Wild East Devon June newsletter

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Wild East Devon news - East Devon District Council

Last chance to book on this week's medicine walk

medicine walk

After the success of her first medicine walk, Herbalist Maggie is back with a whole series of walks to satisfy the demand for interesting discoveries.  You can join Maggie this Saturday for the second of her walks around Holyford Woods looking at plants and their traditional uses as well as how they are still used today.

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Summer holiday club: two weeks of outdoor fun

Build a shelter

Seaton Wetlands' holiday club for children is now open for bookings. It runs for two weeks from Monday 1st August until Friday 5th August, and again on Monday 15th August until Friday 19th August.

Led by our experienced Education Ranger Penny, your child will explore the wetlands and learn about it’s wildlife, make crafts using small tools and natural materials, cook over the campfire and play.

The club runs for two separate weeks in August and you can book per day or for the whole week.

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What to look out for this month

caterpillar

Keep your eyes peeled this month and you may spot:

Caterpillars

Look closely as you pass hedgerows and shrubs and you might spot the nibbling’s of caterpillars. Look out for the tell tail signs of missing leaves on branches. Caterpillars are growing in size making them easier to spot like this striking mullein moth caterpillar.

Thick-legged flower beetle

Thick-legged flower beetles can easily be spotted in almost every open-structured flower at this time of year. True to their name they have swollen thighs and a metallic emerald green colouration. They pollinate as they travel from flower to flower feeding on pollen and nectar.

Thick-legged flower beetle

Nightjars

Having arrived back from Africa last month, nightjars have already set up their territories. Listen out for their eerie churr as you visit the heaths at dusk. Trinity Hill is a great location to spot nightjars as they feed on moths and defend their territories.

Nightjar (c) Neil Harris

Volunteer at Seaton Wetlands' Discovery Hut

volunteers

From conservation, path maintenance, wildlife surveying to greeting visitors at nature reserves, there’s a whole host of volunteering opportunities on offer with our countryside team. Give it a try and you may find that it's a rewarding experience, helping others appreciate our outstanding countryside.

If you enjoy meeting people and care about nature, join us at our Discovery Hut at Seaton Wetlands, where you can enthuse visitors about the local wildlife and serve refreshments, just like Les and her husband Pete (pictured). Les said:

At the moment, we volunteer every Monday morning but it doesn’t have to be the same every week. You can just give whatever time suits you. You can also tell people about the wildlife, including a kestrel camera showing their nest with 4 chicks!

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Violet Oil Beetle spotted at Knapp Copse

Violet Oil Beetle

Nature reserve rangers Jon and Ben were excited to spot this beautiful Violet Oil Beetle (Meloe violaceus) munching away next to one of the new ponds at Knapp Copse early this month.

Adult violet oil beetles start off with small abdomens but, as you can see in the photo, they quickly extend as they gorge themselves on soft grasses and flowers such as Lesser celandine. Female beetles lay eggs in underground burrows and when the larvae emerge they climb to the top of flowers waiting to hitch a ride on mining bees as they collect pollen. Once they’ve been transported back to the bee’s nest, they survive by eating the stores of pollen and nectar within the nest before emerging as adults.

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Meet our new Seaton Wetlands assistant ranger

say hello to Lydia

I'm Lydia Rackham and I’ve recently joined the Wild East Devon team as an Assistant Wetlands Ranger. I’ve recently moved down from Worcestershire and am very excited to join the team and contribute towards the conservation of East Devon’s wildlife. I’ll be mainly based at Seaton Wetlands enjoying all of the wonders there but you may see me on some of the other reserves from time to time too.

I have always been passionate about the environment, the wildlife who inhabit it and how I can do my bit to protect it however, I only ever thought it could be something to enjoy in my spare time. After spending a few years in an administrative role within the NHS I decided that conservation was a passion I truly wanted to pursue as a career so decided to go back into education to help me get there. Following the completion of my degree in Animal Behaviour and Wildlife Conservation, I gained some practical experience by completing a conservation traineeship at Worcestershire Wildlife Trust and now nearly 5 years later from when I started have managed to get my dream job.

I’m looking forward to learning from the rest of the team and am incredibly grateful to have been given the opportunity to work on the Local Nature Reserves here, I feel extremely lucky to spend my days outside engaging with the public and helping our flora and fauna thrive. I look forward to meeting you all soon and excited to see what’s to come in my new role!