Wild Life: ACT Wildlife Wardens

Bovey News: There is currently great concern about the dearth of insects in general and bees and butterflies in particular, perhaps you have noticed this too?  Insects have been in serious decline for decades, likely due to intensive agricultural pesticide use, not helped by the cold and wet spring this year.  For more information take a look at eminent biologist Dave Goulson’s YouTube video: Where have all the insects gone: tinyurl.com/DG-WhereHTG or his book Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypse. Fortunately, millions of flying ants still had their big day in Devon on 18th July and it was a real treat to see and hear lots of swifts in the evening sky over Bovey Tracey that day.

Remember that you can do your bit for pollinators by growing flowering plants in your garden for as much of the year as possible - check out rhs.org.uk/perfectforpollinators  for guidance.  Letting some of your garden go wild is a great help for insects, avoid the temptation to be too tidy.  The All Ireland pollinator plan has interesting information:  pollinators.ie/top-ten-ways-to-help-pollinators

At the time of writing 2024 seems to have been a good year for many of our wild orchids.  In May/June the Southern Marsh Orchids in Parke’s wet meadows were spectacular.  Meanwhile on Dartmoor the mires and wet areas have seen thousands of Heath-spotted Orchids.  The last wild orchids of the season are the delicate Autumn Lady’s-tresses, which are present in the churchyard of St. John’s in Bovey Tracey, they’ve also been seen near the Trago Co-op store and can be found at Dawlish Warren and Berry Head.  They have been known to pop up in gardens, another reason to let the grass grow in your lawn.  One of the most spectacular wild orchids is the Bee Orchid, whose flowers mimic the appearance of a bee to attract pollinators.  Full marks to Trago Mills for leaving some of their banks unmowed in spring and early summer to allow these amazing plants to thrive. They were also seen on a Heathfield verge that escaped the mower in late spring.

Bovey Tracey WWs:  Janet, Jo, David and Andrew boveywildlife@gmail.com

Ilsington News: Trees are the lungs of our planet, sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and converting it to oxygen. It is easy to forget their importance when focused on the minutia of daily life.  We become acclimatised to their presence until one falls or is felled. Their functions are numerous including air filtration, wildlife habitats and food, flood prevention, carbon storage and prevention of soil erosion.

We are lucky to have a variety of woodland types on our doorstep, of which a few examples are mentioned below.    

Our first walk was to Narracombe Woods, a wet woodland alongside the Liverton Brook where trees that thrive in poorly drained soils and support a rich assemblage of ferns and lichens. Lower East Lounston reserve, another wet woodland gem, adjoins a Liverton Brook tributary where blue bells and early purple orchids adorn the steep banks in the spring and dormice make their home.

Non-native conifer plantations, created for timber production after the First World War, saw the disappearance of swathes of lowland heath at Great Plantation in the south of the parish.  UK woodlands covered 5% of land area a century ago, although now 13%, cover is significantly less than in Europe. The flora along the woodland rides in Great Plantation reflect the underlying heathland soil providing breeding areas for pearl-bordered fritillary and skipper butterflies and nightjars. Rora and Penn Woods are predominately conifer but old field boundaries have beautiful mature broadleaf trees.

 Old Leys Wood in Old Liverton, visited last month, is a local example of conversion of conifer plantation to broadleaved woodland increasing the biodiversity value. This is a long-term process, also being undertaken in areas of the Bovey Valley Woodlands.

Bordering the parish are ancient woodlands, present since at least 1600, including the Atlantic oak woodlands of Yarner Wood NNR, sometimes known as temperate rainforest, with a birch, rowan and holly understorey. It is important for its abundance of lichens, plus pied-flycatcher bird population. The mosaic of Bovey Valley Woodlands includes ancient woodland and secondary woodland that has grown up where subsistence farming ceased.

We will visit woodlands, as well as other habitats, as part of our Special Places in Ilsington walks lead by Dawn.

Ilsington Parish WWs: Dawn, Linda livertontiggys22@gmail.com   Sheree sheree2511@hotmail.co.uk    

Action on Climate in Teignbridge (ACT) is a Teignbridge wide initiative The aim of the volunteer Wildlife Warden scheme is to help wildlife thrive across the district. https://ww.actionclimateteignbridge.org/