BNA Conference 2015: Bugs, Birds and Antlers

The British Naturalists' Association held their national conference in Epping Forest yesterday. The BNA is 110 years old this year, which makes it an association of some standing by any account. It attracted as speakers Nick Baker, Professor Ian Newton, and Norma Chapman, outstanding naturalists all.

BNA 2015 National Conference held in Forest School, Epping Forest

I attended the conference with my partner Natasha, as my second BNA conference and her first. The day commenced in the Great Hall of Forest School with an introduction from BNA chairman Roger Tabor, and then we dived straight into the Field Workshops. Attendees had to choose which session to attend, ranging from "Botany and Bats" to nature haiku writing, which was no easy task! Natasha and I elected to attend the Spider Safari first, followed by a session of Owl Pellet Analysis. Attendees then reconvened in the Great Hall for a buffet lunch, and this was superb.

The afternoon consisted of presentations and talks in the Theatre. A number of awards and fellowships were received by the worthy, and then attendees were treated to talks from Nick Baker on 'Building a Naturalist', Norma Chapman on 'Deer in Britain', and Professor Ian Newton on 'Bird Migration'.

The conference was excellent throughout, and I would very much recommend attending one! If you want to know more about the BNA, you can visit their website at www.bna-naturalists.org.

Nick Baker receiving a BNA Fellowship Honoris Causa

Nick Baker delivers his talk, 'Building a Naturalist'

Volunteers Week 2013

Springing into Action!

Yesterday marked the end of Volunteers Week 2013, an annual event which celebrates the contribution made by millions of volunteers across the UK. So, I am writing about some of my recent volunteering experiences, and including some info on how to get involved yourself!

On Friday 30th May, I joined The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) for a 'Waltham Forest Green Gym' session at Lloyd and Aveling Park in Walthamstow. On this particular day we were helping to care for the trees in the community woodland to-be, some plantings of various native tree and shrub species that were put in place by members of the local community. While the trees are still quite young, it's important to keep down grass and other aggressive plants, that can actually out-compete the trees in their early years! To this end, we were weeding, raking and mulching, with some light pruning of dead wood from some of the trees too. We were lucky to have beautiful weather for the volunteer day: the forecast was for highs of 21 degrees Celsius in the London area, and although this looked unlikely when we started in the morning, the cold spell finally broke and the temperature suddenly jumped up around 10 degrees as the clouds dispersed! It began to feel like a Jungle down in the grass, and with the recent growth of the trees in the past weeks it began to feel like a real forest, especially with everyone crouching down to pull grass!

Volunteering can be very sociable, and there were both familiar faces and less familiar, friendly all. The Waltham Forest Green Gym has a mix of ages and backgrounds, plus the very helpful leaders (such as Lisa, Trudi) and the Project Officer (the man himself, Gareth). The day also included a tea-break at half time, with bananas shared around!

Waltham Forest Green Gym volunteer days run on Fridays, but there are also opportunities with BAT (Biodiversity Action Team) East to get out and get stuck in to some conservation work. Find out more at TCV volunteering in the Waltham Forest area here.

Happy volunteers at Waltham Forest Green Gym

On Sunday 2nd June, I persuaded my girlfriend to join me for some volunteering in Epping Forest with the Epping Forest Conservation Volunteers (EFCV). This group help the City of London Corporation to manage the extensive and varied habitats of Epping Forest, London's largest open space.

The fine weather held for the volunteer task on the Sunday, which took place on Warren Hill, behind the Forest HQ not too far from Loughton. Our task for the day was woodland maintenance - careful work (because of nesting birds) felling Sycamore trees, as they are taking over some parts of woodland, and management of the Forest aims to keep a more balanced and diverse assemblage of species. Also, being on the edge of a grassland, our work to control the Sycamore trees also benefits the lowland heath species that might otherwise become crowded out by trees eventually. A Forest isn't necessarily all woodland, in fact many include a range of habitats (the term originally referred to an area set aside for Royal hunting!). In Epping Forest, a number of grassland areas would have been traditionally been kept open through grazing. Lowland heath is internationally rare now, and the UK has 20% of the globe's share of this habitat!

EFCV are a very welcoming bunch, an active and mixed group of people. They are very knowledgeable too, and they were willing to share their knowledge - Spencer Cleminson, one of their leaders, helped me to refresh my felling skills, and to introduce Natasha to this activity! We had an excellent day out in the woods, the weather continuing in its warm theme but with plenty of shade trees to keep us cool. This is a lovely part of the forest too, and surprisingly not very busy with people. Why not get up there and explore it for yourself? The hill has a pretty aspect, and the woodland has some more open parts with old oak pollards in addition to the thicker woodland areas.

EFCV run work parties on alternate Sundays, plus the occasional weekday too. Find out about the group and their upcoming here.

On Thursday 6th June, I took myself up to the Epping Forest Field Centre at High Beach - where there are environmental education, grounds maintenance, and admin volunteering opportunities. On this occasion I started the day with some grounds work, clearing some of the plants that were overgrowing the paths around the centre grounds (especially the stinging nettles as they don't mix well with children!). I then helped tutor and team leader Hannah Rose with a local primary school group, who came to the field centre to learn about minibeasts. The children explored life in the pond first, dipping with nets to see what lives beneath the lilies. Then we all headed over to a woodland area to explore the terrestrial minibeasts on the forest floor and beneath logs. Needless to say, with the Field Centre grounds in the heart of Epping Forest, there were plenty of creepy crawlies for the children to find and learn more about!

Once all this excitement was over and the children returned to school, I assisted Gin Cameron who is in charge of the Grounds at the Field Centre. We were building mini biomes from plastic drinks bottles, which would be stocked by a visiting group on another day with soil and water and plants. This would then create an ecosystem in miniature.

As as you can see, there was a lot of variety in my day at the Field Centre. No two volunteering days there are the same! If you're interested in volunteering, you can aim for particular roles (such as Teaching Assistant, Ground Worker) or help with a wider variety of tasks instead. Find out more about volunteering at the Field Centre here..

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There are endless possibilities when it comes to volunteering. It can be sociable, satisfying, educational and career-enhancing. Why not try it for yourself? If you are thinking of volunteering, the organisations I wrote about in this article are excellent choices. Another option in this area would be the Redbridge Conservation Volunteers - just a short journey away in Redbridge, and some tasks taking place in Epping Forest district for example Woodford and Chigwell. There are a range of practical tasks, workshops and family events in the Redbridge area; find out more here.

The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) are also active across Britain, so it is worth checking for volunteer tasks in your area, wherever you are!  Find out more about volunteering with TCV generally here. 

2013 Conference of the British Naturalists' Association

I attended the 2013 BNA Conference yesterday at Forest School in Snaresbrook, primarily to help out Essex Amphibian & Reptile Group with some pond dipping. They ran pond dipping activities for people attending the conference, alongside bat walks, butterfly hunting and other similar activities that were run on the day by knowledgeable naturalists.

This was my first outing with Essex ARG and my first encounter with the BNA, and I now have a very positive impression of both. Pond dipping took place in nearby Manor Pond, contiguous with Epping Forest; this proximity to the ancient woodland no doubt led to the school's name. This is a pretty pond, and with a variety of wildlife lurking amongst the crack willow and yellow flag-iris it would seem to be a great pond for nature too. Essex ARG in the form of Ray Cranfield and Neil Phillips skillfully netted some of the resident pond-life to show to the curious, and shared their depth of knowledge with everyone. I used my environmental education experience to assist some of the children with dipping the pond too, making sure no-one ended up taking an unplanned dip themselves!

Ray Cranfield and Neil Phillips test the waters at Manor Pond

 

After the pond dipping sessions, we mingled with the rest of the BNA Conference (with the theme of "Wildlife & the Urban Landscape"). There were some fine exhibits and information from various organisations in the school's dining hall (a very fine building; we were watched over by wooden angels carved into the woodwork of the ceiling!). There were also some fascinating and entertaining talks from Professor James Hitchmough and Bill Oddie.

BNA's 2013 Conference, in a grand setting

Me and Essex ARG with Bill Oddie. Photo by Neil Phillips

 I then followed Epping Forest's Senior Forest Keeper, Andrew Gammie, on a nice long walk through some of the nearby Forest. This was great for me, as I got the chance to become better acquainted with this part of the 6,000 acre plus Forest - I don't often venture this far to the south-west when exploring. Having walked an hour to the venue that morning, and including the walk home at the end of the day, this added up to a very fit and active Saturday!