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 […]
The State of Nature report has collated the best available data on the UK’s biodiversity, with a focus on the trends in species as the key evidence of how nature is faring. It also assesses the pressures acting upon nature, and the conservation response being made, in order to give a rounded view of the […]
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 […]
December 2012 On the 12th, 6 Plymouth University students spent the morning searching for Brown Hairstreak eggs on the new Blackthorn growth along our roadside perimeter. This is apparently by far the best way of surveying for this rather retiring species, as adults either spend most of their time at rest, or high up in […]
![LLP Vole Hole [David Ramsden] 230308 (A)](https://www.barnowltrust.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/LLP-vole-hole-100x100.jpg "Wildlife Diary 2011")
December 2011 On the 12th the regular Plymouth University group finally finished cutting back bramble from North Park. A couple of days later a Conservation Team Work Party spent some much-needed time in the orchard. The plastic tree guards that had become brittle in the two years they’ve been in service were taken off and […]
December 2010 A further 30+ Fieldfares were noted in the remnant hedge feeding on Holly berries on the 4th. By the middle of the month all the berries, holly, rosehips, sloes and haws had been eaten. The two ponds have both been covered in ice all month with just a small patch of clear water […]
December 2009 On the 5th, our annual Winter Work Party was attended by 12 volunteers, including a group from the Nature at Sundown project and from BTCV Plymouth. We spent the day cutting back the overhanging branches of the remnant hedge in Kiln Close and the predominantly Hazel road boundary hedge. Great progress was made […]
December 2008 At the beginning of the month, the Forde Orchard fruit trees were ordered from a local supplier for collection next winter. Maidens (1 year old) of Apple, Cherry and Plum of 11 different varieties will be planted in early 2010. The 30 individuals will be traditional local varieties selected according to flowering and […]
