FIELD NOTES
NOVEMBER 2002 continued....
ARTICLES
Now Is The Time To Look For Fungi
At this time of year fungi become noticeable in our local woodlands, and I am often asked "how did you become interested in fungi, and how do you remember all those latin names?"
Admittedly it wasn't easy, but you can learn a lot of the very common species. It helps to go on a foray with an experienced mycologist, or you can use one of the many good books now available. I have a preference for "Mushrooms and Other Fungi of Great Britain and Europe" by Roger Phillips. He uses photographs with several specimens laid out showing gills, stipe and colour varieties.
A good wood to start your foraying is Sherrards Park Wood at Welwyn. It has many mature trees, particularly oaks, which are great for fungi. When you are collecting, use a basket or plastic boxes, not plastic bags, which cause mushrooms to sweat and go off rapidly. Use a knife to dig out the whole fungus, as the base is important in identification.
Some Amanita's have a bag called a volva at the base. A common species called Tawny Grissette Amanita fulva is a good example, also the Death Cap Amanita phalloides, which isn't uncommon.
Identification can also be helped by knowing which tree your fungus grew under, as some species grow in association with certain trees. Therefore, putting a leaf with your specimens helps remind you when you get home.
Smell can be important, and by shutting your specimens in a box for around half an hour and lifting the lid, you will be able to define the smell more strongly.
A very common species with an oily smell is Lactarius quietus. All Lactarius leak milk, which can be seen by running you fingernail along the gills. Lactarius quietus has white milk and a mild taste. In some, the milk changes colour on drying, and the taste ranges from mild to hot to very hot. If you do taste the milk, put a small spot on the end of your finger and put it on the end of your tongue. Be warned, some are burningly hot.
Another very common species here is Spindleshank Collybia fusipes. Even if the weather has been reasonably dry, this species can be found clustered around the roots of trees, particularly oaks. As its common name suggests, it has a twisted looking stipe that ends in a point. Rotting wood is another good place to look for fungi, with fallen logs being especially good for Pluteus species, the commonest being Pluteus cervinus with its brown cap and white stripe.
You can make a spore print by cutting off the stalk and placing the cap, with gills face down, on to a piece of paper and putting a glass over the top. Leave overnight and next morning you should have a good spore print showing the colour of the spores. In the case of Pluteus species, these will be pink. The gills only turn pink with age and when young specimens are found, you could think they were going to have white spores.
Dead wood is also a host to a variety of fungi. These may belong to other groups such as cup fungi, known as Ascomycetes. The spores in this group are held within an ascus. These are finger-like structures, which hold the spores inside and release them through the top. There are two very familiar species in this group. King Alfred's Cakes Daldinia concentrica have black fruit bodies which, when cut in half, show the concentric rings from whence it's latin name comes and Candlesnuff Xylaria hypoxylon which looks like a cluster of stagshorns with black and white tips.
Fungi are so varied in form and beauty, it is hard to chose only a few to describe. Remember not to collect too many species when out as you will not be able to name them all. Concentrate on learning a few species at a time, and gradually build up your knowledge. Most importantly, have fun and enjoy the hunt - you never know you may become hooked just like me.
Kerry Robinson
The Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) in Hertfordshire
By the time that this Newsletter is with members, wildfowl and other wetland species of the counties gravel pits, reservoirs, and lakes will be the subject of close attention with monthly coordinated counts by a dedicated band of observers.
This survey process has been continuing every winter from September to the following March since at least the mid 1950's, when "Wildfowl Counts" first started appearing in table form in the Herts bird reports. The national background to the Hertfordshire counts can be best described by quoting from the recruiting brochure of the The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust who are the controlling authority.
"The UK is of outstanding international importance to water-birds, with more than five million wildfowl and waders relying on our wetlands each winter.
The Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) is the monitoring scheme for non-breeding water birds in the UK, which provides the principle data for the conservation of their populations and wetland habitats.
The principle aims of WeBS are;
- To determine the population sizes of water birds in the UK
- To determine trends in numbers and distribution
- To identify important sites for water birds
This is under-pinned by a programme of research."
In 1947 the Wildfowl Counts began, and it was probably 1954 before Tring Reservoirs became the first county site to be included in the national counts. With the flooding up of Hilfield Reservoir in 1956 and the rapidly increasing number of gravel pits in the Colne and Lea valleys, the numbers of wintering wildfowl was on the increase.
It became the custom to publish in the Herts Bird Report (a section of the transactions,) the Wildfowl Counts as tables showing the sites and counts of the commoner species over the autumn and winter periods of the year in question. In the years 1963/64 the results for seven sites covering four species- Mallard, Teal, Tufted Duck and Pochard were published. Today the coverage has increased to 30 sites with counts from 17 species. The species that are less common, although no less important, are presented as counts in the systematic list where appropriate.
National changes have taken place over the years. The Wildfowl Trust, founded by Sir Peter Scott, became the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust and that organisation carried on the job of servicing the counts with a name change to WeBS. The role of planning the core counts, the Low Tide counts of selected Estuaries, and single species surveys that include among others Swans, Geese, Shelduck, RuddyDuck, and Gull counts is now the responsibility of a partnership of the BTO, WWT, RSPB and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the last being a body funded by central government who need reliable data for monitoring non breeding trends in populations and to assess changes to habitat.
At county level the principle change over the years has been the splitting away of the Lea Valley pits below Ware into a separate core count region that incorporates the Essex and Hertfordshire waters so that the movements of birds over county boundaries is no longer a factor in assessing wintering numbers. This change has proved of great benefit, as the pits that historically have been recorded as Hertfordshire still have the counts published in the Herts Bird Reports.
A more recent change has been the counting of species that habitually winter away from the core count sites (Dispersed Water birds Survey D.W.S.). This has been targeted at wintering waders such as Snipe, Jack Snipe, Woodcock Lapwing and Golden Plover and also Moorhen, Water Rail and Teal. The habitat that is searched is wet riverside fields, ditches, farm and other ponds and municipal lakes. The count areas are randomly selected 1km squares of the national grid.
The counters of the sites are the all-important component in the ongoing success of the WeBS partnership, some of whom have been taking part for twenty years. Inevitably there are, for various reasons, people who have to relinquish their sites. This means that there is often a site that needs a replacement counter. Currently the Colne Valley needs replacements and some of the Park Street Lakes have not been counted at all over recent years.
The advent of DWS surveying has also opened up the opportunity for field workers to become involved with a lighter degree of commitment. If any person with an ability to identify and count wildfowl and complete the required field recording sheets is interested, further details and training if required are available by contacting the area organizers (see below).
In addition to the satisfaction of being part of a respected organisation (no membership fee), there is the valuable chance to take part in a worthwhile and enjoyable bird pursuit. Counters, on becoming registered, are the receivers of twice yearly " WeBS News" and The WeBS annual report, the latter covering the UK and Ireland with summary of key conservation issues for water birds.
The organisers are:
Sites in the Lea Valley below Ware
Ian Kendall
(Contact details as in Printed Version of Newsletter)
Sites in the rest of Hertfordshire
Jim Terry
(Contact details as in Printed Version of Newsletter)
A brochure explaining the details more fully will be sent on request.
Jim Terry
<< Page Four | Page Six >>
|
