July The first Marbled White butterfly appeared on the 1st and by the beginning of July the Forage Radish in the wild bird food crop was over a metre high and dominating the area with its white flowers. Corn Marigolds were starting to flower in the nectar strip and within the maincrop. On the 3rd […]
The 26 acre Lennon Legacy Project was purchased in 2001 with a generous legacy from the late Vivien Lennon. This unique nature reserve includes part of the River Ashburn which runs through a woodland valley, on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon, where the Barn Owl Trust offices are based. Creating rough grassland, re-creating hedge banks, planting an […]
![Llp cattle grazing [david ramsden] 251120 (a)](https://www.barnowltrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/LLP-cattle-grazing-David-Ramsden-251120-A-100x100.jpg "Wildlife Diary 2020")
December A very wet month, 29 days with 229.1mm of rain. The mean for the month here over 14 years is 152mm. We had a mean temperature of 6.8°C – colder than the average (7.5° C). On the 8th Matt and Rick brushmowed, then brushcut and raked the orchid patch in Kiln Close. They then […]
December At midday on the 4th the following birds were recorded in the crop; c. 300 linnets, c. 40 Chaffinch, 10 Greenfinch (a site record), 8 Blackbird, 1 Song Thrush, 5+ Wren, 1 Blue Tit and 1 Coal Tit were all utilising the crop, whilst a Yellowhammer was heard on or over the crop. The […]
December 2018 Our Dormouse license-holding volunteer Tony checked the boxes on the 4th, making sure they were in good condition and clearing them out ready for next spring. Another nest discovered, making a total of 7 for the year, whilst a Woodcock was accidentally flushed from Corner Wood. Monitoring of the winter bird crop on […]
December 2017 By mid-month the Belted Galloways had done their job of removing much of the year’s new growth without damaging the all-important litter layer, so the grazier came and removed them on the 16th. The first record of Reed Bunting for the LLP involved a pair watched perching on tall grasses to the east […]
December 2016 A Green Woodpecker was heard yaffling on the 2nd. Our grazier brought in 5 Belted Galloway cows with their month-old calves on the 6th for a spot of late winter grazing. The breed is quieter, more docile and lighter than normal and we expect to have them for no more than a couple […]
This Wildlife Diary began in 2007 and is a monthly report from the Trust’s land which is managed for Barn Owls and other wildlife. It is known as the Lennon Legacy Project or LLP: ‘Transforming intensively grazed sheep pasture into Barn Owl Heaven’.
December 2014 A damp start to the month, the temperature dropping below freezing on some nights and predominately northerly winds. Despite this the grass is continuing to grow slowly, good news for the voles living in the litter layer and everything that eats them! By the wreath making workshop on the 11th all of the […]
![Painted Lady Butterfly [David Ramsden] 210906 (A)](https://www.barnowltrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Painted-Lady-butterfly-100x100.jpg "Wildlife Diary 2013")
December 2013 A group of ten Plymouth University student volunteers visited on 4th, and tackled scrub along Corner Wood and North Park hedgerows. As always, good progress was made. Some white splashes and a small Barn Owl pellet were found around the wildlife tower on the 6th. Field Voles holes have started appearing in the […]
