An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. I’ve been staring at a blank screen for a long time now, my words failing me, as I’ve no wish to pass on this sad news. As I said to the Bristol Post, “The birds are an iconic part of our town and the affection and concern that
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Green Gym group tackles The Common East
By Sara Messenger, Bradley Stoke Green Gym. If you’ve spotted some strange chaps looking as though they’re auditioning for ‘Poldark: The Later Years’, it was, I suspect, the Bradley Stoke Green Gym, as they have been helping out SGC, Bradley Stoke in Bloom and Buglife. Although Green Gym took over most of this area from the Patchway Conservation Group, an
Continue readingThree Brooks nature reserve in October
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. Last month it was “All things batty” and this month it seems it’s “All things birdie”! We had several reports that the swans could not be found on the lake, which is not unusual as they often wander up Stoke Brook (from the lake to Braydon Gate) teaching
Continue readingThree Brooks nature reserve in September
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. All things batty! Thanks to the generosity of Bradley Stoke Town Council, our ‘bat walks’, unlike those in many other places, are free to the public – although I’m sure their continued popularity has as much to do with Avon Bat Group’s Stewart Rowdon’s engaging manner as with
Continue readingAugust in the Three Brooks nature reserve
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. Swan ringing Although we have in previous years wanted to ring our cygnets, we never managed to find a time when both the birds were present or the ringer’s first baby wasn’t making an appearance (welcome to young Freddie). So we were rather excited that this year it
Continue readingThree Brooks nature reserve report for June
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. Workdays We were happy to welcome several new members on our last workday, including Dawn Richards who is the local community champion for Tesco stores. We were happy to see her, not just for her generous contribution to our now overflowing biscuit box, but also for her infectious
Continue readingNature conservation group report for May
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. Otters on the reserve I’m not sure which of this month’s news I’m most excited about. At the beginning of the month, the cat was well and truly out of the bag when Jen Ladley managed to video a family of the reserve’s most ‘otterly’ cute visitors,
Continue readingThree Brooks nature group report for March
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. Monthly workday and the Big Spring Clean Our planned March workday, working on the marsh, hit a major snag. Although the work we do on the reserve has been agreed with South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) from a conservation perspective, there have been several legislative changes over the
Continue readingThree Brooks nature report for February
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. Workdays Our recent workdays have mostly been filled with coppicing, which is cutting hazel tree trunks down to ground level, so that in the spring, many new straight new stems will grow again from the base. Although it may look harsh, the tree does not die but
Continue readingThree Brooks nature group report for January
An update from Sara Messenger of Bradley Stoke’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group. Although sometimes the weather has been cold, there is nothing quite so warming as a winter walk through the reserve, watching the birds squabble over the last few berries and seeing the mole hill tremble as he heads further down underground away from the frost. Apart from
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