HIWWT_Summer 19

Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust Summer 2019 Wild Life Golden days MAKING SPACE FOR of summer SAND MARTINS The best places to spot bumblebees Our innovative solution creating safe and other summer wildlife havens for these summer visitors THE STORY OF ST CATHERINE’S HILL Join us on a journey through the ages at Winchester’s most historic nature reserve Hampshire & www.hiwwt.org.uk Isle of WightJON HAWKINS SURREY HILLS PHOTOGRAPHY Wildlife Trust

Welcome 26 Change is in the air It’s incredible how quickly things can change. MIKE READ WWW.MIKEREAD.CO.UK When we first set out our Wilder vision last autumn, the idea of 1 in 4 people standing up and acting in support of nature seemed wildly ambitious (but very necessary). But that was before Greta Thunberg and Extinction Rebellion. That was before thousands of Wildlife Trust members and other supporters came together at the Mass Lobby of Parliament last month to call for action to tackle the climate crisis and secure nature’s recovery. That climate and biodiversity have now become inextricably linked in the minds of policy makers and the public is also a significant change. The bridges between these issues, interest groups and solutions are vital. We know that tackling climate breakdown and building resilience is fundamental to the future of our wildlife. We also know that restoring nature, investing in wetlands, woodlands, saltmarshes and seagrass meadows, has to be part of the answer to the dramatic decarbonisation needed if we are to meet the net zero target set by Government. There is much to be done and the Wildlife Trusts have an essential role to play. I’ve spoken to hundreds of members in the past few months – at our Wilder events and conferences and by email – who have helped to shape our thinking about what our role should be in the coming years and how we can make the most difference for wildlife locally. As we get ready to launch our new strategy at the end of October, it’s so encouraging to see the swell of public support, the recent political commitments and the convergence of policy agendas. But most of all, it’s so important to know that our members back our ambition and are ready and willing to help deliver a wilder future for our two counties. Debbie Tann, Chief Executive Follow me on twi er @Debbie_Tann Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust Get in touch Wildlife is the membership magazine for Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is the Wildlife Magazine Editor Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust leading nature conservation charity in the two Alice Ashcroft, 01489 774400 Email [email protected] counties. With your support, we strive to create a Telephone 01489 774400 wilder future for our local area and make nature Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust Address Beechcroft House, Vicarage Lane, part of life, for everyone. is registered with the UK Fundraising Curdridge, Hampshire SO32 2DP ● We manage over 50 nature reserves. Regulator. We aim to meet the highest Registered charity number 201081. ● We are supported by 24,000 members and standards in the way we fundraise. Company limited by guarantee and registered in England and Wales No. 676313. 1,500 volunteers. You can change your contact preferences Website www.hiwwt.org.uk We are part of a UK-wide network of 46 Wildlife at any time by contacting Hampshire Trusts; together we are the nation’s most active & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust via and in uential nature conservation partnership email: [email protected], protecting wildlife in every part of the UK. telephone: 01489 774400, or write to us at: Beechcroft House, Vicarage Lane, Curdridge, Hampshire SO32 2DP. For more information on our privacy policy visit www.hiwwt.org.uk/privacy-notice 2 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

15 ALEXANDER MUSTARD / 2020VISION12Contents 6 KEN DOLBEAR 4 Your wild summer ALEXANDER MUSTARD / 2020VISION Including the best local nature reserves to see kingfishers. 8 The story of St Catherine’s Hill Take a step back in time on a walk through this beautiful and historic nature reserve. 10 Wild news We are celebrating two new Marine Conservation Zones. 15 Focus on marsh fritillaries The ambitious project aiming to bring this iconic butterfly back from the brink. 16 At home with nature How you can make your home more wildlife-friendly. 18 Space for nature How connecting nature hotspots can help species to survive and thrive. 24 Six places to see water voles Water voles are wonderful creatures and there are places to spot them all over the UK including our very own Winnall Moors nature reserve. 26 Making space for sand martins How man-made sandbanks on a Trust reserve are helping a special summer visitor. 30 My wild life Introducing Natalie Harris who, at 21, has already made a big difference helping to clean plastic from our beaches. 6 ways to get involved with your local Wildlife Trust Volunteer Could you donate your Campaigning You can play Events Join us for a walk, talk or skills and time to look after wildlife? Visit a vital role in raising awareness, and activity near you. Our events are organised our website to find exciting opportunities lobbying, on local and national issues. by knowledgeable and enthusiastic staff near you. and Local Groups. Local groups Join one of our Donate to an appeal Leave a legacy If you’ve had network of local groups and help make a From purchasing land to protecting difference to nature where you live. a lifetime’s pleasure from nature, help species, exciting projects near you need ensure its future by leaving us a gift your support. in your will. For more information visit www.hiwwt.org.uk/get-involved Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 3

Your wild Summer The best of the season’s wildlife and where to enjoy it. As blue as the sky; as orange as the sun. King shers represent the best of the British summer. See if you can spot one at a nature reserve near you. JON HAWKINS - SURREY HILLS PHOTOGRAPHY 4 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

Thank you Tamhtcaoornorckesrsshewataoebowtluopeyrwuiohntt.wuahghbriolowiostwcucawopatyutlpf.oonwoourtrriirlgketd,si.snluwu.ifgFpkeeip.nasodrhereotaruissbtle SUMMER SPECTACLE Kingfishers Stroll along a river or stream this summer and look out for the distinctive azure blue and metallic copper of a king sher. For the best chance of seeing one, focus on low branches overhanging the water and listen for their distinctive ‘peep peep’ call. SEE THEM THIS SUMMER  Sandown Meadows nature reserve The diverse mix of wetland habitat and abundance of small sh create the perfect environment for king shers on the Isle of Wight. We secured this nature reserve through generous gifts in Wills from local wildlife lovers.  Winnall Moors nature reserve These beautiful birds thrive at Winnall Moors in Winchester.  Blashford Lakes nature reserve Our brand new hide provides panoramic views of the lakes. Make yourself comfortable and see if you can spot a king sher mid-hunt. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 5

YOUR WILD SUMMER Summer fun: rockpools ANDREW WHITMARSH Eco rockpooling hold a myriad of treasures for junior explorers. A low tide can reveal a treasure trove Young foxes start to of marine wonders. Discover our make an appearance coastal wildlife and spend some time in the summer. rockpooling this summer – whether young or old, exploring beaches and 6 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 bays can be a truly magical experience. You will need sturdy footwear, a few buckets to ll with seawater and, if possible, a coastal ID guide to help you identify your discoveries. TRY IT THIS SUMMER  Compton Bay, Isle of Wight Keep your eyes peeled for fossilised dinosaur footprints, and discover a great diversity of animals and seaweed.  Colwell Bay, Isle of Wight Venture onto the beach between the tides and look out for burrowing anemones peeping out of the sand. MATTHEW ROBERTS URBAN FIELDCRAFT Be on red alert Red foxes are an iconic species in the UK, immortalised in stories and legend for their cunning and stealth. This orangey-red dog, with its famously bushy tail, can be seen in town and country, day and night. Right about now, adults are looking thin, having spent the last three months providing for their cubs; they also look very ta y because they are moulting. In late summer adult foxes stop feeding their cubs and start competing with them for food, forcing the cubs to explore beyond their natal sites. How to SPOT A RED FOX  Take an evening stroll Foxes are crepuscular, meaning they are most active at dawn and dusk.  Look down Keep your eyes peeled for a flash of red and a white tipped tail if you’re out for an evening walk.

SEE THIS DO THIS Find yourself a grassy hillside and Visit a local woodland and listen for look out for our beautiful, blue the melodic singing of warblers and butter ies. thrushes. VICKY NALL CHRIS GOMERSALL / 2020VISION SPECIES SPOTLIGHT Bumblebees PENNY FRITH Top tips SPECIES TO SPOT Summer is the best time hPaoilrleynbsotdiciekss,taonbdutmhebylebees’ Bumblebees use their of year to get to know inadvertently leave a few antennae to smell, and Buff-tailed bumblebee our beautiful, bumbling grains behind each time This bumblebee is named pollinators. they visit a new ower. are able to detect the after the queen’s bu - This is how they direction a scent is coloured ‘tail’. They can be Making a buzz pollinate. coming from. found in a diverse range No summer would be of habitats, even highly complete without the dulcet This long urbanised areas. CHRIS GOMERSALL / 2020VISION hum of bumblebees plodding tube is called a from flower to flower. With owebrusstmraanbwdle-labikceceeepttsoorsontrbgheouaesecnch, ieasicl.nltIotatowranwicntaisgtrhratoishnwea. Common carder bee their bright colours and Common carder bees round, fluffy bodies they are BUMBLEBEES emerge in early spring and one of our most distinctive LOVE LAVENDER can be seen feeding on garden visitors, as well They use their long as being highly effective proboscises to reach owers right through to pollinators. November. the nectar within Flying high the small, tubular RACHEL SCOPES Bumblebees spend a great deal of their time flying, which owers. takes up about a third of their daily energy intake. By shivering their muscles under a thick layer of hair, bumblebees are able to stay warm and active even in dull conditions, se ing them apart from honey and solitary bees. Bumblebees in decline SEE THEM THIS SUMMER DEREK MOORE Sadly, bumblebees have suffered from the  Martin’s Wood nature reserve loss of wildflowers and changes in land use and management, including the use of This reserve on the Isle of Wight is very Garden bumblebee pesticides and herbicides. Of the 24 species Garden bumblebees have of bumblebee recognised to inhabit the UK, popular with the local bees – keep your eyes long proboscises, which three species are now extinct and five have allow them to visit larger suffered considerable declines in distribution. peeled for all the different species. However, there are lots of simple ways you  Blashford Lakes nature reserve owers with deep tubes can help bumblebees at home. such as foxgloves. The green roof atop the new tern hide at Gardening for bumblebees Choosing pollinator friendly plants for Blashford Lakes in Ringwood is a welcome your garden or window box is an easy and effective way to help bumblebees – lavender, rest stop for bumblebees. primroses and ox-eye daisies are all popular  Barton Meadows nature reserve choices. We transformed Barton Meadows in Winchester from an agricultural field into a wildflower haven for pollinators. Visit our website to find out more about RACHEL SCOPES how you can help bees in your garden. www.hiwwt.org.uk/take-action-for-bees Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 7

The story of St Catherine’s Hill At the heart of Hampshire’s With show-stopping views and close beech trees at the top of the hill. most ancient city, proximity to the high street, St Catherine’s Turn le , and then turn right where the St Catherine’s Hill stands Hill nature reserve in Winchester a racts in quiet splendour. thousands of visitors every year. However, trees part to reveal the hill fort entrance. Discover its wildlife and few people are aware of its rich history - at Head to the group of beech trees (known rich history as we uncover approximately 12,000 years old it could locally as The Clump) and you will find the secrets of this tell some truly spellbinding stories. We the Mismaze, a turf-cut labyrinth dating fascinating nature reserve. will now set off on a guided walk of this from before 1710. It is unclear who carved stunning nature reserve to discover the the Mismaze into the hilltop, although Brown argus treasures hidden within. some believe it could have been formed as part of a penitential ritual. The mound A guided walk at the centre of The Clump protects the We’ll begin our tour at Garnier Road car remains of the Chapel of St Catherine – park and walk clockwise around the the hill’s namesake. The largest trees in nature reserve. Walk through the tunnel this cathedral-like space are more than that passes underneath the Handlebar 150 years old, and many of them house Café, through the kissing gate and past the jackdaws which nest in holes in the tree two coppiced walnut trees. You will see a trunks. series of steps, which will take you all the way to the top of the hill. Having admired the views over the Itchen valley, continue south away Ascend the steps, and when you reach from the city. You will notice the turf the halfway point take a moment to gets shorter and more flower-rich as admire the view - you should be able to see Winchester Cathedral nestled in a frame Yellowhammer of greenery. Continue climbing upwards and you will soon find the remnants of a significant milestone in the history of St Catherine’s Hill: 12,000 years ago, in the Neolithic era, some of the area’s earliest inhabitants clambered up the steep slopes and built an imposing fort at its summit. You can still see where the ramparts once stood - they circle around the cluster of DAMIAN WATERS AMY LEWIS 8 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

OUR BEST SUMMER RESERVES OnLum que ea volorrovit ED MERRITT Thank you pa quiscip sanita dolore optaspe dipsant dempore cTafhHanauilnllnokaaosnkttdhoaaafyttlelodtruehSrpetseCunopadtrpahooeanrrntii,ndtw.e’es NOW YOU DO IT recaboresto comnis aut molupta sitium fuga. Nem Visit et es et eri doluptatiis est St Catherine’s Hill il incia quid moluptaspis KNOW BEFORE YOU GO wildflowers take advantage of the chalk- this area creates a unique micro climate Location: Garnier Road, Winchester, rich soil. On a sunny summer day, it is clear - thyme and rock rose favour the slight Hampshire, SO23 9PA to see why St Catherine’s Hill is renowned elevation of these mounds, as do green OS Map Reference: SU 484 276. for its wildlife - pause a while and you woodpeckers which raid them to feast How to get there: Winchester train may be lucky enough to see a cloud of on the ants inside. Some of the anthills station is two and a half miles away from bu erflies tumble over the hill. are around 300 years old, and their size the nature reserve. You can take a bus to is a sure sign that the land has remained St. Catherine’s park and ride from there, Between them, the different bu erfly unploughed for centuries. The thorn and then follow the cycleway that takes species found at this reserve create an bushes and thickets provide ideal nesting you to the main road. Go through the aerial mosaic of colour. You may see the sites for a number of finches and warblers, small car park, and then join the path for so orange and fawn of small heaths, including yellowhammer, bullfinch and a third of a mile with the river on your the chocolate colour of brown arguses, whitethroat. right until you reach St Catherine’s lock and the pastel shades of chalkhill blues. entrance. Some of these bu erflies have a symbiotic Head down the valley and you will find relationship with the resident meadow St Catherine’s Lock, now just a weir. The TOP WILDLIFE TO SPOT ants: the larvae of the Adonis blue land inside this entrance used to be the Look out for some of the 25 species of bu erfly, for example, feed the ants sweet A31 Winchester bypass, but was restored to breeding butter y that call St Catherine’s secretions from their ‘honey glands’ in chalk grassland when the M3 was built. Hill home, including chalkhill blue, brown exchange for protection from predators. 25 years on, and it is the best place to look argus and marbled white. Keen eyed for fragrant, pyramidal and bee orchids. visitors might also spot some of the rare The ants nest on a part of the reserve Turn right at the cycleway, and you will orchids dotted across the hill’s slopes and which pertains to a dark chapter in human find yourself back at the car park, your meadows, including pyramidal orchid, history. In 1666 countless plague victims tour completed. musk orchid, common spotted orchid and were laid to rest just west of the reserve – autumn lady’s tresses. an area we now know as Plague Pits Valley. Your support allows us to make sure The presence of thousands of ant hills in that wildlife will always have a home at JOIN US ON A GUIDED WALK St Catherine’s Hill. As the story of this special place continues to unfold, we know  Join Susan Simmonds on guided walk future generations will be able to enjoy its looking at the chalk downland plants wonders for many years to come. which grow on St. Catherine’s Hill. You will need to be able to walk three miles DID YOU KNOW British White cattle LIANNE DE MELLO on rough, uneven, and often very steep LIANNE DE MELLO ground. Booking is essential. graze St Catherine’s Hill, and their selective Date and time: Monday 12 August, 2-4pm eating helps to create the right conditions for a Cost: £5 per person wide range of insects, birds, reptiles, mammals Contact: Membership team on 01489 and plants. You can read more about 774408 or [email protected] conservation grazing on our website: www.hiwwt.org.uk/conservation-grazing Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 9

WILD NEWS , All the latest news from Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust The number of local people who got in touch to help shape our strategy for a Wilder Hampshire and Isle of Wight. The time is now The Time Is Now Lobby on 26 June crisis. The Wildlife Trusts were out in force pleased to see so many people turn up saw thousands of people descend on with hundreds of staff, volunteers and from Hampshire and the Isle of Wight - Westminster to talk to their MPs about supporters carrying placards, and bringing including a couple who had cycled all the tackling the climate and biodiversity messages for their local politicians. We were way from Botley, near Southampton! Shaping the vision for a wilder future Since we published our ‘Wilder’ discussion overwhelmed by your passion, enthusiasm our impact and better support you to paper at last year’s AGM, setting out our and brilliant ideas for how we can make help nature in your own lives, businesses ambition to tip the balance in favour of a real di erence for local wildlife in the and communities. It is so important to nature’s recovery, we have heard from coming years. We are now working hard us that our members are at the heart of thousands of members. Thank you to to bring all these thoughts together and shaping and delivering this strategy, and everyone who took the time to complete will be launching a new ten-year plan in we look forward to creating a wilder future our survey, attend one of our Wilder events the autumn. We are also making a few together. or contacted us directly. We have been changes at the Trust in order to increase 10 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

NEWS Together we’re stronger Here are some of the ways your membership has been helping to protect your local wildlife 6,956 A fresh new look for Blashford The number of new records of invasive Lakes nature reserve species, gathered by volunteers for the New Forest ‘Our Past, Our Future’ project. The improvement works at Blashford navigating the nature reserve simple. Lakes are complete, and we would like We look forward to welcoming you to 34 to say a huge thank you to everyone who supported us and made the Blashford Lakes this summer. The number of local companies that project a success, including the Rural showed their support for our wildlife Development Programme for England, and wild places by being corporate the New Forest LEADER Programme members of the Trust.   (funded by Defra and the EU), Veolia Environmental Trust, the Pig Shed Tyhoaun!k Trust and the local community. 83,000The number of native broadleaved Thanks to their support, a larger, trees that will be planted in Roydon more accessible tern hide is open Woods nature reserve thanks to gifts for business, and it has been a joy to in Wills. see visitors enjoying the enhanced view over Ibsley Water. Our new 14,491 welcome hut is fully staffed with knowledgeable volunteers, and the The number of children sculpture trail is proving very popular who engaged with the with our younger wildlife enthusiasts. Trust last year to learn about wildlife. Our new pond was quickly colonised and is well used by the resident fauna, and brand new signage across the whole site makes The secret’s out at Blue Reef Aquarium As part of our Secrets of the Solent project, we have teamed up with Blue Reef Aquarium in Portsmouth to showcase the Solent’s spectacular marine life. Over the next few months we will create exciting new displays for visitors to the aquarium to enjoy. Secrets of the Solent is a four-year project that is showcasing the inspirational people and wildlife that share our waters. Find out more: www.hiwwt.org.uk/SecretsoftheSolent Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 11

WILD NEWS Solent receives ALEXANDER MUSTARD / 2020VISION two new Marine Conservation Zones On 30 May our vibrant local waters gained can really struggle. IN A NUTSHELL greater recognition and protection, with “Properly managed, these new the designation of two new Marine ■ England’s 91 Marine Conservation Zones off the Isle of Wight. underwater ‘nature reserves’ around the Conservation Zones have been Island should provide much needed safe designated to protect a range of The government announced havens and will form part of a wider nationally important, rare or threatened the designation of 41 new Marine Nature Recovery Network across English habitats and species. Conservation Zones (MCZs) around the waters. ■ Locally, we now have three MCZs coasts of England and Northern Ireland, off the Isle of Wight - Bembridge, and we are very pleased that two of these “Thank you to everyone who backed Yarmouth to Cowes, and the Needles. are in the Solent. our campaign to secure these vital These protect a highly diverse range protections. Over the past decade of marine features including subtidal We have called for the inclusion of local or more we have gathered evidence chalk, seagrass beds, maerl beds, sites since the process of designation and public support for these Marine and soft clays and muds - supporting began in 2009. Conservation Zones. With three local special marine wildlife such as stalked areas now designated, the task ahead jelly sh, short-snouted seahorse and The government has now designated is to ensure that the management native oyster. 91 Marine Conservation Zones in total. and conservation measures live up to ■ Together these sites Our new zones – Yarmouth to Cowes and this promise and really play a part in form part of the Bembridge – join The Needles, which was restoring our marine life and livelihoods. Nature Recovery awarded MCZ status in 2016. Network at sea. “We are, of course, disappointed that we Responding to the announcement, don’t yet have a complete local network, Find out more Visit our website and Debbie Tann, CEO of the Trust, said: as we are still missing protections for read more about our new MCZs “We are very pleased to see two local other important habitats and areas such www.hiwwt.org.uk/news/new-marine- areas given this level of recognition. as the seagrass meadows found between conservation-zones We have some incredible marine species Norris and Ryde and the native oyster and habitats here – from colour-changing beds at Fareham Creek. However, this cu lefish and magnificent seagrass announcement does take us a significant meadows to seahorses and stalked step closer to creating a wilder future for jellyfish – and we know that, with our seas.” such busy local waters, our wildlife 12 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

Watercress & Winterbournes survey NEWS Watercress & Winterbournes is an ambitious landscape partnership that is celebrating LOCAL and enhancing our chalk streams. As we continue to develop our plans, with HIGHLIGHTS support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund, we want to hear the views of local communities to learn more about what their chalk streams mean to them. Discover how Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is working for you. These special waters are enjoyed by many for their great beauty and have a vibrant industrial history spanning everything from gin distilling to paper production. 1 30 Days Wild They are also a globally rare habitat and home to a whole host of fascinating species, including water voles, brown trout and endangered white-clawed cray sh. A record number of 2,802 people across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight If you live near the streams that feed the Rivers Test and Itchen, you can take our took part in 30 Days Wild this June, short online survey to help shape the activities in your area: making 2019 our wildest year yet! Thank www.hiwwt.org.uk/WatercressAndWinterbournes/Survey you to everyone who joined in – it was wonderful to see so many local people enjoying the wildlife on their doorstep. 2 Technical Fish Pass In April we attended the All Along the Riverbank event on the Isle of Wight, and used a mini golf course to represent a technical sh pass - a system used to help sh travel upstream to their spawning grounds when there are obstacles in place that may prevent this occurring naturally. Technical sh passes have been installed in a number of rivers across the Island as part of the Down to the Coast project (of which we are a part) to help sh make their way up-stream to their spawning grounds. LINDA PITKIN / 2020VISION In memory of Michael Bryant (1934-2019) 3 Marine Citizen Science Day Michael Bryant was one of the founding members of Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust when it We celebrated World Oceans Day this was first established in November 1960. Back then June with our own Marine Citizen it was known as the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Science Day. We were joined at Royal Naturalist’s Trust, and Michael was the last of the Victoria Country Park by representatives cohort of founders who commi ed themselves from Just One Ocean, Bird Aware Solent, to building a be er world following the Second Citizan, and Surfers Against Sewage who World War. The archives of the founding meetings are all running citizen-led projects to reveal the concerns of the day: ‘We cannot keep improve our data and understanding of back the economic tide but it should be one of the our marine environment. Find out about prime duties of the Trust to become aware of these the fun ways you can get involved: potential developments and to make developers aware of conservation needs’. www.hiwwt.org.uk/ As it was then, so it is now. SecretsoftheSolent/CitizenScience Micheal was a man of quiet charm, great energy and a true friend to wildlife. He leaves a proud legacy. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 13

Did you know... News in brief Over the past year, 1,500 volunteers contributed 48,218 hours of their time - equivalent to 6,888 days! If you’re interested in Isle of Wight Biosphere volunteering with us, you can find our current opportunities on our website at www.hiwwt.org.uk/volunteering-opportunities The Isle of Wight was crowned as an Unesco Biosphere Reserve, making it the seventh UK destination to be awarded this special status. The designation recognises the Island as one of the best areas in the world for managed landscapes and celebrates the positive balance between nature and human activity. An invitation to our AGM and conference Go wild for ponds! We give members notice of Hampshire vision and strategy for a wilder The Wildlife Trusts and the Royal & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust’s 58th Hampshire and Isle of Wight. We do Horticultural Society set up Wild About Annual General Meeting. This will hope you will join us to learn more Gardens to celebrate wildlife gardening take place on Thursday 24 October about our ambitious plans and hear and to encourage people to use their between 10am and 11am at The Middle from fantastic speakers, including Sir gardens to take action to help support Brook Centre, Hope Church Winchester, Charles Burrell, re-wilding pioneer and nature. This year we’re going wild about Middle Brook Street, Winchester. owner of the Knepp estate, and Philip The AGM is free to attend. To book your Lymbery, well known author and CEO ponds! Creating a pond is one of the place or request a proxy vote if you of Compassion in World Farming. The best things you can do for wildlife are unable to attend, please visit conference costs £5 to attend (including in the garden. www.hiwwt.org.uk/agm or call lunch) and full details can be found on 01489 774400. the leaflet included with your magazine Visit www.wildaboutgardens.org.uk or by visiting www.hiwwt.org.uk/ and download your free pond booklet. The AGM will be followed by a wilder-conference conference to launch our ten year Aggregate Industries cement a better future Investing in a wilder future for wildlife We would like to thank all of our generous the ‘matched funding’ contribution often supporters who have so far collectively required when seeking large grants. Your We are delighted to have been successful donated nearly £30,000 towards our Wildlife gifts could now help us secure up to in securing £23,000 in funding from the Investment Fund for Hampshire. These kind £270,000 in additional funding. We will Aggregate Industries Local Partnership donations will enable us to quickly respond keep you updated on how the Wildlife to opportunities and unlock large-scale Investment Fund is helping us do more Fund to deliver restoration work at funding. We plan to use these donations as for wildlife across the county. St. George’s Down and Prospect Quarry on the Isle of Wight. This funding will enable us to carry out habitat improvements including scrub management and non-native invasive species control, which will restore heathland and limestone grassland habitats. Red squirrels, dormice, Dartford warblers and a number of chalk downland plants are set to benefit from this work and we plan to carry out a variety of species surveys to inform future management of the site. Brand new signage is now in situ at St George’s Down, illustrating the great range of wildlife that visitors may find there. 14 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

FOCUS ON... Thank you Marsh Fritillaries Your support makes projects like this one possible. KEN DOLBEAR Fritillaries in decline captive breeders in Hampshire and “This ambitious plan The marsh fritillary is one of our Buckinghamshire, who looked a er brightest and most beautiful bu erflies, them as they grew and pupated. The first was not without risks” and was once widespread across Britain. generation was released successfully in Sadly, like many insects, the species the spring of 2018, and since then over until we undertake detailed surveys later has suffered from years of habitat loss, 27,000 caterpillars have been released on this year. But so far our observations and became extinct in our region two a number of Ministry of Defence sites in have been promising: for the first time in decades ago. north-east Hampshire. decades, marsh fritillaries have bred and flown above Hampshire soil. Working together to bring marsh The future for marsh fritillaries fritillaries back from the brink This ambitious plan was not without its With the partnership’s substantial Over the past few years, we have been risks: marsh fritillary populations are expertise in creating networks of involved in an exciting partnership with notoriously volatile and subject to local suitable habitat, we have given the Bu erfly Conservation to return the colony extinctions, and we can’t know marsh fritillary the best possible species to its former haunts. This was how successful the releases have been chance of establishing a resilient new made possible by generous support from population in its former strongholds. our own members and those of Bu erfly Conservation, as well as the Farnborough 6,500 the number of plants Airport Community Environmental purchased and nurtured Fund and the John Spedan Lewis to provide larval food, basking sites, Foundation. web-making habitat, shelter and adult nectar sources for the larvae. How we did it Marsh fritillary ANDY BARKER 27,000 the number of A two year breeding and release eggs on leaves. marsh fritillary programme began in September 2016, caterpillars released in Hampshire since with the careful collection of 300 marsh the project began in 2016. fritillary caterpillars from several strong colonies in Dartmoor, Devon. They Keep an eye on our website for were then transferred to experienced updates www.hiwwt.org.uk Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 15

At home with nature We put a lot of e ort into making our Window-mounted feeders gardens wilder, and rightly so. But what about the buildings we live in? Even with no garden you can still feed In a world where wild places are shrinking, the birds. A window-mounted feeder every inch of space we can make for gives them a helping hand and lets you nature is vital. enjoy their antics from your armchair. Whether it’s the joyful song of a robin dri ing through House martin nest cups an open window, or the colourful flash of a peacock bu erfly just beyond the glass, it’s always a delight to Invite house martins to move in glimpse the wild world just beyond our walls. under your eaves with a specially made nest cup. They’re especially But our wildlife is in trouble. Natural habitats useful when martins can’t nd are shrinking, becoming fragmented and isolated by enough mud to build their own. roads, developments and intensive land use. With every tree that is lost, there are fewer natural cavities Hanging baskets in which bats and birds can roost and nest. Nature no and window boxes longer has the space it needs to thrive. Wild ower- lled hanging Nature reserves are invaluable, but to keep baskets and window boxes these protected areas from becoming wild oases make the perfect pit stop in an impoverished landscape, we need to use every for passing pollinators. single space to help wildlife. Our gardens, streets, road verges and even houses can become part of Hedgehog holes a wild network, creating vital green corridors and stepping stones that connect larger wild spaces. Hedgehogs can travel over a mile each night as they Every home, new or old, can play a part. The forage and look for mates. Wildlife Trusts have a vision for future housing, A 13cm x 13cm hole in and work with some developers to make new builds your fence helps keep the as green as possible, with built-in features that hedgehog highway open. complement the habitats around them. But existing homes can do their bit, too. With just a few mostly inexpensive adjustments, we can make our roofs, walls and even windows a li le more wildlife-friendly. From bee bricks and bat and bird boxes that provide safe roosting and nesting spots, to walls blooming with climbing plants, there are lots of great ways to turn the outside of your house into a wildlife sanctuary. The best results will come when they complement the surrounding landscape, so take a look at the habitats around your house and choose the best features for your location – bats are more likely to use a roost close to a hedgerow or line of trees, and birds need to be able to find enough food to feed their hungry chicks. Together, our homes and gardens take up more space than all of the UK’s nature reserves put together. So let’s make every inch count! Visit our website for handy guides to helping wildlife, from building bat boxes to a racting bees www.hiwwt.org.uk/take-action-wildlife 16 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

Bat boxes CLOSER TO NATURE By xing a bat box to your Swi box wall you can provide the perfect resting spot for your Modern houses leave little local bats. It’s important to space for swifts to nest, but avoid directing any arti cial swift boxes create a home lighting onto the box. for these summer visitors. Broadcasting a recording of their calls encourages them to move in. Green wall From a simple climbing plant to a trellis laden with di erent species, a green wall adds colour to a house, creates vital habitat and helps regulate pollution and rainfall. Water bu Using less water helps keep our wetlands healthy, so set up a water butt to catch rainfall. You can use the water to clean your car and water your plants. Window stickers ILLUSTRATION: SAM BREWSTER Placing stickers on your windows gives birds a better chance of spotting the glass, reducing the chance of a fatal collision. You can buy them or cut out your own. Bee box Bee boxes o er nesting space for some species of solitary bee. If you’re having work done on your house, you can even t a built-in bee brick! Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 17

Space for nature Today, the UK is one of the most nature- depleted nations in the world, but it’s not too late to help our wildlife recover. Simon Barnes nds out how the fortunes of three much-loved species can be transformed by protecting and connecting their wild habitat. If we think we can live without insects, we’re wrong: 80% of our crops, as well as fruit trees, herbs and most garden and wild owers are pollinated by bees, wasps, beetles and ies. It’s said that if bees died out, we would follow four years later. 18 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

A WILDER FUTURE O“  nly connect!” EM Forster’s words – from RED TAILED BUMBLEBEE: NICK UPTON/2020VISION his novel Howard’s End – are about the need to improve human relationships, but let’s borrow them, for they say a great deal about the world we live in today. “Live no longer in fragments,” Forster added – the perfect mo o for bees, toads and water voles. And just as good for our own relationship with nature. We need more connections. Just as more and be er connections enrich human lives, so we need exactly the same things to keep the wild world wild. It’s a problem that’s been sneaking up on us across the years. We can visit a fantastic nature reserve, but when it’s surrounded by industry, houses, roads and intensive farming, it’s an island – lovely but doomed. We have allowed the human world to take over our countryside. But we can fight back, and the way we can do so is by joining up the good places, by so ening and freeing our landscape, by allowing wild places and wild things to connect. We can, for example, make flower-filled roads for bees. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 1293

Space for bees We have grown rightly worried about the decline of bees (and toads and water voles and everything the insects that pollinate plants. Without pollinators else), we must persuade people to accept a li le the countryside dies; pollinators provide every third roughness around the edges. So communication mouthful of food we consume. Bees are not great with local people ma ers. You can’t impose travellers: they prefer to po er from flower to flower. conservation, it has to be carried out with the What they need is connectivity. will of us all. So that again is about connecting. So Kent Wildlife Trust is making it possible for Developing a long-term vision bees to travel by road. Roadside verges can be treated as long, thin nature reserves, places that allow There’s another crucial move: connecting the present bees to travel small distances, spread and increase. “We look for sites where you can find some of the with the future. It’s no good making a series of lovely rarer species of bee, and where there’s the best connectivity,” says the Trust’s Rosie Earwaker. bee roads if you leave them to fend for themselves. BUFF TAILED BUMBLEBEE CUT OUT: VICKY NALL, BUFF TAILED BUMBLEBEE: CHRIS GOMERSALL/2020VISION She’s been working with Kent County Council and Soon they will become overgrown and lose the very Swale Borough Council to establish the right sort of conditions. In most sites, this is a ma er of clearing, thing that bees love them for. There’s no point to the mowing and removing the clippings: a process that allows wild flowers to regenerate. If it doesn’t work scheme unless it has a long-term legacy – and that is naturally, you can spread seeds or insert plant plugs. done by recruiting and training local volunteers to The scheme had a target of eight hectares of land under management; they are already at 11.5 hectares monitor and care for sections of the bee roads. and hope to add more sites. Which is all very well, but it involves another kind of connectivity – connecting A er that we must look for further connections. wildlife and conservation organisations with people. “Small actions make a difference,” Rosie says. Many roadsides are managed by mowing them “within an inch of their lives,” as Rosie describes it. “We need people to be aware of that. What you do We have somehow developed the idea that the ideal green space looks like the fairway on a golf course: in your garden ma ers.” Kent Wildlife Trust have which is like saying that the ideal si ing room is an airport lounge. started awards for the best gardens for bees and We have an unfortunate mania for tidiness, for other wildlife. So they’re forge ing that we call an untidy house ‘lived-in’. If we want a lived-in countryside – one lived in by joining up people and bees. Bees are part Bees are part of our lives. We need them; many of our of our lives. We crops depend on them. They are essential for a wild and need them. They living countryside. So we need to make a mental adjustment are essential for and see them in a different light: a wild and living creatures that we must connect with, and whose connections countryside. we need to cherish and enlarge. Bees, such as this bu -tailed bumblebee, can do well in cities due to the variety of trees and owers available. Gardens help to connect ower- lled foraging areas. 20 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

A WILDER FUTURE Space for toads On warm, damp evenings in early spring, toads migrate back to their breeding ponds. But busy roads often block traditional routes. An estimated 20 tonnes of unlucky toads are killed on the UK’s roads every year. SIGN: LINDA PITKIN/2020VISION, TOAD: SAM HOBSON Live no longer in fragments, eh? A hard thing to Toads have declined by 70% since 1985, due to a achieve when many areas of our countryside have complex combination of reasons. But saving them been split down the middle with roads. There’s a from being run over is a swi and effective classic example in Herefordshire, where a road cuts counter-blast to the fragmentation of our off an area of woodland from Bodenham Lake. countryside. Yet it’s only the beginning. That’s not good news for toads, which hibernate In an ideal world there would be no need for in the woods and, in spring, travel down to the lake toad patrols. And so work is underway to improve to get on with the crucial business of mating and the landscape around the lake for the toads. Plans spawning and making more toads. Toads are not include making places where toads can hibernate swi and sure crossers of roads. It’s ironic: Mr Toad without needing to cross the road to do so. in The Wind in the Willows is the great mad driver of fiction, but in practice toads are the constant Creating new ponds for toads road casualties of Mr and Mrs Human. One of the problems toads suffer from is the loss of the old farm ponds. On the wooded side of the road, Sophie Cowling of Herefordshire Wildlife Trust farmers are being encouraged to install new ponds, coordinates a team of lollipop people for toads. They so that toads will be able to mate and spawn – again go out on spring nights with buckets and torches as without crossing the road. “It’s all about improving toads, mad with desire, make their way to the lake. In the quality of the connecting landscape,” says Sophie. its first year, the team helped 200 toads to the other More ponds: part of a gentler and so er side. Last year, the score was 1,300 – not because landscape that joins up the best places and so they’re be er at catching toads, but because, brings the wider countryside back to life. It’s thanks to their efforts in previous years, there good for wildlife and good for humans. A wilder are now more toads needing to cross. countryside is a be er place for us all, reconnecting As a simple example of connectivity in us with nature and making our lives richer. action it could hardly be be ered. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 21

Space for water voles Ra y in The Wind in the Willows is not a rat but with wildlife and making it harder for wild animals a water vole. He is also a poet, a dreamer and a to make a living. An idyllic bucolic scene – cows with waterman. Here he is talking about the river: “It’s my sweetly vacant expressions staring at a dreamy world, and I don’t want any other. What it hasn’t got riverside landscape while chewing the cud – actually is not worth having, and what it doesn’t know is not represents a life of hell for poor Ra y. worth knowing. Lord! The times we’ve had together…” Protecting natural river banks In just 10 years, You can interpret this as Ra y’s plea for connectivity, Sometimes the solution is as simple as the toad 30% of the water for not breaking up the system of waterways on bucket, requiring li le more than common sense and vole’s waterside which water voles depend for their lives. But we have goodwill. I spoke to Darren Tansley of Essex Wildlife habitat has been dredged them and concreted them, polluted them and Trust. “In several places we’ve erected fences to protect lost to agricultural generally bullied them, until it’s a wonder they’re able stretches of river bank from cows and create the intensi cation and to support any life at all. perfect habitat for water voles.” development. Now we’re beginning to rethink, and to adjust the When a local landowner introduced a regimen of way we live to make for greater connectivity, with light grazing at Lodge Farm, the water voles living more consideration for what wildlife needs to survive. on the river there disappeared within a year. Darren advised the owner to fence off a section of river and You might think that, at least in rural stretches of the voles returned, all along the bank. river, water voles would have it their own way. But that’s not the case. Riverside meadow is traditionally Lock gates on rivers and canals are also problematic good for cows, and as they crowd onto the bank to for water voles. But with ‘so engineering’ solutions drink or to graze the riverside vegetation, they munch to the problems they create, including coir ma ing away on water vole food. Worse, they trample the instead of concrete and the planting of willows, they banks and make it impossible for the voles to make can become water-vole friendly once again – and the the tunnels they live in. connecting nature of the river can be restored. Wherever we look, even in the heart of the British This is not, as you will no doubt have observed, countryside, it seems that we’re losing our connection 22 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

A WILDER FUTURE VITAL STATISTICS £430m The estimated value of services by pollinating insects for agriculture 1km Most bumblebee workers forage within a kilometre of their nest Our new 10 year study of 80% water voles shows that national treasure ‘Ratty’ The increase needs urgent help, and in road tra c between 1980 sensitive management of and 2005 river banks, to survive. 63% rocket science. It requires no great eureka moment The increase in area treated with in technology: rather, a subtle shi in the minds of pesticides between humans. We have relegated wildlife to the backwater 1990 and 2016 of life – and it should be mainstream. 2km Toads can travel two We have made wildlife a luxury item, the first kilometres to reach their breeding ponds WATER VOLE: TERRY WHITTAKER/2020VISION, YELLOW IRIS: LIZZIE WILBERFORCE thing we lose when we chase that will-o’-the-wisp Simon Barnes we call progress. But as we start to live with notions is an author with a 4 in 5 Four out of ve rivers of connectivity, we can make for a kinder and richer passion for wildlife. (80%) in England and landscape, a be er countryside and a be er country. He was awarded Wales fail to achieve the Wildlife Trusts’ ‘good ecological status’ It starts, o en enough, with small individual Rothschild medal decisions: not using pesticides in your garden, in 2014. 1–2km accepting that a tidy landscape is a dead landscape and le ing part of your lawn grow wild The distance most water voles travel to nd food, shelter and mates as a flower meadow, supporting Join our campaign for a Wilder Future and measures taken by conservation help us put nature into recovery www.wildlifetrusts.org/wilder-future With a bit of ‘soorganisations such as your local Wildlife Trust, and speaking up engineering’, the for wildlife whenever you get the chance, over cups of coffee voles have returned and pints of beer. and the connecting nature of the river It’s also about our connections with wildlife and our connections with other people. We can do it. Only connect. Let’s resolve to has been restored. live no longer in fragments. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 23

WATER VOLE: TERRY WHITTAKER/2020VISION 6 places to see Water voles Water voles once thrived across the UK, but in the last 30 years they’ve declined by 90% due to habitat loss, pollution and predation by mink. However, thanks to the hard work of Wildlife Trusts, water voles are making a comeback in some areas. We’ve pulled together a list of some of our top places to spot them. Water voles can be secretive, but tell-tale signs can signal their presence. Look out for burrows in the riverbank, piles of nibbled grass and latrines of small, cigar-shaped droppings. If you’re quiet, you might hear the distinctive ‘plop’ of a vole dropping into the water. With a bit of patience, you can enjoy wonderful views of this water-loving mammal. 24 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

rwnewdicldoeo’vlruieeftWerhmtairetucohlprsroteyisnso.asogubtrrwhgose/uauwttUpeaopKrtueo.vrYror-owtlv,euoosrlcetkaosnat 6 Thank you 34 5 See the spectacle 21 for yourself 1 Winnall Moors nature reserve, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust Follow the water vole trail and look for these enigmatic mammals in the clear waters of a beautiful chalk stream. Where: Winchester, Hampshire, SO23 8DX 2 Sandown Meadows nature reserve, Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust Visit this beautiful wetland reserve and listen for the tell-tale ‘plop’ of a watervole hopping into the water. Where: Isle of Wight, PO36 9PS 3 Cromford Canal, Derbyshire Wildlife Trust Water voles are regularly spotted on this former working waterway, now a haven for wetland wildlife. Where: Cromford, DE4 3RQ 4 Upton Broad and Marshes Norfolk Wildlife Trust A network of pristine dykes crisscrossing swathes of reedbed and fen creates the perfect home for water voles. Where: 2.2 miles northwest of Acle, NR13 6EQ 5 Thorley Wash Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust Water voles are thriving on this reserve following a successful reintroduction programme by the Wildlife Trust in 2015. Where: Spellbrook, CM22 7SE 6 Ben Mor Coigach, Sco ish Wildlife Trust The water voles on this large highland reserve have black fur, noticeably darker than those found further south in the UK. Where: 10 miles from Ullapool, IV26 2YJ Did you see one? We’d love to know how your water vole search went. Please tweet us your best photos of a water vole from your day out @wildlifetrusts Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 25

White out strap Name here White out strap White out strap White out strap White out strap White out strap White out strap White out strap By line for words or photos Sand martins migrate to the UK every summer. They start to arrive from early March, and flock together in large colonies. MIKE READ www.mikeread.co.uk 26 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

CONSERVATION Making space for sand martins These lively birds can only nest in certain places, but suitable sites are few and far between. At Blashford Lakes, our special sand martin banks are giving them the space they need to ourish. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 27

The sight of sand martins soaring The man-made nesting bank at overhead is one of the many Blashford Lakes. There are 183 pipes joys of summer at Blashford altogether, each one lled with sand. Lakes nature reserve. These sprightly li le birds are a welcome sign Every summer of the season, and every year they arrive the view from in their hundreds to make use of custom Goosander Hide is built nesting banks overlooking Ibsley alive with the dainty Water. flu ering of these Sandbanks occur naturally on eroding riverbanks and cliffs, and provide expansive areas in which sand martins can build their nests and rear their young. However, suitable nesting sites are becoming increasingly difficult to find. Riverbanks are o en reinforced with man-made materials to reduce flood risk, leaving li le space for sand martins to make their burrows. Quarries are also popular nesting spots, but these are o en subject to large scale extraction techniques - this means that the sand faces are not le in place for long enough to allow for nesting. With this in mind, we set out to help our local population of sand martins at one of our flagship nature reserves. We built specially designed nesting banks at Blashford Lakes, and the results have been spectacular. About the banks industrious li le ALL PHOTOS: MIKE READ WWW.MIKEREAD.CO.UK In 2008, Reserves Officer Bob Chapman and his faithful group of volunteers set birds. About the birds about building a haven for sand martins. Sand martins are fairly common summer Using a steep section of shore overlooking look. The end result was an outstanding visitors to the UK and one of the earliest to Ibsley water and materials donated by nesting site fit for a colony. arrive, the first turning up in early March Hanson Concrete Plant, they built a wall or even late February. These gregarious on the edge of the lake. 183 carefully sized Just a few months a er the bank was birds nest in large colonies which may holes were inserted into the wall, and completed sand martins started visiting contain hundreds of pairs. The tunnels behind each one they placed a metre-long the holes, and pre y soon about 40 pairs they bore have a chamber at the end, plastic pipe filled with sand. Each pipe was were nesting. By summer the following where an average of four or five eggs are filled by hand and fixed in place, and the year, numbers had more than doubled laid in a cosy nest of grass, feathers and wall was rendered to give it a more natural – over 100 pairs set up home. This year leaves. Both parents will incubate the eggs about 150 pairs are nesting, and every until they hatch, which usually happens DON’T MISS the chance to see sand summer the view from Goosander Hide a er two weeks. is alive with the dainty flu ering of these martins this summer! Visit Blashford Lakes industrious li le birds. The juvenile birds from the first brood nature reserve and make yourself will set off south in late June, leaving the comfortable in Goosander Hide. On a To ensure the banks retain their five-star parents free to rear more young. clear day, the resident sand martins can be rating among our visiting sand martins, The last birds will make their way back seen itting around their summer home. every winter our volunteers prepare them While you’re there, take a look at the so they are ready for our summer arrivals. nature reserve’s exciting new features, The holes are cleaned out and refilled including a brand new welcome hut, a with fresh sand, which clears the nest of sculpture trail and a new and improved parasites and allows the birds to dig a new Tern Hide. Find out more about the new tunnel. Despite the many hours spent developments on page 11. filling the holes, watching the sand fly out again as a bird tunnels its way through the wall is a comical sight, and one we look forward to year a er year. 28 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

On a clear day, sand martins can be seen itting in and around the bank or perching on tree branches nearby. Sand martin pairs tend to have four or ve chicks per brood. The adults remain in the UK all summer before ying back to Africa. to warmer climes in October when flying Sahel, the zone south of the Sahara WHERE TO FIND THEM insects (their primary food source) start where the hot, humid climate offers a to dwindle in numbers in the UK. Most plentiful supply of invertebrates. Sand martins are thought to spend the winter in the If you are not local to Blashford, any sandy cliff-face may be home to a colony of sand martins. Odd pairs may even nest in tree root plates (the round disk of roots and soil which is exposed when a tree topples over) or pipes in walls. Breeding sites in our two counties have become few and far between, so we would be delighted to receive records of any you find. To report a breeding site, please email us at [email protected]. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 29

MY WILD LIFE SOPHIE EVINGAR Natalie Harris Natalie is a 21 year-old personal trainer and volunteers as a Marine Champion on our project Secrets of the Solent. She tells us why she is ghting for our marine wildlife and how young people can help shape the future of conservation. I spend as much time as It fascinates me that many species have A er noticing plastic washing up on the possible being out in nature - been around for millions of years, but it beach whilst on holiday I carried out my whether that’s on the beach, in saddens and angers me that our impact first ever beach clean. Loving the sea so the forest, or just in my back is having such a detrimental effect. Some much I thought it only right to look a er garden. I have always lived on the coast species that have been on this planet long my own local beaches as well, so when and love being down by the sea, doing my before us simply can’t cope with how we I got home I started cleaning several bit to save this vital environment. With as humans are mistreating it. This fuels beaches in my area. But as much as I love more than half of our oxygen coming from my passion to help these animals, and to doing it I knew the task was too great to the ocean we must look a er it. As Sylvia encourage others to live in a sustainable tackle on my own, so I set up a page called Earle puts it, “No blue, no green” – it’s that way. I want future generations to Clean Our Seas on Instagram in 2017. simple. But it’s not just about survival: it’s experience the same joy I do when I spot I share photos of my beach cleans, about the beauty of nature and respecting a seal bobbing in the water, a hedgehog pieces of rubbish I find, and plastic-free the fact that we share our planet with all exploring the garden at night, or even a alternatives to help stop the problem at its other species. bumblebee flying past. source. 30 Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019

OUR WILDLIFE CHAMPIONS Beach cleaning is really easy - all you have I decided to become a Marine Champion Find Natalie on Instagram at to do is collect anything unnatural that because I really believe that if people are @cleanourseas doesn’t belong on the beach and dispose of made aware of what amazing wildlife we it properly. This means that anyone who have locally then they are much more Get is down on the beach can give it a helping likely to want to protect it. Before I started involved... hand by clearing even one piece of rubbish. Clean Our Seas I was unaware of plastic As part of Clean Our Seas I also organise pollution, so was contributing to the Natalie is one of the many brilliant and run beach cleans both locally and at problem without even knowing. Since people helping to protect wildlife as a events further afield like the Boardmasters then I have changed my lifestyle to be Marine Champion. If you are passionate Festival in Cornwall. I plan to run five in more sustainable, but that was possible about our marine environment, why my area this year and have run three so simply because I have more knowledge not consider joining her? far, which together have collected 250kg in about the issue now. If I can help teach rubbish. At my recent one in Barton I had and inspire others about our wildlife You don’t need special knowledge or 70 people helping out which was fantastic. then hopefully they too will make more experience, just enthusiasm for our sustainable choices. Two years a er marine wildlife and a willingness to I started my page as a way to find out starting the page I’m more enthused learn. We provide bespoke training, more for myself on how I could help our than ever to protect our coastlines and will support you in developing beaches, but it soon became a page where and encourage others to feel the same your strengths. I wanted to inspire others. As a way of connection I do with our oceans. spreading the message I write the words There are several di erent roles ‘Clean Our Seas’ in the sand a er every “The more people available, and you can change between beach clean, which is a non-destructive we have on board, them or take on more than one way of encouraging everyone on that speaking up for depending on your interests: beach to think about this issue. I ask nature, the more followers of my page to do the same, and hope there is of ● Ferry Safaris Marine have now received photos of this from restoring it.” Champion – highlight the incredible 18 countries; it’s fantastic to think my wildlife above and below our waves on message has gone international! I have local ferry crossings. also recently started a series of species identification posts to inform people ● Inspiring People Marine about the wildlife they can help to save by Champion – spread the word about carrying out beach cleans. marine wildlife and inspire others to take action. This summer I started volunteering with If you truly want to make a difference the Wildlife Trust as a Marine Champion for nature I would say don’t hesitate in ● Intertidal Surveys Leader on their Secrets of the Solent project. taking action. With threats like global Marine Champion – discover our So far my experience has been fantastic – warming, deforestation, illegal poaching, local marine species and lead surveys I went into it with no conservation and pollution, our planet needs as many of our shorelines. qualifications but buckets of enthusiasm people as possible on its side going and eagerness to learn, so it was a real forward. The more people we have on ● Marine Ambassador – be a learning curve. I have a ended two board, speaking up for nature, the more shining example and create positive training sessions, and am going on one hope there is of restoring it. In the next change within a club, group, or about biodiversity later this year. I’m 10 years we need to drastically change organisation. particularly enjoying doing wildlife safaris how we treat the planet, and young on the Wightlink ferries, where I talk to people need to push for these changes Not sure which role is right for you? people about our marine life, and I look if they want to secure their future. Want to chat about your options? forward to organising my own events in No ma er how small you think Learn more at www.hiwwt.org.uk/ the future with the aim of educating and your contribution is remember SecretsoftheSolent/MarineChampions inspiring others. I love being hands-on, so that it all helps: we can’t all do am keen to do more intertidal surveys to everything, but everyone find out what we have living on our shores, can do something. and to help organise more beach cleans in my area. Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife | Summer 2019 31

Invest in a Hampshire & wilder future Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust Leave a gift in your Will Gifts in Wills have enabled us to buy land and continue our vital conservation work, helping to pull species back from the brink. Once loved ones have been taken care of, could you do something amazing and leave a gift in your Will for local wildlife? To find out more, please visit www.hiwwt.org.uk/leave-gi -in-will or contact Steph Watson on [email protected] or 01489 774412. PHOTO: TOM MARSHALL OCTOBER WILL WRITING OFFER A number of local solicitors are offering free or reduced cost Will writing services this autumn to Trust members and supporters. Please visit www.hiwwt.org.uk/will-for-wildlife or contact Steph Watson to find out more.