As a former student with the Open University I receive the OU magazine called Sesame. The autumn edition has an article on a new web site set up by the OU. The site is designed to enable anyone to get an identification of any form of wildlife which they have seen and wish to find out what it is. I know it works because having registered to use the service I uploaded a photograph of a moth found in my garden. Within a few days I had five people confirming its identity and as they all agreed I think that is pretty certain! You can find the site by clicking here.
Its always a pleasure to hear from fellow Bloggers and so welcome to "suetommer". It has made me think that it might be worth copying into a post, some of the stats showing the recent visitors . The first surprise has been the way people from all over the world have logged on. Secondly where it is recorded, it is interesting to see what search words were being used. For instance the words. "Do bats fly in the daytime", keeps coming up and so perhaps I should do more research on the subject for another post. I'll check the most recent visits and post a summary in a few days.
I wassurprised to see a news item about a press release by DEFRA on the subject of the quality of the soil on our farms. Its obviously an important subject and has great implications for wildlife of all kinds and perhaps my surprise was really a reaction to what I regard as good news. Hence this post simply to record the event of the issue of this report. Below is an extract from the DEFRA web site introducing the report. Click here to see the report in full.
Quote from http://www.defra.gov.uk/news/latest/2009/defra-0924.htm:
"Measures to protect and improve our soil to meet rising demand for food and to combat climate change have been unveiled by Environment Secretary Hilary Benn.
England’s soil has suffered over the last 200 years from the impacts of intensive farming and industrial pollution, and today is under threat from erosion by wind and rain, a loss of organic matter and nutrients, and pressure for development.
Safeguarding our Soils, published today, sets out how the government plans to halt and reverse the degradation of England’s soil over the next 20 years, working with farmers and other land managers, developers, planners and construction companies to manage soil sustainably.
By 2050 the world will need to double current food production to feed a growing population, possible only with healthy soils. Future sustainability of the UK’s food supply will depend on maintaining the natural resources, including soil, on which production depends.
Hilary Benn said: “Soil is one of the building blocks of life. Good quality soils are essential for a thriving farming industry, a sustainable food supply, and a healthy environment.
“Britain’s soils hold more carbon than all the trees in Europe’s forests – and their protection is critical if we are to successfully combat climate change.
“This is an important step in increasing the value we place on soil, and will safeguard this vital resource now and in the future.”
The strategy sets out how the government will:
Support farmers in managing agricultural soil, and address the threats to it;
Reduce the rate of loss of carbon in soil to tackle climate change, and use soil to help adapt to the impacts of climate change;
Provide a framework for action to protect peat habitats;
Protect soils in urban areas during development and construction;
Value soils in the planning system; and
Prevent pollution of soils, and deal with the historic legacy of contaminated land.
Measures include guidance, training and advice for the agriculture industry on protecting and increasing soil organic matter, incentives and regulation to prevent soil degradation, and the monitoring of levels and threats to the soil."
As you may realise I spent 6 years studying part time with the OU and ended up in 2006 with a BSc Hons, Open Degree, specialising in human geography and the environment. Since then I have become involved , as a volunteer , with the Somerset Wildlife Trust and spent a lot of time photographing wildlife and trying to identify a wide range of plants and insects. That is not always easy and I make do with my own efforts with key books and sometimes contacting people who know more than I do. So this week I was very interested to get details of the OU iSpot web site which you can find here.
I've started to explore its potential for helping amateur naturalists to acquire a better understanding of the wildlife they are exploring. Its very early days for the web site as it is with my use of it but I have started by registering and posting my first message with a photograph of a moth hoping to get confirmation of its name etc. We will see how it goes and I will add posts to let you know how I get on. Let me know if you try it and what you think of it by adding a comment to this message.
Our wildflower meadow has been full of interest this year. Plenty of butterflies, the great green bush cricket showing up but fewer Marbled Whites than in previous years and very few Bee Orchids, which I hear is the same elsewhere this year.
The hay has now been cut on 15th August. It was baled and the bales removed by the 21st and the gate locked.
As this cut was earlier than expected a 6 metre strip has been left nearest the new hedge, to provide a continuing habitat for the many butterflies present.Shown in the picture above.
This will also help the several species of grasshoppers and no doubt many other species.
An inspection of this strip on the 17th August showed the value of this action. There were numerous Common Blue and Meadow Brown butterflies, probably hundreds, still present whereas on the adjoining field and the rest of our field there are few of either. Large White butterflies are also present. It is likely that there are others I didn’t spot in the 30 minutes or so spent there. A good indicator of a healthy meadow is said to be the presence of small (or micro) moths which are disturbed when you walk through the grass and they are numerous.
The large area of Ladies Bedstraw is still intact and will have more time to seed as will a few Scabious and orchids.
Included here are a few photos from July and August this year.
These photos were taken whilst working in the garden. The moth is the common Magpie which is quite remarkable none the less. To view more clearly click on the picture to enlarge.
The large white was enjoying a rather prickly looking garden flower
Yet another fruitful session. Despite the relatively low numbers of members taking advantage of having a professional artist spend two mornings with us to guide us in trying to see everyday things in a new light we all felt it was a success. Unlike last year we had managed to produce attempts at some form of artistic interpretation of images seen during walks round Compton Dundon on the two Saturday sessions. We were able to compare our efforts of photography and sketching without feeling embarrassed about what we might feel about our own work.
This photo was my attempt to capture the richness of these grasses as they bent in the wind and created an interesting pattern. That's what I hoped anyway.
A big surprise to me was that a suggestion was made that we continue with our sessions and formed an ongoing arts and wildlife group. We are considering meeting once a month on a Saturday morning to try to develop our interest again with Jenny Graham to give us some guidance and inspiration. More on this soon. The word ARTS was chosen to show that we are interested in all forms of artistic work not just photography say. We are appreciative of the time Jenny has given to this project and for her interest in working with us in the Wildlife Trust.
Jenny has been exhibiting some of her paintings at the MKgallery in Somerton as part of the Art Week. Her web site can be seen with this link.
Have you ever tried to take a close up photograph of a small moth sitting quietly on the ceiling of your bathroom? The photo shown here is my best effort to get a good enough image for seeking an identification as I couldn't find it in my book ( Concise Guide to the Moths of GB and Ireland.)
Having got the best image I could, standing on a small step ladder with one foot on the toilet and with a tripod balanced precariously alongside the wash basin, I emailed it to John Bebbington , chairman of the Somerset Moth Group for an answer.
It is a Rosy Footman, Miltochrista miniata. It looks very different in the book which is what confused me. In fact the book shows , I think, a simplified drawing showing the pattern on the wings , but it looks quite different in real life.
I haven't said much about this subject for some time. It is a constant theme in wildlife conservation now and came up again yesterday at a meeting I attended to discuss Somerset Wildlife Trust future approach to the "Living Landscape" concept. The Trust it was said must keep the probable effects of climate change in mind it setting its long term goals.
Last night by coincidence I listened to the Dimbleby Lecture given by Prince Charles. It led me to check out the UN web sites covering the G8 conference and the forthcoming Copenhagen Conference. You can read the speech at this link.
All of these links can be a bit overwhelming and I think the UN is on the right track to run a simple campaign to get signatures on a petition to be used to get world governments to take action.
I have signed the petition on line and I am number 5092 on the list shown so its early days.
If you agree with me that we should do something to help the process along then you can find the petition at this link.
