Bats in Somerset

A surprising number of visitors to this blog have been searching for information on bats.

Here is a link to the Somerset Bat Group who might be able to help. Link here.

Moths

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.

Climate Change news

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.

Art and Wildlife workshop.

Art and Wildlife Workshop 4th July 2009

The view from the top of Lollover Hill is highly impressive.
The butterflies, Burnet moths and wild flowers seen on the way to the top are remarkable.
We had met at 9 am at the Compton Dundon village hall and over a coffee Jenny Graham had talked us through the plans for this session of the workshop. We then set off to explore the paths leading from the hall.
Most members of the group were interested in improving their photographic skills and with a clear handout we were given key advice which we were soon able to put into use.
The view from the top of Lollover Hill is so impressive on such a day that I was not surprised when someone exclaimed that the walk and the view must make you realise what a beautiful county we are very fortunate to live in.
The Burnett moths were apparently just emerging and sunning them selves all around us. Or were they busy mating? Marbled White were very obvious and a delight to see.
After much close observation and many photographs we returned to the hall. All agreed we would return for the second session on the 18th and would see what we could do with the images we had just experienced.
We expect a further group will also join us to conclude this years art and wildlife workshop.
If you couldn't make today's session and would like to join us on the 18th give me a call.

Parish and Town Councils

For this post which is I think the 200th post since I started this blog I thought I would follow up an idea which seems important to me and for the Wildlife conservation movement as a whole.
I am encouraged by the outspoken statement by the Somerset Wildlife Trust questioning the intentions of the new County Council following the change of political control. Also I am motivated by my long running attempt to persuade my local parish council to adopt a meadow as a nature reserve. Finally I am inspired by reading a book called " How to be Wild" by Simon Barnes.
The idea is that we as a local group of the SWT should make contact with the 18 parishes and two Town Councils in our area and ask them to answer questions about their activities concerning the environment. A few will be able to point to actions taken or supported.Many will find it hard to show much hard evidence. Put like this it doesn't sound very dramatic. However the point is that these authorities are the front line of governmental action on the environment and are pretty much allowed to do what they like with local matters such as setting up nature reserves or deciding on grass cutting of verges and grassy open areas. They can therefor do a great deal of damage or can do a great service to local environmental well being.

All I need to do is persuade our committee and get someone to help with telephone calls and letter writing and we can get started!!

Dr Anne Bebbington

DrAnne Bebbington will be giving our November talk for our HLG.
To illustrate the background to the talk I found this reference on a web site which demonstrates the depth of knowledge Dr Anne brings to her subject:

Click on this link.

My previous post gives background on John Bebbington who will also be involved in the Nov talk.

Wildlife photography in Somerset, John Bebbington

This is my photo of John as he discovered a Lappet moth caterpillar on a one year old hedge in a local meadow.
Below are some notes taken from the "Natural Photographers Portfolio" web site.
link here

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Nature Photographers' Portfolio


John Bebbington FRPS

John developed an interest in insects at a very early age – his first memorable encounter was with a queen Buff-tailed bumblebee at the age of 2! The sting made a lasting impression.

He bought his first SLR – a Spotmatic 1 – in the mid 1960s and natural history photography became a passion, especially after he joined the Field Studies Council as a tutor in North Wales and wanted to back up field teaching with illustrated talks. His photographic technique was given a real boost in the early 1970s when he met Michael Proctor who persuaded him to join the RPS Nature Group and submit images for Associateship.

In 1978 John took over as Head of Centre at the FSC’s Juniper Hall Field Centre, near Dorking in Surrey, where he remained until retirement in 2004. He began teaching natural history photography courses (close-up and macro in particular) in 1979 and continues to do so.

In 1991 he gained his FRPS with a slide panel entitled ‘Protective colouration in European Lepidoptera’ and has served twice on the RPS A&F panel in the Nature Category. He is currently a Committee member of the RPS Nature Group.

His main photographic interests are in close-up and macro work with invertebrates and plants and in photomicrography, using both film and digital imaging. He is also secretary of the Somerset Moth Group and works as an educational and photographic consultant.

Local commitmment to wildlife conservation

The SWT has just published this note following the recent County Council elections which produced a change in political control of the Council. My previous post reported on the national policy of the Conservative Party for reference.
Please go to the SWT web site for the complete statement.

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SWT throws down the environmental challenge to Somerset County Council

Somerset Wildlife Trust (SWT) today threw down a challenge to the new Conservative-led Somerset County Council to make a strong commitment to Somerset’s environment.

Simon Nash, SWT’s chief executive, said: "Since the Conservatives won control of Somerset County Council a few weeks ago, we have been hearing worrying reports of a lack of commitment to Somerset’s environment and a reduction in resources allocated to this essential area. One, from a source close to the Council, was that the new Somerset County Council "doesn’t even have environment on its radar".

"If this is true, it simply isn’t good enough. Somerset enjoys a beautiful and wildlife-rich countryside, but it is under threat from all sides, including increased development, intensive land management and climate change.

County Council and the environment

The Somerset Wildlife Trust has challenged our new Somerset County Council to live up to the policies published by the Conservative Party statements on its intentions regarding the environment if it gets elected to form a new government. Below is what it says it will do nationally.

How will it act locally?

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Environment

A Conservative Government will make Britain greener by tackling climate change and enhancing our environment.

We believe quality of life and environmental issues must be at the heart of politics – which is why we have pledged to improve Britain's environment by reversing the decline in our biodiversity, improving urban green spaces, providing incentives to recycle and working towards zero waste.

Britain is struggling to cope with growing mountains of waste. Ending our reliance on landfill is not just a question of raising recycling targets and finding better ways of coping with waste from discarded products; it is about changing our mindset. We need to act long before a product becomes waste in the first place - producers should be considering the waste implications when a product is still on the drawing board.

A Conservative Government will therefore introduce a Responsibility Deal on waste - a voluntary arrangement among producers to cut back on the production of waste and improve its disposal. In addition, we will encourage councils to adopt a scheme which gives incentives to households that recycle.

There is also an urgent and growing need to improve the protection of our marine environment, as many of our fish stocks have been over-exploited. We have called for legislation to conserve our marine habitats and are working to ensure the Marine and Coastal Access Bill is strengthened before it becomes law. We will also work to reform the Common Fisheries Policy to achieve a fair deal for our fishermen and seek a pilot scheme, supported by the European Commission, to help end the wasteful practice of fish discarding.

Because climate change adaption must go hand in hand with mitigation measures, we are committed to increasing Britain’s ability to cope with extreme weather conditions, for example by improving our flood prevention measures.

Art and Wildlife workshop. Preview

Our Art and Wildlife Workshop this year takes place on July 4th and 18th.

Art Project 2008. Having taken this photo I tried my hand at sitting on edge of the river and sketching. My art work was not photographed so can't be shown, thankfully. However the experience was quite surprisingly satisfying. I may try my hand at sketching again at this years workshop in July.



The photograph below is of a landscape painting by an accomplished artist which showed how a similar landscape could be interpreted.



All forms of artistic interpretation will be encouraged with guidance from Jenny Graham.