Lost forever or maybe not?

Bore da pawb, croeso.

Before I get into this week's blog properly, a reflection on the past week.

Counting growth rings

Surprisingly a very run of the mill week until Friday afternoon when I had the pleasure of leading a local school on a visit to Llyn Llech Owain Country Park. Year six from Ysgol Gorslas wanted to understand why we have been carrying out forestry operations and harvesting some of the 70-80 year old Sitka Spruce. The class had clearly prepared for their visit with some great question being asked, such as, why are you cutting down the trees?  The trees were planted as a commercial crop and have reached harvestable size as well as posing a risk to visitors during storms. Will there be less Oxygen in the area now?  I had to flip this on its head and we discussed the Carbon cycle and the surprising fact that the peat bog is already storing approximately 3.2 times the amount of CO2 as all the trees in the park, Oxygen levels are unlikely to be affected!

                                                                                                           

Fen Orchid var ovata

Lost forever or maybe not... The Fen Orchid, Liparis loeselii, highlighted in the publication "The Nature of West Wales" by David Saunders in 1986 referring to Carmarthenshire as "..one of the county's specialities" although not seen Tywyn Burrows since 1971 and Pembrey Burrows since 1930.

Recently rediscovered on the MOD site at Pendine Burrows it would seem to be back in the county

Rare orchid rediscovered on MOD land - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Fen orchid Liparis loeselii is a small green-flowered orchid of fens and dune systems. Two morphologically distinct forms occur: the type form of the East Anglian fens has acute oblong-elliptical leaves, while the form occurring in the dune slacks of south Wales and formerly north Devon (var. ovata) is shorter, generally fewer-flowered and bears blunt, broadly elliptical leaves. In the UK the two forms are mutually exclusive with respect to their distribution between habitats, but in mainland Europe the type (fenland) form var. loeselii also occurs in dune slacks.

The major factors leading to its widespread decline have been habitat loss and deterioration.

All fenland sites in the Norfolk Broads are subject to high water tables throughout the year and some experience winter flooding. The cessation of peat-cutting in the fens is probably the most important contributory factor leading to the decline of this species, as L. loeselii in this area is confined to tall-herb fens that have experienced disturbance through peat-cutting.

In dune slacks L. loeselii occurs across quite a wide range of vegetation types, though principally in younger dune slack communities where some open soil remains. These dune slacks are all subject to winter flooding, with inundation often occurring for up to five months in a year. A high summer water table appears to be essential for the survival of this drought-sensitive species. In common with many other orchids, the fen orchid appears to rely on regular disturbance for its long-term survival at any one site, and dune system over-stabilisation has been a major causal element in its decline.

I have been unable to track down the exact location on Pembrey Burrows for the pre 1930 records but maybe just maybe a search of likely habitats, and there are a few may reveal the presence of this diminutive orchid.

Getting old......

Croeso a bore da pawb,

The weather seems to be settling down, although if you have ventured outside this last week you would have felt the chill. This hasn't stopped our summer migrants arriving though with, Whimbrel, and Tree Pipit reported from the usual sites.

Flowers are responding to the increasing day lengths with the dunes at Pembrey starting to colour up with Green Winged Orchids, Dune Pansy and Rue -leaved Saxifrage all adding a splash of colour. A search for Moonwort was not successful I'll need to try harder, discover more here. Common Moonwort – Learn About This Wildflower (wildflowerweb.co.uk)

The latest edition of Ringing & Migration dropped through the door this week, a very specialized publication, often over my head, being a more practical person;  but I did glean some fascinating facts regarding some recent bird "longevity" reports, ( recent in bird research means up to 2021)

Fulmar a bird which occurs in the far west of the county needing cliffs for breeding, the oldest recorded bird was an amazing 45years  9months 12days old when observed in 2021 on Orkney

Shelduck a familiar bird along the Carmarthenshire coast was 19years 10months 15days when observed near York

Shelduck | BTO - British Trust for Ornithology

Goldcrest one of the smallest birds in the UK, was 5years 3months 14days old when reencountered by a licenced bird ringer on the Isles of Scilly, having originally been ringed in Wiltshire.

I bumped into Liam Olds this week, if you don't know Liam he is, in my opinion, one of the foremost entomologists in Wales if not the UK, he was surveying for the mining bee Colletes cunicularius, one of the earliest of the Colletes family to be on the wing and reliant of the Willow for pollen. A colony was found, just over the Pembrey Country Park border, on the NRW dunes of Pembrey forest

Here is some more information on bees in Wales

Wales-Threatened-Bee-Report-SUMMARY.pdf (buglife.org.uk)

SLOW WORM fest..

 Croseo pawb, 

Another busy week which has kept me on my toes, as usual, I've dealt with fish poaching, illegal vehicle intrusion, and odd things going on with a "Badger Sett".

The relevant authorities are dealing with the poaching and vehicle issues whilst I have investigated the "goings on". Nothing of concern as there is no Badger sett just an outlier burrow probably an old boar Badger or one of last years youngsters pushed out from the main sett, quite common at this time of year when the sow badgers will be giving birth.

Our amazing volunteers have been out and about, today they were at Morfa Berwig LNR, where I joined them this afternoon for their first reptile survey of the year, a very productive survey with 16 refugia to check and a total of 22 Slow worms, five Grass snakes, although two were out basking away from the refugia and just one Common Lizard. One refugia had seven Slow worms in a loose ball under it an incredible sight, another had Slow worms, a Grass snake and a Bank Vole. 

Find out more here Species – Bank Vole – The Mammal Society 

As is to be expected summer migrants are arriving en-masse, with at least two Little Gulls, a Bonaparte's Gull, a visitor from across the Atlantic, gracing our Sandy Water Park lake. find out more here Bonaparte's Gull | BTO - British Trust for Ornithology

Another LNR appears to have a pair of Mandarin Duck on a small concealed pond, I will keep an eye on them and see if anything develops.

Fingers crossed the weather starts to behave and become more spring like....

A Tern of events Sunday 7th April

 Prynhawn da pawb,  I hope you have all weathered storm Kathleen.

It's been a heck of a week personally,  I'm hoping this coming week will be better.

Well storm Kathleen is the last weather event we need but sadly any meagre control we may have had over our climate has long run out. On a brighter note though a phone call from the county bird recorder set me off to Sandy Water Park, (SWP) where 13 Arctic Terns, 2  Little Gulls and a mixed flock of 2-300+ mostly Sand Martins and a few Swallows were playing in the wind.

Little Gull

If you're up to speed with the last few months then you will know that we have installed bird nesting rafts on SWP and at Ffynnon Helyg near Pwll, with a view of hopefully attracting  Common Terns to nest !!. OK its a coincidence but a nice one

Earlier in the week a Little Ringed Plover was seen flying over the SWP raft, what's that saying, build and they will come!

Lots of migrant birds have now arrived and we have some great places to seek them out, try Ynysdawela Local Nature Reserve in Upper Brynamamn, or Morfa Berwig Local Nature Reserve near Bynea, don't forget to report your bird sightings to  About us - Carmarthenshire Bird Club and other sightings to

 Welcome to West Wales Biodiversity Information Centre - West Wales Biodiversity Information Centre (wwbic.org.uk)

What's new

Prynhawn da pawb,

I thought I would try and summarise what has been going on in the last few months.

The biggest development has to be the work we are conducting at our Ynysdawela Local Nature Reserve in Upper Brynamman.

middle path above the river

 This 16ha woodland site sits on the north side of the valley   and consists of former coal workings and farmland. Much   of the site is now secondary woodland with a small area of   Ancient Semi Natural Woodland, some marshy grassland   meadows, ponds and of course the River Amman on its   southern boundary.

Meadow recovery in progress

Work has concentrated on removing old infrastructure, improving the path network and managing the meadows more appropriately.

Notable species are Hazel Dormouse and Marsh Fritillary butterfly, although work by Liam Olds and Christian Owen has identified a wealth of invertebrate life, but I'll leave that for another time.

Access to the site is not straightforward but a few cars can park on Llandeilo Rd and walk down the track, (w3w location is  scanning.hack.claw ) or at the cinema in Upper Brynamman, follow the road signs

 

Its back, ranger nature notes

 Hi, after a long hiatus I'm going to give the Blog another life.

I've moved on since the last blog and now work as the conservation Coordinator for Carmarthenshire County Council's Outdoor Recreation Service with six local Nature Reserves (LNR) to manage along with providing advice to our estates and operations teams.

Despite last nights light snowfall we are well on our way into spring with recent days bringing in a lot of Chiffchaffs and Willow Warblers, Blackcaps have been recorded in smaller numbers.

My first Northern Wheatear was a week or so ago a nice fresh male.

I need to remember h
ow this blog thing works so bear with me; if the technology works here is a short drone video of our two new nesting rafts, one at Sandy Water Park and the other at Ffynnon Helyg, thanks to ranger Oliver for the video

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Carmarthenshire - Did you Know?

 Well its ages since I've found time to write a blog post apologies for that but here we go with some interesting facts and personal thoughts about Carmarthenshire wildlife, and a bit further afield.

Did you know:

That we have a County plant, Whorled Caraway, Carum verticullatum; found in typical Rhos pasture a feature of the Carmarthenshire landscape though often under threat from changes in agricultural practices

Did you Know:

That there are 311 species of birds recorded as being seen in the county, a respectable figure by an measure, amongst the rarities are Blue-winged Teal, a species from North America, Black Stork an European species which itself has a limited range. Having a decent stretch of well watched coastline the county is well placed for observers to document the seasonal arrival and departures of migrating birds such as Northern Wheatear, Swift, Willow Warbler, the Carmarthenshire Bird Club is a very welcoming bunch of like minded individuals and its well worth joining, Covid-19 has messed up 2020 events but I'm sure as soon as "normality" returns the club will be back in full action, in the meantime report your sightings on the website.

Did you Know:

Carmarthenshire is a stronghold for the stunning Marsh Fritillary butterfly, and is found on Rhos pasture where it finds the right habitat for its caterplllars, the main foodplant is Devil's-bit-Scabious (Succisa pratensis). On calcareous grassland, it occasionally uses Field Scabious (Knautia arvensis) and Small Scabious (Scabiosa columbaria).

Did you know:

The Hazel Dormouse has a decent foothold in the county with the valleys to the northwest of the county having the perfect habitat for these stunning rodents, there are also records from more coastal locations which is very encouraging, they will be entering their period of hibernation now, finding refuge at the base of trees and dense shrubby.

Another small mammal many wouldn't associate with the Carmarthenshire countryside given the vast acreage of diary farms, is the Harvest Mouse, but they are here in secluded nooks along the coastal strip and no doubt other locations, look out for their tell tale tennis ball sized nests in reeds, rushes bramble bushes.

Did you know:

That Pine Martens probably were never extinct in Wales! just a thought

Did you know:

The first modern record of breeding Goshawks in Wales was in our county.

Did you know:

Some of the best locations to observe wildlife in Carmarthenshire are the four Country Parks and six Local Nature Reserves, when restrictions allow, get out there see what you can find.