Jim Horsfall

Cutting up small stuff with loppers

Using a bowsaw on a larger log

Field, with volunteers along the hedgeline

It's half term so I took my boys to @yorkswildlife.bsky.social Brockadale nature reserve. Cutting along the hedgeline to allow refencing.

They enjoyed using bowsaws and loppers, and I brought marshmallows to toast on the fire.

I'm indoctrinating them early into being outdoors and volunteering.

Removing some trees helps to reduce transpiration. And needing somewhere to dispose of the arising Sarah has tried filling the drains with logs and chips. It should keep the area wetter throughout the year (dipwell is installed to see).

Hopefully the remnants of fen vegetation can be restored.

My colleague Sarah has been working on this land next to @yorkswildlife.bsky.social Potteric Carr. On peat with calcareous ground water it would probably have had quite an interesting flora in the past. But had been drained (not too deep though) and probably ploughed. But left derelict for decades.

Just a month or so until the @ynuorg.bsky.social conference in York.

I hope to see some of you there.

Oh ok. I always think of pennywort being Hydrocotyle vulgaris (aka marsh pennywort)

Looks lovely.

I think the big roundish leaves are Navelwort, they have an in-y bellybutton. 😜

Also worth remembering that there are things other than large animals and pretty looking things.

Plants and unattractive invertebrates are just as worthy of consideration. And work on how to reintroduce some fungi might be useful, as they are little studied at present.

Join us for this year's YNU Conference on Saturday 21st March at The Priory Street Centre, York: 'Recording Yorkshire's natural history - beyond ‘The State of Yorkshire's Nature’ report'. Purchase your tickets here: www.ynu.org.uk/join-the-ynu... or contact membership@ynu.org.uk.

I hope you are right. LNRS definitely have potential, but need a range of organisations (councils, NGOs, landowners etc) to all buy into it. I suspect some areas it will work, and other areas it won't have much effect. But hopefully better than if it didn't exist.

It's just another iteration of Biodiversity Action Plans in a way, but with added maps.

It's not clear how they will get used; I suspect it won't lead people's thoughts, but be an afterthought to justify what someone wants to do already. (Or that was my experience of BAPs).

But has potential

There are divergent opinions.

Maybe conservationists need to set their priorities, and see how far they can get implementing it.

Other groups can, and will, have different priorities. But that doesn't mean conservationists should run round like a headless chicken.

Yes, he complained. But wanted some human contact, so had to relent.

Bringing Yorkshire’s Nature Back | Yorkshire Wildlife Trust Our blueprint for delivering 30 by 30 in Yorkshire.

Although fairly high level, the @yorkswildlife.bsky.social blueprint for bringing Yorkshire's nature back does make a start. Limestone and wetland areas more important, some Yorkshire Species of Concern identified... But this could be built on further.

www.ywt.org.uk/bringing-yor...

The Natural England Species Recovery Fund does tend to funnel people in a direction for species related work. But with so many other funding sources (and non-expert people reviewing many funding applications) it's a free for all.

I would welcome clearer guidance on priorities in conservation

This was in 2024, but we're planning a trip to Jamie's in March (to look for a willow), so I'll let you know if he's still alive then. Or if the sunshine sets him on fire.

🧛

Tiny wasps in a pot

Fox moth larva in a pot with wasp larvae coming out of the side

Kingsdale Head farm where I collected the specimens

In the summer of 2024 I collected a Fox Moth larva that had other larvae coming out of the side. 10 days later they hatched as little wasps. Sadly I then forgot about them for ages, but recently sent them to a @ynuorg.bsky.social colleague to ID them. They are Cotesia gastropachae, new to Yorkshire!

In a similarly novel way, my biggest site is in an area that used to be extensive lowland fen. But drainage and digging lakes to make places for birds means it will never be like it was 500+ years ago. But there are still echoes of the past.

And you're right, never enough money!

It's much easier to compare a site against a real (if historic and unrepeatable) example than to measure your site against a mass of possibilities that may or may not be achievable.

Historic reference points will always be used. But as you say it doesn't mean it's the only thing to refer to.

Young man sitting in field with plant ID books, recording wild flowers in the sunshine

Can you find, identify & record 100 wild plants in 2026?
BSBI is confident that (with our support) yes, you can!
Beginner botanists, will you accept the challenge?
Sign up today for #100Plants2026 challenge:
bsbi.org/take-part/ac...
Check out the webinars & #WildFlowerID help we've prep'd for you!

An interesting challenge, I think many people will know more things than they realise (or will need minimal help).

Those wanting help could join their local botany group to meet like minded people, such as
@ynuorg.bsky.social
@sorbynathissoc.bsky.social
Doncaster Nats
Barnsley Nats
Bradford Botany

Bishopthorpe Parish Council want to sell a small wildlife oasis hosting rare wildflowers like Yellow Star-of-Bethlehem to a developer. This field belongs to the people of Bish who cherish its wildlife. Please sign this petition to stop them doing this. Thanks 😊 c.org/syGKBRcGBY

That's fine, it's useful to get contributions from a range of people, and if (I hope) the book will encourage lots of different people to record a wider range of things, then almost anyone in YNU is the target audience and would benefit from a review from someone like them

Are you a member of @ynuorg.bsky.social ? Would you write a short review of this when you've read it for the YNU newsletter? I think people might be interested

I went to go and see Red House Farm today. They work as part of the Limestone Ridge Nature Recovery Group around Doncaster.

Lots of hedges planted, beetle banks, cover crops and cultivated margins. He's already seeing increases in wildlife like Grey Partridge, but also noticing other wildlife more.

What are you doing on Sat 21st March? I'll be at the @ynuorg.bsky.social conference in York

ynu.org.uk/news-events/...

It's looking at how to encourage more/better recording of less well studied groups. And is a good opportunity for a bit of a social too

The river Went filling the narrow valley bottom, with steep limestone grassland in the foreground.

The ings below this limestone grassland have been flooded again. The deeper soils of the Ings would mean different species would occur anyway, but there should be some overlap.

However the nutrient input is so high that it's mainly ruderals ☹️ Impact of urban areas and arable run off upstream

YouTube video by Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland How robotics can help save rare plants from going extinct

Sometimes you need to see a video to get a better idea about the challenges people are facing, a paper won't do.

Some of the cliffs being surveyed and sampled here just couldn't be done any other way!

youtu.be/3GOVjhJq1to?...

A really interesting talk hosted by @bsbibotany.bsky.social

Read about me waffling on about being a naturalist here,

www.ynu.org.uk/about-the-yn...

It's not long.

Natural history societies work by members stepping up to help out. Maybe you could offer to lead a walk or become a trustee of one near you.

@ynuorg.bsky.social @sorbynathissoc.bsky.social

Our outline programme of activities for April 2025 to March 2026 is available on our website at www.sorby.org.uk/events Full details of each activity can be found in our monthly newsletter, which is distributed free to members.

A little pressure on the council (once I found the right person) lead to change in mowing.

And records from me and others mean the next door LWS is likely to be extended to include this piece.

You could make a difference too, but sometimes it takes persistence.

@yorkswildlife.bsky.social