18th August 2015 ... weekly volunteers

present:

Keith, Pat, David a, Neil, Stuart, Ray and Martin

Activities:

- tried but failed to look the ponies.  heard one. Looked successfully on wednesday.
- tried to seal stony pond by brushing the clay/sand surface
- pollarded fallen tree over Level pond, used logs and brash together with cut bracken to repair Irish bridge and path across boggy area of ponds

Observations:

- three Raft spiders
- raven
- common darter
- new people in first top lodge
- redstarts


Martin

11th August 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

Pat, David a, Keith, Ray and Martin

Activities:

- looked ponies and moved them with Mark's help from SH to main reserve.  2 salt licks near trough put out.
- finished clearance of stoney pond and did clay puddling of its bottom

Observations:

- large birch fallen over onto level pond.  Not sure if it will die or not
- dead adder on road.  Run over
- raven, deer
- visitor described seeing 2 roe deer
- crossbills? Or Goldfinches??
- discussed bbq
- 6 more konics coming soon, and staying till autumn
- cattle possibly for winter ( possibly from conservators)

Martin

4th August 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

Jonathan, Stuart, Pat, Bernard, Julie, David a, David p, Ray , Keith and Martin

Activities:

- looked the ponies
- dug out much of silt from stoney pond, which was dry
- pulled odds bits of ragwort

Observations

- Raven
- buzzards
- 2 patches of dodder in flower along top
- leeks in and out of shop.  Place mats taken.

Martin

28th July 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, Jonathan, Alan, Bernard, Julie, Pat, David a, David p, Keith, Neil and Martin


Activities:

- cleared car park border with road of bracken, and reinstated the two SWT notices.  They need to be replaced, but cannot wait for new signage.
- looked the ponies.
- bracken clearing along beeches avenue and west to boundaries and down to stream.  Some work done on OL2 and south heath.
- big ragwort taken off SH.

Observations:

- adder on plateau
- crossbill
- Buzzards including young? On forester's cottage
- nightjar put up off ground
- ringlet (monday), gatekeepers, m browns, common blue
- ling coming out
- plenty of bilberry berries

Martin

21st July 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, Alan, Mike, Stuart, Keith, David a, Pat, Bernard and Martin

Activities:

- looked Ponies
- bracken over wide area north and east of stream
- did an investigation of stoney pond with idea of digging it out
- took out one bit of ragwort near amex pond
- cleared pipe under path near boundary there

Observations:

- azures, c darter, emporer, bb chaser, l red
- meadow browns, gatekeepers, l skippers
- bog cotton, bog asphedil
- fox
- lixards, slow worm
- Nightjar disturbed and churring once

Martin

14th July 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, Jonathan, Mike, Alan, Pat, Stuart, Neil, Keith, Ray, Bernard and Martin

Activities:

- looked the ponies
- refilled brochure box
- Ragwort pulling of flowering plants on tracks west of stream, including ol1
- added extra wire to heave gate on south heath, as ponies looked rather tall against original wiring
- bracken pulling over same area, including some scything along m1 and on cricket pitch part of ol2
- put in queeze gate at cross roads

Observations:

- nice large female adder on tin above the chestnut wood.  Photo taken as it left
- Raven
- tree pipit
- crossbills, others have been seen recently
- buzzard
- lots of l skippers

Martin

7th July 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, Mike, Keith, Neil, Stuart, David p, David a, Bernard and Martin

Activities:

- looked ponies
- fencing work between sh and ol1. 3 new posts and a lot of staples, and wire tightening.
- bracken cutting along bank on sh
- replenished brochures
- cutting along path to car park
- bracken work by John on main reserve near cottages
- logs from pile near copse all brought into tractor shed.
- most of logs cut
- tools cleaned sharpened and oiled
- gutters cleared
- Bramble new shoots lopered around shed

Observations:

- weather forcast not good and there was some heavy rain, but not as bad as forcast
- windy
- toad found in keiths boot.  Moved to copse, as there are known to be toads around cottages.


Martin

30th June 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, Alan, Ray, Keith, Jonathan and Martin

Activities:

- looked ponies
- bracken and ragwort behind cottages, towards Reynards Way
- clearing rides in ol2 of bracken, birch and other obstructions, starting at cricket pitch. 
- ragwort clearing at pitch and some bracken around cricket wood
- ragwort along road

Observations:

- locking of sh gate insecure and redone
- woodlark, lt tits, pied wagtail, herring gull
- migrant hawker
- meadow browns, l skippers
- Jonathan saw a barn owl near the nest box
- cuckoo



Martin

23rd June 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, David p, David a, Ray, Stuart, Neil, Keith, and Martin

Activities:

- looked the ponies
- ragwork clearing on m1 and cricket pitch.  Arisings safely hidden in brash pile on ol2
- bracken pulling, slashing and scything under power lines across reserve, down stream, up to cross roads and back along beeches avenue and south heath

Observations:
- Shop cleared of Torrie's chairs and keith's lettuces, and a ground sheet
- probable stonechat nest with 4 blue eggs
- tree pipits, redstarts, woodlark, hobby

Martin

16th June 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, Jonathan, Mike, Neil, Stuart, Alan, Keith and Martin

Activities:

- looked the ponies, which are now on SH
- bracken pulling, along beeches avenue, down to stream and up to stoney pond, then onto west pond
- bracken slashing along stream
- adjusted small wooden gate and squeeze gate

Observations;

- shop still doing good trade.  7 chairs donated by tory's son
- bmw taken away on low loader.  Garage now clear.
- mike's birthday chocolates
- crossbills, whitethroat, 2 ravens, buzzard, kestrel,
Redpolls, tree creeper, nuthatch, redstarts
- s heath, l skipper
- azures, l reds, bb chaser, 4 spot
- nice weather for once

Martin

9th June 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

Mike, John, Alan, David a, Keith and Martin

Activities:

- looked ponies
- strengthened the small wooden gate
- nestbox survey
- bracken pulling and scything over much of sw from stream

Observations:

- redstarts, cuckoo, bullfinch, tree pipit, woodlarks
- slow worm


Martin

2nd June 2015 ... weekly volunteers

Present:

John, Jonathan, Alan, Neil, Stuart, Keith, David w (new) and Martin

Activities:

- looked the ponies
- John did some bracken, pine and birch pulling along the top bank, and behind the cottages
- set and sharpened some saws
- cut and split some logs
- replaced the strainer that had broken near stone pillar up the drive of the tool store, and added an extra fence post and strut.

Observations:

- horrid weather with high wind and rain
- shop had successful day


Martin