Upper Waveney Valley

Build a Scarecrow

2009-08-04T13:34:00.006+01:00

Our Build a Bug children's activity at Thornham was very successful: we had 32 children joining us for the event. The rain cleared away just in time for us and some weird and wonderful bugs were made by the youngsters.

We have had an invasion of 7-spot ladybirds over the last week or so. Millions have been crossing the North Sea from the Continent. It is also the best year for a long time for Painted Lady butterflies. These are also migrants that breed in this country and there are thought to be around a billion in the Britain at the moment.

Our next children's activity is Scarecrow Building on Monday the 10th August at Thornham Walks. The event is from 2pm to 4pm and the cost is £3 for children with accompanying adults free. Scarecrows can either be taken home or will be put up around Thornham. Please bring some old clothes to dress the scarecrow. For more information call 01379 788345.

Kingfisher Awards

2009-07-24T10:24:00.011+01:00

Last week we presented our annual Kingfisher Awards at Harleston Primary School. The Awards are handed out each year and are a way of thanking the many local people and groups who have made an outstanding contribution to conservation in the Waveney Valley. The Primary School has won the Award for enthusiastically creating wildlife areas in the school grounds and holding nature days for everyone. Here is the pond-dipping platform being constructed at the school:

Awards were also presented to Roger Buxton and Keven Boyce for erecting over 150 bird of prey boxes in the Waveney Valley; Roy Goodwin of Syleham Hall for farming in a sensitive way to the environment and supporting the Thornham Owl Project; and The Suffolk Owl Sanctuary for sponsoring bird of prey boxes in the Waveney Valley. This is Roger and Keven making an owl box:

A reporter and photographer from The Diss Express came along and we got some good publicity in the paper.

On Monday the 27th July we are holding our first children's activity of the summer holidays with Thornham Walks. The Build a Bug afternoon will be held at Thornham from 2pm to 4pm. First we will go on a bug hunt then it's back to base to build bugs from natural materials and bits and pieces. The cost is £3 per child with accompanying adults free. For more details phone Helen on 01379 788345.

The Secret Castle Walk

2009-04-08T11:05:00.010+01:00

On Sunday the 19th April I am leading a walk in the Waveney Valley to visit the almost unknown motte and bailey castle at Darrow Wood. The walk is around 7 miles long and starts at Homersfield Bridge Picnic Site (just off the A143) at 10am. The walk is free and if you want any more information please give me a call on 01379 788008.

The castle is owned by the National Trust and was probably built soon after the Norman Conquest in the 11th Century. The wooden castle was soon abandoned in favour of a stone castle at Buckenham and the earthworks slowly disappeared under scrub and woodland. The castle was only re-discovered in the middle of the 19th Century when the trees were cleared. Nowadays the tree covered motte and bailey is surrounded by a water-filled moat. The woodland has a good colony of Early Purple Orchids that should be coming into flower.

This is an exciting time of year with migrant birds arriving from Africa and early butterflies feeding on newly opened flowers. On Saturday I saw my first Swallow, followed by Willow Warblers and Blackcaps the next day. Cuckoos should be arriving in the next few days.

Black Poplars

2009-03-23T14:58:00.013Z

The rarest tree in the Valley is the Black Poplar and there are only a few of these magnificent trees left, and they are old with a limited lifespan. Black Poplars grow in hedgerows and on a few of our commons. The nearest ones to my office are at Thornham Parva where these two specimens grow along a green lane opposite the church.

Black Poplars are very distinctive. The bark is gnarled and covered in burrs (the black in their name refers to the bark).

The twigs are also a good identification feature - they curve downwards and have a flicked-up tip.

The reason why there are so few trees left is that they are no longer producing viable seed. There are separate male and female trees and these are now so far apart that the seed never gets fertilised. We are trying to get a new generation going by growing young trees at our nursery in Thrandeston.

Each year we supply about 50 saplings to landowners with suitable land along the Valley so that these wonderful trees can remain part of the landscape.

One bit of sad news during the week was finding a dead otter at the entrance to Thornham Walks. It was probably killed by a car. The Enviroment Agency has taken the body to Cardiff University where a post mortem will be carried out.

More soon.

Working with Local Communities

2009-03-16T11:14:00.007Z

We work closely with many communities along the Waveney Valley. It is probably best if I set out a few examples to show the range of schemes we get involved with.

This winter we have been working with Palgrave Parish Council and Mid Suffolk District Council to restore the large pond on Palgrave Village Green. Over the years it had become hidden by bushes and young trees that had grown up on its banks. We arranged for a contractor to come in and coppice the growth so that light now gets to the pond and it is again a focal point in the village. The trees and bushes will now be maintained by coppicing every few years.

We have helped several communities develop circular walks and cycling routes around their parishes. Examples include Diss, Harleston and Wortham & Burgate. We have helped waymark the routes and produce walks leaflets for the parishes. At Wortham & Burgate we have also produced walks information boards.

Our volunteers have also helped manage churchyards for wildlife, for example at Scole and Thorpe Abbotts. And we have opened up neglected areas in parishes for the benefit of local people and wildlife. Here are some of our volunteers mowing and raking Scole Bridge picnic site.

If your community is interested in working with us on an environmental scheme please give me, Mark Timms a call on 01379 788008.

Warm weather over the weekend has tempted several butterflies out. I saw my first Comma and Brimstone butterflies on Sunday and heard my first Chiffchaff singing on Saturday.

Woodlands Spring to Life

2009-03-05T11:27:00.012Z

March is the time of year when woodlands burst into life after closing down for the winter. Things are a bit slow this year after the long, cold winter with Snowdrops still in flower.

However the first Primroses are out and in the next week or two Wood Anemones will appear in some of our woods but only those that have been around for hundreds of years (ancient woods).

Far commoner is the Lesser Celandine - a member of the buttercup family - that is already coming into flower.

A less obvious plant is the Dog's Mercury with green flowers but it is found in many of our woods round here.

A few warm days this week have tempted out the first butterflies and bumblebees. A Small Tortoiseshell butterfly was flying around on Monday.

And in another few days our migrant birds will be returning from Africa: listen for the first Chiffchaffs.

Volunteers

2009-02-17T13:59:00.008Z

We had a very successful children's activity here at Thornham Walks yesterday. Around 35 children built bat boxes from kits to take home and put up in the garden. We also provided a fact sheet on the best place to site a box and how to encourage bats into your garden, (plant night-scented flowers such as Evening Primrose to attract moths if you are interested).

We have two volunteer teams meeting on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. We are looking to boost numbers on our Wednesday team so if you are interested please get in touch. The work is very varied. In the winter months we may be planting new hedges:

During the summer we manage a variety of wildlife sites such as wildflower meadows and churchyards:

Or it could be creating or managing wildlife ponds:

If you are interested in joining the Wednesday team please give my colleague Tim Page a call on 01379 788008. He will be able to give you a lot more information on future tasks and would be delighted to hear from you.

Birds seem to be singing everywhere now that we have some milder weather. At Thornham the Great Spotted Woodpeckers are busy drumming away and Nuthatches are singing from the tops of oak trees.

Homes for Bats

2009-02-10T13:42:00.011Z

I have been away for a week in the snowy Peak District. After the snows we have floods with water flowing everywhere today. Despite the coldest winter for many years there are signs of life. Snowdrops are looking at their best at the moment and should last for another couple of weeks if the cold weather sticks around.

Hazel bushes are beginning to flower, especially those in sheltered south-facing spots. The yellow catkins are lengthening and releasing their pollen. If you look closely on the twigs you will see the tiny red female flowers ready to receive the pollen and grow on as hazel nuts.

Next week is half-term and we are holding our first children's activity of the year with Thornham staff. The bat-box building activity will be held here at Thornham Walks on Monday 16th February at 2pm. It is aimed at 5 to 11 year olds and the cost is £3 a child with accompanying adults free. We will be building bat boxes from kits and the boxes can either be put up at Thornham or taken home for an additional £3. Please call me on 01379 788008 for more information.

We have lots of bats around here including these Long-eared Bats:

Waveney Willows

2009-01-19T14:27:00.012Z

The willow trees growing on the banks of the River Waveney are a very attractive feature. In 1996 we surveyed all the bankside trees from the source of the Waveney at Redgrave down to Bungay.

We found many old willows that were collapsing and dying because they were top heavy like this one:

It is possible to prolong the life of willows and other trees by pollarding them. We do this by cutting the tree about 10 feet above the ground and allowing it to grow back. Cutting at this height means that cattle cannot nibble the new growth and kill the tree. Once a pollard is formed it can be cut again every 10 to 15 years so that it never becomes top-heavy. Pollarding continually rejuvenates the tree so it will live for much longer. Here is a pollard with a years' growth:

Our 1996 survey discovered over 250 pollards along the Upper Waveney. Several had not been pollarded for a long time and needed swift management if they were to survive. We re-pollarded the most urgent cases with funding from the Environment Agency, Here are two old but healthy willow pollards:

This year we are carrying out another survey to see how the willows are faring. Old willow pollards are important habitats for our wildlife. The trunks are usually hollow so they make good nesting places for Barn Owls - and Egyptian Geese that are spreading along the Valley. They also make good summer roosting sites for bats.

Hedgerows

2009-01-12T11:12:00.009Z

The New Year has started on a very cold note with a long spell of snow and frosts. As soon as the ground thaws we will start work on hedge planting and hedgerow management. We have been planting hedges for the last 20 years along the Valley to try and replace some of those lost when fields were enlarged in the second half of the 20th Century. The Waveney Valley is an ancient landscape - some of the hedges around Scole and the Saints villages near Bungay may be 2,000 years old - so we are keen to keep or restore as much as possible with local landowners' help.

Here are some students from Bungay High School planting a new hedge in the Saints:

The clear plastic spirals over the young hedge plants protect them from nibbling rabbits and deer, and also act as mini greenhouses to stimulate growth. After about three years they can be removed to let the hedge thicken up.

A mature hedge also needs some management or it will get tall and leggy and may collapse. Most hedges are now cut back with flails but in the past they were either coppiced or laid to promote strong, thick growth.

Here are our volunteers coppicing an old mature hedge in the Saints:

It may look drastic cutting right back to ground level but the hedge quickly regrows.

Hedges are very important for wildlife and soon the first Hazel catkins will be flowering, closely followed by Primroses and other spring flowers:

More soon.

Bird Surveys

2008-12-30T10:33:00.014Z

Between Christmas and the New Year I have been taking part in the on-going Bird Atlas survey organised by the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO). This ambitious project aims to map the distribution and abundance of all the birds nesting and wintering in Britain and Ireland between 2007-11. If you are a birdwatcher it is a great way to contribute to a big project and find out more about the birds in your local area. Visit http://www.bto.org/ for more information.

Basically it involves walking around a 2 kilometre by 2 kilometre square and counting all birds seen over two hourly periods. I have chosen a square between Gislingham and Burgate that is mostly large arable fields and hedges. I didn't expect to find a great variety of birds but did record 30 species. Two big flocks of Skylarks totalled over 120 birds - an impressive count for this declining species. There were also good numbers of Yellowhammers and Bullfinches. As is usual in this part of Suffolk you count an awful lot of Woodpigeons and Rooks! I was hoping to find a flock of Lapwings or Golden Plovers but they had probably moved on to the coast in this cold weather. The winter survey has to be repeated in January or February.

Here are the answers to the Bird Brain Quiz:

1. Sir Christopher WREN

2. Nicholas CRANE

3. Clarice STARLING

4. Graham SWIFT

5. MERLIN

6.BLACKCAP

7. MALLARD

8. GOLDENEYE

9.MAGPIE

10. The HOUSE MARTINS

A happy New Year to you all.

Winter Weather

2008-12-18T10:54:00.008Z

Well it has been the coldest start to winter for 30 years according to the Met Office and after days of gloom the sun has finally come out. The heavy rain last Saturday has affected our work as we have had to cancel a joint operation with the Broads Authority to clear Floating Pennywort from the upper stretches of the River Waveney. This invasive weed from North America has spread downstream from Diss and the worry is that if it gets into the Broads it will clog up the system with a dense carpet of floating vegetation - a disaster for our local wildlife and holiday boats. We have postponed this work until early spring because of high water levels.

Here is a Christmas quiz to keep the brain cells active over the festive season. It is taken from our recent Wildlife Quiz at Thornham. The answers are all birds that nest in this country.

1. Architect of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.
2. Presenter of first TV series of ‘Coast’.
3. Film character played by Jodie Foster in ‘The Silence of the Lambs’.
4. Booker Prize winning author whose works include ‘Last Orders’ and ‘Waterland’.
5. Rolls Royce engine that powered the Spitfire.
6. Was worn by a judge when announcing the death sentence.
7. British steam locomotive with world speed record.
8. Author Ian Fleming’s house in Jamaica.
9. ITV children’s programme that was a rival to ‘Blue Peter’ in the 1970s.
10. 1980s band from Hull – members went on to form ‘The Beautiful South’ and perform as Fatboy Slim.

Answers next time.

The cold weather has produced some beautiful ice crystals:

A merry Christmas to you all

A Trip Down the Waveney

2008-12-11T09:43:00.000Z

The source of the River Waveney lies in the vast reed and sedge-beds on Redgrave & Lopham Fen National Nature Reserve.

The muddy ditch soon becomes a slow-flowing river heading eastwards towards the North Sea. It passes the edge of Wortham Ling, an unexpected area of heathland that is a popular walking site for people living in the nearby town of Diss.

Beyond Diss the river widens and is suitable for canoeing. Waterplants, including lilies are abundant and this stretch of the river is very attractive in the summer months.

The river is very important for wildlife. Otters can be found along the full length of the river and water voles are making a comeback now that escaped mink are being controlled. Kingfishers are common but not often seen - mute swans are far more showy.

On its way to the sea the Waveney flows past the attractive market towns of Harleston, Bungay and Beccles. For much of the year it is a placid river but after heavy rain in the winter it will burst its banks and spread out on the floodplain.

After 70 miles or so the Waveney finally reaches the sea at Great Yarmouth. You can follow the full length of the river by walking the Angles Way long-distance footpath.

More next week.

Thornham Owl Project

2008-12-04T13:27:00.000Z

The Thornham Owl Project is now in its sixth year with over 160 nest boxes sited along the Waveney Valley in North Suffolk and South Norfolk. More suitable sites for boxes have been identified so we need to keep making and putting up new boxes to build on our success over the last few years.

We have an abundance of low-lying open farmland with tussocky grassland and ditches that is an ideal habitat for Barn Owls. Woodland and copses also suit other birds of prey such as Kestrels, Little Owls and Tawny Owls. Nest sites are often few and far between because many old farm buildings have been converted to offices or homes. Here is a Barn Owl box in an old barn:

All our nest boxes are made by two volunteers, Roger Buxton and Keven Boyce who spend much of their free time working on the project. All the funds needed to pay for our boxes are raised by sponsorship. Each nest box can be adopted by members of the public, schools, clubs and businesses - a great way to help our local wildlife.

If you would like to sponsor a box please contact Tim Page on 01379 788008 or email upperwaveney@midsuffolk.gov.uk Each new sponsor receives an information pack and their own personalised certificate as well as yearly update reports on the success of the box. Sponsorship is £25 per box and they make great Christmas presents!

More soon

Wortham & Burgate Commons

2008-11-27T09:57:00.000Z

For many years we have been helping Wortham & Burgate Parish Council manage the commons in the two villages. There are over 250 acres of commonland in the parishes - a vast amount of land to cope with - all of it valuable for wildlife and for local people to enjoy. The commons have remained virtually unchanged for hundreds of years. Many unusual plants grow here including a good range of orchids such as these Common Twayblades:

A few Bee Orchids appear every summer on Wortham Long Green and the Marsh:

There are many ponds scattered over the commons and these are home to a healthy population of Great Crested Newts. Birdlife is also well-represented with warblers, Turtle Doves and the occasional Nightingale in the summer months.

Each year the commons are either grazed by sheep and horses or cut for hay to prevent brambles and other bushes from spreading onto the open areas. Some bits get missed so a winter task for our volunteers is to remove invasive scrub such as here on the Marsh:

We have restored several ponds to help amphibians and water plants - one pond is home to the rare Lesser Marshwort. One of the more unusual tasks our volunteers completed was to clear the invasive Water Fern from a pond. This plant from tropical America can completely cover a pond and smother our native water plants. Here are our volunteers removing Water Fern:

Well the snow arrived over the weekend with 3 inches on the ground by Sunday afternoon. Small flocks of Whooper and Bewick's Swans have been flying overhead - Heading from the Continent. There has also been an influx of Woodcock from Scandanavia.

More next week.

The Scole Dragon

2008-11-21T09:06:00.000Z

We manage a small picnic site by the River Waveney just off the A140/A143 roundabout at Scole. The old Roman road to Norwich runs by the site and it is on the Dragon ley-line. About eight years ago we commissioned a sculpture to mark the ley-line and the Scole Dragon has become a local celebrity.

As well as the Dragon there are surfaced footpaths down to the river where there are wheelchair accessible fishing platforms, benches and picnic tables. Otters have been seen in the river from the platforms and kingfishers can be spotted most days. The river is also used by groups of youngsters for canoeing practice during the summer months.

Our volunteers help keep the picnic site in good condition and over the last few years the wildlife has increased. This year Bee Orchids appeared for the first time and there are many colourful waterside plants in the summer months. At this time of year there is a good crop of berries for the birds to feed on.

And finally the answers to last weeks' butterfly anagrams quiz:

TINGLER...............RINGLET

COKE CAP..............PEACOCK

BULLY HOLE...........HOLLY BLUE
MINOR BEST...........BRIMSTONE
WE ARE LIGHT........LARGE WHITE
I PRANG TOE...........ORANGETIP
LARDER MAID..........RED ADMIRAL
A WOMB WONDER.....MEADOW BROWN
WEE DOLLY COULD....CLOUDED YELLOW
A TINY PADDLE.........PAINTED LADY

Well the weather has turned colder and snow is forecast for this weekend so it looks as if winter has arrived.

Autumn in the Valley

2008-11-13T13:56:00.000Z

Cold weather over the last couple of weeks has turned the leaves to gold. Oaks and maples are looking stunning - a pity we have not had much sunny weather to bring out the best colours. Easterly winds have brought in large flocks of winter thrushes so fieldfares and redwings are greedily feeding on hawthorn berries. Waxwings have arrived on the coast so we may have these colourful visitors with us soon.

Last night we held our first wildlife quiz at Thornham. It was a very successful event with fish and chips for everyone. See how you can do by solving the following anagrams of butterflies commonly found in the Waveney Valley:

TINGLER

COKE CAP

BULLY HOLE
MINOR BEST
WE ARE LIGHT
I PRANG TOE
LARDER MAID
A WOMB WONDER
WEE DOLLY COULD
A TINY PADDLE

Answers next time!

We are always keen to see new volunteers on our teams going out every Tuesday and Wednesday. They do a tremendous amount of work from digging new wildlife ponds, planting trees to managing wildlife sites. If this sounds like you then please give Tim Page a call on 01379 788008.

Welcome

2008-10-30T09:48:00.000Z

Welcome to new blog of the Upper Waveney Valley Partnership. We are located on the Norfolk - Suffolk border in one of the most beautiful river valleys in East Anglia. Our job is to look after the wildlife and landscape of this area, and help people discover the countryside. We will update the blog regularly with wildlife reports, events and other items of interest.

The river is great for canoes and there are launching platforms at several locations.

Here are some of the things we get up to:

We have put up over 150 bird of prey boxes along the Valley and they provide homes for Barn Owls, Tawny Owls and Kestrels (as well as lots of Jackdaws and Stock Doves).

Two keen volunteers make the boxes, they are sponsored by local people and put up in suitable locations along the Valley. There are now many more Barn Owls along the river.

Here is a Tawny Owl chick that has just been ringed so that we can follow its progress over the next few years.

We spend a lot of time in winter planting trees and hedges with our volunteer team. Over the years we have planted many miles of hedges and tens of thousands of trees to make up for what has been lost over the last hundred years or so. Back-breaking work on a cold winters' day but worth it when we go back and see the difference after a couple of years.

More to follow soon.