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Previous
programme events
(which you have obviously missed, unless
you came along)
1997
25th January
Big Garden Birdwatch. Binocular workshop.
22nd February
Make a bird a nestbox.
22nd March
Riverside and woodland
walk.
12th April.
We’re going batty! Geoff Birrell of the
Witshire Bat Group was with us. We make a nestbox for a bat.
24th May
Dawn Chorus at Clanger Wood.
28th June
Riverside picnic.
20th September
How do you do! Re-introducing ourselves
after our summer migrations. How do we recognise birds? Sight and
sound. Help with identifying birds (with a view to next month’s challenge).
18th October
Chippenham Challenge at Corsham Lake. The
Chippenham YOC group challenged us to a sponsored bird-watch. We accepted
their challenge!!
15th November
Fruits of the Earth. We brought along twigs
with berries that birds might eat. We made some bird-cake and there
was a competition to win a bird feeder.
13th December
Party Time? with just a hint of
Christmas. No turkeys but a few crusts and nuts. We made a party-bag
to take home for the birds.
1998
24th January
Big Garden Birdwatch in a big garden -
Iford Manor. We are very grateful to Mrs. Cartwright-Hignett for allowing
us access to her garden. This was the BGB weekend.
14th February
Even educated fleas
do it!
On St Valentine’s Day it seemed appropriate
(a)
to find out how to make a honeymoon home (otherwise known as a nestbox)
for Blue Tits, Robins and House Martins. There was a lucky draw for
the 3 boxes we made and we took home patterns for all 3.
(b)
to design a stamp for a Valentine card and
(c)
to look at "Vive la difference" - between male and female
birds.
28th March
Swallows and Amazons. A walk along the canal
and river (the Avon, not the Amazon). Be a Gongoozler! We looked for
Swallows and found a pond.
25th April
Love songs? Learn to identify
woodland bird songs with the help of quality (CD) recordings. Can
you remember them? You’ll need to for our next meeting. Quizzes and
games.
16th May
Twilight serenade in Clanger Wood. Experience
the magic of a DUSK chorus. We might also hear foxes and see bats.
6th June
Flower Power and the
Bees Knees. We used microscopes to gain insect-eye-views of flowers (and flower-eye-views
of an insect?).
4th July
Talk to the Bees. We visited the hives
at the Bath Beekeepers teaching apiary and learned about the fascinating
world of the bee, and what you can talk to them about.
26th September
Designer creatures. All creatures have
features that help them survive. We designed a creature that would
be happy living in your fridge or your pocket! Kestrels
are familiar birds but are getting scarcer in some parts of the country.
Become an official kestrel watcher and join in a survey.
17th October
Trowbridge Nature Trail.
Navigate around the county town. A chance to see some migrating birds
and urban wildlife. We explored some of the finer scenes within walking
distance of Tesco! A colour-search for younger members and a fact-finding
checklist for older ones.
14th November.
Something fishy going
on
at the Lambert Community Rooms. The water cycle has nothing to do
with bikes (but includes pikes!). River and pond life above and below
the surface.
5th December
Lichens and creepy-crawlies. Starting from the Packhorse bridge (near the Tithe Barn) in the
Barton Farm Country Park in Bradford we were particularly looking
for lichens (what are they?) growing on tree bark and large stones.
We also turned over a few stones to see if we could find this biodiversity.
1999
30th January
The 20th Big Garden
Birdwatch at
Brokerswood. This is an annual event to chart changes in garden bird populations.
In 1998 11,687 people took part!.
13 February.
Food fit for feathered
friends. We all need to eat (and drink) to survive. The security of a
roof over our heads and a warm home is vital for us to thrive. Birds
also need these things to successfully raise a family. We made nests,
nest boxes and bird cake. There was a draw to win the nestboxes and
a birdfeeder.
20 March.
Easter eggs. If all goes well with
nest building and the weather is kind then what should happen next?
Birds aren't the only creatures that lay eggs. We made different shaped
ones, camouflaged them, played with them and we even eat some chocolate
ones. (Remember that stealing wild bird's
eggs is a bad thing, will upset the parents (birds and yours), is
against the law and will get you into trouble.)
17 April.
Trees and cuckoos. Meet a tree and give
it a hug!. We take trees for granted. They're just there, but imagine
the countryside without them! We played leaf snap and blazed a quiz
trail. You'll never find a cuckoo's nest in a tree - or anywhere else
for that matter. We heard a cuckoo in Green Lane Wood.
8 May. Dawn Chorus followed by Breakfast
at Clanger Wood. Breakfast included a hot snack and a hot drink.
19 June.
Badger watching. A rare opportunity
to see these noble creatures alive in their natural habitat. We travelled
up to Stroud and will never forget the badgers being whistled out
of their set in daylight.
10 July Butterflies and kites.
Early
arrivals had a picnic and a flew kites. Then we went on the butterfly
walk across the chalk escarpment at Westbury White Horse with Roger
Beckett of Butterfly Conservation.
18 September
Here's looking at us,
kids. For a change we began
the programme with a look at what WE eat. Where do we feature in the
food chain? What does 'GM food' mean to you? We made something to eat
and drink, swallowed some facts about swallows and made a paper swallow!
Why do swallows fly away for the winter but we stay here?
16th October
Fungi fever at Green
Lane Wood. The magic of mushrooms, the fascination of fruiting bodies and
the trouble with truffles. Few of us would be able to tell a Deathcap
from a Dryads Saddle, so always take great care if you plan to eat
wild fungi. A chance to explore the sort of habitat that 'Fungus the
Bogeyman' would be happy with - damp, dark and cold.
13th November
Down the river and along
the canal.
A traditional autumnal
walk along the banks of two of our best "natural" assets.
We thought about stopping to see what goes on at the sewage works
as well. What makes it all work is some clever engineering and a varied
community of small creatures. These attract large numbers of birds.
11th December
The Millenium Bug ball.
We gave away prizes
for the most awesome bug costumes. A chance to use microscopes to
look at the details of woodlice (chuckypigs or granfer-gravies), fleas
and other things we brought along. We tried our hands at designing
a creature - a missing link! We also made Christmas pudding for birds.
We finished with a slight party for everyone to celebrate the change
from 1999 to 2000.
2000
29th January
Big Garden Birdwatch. This weekend is the time to survey the
birds in your garden (or the local park). To get you in the mood we
visited the Botanical Garden in Bath and saw what we saw.
26th
February Tree-rings.
Trees
are the essence of the British countryside. Animals use them for food
and for homes, and we use them for wood, still essential for building
our homes and for decorating them. The paper our programmes are printed
on is made from wood-pulp, although it does incorporate some recycled
material. We found out the age of some trees and used some wood to
make homes for friends.
8th
April Cow
bells at Lackham. We could have made a day of it at Lackham Agricultural College
to see their rural museum, rare breeds farm and nature trail.
7th
May Don't drop a clanger!
Bird
ringing with Rob Turner in Clanger Wood was a rare opportunity to
see birds at close quarters. We now know which birds to avoid a close
encounter with - a Jay in the hand is worth a visit to the local casualty
department.
20th
May Bluebells and bugs in Murhill Nature
Reserve with John Presland. We were introduced to the bat-cave.
17th
June Moth
Morning. We
saw what a moth trap can collect, we examined some pond life with
a diving bell and had a cooked breakfast. The highlights were a Poplar
Hawk Moth, newts, sausages and beans.
8th
July Cycle ride. Bicycle bells were
needed. Social event. As usual on these occasions the British summer
weather kept us company. When we stopped for a break we shivered while
the drizzle diluted our beer (ginger, of course).
23rd
September Owl
food.
Well, what do owls eat, and what can't they digest? Owls are predators
and at the top end of a food chain. They don't dissect their meals.
We found out what was on the owls' menu! We dissected owl pellets
with the aid of microscopes.
23rd
October What's
on the menu at the Trowbridge sewage works? We had to cancel this meeting due to
insufficient interest. They really are a necessary part of modern
life, sewage works do a great job at treating water. They also provide
a feast for a range of wildlife, including birds.
18th
November
Farm visit. Most of our food is produced on farms. Here was a chance to find
out how a modern farm can be wildlife-friendly and still produce food.
9th
December
Bird cake and nest boxes. We made a meal for a Mistle Thrush and a residence for
a Robin.
2001
20th January Big Garden Birdwatch.
The annual survey to find the commonest birds
in our gardens. We walked through Barton Farm Country Park. We also
had a scavenger hunt, but we didn't find many scavengers. We did see
a fox, curled up and asleep, on the other side of the river!
17th March. Moths, ponds and bird feeders. We didn't catch a single moth. They were sensible enough not to
venture out on that wild and wet Friday night. We did see a bit of
pond life and looked at the goldfinches on the feeders. The cooked
breakfast was welcomed by all.
28th April. Our very own living willow workshop. A bit late in the season to be doing this sort of thing! We made
a variety of structures (wigwams and fedges). Some of them may even
be growing away now.
13th May. Dawn Chorus on our first visit to Southwick Country Park (Clanger Wood still
being closed due to the Foot and Mouth virus outbreak). We heard cuckoos,
whitethroats and lesser whitethroats, and little owls and watched
whitethroats courting!
23rd June. A day at the seaside down at Weymouth. Apart from the sea, sand and sun we enjoyed
the walk around the Radipole Lake RSPB reserve. We saw willow and reed warblers and heard Cetti's
warbler, heron and one of the tern family.
14th July. Murhill nature reserve (Winsley).
We were lucky to have had a visit from Tony Whitehead (renowned
youth leader with the RSPB in Exeter). He lead the group for what
was a memorable afternoon full of fun things in the wood and meadow.
15th September. Welcome back. We moulded different heads for a headless duck (honestly).
13th October. Fungus Foray at Biss Wood.
10th November. The introduction to our very own "Wildsquare". We toured our not-very-square Wildsquare which encompasses
riverbank, canal towpath, young woodland and grass.
8th December. Christmas goings-on included making bird-cake and eating
festive fare.
2002
26th January. The Big Garden Birdwatch in Trowbridge Park. Our annual opportunity to add to the growing information detailing
the numbers of birds around our gardens. round our gardens.
16th February. Whistle while we work. February can be a cold and dull month. We brightened it up with a hands-on session
making nestboxes and learning a few bird songs.
16th March. Visiting our Wildsquare to see what's there.
17th May. at 7.30pm near Stroud. Badger binge. Tony Dean agreed to
show us his famous troop which he whistled up from their set.
8th June. Butterflies on the Horse. Despite a bad back, Roger
Beckett of Butterfly Conservation lead our walk on Salisbury Plain.
6th July. Bats around the barn. Geoff
Birrell of the Witshire Bat Group enabled us to "hear" bats. We had many sightings as the bats patrolled
the canal.
5th October. Wild Harvest - fruits and nuts, and the creatures
that eat them.
16th November. Wild ducks and leaves at Shearwater. Exploring the woods and lake (part of the
Longleat estate).
7th
December. Wild house-building for owls and kestrels. We made
two large nestboxes, and stressed a couple of Guinea-pigs!
2003
18th January. Wildsquare building
and planting in our very own Wildsquare. Intrepid leaders having installed the 2 large nestboxes the week before,
the rest of the group was tasked with finding them. We also returned
some willow withies to a boggy patch in Alex Benjamin's land. (Refer
back to meeting on 28th April 2001.)
15th February. WildArt and wild
sounds. Any
medium (drawings, paintings, models, sculptutes, even poetry and
stories). Prizes for everyone.
15th March. A lark at Lackham.
A memorable walk through Lackham's woodland. (There is an animal collection
there.)
26th April. Tree sparrow treat.
Up on the downs there is a
thriving colony of these uncommon
birds. We also saw a large number or rats and a fox.
17th May. Dawn Chorus.
This early start is always
popular although this year rain had threatened to dampen things down.
The breakfast at Alison's soone revived any flagging spirits.
14th June. Moths, moles &
maples, butterflies, badgers and beech trees @ Murhill. This lovely walk
through the wood to the delightful reserve always throws up some interesting
sights. This year the Burnet moths were there in adundance and Roger
Beckett was on hand to help us name many of the moths and butterflies
we saw.
19th July. Owls in the WildSquare? Well, we didn't
see, or hear, any and our nestboxes (for Kestrels and Tawny owls)
seem to have been unoccupied in this, their first, year, but we were
captivated by the 'colony' of glow-worms we saw on the way back to
our cars.
13th
September. Wildlife Detectives
at work. We matched 'evidence'
to the scene of a crime. Roger Beckett helped us identify forensic
evidence in the moth trap. It was the squirrels wot dun it.
18th
October. Feed the Birds,
twopence a bag. Remember the song from Mary
Poppins? We made bird cake and also showed how to make a terrace nestbox
for house sparrows. We found a resting newt under a stone.
15th
November. Finding Flocks. We
tried to find flocks of birds and other creatures adjacent to our
WildSquare. We didn't see much apart from a pair of Winchats.
6th December.
Pooter Pizza Party. If you don't know what a pooter
is then you should have come along to find out. We made some to take
home, munched some pizza and discovered a bit about reed beds.
2004
24th
January. WildSquare
Tracks. A
bit more detective work in our WildSquare. We found some tracks (mainly
dogs) and took a plaster cast of one.
This was the BGB
weekend.
28th
February. Signs of Spring at Southwick Park.
Banks of Primroses and frogspawn are real harbingers
of Spring. We saw both, and a lot more.
27th March. Dawn chorus. Yes,
we know it was early, but it's a tradition worth repeating at Green
Lane Wood.
23rd April. Badger binge. Tony
Dean (near Stroud) agreed to show us his famous troop, which he can
whistle up from their set.
22nd May. Family Fun Day at
Biss Meadow with Cath Mowat, West Wilts Community Wildlife Project.
12th June. Lots to look for at Langford
Lakes. Our first trip to this newish
reserve.
3rd July. Flights of Fancy at Westbury
White Horse. No flying pigs but a good
spot for skylarks, butterflies and hang-gliders.
13th November.
Have a hoot at North Bradley. We
dissected some
owl pellets to find out what a wise owl eats.
11th December. Recycling
in the garden. We saw what lurked inside
a compost bin, what we could unearth from under autumn leaves and
what denizens of the deep we captured from a pond.
2005
22nd January. Ducking
and diving at Slimbridge. This was the
first time our group visited the world-famous site for water birds.
Despite the drizzle we saw a wealth of geese and ducks and many Flamingos
(not the sort of bird you routinely see in Britain.
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