The Wild Flower Society', Winter Plant Hunt 2021/22

The Wild Flower Society', Winter Plant Hunt (for Plants in flower) began on 1 December 2021 and ended today (28 February 2022). 

Wo won't be submitting records but we kept an eye out for flowering plants.

Species seen during the three-month period are as follows:

Annual Mercury

Black Horehound

Black Nightshade

Bristly Oxtongue

Common Chickweed

Common Field-Speedwell

Common Toadflax

Common Whitlowgrass

Creeping Thistle

Daisy

Dandelion

Early Dog-Violet

Gorse

Green Alkanet

Groundsel

Hairy Bitter-Cress

Hazel viz.

Herb Robert

Hoary Mustard

Ivy-Leaved Toadflax

Jersey Cudweed

Lesser Celandine

Mouse-Ear Hawkweed

Narrow-Leaved Ragwort

Nipplewort viz.

Oxford Ragwort

Primrose

Red Clover

Red Dead-Nettle

Round-Leaved Crane's-Bill

Scentless Mayweed

Shepherd's-Purse

Smooth Sow-Thistle

Sowbread

Sweet Violet

Three-Cornered Leek

White Dead-Nettle

Wild Carrot

Wild Daffodil (Lesnes Abbey Woods)

Winter Heliotrope viz.

and Yarrow

Spring is almost here

Wild Flower species seen flowering locally today:

Annual Mercury

Common Chickweed

Common Field-Speedwell

Daisy viz.

Dandelion viz.

Green Alkanet

Groundsel viz. 

Lesser Celandine

Oxford Ragwort

Primrose

Red Dead-Nettle

Shepherd's-Purse viz.

Sow-Thistle viz.

Sweet Violet

and Three-Cornered Leek

Plus Bees, Flies (including Hoverflies) and a Ladybird. 

To Rainham Marshes to look for Birds

One of our occasional Outings. Just across the River (Thames) from here: we have to get there via the Dartford Tunnel.

Bird' species seen (thirty in all):

Blue Tit

Canada Goose

Carrion Crow

Chaffinch

Collared Dove (first of the year)

Coot

Cormorant

Dunnock

Gadwall 

Greylag Goose

House Sparrow

Lapwing

Magpie

Mallard

Moorhen

Mute Swan

Pied Wagtail

Pintail (first and possibly last of the year)

Pochard

Robin

Shelduck

Shoveler

Snipe (first of the year)

Starling

Stonechat viz.

Teal

Tufted Duck

Wigeon

Wood Pigeon

and Wren (first of the year)

Lichens and Mosses seen on the Crossness Nature Reserve and Surrounding area during 2022

Lichens seen as at 6 February 2022:

Caloplaca decipiens

Caloplaca saxicola

Flavoparmelia soredians

Illosporiopsis christsenii (a Lichenicolous Fungus on Xanthoria parietina) viz.

Lecanora carpinea

Lecanora chlarotera/hybocarpa (differentiated only by microscopy) 

Lecanora dispersa agg.

Lecanora muralis

Lecidella elaeochroma

Parmelia sulcata

Phaeophyscia orbicularis

Phaeophyscia nigricans

Physcia adscendens
Physcia caesia

Physcia tenella

Xanthoria calcicola

Xanthoria elegans

Xanthoria parietina

Mosses seen as at 6 February 2022:

Brachythecium rutabulum (probable: note the light coloured glossy branch tips) viz.

Grimmia pulvinata

Orthotricum affine (probable) viz.

Orthotricum diaphanum (probable: white hairpins clearly visible on the ends of the branch tips) viz.

Records have been submitted...

Lichens growing close to Home

We have identified eleven Lichen' Species, growing close to Home viz.

Physcia adscendens and Xanthoria parietina (yellow) growing on one of the Apple Trees in the Back Garden viz.

Lecidella elaeochroma growing on the Judas Tree in the Back Garden:

Parmelia sulcata and Phaeophyscia orbicularis growing on one of the Apple Trees in the Back Garden viz.

Lecanora albescens growing on the Garage Wall viz.

Physcia caesia growing on a Road-Side Kerb Stone in front of the Bungalow viz.

Lecanora muralis growing on a Road-Side Kerb Stone in front of the Bungalow viz.

Lecanora carpinea growing on one of the Apple Trees in the Back Garden viz.

Arthonia radiata growing on one of the Apple Trees in the Back Garden viz.

Lecanora chlarotera or Lecanora hybocarpa (indistinguishable except by microscopy) growing on one of the Apple Trees in the Back Garden viz.

[picture to be included]

Footnote: these are growing on the Roof of the Bungalow: the first picture shows Lichens on the Ridge Tilea, the second picture Lichens on the Chimney:

Wild Flower Records

We need to collect records for a couple of local Monads viz. TQ4775 and TQ4776: especially Spring records such as Lesser Celandine...

A Bird Walk

It has been a while since we have done a Bird Walk: we tend to be too easily side-tracked (we had intended to look for Birds on New Year's Day but got sidetracked by Hoverflies and Wild Flowers). But despite being occasionally side-tracked by Lichens we managed to generally remain focused on Birds. 

We started out by walking through the Norman Road Field: then across the Crossness Nature Reserve up to the Thames Path and then along the Thames Path to Erith. 

We hoped to see Stonechats in the Norman Road Field and Ringed Plovers on the Thames' Foreshore. And we saw both viz.

Bird' Species recorded:

Magpie

Stonechat (first of the year)

Grey Heron

Wood Pigeon

Coot

Moorhen

Shoveler

Shelduck

Black-Headed Gull

Ringed Plover (first of the year)

Dunlin

Cormorant

Teal

Mallard

Gadwall

Dunnock (first of the year)

Linnet

Curlew

Redshank

Black-Tailed Godwit (first of the year)

Black Redstart (first of the year: seen briefly before being frightened off by a bicyclist)

Avocet (first of the year) viz.

Rock Pipit

Ring-Necked Parakeet (heard only)

Pied Wagtail

and Grey Wagtail (first of the year)

A very respectable total (for us) of twenty-six Bird' Species...

The New Year's Plant Hunt (sponsored by The Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland)

Our last ever Hunt?

Wild Flower' Species seen in flower on 1 January 2022:

Common Chickweed (TQ5078) viz.

Common Field-Speedwell (TQ4980)

Daisy (TQ4980)

Dandelion (TQ5078) viz. 

Green Alkanet (TQ5078)

Groundsel (TQ4980)

Hogweed (TQ4980)

Narrow-Leaved Ragwort (TQ4980)

Oxford Ragwort (TQ4980) viz.

Primrose (TQ5078)

Red Dead-Nettle (TQ4980)

Smooth Sow-Thistle (TQ4980)

White Dead-Nettle (TQ4980)

Wild Carrot (TQ4980)
Winter Heliotrope (TQ4980) viz.

and Yarrow (TQ4980)

The Records have been submitted...

Footnote: we hadn't actually intended to do the Plant Hunt, initially intending to focus on Birds. We decided to do the Plant Hunt after seeing Hoverflies on Dandelions and Common Chickweed beside the Grounds of St John the Baptist, Erith.

Bird' Species seen in the Thamesmead and Erith areas (in order of sighting):

Black-Headed Gull

Mallard

Coot 

Little Grebe

Cormorant

Grey Heron

Tufted Duck

Pochard

Great Crested Grebe

Robin

Common Gull

Carrion Crow

Teal

Ring-Necked Parakeet

Magpie

Mute Swan

Starling

Canada Goose

Wood Pigeon

Lesser Black-Backed Gull

House Sparrow

Great Black-Backed Gull

Blue Tit

Great Tit

Chaffinch

Goldfinch

Shelduck

Shoveler

Wigeon

Curlew

Moorhen 

Gadwall 

and Little Egret

Clovers

One of the Wild Flowers we are hoping, God Willing, to make acquaintance with during 2022, is Woolly Clover: on nearby Blackheath viz. ... https://static1.squarespace.com/static/59f5e6278dd0415634a5d915/t/5afc02ff0e2e72d2d8a67577/1526465415794/An+Introduction+to+Blackheaths+Clovers+and+Allies+Joe+Beale.pdf

Recommended areas for Clovers on Blackheath: TQ 39008 76437,  TQ39907 76820 and TQ39062 76500

During 2021 we saw Clustered Clover, Hare's-Foot Clover, Knotted Clover, Red Clover, Strawberry Clover and White Clover growing locally...

Birds: Our 2021 'Year' and 'Patch' Lists

[i] our 2021 Year List (generally including where first seen)...

Blackbird

Blackcap (Lesnes Abbey Woods)

Black-Headed Gull (the Roof of St Andrew's Church)

Black-Tailed Godwit (Thames Foreshore)

Blue Tit

Buzzard

Canada Goose (Southmere Lake)

Carrion Crow

Cetti's Warbler (heard only: Crossness Nature Reserve) 

Chaffinch (beside the Thames Path)

Collared Dove (Garden at Home)

Common Gull (Thames Foreshore)

Common Sandpiper (Thames Foreshore)

Common Snipe (Thames Foreshore)

Common Tern (close to the Outfall of the Crossness Sewage Works) viz.

Coot (Southmere Lake)

Cormorant (Thames Foreshore)

Curlew (Thames Foreshore)

Dunlin (Thames Foreshore)

Dunnock 

Egyptian Goose (on a disused Jetty/Wharf in the Woolwich area) viz.

Gadwall (Southmere Lake)

Goldfinch (Crossness Nature Reserve)

Grey Heron (Crossness Nature Reserve)

Greylag Goose (Crossness Nature Reserve)

Great Black-Backed Gull (Thames Foreshore)

Great Crested Grebe (Southmere Lake)

Great Spotted Woodpecker (Plumstead Cemetery) viz.

Great Tit

Green Woodpecker (New Woolwich Cemetery)

Grey Heron (Crossness Nature Reserve)

Grey Wagtail (Thames Foreshore)

Greylag Goose (Crosness Nature Reserve)

Herring Gull (Thames Foreshore)

House Sparrow (the Garden at Home: the first Birds seen/heard during 2021)

Jackdaw (Hall Place North)

Jay (Grounds of St Nicholas, Plumstead)

Kestrel (Bostall Heath) 

Lapwing (Thames Foreshore)

Lesser Black-Backed Gull (Thames Foreshore)

Linnet (Erith Docks area)

Little Egret (close to the Outfall of the Crossness Sewage Works) 

Little Grebe (Southmere Lake) viz.

Little Ringed Plover (Crossness Nature Reserve) viz.

Long-Tailed Tit

Magpie

Mallard (Southmere Lake)

Meadow Pipit (Crossness Nature Reserve) 

Moorhen (Southmere Lake)

Oystercatcher (Thames Foreshore)

Mute Swan (Southmere Lake)

Peregrine Falcon (on the side of the Belvedere' Waste Incinerator)

Pied Wagtail (Thames Foreshore)

Pochard (Southmere Lake) viz.

Red-Legged Partridge (Betsham, Kent)

Redshank (Thames Foreshore)

Redwing (Bostall Heath)

Ring-Necked Parakeet

Ringed Plover (Thames Foreshore)

Robin

Rock Pipit (Thames Foreshore)

Shelduck (Thames Foreshore)

Shoveler (Southmere Lake)

Song Thrush (Crossness Nature Reserve and Surrounding area)

Starling viz.

Stonechat (Crossness Nature Reserve)

Swallow

Swift

Teal (Thames Foreshore)

Tufted Duck (Southmere Lake)

Wheatear (Crossness Nature Reserve) viz.

Whinchat (Crossness Nature Reserve) 

Whitethroat (Woolwich Common)

Wigeon (swimming in the Thames)

Wood Pigeon

Wren (beside the Upper Bedon Stream)

Yellow-Legged Gull (Thames' Foreshore, Woolwich area)

[ii] our 2021 'Patch List': as with 2020, Birds seen on the 'Patch' will include Birds seen from the Footpath which runs up to the Thames from Crabtree Manorway North (in Belvedere) and thence downstream from the Thames Path, to just beyond Corinthian Manorway, in Erith...

Black-Headed Gull

Black-Tailed Godwit

Chaffinch

Collared Dove

Common Gull

Common Sandpiper

Coot

Cormorant

Curlew

Dunlin

Dunnock

Egyptian Goose

Gadwall

Great Black-Backed Gull

Great Tit

Grey Wagtail

Herring Gull

House Sparrow

Lapwing

Lesser Black-Backed Gull

Linnet

Magpie

Mallard

Moorhen

Oystercatcher

Pied Wagtail

Redshank

Ringed Plover viz.

Rock Pipit

Shelduck

Starling

Teal

Note: All Birds seen locally except for the Red-Legged Partridge...

We bicycled along the Thames Path from Erith to Woolwich and back again

Bird species seen (in no particular order): 

Black-Headed Gull
Lesser Black-Backed Gull

Herring Gull

Dunlin

Ringed Plover

Lapwing

Great Black-Backed Gull

Cormorant

Redshank

Carrion Crow

Mallard

Gadwall

Linnet 

House Sparrow

Moorhen

Teal

Shelduck

Magpie

Peregrine Falcon

Shoveller

Black-Tailed Godwit

Grey Heron

Common Snipe

Starling

Mute Swan

and Wood Pigeon

viz. twenty-seven species in total