============================================ || || Wildnews Bulletin 12th February 2025 || 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 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Editor writes: We all hope you enjoy the Wildnews Bulletin and we are always open to comments about what you enjoy or find less interesting! There are openings for readers to become involved in the production of the Bulletin in an understudy capacity. This would make evolution smoother if any of the present three volunteers was temporarily unavailable or eventually needed to step down in the future. We presently have Roger Parsons administering the Mailchimp account (fully reimbursed by LNU) and contributing material, myself editing readers submissions (c. 2 or 3 hours over Monday- Wednesday), and Alex Pickwell using Mailchimp to send out the finished article (2 hours on a Wednesday pm.). Roger did all of this for around 30 years previously. Mailchimp also provides data relating to the performance of Wildnews Bulletin compared with similar newsletters across the country and our figures are almost always well above this average. A more diverse production team would provide a comfortable basis on which to continue. Please send a message to my email philporterento@outlook.com if you are interested in becoming involved. Phil Porter's email is: philporterento@outlook.com Roger Parsons' email is: old.museum@yahoo.co.uk BTO's tracked Cuckoos - 11 still south of the Sahara https://www.bto.org/cuckoos Lock of the Lowes SWT Webcam https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/things-to-do/watch-wildlife-online/loch-of-the-lowes-webcam/ Learn a new species and boost Lincolnshire’s natural history record! Colin Smith, LNU President-elect writes… A core function of the LNU is to encourage wildlife recording. We would like everyone’s help to fill in the recording gaps for some of the more common Lincolnshire species. Each fortnight we will introduce a species with a link to a current distribution map and details of the species to look out for. Please look out for the species in your area or when you are out and about in the County. You can record what you see on iRecord at https://irecord.org.uk/ This is the LNU’s chosen digital platform for biological recording. It is free to register with and easy to use, but if you have any difficulty get in touch via the LNU website and we will try to help. There is a comprehensive guide to getting started on the iRecord home page above. Click on Help. After a month, details of the records received and an updated map will be Issued here on your Bulletin. On iRecord, you will have access to millions of wildlife records from across the UK, and will be able to organise your own records within its database. Please do join in and record these species and any others you find. Take the best close-up picture you can Thanks to those who added records for our second map filling species. We received 11 records from 4 recorders for the small Bramble Leaf miner moth Stigmella aurella. Please do join in as all records are valuable and help our understanding of the county's changing natural history. The next species is the Lichen Lecidella elaeochroma. It is a grey lichen that is usually oval in shape and with small black fruiting bodies dotting the centre. They are common on ash trees but can also be found on other smooth barked trees and sometimes fences. There is a photo and more guidance can be found on the British Lichen Society website. https://britishlichensociety.org.uk/sites/default/files/Lecidella%20elaeochroma_0.pdf the current record distribution Map can be seen at https://lnu.org/lecidella-elaeochroma/ Please continue to record the previous species; Grey cushioned Grimmia moss, Bramble Leaf Miner moth and Jelly-ear fungus *** This week's mostly-local news stories: *** 'Once-in-a-lifetime' murmuration for village - Leics. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/c4gp5k9y4w1o Power cable thefts cost £50,000, police say - Frampton https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crr0x7lx2v5o Battle lines drawn over 'monstrous' pylons and solar farm 'wastelands' https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2d3zlkl4kro Bottle from 1800s among vintage litter found - Grantham. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czx87j555qro Sea wall defence work to resume in summer -Stallingborough. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c360yx4n8n0o Solar farm that can power 14,500 homes approved - Welby https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c863d2dg338o Key power station didn't properly disclose burning forest wood - Drax https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdxnpzzjed1o *** 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 13th February - Sunday 16th February Headline: Mostly cloudy. Outbreaks of light rain and hill snow. Cold. Thursday: A dry but cold and mostly cloudy day, although again some brief sunny spells are possible. Maximum temperature 5 °C. Outlook for Friday to Sunday: Cold and mostly cloudy through this period, with occasionally brisk winds from the North Sea. Risk of some rain and sleet Saturday, although this is currently low confidence. UK long range weather forecast Sunday 16th February - Tuesday 25th February South or southeasterly winds are likely at the start of this period, and will maintain below average temperatures and often cloudy conditions. There is a chance of even colder conditions developing temporarily, which would see more wintry showers, especially in northeastern areas. Meanwhile, frontal zones, bringing milder conditions and rain, will attempt to move in from the west or southwest. Early in this period these look likely to have limited influence over the UK (apart from the far SW which may already be milder by this point). If, or when, they push further northeastwards the chance of some snow increases. The transition between colder and milder conditions remains uncertain, but towards the end of this period, the milder, wetter conditions are likely to have spread across much of the country. *** For Astronomers and Sky-watchers *** Sky At A Glance - highlights to 7-16th February Watch the bright Moon step past Mars, Castor, and Pollux. https://skyandtelescope.org/observing/sky-at-a-glance/ Night Sky - RMG - highlights - February. https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/blog/astronomy/night-sky-highlights-february-2025 Full Moons: 12th February - the "Snow Moon". https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/full-moon-calendar Meteor shower date - next big one April Lyrids. https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/meteor-shower-guide BBC Sky at Night Magazine website Lunar eclipse visible from Europe 13-14 March 2025. https://www.skyatnightmagazine.com/news *** EVENTS *** *** L.N.U. AGM & Talk *** On Saturday 22nd March 2025 at Whisby Nature Park Education Centre Lincoln SK910662 at 2 pm. Refreshments will be available. Parking £2 The AGM will be followed by a talk by outgoing president, Paul Scott “The Sir Joseph Banks Centre - Past, Present, and Future”. Synopsis - "Many members may be familiar with Sir Joseph Banks, thanks to numerous talks given across the county and beyond over the past 20 years. However, the history of the building and the Joseph Banks Society remains less well-known. This lecture explores the evolution of the building and how the Joseph Banks Society has transformed into a unique natural science centre and museum.” *** LINCOLN LWT *** Richard Davidson writes… Lincoln Area Group Talk 20th February : Birds of Prey in Lincolnshire Bird enthusiast and ringer Alan Ball presents an illustrated talk about the range of birds of prey found in Lincolnshire, including owls. The second half focuses on Red Kites and Peregrines. The event is at Whisby Nature Park in the Lafarge Education Building starting at 7.30 pm. Admission is £2.50 which includes refreshments in the interval. *** Boston Area Group LWT *** Talk - Nature's Favourites by Neil Smith Thursday 13th February 2025 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. *** GRIMSBY/CLEETHORPES RSPB *** Our local group have arranged a talk for the evening of Monday 17th of February at 7.30pm at The Holy Trinity Church (formally known as Corpus Christi) on Grimsby Road, Cleethorpes, DN35 7LH. The talk is titled "Champions of the flyway" by Mark Pearson. *** SOUTH 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/ *** THE SCUNTHORPE AND BRIGG LOCAL GROUP OF THE LINCOLNSHIRE WILDLIFE TRUST *** The first meeting for 2025 of our Scunthorpe and Brigg Local Group of the LWT will be on Thursday, 13th February when we will be visited by Mike Pickwell, our local wildlife and landscape photographer from Cleethorpes, who will be giving us his illustrated talk entitled "An Island Year". In this talk Mike covers the wildlife and landscapes of the Outer Hebrides and the Balearic Island of Menorca. The meeting starts at 7.30pm and will take place in the St Hugh's Church Hall, Ashby Road, Scunthorpe, DN16 2AG, which is opposite the Applegreen filling station on Ashby Road near to Brumby Crossroads. ALL ARE WELCOME TO OUR MEETINGS. There is a small car park at the Church, and also parking across the road at the Old Brumby United Church and on the nearby roadside. There is a £2.50 entry charge for the meeting which includes light refreshments at the mid-talk break. *** 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 5/2/2024 Deeping St James, 2 Long-eared Owls at Main Lake in ivy, near Hide Deeping Lakes. Freiston Shore, Spotted Redshank Gibraltar Point, 2 Water Pipits flew from Freshwater Marsh. Louth, Black Redstart fem/1w male at St James' Church Saltfleetby/Theddlethorpe Dunes, 10 Russian White-fronteed Geese in field south of Crook Bank car park. Skegness, 24 Russian White-fronted Geese at Middlemarsh Farm north of A52, west of Warth Lane, in field south of lagoon. 6/2/2025 Deeping High Bank, Hen Harrier male flew north over Gull Farm towards Willow Tree Fen. Deeping St James, 6 Long-eared Owls at Main Lake in ivy, near Hide Deeping Lakes. Sutton-on-Sea, Black Redstart on beach huts at Bohemia Way, then flew south. Red-necked Grebe on lake at Lakeside Springs. 7/2/2025 Deeping St James, 10 Long-eared Owls at Main Lake in ivy, near Hide Deeping Lakes. Leadenham, 3 Caspian Gulls (2w+2 1w] in fields near quarry. 8/2/2025 Bagmoor Lake west of Winterton, Iceland Gull 2w. Deeping St James, 8 Long-eared Owls at Main Lake, 2 from Hide 6 from gully, Deeping Lakes. East Halton Marshes, 2 Water Pipits. Frampton Marsh, 2 Bewick's Swans. Sutton-on-Sea, Red-necked Grebe on lake at Lakeside Springs. Tallington Lakes, Ring-necked Duck drk, 3 Scaup, 2 Hawfinches. £5 entry. 9/2/2025 Deeping St James, 6 Long-eared Owls at Main Lake, 3 in ivy covered tree, near hide, 3 across channel, Deeping Lakes. Sutton-on-Sea, Red-necked Grebe on lake at Lakeside Springs. Willow Tree Fen, Hen Harrier male in roost. 10/2/2025 Tetney Marshes, Hen Harrier male at south end. Willow Tree Fen, Hen Harrier male in roost. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 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 *** 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 9/2/25 Blackbird 2,,1f. Collared Dove 3 Pied Wagtail m+f Robin 2 Starling flock 12+ Wood Pigeon 3 Black-headed Gull raiding flock of 20+ Domestic Pigeon 5 House Sparrow 12 Dunnock BARDNEY Abbey Farm TF111707 Phil and Mary Porter 6th February 500+ Woodpigeon 30 Fieldfare 25 Starling 1 Linnet 2 Reed Bunting 3 Hare 1 Pied Wagtail Heard Goldfinch BARDNEY GARDEN TF117700 Phil and Mary Porter 6th February 2025 Winter Aconites out in full flower in sunshine attracted about 10 Honey Bees plus 1 Andrena, 1 Marmalade Hoverfly and 1 Drone Fly. 1 yellow and black hoverfly remained unidentified. FISKERTON TF057719 Mary Porter 11th February 2025 From the car, perhaps a couple of dozen rooks, all standing guard by nests high up in trees along the roadside. Mary Porter 11th February 2025 Lincoln via Instagram I spotted a photo on Instagram of what looked like a hairy footed flower bee found by a lady in Lincoln, inside her house. It looked very dishevelled but was still alive. David Sheppard confirmed that it was indeed a female Anthophora plumipes, which would make it his first record of the species this year. HORKSTOW SE987179 Jenny Haynes 20 January 2025 First snowdrops out in my garden. These are the results of my Garden Bird Watch count at the weekend: Blue tit 8 Great tit 5 Chaffinch 12 Greenfinch 4 Goldfinch 10 Blackbird 4 Robin 1 Dunnock 1 Tree sparrow 3 House sparrow 2 Gt spotted woodpecker 1 Wood pigeon 4. 5th February 2025 Two brown hares were chasing around in the field opposite our house today. We also saw a lone long-tailed tit on the feeders where there is much activity. LITTLE LONDON TF194889 Colin Smith 5/2/2025 Barn Owl flying at dawn LINWOOD, ELANOR WOOD TF113853 Colin Smith 4/2/2025 First outing for the portable moth trap this year. I did wonder if I did the right thing as I scraped the ice off the car in the morning but the 39 moths in the trap showed that our insects are quite hardy. Chestnut Moth Conistra vaccinii 16 Winter Shade Tortricodes alternella 13 Early Moth Theria primaria 8 Dotted Border Agriopis marginaria 1 Spring Usher Agriopis leucophaearia 1 Also lots of Bramble Leaf Miner Stigmella aurella mines on the brambles. SOUTHREY Water Rail Way TF145660 Phil and Mary Porter 9th February Windy, cold and damp Goosander, 1 on the Witham, 2 later in flight Goldfinch, 25 in a single flock Chaffinch, 5 Wood Pigeon c.30 Mallard, about 10 on the river Rabbit, extensive ‘scratchings’ on grass verges and more ’toilets’ than usual suggesting larger numbers ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 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 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 050225 – 5 whooper swan, 34 barnacle geese, 2 Egyptian geese and several skeins of pink-footed geese flew south throughout the morning. A red kite also flew south-west over the dunes at Crook Bank and another was flying around Saltfleet Haven area. 10 adult white-fronted geese still in arable fields next to Crook Bank car park along with 246 lapwing and 68 curlew. A grey wagtail flew east over Churchill Lane dunes. Cattle egret in field opposite Sea View and 3 cattle egret still around Rimac. 4 stonechat around Rimac, with a male near the car park plus a male and 2 females by the saltmarsh viewpoint. Green sandpiper heard calling in flight over the Eau at Rimac. 1100 pink-footed geese landed on Elm House Farm grassland before flying west in several groups. 78 lapwing, 210 wigeon, 23 mallard, 34 common gull, 6 shoveler, 6 shelduck also on field 5 Elm House Farm. A Finnish colour-ringed dunlin recorded on the foreshore at Rimac. 060225 – 14 coot, 8 gadwall and 2 little grebe Rimac freshwater marsh scrape. 1200 dunlin on the foreshore between Churchill Lane and Saltfleet Haven. A well-fed female peregrine sat on the outer saltmarsh north of MOD. 070225 – 3 cattle egret in field next to Rimac car park and a great white egret on the freshwater marsh. 3 stonechat in the dunes at Rimac perched on scrub. 3 mistle thrush chasing one another between trees around Sea View. 080225 – 130 curlew on the beach at Mablethorpe North End post-roost – these roost further north along the beach and gather in groups in the morning before flying south or inland to nearby fields where they feed throughout the day. 110225 – great white egret feeding on the freshwater marsh at Rimac. 2 cattle egret in pony field next to Rimac entrance. 2 stonechat in the central dunes at Rimac flying between dune scrub. Chiffchaff and water rail calling from Rimac reedbed area. LINCOLNSHIRE COASTAL COUNTRY PARK Dave Miller Coast and The Wolds (South) Warden Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust Sykes Farm Nature Reserve Office Gibraltar Point National Nature Reserve Gibraltar Road Skegness PE24 4SU 8th February: 6 Egyptian Geese and 4 White-fronted Geese at Chapel St Leonards, at least 2 Bearded Tit, Black-tailed Godwit and 14 Dunlin on Anderby Marsh. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 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 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. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 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. 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 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. How to identify diving ducks | The Wildlife Trusts https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife/how-identify/how-identify-diving-ducks Dragonfly Identification help https://british-dragonflies.org.uk/odonata/species-and-identification/ 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 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. BGS - Seabed geology data: results from stakeholder consultation https://www.bgs.ac.uk/news/seabed-geology-data-consultation/ 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 *** https://lnu.org/meetings/ https://lnu.org/meetings/indoor-meetings/ *** L.N.U. AGM & Talk *** On Saturday 22nd March 2025 at Whisby Nature Park Education Centre Lincoln SK910662 at 2 pm. Refreshments will be available. Parking £2 The AGM will be followed by a talk by outgoing president, Paul Scott “The Sir Joseph Banks Centre - Past, Present, and Future”. Synopsis - "Many members may be familiar with Sir Joseph Banks, thanks to numerous talks given across the county and beyond over the past 20 years. However, the history of the building and the Joseph Banks Society remains less well-known. This lecture explores the evolution of the building and how the Joseph Banks Society has transformed into a unique natural science centre and museum.” As soon as the 2025 Field Meeting are available on the LNU Website details will be posted here. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 12 ...AND FINALLY... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ National and international stories UK first as Argyll and Bute serve wild venison school dinners https://www.argyll-bute.gov.uk/news/2025/jan/uk-first-argyll-and-bute-serve-wild-venison-school-dinners Back from the dead: meet 10 animals once presumed extinct https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/animals-once-presumed-extinct Why bats don’t fly in the rain https://www.zmescience.com/research/studies/why-bats-cant-fly-rain-4523532/ Britain has a new snake species – should climate change mean it is allowed to stay? https://theconversation.com/britain-has-a-new-snake-species-should-climate-change-mean-it-is-allowed-to-stay-249043 Dutch scientists left a hamster wheel outside. Then, all the animals started playing with it https://www.zmescience.com/ecology/animals-ecology/hamster-wheel-running-nature-repubz/ Jss bats can swim? https://youtube.com/shorts/t3iz9o5m7Ng? Antarctic engineers p-p-p-pick up a new team member https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cq8k9l9dkd8o Earth's inner core may have changed shape, say scientists https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gx37ky3gyo £22bn for 'unproven' green tech could raise bills, MPs warn https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ce8jpj3z3n2o How to plant a fruit tree https://ptes.org/my-garden/how-to-plant-a-fruit-tree/ Most animals have their own version of tree rings – here’s how we biologists use them to help species thrive https://theconversation.com/most-animals-have-their-own-version-of-tree-rings-heres-how-we-biologists-use-them-to-help-species-thrive-249507 This Bizarre Larva Has a Fake Face to Fool Termites https://www.zmescience.com/ecology/animals-ecology/this-bizarre-larva-has-a-fake-face-to-fool-termites/ February Woodlark https://www.gwct.org.uk/wildlife/species-of-the-month/2025/woodlark/ *** Mail Fails *** slincsfens - hard bounce - message could not be delivered. ----------------- ~ THE END ~ ----------------- (..until next week!) Roger Parsons old.museum@yahoo.co.uk http://rogerparsons.info/