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Welcome to our collection of articles which highlight some of the work we do at Radnorshire Wildlife Trust.
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Well-travelled Iolo gives Entertaining Talk
November 2009
A wonderful evening was had by all at the annual Barnes Memorial lecture held by the Radnorshire Wildlife Trust. TV Wildlife Presenter, Iolo Williams gave an animated talk on the "Bird Wonders of Wales." The room at the Metropole Hotel was packed to capacity with over 170 people in attendance. The evening was a fabulous fundraiser for the local wildlife charity, raising almost £1,000 in ticket sales alone.
Before Iolo gave his talk, he enjoyed an exhibition of winning drawings for the Creative Calendar competition. People and Wildlife Officer, Suzie Fraser, organised the competition for the 20 Radnorshire Primary School's using the photographic images of the RWT 2010 Calendar as inspiration. In the photo on the right, Clare Buckingham shows Iolo Williams the inspiration for her winning painting. Clare won the July entry for the Schools Creative Calendar Competition (photo by Suzie Fraser).
Iolo was then formally welcomed to give the Barnes Lecture talk by Radnorshire Wildlife Trust Manager, Julian Jones. Iolo thanked Julian and launched into his hugely entertaining and informative talk of the birds and wildlife of Wales. He spoke passionately about how his interest in wildlife was nurtured by his father growing up in Wales. They would often go on family days out and discover some fascinating bird or insect they'd not seen before. Iolo took questions from the floor at the end of his talk and one person asked where was the best place he'd travelled to? Iolo's answer was both surprising but refreshingly honest. "Travelling the world really makes me appreciate what a beautiful place we've got here in Mid Wales. I really mean that," enthused Iolo. Linda Davies gave a heartfelt formal vote of thanks to Iolo on behalf of the Radnorshire Wildlife Trust.
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Iolo draws the raffle tickets
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Iolo with RWT Manager, Julian Jones
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Photo's by Darylle Hardy
As Patron of Radnorshire Wildlife Trust, Iolo drew the annual raffle. The raffle is a very important part of raising funds for the management of the nineteen reserves the Wildlife Trust manages. For example, did you know it costs £500 a week to maintain Gilfach Farm Nature Reserve? The raffle prizes were all cash prizes and winning the first prize of £100 was Mr & Mrs Hammond, Aberedw; second prize of £50 went to Mr P. Moore, Rhayader; third prize of £25 was won by Mr & Mrs Shaw, Knighton and finally, fourth prize of £10 went to Mrs V. Elphick, Presteigne.
Radnorshire Wildlife Trust would like to to thank everyone for all their hard work in making the evening such a success and raising over two thousand ponds for the charity. |
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Ancient Tree Walk at Doldowlod
September 2009
A hugely successful event was held at Doldowlod on Saturday 5th September when sixty people came to see the ancient trees on Julian & MT Gibson-Watt's estate. Brecknock and Radnorshire Wildlife Trusts teamed up to help organise the event. Julian Gibson Watt lead the walk with Ray Woods giving a lively talk as we gathered around each tree.
The ancient trees at Doldowlod have European significance as they play host to some very rare lichens. Because they have been largely forgotten and untouched, they have been allowed to grow old and nurture many species that cannot survive elsewhere. Ray was able to point out the myriad of fungi living on the trees with his expert knowledge. "These trees have lots of nooks and crannies, holes and rotting wood which provide perfect homes for thousands of species of plant, animal and fungi," Ray enthused. His delight was obvious as he conveyed the trees significance within the whole ecosystem. He thrilled the audience when he pointed out the "air trees" growing from within the ancient trees. These were trees where seeds had either been blown by the wind or carried by birds and dropped into one of the ancient tree's crevices and sprouted new life.
What are ancient trees you might ask? They're the ones you see that have fat trunks and are usually quite gnarled. They stand out from the rest as they really catch your eye. They have a certain grandness about them. They won't necessarily be that tall as with people they tend to shrink with age. They are living relics of a bygone age and have cultural and historical importance as well as wildlife significance.
Ancient trees aren't as well protected by the law as you may think. The main threat they face are felling, changes in land use and competition from surrounding trees. If you are aware of an ancient tree under threat then you can register the tree on the Woodland Trust's website in the ‘woods under threat' section or get in touch with your local Wildlife Trust who will be happy to help.
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Signs of Water Vole spotted at Gilfach
August 2009
Radnorshire Wildlife Trust Project Officer Darylle Hardy, has just found signs of the now-rare water vole at Gilfach Nature Reserve, near Rhayader. "I looked along the River Marteg and its tributaries last year but found no signs. People remember seeing them near Pant-y-dwr in years gone by, but there is no record for Gilfach. The animal itself is shy, so I have the unglamorous task of looking for poo!" she laughed.
Water voles used to be common but have disappeared from 90% of the places they used to live. "This spread shows that the effort put in by landowners to protect river banks from overgrazing and enhance wetland habitats is having a beneficial effect on both water quality and wildlife of the riverbanks. It is also fantastic that landowners and fishermen are taking measures to control American mink, which have a devastating impact on water vole colonies and nesting birds".
Although the River Marteg is picturesque as it tumbles through Gilfach and over the dramatic waterfall, it doesn't provide the best habitat for water voles which are better adapted for slow-moving currents. However, work has been going on at the reserve to enhance areas that will act as habitat 'stepping stones' to encourage them upstream into the slower waters of the middle Marteg and Tawelan.
Darylle would like to thank the many landowners in the Marteg Valley and across Radnorshire for letting her search along ditches and streams for signs of water voles. Also to Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, Environment Agency Wales and CCW for funding.
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