Nature’s Amazing Bounty

Pile of Hazel hedging stakes from Heavy Oak Coppice.
Photo: Paul Loughnane

At the time of writing for the Winter Grebe magazine I had conservatively estimated that 580 hedging stakes would be cut from Heavy Oak Coppice, Thornton Wood and I was very pleased with that prediction. In the end an astounding 1,054 hedging stakes were cut. The ability of the hazel to spring back is thoroughly amazing. The coppice is like the multi-headed hydra of Greek legend - cut a head off and it grows another, except in coppicing another two or three heads grow.

I have been cutting the hazel coppices for 24 years and I am still amazed at their increasing productivity - and the coppices have not reached their full potential yet.

A Hazel coppice stool in Heavy Oak Coppice.
Photo: Paul Loughnane

Why has the hazel stake crop become so prolific? The coppice stools have got bigger, some with an impressive 30cm diameter increase since the first cut in 1990 and the rootstock, the stool, has grown stronger with each cutting. The recovering hazel stools are like wound up springs with the buds shooting up faster and straighter in the first year after the cutting. Competition from bramble has been much reduced under the intensive coppice regime, perhaps, as nitrogen has been reduced in the coppice area. In 2006 a canopy alder tree fell over, opening a window of light to the coppice floor. During the coppice cut in 2008, the crowns of the oak standards were reduced allowing further light to the coppice stools. This oak crown lifting to 6 metres from the coppice floor was repeated on this coppice cut too.

Hedge stake harvest from subsequent coppice cuts

at Heavy Oak Coppice, Thornton Wood

Bluebells and primroses appear to have benefited from the coppice regime and are now able to make the most of the open phase which last two seasons.

If you would like to see the coppice there is a guided walk around Foxes and Thornton Wood at 2 p.m. on Saturday 25th April. Please see the events page on the website for details.

Paul Loughnane

Cutting the lovely straight poles at
Heavy Oak Coppice, October 2014
Photo: Paul Loughnane

Port Sunlight River Park

Mersey view from Port Sunlight River Park. Photo: Anne Litherland

Port Sunlight River Park is a vibrant, stunning green space formed on the site of the former landfill at Bromborough Docks. It has transformed a closed area, giving access to the Mersey waterfront with unrivalled views not only of the Liverpool skyline and waterfront, but also across Wirral and North Wales. There are woodlands and an ecologically important wetland and the site has excellent views of the Shorefields mudflats and wildfowl, which is part of the Mersey SSSI.

Funding for the transformation and long term management has been made possible through the Newlands 2 programme, led by the Forestry Commission and supported by Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). Biffa and Unilever have donated land and funds.

The River Park opened to the public on 12th August 2014 and is managed by Wirral Autistic Society on behalf of the open space management charity the Land Trust. The regular park users include dog walkers, running groups and individual runners, cyclists and cycle groups and bird watchers. Families come to watch the ships, admire the view and let off steam at the weekends. Visitors whilst enjoying the views should not walk, or let their dogs walk off the surfaced paths as the land is still settling and objects may move to the surface. Also between March and August ground nesting birds use the grassland so no access is permitted on these areas.

Opening Day at the River Park. Photo: The Land Trust

The River Park is a unique venture for Wirral Autistic Society (WAS) as service users help to maintain the park during their weekly visits. Tasks undertaken include cutting the grass, clearing leaves, weeding, patrolling and litter picking. It is also good to see other members of WAS using the park to walk with groups or with family and friends. The weekly Step into Work group have improved the mini beast hotel and cleared barrow loads of litter and hazards from the wood near the United Utilities works. This woodland was planted in 1997 but the tree guards were still in place and as well as looking unsightly were choking the trees.

Due to the steep slopes and uneven ground on site, winter maintenance depends upon volunteers rather than service users and one of the great bonuses for PSRP is the number of people who want to help. Volunteers meet every Saturday and Wednesday for outdoor tasks but additional opportunities exist to help with events, reception, walks and wildlife identification and with the new Friends group. The priority for the winter months will be removal of hazards as objects make their way to the surface. The views need maintaining so work will be done on the Mersey front to remove buddleia and willow. 

In 2014 lapwings and skylarks nested in the rough grassland overlooking the Mersey. As the park only opened to the public in August disturbance was limited but this year, as the park is busy, there will be a need to protect these areas, especially from dogs. While signage can help inform it is hoped that new volunteers will patrol these areas to engage with the public in a similar way to the Dee Estuary Voluntary Wardens but over the spring and summer months. Over 70 species of birds had been recorded up to the end of November 2014, including the transient hen harrier, wheatear and whimbrel. Birds, such as black tailed godwits and redshank, use the lake for resting, especially at high tides.

The lake at Port Sunlight River Park. Photo: Anne Litherland

Wirral Wildlife surveyed the site in 2014 and recorded 50 species of spider and a variety of butterfly and bee species. It is early days for this site and both flora and fauna will change though time. The species rich but unusual grassland flora with many legumes is reflective of low fertility soils. The abundance of banks of yellow melilot when I started in October is an example. Path edges around the site have colonies of a rare but non-native species, wallflower cabbage (Coincya monensis ssp. cheiranthos), a close relative of the endemic Isle of Man Cabbage which grows on the Wirral sand dunes. Nearly 16,000 trees have been planted: field maple, silver birch, sessile oak, rowan, grey willow, sweet cherry, wych elm together with dog rose, blackthorn, hawthorn, gorse and gueldar rose. Maritime pine has been planted for future climate change reliance. In addition there are areas of wildflower plantings: a perennial downland mix plus cornfield annuals.

A regular programme of events is being established including weekly health walks and activities for families in the school holidays. We are looking forward to taking part in the Wirral Walking Festival in May with guided walks planned around both PSRP and Bromborough Pool village.

If you want to find out more about events, visits or volunteering please look on the website www.portsunlightriverpark.com or contact me by email or phone 07587550060.

Anne Litherland

River Dee Common Terns - Triumph or Disaster?

Common Tern breeding at Shotton Steelworks. Photo: Barry Barnacal

In 2009 one of the UK’s largest common tern breeding colonies, located by the River Dee at Shotton Steelworks, collapsed. In 2008 there were 750 pairs of terns that produced over 1,000 fledged young. In 2009 there were plenty of adult birds at the start of the breeding season but the birds left after a week or so and produced no young at all.

The effect on the Merseyside Ringing Group (MRG), the organisation that had built up the colony in the first place, was confusion. The group had worked here since 1970, when it installed a wooden raft in one of the Shotton Steelworks’ pools and 12 pairs of common terns nested on it, safe from ground-based predators. The colony had grown steadily to 750 pairs. The wooden raft had been replaced by artificially-created concrete islands built and maintained with the help of the owners of the site (including the present owners Tata Steel), by local birders, by the Dee Wildfowlers and by members of the MRG. This was as successful a conservation project as could be imagined and then, without warning, there were no birds.

After the initial shock the MRG analysed the situation, realised that common terns were relatively long lived birds (a 30 year life span is not unusual) and decided that a single missed breeding season was not important.

2010 arrived and so did the terns but they left again without attempting to breed. Was this the time to panic? Well no, this was the time to plan. The hope had been that the failure to breed was a random event but as this was clearly not the case attempts had to be made to find out what was going on. Government agencies were contacted and a working group set up. Plans were set in motion for surveys to be carried out mainly by the members of the MRG. To study the terns’ behaviour MRG invested in remote cameras that worked in the dark so that 24 hour surveillance could take place.

2011 arrived and the investigation process planned the previous year started. As usual some common terns visited Shotton but none stayed to breed.

In 2012 more survey work was carried out but it was becoming clear that the main reason for the colony’s collapse was a major reduction in the fish stocks in the River Dee.

By 2013 survey work started to show a significant increase in the fish stocks and sure enough the terns arrived and produced young. A great result for the people involved with the colony but one more disaster awaited them.

Anti-predator fences on the tern islands at Shotton.
Photo: Peter Coffey

Foxes managed to find their way to the islands and killed all the chicks. 2013 produced no fledged young. However the evidence from the automatic cameras identified the problem with no room for doubt and another plan was put together to protect the islands from land-based predators. In the winter of 2013/2014 fences were erected around all the islands and we waited to see what the 2014 breeding season would bring.

In 2014 the fish stocks were good and the terns arrived to breed. The anti-predator fences worked and 445 young common terns were fledged. A great result for a lot of creative, conservation work but the MRG continues to monitor the situation with a view to ensuring that this success is consolidated and developed.

John Elliott, Merseyside Ringing Group

A Thank You

Natterjack toad. Photo: Wikipedia

During the past ten years or so, a number of people helped me to keep an eye on the Red Rocks Reserve. Each month, one of us walked round the reserve to check that everything was in order. Cheshire Wildlife Trust and Wirral Council Rangers were notified of any adverse changes such as damage to the boardwalk or evidence of fire. We collected litter, helped with natterjack monitoring and made notes about flowers such as orchids, birds and other wildlife.

A big thank you is due to all who contributed in this way to the up-keep of the reserve, foremost to Elspeth Dutch, Gill Norton, Ann and John Neal who covered the latter years.

No doubt we’ll continue to enjoy strolls - albeit informally - through the now expanded Red Rocks Marsh Reserve, across the dunes, along the saltmarsh and around the reedbed.

Mathilde Baker-Schommer, retired Honorary Warden

Shock and Disappointment as 5 out of 7 Proposed MCZs Dropped in the Irish Sea

The Government is leaving the Irish Sea open to an environmental disaster by postponing plans to create a network of Marine Protected Areas. This lack of ambition was confirmed in the recent Defra announcement which excluded 5 out of 7 proposals for Marine Conservation Zones (MCZs) in the Irish Sea.

The Wildlife Trusts are deeply concerned that the Government is failing to protect and recover some of the Irish Sea’s most at risk wildlife and habitats. Our local waters are as diverse as coral reefs, supporting a wealth of species from lobsters, sponges and anemones to at least 30 species of shark and 12 species of cetacean (whales, dolphins and porpoises). 

Twenty seven MCZs were designated in 2013, including two in the Irish Sea: Fylde MCZ and Cumbria Coast MCZ. This first tranche saw Hilbre Island recommended MCZ (rMCZ) dropped from consideration, alongside several other sites across English waters. The Government has committed to designating an ecologically coherent network of MCZs by 2016 – but the current lack of ambition leaves the Irish Sea woefully underprotected. 

In 2015, only West of Walney rMCZ and Allonby Bay rMCZ will be consulted upon. Five other sites: Mud Hole, South Rigg and Slieve Na Griddle, Mid St George’s Channel and North St George’s Channel rMCZs have been postponed for further consideration, largely on the grounds of potential cost to fisheries.

This is short-sighted, considering the Government’s own scientific advisors concluded that some of these sensitive areas are at high risk of remaining in a damaged condition if no action is taken to protect them. Designating MCZs is a vital part of better managing our seas for both wildlife and people – and we need your help to make this a reality!

How can I help?

1. Become a Friend of MCZs

Visit www.irishsea.org/MCZs

Over the coming months the North West Wildlife Trusts will be calling on the public to act to save their Irish Sea by responding to the Government’s public consultation on MCZs. Please sign up as a Friend of MCZs today to receive updates on the consultation and invitations to local events. 

2. Ask your MP to sign the Marine Charter 

We want all parties to commit to designating an ecologically coherent network of MCZs by 2016 and are asking all MPs to add their support to the Marine Charter. A number of MPs on the Wirral have yet to sign, please visit www.irishsea.org/act to learn more. 

3. Come along to our talk on “Wirral’s Living Seas”, Friday 13th March, 7.30pm, Heswall Hall.

For more information, please email Emily Cunningham, Living Seas Officer.

Hedgehog v Fox

I posted a note in the Wirral Wildlife Blog last summer about a young fox that was visiting our garden and upsetting a hungry magpie. Unfortunately the fox became a less frequent visitor after that and, eventually, it seemed to have moved on completely. However, as one interloper disappeared two others decided to get in on the act.

One afternoon we noticed movement in the leaf litter under our Red Robin hedge. It was two young hedgehogs. They didn’t seem unduly perturbed when I approached, camera in hand, to take some photos; and they certainly seemed to enjoy the sunflower hearts, fallen from the birdfeeders.

But the story moves on. The fox, not to be usurped by hedgehogs, did re-emerge some weeks later in the early evening. It looked a bit ragged so my wife raided the fridge for some cooked chicken which she put onto a tinfoil tray and placed on the lawn. This caused the fox to flee.

Night descended but in the gloom we noticed the tinfoil moving vigorously. The wanderer returns we thought. But no, it was a large, mature hedgehog, possibly a parent to the two young we had seen, having a good pre-hibernation tuck-in. We then became aware that the fox was actually close by and very aware of the treat that the hedgehog was eagerly devouring.

To our surprise the fox made only tentative efforts to displace old spiny. In fact it was so reluctant to get too close that it eventually left the potential meal and the garden. The fox had obviously learnt from painful experience but we also gained a bit of knowledge. One: Hedgehogs enjoy cooked chicken. Two: Foxes have a grudging respect for their prickly neighbours.

Les Roberts

Don’t Dismiss The Dandelion

Photo: John Gill

Totally unjustified in being classed as a 'weed' the humble dandelion is one of the most attractive of our wild British plants. Indeed an unimproved pasture in late April or early May, an absolute riot of yellow, must be one of the most beautiful sights of our countryside year.

Not only attractive but useful too. Dandelion gets its name from the jagged green leaves from the French 'Dent de lion' or 'lion’s tooth' and these leaves were very popular in salads being a substitute for lettuce before the days of year-round production. Increasingly they are being re-found as a salad crop. The flowers, an important nectar source, also make a light white wine or cordial. Finally the roots were regularly roasted and ground to make a coffee substitute in World War Two and back in fashion today as an organic and decaffeinated drink. Medicinally the whole plant is useful as a diuretic and one of its common names, Jack-piss-the-bed, reflects this. What's weedy about all that?

But to the botanist Taraxacum officinale presents more of a problem as it is not just one species but an aggregate of numerous micro species; approximately 240 occur in Britain of which about 40 are endemic and 100 introduced. Roughly grouped into nine ill-defined sections they are notoriously difficult to identify. Perhaps the easiest for the beginner is the Section Erythrospema of which we have several Wirral representatives. Growing on the sandy soil of our dune coast, they tend to be small and with very dissected leaves. Plants with hardly dissected leaves often blotched and with a red or purple midrib might belong to either Section Hamata or Celtica whilst the vast majority of our Wirral species belong to Section Ruderalia. Implying growing in ruderal or weedy habitats they are the ones you are most likely to see on roadsides or in your garden.

Cheshire would appear to have a wide range of Taraxacum species as the late Chester botanist, Tom Edmondson, was able to identify them. However the different micro species aren't recorded in Alan Newton’s 1971 Flora of Cheshire. There's plenty of scope for someone locally to take up the hobby of Taraxacology!

Barbara Greenwood