Reading & District Natural History Society

Introduction to Dorchester Abbey

Thirty-two members and friends (probably a record number for a Wednesday walk) met at Bridge End in Dorchester for a gentle walk beside the River Thame and the River Thames and through the nearby water meadows, now being actively conserved and improved by the local community.  The walk started after an engrossing visit to Dorchester Abbey.  Ken Thomas, the ever interesting but not always optimistic leader stated that “there is not much natural history in August” so many of the party set about proving him wrong, with little difficulty.

The hamlet of Overy sounds as if it ought to be very fertile and it proved to be so.  The water plants beside the Thame were in excellent condition and a nearby ditch had Trifid Bur-marigold, Water Plantain as well as the ever-delightful Water Forget-me-not.  A damp cornfield had a rich supply of arable weeds: members were struck by the unexpectedly pleasant aroma from Creeping Thistles, which were a good source of insect observations including a number of Small Copper butterflies.  The Thames-side path was less productive but colour was provided by Purple Loosestrife and the first Michaelmas Daisies.

A few of us explored Bridge End Meadow and found the rare Greater Dodder and Flowering Rush, surely one of our most beautiful wild flowers.  Lunch in the Fleur-de Lys completed a very pleasant morning.

Text by Chris Bucke

Hoverfly on Corn Sow Thistle

Creeping Thistle Gall

Hoverfly on Trifid Bur-Marigold

_

Blewburton Hill rising behind teasel.

Sixteen members met at Blewbury and walked through the village, out to and up Blewburton Hill and back.  The expectation was that many butterflies would be seen but the weather ruled this out, only the most hardy species, gatekeepers, meadow browns and ringlets being noted.  The walk, though, was most enjoyable.  The streams through the village flowed surprisingly vigorously, indicating just how full the chalk aquifers must be after the recent wet summers.  Sticklebacks were observed in the streams.  In the area of Blewburton Hill the striking blue flowers of chicory made a fine display, as did bedstraws, knapweeds, poppies and many other species of chalk grassland.  Sheep had grazed the turf on the hill itself very comprehensively.  Some debate developed over the identification of a wild leek on the path below Blewburton Hill: some were sure that it was the common Crow Garlic, others were sure that it was not.  The latter plumped for Allium sphaerocephalon, round-headed leek.  This, however, is an extreme rarity as a wild species in the UK.  It is found as a garden escape and other species of garden origin were noted during the walk.

Most members followed the walk with a very satisfactory lunch in the Red Lion and many bought excellent local cherries in the farm shop nearby.  There will be more expeditions from Blewbury!

Bramble Gall caused by gall wasp, Diastophus rubi (thanks to Malcom Storey for identification).

Chris reads the history of Blewburton Hill fort.

Carline Thistle

Plants

Crown vetch                          Securigera varia
Chicory                                   Cichorium intybus
Pendulous sedge                 Carex pendula
Pellitory-of-the-wall         Parietaria officinalis
White Bryony                       Bryonia alba
Vervain                                  Verbena officinalis
Scentless Mayweed           Tripleurospermum inodorum
Dewberry                               Rubus sect. Eubatus
Corn Sow Thistle                 Sonchus arvensis
Greater Knapweed          Centaurea scabiosa
Hemlock                                 Conium maculatum
Goatsbeard                            Tragopogon porrifolius
Wild Parsnip                    Pastinaca sativa
Burnet Saxifrage                  Pimpinella saxifraga
Hedge Parsley                      Torilus arvensis
Restharrow                            Ononsis arvensis
Hoary Ragwort                     Senecio erucifolius
Teasel                                       Dipsacis fullonium
Nodding (Musk) Thistle    Carduus nutans
Meadow Clary                       Salvia pratensis
Hedge Bedstraw                   Gallium mollugo
White Campion                     Silene latifolia
Crow Garlic (?)                     Allium vineale (?)
Creeping Cinquefoil          Potentilla reptans
Burdock                                 Arctium lappa
Wild (Prickly) Lettuce      Lactuca virosa
Shrubby Hawkweed         Hieracium vagum
Yarrow                                  Achillea millefolium
Stemless Thistle                 Cirsium acaule
Yellowwort                          Blackstonia perfoliata
Wild Mignonette                Reseda lutea
Carline Thistle                   Carlina vulgaris
Thyme                                  Thymus sp.
Harebell                               Campanula rotundifolia
Bristly Ox-tongue            Picris echioides
Pineapple Weed                Matricaria discoidea

Birds

Corn Bunting

Kestrel                          

Buzzard                         

Raven?                          

Butterflies/Moths

Large White                   

Gatekeeper

Meadow Brown

Ringlet

Yellow Shell

The blue of the chicory flowers brightened the path.

Text by Chris Bucke
Photos by Ricki Bull

Twenty three members took advantage of the warm spring day to join Martin Sell on a walk from Tyle Mill along the Kennet and through the surrounding countryside. The four mile walk seemed shorter since our attention was held by the wide variety of interesting plants, butterflies and birds that were seen. Within a short time, a large patch of blinks (Montia fontana) were spottedand closely examined by the group. The effect of the prolonged cold weather of the past few months had created a profusion of plants blooming at the same time rather the succession usually seen. Greater tussock sedge (Carex paniculata) was seen in several places along the canal,  forming some large tussocks which made the reason for its common name evident. Among the butterflies seen, Orange-tip were most numerous with some Holly Blue, Comma and Peacock.

At the end of the walk, 17 members relaxed over a well-earned lunch at the Fox and Hounds - a lovely end to a most pleasant walk.

Ricki Bull

The Twelve Apostles

The first of the informal Wednesday walks of 2010 had to be cancelled on account of the snowy weather. For the Second, on February 17, the weather turned benevolent. There was sunshine, and the air was beginning to warm as the party of around a dozen, led by Alice and Eric Ayers, walked among the ancient trees of Crowsley Park. There were some interesting fungi and insects among the old timber lying around, but it was the birds and bird-sond that made the mroning really memorable. A flock of goldcrests was seen, there were skylarks singing above, nuthatches and green woodpeckers were calling among the trees - and then the unmistakable croak of a raven was heard. A member of the group, by imitating the croak, enticed a pair of ravens out of a cedar tree, where they couldn’t be seen, onto the bare branches of a deciduous tree, where they remained in full view for some minutes. They began to touch their bills and preen one another. Some cros obligingly flew by, so that the difference in size between a crow and a raven was at once apparent. It was a very happy group who enjoyed lunch at the Butcher’s Arms in Sonning Common afterwards.

David Cliffe

Ravens in the Tree

Seven members met at Rushall Manor Farm on a crisp, frosty morning that rapidly turned to steady light snowfall. This severely interfered with plant discovery and very few birds were seen, not surprisingly. The woods to the north of Rushall Manor Farm were explored and the walk extended through fields down to the Pang. The upwelling of underground water in the Blue Pool complex was admired and one intrepid welly-clad member waded in the river looking for crayfish, unsuccessfully. A possibly exciting specimen in the river proved to be a discarded sock.In spite of the accumulating snow, a good number of fungi were noted, all of them frozen solid. They included:

Clitocybe flaccida (Tawny Funnel Cap)
Clitocybe nebularis (Clouded Agaric)
Clitocybe geotropa
Collybia butyracea (Buttercap)
Mycena galericulata (Bonnet Mycena)
Mycena sp.
Lepista sordida
Stereum hirsutum (Hairy Stereum)
Lactarius turpis (Ugly Milk Cap)
Laccaria laccata (The Deceiver)
Russula heterophylla
Piptoporus betulinus (Birch Polypore)

Lunch by the fireside in the Old Bull at Stanford Dingley was most welcome!

Article by Chris Bucke

Inspecting Fungi in Harley Hill Wood

Seventeen members, led by Ken Thomas, met at The Red Lion in Upper Basildon and, after a visit to a very beautiful and interesting modern church, walked through suburban and country lanes past Blandy’s Farm and through Harley Hill Wood down to Hood End Farm, then up the lane and around Rushdown and back to the pub for lunch.

Twenty-three species of plants were found in bloom, just about all of them in the first half of the walk and none of them unexpected. The walk starred fungi, over fifty different species were noted, a surprisingly good number bearing in mind that very little of the walk was through woodland. Some courageous members collected Blewits, Agaricus augustus and Tawny Funnel Cap to eat (and very good they were!). Very few birds were spotted, perhaps not surprising on a dull, very windy morning. The walk was, nevertheless, very enjoyable.

PLANTS IN FLOWER

Giant Hogweed

Goatsbeard

Dandelion

Hawkweed

Sowthistle

White Deadnetle

Creeping Buttercup

Groundsel

Daisies

Yarrow

Wild Carrot

Greater Periwinkle

Nipplewort

Spurge sp.

Feverfew

Herb Robert

Ragwort

Red Clover

Flowering Tall Oatgrass

White Campion

Common Scabious

Mayweed

Ivy

FUNGI

Shaggy Parasol

Psathyrella sp.

Clitocybe geotropa

Agaricus augustus

Agaricus placomyces

Agaricus sp.

Clouded Agaric

Armilaria mellea

Bonnet Mycena

Brown Roll Rim

Buttercap

Candle-snuff Fungus

Clytocybe geotropa

Colybia dryophila

Cortinarius calochrous

Cortinarius sp.

Crepidotus variabilis

Entoloma nidosorum

Fairy Ring Champignon

False Chanterelle

Galerina sp.

Giant Puffball

Glistening Inkcap

Gymnopilus penetrans

Hebeloma sp.

Inocybe sp.

Lepiota cristata

Lepiota sp.

Lycoperdon perlatum

Lyophyllum loricatum

Marasmus wynnei

Melanaleuca arctuata

Mycena flavo-alba

Mycena galopus

Mycena leptosphala

Mycena pura

Mycena sp.

Psathyrella conopilus

Psathyrella sp.

Red-cracked Boletus

Shaggy Inkcap

Shaggy Parasol

Spotted Tough-shank

Stropharia caerulea

Stropharia semiglobata

Sulphur Tuft

Tawny Funnel Cap

Tricholoma suphureum

Wood Blewitt

Woolly Milkcap

Hypoxylon fragiforme

Schizopora paradoxa

Xylaria fuscum

Xylaria nummularium

(Article by Chris Bucke, photos by Ricki Bull)

Sharp-leaved Fluellen (kickxia elatine)

Eleven members met at the Blade Bone and walked through Ironmongers Copse, Withy Copse and Greyfield Wood. In some years this area has been so rich in fungi that a walk got no further but this year there were few fungi to be seen. The walk continued alongside High Wood and into Beenham village, down to Beenham church to admire the view, then back through Butler’s Farm, up to Gunnell’s Farmhouse and back along the road.

Fungi were seen; the occasional fly agaric, sulphur tufts, birch polypores, Ganoderma applanatum, various Coprinus species and Mycenas. Some brilliantly orange fungi very close to the end of the walk proved to be honey fungus and an oak tree nearby was infected with Griffola frondosa. A tiny wax cap was found – probably these will become more plentiful, and larger, as the season progresses.

The most noteworthy species seen were a hare, between Butler’s Farm and Gunnell’s Farmhouse, and fine displays of Corn Marigolds (Chrysanthemum segetum) (between Beenham Church and Beenham Stocks) and Sharp-leaved Fluellen (Kickxia elatine) in a very weed-rich field between Greyfield Wood and High Wood. One of the Fluellen plants was a metre wide. Red Admiral and Painted Lady butterflies were noted.

Other species were:

A Stereum species

Wild Radish (Raphanus raphanistrum)

Charlock (Sinapis arvensis)

Field Madder (Sherardia arvensis)

Corn Mint (Mentha arvensis)

Field Pansy (Viola arvensis)

Black Bindweed (Fallopia convolvulus)

Stinking Iris (Iris foetidissima)

Soft Rush (Juncus effusus)

Buzzard

Red Kite

House Sparrow.

(Article by Chris Bucke, photographs by R. Bull)

Honey Fungus

RDNHS members examining fungus

Corn Marigold (Chrysanthemum segetum)