Page 8 - Wildlife News April 2015
P. 8

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                Our newest nature reserve is among our most spectacular. Thanks to your support Yoesden
                Bank’s stunning chalk grassland wild flowers will continue to dazzle for many years to come

On a warm, early                   since the Second World War,       Timeless beauty                 result is an extraordinarily
          summer’s day, with the   which makes those fragments                                       rich tapestry of wild flowers,
          sun on your back and     that remain very special indeed.  Yoesden Bank has changed        which in turn makes Yoesden
a spring in your step, there is    Last autumn you helped to         little over the centuries. Set  one of the best butterfly sites
 no better place to be than high   save one of these remnants.       on a southwest-facing slope     in the county.
 up on one of the Chiltern Hills’  Thanks to the generous gifts      opposite the 12th-century
 chalk grasslands. With nothing    of our members, along with        St Mary’s Church at Radnage,        Bucks Nature Reserves
 but the low thrum of insects      grants from bodies such as        Buckinghamshire, these          Manager, Mark Vallance
 for company, these precious       the Heritage Lottery Fund,        chalk downland have been        explains why Yoesden Bank is
 wildflower-rich habitats offer    more than £150,000 was            grazed since medieval times.    so special: “The nature reserve
 the perfect antidote to our       raised to purchase Yoesden        This grazing – by sheep and,    is on a steep slope, which makes
 ever-busier lives.                Bank, BBOWT’s newest – and        in recent years, cattle – has   it inaccessible for ploughing – a
                                   arguably one its finest –         combined with the thin,         fate that destroyed so much
     More than 80% of chalk        nature reserves.                  nutrient-poor soil to control   chalk grassland during the
grassland has disappeared                                            fast-growing grasses. The       war years. This is why Yoesden

(Wendy Tobitt)                     Ched George, volunteer warden for Yoesden Bank, shares his love of this reserve

                                   I moved to Radnage in 1991 and have been recording the butterflies here ever since, including the return of the rare Adonis
                                   blue to Yoesden in 1998 after many years absence.

                                       Following the Chilterns Conservation Board’s initiation of invading scrub and ash clearance within the clearing of
                                   Yoesden Wood I sought help from friends in west London to continue this work. A small but enthusiastic group has helped
                                   on a number of work parties since 2009. This clearing is my favourite area because it is the main location for resident grizzled
                                   skipper and silver-washed fritillary butterflies.

                                       Wonderful views can be enjoyed from the top of the main bank all year round. If you are lucky you may spot a great
                                   green bush-cricket or hear its stridulations. In recent years the chalkhill blue population has numbered thousands.

                                       Last year I was pleased to rediscover bird’s-nest orchid within the conifer plantation and find twayblade orchids, which
                                   is a new species record for the site. I still search in vain for that elusive early gentian.

                                       I now look forward to supporting BBOWT’S guardianship and welcoming new visitors.

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