No dragons for our Dark Knight!

A special day!

Yes its St George's day and although the weather was to produce typical April showers we had the pleasure of a visit from our own Dark Knight. Sadly no dragons around and also a measure of trepidation for our last bat count of the season. This 'mood' reflected the low count in March {118} and spirits were not lifted when the count at the bat cave was a low 42. However the Kennels provided a record count with a really large cluster of lesser horseshoes which we could only guestimate the numbers, we settled on a total 105 {also made difficult by a number of the bats flying around}. The newly refurbished Bothy provided 8 and the cellars 20. So a grand total of 175, although not up to last years 212, it was much healthier than last month and nearer the norm. Finished the satisfying morning task with my first sighting at Sherborne of this seasons swallows.

Yet another function performed by the tractor

The afternoon started in the nursery where a 'late' order for wood was to be satisfied and my last opportunity this season to practice my axe skills! The remaining part of the afternoon was to be occupied down in the water meadows where the wet winter had resulted in very deep ruts on the main track. This meant the local fishermen were unable to drive their vehicles to gain closer access to the Windrush hence Mike was called in to rectify the problem.  So Mike using the tractor filled the 4x4 trailer with gravel from Lodge Park and I drove it down to water meadows with Mike following in the tractor. To help spread the gravel and remove the deepest ruts Mike added yet another 'tool' to the tractor, the digger. It soon became clear we would not be able to complete the 'resurfacing' of the track today but at least a workable method of 'repair' was trialled for follow up work. So not the best of weather on St George's day but certainly not preventing a full and rewarding days work.

As ever an interesting thought for 'Developers' {well companies carrying out development} from Mark Avery on how to save money whilst helping wildlife! Plus an EA view on the health and approach to environmental recovery.

In the face of adversity

Cheltenham lodges, conservation changes afoot

No problems with the current weather, close to perfection for outdoor working. So arriving at Sherborne this morning energy levels were high which was just as well since a long list of tasks was presented by Mike to fill the sunny day! What Mike failed to mention was his run of unforeseen problems beginning on Monday. So not surprisingly this seemed to continue today with the tractors front tyre flat and all three batteries for the drill flat. This was rapidly followed by discovering the drill bit for enabling easier screwing was missing. Now some of this is just bad luck but some of it is down to sharing resources which depends on those sharing acting responsibly with the loaned kit!

In spite of such adversity plus a bit of 'ranger' adaptability we did complete some useful work in the morning. This involved renovation work for the Bothy bat roost and now the roost has the appropriate light {i.e. its dark with window now covered} , air flow & entry {suitable hole cut into door}  and security {bolt and lock attached to door}. In addition Mike managed to get ATS out to repair the tractor tyre but not before we had the chance to try out the new compressor. Who says men can't multiplex since Mike also had another contractor out to clear a blocked pipe feeding one of the tenant farmers water troughs. This contractor of course arrived at the same time we were handling the other tasks. Unfortunately it seems the pipe diameter was too small to fit the equipment {a bit of surprise!} so this work will have to wait until after Easter. A busy morning albeit not all on the original task list.

Still a little quiet bird wise on the Broadwater but a pair of coots were proudly showing off their 6 chicks, a moorhen put in an appearance, a healthy number of trout were visible which explains the early morning heron, in one of the pools down by the Boathouse lots of tadpoles, a Muntjac, usual tufted ducks & mallards,  pair canada geese, resident swans attending their nest and a greater spotted woodpecker in one of the large oaks.

Given the tractor was good to go we spent the afternoon up at Cheltenham Lodges where we were to help restore the front of the 'Sherborne estate entrance' to the conservation guidelines. This involved removing a number of fence posts, removing a sizeable hawthorn/shrubs and some very large stones. So some of this was down to my cutting skills and for the heavy stuff Mike with tractor {plus Maddie}.  I ended the day by loading the 4x4 trailer with cord wood from the nearby west belt whilst Mike with tractor trailer deposited the stones and shrubs. So despite a number of setbacks a constructive day although the planned work down in the water meadows will have to be squeezed in another day!

More good stuff from Martin Harper concerning raptors and gamekeepers.

Its a classic!

Needs a bit of work, but a classic

Normal service resumed at Sherborne today but a new location for me for the days work at Windrush Camp. I followed Mike, driving the tractor with bucket, with the 4x4 with trailer and having reached the work site it was pretty clear what faced us. The contractors had completed their major thinning of this area but left a good deal of clearing up behind, which the tenant farmer was anxious to be addressed. Some interesting history in this area with the remains of the World War II military site plus adjacent to the farm buildings an iron age fort. However back to the work which had me shrub clearing mainly elder too close to the camp buildings and boundary wall plus moving a number of brash piles to enable Mike with tractor to move them to a better location. The morning shot by, but the first phase of clearing had progressed well.

As usual I wandered down to the Broadwater for lunch and was surprised by the lack of waterbirds. I'd forgotten that the wigeon had left {except for a single pair} for their summer home in Scandinavia. Our resident swans were down by the boat house and looking after their nest, the tufted ducks and mallards were still present plus a pair of canada geese but the new pair of swans appeared to have left their nesting site which had probably been disturbed by a predator.

Returned to Windrush Camp in the afternoon to complete the clearing where we managed to fill the trailer with some decent cord wood, finished the shrub clearance and cleared more of the access tracks. Hopefully the farmer will be pleased with the overall result. Even more exciting was discovering a classic morris minor hidden behind the old camp buildings.