Report from Work Morning 1st March

Some of the volunteers and just SOME of the rubbish. Photo by Isabel Ryan.

We had a very successful and well attended workday on Sunday, removing a lot of rubbish from the Reserve. Much of the rubbish was left from heavy public use during the snow, but we took the opportunity to get deep into some of the thickets to remove bottles and other debris as well.

We also removed the best part of 100 yards of barbed wire, the remains of old fences.

While we were working on the Reserve a steam loco went past - the Oliver Cromwell, on an excursion to South Wales.


Photo by Tim Fairhead

Spring has sprung (maybe)

According to the Met Office, today (1st March) is the first day of spring. But another definition puts it at the night of 20/21 March, the vernal equinox, when day and night are of equal length. Anyway, it's a lovely day at Wapley. Lots of green shoots all over the place, and the first cowslips.

And the rooks are getting territorial - we saw them chasing a buzzard off this morning. The buzzard had had the temerity to stray across the road and over the Common, and the rooks launched in defence. The first rook buzzed the buzzard and nearly put its talons through its head feathers. The buzzard took one look at the attack squadron of another dozen rooks following behind, and headed straight back to the safety of the farmland.