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EARLIEST RECORDED RETURN DATE FOR BARNEHURST SWIFT NESTING ZONE.There were 3 Swifts circling over the northern half of Hillingdon Road this evening (29/4), the same place as the first ones I saw in this area in 2024. This was my first check of the year, so they could have got back even earlier.
Previous 'first dates' for this 'site' are as follows:
2024 - 1/5. None seen in an hour of circuits on 30/4
2023 - 2/5. My first check of the year so they may have arrived earlier. One reported at Crossness 28/4
2022 -8/5 (checked from 28/4)
2021 - 6/5 (had last checked 3/5)
2020 - 2/5 (first date checked)
2019 - didn't monitor
2018 - 7/5 (had checked every evening starting 1/5)
2017 - 4/5 (no prior daily checks)
2016 - 4/5 (no prior daily checks)
2015 - 6/5 (no prior daily checks)
The earliest Swifts in London this year were one at Rainham on April 14th, and another on the same date at Staines Reservoir.
Chris Rose
HELP CLEAN UP THE LOWER RIVER CRAY !Join FRIENDS OF THE CRAY AT CRAYFORD on FRIDAY 2nd May
to tackle litter along the banks of the lower Cray,
Meet 10 a.m. at the junction of Footpath 106 and Barnes Cray Road (see graphic below).
The plan is to go downriver along By-way 105 this week before the undergrowth gets too dense.
All welcome, no particular skills needed.
Equipment will be provided. Wear appropriate clothing for being out in the open and avoiding stings from Nettles and scratches from Brambles, and bring something to drink.
Best wishes
Sarah
CROSSNESS LATEST - PROTECTED AREA WILL REMAIN CLOSED OVER EASTER WEEKENDA brief update to advise that the Protected Area will remain closed over the Easter period - really sorry about this. As hard as we've tried, we can't get a new locking mechanism on the gate before next week, so it is currently padlocked shut so as to not leave us vulnerable over Easter.
I am taking advantage of the upcoming bank holidays to squeeze in some annual leave, so you will not get a notification from me about re-opening, however please assume that the Protected Area is likely to be re-opened by the following weekend.
Karen Sutton
Crossness Nature Reserve Manager
Free webinar on improving Bee 'hotel' design with Prof Dave Gouslon.Tuesday, April 22 · 1 - 2pm
Improving Bee Hotel Design: The Big Bee Hotel Experiment
www.eventbrite.co.uk
Join Prof Dave Gouslon to hear about how the Buzz Club are investigating the effectiveness of different bee hotels for UK bees.
Category Archives: Reptiles and Amphibians
Karen welcomes student visitors to Crossness Nature Reserve
I entertained some very enthusiastic (despite the rain) young naturalists at Crossness Nature Reserve last week. Students from Hertfordshire’s Simon Balle Academy came all the way over to south-east London when they heard about our Slow Worms. Two very clever … Continue reading
Posted in Crossness, Crossness Nature Reserve, Erith Marshes, Reptiles and Amphibians
Tagged Crossness, reptiles, student project
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Bexley Natural Environment Forum submission on Old Farm Park housing and ‘landscaping’ proposals
Conservation group (full submission below) reiterates its objection to the Old Farm Park sell-off and sham consultations, highlights the need for new developments to be zero carbon, criticises the fact that one sixth of the land being taken over will … Continue reading
Lizards and butterflies herald spring at Thames Road Wetland
So warm and sunny was it on March 15th at Thames Road Wetland that although it felt like the kind of day the Lizards would start to come out in force, they didn’t begin to show on the old tyre … Continue reading
Posted in Butterflies, Reptiles and Amphibians, Thames Road Wetland
Tagged Comma, Lizard, Small Tortoiseshell, Snipe, Thames Road Wetland, Water Rail
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Erith Quarry – work begins without Bexley Council’s promised consultation on biodiversity ‘management plan’
Bexley Council has failed to fulfil its written undertaking to consult Bexley Natural Environment Forum and London Wildlife Trust, prior to construction works beginning, about the biodiversity management plan for what little will be left of the important Erith Quarry … Continue reading
Marsh Frog (Pelophylax ridibunda) at Thames Road Wetland – Jason Steel gets quality photos
Jason Steel captured a juvenile Marsh Frog at Thames Road Wetland a few days ago and took these photographs, easily the best of the few ever obtained of this species at the site. These non-native frogs, which were introduced to … Continue reading
Thames Road Wetland latest – Mk2 Harvest Mouse ‘safety’ tubes, Brown Argus confirmed and dumped car reported to police
Much time was spent yesterday (7th September) replacing Mark1 Harvest Mouse monitoring feeding tubes with a much safer Mk2 version that is also attached to a bamboo cane rather than in-situ vegetation. The new design features an ‘escape’ hatch at … Continue reading
Posted in Bexley Council, Butterflies, Dragonflies and Damselflies, Reptiles and Amphibians, Thames Road Wetland
Tagged Bexley Council, Brown Argus, Cetti's Warbler, Grass Snake, Harvest Mouse, Marsh Frog, marsh sow-thistle, Migrant Hawker, Police Crayford Safer Neighbourhood Team, River Wansunt, Thames Road Wetland
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Lizard species in Bexley – there could be one in your garden, or both on your allotment site ….
With Bexley one of the three best Boroughs in London for our declining reptile species, but the Council repeatedly approving building on their prime habitats – all the while making lazy, complacent and unsubstantiated claims that their populations will not … Continue reading
Now Bexley Council officer recommends building on 10% of Crayford Rough, a wildlife site of regional importance.
The onslaught against the most valuable wildlife sites in Bexley is set to continue this week as the planning committee meets on 14th April to consider an application to redevelop the old Electrobase industrial site between Hall Place and Crayford … Continue reading
Posted in Bexley, Bexley Council, Biodiversity Action Plan, BNEF, Braeburn Park, Common Lizard, Consultations, Crayford, Crayford Rough, development threat, Environment, Open spaces, Planning, Plants in Bexley, Reptiles and Amphibians, SINC, Slow Worm, Uncategorized
Tagged BAP, Bee Orchid, Bexley Council, Bexley Council Core Strategy, Bexley Council planning committee, Bexley SINC review, Common Lizard, Crayford Rough, Crayford Strategy and Action Plan Bexley Council July 2005, London Plan, Metropolitan SINC, NPPF, Pyramidal Orchid, Slow Worm, Yellow Vetchling
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Newts in the spotlight: Smooth (or Common), Palmate and Great Crested in Bexley
All three native species of Newt can be found in Bexley. Only the Smooth (or Common) is widespread and likely to turn up in an average garden pond. The Palmate and Great Crested have restricted distributions in the Borough. Joe … Continue reading
Posted in Bexley, Reptiles and Amphibians
Tagged amphibians, Great Crested Newt, Palmate Newt, Smooth Newt
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Absence makes the heart grow fonder – Little Egret shows up at Thames Road Wetland
The first Little Egret ‘on the deck’ at Thames Road Wetland since winter 2014/15 was seen in the ‘west pool’ on the 30th March. This apparent absence (though for much of the time the site is unmonitored) is perplexing given … Continue reading