A tree guard a day keeps the rabbits away!

Countryside management students made use of the college supply of willow this week by making tree guards. This task tested the skills and the patients of the group as the intricate weaving of the willow rods was tuff to master. Angus and Rob demonstrated great greenwood skills with their tree guard taking shape by the end of the task.

 

 

A ‘Shrew’d Observation

The harvest mouse search carries on, and so far students have trapped everything but the target organism with wood mice, common shrews (see pictures, where HE students Joe and Neil seem to look rather proud of their find!) and bank voles all turning up in the live capture traps. The search continues……

Where do Hedgehogs go at Night?!

Well, BSc Land Management student David Wallis is involved in a project to find out. Through an established staff link with Shepreth Wildlife Park, David and a small team of zoo staff and academics are working on developing some GPS technology to monitor what happens to hedgehogs when they are released into the wild. Many of these animals are found by members of the public who take them to animal sanctuaries. It is hoped that with more thought given to the suitability of release sites, more of these hedgehogs will expand their ranges and once again become a common site in the farmland and gardens of England.

 

The project was recently featured in a BBC news article which you can read about here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-22112672

 

The Great Crested Newt Hunt

Great crested newts are fully protected under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981 and until now the only individual ever found at the College was a lone stowaway found in the folds of some waders from a netting session at Foxholes Fisheries near Crick some years ago. These amphibians are highly elusive so a combination of cunning and somewhat bizarre survey methods need to be employed to find them.
 

Using a combination of manual netting, egg searching, live capture trapping (using homemade ‘bottle traps’ made from fizzy drinks bottles) and nocturnal torch surveying animal studies and countryside management staff have managed to find a small breeding population in a pond on the eastern margins of the estate. The site will now be re-fenced to protect from livestock and dead wood piles created to provide terrestrial refugia for the population.
 

 It should be noted that these animals are protected by law and handling or trapping them normally requires licensed permission from Natural England.
 

Picture shows newt egg laying evidence – great crested newt eggs are laid singly in the folded leaves of marginal vegetation and have a cream coloured embryo.

 

 

Dead hedge comes to life…..

Countryside management students continued their work on the coppicing coupe at Hardwick’s wood. As the trees were felled they were processed with all the unusable material being packed into the dead hedge. As you can see from the pictures the dead hedge continues to grow in size each week providing an excellent habitat for the inhabitants of the wood.

"The Simpsons" Biodiversity Index....

Countryside Management students got out in the glorious sunshine today to carry out a survey on the college hedgerows. The idea of the survey is to record the range and abundance of the species growing in the hedgerows and then using the Simpson Biodiversity Index calculate the wildlife value of each of the hedgerows.

Not even the recent snow stops the countryside Management students....

A group of intrepid countryside management students were treated to a winter survival skills session from Countryside lecturer Geoff Guy. Having lived in Sweden Geoff is very knowledgeable on the topic of keeping warm in freezing conditions. The students followed Geoff’s instructions and soon had themselves a cosy little igloo…..

 

Conservation in Practice at the Great Fen Project, Cambridgeshire

Foundation Degree in Countryside and Wildlife Management students were treated to a day long visit to the Great Fen Project, Cambridgeshire. Taking in walks of Wicken Fen, Holme Fen and Wood Walton Fen students were able to see first hand how these extensive wetland habitats are managed for the conservation of species and what the ecological restoration progress has been. The highlight of the trip was probably the extensive birch woodland at Holme Fen - a very surreal place indeed.

To learn more about the Great Fen project click here: http://www.greatfen.org.uk/.

A ‘Gate’-way to Green Woodcraft Success!

Monday is greenwood craft day at the College, and Subsidiary Diploma Countryside Management students have been busy refining their craft skills in constructing some rustic gate hurdles by hand and made from sustainably felled timber in the woods around them.
 

The 6’ wide gate hurdle were traditionally used to pen in livestock and the design has not changed for hundreds of years. Typically hurdles consist of five rails whose ends are planed into tapering tenons that fit securely into mortises drilled into the two end uprights. By adding a couple of diagonal braces and strops, the final hurdle is completed. In the last few sessions, students have felled their timber and cut it to shape, and have just started work on the mortise and tenon joins to bring the work together.

 

Check back to the blog to see how they are progressing in a few weeks time!
 

 

Countryside Management students end the week building bridges….

Countryside Management students spent Friday afternoon trialling the new bridge building task. The bridge pack is used to test the communication, team work and practical skills of the students. The Countryside Management students made light work of the bridge dismantling it and reconstructing it in no time at all.

 

 

Nature and the Seasons: A Delayed Year for Wildlife on the Farm

With the recent prolonged cold spells, nature is evidently trying to catch up as neatly observed by countryside management students studying at Moulton College. The green-woodworking group commented on Monday about the late emergence of spring woodland flowers including bluebells and wild garlic at Hardwick Woods and closer to home today students noted the first chiffchaff recorded on the estate this year. This is generally a spring arrival to the UK and rather unfortunately is termed as one of Britain’s most boring birds to look at! Perhaps this view is slightly unfair, as the small sized olive-brown warbler nimbly darts through the trees looking for food. It is best recognised by its distinctive tail wagging habit. Just out of interest the ‘science of the seasons’ is called phenology, and you can find a link to discover more courtesy of the Woodland Trust here: http://www.naturescalendar.org.uk/research/phenology.htm.

 

 

Countryside Management students successfully rear Japanese Quail

Countryside Management Students at Moulton College have recently seen the rewards of many weeks of hard work and effort. The eight week old Japanese Quail which they have raised from eggs are now fully grown and will soon start laying eggs of their own.

Back in February students took delivery of a batch of Japanese Quail eggs which they then reared as part of their game bird production unit. This unit gives them an opportunity to learn how to rear game birds to supply shooting estates. Although these quail will never be released on a shoot like pheasants or partridge they are capable of producing fertile eggs all year round unlike British game birds. This gives the Countryside Management students a perfect opportunity to carry out a rearing project all the way from egg to adult bird.

Once the eggs had arrived the students operated the Brinsea OvaEasy incubator to incubate the eggs for the required 17 days. They kept records of fluctuations in temperature, humidity and egg weight as well as checking the progress of incubation using a method called candling. This method required the group to shine the light of a torch through the egg shell to check for signs of development.

At 15 days the incubator’s automatic egg turner was switched off to provide a stable platform for the hatching chicks and within a couple of days students found the first chicks had hatched. Over the next 24 hours the hatch continued until the chicks could be transferred from the incubator to their permanent indoor enclosure where they would remain for the first two weeks of their lives. During this time students learned how to carry out health checks, mix medicated feed and maintain cleanliness and biosecurity. After two weeks the chicks were transferred to an outside run which the students had built which is supplied with electricity to power the heat lamps to keep the birds warm. Students have continued to monitor the progress of the birds most recently learning to sex them ready for sale.

Live Small Mammal Trapping and Land Management Options for the College Estate

Higher Education students have been helping to gather some baseline data in a study that seeks to determine the habitat value of new agri-environmental land management options for small mammals. The farm is currently signed up to Entry Level Stewardship – a five year European funded scheme governed by Natural England that encourages land owners to manage their land to meet conservation objectives for farmland birds, soil and water protection and other wildlife.

One option that delivers the most for wildlife is the wild bird seed mixture. This can be established as an annual or biennial mixture and can help to provide food for farmland birds in late winter during the so called ‘hungry gap’. Yet what is not so clear  is how these mixtures will benefit other animal groups.

Allied to some work on one of Britain’s smallest non-volant mammals – the harvest mouse – FdSc Countryside & Wildlife Management students have recently set out some trap lines in a mystery location on the estate to attempt to estimate presence and potentially population sizes of harvest mice. Modified Longworth and Wellfield live capture traps have been set at 20 metre intervals along transects and these will be checked every day by the students. Any captured animals will be marked as part of a ‘capture-mark-recapture’ method to elucidate population sizes and home ranges. This information will give us an insight as to whether the bird seed mix option delivers benefit to other important groups at the base of the farmland food web.

 Check back to the blog next week to see what we find!

Tractor Driving

Phil Spriggs ends this afternoon’s tractor driving session with and expert demonstration of tractor parking!

Down at the Woods Today......

On Monday a group of Countryside Management students started putting their woodland habitat management skills to good use. The group travelled down to Hardwick’s Wood and started work on a coppice coupe. The coppicing work will help promote the regrowth of hazel and ash trees that grow freely on the site. It should also encourage the natural regeneration of woodland ground flora which could improve the visual beauty of the site and also the wildlife value.

To ensure a valuable habitat for small mammals and invertebrates was retained the students also started to construct a deadheaded around the coupe. This task was a great example of team work with the whole group involved in the different stages of the task. As quickly as Terry could put points on the end of the posts Josh and Joe were driving them into the ground. With the rest of the group back filling the hedge with the waste material that was being cut down the dead hedge quickly took shape.

Countryside Management students show that their practical skills are the bee’s knees

Countryside Management students have recently been looking at habitat improvement as part of their Ecology Unit. Having looked at the importance of insects within habitats in the classroom it was time for the group to put their practical skills to the test! All students had the opportunity to create insect boxes which are the perfect hiding place for small insects over the winter months. With the college housing its own on site bee hives the importance of insect diversity on the farm is clear.

The group threw themselves into the task with great gusto and were soon reaping the rewards of their efforts. By the end of the session there was a collection of well-constructed insect boxes as well as a couple of a slightly more rustic nature.

The newly created insect boxes will be hung in areas of woodland local to the college to act as imitation tree hollows. This is a habitat that has declined significantly in some areas due to health and safety concerns surrounding dead trees in public areas.

Countryside and Environment Students see light at the end of the tunnel.

 Moulton College Countryside and Environment students have been exploring the Northamptonshire Countryside visiting several country parks and recreation sites as part of their Access and Recreation module. Students particularly enjoyed their visit to Kelmarsh Tunnel. The 480 meter tunnel which was opened in 1859 is a great example of British engineering. Sadly the tunnel was deemed surplus to requirements as railway line in 1984. The former Northampton to Market Harborough Railway is now a beautiful car free trail forming part of Route 6 of the National Cycle Network.

The students arrived excited and apprehensive about walking through the disused railway tunnel which is also rich in local history. The tunnel is pitch black and students had to work together to make their way through safely. Inevitably, students attempted to scare each other throughout the walk through the tunnel!

Afterwards the group looked at how the access route differed from others that they had visited in previous lessons and how it has become a visitor attraction.

Further Education - Greenwood Craft and Countryside Management – a Curious Tale of ‘Bodging’ and Harry Potter Brooms!

 A growing interest in the sustainable management of woodlands and forests  in England has created some economic opportunities, and the renaissance in greenwood crafts has been core to this. With a long-standing collaboration with the Forestry Commission giving access to woodland sites in the county, further education students studying countryside management at the College have been getting to grips with the very ancient practice of ‘bodging’ (i.e.: wood turning using a ‘person powered’ pole lathe to you and I), fashioning rustic hurdle fences from living trees, carving spoons and whistles and even making ‘besom brooms’ – as featured in the Harry Potter books and films! Of course all this is done around the camp fire to keep the student spirits up. Keeping country crafts alive at Moulton College is core to our countryside management courses, so whether it’s greenwood crafts, hedgelaying or dry stone walling they are all featured in our courses and delivered by enthusiastic staff. To learn more about opportunities for countryside management courses, get in touch now!

 

Higher Education - Moulton College Higher Education Student Receives Business Enterprise Grant

Current BSc Land Management student David Wallis is now the proud recipient of a business start-up grant from The University of Northampton to help support his new business venture in producing specialist wildlife telemetry equipment.

Over the last year David has been busy designing prototypes to develop into a range of commercial products, not least an autonomous method of monitoring small mammal populations using Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology. This very specific innovative technology will give an improved insight to support all manner of mammalian and landscape ecology research and development on a global scale, and provides a long lasting and cheaper alternative to conventional radio tracking.

David has been working with PhD student Emily Howard Williams and staff member James Littlemore, and the results of the first pilot study will be disseminated at a Mammal Society conference this year. Students studying at Moulton College are firmly encouraged to live up to their true potential just as David is doing – so why not you? To learn more, get in touch or check out our web-site!

Higher Education - Gamekeeping and Conservation Research in Countryside Management: Keeping the Balance…..

Countryside staff and their students not only get to carry out interesting practical work, but also undertake innovative research activity to inform the industry too. A recent and ongoing example of this is the project that has been set up to see if gamebird feeding hoppers provide winter food for non-target wildlife species on farms and shoots in the East Midlands. This was co-ordinated by staff member James Littlemore and student Sean Willmer.

Since the mid-1970’s, agricultural intensification and changes in land management practices have been linked with declines in biodiversity amongst key faunal groups, including farmland songbirds. With 7.3 million hectares of land currently managed by gamekeepers in the United Kingdom, there is a requirement to understand the indirect effects of game management practices on the conservation of non-target species. From January to May 2012, gamebird feeding hoppers were monitored at two small sized mixed farms participating in Environmental Stewardship in the East Midlands using passive camera traps. A total of 3428 video sequences were captured from January to May 2012, which showed that hoppers were used by a total of 27 different species. Surprisingly, pheasants and partridge made up only 12.2 % of total visits to hoppers; 28.0% were from songbirds including five UK Biodiversity Action Plan species and 38.2% were game pest species. The most abundant species recorded overall was yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella – with 654 observations. Locating the hoppers in hedgerow or woodland habitats did not influence species diversity or number, but species number and diversity was significantly higher during the day than at night across the survey period. The type of hopper spout also affected frequency of use, with a significant preference for the ‘tray’ feeding head. The findings show that feeding hoppers are well used during the winter period by a range of songbird species, which may positively affect their survivorship at a time when natural food resources are scarce.

The initial results were presented at the British Ecological Societies (BES) Winter Meeting at The University of Birmingham in December (link to conference proceedings here : http://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/documents/meetings/2012_AM_abstracts.pdf). The results have also been written up as a scientific paper to be published in volume 10 of the online journal Conservation Evidence (http://www.conservationevidence.com). This story was also featured in Keeping the Balance, the journal of the National Gamekeepers Association. Another countryside management student, Dan Small, is currently looking at what happens on larger shooting estates that undertake more pro-active predator control, so check back here in the future to see what he finds.

You can also find a link to some of the fascinating camera trap footage that was obtained– look out for the hopper rocking badger!

Higher Education - Woodfuel – an Economic Boost for neglected Farm Woodlands

 Many farm woodlands remain neglected and land owners are largely unaware of the potential amenity, conservation and commercial benefits gained from managing these assets in a sustainable way. To illustrate how economic returns can be derived from woodland products, Foundation Degree students in Countryside and Wildlife Management were treated to a site tour and in depth discussion with Boughton and Buccleuth Estates woodland operations manager Jonathan Plowe. Jonathan manages nearly a thousand hectares of mature woodland on the grade 1 listed estate near Kettering, with the major source of revenue being firewood sales, the production of woodchip for combined heat and power units and the felling of timber for pulpwood. He was able to illustrate how a balance was achieved between often conflicting woodland commercial enterprises, conservation, game management and public access. As this visit illustrates, relating practice to theory is integral for the workforce of tomorrow – so if you fancy a career in the ‘great outdoors’ why not get in touch to discuss your course options?

 

Higher Education - Bringing back the Ghosts: the Legacy of Disappearing Flood Meadows in Northamptonshire

 Traditionally managed wet meadows that once proliferated along lowland river floodplains are now very much ghosts in the landscape, having been lost as a consequence of land drainage, agricultural intensification and river channel modifications in the last century. But an ambitious restoration project at Dovecote Farm in Upper Heyford is bringing the ghosts back to life. BSc Land Management students from the Agriculture Subject area were treated to a personal if somewhat bracing tour from the landowner David Banner and Dr Robin Field from the River Nene Regional Park. Together with Natural England, they have successfully put back 1 % of the nations wet meadow grassland with the assistance of agri-environmental funding and a lot of determination. Moulton’s link with the site is also developing, as recent Land Management graduate Sarah Still used the site for some research which later led to her appointment as a flood defence officer with the Environment Agency. This is one example of a whole host of ‘added value’ events that take place on our higher education courses – to learn more, get in touch now!