Nottinghamshire Nature Book

Local wildlife photographer Jack Perks is trying to spread the message of my upcoming book as well as raise funds to pay for the printing of it, i was hoping you could post the links on any pages you run or send round a mail list to see if people would be interested in the project and helping with it. I’m currently producing the counties first book on its wildlife as a whole covering Sherwood Forest, the River Trent and the city itself with a mixture of local information and stunning imagery.  I’m looking for support for the project ideally with sponsorship to help pay for the cost of printing. Supporting the book would help promote many tourist attractions in the county as well as showing off many rare and beautiful species that many people may know very little about. Being attached to the project also has a strong green message being associated with a nature project.Currently there are no other books on the market that cover this subject so getting this photographic book up and running is something I’m looking forward to getting underway. If you would like to know more information or become involved in some way then feel free to get in touch. Link https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2078840041/nottinghamshires-nature   and Notts TV Piecehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L6J9o6t6_dQ   If this is something you are interested in Jack can be contacted on jackperksphotography@hotmail.co.uk

Nottinghamshire Mammal Records Atlas

Michael Walker (County Mammal Recorder) has produced a provisional atlas of Nottinghamshire Mammal which shows all recording to date.  What is clearly shown is that many of our common species are very poorly recorded in the county so all records would be welcome indeed.   I don’t think House Mouse is one of the rarest species in Notts! The atlas is available from http://www.nottinghamshirewildlife.org/images/uploads/Notts_Mammal_Atlas_2014.pdf

Grizzeled Skipper Project

 

The project is looking to build on the success of previous grizzled skipper work parties and would like to invite you all to join me yet again this winter to undertake some more volunteer work on sites that provide important habitat to support the Grizzled Skipper butterfly across the south Nottinghamshire network of sites (including in Rushcliffe). I am still talking with landowners to confirm access agreements are in place but in the meantime I am proposing to hold this year’s volunteers work parties on Saturday 8th November 2014 Sunday 7th December 2014,  Saturday 24th January 2015, Sunday 22nd February 2015 – all  are 10 am to 3pm, meeting point to be confirmed and if you would like to be notified of the meeting points once available, please E Mail chris.jackson@nottscc.gov.uk

As a result of our efforts last year we have once again seen some very quick and positive responses (during the spring) from the very species that we have been trying to assist with our work. In mid-May earlier this year, a Grizzled Skipper butterfly was seen at its most northerly location on the disused railway line between Cotham and Newark (several hundred meters north of any previous records).  A day later we heard of yet more success on the disused railway running between Bingham and Barnstone, a Grizzled Skipper was seen on the wing on the section of the railway near to Granby.  This was the first sighting for a minimum of ten years (possibly fifteen). I hope this news will inspire you to join us once again this winter.

Chris Jackson (Notts Biodiversity Action Group Officer)

A supplementary – congrats to Butterfly Conservation on their successful bid, in which SITA will be funding a new project to enhance Grizzeled Skipper habitats in the Vale of Belvior. Part of the logic behind this project is as an extension to the already succesful south Nottinghamshire GS project and of course improvments in the GS population in areas adjacent to Rushcliffe will also benefit our GS populations in the future. So good news all round.

 

Appeal for info from Bat Conservation Trust

Having been in communication with Government Ministers, the Bat Conservation Trust (BCT) has been assured that whilst the recent permitted development statutory instrument related to agricultural buildings does not explicitly mention protected species, that they have made it clear that those undertaking permitted development must comply with all relevant legislation such as the Habitat Regulations.  We are not convinced this is the reality as we have been made aware of instances where bat surveys have not been required because it was deemed permitted development. To enable us to go back to Government with our concerns we need a greater weight of evidence to ensure we are accurately reflecting the real situation on the ground. We would like to ask for your help with this. If you have knowledge of the way in which bats have been considered in any permitted development cases since April this year (whether good or bad) we would like to hear about it. You will find a brief set of questions here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/V89T6WV

Skylarks – we have bought the site and work has commenced

The Trust has now officially secured the new site having completed the legal arrangements to transfer the site from the Esmme Fairburn Trust who purchased it two years ago on our behalf whilst we secured the necessary long term funding to by the site. This turned into a million pound project (now fully funded) and included an amazing £90k of public donations, our most successful funding raising effort ever and included substantail donations from local councils, wildlife groups and local people (not neccsarly members) and a £1,000 from South Notts Local Group. A big thanks to everyone who pitched in.
As a thank you to individual donors Ruth Testa the sites NWT Wetlands Officer and Michael Walker (NWT Living Landscapes Officer) led a visit look at some of the work that this will fund over the next 2-3 years. The major piece of civil engineering is set to commence this week with a massive piece of earth moving to create a new area of species rich wet grassland (from existing rank grassland), using the material to create shallow reedbed and muddy margins along the lake edge and up to three islands in the lake. This will also isolate a shallow lake inlet and electro fishing will be used to make the area amphibian and invertebrate friendly.
All sorts of other things will be happening (bird hides, paths, fencing, parking, small ponds etc In addition the presence of pre historic archaeology turned up during gravel extraction also means the project will include some community archaeology work and experimental archaeology projects as part of the overall funding. Curiously one of the interesting bits of the site (well it got Michael quiet excited) was an apparently mundane site drainage ditch, which has proved to be the location of several species of beetle previously unknown in Notts.
For the moment the heavy earth moving will means bits of the site (but by no means all) will be out of bounds for safety reasons).