Reed is fantastic! A species of tall grass growing to around 4m and known scientifically as Phragmites australis - it is one of the major components of Langford’s success as a developing wetland site.

After our re-development work last year on Phase 1, the balancing pond and silt lagoon 7, it was only a matter of time before the reed started it’s re-colonisation of the area and now, well into it’s first growing…

Apologies to anyone who was hoping to come along to our walk on the 4th of October but due to an error was advertised on the wrong day.

The walk is planned for the 14th of October which is a Sunday as usual, due to the restraints imposed with the reserve being part of a working quarry on weekdays and Saturday.

We will contact everyone who has booked on and left a number.

See events for full details of the walk if you…

As promised on our Twitter account last week (are you following us?) - here is the stunning elephant hawk-moth, Deilephila elpenor, caterpillar that was found on Phase 2 on Friday by Pete Acton, Pete Smith and John Young from Notts Biological and Geological Records Centre and Carl Cornish, our RSPB Conservation Officer. This one is munching it's way through great willowherb, or Epilobium hirsutum, but they will also…

Last weekend was once again time for our monthly volunteer Sunday work party and as always everyone arrived ready to get stuck in (on a beautiful warm and sunny morning too!).

This month’s task was ‘green haying’ our new footpath loop around Phase 2 and the old silt lagoon 7. Green haying is a nice little technique that involves spreading hay on bare areas of earth. The seeds within the hay then drop…

What has caused this white colouration on these leaves of pedunculate oak, Quercus robur? There seems to be a lot of it around this year and I have even seen whole trees 'white washed' with it - find it on oaks on the public footpath by the woodland. Answer to follow soon....

What a change in the weather from earlier in the week today, as we have been basking in glorious sunshine all day whilst out on site plant surveying. Many thanks to Pete Acton, Pete Smith and John Young from Notts Biological and Geological Records Centre and to Carl Cornish, our RSPB Conservation Officer, for coming along to the reserve today to take a look at the wetland plants developing on Phases 1, 2 and the old silt…

It has been fantastic to see such a diverse aquatic and wetland plant community developing on Phase 1 in the last couple of weeks. Common reed, or Phragmites australis to be scientific is colonising very well over much of the re-developed area, along with other characteristic wetland species such as the reedmaces, Typha species and a range of herbaceous plants including these I photographed last week....

Water-plant…

What a fantastic evening we had on Sunday here at Langford, as I was joined by our county moth recorder Sheila Wright and fellow moth enthusiast John Osbourne for a night’s trapping down by Phase 2. As the last of the rain cleared just before our arrival, I was hopeful for some good species and the weather was perfect – warm, cloudy, no rain and no wind.

Langford is home to some special moth species, most…

What a beautiful afternoon it has turned out to be, after a rather cool and breezy morning. However, one of the advantages of cooler weather at this time of year is that insects will sit still for longer, enabling photo opportunities that usually don't present themselves! Here are a few from today....

This stunning male southern hawker, or Aeshna cyanea, was perched on guelder rose by the woodland. It's bright coloration…

The picture below shows an insect nymph, but what is it going to turn into? Look out for the answer next week....

It was once again time for the monthly Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) yesterday and with some nice recent wader sightings and the first teal of the autumn seen last week, I was hoping for some good birds. Here are the results of the count....

19 mute swan

52 mallard

91 tufted duck

16 gadwall

1 teal - my first of the autumn

92 coot

4 moorhen

11 great crested grebe

6 little grebe - a very successful breeding season…

Ever wondered what a bittern sees from inside the reedbed? Here are some pictures from this afternoon taken whilst plant surveying around the silt lagoons....

And one from outside the reedbed - I snapped this essex skipper sheltering from the rain and wind by silt lagoon 4.

Anyone like to have a guess at this one...what has caused the damage to this dogwood, Cornus sanguinea, leaf? The line is about 5cm long and 2mm wide and can be seen on dogwood trees on the public footpath. Look out for the answer soon....

It's been a while since we have had regular marsh harrier sightings at Langford - in fact I haven't had the pleasure of seeing one since January! However, in the last week and a half, there has been a regular juvenile bird recorded on several occasions across the reserve. The bird is quite distinctive, with a very orange coloured cap, characteristic of a juvenile bird and with lovely dark chocolate brown plumage.…

What is this mystery orange structure on this grass species found this afternoon on the Phase 1 grassland? It is about 2.5cm long and surrounds the grass stem. Look out for the answer soon....

We usually think of late-summer as a quiet time of year, the birds have finished breeding and stopped singing and the sounds of wintering wildfowl are still weeks away. However, the reserve was anything but quiet as I made my way around our butterfly transect route this afternoon. In the woodland, the air was alive with the high pitched buzzing of hoverflies, there were so many insects that it sounded like a swarm of…

Sunday 5^th August was once again time for our monthly volunteer Sunday work party and 16 people arrived bright and early for a day’s work on site. Two important jobs were on the agenda for the day – firstly, finishing off the removal of ragwort around our Phase 1 grassland and secondly, reed seedling planting out on Phase 1 itself.

Ragwort removal is a vital element of our summer time work here at Langford…

Our grassland around Phase 1 is full of botanical variety and is awash with colour in the summer. It is also a haven for countless species of invertebrates using each plant species for various purposes as part of their lifecycles. An interesting find from last week by our Warden, Paul Bennett was this gall on a hawkweed species, or Hieracium sp. to be scientific. The hawkweeds are an incredibly complex genus, with thousands…

There was plenty to brighten up the dull and showery afternoon today, as I made my way around the butterfly transect route. In total I counted 57 butterflies of 8 species, with the highlight being only my second essex skipper of the year. Other sightings from this afternoon include -

Rutpela maculata, one of the larger longhorn beetles (Family Cerambycidae) and seemingly scarce this year - only my third at Langford this…

What is this red swelling on this leaf of crack willow, Salix fragilis? The tree is on the public footpath by the silt lagoons and has these swellings on several of it's leaves. The red structures themselves are around 10mm long and 5mm wide. Answer to follow next week....

It's amazing what you can find in the relatively unexplored areas of Langford, as I found out yesterday whilst making my way along the ditch at the northern edge of the woodland surveying for plants. The area was alive with butterflies (making a welcome change from the recent lack of insects in general!), with meadow browns, ringlets, small and essex skippers, commas and a lone purple hairstreak.

However, it was…

....it doesn't seem like a month since I was out on site conducting June's WeBS (Wetland Bird Survey), but today was time for July's count. July is always one of the quieter months for WeBS, but at this time of year there is always the chance of someting good dropping in. Here are the results of this morning's count....

13 mute swan

25 canada goose

88 tufted duck

42 mallard

3 gadwall

1 pochard

July is usually a fairly quiet time bird-wise here at Langford, with the breeding season pretty much over, some of our summer visitors such as cuckoos have already departed and winter visitors are still a long way off! However, July is often considered the first month of autumn when it comes to birdwatching, as waders start to make their migrations from northern breeding grounds southwards and can often stop off at Langford…

You may well have noticed the distinct lack of insect life around this spring and summer….and it’s no wonder when you consider the weather we have been experiencing since the beginning of April. Cool temperatures, strong winds and lots of rain appear to have had a significant effect on insects, with the numbers of many species being a fraction of what they should be for the time of year.

For example, my…

What is this distinctive plant with black spots on it's leaves - named after a bird....or is it the other way around? Look out for the answer soon....