A stop-start day

Wednesday, January 10th 2018

It was another quiet night for moths last night with only a few midges and no moths found inside the trap; thankfully two Early Moth were captured outside of the trap at the front of the field centre. 

Unfortunately we had no luck with the duck trap either, however there has been a lot of interest over the course of the day from the mallards and moorhens that have been enjoying the feed scattered on the banks over the last week or so. Here's to hoping that we're able to trap and ring some soon!

Aside from the traps it's been a stop-start kind of day, with lots of machine maintenance interspersed with many odd jobs around the Reserve. There has been more effort put into tidying up the heath after yesterday's volunteer task, along with a concerted effort to knocking back big patches of juncas grass near to the orchard.

Juncus are especially good at colonising boggy soil, but are also able to ride out the odd dry spell. It's for these reasons that it is often planted in rain gardens designed for bioretention purposes so as to allow stormwater runoff to be absorbed, and contaminants and sediments to be removed. Despite these interesting properties juncas grass will take over if allowed to do so. 

The late afternoon has been given over to tackling gorse on the wetlands using various bits of kit, with the aim to continue with this task, and to remove cut gorse from the wetland as part of tomorrow's volunteer task before returning to the heath in the afternoon.

Removing the gorse from the wetland will (and has already) make a huge difference aesthetically, unfortunately you will have to take my word for it until tomorrow as even I was too distracted to take pictures this afternoon!


(0) Comments:

There are no comments for this blog post yet. Why not start the discussion? - use the form below:


Leave a Comment:

Please complete this field, it's required. Your email address will not be displayed but it's required.

Your email address will not be displayed but it's required.

Remember my personal information

Notify me of follow-up comments?


Back to Top

Help Support Foxglove

Friends of Foxglove

The Friends of Foxglove Covert is for those individuals, families and organisations who would like to support the reserve through an annual membership subscription. Friends receive a regular newsletter and invitations to attend our various activities and social events.

More Details

Upcoming Events


Access to the Reserve: OPEN with limited access

Monday 18th March 2024 |

The reserve is now open, although again with limited access.

Visitors will be able to access the reserve with the use of key fobs provided at the pass office upon entrance to the camp, or will be provided entrance and exit through the access gate by an officer from the camp Guard Room. In this case visitors will need a mobile phone to call the Guard Room when they wish to exit the reserve.

Please be aware that due to these circumstances, entering and leaving the reserve might take a little longer than usual.



Bird Watching for Beginners

Thursday 18th April 2024 | 10am-1pm

Improve your bird spotting and identification skills with this guided bird watching session. Learn how to identicy common species, differentiate between confusion species and how to get started learning bird calls. A great opportunity to ask questions and learn alongside others.

£3 per person. Free for volunteers and Friends of Foxglove and voluteers.

Booking essential. Fill in the booking form by clicking the link below! Pay via paypal or in person on the day.



VIEW ALL EVENTS

Recent Blog Posts

Blog Archive