Flora and Fauna

Biodiversity

View of the ParkBiodiversity, short for biological diversity, is the term given to all the different varieties of life forms (mammals, birds, fish, insects, plants fungi and micro-organisms). It also includes habitats, places in which species live. The report Biodiversity: The UK Action Plan was published in 1994 in response to the Earth summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.

This report, whilst providing the national framework for biodiversity, emphasised the importance of local Biodiversity Plans and local action.

You can see Greenwich Council's draft Biodiversity Plan and Management Plan for the Park on their web site, www.greenwich.gov.uk

We want to ensure Shrewsbury Park continues to be a safe environment for flora, fauna and people. We need to work with others in doing this, and we need to see the Biodiversity Plan for Greenwich before we can make plans ourselves.

We will keep you informed with developments.

Invertebrates in Shrewsbury Park

I popped down to Shrewsbury Park today - my first visit, despite living just over 30mins away! I'm currently a columnist for the 10,000-circular SEnine magazine, writing monthly articles based on local wildlife - birds, mammals, wildflowers and insects - my first natural history love is amateur entomology. This formed the focus of my visit today ...

The first area I visited today was the good standing of Thistles on the margin of the large open area containing the fallen tree. One great invertebrate I came across was the Parasitic Fly, Gymnosoma rotundatum. Quite a nice rarity, only really found in Kent, Surrey, Sussex and sometimes London - though it is spreading North now. Please find the image below.

Elsewhere, plenty of beetles such as the Common Red Soldier-beetle Rhagonycha fulva and Thick-kneed Flower Beetle Oedemera nobilis, Hoverflies such as Eupeodes corollae, Merodon equestris and Volucella pellucens and bees such as the White-tailed Bumblebee Bombus lucorum, Red-tailed Bumblebee Bombus lapidarius (I think - it needs catching for certainty) and Common Carder-bee Bombus pascuorum, as well as a White-faced Bee called Hylaeus communis.

Jason Regreen

Hanging out with the bats

Our Bat walk took place on 4th September 2009. Seventy of us (children and adults) listened to Ed Santry from the Count Bat Project give us information about bats in the area. There are 17 species of bat in the UK, and all British bats eat insects (midges, moths etc).  A common pipistrelle can eat over 3,000 insects in one night. We learnt how to identify their sounds - they use echolocation to find their prey.  Humans cannot heard their sounds, but a bat detector can.  Ed brought along 8 bat detectors and  demonstrated how to use them.

We then set off to walk down the Green Chain Walk to find the bats. Ed was concerned that as it was windy, the insects may not be around.  I assured him they were, I had not put any insect repellent on and they were busy chomping on me!

We did not have to wait long before we heard the bats. We heard both common pipistrelle and the soprano pipistrelle, most people saw them too. The children were delighted when Ed pointed out that the “raspberry noise” at the end was the bat eating the insect. Ed made sure that everyone had a go at the bat detector, and supplied torches for those of us that had forgotten to bring one.

It was a great evening to be out, hanging about with the bats. Everyone enjoyed the fine evening and learnt a lot about bats.  A big “thank you" to Ed for giving up his time and for making the evening so enjoyable.

See photos of the walk on our bat gallery page.

Kathy

Better ecology for your garden!

Improve the ecology of your garden by planting nectar-rich plants that will encourage bees and butterflies (they help to pollinate and fertilise).

Listed below are 20 plants that encourage bees and butterflies. Grow them in a sunny, sheltered spot, and plant in clumps rather than as single plants, to give the insects a better chance of finding them.

Annuals, biennials and bedding plants:

Perennials:

Shrubs:

Wild plants:

Wild Service Tree identified

There are at least three Wild Service Trees (Sorbus Torminalis), in the hawthorn hedgerow. The tree, one of the rarest British native trees, was once widespread, but was used by charcoal burners. It is now only found in patches of old woodland in southern England.

The dark grey bark peels off in rectangular strips, producing a chequered effect which explains the tree’s alternative name of chequer tree. It has many-lobed alternative leaves, and creamy white flowers in May and June. Its leathery brown fruit has speckles.

Lesser spotted Woodpecker spotted.

We were pleased to learn from Dave, one of the bird watchers that he had photographed the rarer woodpecker, a Lesser spotted woodpecker, in the Park. The bird, not much bigger than a sparrow is found among the top branches of trees. The male has a red cap (the female is buff), and white bars on its black back. The bird drums on wood to establish territory, the sound usually lasts longer than that of the great spotted woodpecker.

We now have all three types of woodpecker using the Park. Let us know of any bird you have seen in the Park.

New Trees

New trees in Park Greenwich Council have planted five “Populus nigra betulifolia” (the native Black Poplar) in the park, as part of its contribution to biodiversity. They had 60 for the borough, so we were pleased to get five of them. Thank you to Greenwich Council.

Sadly, the five trees “Populus nigra betulifolia” (the native Black Poplar) the Council planted in the park were damaged. If you see anyone damaging part of the Park, please report it (see numbers on our 'Contact' page). Let’s work together to keep our Park safe.

Butterflies

By John Denton

July 2010 Update
The dry spell we had in early summer has caused the butterflies in the Park to have mixed fortunes this year. There seem to be far fewer Meadow Browns and Common Blues, but other species appear to be faring better.

Five years ago I saw a Ringlet for the first time in Shrewsbury Park. It was in the old allotments, and I had to do a double-take just to make sure I hadn’t made a mistake. This year there must be 100+, a truly astonishing increase. They favour dappled shade rather than open meadow, so they can best be seen in on top of the hill above the old allotments, in the open spaces in the old allotment area and in the scrub area near the dead willow tree.

On the 11th July I had what could only be described as an astonishing morning. I went out to try to take photographs of the Ringlet butterflies. At the gates of the allotment I saw the burnt hedgerow, and the smell of ashes was still thick in the air. A Red Admiral landed on my shirt, which wasn’t very fair because I couldn’t turn my camera on to it.  It soon flew off, but out of the corner of my eye I saw a darker, large butterfly swoop down and land on a metal post. My heart rate shot up as I realized it was a Purple Emperor, probably the most elusive and sort after butterfly in the whole of the UK. It is supposed to only be resident in large oak woodlands in Southern England, and the adults spend most of their lives in the tree tops, rarely venturing down to ground level. The males, do however, require salts in order to breed successfully, and they can obtain them from animal faeces (and in the park they are spoilt for choice, unfortunately), peoples sweat and ashes from fires. So, although the burnt hedgerow looks awful, if the fire hadn’t been started, I doubt whether it would have come down, I would not have seen it. Imagine my surprise when at the AGM Ron said he’d found a dead one outside his house, and then Ray said that he had seen one or two each year over a number of years. These sightings are really quite important, and I would love to hear from anyone else who has seen them locally.

Shortly afterwards I was almost as astonished to see a Marbled White in the rough grassland near Dot Hill. Again this is a first for Shrewsbury Park (as far as I’m aware), and it is a complete mystery as to where it has come from. I don’t know of a colony within 10 miles. Later in the day I saw a Small Tortoiseshell laying eggs on the stringing nettles on the fringes of the burnt hedgerow. This butterfly used to be very common but its numbers have inextricably plummeted across the country in the last 10 years or so, and now I see no more than a couple each year.

If you have any sightings, please get in touch.

Butterflies seen in 2006 - 2010

Meadows and Allotments:

Meadow Brown, Small Skipper, Large Skipper, Essex Skipper, Common Blue Small Copper, Ringlet, Marbled White

Hedgerows, Paths and Woodland fringes:

Speckled Wood, Gatekeeper, Large White, Small White, Green-veined White, Orange Tip, Comma, Peacock, Red Admiral, Painted Lady, Small Tortoiseshell, Brimstone, and Silver-washed Fritillary (one only, in 2009).

Trees:

Purple Hairstreak, Holly Blue, Purple Emperor

(24 species in total)

See some of John Denton's photographs of butterflies on our gallery page

Snow pathDot Hill

situated to the north of the Shrewsbury Park, is a former allotment site that has now reverted to grassland and scrub. There are all sorts of shrub species growing here that attract a variety of birds.