and peace, and experience an immediate shift in your mental wellbeing and, if like me you have physical disabilities, the change of pace, the air, the green will have a positive impact on your aches and pains!!!           Thanks to Lesley for the above enthusiastic account of her woodland adventure.

It is estimated that each year UK households spend some 250 million pounds on bird food.  This amounts to some 150,000 tonnes of suet pellets, fats balls, peanuts, sunflower seeds etc - on offer (in feeders of varying complexity*) in urban and sub-urban gardens.  These offerings are a marked contrast to the occasional kitchen scraps that were placed on home-made bird feeding tables some 50 years ago.  The question has recently been raised as to whether this is a good thing.  In 2019, research by the British Trust for Ornithology indicated that this provision of food can affect bird communities in the United Kingdom.   For example, species that rarely visited gardens in the past, have become common visitors. Now, researchers at Manchester Metropolitan University have suggested that these extensive offerings of food might be affecting the ecological balance between different species. Blue tits and great tits are regular feeders in gardens, and they appear to benefit from this provision.  Blue tits tend to be be quite dominant in terms of their interactions with other birds - whether quarrelling over food or nest sites.  Consequently, species like willow tits and marsh tits tend to ‘lose out’ in such altercations.  Certainly, willow tits miss out to blue tits in the competition for nesting sites.  Another species affected is the pied flycatcher.  This is a summer visitor, spending the winter in West Africa.  It, too, is in competition with great tits for nesting sites.  The provision of food for resident bird populations may tip the balance against summer migrants, like the flycatcher. The change in feeding patterns of some birds may of course be associated with the expansion of farming over the decades and the consequent loss of natural foods such as fruits, seeds, nuts and berries - from  hedgerow flowers and shrubs.  This may contribute to birds visiting gardens more often.  It may be that our desire to help garden wildlife needs more thought as to the type of ‘help’ that is offered.  This could involve allowing our roadside verges and gardens to be ‘wilder’, with less frequent moving of lawns / grassy areas, more ground cover, planting native trees (like crab apples, hawthorn), less weeding, allowing seeds and fruits  (eg. rose hips) to form, which would encourage insects / spiders Consequently more natural resources would be available to birds and only in harsh times would supplementary materials be needed.   NB : it is essential that feeders are regularly cleaned so that disease is kept to a minimum [e.g. Trichomonosis  caused by the protozoan parasite Trichomonas gallinae] . Remember later this month (28 - 30th January), there is the Big Garden Birdwatch, organised by the RSPB. For further information, click on the image below:-   A footnote : As a species, we have not always been kind to birds.  A recent paper from Tel Aviv University details how humans have been responsible for the extinction of hundreds of birds species (over the last 50,000 years).  They have listed some 469 species of birds that have been lost, though the true number is probably considerably higher.   Many of these extinctions occurred in a short time frame and  were due to either : The hunting of birds (and their eggs) for food or The killing of birds by animals (rats etc) that human expansion brought to islands / countries. Many of the extinct species shared a number of features : Most lived on islands Many were large or very large birds (e.g. the dodo on Mauritius - that provided humans with significant quantise of high quality protein. (A similar fate befell certain large lizards and turtles). Many of the birds were flightless and could not escape their hunters.  

I purchased a small woodland in West Lothian in July 2020.  It is ex-forestry commission woodland of about 4.75 acres.  It had some open areas, gaps in its planting as a result of two gas-pipe easements through it. On one edge of the wood, there is a small river, the opposite boundary is a road. The parcel of woodland is one of several side-by-side blocks with common planting, mainly of larch, but with a fair number of hazel, oak, cherry, sycamore and a few stragglers of other species. I was attracted to this woodland because it had a mixture of well established trees, but also a good opportunity to plant out the unwooded areas (that might be a third of the area). Researching gas wayleaves, I found that the distance allowable for plantings from the actual pipeline varies with the species and size intended for the trees. There are simple restrictions on heavy plant digging along the route of the buried pipeline for obvious reasons.   My main objectives in buying a woodland were twofold  to have a nearby source of firewood (I live locally), and  to add to a legacy for my adult children - an inheritance of something a little different.  As an old saying goes – buy land, they’re not making any more of it! Initially I just visited the spot many times and got used to finding out what lives there, who goes there and what happens. Dog walkers use the area a lot, and trampled grass attest to their frequency. I’ve maintained their routes by trimming and mowing. but I also came across families of deer, and many different bird species. Despite there being over a hundred hazel trees, there seemed no evidence of squirrels; as yet I’ve never seen one. But what of these wayleaves? Wild meadowland is all very well, but these were more wild rushes land. Rushes abounded and the unplanted areas were almost 100% rushes. I researched a lot about these, and was keen to find a method of eradication that didn’t involve chemicals. I found it in an old fashioned scythe. Purchasing one and learning how to sharpen it, and use it to best effect, I found that after an initial foray with a sickle bar mower, the scythe was the best tool for keeping the rushes under control. Now after some eighteen months, I’ve probably got about a quarter of the rushes left and I am working to rid the wood of the rest. I don’t let them seed, nor get enough growth to keep going, consequently they’re dying. Planting Christmas trees would allow planting closer to the pipes / wayleaves. Off to a nursery in East Lothian I went and loaded up with a thousand Norway and Serbian Spruce seedlings. I’ve since bought another two hundred, so in total planted about 1200. Over 1100 survived the drought of summer 2021. And still I’ve found more space, so intend planting several hundred more, but will vary the varieties. I have also planted some willows from cuttings along the river bank. The hazels were an attraction. With more than hundred, perhaps even two hundred, it was obvious that they’d never been pruned, so I learned about that and set to work thinning them. This has led to making hazel walking sticks as a side hobby! I was looking forward to last autumn’s harvest, seeing the signs of the promised fruit early on and the developing nuts during the summer. Judging the right day to go and harvest them and expecting to fill a 200 litre drum,  off I went.   Imagine my surprise to find the ground all trampled and not a nut to be seen! This was the first sign of “squirrels”, ones that wear wellingtons!. I imagine someone has been harvesting them for years and how would they know that these now belonged to someone taking an interest in their land?  My grandchildren have loved going “to the forest”. And their grandfather likes the quiet, the flora, the fauna and the peace, even without nuts! The above account with thanks to Geoff Crowley