============================================ ||   Wildnews Bulletin 4th December 2024 ||     News of Lincolnshire Wildlife ||     LNU: http://lnu.org/ || ||     Please email Editor on: philporterento@outlook.com || ============================================ In this issue... 1. Information, events, news and requests - mostly local. 2. Wildlife Highlights from Rare Bird Alert. 3. Wildlife reports around the county. Contributions welcome... 4. NNRs, RSPB and LWT Reserves : Saltfleetby/Theddlethorpe. 5. Bardney Limewoods NNR: Chambers Farm Wood. 6. Other Reserve Reports - links. 7. Sending in Bulletin Reports - contributors please read! 8. Contact information - recorders and specialists... 9. Notes about these wildlife reports. 10. Bulletin publicity policy. 11. Events Diary - what's on. 12. ...and finally. Mostly national/international wildlife stories. ============================================ Reports here are open. They are available to county recorders of the  Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union; Lincolnshire Bird Club and Lincolnshire  Environmental Record Centre [LERC]. Compare earlier years/months. Past Bulletins archive [in text format] from 2009: http://rogerparsons.info/bulletinportal.html Views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the Lincolnshire  Naturalists' Union or associated organisations. Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary. ============================================ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1. INFORMATION, EVENTS, NEWS AND REQUESTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Editor writes: Plaudits are due to Brenda of Nettleton for her most interesting garden butterfly summary for the year. Counting our depleted numbers can seem a bit tedious day after day, but the reward comes when the data can be analysed to show more clearly what is actually going on in the garden long-term. Steve and Paul of Thurnholmes near the Trent in North Lincolnshire provide regular exhaustive counts of wildlife and were rewarded this time with a splendid flock of 180 redpolls and good numbers of winter thrushes as well as a marsh harrier. Many thanks to all the other correspondents, especially the regulars at Saltfleetby/Theddlethorpe where Owen is standing in and providing the mouth-watering wildlife information while Mat and Ruth are looking after the seals at Donna Nook. Finally, the news items that you send in are a popular feature of the Bulletin. Please continue to supply them. *** Donna Nook Seals ***: Information  from Ruth Taylor. For "Pupdates" on the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust website, see: https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/top-reserves/donna-nook Parking is currently in Stonebridge car park at the end of Marsh Lane. The local landowner will be opening his field car park in November, £5 for all day parking and port-a-loos will be available. Currently the nearest toilets are the public ones in North Somercotes. No dogs allowed along the seal viewing area when the seals are in to avoid disturbance and disease transference between the species. If possible, avoid visiting at a weekend as it can be very busy with several thousand people arriving over the two days. There are seal wardens on site to answer any questions you might have. There is private catering on site although not guaranteed to be there every day. There is also a little shop with all proceeds coming to Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust to support our work at Donna Nook. Phil Porter's email is: philporterento@outlook.com Roger Parsons' email is: old.museum@yahoo.co.uk BTO's tracked Cuckoos - 12 south of the Sahara https://www.bto.org/cuckoos *** This week's mostly-local news stories: *** Record number of whooper swans at wildlife reserve https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crezy09rw3go National Coastwatch charity to launch in resort https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gx13jqewqo 'Urban sprawl' warning over 3,500-home plan https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg7gx97veggo Wildlife trust buys farm in heart of wetlands https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdxy5x1gp33o Rare medal from Captain Cook’s second voyage for sale https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy7d2j20mxvo Slavery links in celebration of Sir Isaac Newton’s discoveries https://www.restoretrust.org.uk/media-and-press/national-trust-will-avoid-slavery-links-in-celebration-of-sir-isaac-newtons-discoveries Riders 'will need to adapt' to changing beaches https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm2mdpnp2l1o Film locations wanted to increase area's appeal https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4gxz948q5o Hundreds of unsafe toys seized by officers https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyj4yl35mro Eight arrested on suspicion of hare coursing https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y8dw609g9o Big Farmland Bird Count 2025: make it a family adventure https://www.gwct.org.uk/news/news/2024/december/big-farmland-bird-count-2025-make-it-a-family-adventure/ *** Weather News and Forecast *** https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/ https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/warnings-and-advice/uk-warnings#? East Midlands weather forecast Thursday 5th December - Sunday 8th December Headline: A cold start, cloud and rain arriving overnight. Thursday: A cloudy start, largely dry aside for some patchy rain over hills before outbreaks of heavy rain spreads east combined with strong, gusty winds. Maximum temperature 12 °C. Outlook for Friday to Sunday: A mild and dry start Friday with rain grazing southern regions. Often dry and sunny on the weekend with showers focused mainly along the coast. Fresh northerly winds, turning colder. UK long range weather forecast Sunday 8th December - Tuesday 17th December Winds increasing from the north into Sunday likely to bring cold temperatures and blustery showers through Sunday with some sleet or small hail possible along windward coasts. High pressure then very likely to have increasing influence into the following week with more settled conditions becoming established for a time, though a showery easterly possible in the south. This should mean a good deal of dry weather with overnight frosts along with morning fog patches for some regions. Through to the end of this period there is an increased chance of spells of wetter and windier weather returning, these more likely in the north with southern areas having a better chance of more prolonged settled/drier weather. Temperatures varying around average with both some colder and milder spells likely through this period. *** For Astronomers and Sky-watchers *** Jupiter reaches opposition on 7 December 2024, making this a grea time to observe the planet through a telescope. https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/advice/observe-jupiter-through-telescope  This Week's Sky at a Glance, November 29 – December 8 https://skyandtelescope.org/observing/sky-at-a-glance/  Night Sky - highlights - November https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/blogs/astronomy Full Moons - 15th November https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/full-moon-calendar Meteor shower dates Leonids, 6-30 November https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/meteor-shower-guide BBC Sky at Night Magazine website https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/news *** EVENTS *** *** L.N.U. / LINCOLNSHIRE BIRD CLUB JOINT MEETING *** On Saturday 25th January 2025 at Whisby Nature Park Education Centre Lincoln SK910662 at 2 pm. Refreshments will be available. Parking £2 Illustrated talk by LBC Chairman Phil Espin, “The Birds of a Lincolnshire Market Town” This talk is based on the book of the same title recently published by L.B.C. and written by Phil and his great friend John Clarkson who tragically died before publication. An appreciation of this book can be found at https://thewryneck.blogspot.com/2024/08/birds-of-lincolnshire-market-town.html *** Grimsby and Cleethorpes RSBP *** Brian Patterson writes… Our local branch of the Grimsby and Cleethorpes RSPB has a talk planned for Monday the 16th December at 7.30pm at The Holy Trinity Parish Hall in Cleethorpes, DN35 7LH.  The evening starts at 7.30pm and costs £5 per person which includes the cost of refreshments.  The talk will be given by Christopher Hall on "Antarctica, in search of the Emperor Penguin". *** Grimsby and Cleethorpes Area Group LWT *** On Monday 9th December 2024 the group will hold their next indoor meeting where speaker Alan Ball will be giving an illustrated presentation "Birds of the Gambia." He says this country has a rich variety of wildlife with particularly colourful and approachable birds.  This will take place in Grimsby Town Hall DN31 1HU and starts at 7.30pm.  Admission £4, all are welcome.   There will be festive refreshments donated by our members, a raffle and tea & coffee will also be available. For further information please contact secretary David Ball 07711716063 or visit our website www.grimsbywildlifetrust.org.uk We are also on Facebook  *** Scunthorpe and Brigg Local Group of the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust *** Our last meeting for 2024 is on Thursday, 12th December, when we will be visited by Geoff Trinder, President of the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, to give his illustrated  talk on "The Islands and Highlands of Scotland". Geoff is a renowned photographer of wildlife and has given us many fascinating talks to show us wildlife with their varied habitats and behaviours. This will be a meeting not to be missed giving us extra insight into the wildlife and topography of Scotland. The meeting starts at 7.30pm in the St Hugh's Church Hall, Ashby Road, Scunthorpe, DN16 2AG, which opposite the Applegreen Filling Station near to the Brumby Crossroads of Ashby Road with West Common Lane/Old Brumby Street. ALL ARE WELCOME TO OUR MEETINGS. There is a £2.50 entry charge which includes light refreshments at the mid-talk break. There is free parking at the Church or on the nearby roadside. *** Boston Area Group LWT *** Talk – “British Wildfowl” by Geof Lee Thursday 12th December 2024 at 7.30pm Centenary Methodist Church, Red Lion Street, Boston, PE21 6NY Free admission but there will be a retiring collection. Refreshments will be served in the interval. Non-members are welcome. *** Sth LINCOLNSHIRE RSPB GROUP*** "The Amazing Life of the Swift". An illustrated Slideshow Talk by Alasdair McKee of the RSPB showcasing these amazing birds and what we can do to help them. Wednesday 9th April 2025 at 7-30pm at Boston Tennis Club. Full details at https://group.rspb.org.uk/southlincolnshire/ "Waders of The Wash". An illustrated Slideshow Talk by local RSPB Volunteer and photographer Jeremy Eyeons showcasing the wide variety of waders which can be found around the Wash estuary. Wednesday 24th September 2025 at 7-30pm at Boston Tennis Club. Full details at https://group.rspb.org.uk/southlincolnshire/ *** South Lincs RSPB Group *** have announced the dates for their 2025 programme of "Bird and Seal Watching Cruises" aboard The Boston Belle into The Wash estuary. There are 12 cruises scheduled for 2025 starting on Easter Monday and ending in October. Full details including availability, dates, costs, booking etc are on the website. https://group.rspb.org.uk/southlincolnshire/ STAYING SAFE Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary.... Cold-weather alerts - 1 Nov 2024 - 31st March 2025 https://ukhsa-dashboard.data.gov.uk/weather-health-alerts/cold Bird flu: Defra advice to the general public is to leave corpses alone and report the findings - but that landowners should dispose of birds themselves. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/bird-flu-latest-situation-avian-influenza-prevention-zone-declared-across-great-britain Lyme Disease reminder https://www.hse.gov.uk/agriculture/zoonoses-data-sheets/lyme-disease.pdf Road works and hold-ups https://roadworks.org/ Met Office Severe Warnings https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/warnings-and-advice/uk-warnings Met Office Severe Weather E-mail Service - sign up http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/about-us/guide-to-emails EasyTide http://easytide.ukho.gov.uk/EasyTide/EasyTide/index.aspx Environment Agency Flood Warnings - Lincolnshire https://flood-warning-information.service.gov.uk/warnings?location=lincolnshire Environment Agency Flood Information/Floodline - sign up https://www.gov.uk/sign-up-for-flood-warnings ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2. WILDLIFE HIGHLIGHTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *** Bird News from Rare Bird Alert *** Rare Bird Alert has kindly given permission to reproduce  their pager reports.  A big thank you from us all. Readers interested in a pager - look at the RBA website: http://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/ For RBA's excellent articles: https://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/RealData/Articles.asp 26/11 Deeping St James, Ring-necked Duck 1w drk west end of Main Lake, Deeping Lakes, Frampton Marsh, Hen Harrier ringtail over saltmarsh. Gibraltar Point, Twite flew south over, Water Pipit flew over Sykes Farm, Bittern 0n Tennyson's Sands. Saltfleetby/Theddlethorpe, 19 Snow Buntings by saltmarsh edge near Brickyard Lane. 27/11 no messages. 28/11 Covenham Reservoir, 2 Common Scoters, both fems. Cut End, SE of Boston, Water Pipit at River Witham mouth. Deeping St James, Ring-necked Duck 1w drk west end of Main Lake, Deeping Lakes, Deeping High Bank, Hen Harrier ringtail between Fen Bridge and Deeping St Nicholas turning. Flew over river. Huttoft Bank, Slavonian Grebe. 2 Long-tailed Ducks from Car Terrace 29/11 Chapel St Leonards, Little Auk flew north past. Deeping St James, Ring-necked Duck 1w drk west end of Main Lake. Gibraltar Point, Long-tailed Duck on sea early morning, Black-throated Diver flew south, 2 Grebes [spp] 2 Hen Harriers. Huttoft Bank, South Ferriby, Spotted Redshank by sluice. 30/11 Baston+Langtoft Pits,15 Russian White-fronted Geese, 11ads, flew to an area with no general access, Deeping St James, Scaup1w, Ring-necked Duck 1w drk west end of Main Lake. Frampton Marsh,.Hen Harrier male over saltmarsh. Gibraltar Point, .3 Water Pipits on west side, tho mobile. Skegness, Middlemarsh Farm, Yellow-browed Warbler in copse with tit flock, 1/12 Deeping St James, Ring-necked Duck 1w drk west end of Main Lake. Gibraltar Point, Long-tailed Duck on sea, 6 Snow Bunting flew south, 2 Water Pipits. Pyewipe, Caspian Gull at Novartis Ings. 2/12 Gibraltar Point, .Lapland Bunting flew over East Dunes. Black-throated Diver flew south, Slavonian Grebe, Long-tailed Duck, Water Pipit. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 3. WILDLIFE NEWS FROM AROUND THE COUNTY ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Find the Grid Reference - don't forget - it's important Grab a Grid Reference: https://www.bnhs.co.uk/focuson/grabagridref/html/index.htm UK Grid Reference Finder: http://www.gridreferencefinder.com/ ROAD KILLS? PLEASE LET US KNOW. Every drive is a transect! Hedgehogs? Badgers? Otters? Reports welcome. *** County Wildlife Reports from Readers *** Thanks to our regular contributors across the county. Much appreciated.  We rely on readers to send in observations and welcome records from  everyone, experts to beginners. Please keep your reports coming. BARDNEY - THE GREEN TF120694 R + A Parsons 22/112024 Blue Tit 2 Great Tit 2. Pied Wagtail 2. House Sparrow 8+ Blackbird 2 Robin 2 Dunnock Collared Dove 2 Woodpigeon 6 Domestic pigeon 7 Jackdaw 12+ Black-headed gull party 12+ BARDNEY GARDEN TF117700 Phil and Mary Porter 30th November c.150 Pink-footed Geese flew overhead 1st December Mary saw a squirrel eating a diseased apple that had died on the tree and was shrivelled, black and corky. The two squirrels that are around the garden now are very often right at the top of a large sycamore eating seeds. FAR INGS Angela Buckle 1st December Winter Heliotrope in full flower. LINCOLNSHIRE COASTAL COUNTRY PARK Dave Miller, LWT Coast and The Wolds (South) Warden 27th November: over 700 Kittiwakes flying south past Huttoft Car Terrace. 28th November: Chiffchaff on Wolla Bank, Great White Egret still on Chapel Pit. 30th November: 32 Redwing, 18 Fieldfare and 11 Blackbird along Huttoft Bank, 318 Wigeon, 25 Snipe, 13 Dunlin, 4 Sanderling, 5 Redshank, Goosander and a Black-tailed Godwit on Anderby Marsh, Kingfisher at Chapel Six Marshes.   1st December: Slavonian Grebe out at sea, Woodcock flying in off sea at Huttoft Car Terrace. 2nd December: around 30 Red-throated Divers and three Eiders out at sea. Skylarks and finches moving south. 3rd December: out at sea at Huttoft Car Terrace 9 Red-throated Diver, 4 Gannet, 4 Eider, Goldeneye, 3 Common Scoter, Mute Swan, 5 Oystercatcher, 30 Wigeon, Brent Goose, 150 Pink-footed Goose, Peregrine. 3 Shelduck and Woodcock at Huttoft Pit. HORKSTOW SE987179 Jenny Haynes 28 November 2024 A goldcrest was seen on its ‘annual visit’ to our forty-year-old Christmas tree. On 29th November, a long tailed tit visited a feeder. Despite watching for a while, no others were seen. Male and female great spotted woodpecker were also present on one of the feeders. HORKSTOW SE994192 Jenny Haynes 30 November 2024 Brown hare seen running across a field on Horkstow Wold. NETTLEHAM TF 005756 Brenda Edlington 27/11/2024 Watching the antics of a squirrel trying to get on the bird feeders we were surprised and pleased when a female kingfisher landed on the conservatory roof and flew round the garden before stopping on the dragonfly garden stake over our smallish wildlife pond. It remained for a minute or two then flew off after detecting no fish. A first for our garden. 2024 Summary Another disappointing year for butterflies in my garden. My records were for the Garden Butterfly Survey. (gardenbutterflysurvey.org if anyone’s interested in adding counts.) I did 90 daily counts between 14 March – 22 October. The Garden Butterfly survey recorded 6948 large whites, 6803 small whites, 5907 red admirals and 3738 peacocks. Holly blue, speckled wood, gatekeeper, meadow brown, brimstone and comma made up the rest of the top 10. My highest total count – large whites 101- especially common in September and October - noticeably up on last year. Small whites were next (up on last year) then red admirals (down), gatekeepers (up) and peacocks (up). Holly blue numbers were down on last year as were brimstones, and small tortoiseshells with only 10 seen. Commas were down and speckled woods up. Meadow browns, green-veined whites and orange tips were about the same.  Max no. at any one time, months in which the max occurred and total for the daily counts carried out Brimstone 2 (Mar) 12 Comma 3  (Sep) 27 Common blue 1 (Jul, Aug) 3 Gatekeeper 5 (Aug) 45 Green-veined white 2 (Aug) 26 Holly blue 1 (April, May, Jul, Aug) 16 Large white 7 (Sep) 101 Meadow brown 2 (Jul) 18 Orange tip 2 (Apr) 12 Painted lady 0 Peacock 3 (Jul, Aug) 35 Red admiral 6 (Sep) 48 Ringlet 1 (Jul) 1 Small tortoiseshell 3 (Sep) 10 Small white 3 (Aug) 58 Speckled wood 2 (Jul, Aug) 27 Unknown whites 73 First butterfly of the year - brimstone 14 March. Last butterfly of the year red admiral 22 Oct on late buddleia flowers SCOTGROVE WOOD TF128708 Phil Porter 29th November On a walk through the northern edge of the wood, I was very pleased to find a small plant of Spurge Laurel next to a path. Tim Smith tells me that there are three earlier records stretching back to 2004 and 2021. If anyone knows the origin of the considerable earthworks in this part of the wood, I would be interested to know. SEDGE HOLE CLOSE LWT Nature Reserve Steve Hiner 13/11/24 Blackbird x 2 Carrion Crow x 4 Chaffinch x 35 Dunnock x 1 Fieldfare x 19 Goldfinch x 7 Jackdaw x 4 Kestrel x 1 Magpie x 2 Pink-footed Goose x 175 over Redwing x 12 Robin x 2 Stock Dove x 1 Starling x 175 Tree Sparrow x 7 Wood Pigeon x 4 Wren x 1 THURNHOLMES (within 300m of SK797984 unless stated) Steve Hiner & Paul Snow 14/11/24 Blackbird x 3 Black-headed Gull x 250+ in fields around Thurnholmes following tractor Blue Tit x 4 Carrion Crow x 2 Chaffinch x 27 Common Buzzard x 1 Fieldfare x 200+ Goldfinch x 9 Great Tit x 2 Jackdaw x 2 Kestrel x 1 Lesser Redpoll x 29 Long-tailed Tit x 25 Magpie x 2 Moorhen x 1 Mute Swan x 3 Owston Ferry Drain Pink-footed Goose x 350+ south over Thurnholmes Redwing x 150+ Robin x 1 Stock Dove x 1 Wood Pigeon x 12 House Mouse x 2 17/11/24 Cormorant x 1 viewed from bridge over Owston Ferry Warping Drain swallowing a small fish 19/11/24 Blackbird x 2 Black-headed Gull x 2 Blue Tit x 2 Carrion Crow x 1 Common Buzzard x 1 Dunnock x 1 Fieldfare x 130 Heron x 1 Owston Ferry Drain  Jackdaw x 6 Lesser Redpoll x 39 Magpie x 2 Pied Wagtail x 1 Redwing x 78 Robin x 1 Starling x 175 Tawny Owl x 1 calling 01:15hrs Tree Sparrow x 35 Wood Pigeon x 15 House Mouse x 4 20/11/24 Marsh Harrier x 2 Low Mellwood Clay ponds SE803021 22/11/24 Blackbird x 2 Chaffinch x 27 Fieldfare x 155 Grey Partridge x 15 Long-tailed Tit x 15 Redwing x 95 Robin x 1 Sparrowhawk x 1 male Wood Pigeon x 6 29/11/24 Blackbird x 3 Black-headed Gull x 12 Common Buzzard x 1 Dunnock x 1 Fieldfare x 112 Goldfinch x 12 Great-spotted Woodpecker x 1 Magpie x 2 Robin x 1 Rook x 35 in fields around Thurnholmes Sparrowhawk x 1 female Wood Pigeon x 3 02/12/24 Blackbird x 4 Black-headed Gull x 6 Chaffinch x 35 Common Buzzard x 1 Dunnock x 1 Fieldfare x 130 Goldfinch x 29 Goldcrest x 1 Great Tit x 2 Lesser Redpoll x 180 Pied Wagtail x 1 Redwing x 165 Robin x 1 Starling x 350+ Tree Sparrow x 19 Wood Pigeon x 6 Brown Rat x 1 House Mouse x 4 Here is an enquiry from a reader setting out a new garden and looking for some useful ideas for wildlife and veg. growing, and lots of woodchip and brash to use up. Please have a look and send any suggestions to the Bulletin in the normal way. BOSTON, STANDISH GROVE, PE21 9EA Mrs. Heather Bishop Last few days when sun was out (between rain and wind). Wasps still very active in the ground nest by wooden fence at end of garden, so we couldn't do any tree work down there (I was stung when we tried! Apis mel homeopathic pill helped cure swelling etc). My husband found a queen in our bathroom! (he captured it and let it go outside). We try not to destroy wasps as they are in general good for the garden. After taking huge, old, ugly conifers down in our large recently acquired garden, we have lots of logs/woodchip, so we are busy thinking of ways to use them for wildlife. The internet shows log walls, piles, buried stumps, etc. Might put a squirrel 'nest' at the top of the last 'totem' pole of a conifer so we can watch from kitchen window. Ultimately, it would be nice to make the garden suitable for the NGS 'yellow book'. Incorporate veg garden, hedges, nice trees (managed to suitable size), quirky items, swing(s), rough meadow and quiet undisturbed corners etc etc. Any interesting ideas welcome! PS: My favourite items are butterflies and plants, and more recently moths. I only know a few common ones, so I am not an expert! Editor’s suggestions If you have wasps breeding in your garden, your vegetable-growing project should be at least a little more successful because of their exploits in thinning out the more abundant insect larvae which they feed in large numbers to their brood. Many of their victims will be potential garden pests. Wasp nests also attract some of our largest and most handsome hoverflies such as the Great Pied Hoverfly and the Hornet Hoverfly which scavenge a living clearing up the detritus in the wasp nest as larvae and pollinate flowers as adults As you are starting to enjoy moths, you can predictably attract them by making up a sweet sugar solution and spreading it onto a manageable selected branch propped up wherever is convenient for you to nip out at dusk with a torch to investigate the moths that come to drink. Most moths are intricately marked and some are brightly coloured. The cast will change with the seasons and involve dozens of species in a year. This method is known as “sugaring” and many different recipes are to be found on the internet. April would probably be a good time to start. If you plant a Buddleia, you will find that there is a “night-shift” of moths which are attracted to the flowers when the butterflies have dispersed. Birds will be attracted to nest in hedges, but to avoid disappointment, consider how you intend to use your garden as too much disturbance will discourage them. If you use feeders, try to develop a range of sites, so you can move the feeders regularly. Many birds are messy feeders and drop a lot of food looking for the bits they particularly like. Then they defecate while they are doing it. The mixture on the ground below can cause disease in those species which prefer to feed low down. Alternatively put your feeder over a hard surface which can be kept clean. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 4. NNRs and NATURE RESERVES ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LWT Top Reserves: https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/top-reserves LWT Reserves List: https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/nature-reserves-list RSPB Reserves: https://www.rspb.org.uk/days-out/reserves ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ SALTFLEETBY THEDDLETHORPE DUNES NNR including DONNA NOOK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://www.lincstrust.org.uk/reserves/saltfleetby-theddlethorpe-dunes https://www.lincstrust.org.uk/get-involved/top-reserves/donna-nook http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/38015?category=59026 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Owen Beaumont Tel: 07900264428 Reserve Manager Saltfleetby-Theddlethorpe Dunes NNR Sea View Road, Saltfleetby St. Clements, LN11 7TR 271124 – cattle egret still with cows north of Churchill Lane. Male sparrowhawk, barn owl, hen harrier, 7 marsh harrier, 2 buzzard and whooper swans flew over the saltmarsh near Sea View.   281124 – 2 short-eared owl hunting dunes at Rimac mid- afternoon and female stonechat perched on dune scrub. 6+ cattle egret spread around the local area with livestock. 26 fieldfare flew south over Elm House Farm and some smaller groups around Sea View and Rimac. Great white egret at Rimac late afternoon.   291124 – great white egret Rimac freshwater marsh scrape. 7 marsh harrier flew over the saltmarsh in the afternoon.   301124 – 6 gadwall on Paradise Lagoon. Woodcock flew out of dunes at Sea View and 5 fieldfare flew over. 3 cattle egret with Rimac cattle and 1 north of Churchill Lane. 1500+ pink-footed geese left roost in the morning and flew SSW. Ringtail hen harrier flew over Elm House Farm in the afternoon.   011224 – jack snipe Crook Bank outer dunes. 3 grey plover on the shoreline at Crook Bank, where a peregrine flew south. 210 curlew gathering pre-dusk on the beach out from Sear’s Track, with more to the north and south.   021224 – 4 cattle egret Sea View washlands and 300+ wigeon flew up from the river between Rimac and Sea View. Stonechat pair and short-eared owl around Rimac dunes. Going south over the sea in the morning were a great northern diver, red-throated diver, 2 eider, 2 goldeneye, 27 oystercatcher, 10 teal; and north went 2 red-throated diver. Adult Mediterranean gull on the beach at Mablethorpe North End. 3 mistle thrush around Sear’s Track and a marsh harrier flew south. 1500+ pink-footed geese left roost in the morning and again flew SSW, with recent sightings of flocks feeding around Mablethorpe and further down near Huttoft. 25 curlew on Elm House Farm grassland.   031224 – 4 cattle egret with cows in Rimac dunes. 2 marsh harrier flew over Rimac freshwater marsh. 250+ wigeon between Sea View and Rimac.   Donna Nook: 281124 – 2 male merlin, hen harrier, marsh harrier, sparrowhawk and short-eared owl.   291124 - Weekly pupdate: 1492 pups, 1274 cows and 498 bulls. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 5. BARDNEY LIMEWOODS NNR ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ These cover a huge area. Reports always welcome. The history of the Lincolnshire Limewoods: https://www.forestryjournal.co.uk/features/19111877.lincolnshire-limewoods/ The Forestry Commission visitor advice: https://www.forestryengland.uk/article/coronavirus-visitor-guide ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Butterfly Conservation Lincolnshire Branch: https://butterfly-conservation.org/300/lincolnshire-branch.html *** Butterfly Conservation Lincolnshire *** Chambers Farm Wood Butterfly Garden Volunteers Gardening days for 2025. February 18th; March 4th & 18th; April 1st 15th; May 6th & 20th; June 3rd & 17th; July 1st & 15th; August 5th & 19th; September 2nd & 16th, October 7th & 21st; November 4th. margaretwestcott7@hotmail.co.uk https://butterfly-conservation.org/in-your-area/lincolnshire-branch/chambers-farm-wood-butterfly-garden *** Lincolnshire Dormouse Group *** lincsdormousegroup@gmail.com All being well we should get a permit for the following dates for our winter coppicing sessions: Saturday 14th December 2024 Sunday 19th January 2025 Saturday 15th February 2025 Sunday 16th March 2025 We will meet at Chambers Farm Woods outside the wood centre at 10am over the winter, and the session normally runs until mid afternoon, with a break for a packed lunch picnic in the woods. Please be aware that the toilet block at Chambers remains closed. No experience is necessary, just enthusiasm! All tools are provided, but I would recommend that if you have your own gardening gloves to bring these along, but we have some that you can borrow too.  Reminder from Gemma Watkinson: We are interested to know whether dormice have naturally dispersed into other woodlands in the Lincolnshire Limewoods area (or indeed if there are any remnant isolated populations elsewhere in the county). For anyone walking in the Limewoods area, particularly in those woodlands closest to Chambers Farm Woods (e.g. Camshaws Wood, Austacre and New Park Woods, and Broadwater Forest, Thistle Storr Wood, Glad Wood and College Wood) please keep a look out for any hazelnuts that you think may have been opened by a dormouse. More information on how to undertake a nut hunt can be found on the People’s Trust for Endangered Species website and this document illustrates the distinctive marks to look out for as well as what nuts opened by voles, birds and squirrels also look like. https://ptes.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Help_us_find_hazel_dormice_generic.pdf Please let us know what you find, and send us photos of any nuts you think may have been opened by dormice. Happy Nut Hunting! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The NNR includes the following sites: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chambers Farm Woods (comprises Ivy Wood; Little and Great Scrubbs Woods; Minting Wood; Hatton Wood, Hatton Plantation and Minting Park; and also three areas of grassland: Little Scrubbs Meadow and extension), Small Meadow and Big Meadow. Since all have their own management plans, please give the actual location when reporting). College Wood; Cocklode & Great West Woods; Hardy Gang Wood; Newball Wood; Rand Wood; Scotgrove Wood; Southrey Wood and Wickenby Wood. Many of these include both areas of ancient woodland or important grassland. Many are also designated Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Records which provide a six-figure grid reference are of particular value to the Forestry Commission. Other woods included in the NNR but without public access: Stainfield Wood; Stainton & Fulnetby Woods (access by public bridle way only). ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 6. OTHER RESERVE REPORTS AND HIGHLIGHTS. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Discover Woodland Trust woods near you- including the best woods for walks, wildlife watching, family fun and heritage. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/woods/#=undefined&view=map Lincolnshire County Council - Local Nature Reserves https://www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/coast-countryside/nature-reserves Links to "Other Reserves" are welcome. Your suggestions, please. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 7. SENDING IN BULLETIN REPORTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The purpose of the Bulletin is to encourage biological recording in Lincolnshire. We aim to increase the number of people reporting observations to Recorders or via iRecord. https://www.brc.ac.uk/irecord/ The Bulletin is a FREE service. We ask you to provide reports, questions, news or relevant articles from time to time. Descriptive pieces are welcome. You don't have to stick to lists! Please help us to help you. When sending in reports please follow this layout to save re-editing: Place Name: IN CAPITALS with Grid Reference if you have it. Your Name: Real names please, not aliases. Put it in each time, for each location Date: Species list [Alphabetical?] & numbers [and observations?] e.g. Blackbird - 24 [And please, no home-grown abbreviations. Species Names in full.] Bulletin mailing times may vary. It usually goes out on Wednesdays/ Thursdays in time for the weekend. Please e-mail in contributions to the editor as early as possible. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 8. CONTACTS AND USEFUL WEBSITES ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *** Links "not to be missed" *** Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary. CONTACTS LIST Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union LNU Website: http://lnu.org/ LNU Twitter feed: https://twitter.com/LincsNaturalist LNU e-mail: info@lnu.org Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust: https://twitter.com/LincsWildlife Lincs Bird Club: https://twitter.com/Lincsbirding LBC County Bird Recorder: recorder_south@lincsbirdclub.co.uk The Sir Joseph Banks Society: https://twitter.com/sirjosephbanks Lincolnshire Bat Group: http://www.lincsbatgroup.co.uk/ Butterfly Conservation Lincolnshire Branch: https://twitter.com/BC_Lincolnshire Lincsbirders: https://twitter.com/lincsbirders Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Project: https://lincolnshirechalkstreams.org/ Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Trust: https://lincolnshirechalkstreamstrust.org.uk/ South Lincolnshire Flora Group: https://bsbi.org/south-lincolnshire-v-c-53 The Wolds Fungi Group: Contact Paul Nichol via email: nichol20@gmail.com Lincolnshire Dormouse Group: Contact: lincsdormousegroup@gmail.com FIGHTING WILDLIFE CRIME Wildlife Crime https://www.lincs.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/wc/wildlife-crime/ SPECIES IDENTIFICATION AND RECORDING Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary. LNU Recorders and Specialists: https://lnu.org/specialists/ Downloads of LNU books: https://lnu.org/publications/books/ Recording with "iRecord": https://www.brc.ac.uk/irecord/ iRecord is recommended by the LNU as an appropriate platform for on-line recording When asking for help: Please give the very best information you can provide. If you are not sure, ask what is needed from you to confirm identification. Photographs are helpful but not every species can be identified from a photograph. When asked for further details, get back to the recorder promptly. Don't forget a thank you for the help. That is always welcomed. Dragonfly Identification help https://british-dragonflies.org.uk/odonata/species-and-identification/ Local Bat Helpline Grounded bats, bat problems, advice and information. Contact Annette Faulkner on 01775 766286 Email: annettefaulkner@btinternet.com Confidential Bat Records You may send confidential bat records direct to Annette Faulkner on: annettefaulkner@btinternet.com Bat Identification https://www.bats.org.uk/about-bats/what-are-bats/uk-bats/ NHBS - Frequencies of British Bats https://media.nhbs.com/equipment/British%20Bat%20Frequencies.pdf Slug ID Help Chris du Feu will help with slug identification. Tel: 01383 669 124 Email: chris.r.dufeu@gmail.com USEFUL WILDLIFE LINKS Please copy and paste URLs if necessary. Lincolnshire Badger Group https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100093647842292 Email: lincolnshirebadgergroup@hotmail.com Lincs Environmental Records Centre: http://www.glnp.org.uk/ Natural England: http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ NHBS Natural history equipment or books.https://www.nhbs.com/ The Flora of Lincolnshire by Joan Gibbons: downloadable LNU book Atlas of the terrestrial and semi-aquatic Mammals of Lincolnshire: downloadable LNU book *** For the Geologists *** Please copy and paste URLs if/as necessary. Lincolnshire Geodiversity Group:  https://www.lincswolds.org.uk/discovering/geology-1 Geology of the Lincolnshire Wolds: https://www.lincswolds.org.uk/special-features/geology The Geology of Lincolnshire: downloadable LNU book UK Fossils in Lincolnshire https://ukfossils.co.uk/category/lincolnshire/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 9. NOTES ABOUT THESE WILDLIFE REPORTS ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ We do our best to ensure accuracy in our reporting. However, records are sent in by a variety of reporters; from complete beginners to professionals. They may vary in reliability and occasionally may be difficult or impossible to verify. If further information is needed please contact  the editor: Bulletins are sent to Recorders at Lincolnshire Environmental Records Centre [GNLP], Lincolnshire Naturalists' Union and Lincolnshire Bird Club. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 10. BULLETIN PUBLICITY POLICY ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When sending in reports, e.g. unusual plants, please report any sensitive news directly to recorders. Not the Bulletin. We don't want to spoil things with unwise or untimely publicity. Thank you. Please respect the interests of wildlife and site owners if you report on national networks. Interest in wildlife is not a licence to act irresponsibly or thoughtlessly to landowners, who may well be partners in important conservation work. [Views expressed in the Bulletin do not necessarily reflect the policies or opinions of the LNU or associated organisations. In particular this applies to agencies, especially charities, taking a political stance.] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 11. LNU EVENTS DIARY ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ *** LNU Events *** *** L.N.U. / LINCOLNSHIRE BIRD CLUB JOINT MEETING *** On Saturday 25th January 2025 at Whisby Nature Park Education Centre Lincoln SK910662 at 2 pm. Refreshments will be available. Parking £2 Illustrated talk by LBC Chairman Phil Espin, “The Birds of a Lincolnshire Market Town” This talk is based on the book of the same title recently published by L.B.C. and written by Phil and his great friend John Clarkson who tragically died before publication. An appreciation of this book can be found at https://thewryneck.blogspot.com/2024/08/birds-of-lincolnshire-market-town.html ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 12 ...AND FINALLY... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ National and international stories  80% of the Dumfries & Galloway Crab Apple trees tested are found to be ‘pure’ https://www.dgwgo.com/rural-farming-news/80-of-the-dumfries-galloway-crab-apple-trees-tested-are-found-to-be-pure/ Sniffer dog trained to detect tree disease in ‘groundbreaking’ project https://www.westerntelegraph.co.uk/news/national/24762150.sniffer-dog-trained-detect-tree-disease-groundbreaking-project/ Number of English bathing sites rated 'poor' doubles https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwy4qw2j3n4o Lockdown DIY linked to landfill's noxious gases https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5yg1v16nkpo A Pangolin Success Story: Mother and Pup Thriving in the Wild https://www.wildlifeconservationtrust.org/a-pangolin-success-story-mother-and-pup-thriving-in-the-wild/ Bee-harming pesticides found in majority of English waterways https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0ew8dpw58qo Wolves in EU could lose safeguards, allowing culls as numbers soar https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4pyw8d4vzo *** Mail Fails *** an@alf-resco.co.uk - soft bounce - message could not be delivered. Mark Bibby - soft bounce - message could not be delivered.. Maurice Feest - soft bounce - message couldn't be delivered. ----------------- ~ THE END ~ ----------------- (..until next week!) Roger Parsons old.museum@yahoo.co.uk http://rogerparsons.info/