Spotted flycatcher and more...

Wood forget-me-not

Great news! First spotted flycatcher has been seen in Booths wood in the Churnet by the Site Manager on Saturday.

Other things seen in Booths included wood forget-me-not, yellow archangel and pendulous sedge.  Pendulous sedge (Carex pendula) is a large sedge.  It can grow to 1.8 m and even occasionally 2.4 m.  It's named so, because it's flower heads dangle like pendulums.

Pendulous sedge is in the genus Carex.  A genus, if you're not sure, is a grouping of plant or animal species which are closely related.  So, what tells you that this is in the genus Carex ? (or a True Sedge as plants in the genus Carex are called)........

Feel the stem!  Amongst other things, one way of telling True Sedges are that their stems are rectangular.

Also, in Booths are some old log piles (see photo).  Log piles provide ideal habitats for many types of insects, particularly beetles.  The design provides a humid, sheltered environment and the continuous rotting wood creates a great setting for the reserves 1200 species of beetle and 1500 species of fly.  Standing deadwood, although it decays at a different rate, also provides excellent conditions for beetles as they use the wood to lay their eggs in and then once the eggs hatch the larva feed off it.  Dead wood is extremely important to species of beetle and often, intensive forestry or woodland tidying can cause serious decline in their numbers. Standing deadwood is also important for many birds, including woodpecker that will both nest and feed on/in the wood.

At Coombes the pied fylcatcher's have started having a look for nests. Ravens have been seen today flying over clough meadow as well as a sparrowhawk that ended up getting mobbed by some crows.  One of the volunteers had a grass snake wizz past their foot on Buzzard bank.

Also a dipper has been seen down by the bridge today by a very lucky visitor.

What a place!

Becky Elliott and Jarrod Sneyd