This distinctive fungus is often seen in groups, (referred to by botanists as ‘troops’). This particular specimen was photographed at the beginning of this week in the open cut grass area between the Wom Brook Walk footpath and the brook.
By Tuesday, all specimens had gone. Usually left alone, they blacken and turn to liquid.
Caution! Unless you are well versed in the identification of fungi (mushrooms and toadstools), some species are deadly poisonous, and it is best to avoid picking and eating them at all costs.
At the end of September, South Staffordshire Council hosted a Friends’ Groups meeting, bringing together voluntary environmental and community groups from the South Staffordshire Council district. The event provided an opportunity for the Friends Groups to share their successes, network and support one another.
Graham Peak from Staffordshire Wildlife Trust provided an interesting overview of the concept associated with Friends groups.
There were presentations by both the Friends of Wom Brook and the Friends of Essington.
Our thanks go to Howard Medlicott (Landscape Manager, South Staffordshire Council), Clodagh Peterson (South Staffordshire Council, Policy & Partnerships) and colleagues from South Staffordshire Council for their hospitality.
Links:
Staffordshire Wildlife Trust
South Staffordshire Council-Architectural & Landscape Services
South Staffordshire Council-Policy & Partnerships
Two sets of tubular metal hand rails (arrowed, above) have been put in place this week, on the sections of footpath leading down to both sides of the Wom Brook, within the Gravel Hill section of the Wom Brook Walk.
Several people have fallen on both these sections, and the South Staffordshire Council have a duty of care to reduce the risk of further falls.
Although not especially in keeping with the recent wooden features that have enhanced the various entrances to the Wom Brook Walk, South Staffordshire Council were left with no option but to resort to erecting metal hand rails, due to the inevitable future attentions the local branch of Anarchists Anonymous would give to wooden ones. (Their unwelcome efforts have been regularly seen in the past along the South Staffordshire Railway Walk, where the wooden hand rail leading up to Ounsdale Road has been a frequent target of malicious vandalism.)
The predominantly black ladybird photographed above was recently observed on a broken conifer branch found along the Wom Brook Walk.
It is likely that this is not a native species to the British Isles. This assumption is based upon infromation gleaned from the BBC website, which displays a very similar species, called the harlequin ladybird,, and accords it the title of ‘Alien Ladybird’.
Apparently it was introduced from Asia as a means of pest control-its mission to feed on aphids that were damaging food crops. However, the harlequin ladybirds didn’t confine their efforts to aphids-but also attacked our own native ladybirds.
Have a look at the BBC link HERE.
One of the Friends of Wom Brook’s primary aims is to monitor sightings of the resident water voles along the brook in Wombourne. The above photo was taken by Richard Claxton while he was recently videoing one of the Wom Brook Walk’s water voles.
Why is the water vole so important?
Water voles are identified by the UK government as an endangered species, with numbers rather alarmingly having declined by 90% in the last ten years. In addition to being hunted for food by predators such as buzzards, mink also prey on water voles. Dogs and cats can also hunt them, and sections of their natural habitat along the banks of the brook in Wombourne have on occasions been invaded by over-zealous dogs burrowing into the soil in an attempt to reach them.
Some horse riders, blissfully unaware that they are also in breach of a local by-law by riding their mounts along the Wom Brook Walk, permit their animals to erode the banks of the brook in giving them access to the water.
In an attempt to halt the rapid decline in water vole numbers, legislation was introduced in 2008 that empowers the Environment Agency/Natural England to impose a fine of £5000 on any individual or organisation found to be endangering either the lives or the habitat of the water vole.
Hopefully these measures, as well as actively conserving local habitats such as the Wom Brook in Wombourne will help to arrest the rapid decline in water vole numbers, and ensure Kenneth Grahame’s famous ‘Ratty’ (from the book, ‘The Wind in the Willows’) remains a reality and not just a character in a book.
You can view all of Richard’s video footage on YouTube-click on the this link