Page 4 - Wildlife News August 2018

Nature reserve walks Wbenuaattrueyhroaaeulp’wspmsaeiyadnske!eo–nit

Chalk grassland, Dancersend.
(MICK JONES)

At one with nature

Whether it’s admiring the last of the summer butterflies or the first of autumn’s fungi,
there’s lots to get out and see over the coming months. Embrace it all!

CRADLE OF CONSERVATION by Mick Jones, Volunteer Warden, Dancersend with Pavis Woods

A visit to Dancersend with Pavis Woods starts at the ornate Project. In 2012 volunteers helped re-seed this area with seed
brick pumping station. Built by the Rothschilds in the mid- collected from other parts of the reserve, while sections of topsoil
19th Century, it now marks the centre of BBOWT’s largest were scraped back by digger to expose bare chalk for early
Buckinghamshire nature reserve, established in 1941 to colonising species.
commemorate Charles Rothschild, founder of the organisation
that became The Wildlife Trusts. This new habitat has become an important refuge for rare
plants like meadow clary, basil-thyme and slender bedstraw.
As you walk through the reserve you will not only experience Butterfly food plants have been introduced to attract small and
many special plants and animals of the Chilterns, but trace some chalkhill blue butterflies from nearby colonies – a demonstration
of the history of conservation itself. Cross the lane into Crong of the newest form of nature conservation, habitat creation. I
Meadow and marvel at its mass of scabious, marjoram and wild hope the Rothschilds would be proud.
angelica. It was here, in the 1880s, that the two young Rothschild
brothers from Tring – Walter, of museum fame, and Charles – The jewel-like bronze shieldbug nymph. (MICK JONES)
learnt all about butterflies, moths and other insects.

A steep climb through majestic beech trees takes you from
the chalk slopes onto the clay-with-flints plateau of Bittams
Wood. Here areas of hazel coppice with nettle-leaved bellflower
and wood spurge give way to mixed woodland with patches
of foxgloves, golden-scaled male fern and spectacular fungi.
The tall ride-side vegetation is home to wonderful insects such
as longhorn beetles, jewel-like shieldbugs and show-off silver-
washed fritillaries.

You now descend into a series of open glades, rescued from
invading scrub in the 1960s by Miriam Rothschild; this became the
site of her experiments with chalk grassland management. The
path is bordered by spikes of valerian and clouds of wood vetch.
Late summer brings a scattering of Chiltern gentians and waxcap
fungi in chalk grassland so diverse that more than 30 plant species
can be found in just one square metre.

Another section of woodland featuring the secretive narrow-
lipped helleborine orchid leads to 6.5 hectares of land restored
to chalk grassland as part of BBOWT’s Chilterns Chalk Grassland

4 Wildlife news / August 2018