First the Good News
Bristol Health Partners have awarded BS3 Wildlife £2,126 in recognition of our work across south Bristol. We’ll use this money in various ways, including a series of meetings (4?) throughout the year so that we can get to know each other and share information. We’ll also arrange some bus trips so that we can visit some of the green spaces in BS3, BS4, BS13 and BS14 and find out what happens there. Please let me know if you are connected with a space that would be good to visit, or if there is a space that you would like to see.
And Then Some More Good News
Butterfly observers in both domestic gardens and public spaces have gradually increased since we started in 2017. In 2019 we received reports from 14 spaces with a few people doing more than one space. It would be great if we could push that number up to nearer 20 in 2020. (I feel a slogan coming on!). Ideally for some of the larger spaces, it would be good if we could develop small teams (2 or 3 people?) that would go out both together and at different times to see what’s flying about in particular spaces. I’ll be butterflying in Windmill Hill City Farm again, but am very happy to welcome others to join in. It can be fun, especially if you have a butterfly net (c£20). ‘I can’t tell one butterfly from another’ isn’t much of an excuse, because you soon will.
In 2019, our moth traps increased to four from the one of 2018. Three of these were in set positions and the fourth was passed around in order to give a few people a chance to try it out. It was hoped that people might enjoy it so much, they would buy their own trap. That’s worked in at least one case so we are hoping for at least five traps in 2020.
Of course, we are not restricted to butterflies and moths. Anyone who wants to start recording snails, orchids or bats is welcome to start. We are still hoping for a ‘dragonfly group’.
Being an observer and monitoring wildlife is a key way in which we can enhance the bio-diversity of our neighbourhood. If you are interested in being an observer and want to talk to someone about how best to do it, get in touch via mywildbedminster@virginmedia.com
Thanks
Thank you to those who have already supplied additional information for our previous green space reports, i.e. My Wild South Bristol (29 February); Community Gardens etc in BS3 (March 31) and BS3 Big Spaces (April 30). We will be up-dating the first of these during the first half of March, so please get data to us asap if you’ve not sent it already.
Winter Birds
Please send in your observations as soon after March as possible to that we can collate them.
Worms
Charles Darwin was very into worms. Following in Darwin’s footsteps, people at Narroways Local Nature Reserve have also been looking for worms. So far, they have found 12 out of the 29 UK species. How many species of worm live in your garden?
Hedgehog Streets
Making a ground level hole in the fence is good for hedgehogs. For more information about Hedgehog Streets go to www.hedgehogstreet.org .
Please pass this information on to other people and invite them to join the group. Membership is free and you don’t have to live in BS3. Also, don’t forget to check out our facebook: BS3 Wildlife Group.