Rare plants of the woodland.

During this century, large areas of Britain's natural woodlands have been cleared for cultivation, and as a result many of the plants which grew in them have become extinct or rare. But the danger to woodland plants does not come only from man. Although such plants are shade tolerant, they are affected by the type of wood in which they grow. Pine woods, for instance, have thick layers of needles which do not rot and which contain chemicals that are poisonous to other plants. Beech woods are often found on poor soils and, because the leaves do not rot easily, the leaf mould which helps plants to grow is thin. Oak woods, on the other hand, tend to occur on rich soils and make generous amounts of leaf mould.

Rare woodland plants part one.

Hetb Paris.

This distinctive plant has a single whorl of leaves and. Single large green flower. It grows in damp woods from Somerset and Kent to Caithness, but mainly in eastern Britain . It is very patchily distributed and flowers  between May and August.

Linnaea.

A creeping evergreen with pink flowers in pairs, found in eastern Scotland and lowers between June and August.

Cyclamen.

Though familiar as a garden plant, cyclamen is rare in the wild. Some Kentish woodlands are probably the only places where it is still a native plant. Occasionally it escapes from gardens elsewhere, but does not establish itself. It flowers between August and September .

Oak trees.

Oak trees start their leaves as a lime green colour, we call this coming into leaf. They are only open a few days before they rapidly change to a much darker green. The oak tree pumps things through the leaves that are relatively indigestible, meaning that the small larvae that were nibbling them haven't had the opportunity yet. So by doing this the oak leaves have a greater chance of surviving to then go on and photosynthesise, allowing the tree to take the energy from the carbon dioxide, sunlight and water.

Large birds of prey in flight.

If any group of birds warrants the description `majestic` it is the larger birds of prey: the eagles, buzzards, sea eagles, kites, larger hawks, harriers and vultures. Though varying considerably in their size, shape and hunting techniques, all are masters of the air, and a sight of any of them adds excitement to a birdwatchers day. Birds of prey feed mostly on animals, and they have powerful feet and talons with which to seize their prey and carry it off to their nests or other feeding places. There they use their powerful, hooked bills to tear flesh apart. The forward looking eyes of a bird of prey give it binocular vision like man`s, enabling it to judge distance accurately and pinpoint its prey exactly. Its vision is in many ways greatly superior to that of man, enabling it to spot distant fine detail or movement. Long, broad, rounded wings are characteristic of the larger birds of prey.The flight feathers at the tips of the wings are `slotted`, or spread like fingers. This feature permits low-spread soaring without danger of stalling, the feathers are tapered to produce the slotted effect.

First sightings.

As we move through spring we start to notice the rampant growth that is within nature. It is happening as we speak, this amazing spectacle explodes into life during the month of May. I would like you to tell me about any migrant birds that you have seen or heard, first warbler, first swallow or cuckoo. Tell me about the first spring flowers and blossom that you have seen. It could be that you have been watching bats emerging at night or your silver birch is coming alive. Also I would like to know about the world of the mini-beast, I have lots of queen bees flying around and numerous butterflies and beetles. Just try to get out into the wonder that is nature and tell me what you see.

The cricetidae family.

The skomer vole is only found on skomer island which is in Dyfed in Wales. The skomer vole is twice as heavy as its mainland cousins, with is about four and a half inches long in head and body. It is one of the four larger sub-species, the others being the Jersey , Mull and Rassay voles. It is a very similar colour to the bank vole.

The cricetidae family.

The Orkney vole.

Found only on the Orkney islands in Scotland and channel islands of Guernsey, the deep brown Orkney vole is very like the field vole in habits and looks, but is heavier. It weighs about half an ounce more than the field vole with about a four and a half inch head and body with a two inch tail.

The cricetidae family.

The field vole.

Overgrown fields and places with long , rough grass are typical homes for the field vole, which also likes damp, tussocky grass. The field vole is aggressive and noisy, uttering  loud squeaks and angry chattering noises as they defend their small territories, driving out other voles. Each vole will make runways among the grass stems, usually on the tussock grass where it nests. The field vole feeds frequently, by day or night. Field voles are taken by a host of predators, but are prolific breeders. Populations in a favourable habitat often increase rapidly to number in their thousands- a vole plague. The plague is followed by a rapid decline, probably due to less successful breeding because of overcrowding and heightened aggression. These high and low populations occur at intervals of from three to five years, often accompanied by similar fluctuations in predator populations. Field voles are very abundant for a few years in young forestry plantations, but as the trees grow the cast a dense shade causing the grass to die, forcing the voles to go elsewhere. Some will survive on the grassy fringes, from where they can quickly recolonise grassy areas that develop once trees are felled. The normal life span of a field vole is about a year. Field voles are the main food for barn owls, forming around 90 per cent of their diet. Other animals that take the voles include kestrels, foxes, stoats, weasels and snakes. Its yellowy-brown colouring helps to distinguish the field vole from the red-brown bank vole, with a blunt nose and short ears, but it has a shorter, pinker tail and is also known as the short-tailed vole. The field vole has about a four inch head and body with a tail that is about one and a half inches in length. Adult field voles are very belligerent. They compete for territory and are quick to fight in its defence. The field vole is widespread in grassland and hedgerows in both lowlands and uplands, but none are found in Ireland. The main food of the field vole is grass stems, especially the lower stems  which are very succulent, they will also eat bulbs, roots and tree bark at low level. Four or five litters of from four to six young are reared between March and December. By ten days old they are furred and by sixteen days old they are full weaned. At six weeks old, young field voles are ready to mate. Field voles often nest under logs and other objects lying in the dry grass.