Mud In Your Eye - Autumn 2015

East Lothian Council Countryside Ranger Service

Out & about All about mothsSeptem

ber 2015

Pond life

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Out & about

Gifford to Garvald

Moths - night f lyers

Pond life

Wildlife roundup

Volunteering

Top tree

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4

6

8

9

10-11

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Welcome to the 29th Edition of ‘Mud In Your Eye’

We’d love to hear from you! Email: [email protected] or follow us...

@ELCrangers East Lothian Countryside Ranger Service

Published by

East Lothian Council’s Countryside Ranger Service

www.eastlothian.gov.uk/rangerservice

Cover photographs - Main image: Garden tiger mothBottom left: Curious cowsBottom middle: Elephant hawkmothBottom right: Black darter dragonfly

A great project is taking place inAthelstaneford where 2 acres of groundcalled the Glebe is being transformed bythe community into a wonderful place forwildlife and people. The community aregrowing vegetables, creating wildflowermeadows and have set up a labyrinth asa quiet thinking space. The Glebe is located at the east end ofthe village.

More details at:https://athelstaneford.wordpress.com/glebe-green-space/ It will be great to see how the sitedevelops over the next 12-24 months.

A community group in Athelstaneford have been working to transform a field into aplace for people and wildlife to enjoy.

AthelstanefordGlebe project

Out & about

Field scabious The Glebe - a future view? Meadow cranesbill

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It is about six miles from Gifford toGarvald and the walk roughly follows theGifford Water to Danskine Loch, thenbeside the Donolly Reservoir and DonollyBurn to Garvald. Unfortunately there is nobus service between the two villages soyou may have to drop a car off inGarvald, or you could have your lunch inGarvald and then walk back!Waterproof boots are a must, as someparts of the walk can be quite muddy andyou should be aware that there are cattlein some of the fields nearer Garvald. Moreon them later.

From Gifford, follow The Avenue towardsYester House gates. About thirty yardsbefore the gates turn left and follow thepath into Park Road. At the end of ParkRoad go through the gate into YesterEstate and follow the Yester Path signsalong the path and tracks to Danskine.Here you cross the road to Danskine Loch. The woodland here has recently beenfelled and will be replanted in the winter.Follow the main track along the southside, then the grass path around theedge of the field keeping to the left of thefence.

This walk has only recently become available thanks to the help of the locallandowners and the hard work of our local path warden volunteers.

Gifford to Garvald Path

You will then come across a small gateleading you out onto the road. Turn leftand after about 100 yards you will seeanother gate on the right which leadsyou into a grass field. This is where you will see a sign on thefence informing you that there may becattle in the field. Cattle can be curiousand may come towards you and theycan react aggressively towards a dog.You are advised to keep your dog on ashort lead, and to keep as far away aspossible from the cattle. If the cattlereact aggressively then let your dog goand take the shortest route out of thefield.If you are at all concerned about thecattle you can continue along this roadinto Garvald. Alternatively continue intothe field and follow the track which willlead you to the end of Donolly Reservoir.The path continues along the side of thereservoir. Close by you’ll find a bench torest on. Otters have been seen in thereservoir and depending on the time ofyear you may see geese or amazing bluedamselflies. Beyond the reservoir thepath continues through grass fieldsagain where there may be cattle. Andthen the route joins the road for a shortdistance into Garvald.

We are continuing to work with thelandowners here to improve these pathsand install signs.Maybe this walk is best recommendedas a winter walk when the cattle will bein their sheds and the pubs in bothvillages will be able to provide you with awarming meal after your excursions! For further information on your accessrights and responsibilities, see theScottish Outdoor Access Code website:www.outdooraccess-scotland.comEast Lothian Council’s Outdoor AccessOfficers:Nick Morgan, tel: 01620 827671Jennifer Lothian, tel: 01620 [email protected]

Out & about

Azure damselfly (male).

Cattle can be inquisitive

The Donolly bench

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1. They are not all dull and boring. Whilstthere are a lot of very small, drab,moths, there are many that arebeautifully coloured and/ orpatterned. Just look at the pictureson the cover. They are foundthroughout the county, in late April-May. The problem is, you won’t get agood chance to see them unless youare either very lucky or else, go alongto an event using a moth trap. This isbasically a special light bulb that hasa receptacle beneath it. The mothsget attracted to the light, then justdrop down into the box below Therethey stay overnight until the followingmorning, the box is opened up andyou look at what you have gathered.The unknown element makes it a bitlike opening up presents!

2. Like butterflies, moths go throughmetamorphosis. Adult females layeggs on, in many cases, very specificplants, on which the larvaesubsequently feed. In this way mothsare just as under threat from habitatloss as other animals.

3. They have a role to play. Somespecies (and especially their larvae)can be destructive to crops, clothesand the like, many others, however,are harmless and some are positivelybeneficial, pollinating plants inaddition to their day-flying butterflycousins. Moths also form animportant part in the food chain,being the main course for anothernocturnal acrobat – bats.

4. They are not well studied. Weprobably know more about 20 birdsthan we know about all of the mothsin the country.

From the humble, but destructive clothes moth to Clarice’s encounter with theDeath’s head hawk moth (in Silence of the Lambs), these creatures have never hada very positive relationship with people. Their largely, nocturnal, behaviour anderratic flight - sometimes they just seem to aim straight at you – doesn’t endearthem to us, either. So, in an attempt to redress the balance, here are some snippetsabout these actually rather lovely insects.

the night f lyers...

moths

So, fancy yourself as the next ChrisPackham? Perhaps this is anopportunity. We now know that somemoths can migrate 100s of miles, whatelse is waiting to be discovered?The season for moths is coming to aclose now, but if you are interested, getyourself ready for next year and contacta local group.And if you find a moth and want to knowwhat it is, two resources are very useful.The first is to take a photograph andupload it to the I-Spot website:www.ispotnature.org/communities/uk-and-ireland

You’ll be asked to fill in a few basicdetails then, in time, someone else willsee your image and, all being well,correctly identify it for you. In this mannera whole host of new information aboutspecies, where and when they live, isbeing collected. Secondly of you go towww.eastscotland-butterflies.org.uk/mothrecords.html there is a gallery of the main moths thatmay be on the wing each month,together loads of useful information foryour local area.

Peach blossom moth

Cinnabar moth caterpillar

Ghost moth (male) Scalloped oak moth

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And I say ‘summer’ as until the second week of August we hadn’t experiencedanything like a period of dry warm weather. No, this summer goes down as one ofleaden skies, cool temperatures and an ever present wind. How did our wildlifecope in these testing conditions? In short, the answer appears to be ‘not very well’.

WildlifeRoundup ‘summer’ 2015

A dramatic drop in perceived numbers ofinsects put strain on birds that rely onthese in their diet. Expect warblers,swallows and swifts to have all done badly.Butterflies have been conspicuously thinon the ground, no new species enteringinto the county records this year.It is not perhaps all doom and gloom. Is itjust me or have I seen more brown haresaround than for many years?

And according to reports, many food fishhave had a good summer, which willbenefit not only the amount thatfishermen will be able to catch in 2016,but hopefully the range of seabirds thatrely on them as well.Mid-August saw the emergence of aspectacular insect – the horntail. Wasp-coloured and measuring some 5cm witha mean looking (but in fact harmless)ovipositor; this beastie favours treatedtimber into which it bores a home. Thenafter some three years it emerges in adultform, to breathe the air and breed. So ifyou notice any suitably sized holes inyour shed, you know who is responsible!Continued >

Some new ponds were dug in the Garletons hills just over two years ago. Whatstarted off as a large dirty puddle is now developing into a nice wee habitat.Footprints of deer are abundant around the muddy margins but the stars of thepond are the invertebrates.

Pond Life

Pond skaters and diving beetles create amillion ripples in the water, whilst thedrone of dragonflies can be heard allaround.Dragonflies are definitely the royals ofpond life. Their larvae live in the pond fora few years, devouring everything theycan. Tadpoles beware! After they emergeas adults, and break out of theirprotective wetsuit, they find and defenda territory against other dragonflies.Catching their prey on the wing,dragonflies remain voracious hunters.Ponds are fantastic habitats. You canmake one in your garden from anything,

even an old bucket filled with water. Adda couple of pond plants, some bricks orstones and an old branch to allowanimals to come and go. What starts offas a puddle will soon become a habitatall of its own. The Garleton ponds can be found byfollowing the path from Haddington upthe Garleton road to the east ofHarperdean. I won’t give you too muchhelp to find them. Just like the dragonfly,you should discover these hidden gemsfor yourself.

Dragonfly photograph © Abbie Marland.

Horntail, photograph © Abbie Marland.

Pond skater.

Diving beetle.

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diary dates

Our volunteers continue to contribute excellent work all around thecounty. Did you know between them all they put in 8,000 hours oftime? A fantastic effort!

If this inspires you and you want to join in the fun, please get in touchwith me at [email protected] Duncan Priddle, Countryside Officer.

date/time activity location ranger to contactSun 13th Sept09.30- �15.00pm

Fri 25th Sept 18.00 - � late

Tues 29th Sept10am – 12.30pm

Tues 29th Sept10.00-13.00

Weds 30th Sept

Thurs 1st Oct 09.30- �15.00

Weds 7th Oct 17.30- �??

Sun 18th Oct 09.30- �15.00

Tues 27th Oct10.00-13.00

Weds 28th Oct09.30- �15.00

Weds 28th Oct

Thurs 5th Nov09.30- �15.00

Sun 8th Nov 09.30- �15.00

Tues 10th Nov10am- �12.30pm

Tues 24th Nov10am- �12.30pm

Tues 24th Nov10.00-13.00

Weds 25th Nov

Weds 2nd Dec09.30- �15.00

Thurs 3rd Dec09.30- �15.00

Sun 13th Dec 09.30- �15.00

Cutting and raking back sea club-rush from the South Pool.

Goose night. Watch the geese fly in, then head for the pub.

tbc.

Path work

tbc.

Scrub clearance

Sea buckthorn control. Pulling, digging, burning.


Hedge planting


tbc.

Litter clearance

Beach clean and salt marshtidy up.

tbc.

tbc.

Hedge planting

tbc.


Bird and bat box cleaning


Aberlady

Aberlady

North Berwick

Levenhall (meetat boating pond)

Dunbar area

Yellowcraig

Aberlady

Aberlady


Aberlady

Dunbar area

Yellowcraig

Aberlady

North Berwick

North Berwick


Dunbar area

Aberlady

Yellowcraig

Aberlady

John [email protected]


Sam [email protected]

Nick [email protected]

Tara [email protected]

Dave [email protected]















WildlifeRoundupcontinued...Eider monitoring projectBetween April and July each year, theCountryside Ranger Service monitors thenumbers of eider duck in the NorthBerwick area.

A dedicated group of volunteers helpcount the numbers of males, femalesand ducklings as well as noting anypossible disturbance from people orpredators.

This project, now in its 8th year, helps tocollect data on eider numbers. This year was generally a great year forthe breeding eider population here. Wehad the highest number of nesting

attempts on the islands sincethis project begun – 44. Nestingseems to have started earlierthan previous years andcontinued longer. Although the largest number ofducklings seen at one time at theLeithies was only 9 this year,smaller crèches of 3’s and 4’s

were regularly seen in June. Some research suggests that the smallerthe crèche size, the more chance theducklings have of survival. So this is possibly good news!

volunteering

Female eider Duck with chicks.

It is estimated to be at least 200 yearsold, and because of its location, isthought to have been self-sown. It hasan extremely large girth with a hollowedout cavity at its base. Many veteran treesadopt such an appearance, with justenough vital connections kept in theremaining tissue to sustain the tree’shealth.Many sycamore leavers have blackspots on them. These look unpleasantand are a made by a fungus, calledappropriately enough, tar-spot fungus.

Contrary to appearance, however, tar-spots are a welcome sign, as thefungus cannot tolerate areas with poorair quality, particularly sulphur dioxidepollution. So, where they are found, youshould be able to breathe more easily,even if you are ranting againstsycamores!It is not an East Lothian ChampionSycamore but significant enough in sizethat it is registered with the Tree Registerof The British Isles (TROBI) -www.treeregister.org/.

top tree no.7

the InnerwickSycamore Innerwick,

by the school Grid reference NT721740

A controversial choice I hear yousay? Surely sycamores are ascourge of our woodland, beingan introduced species that hasrun riot to the cost of our nativetrees? Well yes, all true...andyet, this sycamore, located at theSW corner of the school playingfields, is quite magnificent.

Sycamore leaves with Tar Spot.

Documents

Mud In Your Eye - Autumn 2015