Tag Archives: conservation

Forthcoming events and volunteering dates

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We’ve recently added a new batch of volunteer days and exciting events happening over the forthcoming months, hope to see you at a few!

  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Friday 6th April 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Moth trapping event, Portway Hill, Saturday 21st April 2018, 8:30pm – 10:00pm approx. Come along and learn from the experts which moths are found on Rowley Hills at this time of the year. Walking boots are recommended as the paths can be slippery after rain, and don’t forget to bring a torch/head-torch with you. Meet on St Brades Close at the junction with Tower Road at 8:15pm.
  • Dawn Chorus, Portway Hill, Saturday 5th May 2018, 5:30am – 7:00am approx. Join local bird expert Nick Horton for a dawn chorus walk around the Portway Hill site. Last year 38 bird species were seen or heard. Can this be bettered in 2018? One of our target species, Ring Ouzel, is known to use Portway Hill as a migration stopover site. We will also be on the lookout for Whitethroat, Lesser Whitethroat, Peregrine, Buzzard, Sparrowhawk and Kestrel. Wear sturdy footwear and dress appropriately for the early morning weather conditions.  Meet on St Brades Close at the junction with Tower Road at 5:20am.
  • Netherton Tunnel Pepperpot Walk, Saturday 19th May 2018, 10:00am – 1:00pm approx. This over and under walk takes approximately 3 hours to complete and includes a visit to Bumble Hole Visitor Centre mid-way through the walk. Sturdy footwear, a waterproof coat, and torch/head-torch are essential, as there will be constant drips from the brickwork and parts of the tunnel towpath are flooded. Meet outside the Co-op at the junction of Regent Road/Oakham Road at 9:50am.
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Friday 1st June 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Saturday 16th June 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Portway Hill Butterfly walk, Saturday 30th June 2018, 10:00am -12:00am approx. Join us and the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country for a guided walk around the Rowley Hills. The flowers on the hillside should just about be at their best by this time and if the day is sunny we will see many species of butterflies, including Marbled White; Portway Hill is one of this species’ hotspots in Birmingham and the Black Country. Wear sturdy footwear and ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions. Meet on St Brades Close at the junction with Tower Road at 9:50am.

Conservation volunteer days are run by the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country; for further information please contact The Wildlife Trust, telephone 0121 454 1199 or email info@bbcwildlife.org.uk. Their Portway Hill reserve is located within the dotted black square on the map below.

Rowley Hills map showing paths and access points

2018 volunteer dates for your diary

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We’ve added our volunteer days for the first few months of 2018 to the Events page – they’re also listed here in full!

  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Saturday 20th January 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Friday 2nd February 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Saturday 17th February 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Friday 2nd March 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Saturday 17th March 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Friday 6th April 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!
  • Conservation volunteer day, Portway Hill, Saturday 21st April 2018, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea, coffee and biscuits will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!

Conservation volunteer days are run by the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country; for further information please contact The Wildlife Trust, telephone 0121 454 1199 or email info@bbcwildlife.org.uk. Their Portway Hill reserve is located within the dotted black square on the map below.

Rowley Hills map showing paths and access points

November news

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Removing and burning hawthorn and bramble on the Wildlife Trust owned land continued all through November. The aim is to create wildflower-rich grassland to provide a nectar and pollen source for butterflies, bees and the many other insects that frequent the hillside. This takes time, and requires a great deal of effort, so to discourage nettles, brambles and hawthorn from recolonising, removing or burning the cuttings is vital as most wild flowers thrive in poor, low-fertility soils. James and Luke have recently joined the volunteers group – welcome to them!
Volunteers strimming and removing debris (image © Mike Poulton)
Burning bramble and hawthorn cuttings (image © Mike Poulton)
Burning bramble and hawthorn cuttings (image © Mike Poulton)
The site a few days later (image © Mike Poulton)
The site a few days later (image © Mike Poulton)

October news

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Over the past month we’ve been busy on the Portway Hill site, cutting, clearing and burning hawthorn, bramble and ivy to keep paths open and reduce risks from fires. While we were up there on one of the days, the sky went dark, and the sun became encircled by a red halo. We later discovered that unusual atmospheric conditions had blown up a sandstorm from Africa, and a thin layer of dust from the Sahara Desert had been carried over parts of Britain, depositing a fine film of sand everywhere. Fortunately, one of us had a camera at hand to photograph the strange-looking sun.

If you would like to get fit and active and do something positive for your local environment, then why not come along and join us on one of our conservation days?

Our next volunteer day is this Friday; for more information and to see all of our forthcoming volunteering opportunities please refer to our Events page. We look forward to seeing you there.

Results of our volunteers’ hard work (image © Mike Poulton)
The sun viewed through a haze of Sahara dust (image © Mike Poulton)
Results of our volunteers’ hard work (image © Mike Poulton)

Portway Hill recommended to be designated as a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation

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Seven green areas across Sandwell, including Portway Hill in the Rowley Hills, are set to be added to a list of nature conservation sites. Portway Hill is currently designated as a Site of Local Importance for Nature Conservation (SLINC) but its status may soon be upgraded to that of a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC).

Sandwell Council’s cabinet, which met on 20 September, discussed a recommendation to designate Portway Hill as a SINC, as well as 6 other areas at the following locations as Sites of Local Importance for Nature Conservation (SLINCs):
  • Bullers Open Space, Tipton
  • Market Place, Tipton
  • Merry Hill, Smethwick
  • River Tame Corridor, Oldbury
  • Whitecrest, Great Barr
  • Woden Road East, Wednesbury

The designations provide up-to-date evidence for planners to protect local nature when making planning decisions. This could mean that Portway Hill receives better protection from any potential future threat of development.

For more information, visit http://www.sandwell.gov.uk/news/article/4424/seven_green_spaces_set_for_conservation_list.

Part of the Portway Hill site.

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The Life-cycle of the Puss Moth in a Tividale garden

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Do you have willow or poplar trees in your garden? If so, it’s worth searching for the fascinating caterpillars of the Puss Moth. They are frequent visitors to a local garden on the Rowley Hills where the residents have regularly studied their progress from eggs through to adult moths.

Mated pair of Puss Moths (image © Julia Morris)

Once mating has taken place the female moths deposit small batches of brownish-coloured eggs on leaves of their food plant, in this case two small willow trees in their back garden.

Puss Moth eggs on willow leaves (image © Mike Poulton)

Upon hatching the young caterpillars feed almost constantly for around four weeks and pass through several stages until fully grown.

Young caterpillar well camouflaged on willow shoot (image © Mike Poulton)

Early stage of caterpillar growth (image © Andy Purcell)

In some years predation by birds, wasps and even Harlequin Ladybirds takes a heavy toll, but generally enough of them survive to maturity, ensuring there will be moths again the following year.

Adult caterpillar in disturbed posture, with raised head and pinkish flagellae extending from the twin tails

They spend the winter in a tough cocoon attached to tree trunks or wooden posts, then the newly-emerged moths seek out the food plant, and the cycle begins again.

Vacated Puss Moth cocoon attached to the side of an old wooden table in their garden

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Volunteer day this Saturday

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Don’t forget we have our next conservation volunteer day this Saturday, 10:00am – 3:00pm. Join the Wildlife Trust for Birmingham & the Black Country at Portway Hill for a fun day out meeting new people, helping the environment and learning new skills. Meet on St Brades Close at 10:00am; ensure you are dressed appropriately for the forecast weather conditions, and wear sturdy footwear. You will need to bring along a packed lunch but tea and coffee will be provided. No need to book, just turn up!

A few photos from Portway Hill

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The Portway Hill site is really coming to life now with spring flowers appearing and Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Orange-tip, Green-veined White and even Green Hairstreak butterflies putting in an appearance. Here are a few photos of some of the flowers, including a couple of fruit trees – most likely to have been seeded on the hills via bird droppings.

Pear (Pyrus communis) (image © Mike Poulton)
English Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) (image © Mike Poulton)
Apple (Malus pumila) (image © Mike Poulton)

Warm weather brings out the butterflies!

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The unseasonable warm, dry weather we are currently experiencing has really brought out butterflies in good numbers. Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Orange-tip, Speckled Wood and even a Brimstone have been seen on the hillside over the past week. Hopefully, this spring will be much better than last year, which was wet and cold right up until the end of May, and these last few days are just a taster of more fine weather to come. Please remember, if you have any wildlife sightings from the Rowley Hills that you would like to tell us about, or any interesting photographs you would like to see on the website, then please let us have them – you can comment below, or on Facebook or Twitter.

Brimstone butterfly (Gonepteryx rhamni) (image © Mike Poulton)
Small Tortoiseshell butterfly (Aglais urticae) (image ©Mike Poulton)
Peacock butterfly (Inachis io) (image ©Mike Poulton)
Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) (image © Mike Poulton)

New volunteer dates

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We’ve just added lots of new volunteering dates to our website – the first one is this Saturday! Have a look at our Events page for all the details. Volunteering is a great way to meet new people and see the wildlife that can be found on the reserve. Hope to see you at a volunteer day on the hills soon!