The show goes on, despite shoddy supplier

Mum on guard whilst cygnets relax by the boat house

No delivery of the vital supplies by TP again and once more Mike had to pull the proverbial rabbit out of the hat with the help of Pat who kindly offered up some substitute material from his building store. Also included were some materials to allow me the chance of improving the construction of the 'bat cave' steps. So once more Morris, Mike and myself set to gathering together essential supplies & then loading the trailer prior to driving to the bat cave. Before setting off we had an interesting dialogue with a research student from Bristol University who was part of a team studying the impact on bat populations in the UK of increased artificial light within bat habitats {increased security lighting, more building lights, cars..}. It seems there is evidence suggesting that bats were having to travel ever further to avoid our artificial lights when hunting. As well as using up vital energy it also seems, as a consequence,  to reduce the time spent in nurturing their young. The researcher was with Mike's help looking at our local Bat status.  Current stats UK wide still show declining bat populations, the good news for Gloucestershire is that Bats seem to be doing better here. In particular the lesser horseshoe bat is under threat so Sherborne's success  wrt to lesser horseshoe bat is even more important. Not that we needed any more incentive to continue the work on their winter roost at the bat cave but it is nice to know it could be even more significant in the grand scheme of things.

I was relieved to escape to the relative cool of Sherborne brook at lunchtime as the morning was pretty hard going in the heat. The swan family were relaxing down by the boat house and all 3 herons were out and about with the juvenile favouring the safety of the large old oaks. No red kites today but one juvenile buzzard also perched at the top of an oak. I enjoyed a relaxing walk through the Pleasure Grounds on the way back to the bat cave and also the surprise of a couple of dog walkers as I pointed out the large metal bat hanging from the trees.

The afternoon soon passed by. Mike and Morris having done some good construction inside the bat cave and I had completed the critical improvements on the steps outside {'rises' now added to the top steps!}. No more materials left to continue without more supplies! and the next opportunity to proceed with the work is mid September, bat permitting.

Down by the Windrush in background, Water Meadows water management

Useful to note the progress on the major water management Project on the Windrush in the Water Meadows area. Sadly the water pump[s] won't operate given the lack of elevation in the water meadows but there is a plan B to use a solar powered pump so all is not lost. Most of the prep work is done so the contractors should be able to resume and complete the work quickly. However we will also be able to use the original pump{s} from the Northfield Barn, given its elevation,  to further improve water management . Add to this the work the Wildlife Trust will be doing on the Sherborne Brook again in the Water Meadows area and altogether this work when completed represents a Major step forward in conservation in the Sherborne estate.

Happy families

Sherborne's cygnets growing up fast

Red veined darter, dragonfly on Sherborne Brook

Not a great start to the day as the Bat Cave supplies hadn't been delivered by TP. However Morris and Mike agreed we had enough kit to do a useful days work, so off we went. While Mike and Morris set too inside the cave I was consigned to safety duty outside. Essential but not the most exciting task but at least it was nice weather and this week I wasn't savaged by the flies.

Lunchtime came round soon enough and I set off to see what was afoot at Sherborne Brook. The swan family were situated up by the bridge/weir and enjoying a grooming session in the sun. The Cygnets are growing up fast and starting to flex their wings ready for their first attempts at flying! As well as butterflies {including tortoiseshell} I spotted an unusual dragonfly all nice to see towards the end of summer. Even better the Red Kite family {parents & 3 juveniles} plus the usual lone Red kite came to 'play' flying over the pastures alongside the Sherborne Brook. Quite a sight especially when 2 of the Herons joined in, albeit briefly {must sort out a bigger telephoto !}.

The afternoon got a bit more interesting since Maddie joined the team, and I joined Morris inside the cave to do some serious scaffolding. Mike was on safety duty, with Maddie, plus  'cutting' wood,poles with axe grinder and chainsaw. So in spite of the absence of missing supplies a satisfying and worthwhile amount of work in the Bat cave was achieved. Only downer to the day occurred on the way home when I caught up with the first day's play in the last Ashes test match.

Working in a coal mine....?

Finally 'captured' fritillaries, Cirencester park though!

Deep in thought for next stage of construction, our Dark Knight

Early start at Sherborne today, I even had time for a quick visit to Sherborne Brook where I was treated to the splendid sight of a kingfisher sitting on  a white post on the far bank of the brook. We had a fair size team working today with Mike-lead Ranger, Morris- Dark Knight, Richard and I as volunteers. A good job to since much work was needed for the planned bat cave construction work. The morning was spent by Richard and myself reconstructing the steps down to the cave entrance whilst Mike & Morris operated inside on early construction work.  Not all was plain sailing as outside we were plagued with flies and inside Morris uncovered some hazardous material which fortunately was safely dealt with.

Spent lunchtime down by the Sherborne Brook where I was pleased to see the Swan family, all 11, still looking healthy. Also present were 3 herons, 2 perched in the standing dead trees, one of them looked to be a juvenile! Bumped into some German tourists where we were treated by a close fly by of a red kite. Walked back to the Bat cave, for the afternoon work session, via the Pleasure Grounds and was happy to see the play area, constructed last year, busy with children and their mums/guardians.

My afternoon assignment was working underground with Morris {as his apprentice} while Mike initially with chainsaw fashioned timber blocks for positioning between Acrow props and the ceiling faults. Richard remained outside on safety duty and helping move materials from the outside to the cave entrance. With Morris directing location of Acrow props and using a spirit level to ensure correct positioning I was on 'tightening', nailing and moving the props to correct position using a lump hammer duties. Mike meanwhile after sourcing the timber blocks started to fix the strengthening poles between appropriate Acrow props. With the available  material we had managed to set up over 6 more Acrow props deep in the cave system. Lots more to do since the extensive shopping list compiled during the survey last week has yet to be procured. At least we have made a good start to the planned work and we will be getting stuck in again next week. As last year the work will need to stop some time in September since the bats will be returning to this winter roost in this month.

Dark Knight and 'heavy' water Engineering

Water meadows heavy duty traffic

Contractors special helpers!

Windrush bed raised by over a foot with new gravel

Windrush flow changes already evident

The morning at Sherborne was spent at the bat cave with Morris as lead engineer and of course Mike. No bats this time of the year in this winter roost but plenty of work required to plan this years renovations. After a thorough survey, once we had cleared a path through the dense vegetation to reach the cave entrance, there was a significant shopping list of poles, supports , clamps, timber to do what is needed. Mike will need to get a shift on the procurement as the work is to begin next Wednesday!. 

The afternoon was to be a change, since Mike was otherwise engaged, as I was to pop down to the water meadows to investigate how the major Water Management Project was progressing and take some pics for a historical record. Historically the Windrush has undergone much dredging operations and been impacted by livestock. Over the years this has impacted the 'flood' plain and the wildlife habitats. The objective of this Project was to restore the Windrush water levels and flows (by ironically adding gravel}, provide controlled water catchment for future livestock and generally improve wildlife habitats as a result. I was only too happy to visit this area of the water meadows since normally its off limits and it was certainly good to see this Windrush environment albeit with some temporary 'main' trails used by the heavy machinery. Obviously a lot of fencing had been taken down to allow access to the river but this will be replaced on completion of the work. 

Some hefty water pipes for water meadows

Fortunately the dry weather this summer has permitted the heavily loaded trucks transporting the gravel to get close to the Windrush and allowed the diggers/dumpers to make good progress in depositing the gravel into the Windrush. The contractors are pleased with the progress and holding their breath for a continued dry spell. So already its easy to see the impact on the Windrush water flow and I can't wait to see the completion of this part of the Project and then the building of the water catchment 'arrangements' using the heavy duty water pipes and pumps.