The spring Big River Watch will be this weekend, from 3rd to 6th May 2024. It’s a citizen science activity that helps build a picture of river health across the UK and Ireland. Will you join us by taking 15 minutes to give a snapshot of the River Almond?
It’s easy to take part:
Step 1: Download the app Download the free Big River Watch app on your smartphone before visiting your chosen river. Download the app from Apple App Store or Google Play
Step 2: Take part At some point between the 3rd and the 6th, pick a spot along the River Almond. Spend just 15 minutes observing, and answer the survey questions on the app. You’ll comment on the things you see – from wildlife and plants, to the flow speed of the water, and whether you can spot any pollution. If you’re not sure what you’re seeing, there are handy in-app ID guides for pollution and wildlife.
Step 3: Upload Upload your Big River Watch survey. It’s that simple!
The City Nature Challenge is an international effort for people to find and document plants and wildlife in cities across the globe 1. It’s a bioblitz-style competition where cities are in a friendly contest with each other to see who can make the most observations of nature, who can find the most species, and who can engage the most people 2
As more of us live in cities, it is important that we understand how different species are adapting to the habitats in them, to find ways to make homes for them and ensure their protection.
You don’t need any previous experience of nature recording – all you need is your phone with the iNaturalist app on it. The only criteria for submitting records is that the photo must be of wild species so no pets or garden plants. No expert knowledge needed as the app will help to ID findings, or photos can be shared with the global community that use the app for an answer.
You can record what you see from your windows, spot in your flower boxes, find outside in your gardens or balconies or see in your local park or greenspaces. Just Remember to follow government advice and social distancing guidelines while being a citizen scientist!
Download the iNaturalist app or register on their website, join the “City Nature Challenge 2024: Greater Edinburgh” project, then start taking pictures of wild things!
If you want a hand setting up the iNaturalist app to take part, come along to the Growing Together Biodiversity Roadshow in Almond Park today, 26th April, 1:30-3pm, at the Selm Park entrance. Almond Valley Nature Action will be there to help you get started with the #CityNatureChallenge
City Nature Challenge is an international event motivating people to spot and record wildlife in their local area.
In 2023, 102 people recorded 1325 observations of 457 different species in the Greater Edinburgh project area. Can you help the Greater Edinburgh project record more species this year?
Why participate?
We can only protect wildlife if they know it is there. By participating in the City Nature Challenge, not only do you learn more about your local nature, but you can also make your city a better place! Your observation efforts can help protect nature in the spaces where you live and inform plans for tackling the ecological emergency in the UK.
Download the iNaturalist app on your phone, or if you prefer register and account on the website.
Join the project “City Nature Challenge 2024: Greater Edinburgh”
Take photos of plants, animals, fungi and other signs of life. You can also make recordings of bird song. Don’t include garden plants, or photos of pets
Upload and share your findings on the app, or your online account
You don’t need to be an expert; the app will give you some suggestions and experts will verify your sightings.
Check out the Natural History Consortium’s guide on using iNaturalist for iPhone users and for Android users on their website, to get started and learn some top tips for recording wildlife.
Fancy joining a group to take part?
Our local projects will be out and about contributing to the City Nature Challenge on Friday and Saturday. We will be on hand to help you set up an account and make observations on the iNaturalist app.
Friday 26/04/2024 – Join our Craigshill project from 13:30-15:00. More details on our Facebook post
Saturday 27/04/2024 – Join our Livingston Village project at 11am. More details on our Facebook event
Willow tree catkins with a tree bumblebee feeding on the pollen (honest it’s there look closely!)
After a wet and windy start to April it was a wonder and a half that this months R&C happened in a window of dry weather! Setting off through the playing fields towards the woods, our eye was immediately drawn to a willow tree with catkins loaded with pollen. This is a great early food source for queen bumblebees and we saw two tree bumblebee queens feeding from them.
Tree bumblebee queen
This species can be identified by their ginger thorax, black body and white tail. They are relatively new to Scotland, first recorded in 2013, they seem to be doing well here!
We walked down to the river and wandered along the path looking at the new lush spring growth. Getting down to have a closer look, one of us got the first sting of the year from a stinging nettle so we looked for the leaves of the plantain plant, much better for treating nettle stings than the dock leaves that we learned growing up!
Using a combination of field guides from the Field Studies Council, phone apps (Obsidentify and iNaturalist), and our own group knowledge we managed to identify many of the plants.
ColtsfootForget-me-notInvasive plant of the leek family
Lesser celandine
Wood anemone
There were quite a few wildflowers flowering, with lots of lesser celandine, coltsfoot, dandelions and daisies. We did find patches of forget-me-nots and wood anemones too. Jane recognised the invasive leek plant on the riverbank, and we also identified dotted loosestrife, rosebay willowherb and common bistort. We even learned a new word from the wildflower guide – appressed – meaning pressed close but not attached!
Lady’s mantle
Crossing over the river we stopped at a pile of mossy boulders. These were covered in new growth with even foxgloves trying to establish themselves on the stone! There were lots of wild strawberries around and Jane showed us lady’s mantle, which holds beads of water that make them sparkle in the sunlight. We also saw a buff tailed queen bumblebee which disappeared into a pile of sticks and branches on the ground, possibly it’s nest inside.
We walked on along the trail passing three old hawthorns dripping in lichen, seemingly singled out as the preferred hosts from all the other trees.
Violets
During the walk we had been listening to the various birdsongs, occasionally using the Merlin app to confirm our IDs. The chiff-chaffs with their non-stop song and the great tits, coal tits, blue tits, robins, blackbirds, and song thrushes all singing too. But then we heard the willow warbler, with it’s wonderful melodious song. It’s really lovely to hear this migrant bird back in the woods, newly returned to breed here.
Andri then spotted a patch of violets growing under some scrub. Beautiful!
Golden saxifrage
We walked on admiring some golden saxifrage that really stood out with its bright yellow on green. Then, quietly through the trees on the other side of a fence, three roe deer walked passed, completely unbothered by our presence!
We admired some grand old beech trees with enormous twisted trunks, marked by big scores on the bark, and then to our surprise, a black coloured butterfly flew past! It was blown a bit by the wind and went too quickly for us to see what species it was. Unfortunately it crossed a burn where we couldn’t follow. We later recorded it on the Field Studies Council, Signs of Spring page since its not necessary to know the exact species for this survey – handy!
Walking under the railway bridge Jane spotted another interesting plant that smells of aniseed – sweet cicely, then the last of our wildflower finds of the day were water avens and marsh marigolds growing at the edge of a boggy area.
sweet cicelywater avensmarsh marigold
The last surprise of the walk was a little treecreeper, seen hopping up a tree before it flew off!
We stopped at the Limefield falls to see the waterfall and look for any dippers that are often seen around there. We didn’t see any this time, but after all the wildlife finds we had seen we didn’t mind! Our one hour ramble had turned into two hours and we enjoyed every minute of it. To spend time in nature with like minded folk is time to be treasured! Why not join us next time, you never know what you’ll see!
Suggestions on flowering plants to introduce in your garden (including native plants) and companion planting
Bumblebee on sunflower Grey dagger moth caterpillar Small white butterfly caterpillars on brassica leavesBuff tailed bumblebee on helleboreSilver y moth on strawberry plantRed admiral butterfly on buddleia
It’s that time of the year, when we all start thinking about new plants to add to our gardens. As the weather warms up and we spend more time outdoors, we want to create a colourful, inviting space.
Zero Waste Scotland recognises that our private gardens have an important role in supporting declining biodiversity. Private gardens add up to an area bigger than all national nature reserves in the UK! Our choices can have positive impacts on local biodiversity. We all need to find the balance that meets our outdoor space needs, without negatively impacting our ecosystem and life cycles of other creatures.
In this blog I am focusing on 2 steps you can take to support pollinators in your garden. This is based on my personal experience, I am not an expert and my own garden is far from being a “wildlife” garden. But I wanted to share some of my own observations on what helped attract bees, moths and butterflies in my garden. I was actually amazed at the number of different species I noticed in my garden last year, simply by adding a variety of nectar rich flowering plants, and stop fighting “unwanted” creatures (no more slug hand picking for me).
1. Choose pollinator friendly plants for your garden, balcony, or window planters
Pollinators need flowers rich in nectar (their food) and pollen (used for feeding their larvae).
Add a variety of flower shapes to accommodate different pollinator preferences. Some bees have long tongues, so they love bell shaped flowers like foxgloves, some have short tongues and prefer flowers with an open centre, like daisies.
Think about plants that flower early in spring and those who will flower later in the season, to provide food for a longer period.
Night scented flowers are beneficial for species like moths
Look for the RHS good for pollinators stamp on the seed packages and the plant’s label if buying plug plants
If you can add some native plants that’s even better. That’s because native plants have co-evolved with Scottish animals, and some species will still depend on them for parts of their lifecycles. One example is the kidney vetch, which is the food plant for small blue butterfly caterpillars (Read about the conservation story here). Yarrow (achillea millefolium), foxgloves (digitalis purpurea), meadow crane’s bill ( geranium pratense), oxeye daisy (leucanthemum vulgare), birds foot trefoil ( lotus corniculatus), primroses (primula vulgaris) and cowslip (primula veris), common valerian (valerian officinalis) are some plants noted to be beneficial to bees, moths, butterflies in the book Scottish Plants for Scottish Gardens.
Herbs are also loved by bees (thyme, chives, rosemary, oregano for example) with the added benefits of a beautiful scent, giving you a crop and reducing your plastic waste compared to buying them from the supermarket.
If you have the space, think about introducing shrubs and native trees. Hawthorn, ivy, wild and bird cherry and holly are a few suggestions (from the same book) that support pollinators (either as flowers provide nectar, or leaves being a food source for caterpillars) and will attract birds in the garden.
Some plants are known to be invasive, buddleia is one of them. For these plants, think about how to reduce the chances of self seeding. I deadhead my buddleias a few times in the summer, as soon as the flowers fade.
Finally, if you have a lawn, this can be maintained to be wildlife friendly; and you don’t have to transform your garden to a wildflower meadow (although many species will benefit if you do). Consider adding some chamomile, creeping thyme or red and white clover, species that grow quite low. The National History Museum has some more tips on How to grow a lawn that is better for wildlife .
Foxglove, buddleia and nasturtium are mostly visited by pollinators in summer. In early spring, I have seen bumblebees on skimmia, primrose and hellebore (so far).
2. Try companion planting and create habitats to attract natural predators, to avoid pesticide and herbicide use
Companion planting can be used to deter pests from your plants. Find some suggested combinations in this Wildlife Trusts article, and beneficial plants to include in your garden in this PETA pesticide-free guide.
Attract natural predators; feed the birds, create habitats such as log piles, small ponds, wildflower patches. For a how to guide, have a look at the Go pesticide-free in your garden guide from Bumblebee Conversation Trust
Wait for your seedlings to grow a bit bigger before planting them out, this will give them a better chance. Plan for losses, and plant a few more plugs.
Resources
I include below some links to useful “how to” lists as well as lists of plants to add to your garden.
The Bumblebee Conversation Trust has prepared planting guides for each month(March-November), with easy to grow plants. Just scroll to the bottom of the page.
The Butterfly Conservation Trust website has a Gardening section, including tips for urban gardening and what to plant to help moths and butterflies. Remember to add both nectar rich plants and food plants in your garden to ensure support for the full lifecycle of moths and butterflies.
Where to buy native seed: for our local projects, we used the following shops
Where to buy native trees: you can find saplings of native trees on the Woodland Trust’s shop . If you are visiting a garden centre, you can always ask for help in choosing a suitable native tree. Having a note of the Latin name of the tree is always a good tip ( when I went to buy a Rowan, I came home with a Japanese Rowan variety, rather than Sorbus aucuparia).
We have another special event coming up in May. A gentle walk, led by local forager Amy Rankine. We’ll learn about wild plants, connect with nature, and share tea made with foraged ingredients! This is a free event but places are limited and booking via Eventbrite is required.
We will be walking in Almondell & Calderwood Country Park. However, we’re currently seeking permission from the Ranger Service for our first choice location. So, details of the exact meeting point and additional details will be provided later.
Spring is in full swing in April and we will be hearing it loud and clear on this months Ramble and Chat walk! We will be heading out on Sunday the 14th of April from the village of Polbeth, following a circular route through a mixed species woodland, and walking alongside the Harwood Water river.
Overall the walk is of a leisurely grade, following some paths and woodland trails with uneven areas. The majority of the walk is on level ground, with some steps near the beginning and the walk incorporates some occasional short inclines.
Walk Route
After leaving the meeting point at the playing fields, we’ll walk down the steps to pass under the railway, following along the river. We’ll turn off before West Calder High school, crossing to the other side of the river then walking through the woodland proper. The trail can be muddy in places and boots or appropriate footwear are highly recommended! We pass back under the railway eventually leaving the woodland at Stable Lane, then cross back to the playing fields. We’ll stop at the viewing point for Limefield Falls and from there it’s a short walk back to the starting point.
Ramble notes
We should be able to hear a variety of our resident birds on this walk. There are often great-spotted woodpeckers in this area and we might also hear nuthatches in the woods! We’ll hopefully also hear chiff-chaffs as they return to breed here, and if we’re really lucky we might see the blue flash of a kingfisher along the river!
We’ll pass by a point of historical interest at Limefield Falls, where a tribute was built to the explorer Dr Livingstone by his friend James ‘Paraffin’ Young. This 8ft high waterfall is modelled as a miniature version of the Victoria Falls on the Zambezi river! A few years ago a fish ladder was installed to let them access the river upstream once more. At the foot of the falls white-throated dippers are often seen bobbing and dipping. These amazing little birds can walk along the bottom of rivers and they’re also powerful swimmers hunting their insect prey underwater!
White throated dipper
In addition to the birds, we’ll continue looking at the Field Studies Council signs of spring survey. We’ll be watching for the developing flowers of the hawthorns and we might see orange-tipped butterflies too as they can be on the wing in Scotland from mid April onwards.
PHOTOGRAPHY AVNA members may take photographs during the event which may be shared on social media, with our funders, and in other written and online publications. If you do not wish to appear in any photos or videos then please let us know.
Please keep an eye on the weather forecast and dress accordingly. In the event of severe weather please check our social media for updates.
Larch rose – the female structure of larch trees which will develop into the brown larch cone after pollination
Sunday 10 March, Eliburn Park, 2-3pm
A light drizzle did not stop us spending an hour or so in Nature on Sunday afternoon.
Walking through the woodland, we attempted to identify bird song ( admittedly we used the Merlin app to confirm our speculations). We proceeded to walk along the National Cycling Route 75 towards the Pyramid of Life, noticing the lichen and moss covered deadwood, spotting hazel trees and learning about identifying Hawthorn and Horse Chestnut trees. On our way back, we stopped to photograph the beautiful larch roses – something that none of us had noticed before, and watched the swans, mallards, moorhen and tufted ducks in the reservoir.
Larch rose A cluster of larch rosesHawthorn berry (last year’s berries can still be found on trees, helping us identify them)Checking out Lochshot BurnHorse chestnut tree budHazel flowerHawthorn budburstHawthorn tree
We promoted Nature’s Calendar to participants, and highlighted four key seasonal events (amongst others) that can be recorded. We discussed how to identify horse chestnut and hawthorn trees, and the changes in season to look out for later in the year.
Here’s some of our observations:
Horse Chestnut trees have a big, brown/red buds, which are sticky. If you have a closer look at a branch, you can notice the leaf scar resembling a horse shoe shape. The leaves appear in April, followed by candle like, tall flowers. Ripe conkers can be seen from late summer.
Hawthorn is easier to identify as some of last year’s berries still remain on trees, and as the name suggests, you can see the thorns on the branches. Hawthorn leaves emerge first from mid February, while flowers bloom in April -May. Another name for Hawthorn is Mayflower.
We hope that participants will now be able to recognise these trees in their local areas and having “adopted” a hawthorn and horse chestnut tree that they can monitor regularly, they will log their observations and help track these seasonal changes.
Woodland Trust – Nature’s Calendar
The full list of species monitored on the Nature’s Calendar, including what to look out for and when, can be downloaded from the Nature’s Calendar website.
Overall, everyone in our small group of 7 seemed to enjoy the walk, despite the cold temperatures. There’s always an opportunity to learn from fellow ramblers, or notice something new when spending time in nature, be it a new bird species or a leafburst! We also enjoyed getting to know and chatting with Jocelyn from West Lothian Climate Action Hub.
Our next Ramble and Chat will be on Sunday 14th of April, full details will follow soon on our Events page.
There’s a few remaining spots on our Tree Identification nature walk on 23 March, see all details below.
Join us on Saturday 23 March for a nature walk with a focus on learning to identify native broadleaf trees. The event is suitable for beginners, and children are welcome when accompanied by a parent.
Meeting point: Tennis court, next to Charlesfield Lane car park
Start time: 2:00 pm.
Route: We will follow a circular route, and walk on established paths. This is a slow paced activity with plenty of opportunities for a break on available park benches. We will return to the start point, where we will share a hot drink.
How to get here: The closest bus stops are Kilne Place and Quarrywood Court (around 20 minutes walk from meeting point), check out Lothian Country’s route 72 timetable. From St Johns Hospital and/or the Bus Terminal at the Centre, it’s a 25 minute walk.
Please check the weather forecast and wear suitable clothing and footwear. We expect parts of the route to be muddy.
PHOTOGRAPHY AVNA members will be taking photographs during the event. These may be shared on Social Media, with our funders, and in other written and online publications. If you do not wish to appear in any photos or videos, please email us at almondvalleynatureaction@gmail.com
We are grateful for the support of West Lothian Climate Action Network WLCAN’S Eco Fund for funding this event. We are also thankful to our trainer from The Conservation Volunteers for leading this walk.
On Sunday 10 March 2024, we will meet at Eliburn Park for our second Ramble and Chat event.
In these one hour informal walks, we take the opportunity to notice nature, chat about things that draw our attention and share knowledge. We also participate in Citizen Science, and share information about how you can get involved. February ‘s report will give you an idea on what these walks involve.
Meeting point: the grass area next to Livingston Community Football Club, in Eliburn Park.
Meeting time: 14:00 ( if walking/cycling from Livingston Village why not meet us at 14:15 where the two paths meet – see below point on map)
How to get here: The start point is about 15 minutes walk from Livingston North Station. The closest bus stop is Kilne Place (around 18 minutes walk from meeting point), check out Lothian Country’s route 72 timetable.
Route: We will follow establishing paths to walk from Eliburn Park to National Cycle Route 75, and walk towards the Pyramid of Life. We will return to the starting point.
This event is during the British Science Week, so we will discuss how to take part in one of the suggested activities; monitoring species this Spring and record on Nature’s Calendar. We will identify horse chestnut and hawthorn trees along the route, so you can confidently spot them and monitor these trees closer to your home. We will also continue looking for Signs of Spring and contributing to Field Studies Council Survey.
Please check the weather forecast and wear suitable clothing and footwear.
We look forward to seeing you.
PHOTOGRAPHY AVNA members will be taking photographs during the event. These may be shared on Social Media, with our funders, and in other written and online publications. If you do not wish to appear in any photos or videos, please email us at almondvalleynatureaction@gmail.com
RESOURCES
A short video explaining all about Nature’s Calendar.
Almond Valley Nature Action 