A Summer Summary

It's been a very busy summer so sticking with Rachel's trend of timely blogging, I decided to wait til the Himalayan Balsam had started to go over before kicking off the waders and getting back into the office to contribute to the blog. When you see the amount we've achieved in the last few months I think you'll agree that it was worth the wait! 

We’ve been re-surfacing woodland paths, creating new habitats in the form of bug hotels and reptile hibernacula, not to mention keeping up with the Great Gatsbees – our thriving Honey Bee population. As always, however, one of the most important jobs has been trying to control the spread of Himalayan Balsam (Glandulifera impatiens) across Gatwick’s conservation zones and beyond.

This impressive plant can grow up to eight feet in a little over sixteen weeks, using an explosive mechanism in its seed heads to disperse seeds far and wide, before spreading quickly to dominate river banks, displacing native flora in the process. If you’d like to find out more, there’s a helpful article on the Sussex Wildlife Trust website here: http://www.sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk/blog/2014/07/greenspace-invader/

Himalayan Balsam in flower

Himalayan Balsam’s dependence on river systems for seed dispersal means that low-lying areas like Gatwick Airport, which is intersected by a number of water courses such as the River Mole, Gatwick Stream, Crawters Brook and Mans Brook, receives a constant influx of seeds throughout the summer. This makes the job of controlling its spread all the more important and begs the difficult question; where do we start?

After much deliberation (and some blindfolded pointing at a map), we decided to begin our battle at Povey Cross in the North West Zone with a team from Gatwick Airport’s Engineering and Asset Integration Department. On a scorching hot day at the end of June, this nine-strong group got stuck in, removing plants over an incredible 700 meter stretch of the banks of the Mole.

Engineering and Asset Integration with Balsam casualties at Povey cross

A little over a week later, volunteers from Southern Gas Networks took up the mantle in Horleyland Wood where Balsam had taken up residence in dense patches under the woodland canopy, encroaching from the adjoining Gatwick Stream and sewage treatment works. The following day reinforcements arrived in the form of GGP’s youth rangers. They set to work with boundless energy, pulling back more valuable habitat from the Balsam’s clutches.

Southern Gas came ready for action with matching overalls.

Youth Rangers at Horleyland wood, accompanied by one slightly less youthful ecologist.

By early July it was time to call in the elite squadron and GGPs weekly volunteer group got to grips with the Balsam in Riverside Garden Park, Horley, where the Gatwick stream joins the river Mole. Undeterred by the towering Balsam-covered banks, they put in a tremendous effort over two long and very hot days. Using ladders to scale the steep banks, they tirelessly removed plant after plant. This resulted in at least one volunteer taking a bath in the cool, calming waters of the Gatwick Stream. Despite these setbacks, their hard work paid off and we managed to clear the majority of the Balsam from the park, downstream from the underpass in the south-eastern corner.

GGP Volunteers tackle towering Balsam at Riverside

A final sweep of Riverside was carried out by a group of EDF office staff who came all the way from London to join the fight. The team were very thorough and spent the morning working away from the stream, removing any stragglers in the woodland edges where seed had been carried by winter flood waters. As the day wore on and we worked our way into open grassland, it became apparent that we were going to need a change of plan. Fueled by the scorching summer temperatures, much of the Balsam in these open areas was already setting seed and too much disruption at this stage would only facilitate its spread.

EDF's London team at Riverside

We proceeded carefully, using scissors and secateurs to carefully snip all of the seed pods into bin bags before ripping out the remainder of the plant. Six bin bags of seed were removed and prevented from entering the catchment that day.

As you can see from the map below we have made a big impact this year, and its all thanks to the fantastic work of our ever-growing volunteer network. All our volunteers have proved willing and able and always up for a challenge.  

But as I said earlier, it hasn’t been all about Balsam this summer. I’d like to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has turned out to help with our many projects. And just to prove it, here are a few more pictures.

UK Power Networks and the huge pile of rubbish they cleared from Horleyland pond back in April.

Dave and Stefan "discuss" how best to lay geotextiles while building a footpath in Upper Pickets wood.

Rachel's mum, Sue and ecologist Natalie get the job done with a little less "discussion"
(I'm not sure who that slacker is trying to sneak into shot)

Another gang from UK Power Networks turned out in force in June, working competitively on woodland and grassland footpaths

 And finally, the Insect Hotel has been slowly coming together over the summer with the help of Donald and Peter.

Not long until our programme of autumn works starts up again!

Honeybee freeloaders

Following Simpson's lead I've decided to have a try at this beekeeping thing. During a busy field season it means I get home even later, but on the other hand it is an excellent way to unwind.

The well-guarded hive entrance of the European Honey Bee (Apis mellifera). It is incredibly therapeutic to just sit and watch the comings-and-goings of  workers and drones.

We now have several hives which are packed to the rafters with honey and bee larvae, attracting a menagerie of predators and parasites. This means that during my new hobby, I still get to record new species!

Greater Wax Moth (Galleria mellonella)

The Greater Wax Moth is a new one for me; this individual met her demise in the top section of the hive (perhaps after being stung or balled to death by the workers). It lays its eggs on the waxy honeycomb, which then hatch into caterpillars and bore tunnels through the cells, feeding on the wax and other bee-substances. They can also burrow into the wood of the hive, so when present in high numbers they can cause a lot of damage to the structure.

I'm quite please with this pic. That red 'welt' on the top of the
abdomen is an individual Varroa Mite (Varroa destructor)

Varroa destructor is an apt name for this mite, indicating just how much beekeepers love them... Not only does this blood-feeding arachnid weaken the individual bees by sucking out their life-force, they spread several bee viruses and are incredibly difficult to contain. However, we do not intervene unless an infection is particularly severe. Symptoms can include stunted, scruffy, deformed wings and unsteady, drunk-looking bees. Having this mite must be like hanging out with your impulsive, booze-hound flatmate on a night out in town (not of course referring to anyone I live with right now).

 German Wasp (Vespula germanica)

Social wasps can be a right pain at this time of year (I need not tell). Attracted to the scent of the wonderful honey stores, as soon we lift the lid off the hive, then they appear, persistently pesky. They also scavenge the dead and dying bees from the ground around the hive; not such a bad thing in terms of good house keeping and removing infected individuals. This female German Wasp found a dying worker Honey Bee and set to it with her strong mandibles... There was an audible 'click' as she decapitated it!

Fencepost Jumper (Marpissa muscosa)

It seems that almost every time we start a check of the hives, a Marpissa jumping spider will pop out onto the side to see what all the fuss is about. They probably just use the hives as a well-defended shelter and are unlikely to bother the bees. Perhaps they love the sweet smell of honey and cedar wood as much as we do.

Beekeeper (Homo sapiens)

Of course, not forgetting those ultimate freeloaders! Which reminds me, it is about time I enter my first record for Homo sapiens into iRecord... Egotistical perhaps to submit myself as a specimen?

Nom.

Arachnophilia - Part deux

I'm not a big fan of cows. They are dirty, smelly and kill more people in Britain each year than almost any other animal. I have been threatened, bullied and chased by cows. When people moan about spiders, I think they just haven't met enough cows.

A small group of novice spider-chasers gave up their Friday night, joining in a search around Gatwick's ancient woodlands in the Land East of the Railway Line. We met up after sunset, carrying with us a selection of torches and camera flashes, as the majority of web-spinning folk come out at nighttime.

Fence Post Jumper (Marpissa muscosa) is the UK's biggest species of jumping spider. Photo by Joe Bicker

We began our search in the logpiles to the north of Ashley's Field. During the day there is usually much Wolf Spider action, but this evening were just a few lovely jumping spiders hiding out under the bark.

   Jumping spiders (Salticidae) are simply awesome with their brilliant patterning, large intelligent eyes and cute fuzzy palps. Anything which moves in stop motion must be some kind of supreme being. We coaxed one out of her silken cell and she turned out to be a veritable beast, over 1cm in length.

Marpissa muscosa. This species is probably under recorded and we find it regularly around Gatwick. 

Photo by Joe Bicker

Shining our torches on a patch of nearby nettles, there were lots of little white globes on almost every plant...

Candy-stripe Spider (Enoplognatha spp.) Photo by Joe Bicker

There were scores of them; some yellow and green, others white, some almost entirely pink.

Photo by Joe Bicker

Wooden fence posts and rails are great places for spids and tonight we had Missing-Sector Spider (Zygiella x notata) and this chunky Walnut Orb-weaver (Nuctenea umbratica).

Just hanging out... Photo by Joe Bicker

They are names for their lovely patterning and the polished wood-finish. Great camoflage against the wood chippings. Photo by Joe Bicker

Checking the dead-hedge in Upper Picketts Wood, we easily picked up 5 species including this lovely Neriene montana. A few spiders either do not have official common names, or just entirely forgettable ones, so I wont be bothering with all of them!

Neriene montana. It's abdomen kinda looks like a piece of chocolate. Photo by Joe Bicker

Not a spider but a centipede, probably a type of Lithobius. It doesn't look like chocolate. Photo by Joe Bicker

The dead-hedge was crammed with spids, several species even seemed to be overlapping webs (perhaps they are saving on rent). I forgot to check the species at the top of this picture, but the lower one was Labulla thoracica.

Photo by Joe Bicker

 Labulla thoracica juvenile

A giant, towering Marsh Thistle proved an impressive find, like a spider tower-block apartment. Several Metellina of an unknown species and another Enoplognatha were tucking into a late night feast.

Tiny but effective fangs. Photo by Joe Bicker

Lot's of Walnut Orb Weavers were out tonight and I must re-emphasise that these are darn good-looking spids... 

Photo by Joe Bicker

Not all of the arachnids out and about tonight were spiders; Harvestmen are also 8-legged hunters and belong to an order of invertebrates called Opiliones.

Not a spider: this Harvestman is tucking into a tasty fly. I haven't delved into Harvestman species yet. 

Photo by Joe Bicker

Our last stop was Goat Meadow, and plenty of large orb-webs were decorating the thistles and Agrimony plants. They mostly belonged to this handsome Furrow Spider (Lariniodes cornutus), with it's impressively striking markings.

Furrow Spider (Lariniodes cornutus). Photo by Joe Bicker

Not a spider: a sleepy female Grass Snake (Natrix natrix) curled up under the mat by the brash pile.

Photo by Joe Bicker

Another Furrow Spider, tucking into some fly prey

This dew-covered little beastie blends in well with the seed head of a rush; Agalenatea redii

Either the egg-sac or the retreat of a spider

A tiny wee thing with her spiderlings up in the top left. I think this might be a Theridion species, but I didn't want to disturb her complex web-nest

A juvenile Four-spot Orb Weaver (Araneus quadratus) on the Agrimony 

After midnight we were all spidered-out, so we retraced our steps back through Upper Picketts Wood. Lastly, we were lucky enough to catch a gimpse of this female Steatoda species (one of the False Widow spiders). These are incredibly shy creatures and she scarpered as soon as Joe took this single pic.

Thanks again to Donald, Megan, Joe and Sue for being so keen! Also a big thanks to the facebook group British Spider Identification for helping out with some of the idents. Our list from the evening:

1.       Larinioides cornutus

2.       Marpissa muscosa

3.       Zygiella x notata

4.       Nuctenea umbratica

5.       Araneus quadratus

6.       Labulla thoracica

7.       Tegeneria spp.

8.       Steatoda spp.

9.       Meta spp.

10.   Neriene montana

11.   Enoplognatha spp.

12.   Misumena vatia
13. Agalenatea redii
14. Zelotes latreillei
15. Theridion spp.

British fungal firsts at Gatwick!

We've had a pretty awesome update from local fungi expert, Nick Aplin... coming about 3 months late due to my email filter sending important things to my junkmail!!

Nick and the Sussex Fungi Group at Upper Picketts Wood, November 2013

You might bump into the affable Mr Aplin about the Gatwick woodlands, where he keeps a sharp eye out for unusual fungi species (which to me would be just about all of them). Some of these finds are extremely cryptic and I'm still blown away by how he does it. More incredibly, one of Nick's most recent findings has been previously unrecorded in Britain!

Arecophila striatispora growing on Pendulous Sedge. Photo by Nick Aplin

Ok, so it might be hard to know what we are looking at here...This is a fungus growing within the tissue of a plant, specifically Pendulous Sedge. Fungi which can be found within plants are called endophytes; they are not highly visible, but they can have very complex relationships with their host plant and we are finding out new things about them all the time. For example, some species might be harmful to their host, whereas others can share nutrients and may even protect them from disease.

Ascospores of Arecophila striatispora (Photo by Nick Aplin). Each ascus contains several spores

It is incredible to think how a relationship between two distinct organisms like this might have evolved, possibly one was coerced into becoming reliant on the other (in the world of psychotherapy this is described as codependency and is generally discouraged in humans).
   This particular fungus belongs to the group Ascomycota, as it produces reproductive spores in a little sac called an 'ascus'. This feature helps us to classify certain fungi and with clever tests such as staining the asci with iodine, we can narrow them down to the particular genus or species.

Nick's home lab set up: Brunel SP150 microscope. The scope at the top is a Nikon camera adapter which boosts the magnification, useful whether dissecting or simply photographing specimens

This species has been confirmed by the experts in Europe as Arecophila striatispora, previously unrecorded in our fair isles and so is a great achievement for Nick. Also, kudos to the guy for not slicing off his fingertips during some incredibly fiddly dissection work.
   But that's not the end of it, because Nick has recently discovered yet another first for Britain on our site! 

Gnomonia amoena fruiting body on the petiole of a Hornbeam leaf (Photo by Nick Aplin)

This rather disturbing looking thing is the fruiting body of a fungus (Gnomonia amoena), growing on the stem of a Hornbeam leaf. Have you ever seen the movie Dreamcatcher? It reminds me of the sinister (and gross) alien in that. 
   Apparently, this sinister looking thing belongs to a group of fungi which are very harmful to trees, but luckily this particular species is quite benign (unless you happen to be an individual Hornbeam leaf, then you should RUN.)

Gnomonia amoena ascospores, showing a reaction with iodine causing staining at the tips

As you can tell from the characteristic ascospores (you can, right?) this is another ascomycete species. It was found on leaves at the base of our very old and rather impressive Hornbeam tree in Lower Picketts Wood...

Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus). This beauty is a impressive size and the photo doesn't do it justice

The other cool thing is that Nick has yet another tricky specimen in the pipeline, which he is also waiting to get confirmed as a British first...

Cross-section of plant tissue, revealing the as yet unknown species (Photo by Nick Aplin)

...it is another ascomycete

I always look forward to the next update from Nick with his latest macro shots. You can check out more of the beautiful fungal underworld in this album: Nick's fungi at Gatwick.