Biological Recorders' Seminar 2019 - Sussex Biodiversity

As the media fill with news of massive insect declines and the children's climate strike, I attended this year's biological recorders seminar.

Biological recording is simply noting down which plants and creatures that I see. Often I do this casually, while I go about my business and sometimes I take part in public project such as the New Year Flower Hunt.  The tool that I use most often is iRecord, which is available both as a website and an phone app. The latter is really easy to use because it figures out the location for you. Once they are in the system, they can be searched and used.

Some of my Uckfield iRecord results.

Before the seminars had even started, I found a great poster about Gill Valleys created by the University of Sussex River Ouse Project. Apparently there are some of these very near Uckfield but they are on private land, so it is difficult to get access to them.  Sussex Gills are steep-sided valleys in sandstone and mudstone areas. The habitat is usually undisturbed and has a rich variety of flora.

Frog in my Uckfield garden

It was with great pleasure that I found myself sitting next to "Agent Amphibian" who brings great style and imagination to the serious subject of amphibian conservation. A few years ago, in Brighton, I saw her TED talk on the subject. Later in the day, by the Sussex Amphibian and Reptile Group's stand, we and another had quite a chat about frogs and toads and when I mentioned that I was from Uckfield, talk turned to the Harland toads - it seems that they are famous! If you want to know more, visit the Harland's Pond Toad Rescue Facebook group.

30 Years of the Sussex Biological Recorders' Seminar

Tony Whitbread outlined some of the thrills and spills of the seminar over the 30 years in which it was running. We can't know what questions we will be asking in 20 years time, so we must collect data ready for when it is needed.

The Seals of Chichester Harbour

John Arnott gave a talk about the Common and Grey Seals of Chichester Harbour. The first record was in 1993 and their main haulout (rookery) is at Oar Rithe. The name Selsey comes from Seals-ey, which means isle of the seals.

Fungi of Lullington Heath

Martin Allison gave a great talk about Lullington Heath. It is unusual because it is chalk heathland, which has got both acid-loving healthland plants (heathers) and chalk-loving vegetation (Roundheaded Rampion). When grazing was stopped, this important habitat started being overtaken by scrub. Grazing has now been resumed. He explained that Waxcaps are often found on downland grassland.

Oily waxcap in Uckfield's Holy Cross Churchyard

Waxcaps are indicators of high quality, nutrient-poor grasslands, which are precious for various types of insects as well as fungi and plants. I found out, when doing a Churchyard survey, that these can preserve this type of habitat.

Some fungii such as Clouded Funnels make fairy rings. One lovely story is that shepherds would not allow their sheep to graze within fairy rings for fear that they would become enchanted.

Also, pony poo fungus was common in Victorian times but is rare now due to modern ponies being given treatments of various sorts. However, because conservation ponies are living in a more wild way, it is making a small comeback.

UK Seed Conservation at the Millennium Seed Bank

Stephanie Miles and Jenny Peach outlined projects at the Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) at Wakehurst. MSB has now conserved 98% of UK species. As well as collecting the seeds, they use them for conservation, restoration and educational projects - for example Marsh Gentian seeds have been used at Chailey. One of their projects is preserving the Spiked Rampion flower, which is present at 8 sites in Sussex - it is found on roadside verges and in coppiced woodlands.

Bryophyte Recording in Sussex

Wall screw moss (Tortula muralis) - Uckfield High Street, Feb 2019

Brad Scott talked about Bryophyte (mosses, hornworts and liverworts) recording in Sussex. Bryophytes are important because they are pioneers - they get the vegetation going. Records go back to the 1600s. In 1840s, it was already being noted that some habitats were drying out. To my surprise, one of the slides listed me as a contributor to the records - I haven't recorded that many and only easy species such as the Wall Screw Moss (Tortula muralis) suggested by the Sussex Biodiversity species of the month page. 

Here at last! Otters in Sussex

Otter print (left) from Mammal Society tea towel.

The big 'aww' moment came when Fran Southgate showed photos and videos of otters, including youngsters, in Sussex.  Fran described the types of "field signs" (prints and poo) to look out for:

• prints show five toes and cannot (unlike mink's) be covered with a £2 coin
• poo has a fishy-jasmine smell and is crumbly with no curl at the end.

A couple of years back there was a lot of excitement when someone thought that they had seen an otter family on the Uck but cooler heads realised that they were mink.

The Sussex Local Wildlife Sites Initiative

At last year's seminar, Clare Blencowe, outlined the Sussex Local Wildlife Sites initiative. This year, Daniel Watkins  and Henri Brocklebank outlined how this has become a reality. Daniel is the Local Wild Sites officer and both collects evidence  and provides advice to landowners about managing these sites - 637 in Sussex. Henri emphasised the importance of a network for protecting these and other sites:

• When new planning policies threatened to leave these sites unprotected, a petition was organised, which succeeded in gaining protection for them
• For the public to be the Wildlife Trust's eyes and ears and passing on information about threats to these and other sites.

Collection and analysis of grasshopper and cricket records in Britain

Bjorn Beckmann and Ralph Hobbs talked about recording grasshoppers and crickets. Sussex has 26 of the 31 UK species:

• 8 (of 11 UK) grasshoppers
• 3 groundhoppers
• 12 bush crickets
• 3 (of 5 UK) crickets

Lesser Marsh Grasshopper - Uckfield Garden

Again, this appears to be an area where a little effort on recorders' part can make an impact because I only record grasshoppers and crickets casually but my name was mentioned as a contributor. 

Earthworms: the state of the nation and more

Emma Sherlock gave a very lively talk about Earthworms and the National Earthworm Recording Scheme. There are 29 UK species and their roles include:

• Edeniac - composter
• Epigeic - on the surface - e.g. the red ones you find under pots
• Endogeic - soil worms - pale
• Anecic - deep burrowing worms - up to 40cm

Takeaways

As I looked through the newspaper on the bus home with news of the children's strike, I found myself reflecting on Tony Whitbread's opening words about the power of uniting rebellious youth with cantankerous old gits! I am, of course, firmly in the latter category. He had pointed out that the apparently simple, pleasant act of recording wildlife provides evidence for action. Recording is a political act.

Over the next year, I intend to:

• Go on with my rather haphazard, semi-casual recording - as it is making a genuine contribution to some of the less recorded groups such as grasshoppers and mosses.
• See if I can get reports on the flora and fauna in the Uckfield area.
• Find out more about local wildlife sites in and around Uckfield.
• Do another playing field plant survey. I am tempted by Victoria Park although the size of it is rather daunting.
• Find a Gill Valley.

2018 - Adding New Species to my List

I like to record the insects and other wild creatures that I encounter using tools such as iRecord. I also do plant surveys for the Sussex Botanical Recording Society.  Most of my observations were done in and around Uckfield (Sussex) and Leatherhead (Surrey).

In the dreary cold of a murky January, it seems impossible to imagine that my nature recording was seriously hampered by an implausibly hot summer. Most of insects that I like to record were largely absent and, to be honest, I was unwilling to leave the house except for some early morning plant surveys.

Hawthorn on the Dene, 7 May 2019, the start of a long, hot summer.

This year I recorded about 315 species of which nearly 80 were new to my lists.  Considering the weather conditions this doesn't compare too badly with last year's 350 (with about 100 new).  I focused more on plant surveys than previously because doing this is relatively new to me and practising my identification skills is time consuming - especially for things like grasses that I have been guilty of ignoring in the past.

This post is going to focus on "firsts" - i.e. species that are new to my lists this year or ones that I am seeing in a particular place for the first time.

Silver-washed Fritillary in our Uckfield garden, 13 July

One type of insect that did seem to like the hot summer was butterflies and of my most pleasing sightings was a Silver-washed Fritillary (Argynnis paphia). This isn't new to my list but I had never seen one in Uckfield before and one came to our garden a few times in mid July. According to the Sussex butterfly atlas, it hasn't been recorded in our map square before. These are big, orange butterflies that live in woodlands and whose caterpillars depend on dog violets. For dog violets to thrive, there must be wide "rides" in the woodland that allows the sunlight to reach the ground when these flowers are growing. The Woodland Trust remove trees from the sides of certain paths in Views (Williams) wood to enable spring flowers to bloom and pollinators to feed on them. My guess is that this is where the butterfly came from but, of course, I don't know.

One new entry was due to my visits to Reading for work. Surprisingly, I often catch glimpses of Red Kites from the bus, quite close to the centre of the town. I never seen one in Sussex but they have been seen reasonably close to Uckfield in places such as Haywards Heath, East Hoathly so it is worth looking out for them. They are big, with a distinctive forked tail.

Magpie Inkcap, West Park, 28 October 2018

I was able to add four new types of fungus to the list - I recorded three of these, including the attractive and rather sinister-looking Magpie Inkcap (Coprinopsis picacea), on a fungus walk that I did with the Uckfield Nature Reserve Supporters group in the West Park Nature Reserve. Keep an eye on the Facebook group to find out about more walks.

Flea beetle, Luxford Field, 21 July 2018

While I was doing a plant survey on Luxford Field, Uckfield, I found the tiniest beetle that I have ever seen. It is a Phyllotreta, unflatteringly referred to as a flea beetle but it is nothing like a flea.

White Admiral, 5 July, Bookham Common, Surrey

While exploring Bookham Common in Surrey I encountered White Admirals (Limenitis camilla) for the first time, feeding on brambles. I had actually been looking for Purple Emperors (Apatura iris) and I was lucky enough to have one of those swoop by me as I walked along one of the woodland paths. In the more domestic environment of a Leatherhead Office, I saw my first Marbled White (Melanargia galathea). I'm told that, in the summer, you can see them by the dozen in Uckfield's West Park nature reserve. I live in hope!

Yellow Tail moth, Uckfield, 9 July

I saw 8 species of moth, including caterpillars, that are new to my lists. Given that there are over two thousand species of moth in the UK, it is not surprising that I keep seeing new ones. One of the prettiest this year was the dainty white Yellow Tail moth (Euproctis similis).

Juvenile Dark Bush Cricket, West Park Nature Reserve, 10 June 2019

While the Nature Reserve group was on one of its spring walks, I encountered my first Dark Bush Crickets (Pholidoptera griseoaptera). These were youngsters and there were about 10 of them.

Box Bug, Uckfield, 7 June 2018

I saw two new types of Bug. The one shown is a Box Bug (Gonocerus acuteangulatus) from our garden.  According to the British Bugs web site, it used to be very rare and found only at Box Hill in Surrey but has now expanded its range and become much more common.

Roman Snail, Leatherhead, May 2018

I only found one new type of mollusc but it was a whopper. I noticed the huge Roman Snail (Helix pomatia) while I was walking to work, along the River Mole, in Surrey.

Annual Beard Grass, 1 July 2019

This year, I have started doing plant surveys in earnest. I surveyed four of the local recreation areas and sports fields, contributing to nearly 80 new species for my lists. This has made me look much more closely at grasses. At our splendid local Uckfield Rugby Club, I found an Annual Beard Grass (Polypogon monspeliensis). This was not only new to me but new for the map square too.

Bog Stitchwort, sorry about the photo!

One of my favourite new plant species was the dainty Bog Stitchwort (Stellaria uliginosa). It was so small that, unless I was deliberately looking for plants, I would have missed it but the tiny flowers are exquisite and just like their bigger cousins, the Greater Stitchwort that we find in woodlands with the bluebells.

2017 - Adding New Species to my List

I like to record the wild plants and insects that I encounter using tools such as iRecord.  This year I recorded approximately 350 species of which nearly 100 were new to my lists.  This compares well with last year's 290 (with about 80 new).  This post is going to focus on the species that are new to my lists this year.  I have seen some of these before but this is the first time I've recorded them.

Some of the new entries are the result of me working in Leatherhead where I explored a new riverside habitat but many were much closer to home. Two species that I saw in both Leatherhead and Uckfield were the Beautiful Demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo) and Banded Demoiselle (Calopteryx splendens).

Female Beautiful Demoiselle - near Lime Tree Avenue - May

Uckfield's Banded Demoiselles were rather camera shy but I did get some photos of the Leatherhead ones. The two males below were part of a group (over 16) that roosted overnight in a clump of strappy leaves near the river. There must be similar roosts near the Uck. Has anyone seen one?

Male Banded Demoiselles - Leatherhead - June

My recorded year started with more humble species. I did the BSBI's New Year Plant Hunt, which meant that I needed to hunt out any wild or naturalised plant that was in flower. The plants that are most likely to be blooming are the hardy, versatile weeds that grow in supermarket car parks, industrial estates etc. A new one for me was Annual Mercury (Mercurialis annua).

Annual Mercury - Bellbrook Industrial Estate - January

This year, I paid a number of visits to Holy Cross churchyard to identify the plants there for the Sussex Botanical Recording Society churchyard survey.  While I was investigating the plants I found a number of species of both plants and insects that I had not encountered before.  The Girdled Mining bee (Andrena labiata) is "scarce" and relies on "unimproved" grassland - i.e. grassland that has not been fertilised etc. Our old churchyards often have this type of ancient grass.

Girdled Mining Bee - Holy Cross Churchyard - April 2017

Cockspur (Echinochloa crus-galli) - Holy Cross Churchyard - August 2017

In early June, I did a Bioblitz of our garden. This means finding as many different species of wild plants and animals as possible. I found over a dozen that were new to me including:

Cantharis livida - No-mow zone - June 

Rhopalus subrufus - Flower bed - June

Selimus vittatus with her egg case - Oak tree - June

One of the highlights of the year was joining the Uckfield Local Nature Reserves Supporters Group. We went on a number of bird song/bug walks and a fungi hunt. I also did a little exploring of my own.  I am fairly familiar with Hempstead Meadows Local Nature Reserve (LNR) and found a few new bugs and beasties including:

Devil's Coach Horse (Ocypus olens) - Hempstead Meadows LNR - August

Notostira elongata - Hempstead Meadows LNR - August

West Park LNR is less familiar and enjoyed exploring it with the group. In November, we went on a fungi hunt and found a good variety of fungi. Beware that I got in a bit of a muddle trying to identify them and it will be a while before they are verified. They included:

Blushing Bracket (Daedaleopsis confragosa) - West Park LNR - November

Witches' Butter (Exidia glandulosa) - West Park LNR - November

It's not all about surveys and special expeditions. I saw the Beautiful Demoiselle on the way to the town. Mum showed me this dear little 10-spot ladybird (Adalia decempunctata) that she found while gardening.

10-spot ladybird - Found in our own garden.

This Large Garden bumblebee (Bombus ruderatus) bumbled into a patch of garden I was sorting out, sending me scurrying into the house for my camera.

Large Garden Bumblebee - my gardening is constantly interrupted by bees!

In Uckfield, we are lucky that we have plenty of green spaces and paths that we can follow as we go about our daily lives. I've been amazed at just how many creatures and wildflowers I see by looking out while going about my day-to-day shopping trips etc. If you ever see a woman in a red beret peering into her phone, it could be me recording wildlife on the run.

Hempstead Meadows Local Nature Reserve - Species

Every time that I visit Hempstead Meadows Local Nature Reserve (run by Uckfield Town Council) I try to record a few of the species that I see. This isn't a proper survey, but it does give me a idea of what is there.  I record in a website/app called iRecord and here are my results for Hempstead Meadows.  Because it works with map squares some of the following records are from areas just outside the reserve - including the Station, which is a surprisingly good spot for birdwatching.

 Amphibians

Common Frog - as tadpoles.

Birds

One of my favourite sightings from this year was a Chiffchaff, seen amongst the brambles in April.

Chiff Chaff

Common name	Species
Mallard	Anas platyrhynchos
Swift	Apus apus
Grey Heron	Ardea cinerea
Goldfinch	Carduelis carduelis
Blue Tit	Cyanistes caeruleus
Robin	Erithacus rubecula
Chaffinch	Fringilla coelebs
Moorhen	Gallinula chloropus
Grey Wagtail	Motacilla cinerea
Chiffchaff	Phylloscopus collybita
Dunnock	Prunella modularis
Nuthatch	Sitta europaea
Wren	Troglodytes troglodytes
Blackbird	Turdus merula

 Fish

I've seen sticklebacks several times in the little stream that runs through the reserve. In 2015 I saw a lovely red-bellied male guarding his nest.  I've also heard that eels sometimes move through the reserve.

Flowering Plants

There are all sorts of pretty and interesting flowering plants but one of the most unusual is the Greater Tussock Sedge and one of my favourites, the Meadow Cranesbill.

Greater Tussock Sedge, 14 April 2017



Meadow Cranesbill, photographed in September 2015 but flowers year-after-year.

Common name	Species
Ramsons	Allium ursinum
Hairy Bitter-cress	Cardamine hirsuta
Cuckooflower	Cardamine pratensis
Greater Tussock-sedge	Carex paniculata
Meadowsweet	Filipendula ulmaria
Common Hemp-nettle	Galeopsis tetrahit
Meadow Crane's-bill	Geranium pratense
Indian Balsam	Impatiens glandulifera
Yellow Iris	Iris pseudacorus
White Dead-nettle	Lamium album
Gypsywort	Lycopus europaeus
Yellow Loosestrife	Lysimachia vulgaris
Water Mint	Mentha aquatica
Water-Dropwort	Oenanthe
Tansy	Tanacetum vulgare

Insects

There are, of course, many different types of insect in the reserve.  One of my favourites was this bug.

Notostira elongate - True Bug - 26 August 2017



Common Pond Skater - Another True Bug - 6 June 2015

Common name	Species	Taxon group
7-spot Ladybird	Coccinella septempunctata	insect - beetle (Coleoptera)
	Gyrinus substriatus	insect - beetle (Coleoptera)
Devil's Coach-horse	Ocypus (Ocypus) olens	insect - beetle (Coleoptera)
Common Red Soldier Beetle	Rhagonycha fulva	insect - beetle (Coleoptera)
Speckled Wood	Pararge aegeria	insect - butterfly
Comma	Polygonia c-album	insect - butterfly
Common Blue	Polyommatus icarus	insect - butterfly
Banded Demoiselle	Calopteryx splendens	insect - dragonfly (Odonata)
Hairy Footed Flower Bee	Anthophora (Anthophora) plumipes	insect - hymenopteran
Common Carder Bee	Bombus (Thoracobombus) pascuorum	insect - hymenopteran
Long-winged Cone-head	Conocephalus fuscus	insect - orthopteran
Dock Bug	Coreus marginatus	insect - true bug (Hemiptera)
Tortoise Bug	Eurygaster testudinaria	insect - true bug (Hemiptera)
Common Pondskater	Gerris (Gerris) lacustris	insect - true bug (Hemiptera)
	Notostira elongata	insect - true bug (Hemiptera)
Dark-edged Bee-fly	Bombylius major	insect - true fly (Diptera)

Common Blues on Birds-Foot-Trefoil - Big Butterfly Count 2017

As well as recording in iRecord, I did a count in Hempstead Meadows for the Big Butterfly Count. I saw Common Blues, Gatekeeper, Large White, Meadow Browns, Red Admiral, Ringlet, Small Copper and Speckled Wood.

Molluscs

Marsh Snail - 25 July 2015.

Finally, a Marsh Snail, which I found when pulling up Balsam in 2015.

#30DaysWild - Stolen Moments with Nature

While I was in Birmingham, I visited a buttercup field and found Ragged Robin on a ragged verge.

However, once I am home, it can be hard to find time during the working week to do anything other than meet work and other commitments. It is fortunately that others doing the Wildlife Trusts' #30DaysWild challenge are teaching me how to steal moments from my day and give them to nature.

I'm also going to confess to a blogging sin - my posts are out of order. I wrote up my Day 4/5 BioBlitz before this post about Day 2 and 3.

Day 2 - Beetles at the Watford Junction

Sitting next to wildflowers while waiting for the train.

On Day 2, I travelled home from Birmingham to Uckfield. At Watford Junction, while I was waiting for the train, I sat on a low wall next to some wildflowers.

Oedemera Lurida at Watford Junction.

A couple of long, narrow Oedemera Lurida beetles jumped onto my bag and I had to carefully return them to their flowers.  I love the way nature finds its way into the unlikeliest places.

Day 3 - Taking a moment from the laptop

Foxgloves, Uckfield Sussex

Friday was exceptionally busy. I took a moment away from the laptop to admire self-sown foxgloves in our garden.

Looking forward to the Garden BioBlitz

Due to dull weather we haven't had many bees but during the next day's Garden BioBlitz, I would see nine different species including a number going in-and-out of the Foxglove bells.

 

Red Mason Bee (Osmia bicornis) - from the next weekend's BioBlitz

I used Ryan Clark's-easy-to understand guide to solitary bees on the Wildlfe Trusts website to help me understand the different types including the Mason bees, who store their pollen on the underside of their abdomen as shown in the photo and large Wool carder bee (Anthidium maculatum), which lead me a merry dance on BioBlitz day. So a big thank you to Ryan for his wonderful guide and also to the patient and hard working verifiers on iRecord, who verified my sightings and tactfully corrected my errors.