With a bumper 200 pages, Suffolk Birds (vol. 46), incorporating the 1996 Suffolk Bird Report, arrived with us in early April. Too late for inclusion in the Best Annual Bird Report Awards judging (though note that the rules have been amended and it will be eligible in the next assessments), but quite up to snuff. Rarities described in detail include the county's first Crested Lark Galerida cristata (Paul Holmes) and Booted Warbler Hippolais caligata (Dave Jupp), second Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola (Brian Small), Arctic Warbler Phylloscopus borealis (John Archer) and Western Bonelli's Warbler P. bonelli (Mark Grantham) and third Rustic Bunting Emberiza rustica (Ricky Fairhead).
This model report, edited by Mike Crewe, costs £7.50 (+£1.50 p&p) from the Suffolk Naturalists' Society, The Museum, High Street, Ipswich IP1 3QH.
This piece appeared in British Birds 91, No. 7 , July 1998 and is reproduced here with the kind permission of the Editor, Dr. Sharrock. A free sample copy of British Birds can be obtained from Fountains, Park Lane, Blunham, Bedford, MK44 3NJ. SNS members are entitled to 25% off the full price of the subscription.
Members who were unable to attend the 69th Annual General
Meeting, held on 25 April, missed a rare opportunity to hear Basil Harley, of Harley Books
talk about the making of a natural history book. Basil, a keen naturalist with a
particular interest in insects, described how his early fascination with natural history
books he collected them from the age of nine - led eventually to the setting up of Harley
Books which specialises in entomological publications. With illustrations selected from
early books, such as The Dragonflies of the British Isles by Cynthia Longfield
(1937, F. Wame & Co.) and more recent publications like R.R. Askew's The
Dragonflies of Europe (1988, Harley Books), Basil explained for us the changes in the
techniques and the improvement in the quality that has taken place in natural history
publishing over the last 60 years.
Internationally acclaimed, Harley Books has every reason to be proud of its reputation.
They publish a wide range of natural history books, many of which were on display at the
meeting.
This year the Society moved to a more suitable location
and shared a marquee with its old friends and partners - Forest Enterprise. Rocks,
fossils, mammal skulls, stag beetles, a butterfly picture quiz and the bookstall all
provided attractions. A number of new records for the Suffolk Mammal Survey and the
national Stag Beetle Survey were generously provided by our visitors and six new members
were recruited.
Council thanks all those who volunteered to help over the two days of the show.
The 9th SNS Annual Conference tackles the subject of migration. Migration is one of the most impressive manifestations of animal movement. Remarkable feats of navigation are regularly achieved by a wide variety of animals. The return to the rivers of their 'birth' by spawning salmon, the caribou trek across the tundra of North America, and the annual springtime return to Britain from Africa of the swallow are all examples that are well known to the public through the excellent BBC natural history programmes. But how much do you know about the migration of other groups - insects, for example - and what about plants, they are travellers too? If you have not already done so, book your place for the conference to find out more about some of the extraordinary journeyings made by a whole range of wildlife.
The Society's Members' Evening has become a very popular
annual event.
On this occasion the evening commenced with an illustrated talk about the Millenium
Butterfly Survey given by Richard Stewart, County Butterfly Recorder. Recording effort and
data were presented and it was especially interesting to see the comparative distribution
maps for the present survey and that carried out by Howard Mendel and Steve Piotrowski in
the early 1980s.
In the second part of the evening, Jon Nicholis presented an illustrated quiz with a different slant from the usual. It was not just a case of 'What species is it?' but, for example, 'Where would you find this?', or 'How many common names can you list for this species?'
Thanks go to Richard and to Jon for such entertaining and informative presentations, and also to Rosemary and Tony Milner who between them ran the bookstall and the raffle.
If you have any ideas or suggestions for this year's Members' Evening - the first Wednesday in December - then please contact Joan Hardingham or Jeff Martin.
Whole colonies of lugworm (Arenicola marina) are reported to be at risk of being wiped out by bait gangs who are using purpose-built vacuum devices to extract the worms in large numbers for commercial gain (Daily Telegraph 29 March 1998). According to the report, worms are literally being Hoovered up by the new equipment which is based on an Australian bilge pump.
One of the most frequently plundered areas is said to be the beaches between Hythe in Kent and Dungeness. Does anyone know if this unscrupulous practice occurs in Suffolk?
Bait 'digging' on this scale is highly detrimental to the delicate intertidal food chain, at the top of which are wading birds (White Admiral 36). Bait gathering by opportunist gangs, whether by Hoovering or digging, is to be deplored and should be brought to the attention of the local Wildlife Trust.
Roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) appear to be spreading southwards and eastwards in the County (see distribution map on SBRC page). Jeff Martin would appreciate records of any sightings for these deer and other mammals to help complete the Mammal Survey. Please send your records to the SBRC.
Type in the first letters of your postcode and this will generate a list of trees and other plants local to your area - as well as the birds and butterflies that frequent them. Use the database to discover the relationships between flora and fauna in general. Click on common blue butterfly and you will come up with bird's foot trefoil as one of its food plants. The Postcode Plants Database is on the Natural History Museum web site : fff.nhm.ac.uk/fff.
Cloned varieties of faster-growing wild cherry trees derived from ancient specimens, many of them from Arger Fen in Suffolk, have been planted at an orchard in Huntley, Gloucestershire. The cloned varieties produced at Horticulture Research International's station at East Malling, Kent, have been selected for their speed of growth and quality of timber to satisfy the demand by furniture makers who, until the timber becomes available, continue to rely on imported wood or trees derived from imported seed.
This survey which starts on September Ist 1998 and finishes on November 30th 1998 is being carried out for the Mammal Society. Details may be obtained from Aiden Marsh, c/o School of Biological Sciences, Bristol University, Woodland Road, Bristol, BS8 1 UG. Tel: 0117 9287593.