Stratford Park Biodiversity Newsletter. August (Peacock butterfly Photo: Mike McCrea)

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1 Stratford Park Biodiversity Newsletter August 2015 (Peacock butterfly Photo: Mike McCrea) Hi All, At last, time to draw a breath as the big three are past Green Flag, Stroud in Bloom and Stroud Show. As we end July, we could all be forgiven for sliding down a few gears, but as the dust settles after those events, the thought of autumn looms ever closer, and with it another annual round of park work. With Laura (our seasonal) halfway through her work placement here, I am already contemplating the thought of her leaving in October. During the past few months she has been a huge asset to the park and helped considerably in raising the standard of horticulture. Although August is a rather quiet month for wildlife in the park, there is always something of interest to be seen. Butterflies and moths are at their peak this month, and an evening stroll will reveal lots of bats, especially over the lake, as they dip and dive to catch insects. With a backlog of variation work to catch up on, the coming few months look like being busy for my self and the park staff. Enjoy the park this month. Mike

2 The return again of the Giant Hogweed No, not the song from the brilliant 1971 album by Genesis, but the invasion of that most pernicious of plants - Giant Hogweed. The park has been subjected to an army of these towering plants this year, and they are not just spreading in the park, but also growing throughout the adjacent Painswick valley, where they have become established all along the water courses. The trouble with hogweed, especially in a woodland environment, is that it has a covert way of growing, and is often overlooked until the large flower heads become visible. It is also resilient to many chemicals and regenerates very quickly. Steve, our sprayer has been dealing with a large number of hogweeds this summer, and has been painstakingly (and safely) cutting down and bagging up plants for disposal by specialist contractors. The picture below was taken by our apprentice Shaun, and clearly shows the size of the plants being removed.

3 Owl Legacy Nature can often be very cruel, and in the park s case, losing a whole family of owls during a night of freak storms was the cruellest blow. Between 2009 and 2013 a pair of little owls had established themselves in the park and were thriving due to the improvements of natural habitats around the main fields. This pair produced two successful broods of young owls in 2011 and I was able to capture on camera, the adult bird in one of our purpose made nest boxes, an enduring image that I have used on many talks. Ian Peters, a local wildlife photographer also caught the birds on camera with stunning effect, hunting and feeding. The owls became a big draw, especially on the moth events which we ran in the park, where a pretwilight owl watch added an extra bonus to the evening s activities. Our little owls became celebrities in the park, providing many visitors with ghostly images silhouetted against the crepuscular rays of the descending sun. During the night our birds alternated between the Owl Box in one of the oaks and the adjacent walnut tree which provided good holes for roosting. Fatefully, on the night of 3 rd March 2013 all of the birds were roosting in the walnut tree which was struck down by hurricane force winds. The next day, I was saddened to find their corpses crushed under the fallen debris. Three years on and there are no little owls in Stratford Park; they are sorely missed. The habitat now for little owls in the park is perfect, and who knows, perhaps a pair will visit from further along the valley (where they also breed), and once again provide us with their twilight magic. With Art in the Landscape being a key scoring element of the annual Britain in Bloom judging, the park is relatively under endowed with sculptures and art forms. Three years ago, Natasha Houseago (local wood sculptor) was invited to produce a sculpture from one of our monkey puzzle trees, which now sits by the orangery. Natasha was invited back to the park in June to provide another tree sculpture for our biodiversity day, and it seemed only fitting to have the owls as a subject. A large, seasoned piece of beech wood was provided on the day from past woodland works, and at the biodiversity day, Natasha set up her equipment centre stage, and began chopping away the first stages of the owl. She returned three weeks later after working further on the piece at home, and delivered the finished sculpture to the park on 21 st July. To see something as organic as a chunk of beech wood from the park reincarnated as an owl is quite special and all of the park staff were pleased with the end result. At the time of writing a location to site the owl is still being discussed, but the arboretum looks like being the best place. Below is a selection of images remembering our owls taken by myself and photographer Ian Peters, and the new owl which will be a fitting legacy to the birds lost. I can just see now, the owl perched in a tree against the backdrop of a grey winter sky, staring down on the park.

4 (Photo: Mike McCrea) (Photo: Ian Peters) (Photo: Ian Peters)

5 The new Owl Sculpture by Natasha Houseago. Note the addition of a baby owl which was added due to the knots and grain in the wood.

6 National Moth Night 10 th 12 th September 2015 Next month sees the annual celebration of National Moth Night and we will be holding our next moth event in the park to coincide with this. National Moth Night is organized by Atropos the journal for butterfly, moth and dragonfly enthusiasts and Butterfly Conservation (The UK charity taking action to save butterflies, moths and their habitats ). This year s theme is migration. Autumn is a key time of year for moths. Resident species are emerging, often beautifully coloured yellows, oranges and pinks to blend in with autumn leaves. What s more, autumn offers the best chance to encounter rare moths from overseas. Moth Night 2015 takes place on three nights Thursday 10 Saturday 12 September. We will be holding our own moth night at the orangery on Friday 11 th September. For further information visit Walled Garden provides refuge for declining moth When Kevin Ward (Museum in the Park Development Manager) ed me to identify a caterpillar he had found in the walled garden, his attached photo was immediately recognized as the distinctive caterpillar of the cinnabar moth Tyria jacobaeae. My excitement was obviously reflected in the reply because although this is not a rare moth, its decline in recent years has been so dramatic, that it has now been placed on the UK biodiversity Action Plan which recognises a sharp decline in numbers. During August the larvae of the cinnabar moth are to be seen feeding on ragwort plants Senecio jacobaea throughout the country. The adult moths are very distinctive with charcoal and red wings, and can be attracted to outdoor lights at night. The black and yellow stripes of the larvae make a surprisingly good camouflage against the yellow of the ragwort flowers, however where once plants seemed infested with them, numbers of T. jacobaeae have decreased steadily in the past 30 years to the point where now only one or two individuals may be spotted on a plant, if at all. T. Jacobaeae is an important grazer of ragwort, often entirely defoliating individual plants and reducing seed production. In this regard, they can be seen as a positive species in reducing the control of ragwort, which itself remains a controversial plant. This is important, as ragwort is classed as a noxious weed in the UK. This is due to the production of toxic alkaloids by the plant which can, consumed in large quantities, cause harm to livestock. This toxicity does not affect T. Jacobaeae but uses it to its advantage, as it stores alkaloids from the plants making it distasteful to most predators. The perception that this plant is dangerous and kills everything is completely false and unsubstantiated. It is, in fact, an important plant for invertebrates and pollinators. That T. Jacobaeae has this almost

7 symbiotic relationship with the plant should be considered beneficial to the environment, especially in ruderal areas where plants pose no problem to cattle. Of course, there is no concern regarding the plant here in Stratford Park as there is no livestock grazing, therefore the moth should be encouraged to thrive. The discovery of this colony, which is substantial, comes at a time when further development is scheduled in the walled garden, which will involve clearance of the colonised area. In view of this, we have collected and relocated a large number of the caterpillars and reintroduced them to ragwort growing on the wildflower bank. It is hoped that these will establish themselves there and continue to thrive in future. Cinnabar moth Larva on food plant (Photo: Mike McCrea) Close up of the larva (Photo: Mike McCrea) (Ruderal habitat in the walled garden showing ragwort growing with willow herb Photo: Mike McCrea

8 Moth Event at the Orangery Friday 7 th August 2015 Tonight s moth evening was a very enjoyable event, with a friendly and interested group of attendees. On this occasion, we were joined by Kevin Ward (Museum in the Park Development Manager) and his wife and children, which proved to be a lucky omen, as all the interesting moths were landing on him! The weather during the day had been quite warm and overcast and this continued into the evening, although by 10.00pm the cloud had cleared and temperatures dropped a bit. With some new faces noticeable in the group, introductions were followed by a brief visit into the walled garden to show everyone the cinnabar moth colony. The caterpillars were feeding in their hundreds on the ragwort and I gave a short account of the life cycle of the moth and its association with ragwort. As night fell, we set off along the woodland edge to establish our sugar round, with Kevin s children first to apply the treacle strips. We sugared the usual trees around the pond and up to the orangery before turning on the moth lamp. Whilst waiting for the night to fall, we explored the orangery flower beds where many moths were flying and feeding on the various plants there. Kevin spotted an adult cinnabar moth here which we photographed. Everyone gathered by the light as the first few moths arrived, which, as expected, were arriving in small numbers. I explained to everyone that as moths are active throughout the night, most would be coming to the lamp after midnight, but some species would be attracted early in the evening. Our first inspection of the sugar produced just one copper underwing, but subsequent inspections produced more of the species. Whilst waiting for moths to arrive to our sheet, I took the opportunity to tell the group some stories and anecdotes about past mothing trips and experiences in the field which had everyone laughing. During this, a lady in the group received a mobile phone call and moved away to take it. On returning to the group, the lady in question said it was only my daughter asking if I was enjoying my Goth night! Apparently I had accidentally put in G instead of M in my message! This met with great laughter by all. By 10.00pm the orangery flower bed was alive with moths, nectaring on the buddleias, golden rod and catmint. The small mint moth Pyrausta aurata was flying in good numbers along with silvery moths. By 10.30pm the temperature had dropped considerably, and with a slow trickle of moths to the lamp, everyone started to depart but not before thanking Kevin and I for an enjoyable evening. As always with the moth nights, as soon as people start filtering away, the moths start to arrive, and this was certainly the case tonight. As Kevin and I started to pack up, the choice moths began to arrive on the sheet, but sadly, it was time to leave the park. As usual, the feedback from people was very complimentary with the new faces remarking we never knew the park did these events. As mentioned, this was a really enjoyable evening and clear to see that kids absolutely love the sugaring part. It gives them an opportunity to engage with nature and experience the night time atmosphere. Our next moth event will be on Friday 11 th September as part of National Moth Night; for further information visit and Ruby tiger, one of the moths seen at the event

9 (Swallow prominent Pheosa tremula photo: Kevin Ward) 12 th consecutive Green Flag for Stratford Park Stratford Park has retained its Green Flag status for a consecutive 12 th year which is a testament to the hard work and effort by The Landscape Group staff. Although Green Flag accreditation encompasses a wide criteria, it is the judges comments and scoring for areas relating to biodiversity, conservation and sustainability which are more applicable to this newsletter. It was therefore gratifying to read the following comments in the Desk Assessment Feedback as follows:- Conservation of heritage & nature The varied habitats are under good management and add to the attractiveness of this site. Dedicated plan in existence for biodiversity, flora and fauna with added specialist material on birds. Also newsletter, evidence of staff interest and monitoring activity. Site designations explained.

10 Healthy, Safe & Secure Woodland area management should be commended for the condition of paths and routes which made the place attractive to enter. Sustainability The site managers seem to be masters of reusing and recycling materials (e.g. a fallen tree had been formalised as a safe bridge) and manage to achieve a great deal with that. Minimal use of chemicals; no peat use in bedding. On site composting and recycling well organised and (where in park) explained to visitors a nice touch! Conservation & Heritage Woodland management well understood and leading to an attractive carpet through good canopy management promoting light and shade. Relaxed cutting of park edges and banks has created some nice habitats, leading to a good mosaic effect across the site. Additional Comments There were exemplary elements around habitat and sustainability management, including on how managers applied the philosophy of creating mosaic of habitats interwoven throughout site that complimented each other in how they supported species. These comments amply reflect the scope of conservation and biodiversity management work that we have carried out in the park to date, and also highlights works completed during 2015 (increasing and enhancing green corridors, restoration of woodland paths by the model railway and improving areas for pollinators). The park also entered for a special Pollinators Award which the judges summed up as follows:- Stratford Park has managed to develop a wide diversity of pollinators and pollinator friendly plant communities not just in the orangery but other locations around the park and in a way that complement each other by offering both food sources and homes to pollinators. This helps spread the philosophy of this important area of environmental management to all visitors to the site and in a way that can serve as examples to those that wish to develop their own back home. Stratford Park has a wide variety of users many of whom are represented through the Parks Management Committee. An illustration on how these groups have an interest the overall scheme is reflected by the way the Walled Garden Project has embraced the principals of improving habitat for pollinators in the overall design and proposed implementation of the refurbished garden located to the rear of the museum itself. The development of a new orchard along the boundary is in itself a very positive step towards the overall aims of the wider project. The judges were pleased to see how the parks service team had taken every opportunity to develop and establish these areas around the whole of the park in different park environments ie wetland, woodland meadows and bank sides. The philosophy was explored within the Stratford Park Biodiversity Action Plan where its vision was to

11 broaden the habitats for butterflies, bees, beetles and other insects through the management of meadow etc. Opportunities were being explored and taken to explain the habitats and species on site and the management for them, which are currently strongest through newsletters produced by the park supervisor, or face to face contact with staff and through events. We are quite excited about the potential future developments with the Stroud Beekeepers and Buzzclub whose involvement would continue to bring additional value to the overall project. The park is ideally situated to give the local community access to the natural world and to encourage everyone to learn more about the environment. With the combined formalising of planting for pollinators in the orangery and less formal but equally effective management elsewhere around the site we feel that as an educational resource for those wishing to understand the needs of wildlife and how reasonably easy it would be for them to try to and replicate the type of plants in their own gardens must surely be a win: win for all. I feel that in reading these comments, it is clear to see that Stratford Park is ticking all the right boxes within the context of the categories highlighted. This holistic approach which cascades down from Stroud District Council, The Landscape Group and Museum in the Park to all of the other organisations and individuals associated with the park exemplifies a rare, galvanising unity for a public green space. This year s Green Flag summary should certainly be a catalyst to continue the development of the park, and perhaps, the restoration of the lake, which remains the most singular and urgent requirement to the overall action plan. Mike Wildlife to see now in Stratford Park BIRDS: August is a quiet month for birds in the park, but both woodpeckers (Great-spotted and Green) are active. We have two juvenile green woodpeckers that can be seen most mornings feeding around the play area and on the wildflower bank. Birds of Prey have been very quiet this month, but common buzzard is seen most days over the woodland. The tufted ducks have moved on from the lake, but the resident herons can be seen and kingfisher often hunts from the alders. Both grey and pied wagtails are by the lake this month and a dipper was seen on the stream on 6 th August. BUTTERFLIES: With a large regeneration of knapweed on the wildflower bank, many butterflies have been feeding there including meadow brown, ringlet. Gatekeeper, small tortoiseshell, red admiral, large white, common blue and a single small copper on 9 th August

12 (the first one in the park since 2012). Laura managed to photograph a holly blue and the orangery has been producing large numbers of moths at night feeding on the buddleias and golden rod. OTHER ANIMALS: Hellen O Connor (Museum in the Park) reported that a member of the public had photographed a grass snake by the lake. CONTACT: Mike McCrea Tel: mmccrea@thelandscapegroup.co.uk mike@media-maker.com USEFUL LINKS: EVENTS: Moth event at the orangery Friday 11 th September (As part of National Moth Night) Visit for further details. Also see (An early morning on the way to work Photo: Mike McCrea)