An Invertebrate Day has been added to the 2014 YounGnats programme, come along and see what insects you can find on Flitwick Moor.

Try your hand at one of our quizzes.

Every year, the BNHS recorders provide summaries of the records that have been submitted during the year. Here is their summary for 2013 –

• 2013 was the 20^th driest year since 1766
• 69 species of weevils were recorded with 3 new species for Beds
• Common Frog was recorded on 32 sites
  • Toad Lift in Heath & Reach helped 85 toads and 85 frogs across the road, other lifts didn’t lift any toads, just frogs!
• More than 29,000 records submitted for macro moths
  • 38 regular garden moth traps
• Bat numbers down in Dec 2013 vs 2012 but back up in early 2014
  • 87% bat boxes in King’s Wood used by bats
• A new mammal was recorded for Beds, a Porcupine recorded near Shuttleworth
  • No Prairie Dog records since spring 2013, are they still around?
  • Road-kill wallaby ‘discovered’  via blog
  • Several hundred records set to People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) but only 85 sent to BNHS
  • Records for small mammals mainly from cat kills
• More than 350 lichen species with 13 new species for Beds
  • Number of species has increased from 132 to 350 in 30 years
  • Is this due to cleaner air or climate change bringing back lichens that used to be here?
• 126 species of hoverfly, no new species
• Increase in orchid records due to orchid book being produced?
  • Common Spotted, Bee and Early Purple increased coverage, Twayblades didn’t do so well
  • Bird’s Nest Orchid wasn’t found in 2013, free copy of book for first sighting!
  • Lizard Orchid found in allotment, now being fostered
• 2 new species of Dragonflies wandered in from Cambs – Norfolk Hawker and Variable Damselfly
  • 1600 records from 74 people
  • 21 species found in usual numbers and locations
  • New UK Dragonfly and Damselfly Atlas being released May 2014
• 22 records for woodlice, 6 species including a tiny white one that lives in ants nests

The wildlife you see changes throughout the year, so we have developed monthly lists of some things to look out for each month, so keep your eyes open and don’t forget to tell us what you see.

We have arranged some events especially for families and young people so why not come along and explore the wildlife of Beds. Visitors are always welcome so why not bring your friends along?

• Jordans Family Day: 18th May
• Wildlife Walk @ Marston Moretaine: 8th June
• Invertebrate Day @ Flitwick Moor: 28th June
• Butterfly Walk @ Dunstable Downs: 3rd August
• Small Mammal Trapping @ Duck End: 6th September

Pat and Charles Baker are nature lovers who look after Studham Common. Here’s what they have to say about sending in records to the BNHS.

Winter is now with us.  Many of the trees are bare and the frost and wind will soon encourage the remainder of the leaves to fall.  Birds and mammals are the most obvious wildlife active on the Common but there are still smaller creatures about.

This is the time of year when people interested in local natural history push aside the Christmas decorations and sit down at their computers to enter the records of what they have seen during the year.  As members of the Bedfordshire Natural History Society (BNHS) we send our records from the Common and elsewhere to people appointed by the Society as Recorders.  They have specialist knowledge of various groups of animals and plants.  Sadly there are some groups, particularly among insects and other invertebrates, for which there is no local expert.

The Recorders check and collate the records they receive and, if they are happy that the records are correct, send them on to the local biodiversity recording centre in Bedford.  The centre now holds more than 1 million Bedfordshire records.  Records are also passed on to various national databases where they contribute to mapping national changes in species’ distributions helping to understand the reasons for increases or declines of different species.  The BNHS Recorders produce annual reports and at intervals the Society publishes books such as the acclaimed ‘Flora of Bedfordshire’ in 2011.

Extract taken from Friends of Studham Common Newsletter Dec 2013/Jan 2014.

Wilf Powell has has come up with an idea to keep us amused over winter – a Winter Challenge.

Lots of ducks fly to Britain from colder parts of Europe to spend the winter on our lakes and ponds, joining our resident ducks. Wilf has given us some photographs of various duck species, with brief descriptions, and suggests you visit some lakes over the winter and see how many different ducks you can find.

You can find the details here, and …

… here is an identification chart featuring these photographs for you to download and print to take out with you.

We have published instructions on how to build and use a Pitfall Trap to help you find Mini-Beasts in your own gardens. The materials won’t cost anything and it’s easy and fun. There’s a printable version of the instructions, too.

Why not use this Pitfall Trap idea as a part of your Garden Bug Hunt?

To help you get started looking for wildlife right in your own garden, we’re promoting a Garden Bug Hunt. There’s a simple chart to help you with pictures of bugs you’re likely to see lurking about the plants in your garden.

Why not give it a try?

We’re trying a couple of new features.

1. There’s now an interactive map of our Places to Visit. It’s a bit more fun than just a list and you can see if there’s somewhere to visit nearby. It’s under the “Explore” menu item.

   Click on a place marker and a small panel will open up telling you a little about the place. There’ll usually be a link in the panel back to our page about that place, too, where there may be more information.
   

2. We’ve tagged places to note some of the subjects they’re good at. The subjects are listed under “Looking for Something?” in the sidebar. Click on one of the words/tags and you’ll see a list of places that may be able to help. 

Give them both a try.