An open day on 17 April will provide a great opportunity to explore Mudchute’s fantastic new wetland, with expert guidance from Froglife, the amphibian and reptile conservation charity. Mudchute’s wildlife pond, in the Lower Field, is well known for its populations of frogs and smooth newts, and pond-dipping has always been a favourite activity for visiting schools. Until recently, the wildlife pond was flanked by a derelict pond with a leaky liner, and a couple of shallow scrapes that only held water in winter. In the autumn of 2013, as part of Froglife’s Dragon Finder project, these were transformed into…
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The winter of 2013-14 will be best remembered for how wet and windy it’s been. Amid all the reports of flooding and storm damage, it’s easy to overlook that temperatures have been extremely mild, at least in south-east England. We have seen frost in London on no more than three or four mornings in the entire winter. So perhaps it’s not surprising that spring has been extremely early this year, with some flowers out up to 2 months earlier than normal. This is in stark contrast to 2013, when freezing weather well into April delayed flowering of many spring plants.…
Thursday 27 February saw the planting of a new community orchard at Mudchute. With the help of the London Orchard Project, volunteers, staff and pupils from the local George Green’s School and Cubitt Town Infants School, apple, pear and plum trees were planted to form an orchard in the Maze Field, located between the Playing Field and Forest School. Lewis McNeill of the London Orchard Project helped identify the best sites for the trees and demonstrated how to prepare the soil to give them the best possible start on the farm. Making sure they are planted properly will ensure that…
Insect conservation charity Buglife has recently launched the new “Brownfield Hub”, a one stop shop for information on brownfields and their invertebrates. The brownfield hub is intended to help anyone from ecologists to planners, or developers to wildlife lovers to understand the value of brownfields for our rare invertebrates. A brownfield site is a piece of land that has been altered by human activity, which is not currently in use. Brownfield sites offer a precious ‘mosaic’ of habitats, providing variety that is rare in the wider landscape and can support important populations of scarce invertebrates, such as the Streaked Bombardier…
Bloomin’ marvellous gardens brighten up the borough Move over Chelsea Flower Show, as the winners of the Tower Hamlets in Bloom gardening competition were announced at a glittering awards ceremony at the Ecology Pavilion. The Tower Hamlets in Bloom competition gives residents the chance to show off their horticultural skills in the Council’s annual gardening competition and rewards those who help to make the borough bright and beautiful. From balconies, community gardens and allotments to patios, businesses and schools, the competition is open to anyone who makes the most of open spaces. Organised by Tower Hamlets Council the competition is…
On the weekend of 25-26 January 2014, the RSPB is asking people all over the country to join the annual Big Garden Birdwatch. The largest wildlife survey in the world, the Big Garden Birdwatch has been running for over 30 years, and last year nearly 590,000 people took part. To join in, all you need to do is to count birds in your garden or local park for one hour on 25 or 26 January. Record the highest number of each species that you see at one time and send in the results to the RSPB. You can submit your…
Mile End Park is now officially a Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation. This is the highest grade of non-statutory wildlife site under the procedures adopted by the Mayor of London. The upgrade from a Site of Borough Importance has been endorsed by the London Wildlife Sites Board, which was set up by the Mayor to oversee London’s wildlife sites system. The Board’s report concluded that Mile End Park meets the criteria for a Site of Metropolitan Importance due to: the size of the park and connectivity to other sites in what is a densely populated part of inner…
When well-known London birdwatcher David Darrell-Lambert visited East India Dock Basin on 19 September, he noticed that one of the Cormorants roosting on the jetty in the River Thames was sporting a blue colour-ring on its right leg. A closer look revealed the letters EBY on the ring. David expected to trace the bird to a nearby colony such as Walthamstow Reservoirs, or perhaps Abberton Reservoir in Essex. However, a little online research revealed that it had come a lot further than that, and had actually been ringed Estonia by the Cormorant Research Group of Wetlands International. Estonian co-ordinator for…
Long spells of warm sunny weather in July and August provided a much needed boost for our beleaguered butterflies with four times as many recorded during this year’s Big Butterfly Count than in 2012. A record-breaking 46,000 people took part, counting more than 830,000 butterflies and day-flying moths across the UK. Washout 2012 was the worst year on record for butterflies and had followed a series of poor summers which had compounded the long-term declines of many UK butterflies. But perfect conditions this summer saw butterflies boom with large numbers recorded across the UK’s gardens, parks, school playgrounds and countryside.…
Green-fingered residents in Wapping teamed up with Tower Hamlets Homes and Tower Hamlets Council’s Biodiversity Officer this week to open their first Insect Hotel. Residents from Matilda House built the hotel next to their garden waste composting bins to attract butterflies, bees and other beneficial insects. Some insects, such as bees, are in decline so by providing homes for them, residents from the 1930s block are giving them a much needed helping hand. “We are lucky at Matilda House to host a wide variety of species of birds and wildlife. Many thanks to Tower Hamlets Homes for helping improve the…