The alien in my living room was black with red spots!
This dark form of Harlequin Ladybird visited my home during October. The phenomenon attracted the attention of BBC2’s Autumnwatch because hundreds of viewers reported seeing the ladybirds in their houses.
Towards the end of October I watched dozens buzz through and over the garden. Undeterred by bumping into windows, bushes and me, they seemed intent on travel and were not stopping to feed – so I reckon a mass migration is happening in the UK.
Where are they going to? How fast will their pattern of distribution across the British Isles change by 2010?
Beetle Boom
These alien invaders, said to have arrived in the UK during 2006 – are causing a stir. Lots of people are searching Google and the BBC website for ‘Harlequin Ladybird’ in response to the beetle’s appearance on the BBC2 Autumnwatch series and various 2009 press releases. It was also a boom year for Seven-spot Ladybird, teeming by the bucketload at Somerset during the summer of 2009. Ladybird swarm on BBC News…
Spot the difference
The Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) comes in many guises. In Britain, however, most of the colour forms are distinguishable from common native species, such as the Two-Spot Ladybird and the Seven-spot Ladybird, by three very visible clues:
Harlequin Ladybird often has a rough trapezoid or ‘M’ shape on the pronotum.
When it’s not black, the base colour of the larger Harlequin Ladybird is usually yellow or orange, rather than red.
The Two-spot and Seven-spot Ladybird have black legs; while the Harlequin Ladybird has orange-brown legs.
Orange legs on a Harlequin Ladybird
Perhaps the British species most likely to be confused with Harlequin Ladybird are the Eyed Ladybird (Anatis ocellata) or the smaller Ten-spot Ladybird (Adalia 10-punctata) which have orange legs and bright colour patterns similar to some of the harlequin’s.
The pronotum on a ladybird is frequently mistaken for the head, which the beetle tucks away in times of danger. One of the misleading markings on ladybird beetles is the huge spots on each side of the pronotum which act as false ‘eyes’.
I’ve just been interviewedlive on BBC Radio Berkshire by Phil Kennedy. He began by mentioning that I work at Sheepdrove Organic Farm – so a good plug there!
We had a chat about some of the things I’ve seen and written about for BBC Berkshire’s Nature pages as a sort of local Autumnwatch.
Phil asked me if I enjoy autumn, and suggested that the season is “rather sad” in some ways, because it’s a time of things dying off for winter… but I wanted to enthuse about autumn and talk about more than just pretty colours.
Autumn does, in fact, have action, growth, and energy. Lively aspects of nature in autumn are hidden sometimes – like the countless seedlings which sprout beneath leaf litter, in preparation for a great start in springtime; or the bursting out of fungal fruiting bodies; or the wild flowers which peak at exactly this time, such as Autumn Hawkbit.
Phil described seeing a field full of red poppies last week! How spectacular for October! And told us he’d encountered a stag while driving in the dark – just standing ahead in the road. The rutting season makes the deer behave a little strangely, of course, and the warm weather has certainly blessed Berkshire with sights of creatures and flowers we wouldn’t have seen in a cold year.
This morning’s edition of Farming Today on BBC Radio Four had an excellent funny bit. Thetford Forest wardens are concerned that Wild Boar might spread into Norfolk and irreversibly damage the woodland habitat. Farming Today was there to investigate.
Potted version:
“If they get here, how will you manage the Wild Boar population?”
Gnawed nutshells can tell you if the secretive Dormouse is on your local patch. But it’s easy to confuse the signs of Woodmouse and Dormouse.
My photo of nibbled hazel nuts shows how to tell them apart: LEFT - the toothmarks of woodmice point into the hole, leaving a rough edge. RIGHT - dormice scrape a smooth hole into the side of the shell.
Left, opened by a woodmouse: right, opened by a dormouse.
Folic acid in your bread, whether you like it or not? The Food Standards Agency (FSA) say yes.
The Food Standards Agency, as advised by their Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition, has written to Sir Liam Donaldson, the chief medical officer, to confirm their view that it should be mandatory for folic acid to be put into British bread.
This mass medication programme would be undertaken to reduce rates of Spina Bifida, a debilitating condition which develops in a baby during its mother’s pregnancy, as a result of shortage of Folate (vitamin B9) in the diet. Currently the annual incidence is around 1,000 cases in the UK annually, which the FSA reckons could be reduced to 350 cases.
If the Department for Health recommends legislation the UK could soon become the first European nation to follow the example of the USA and Canada. As with the mass fluoridation of water, this move to medicate without choice is controversial.
Because the body cannot store Folic Acid, those who argue in favour of the supplement point out the advantages of having the nutrient continuously available in the staple diet. Folic acid, along with other B-vitamins, is already found in a number of popular breakfast cereals.
However, critics point to the unknown effects of state-imposed Folic Acid over long periods. In a study last year, Prof Young-Im Kim of the University of Toronto highlighted increases in bowel cancer rates in USA and Canada, saying: “Excess folate, especially in the form of folic acid, can fuel lesion growth, accelerating progression into life-threatening cancers, because high levels of the vitamin make it easier for tumour cells to copy themselves.”
Natural sources of Folate include green leafy vegetables, beans and sunflower seeds.
When I previously reported on the BBOWT campaign for Leaches Farm they still had a long way to go. Today it is amazing to see that BBOWT has raised more than 90% of its target to buy the place. (£181,000)
But they need £200,000 to secure the site, which they want to turn into a new nature reserve. But on Friday 16 October the deadline arrives. Then the excellent wetland habitat will be put onto the open market. £19,000 is a lot to raise in 2 days.
17 million tiny immigrants, like Chiffchaff, pipits and swallows who come to the British Isles for the summer are now leaving in masses, as seen on BBC Autumnwatch on Friday night.
"I've got to fly to WHERE?" says the young Chiffchaff...
To dare to cross the churning seas and the mountainous continent of Europe, and possibly the deserts of the Sahara too, is brave, you might think. Definitely impressive. As Chris Packham points out, it’s also essential. They must have the food they need to survive and breed.
By leaving our shores these African-European birds gain another breeding season per year, and escape the death toll of our winter – starvation being the top cause of death for residents such as Blue Tit. (No, it’s not Sparrowhawks!)
At the Autumnwatch blog, Martin Hughes-Games has asked people to post reports of singing Chiffchaff. In part this signals how many Chiffchaff are still here, but they might find that on sunny days well into Autumn, the song reappears. Because, as the BTO tells us on their migration page about Chiffchaff, some of these warblers are taking on the overwinter challenge.
I haven’t heard Chiffchaff this week, but I did see about 25 swallows at Bockhampton Down, near Lambourn. Also here in Berkshire I hunted out toadstools at Wildmoor Heath, on a guided fungus walk with BBOWT.
Across the country, nutters are out looking for a gold and silver, hidden in a woodland somewhere in England or Wales.
To celebrate the 21st anniversary of the National Dormouse Monitoring Programme, the and to launch their third Great Nut Hunt the People’s Trust for Endangered Species has 21 extra-special nuts to give away.
PTES said: “There are 20 silver nuts and one golden nut to win. Whilst you are hunting for hazel nuts keep your eyes peeled for one of 21 unique flags hidden in various woodlands throughout England and Wales.
If you are lucky enough to find one of these flags, take it home and contact us immediately to claim your reward. So, if you go down the woods, be sure to look for signs of dormice and you may just win the golden nut!”
Rumours have emerged again of funding cuts for the Pang Kennet and Lambourn Countryside Projects.(PKLVCP)
My workplace and I raised support back in Feb 2009 with a published letter to local Councillor, Graham Jones. people rallied to the cause, and instead of completely cutting all cash from West Berkshire, the council voted to reduce its withdrawal of funds by half.
Nevertheless, this was a severe blow to the Pang Kennet and Lambourn Countryside Projects.
The projects carried on, but now the programme of countryside events, walks, nature conservation teams, Barn Owl groups, along with professional farm wildlife advice and biodiversity projects might be under threat once again.
A stalwart projects volunteer, Dick Greenaway, has contacted parish councils and other allies to raise awareness, and to ask for letters of support to go to councillors at West Berkshire. I am also a volunteer linked to PKLVCP – the Lambourn Valley Barn Owl Group operates under their auspices. I too urge the council to keep up the support of the projects, which draw into the district far more money than they spend, and provide services to the countryside which would otherwise not happen.
The first episode of Autumnwatch last weekend was excellent. I was pleased to see my friend Jenny Holden when Gordon Buchanan went to visit the Scottish Beaver Trial at Knapdale Forest. Jenny has a great fieldwork background linked with the conservation of Water Vole and raptor habitats, so you can bet she played an important part in making sure the BBC crew got shots of these cuddly-looking rodents. I know from experience that working with a film crew is rarely as simple as it looks – the official beaver blog gives you a glimpse behind the scenes!
Corn Marigolds
The morning after Autumnwatch I was out with the Lambourn Valley Barn Owl Group. We installed a Barn Owl nest box at Rack Marsh at the weekend, which is a BBOWT nature reserve near Newbury.
Thanks to BBOWT, especially Andy Coulson-Phillips the Berkshire reserves manager for permitting us to install the nestbox. Thanks to Sheepdrove Organic Farm for the vehicle.
Afterwards we took a walk around the nature reserve and nearby footpaths, where we stumbled onto a vibrant vision. Corn Marigold in a barley plot, swaying in the wind.
