Winning Willow Workers!

Level 3 Subsidiary Diploma Countryside Management students had a fun time coppicing Willow this week on the College estate. We are fortunate to have a small area of short rotation willow coppice left over from some research over a decade ago. The osier plantation is now managed on rotation, and after reading the management plan students identified the coupes to cut before commencing work in teams to cut stakes and binders. Some of this produce will help with hedgelaying later in the course and some will be used to construct incubation mounds for the local grass snake population. Picture to follow.......

Survival of the Fittest!

New National Award Countryside Management students were getting to know each other this week as they tried to make fire by friction. Friction fire lighting is quite an advanced skill which students would normally have to practice over a long period of time before they master it, but the group soon realised that it was easier to apply the necessary pressure to the drill and work the bow back and forth to provide enough friction to create smoke and eventually a glowing ember.

As well as being a useful teambuilding activity some of our new students may well find the skills of friction fire lighting and bushcraft useful if they progress to careers working as rangers in country parks or on nature reserves where they deal with visitors. There are also options for students to progress into careers in environmental education and countryside recreation where these skills will be equally useful.  If nothing else it will be useful if we run out of matches in the woods in the depths of winter!

Moth Research at Moulton College and The University of Northampton

When you think about conserving species in the countryside, you often think only of high profile mammals that capture the public imagination. Yet is that right? Surely conservation should embrace the conservation of all species to fully recognise their role within natural systems?

Moths of the Order Lepidoptera are a widespread insect group, and with around 2,500 species they are considered to be one of the most diverse animal taxonomic groups in existence. Pivotally moths are considered by scientists to be a reliable indicator of ecosystem health. Some innovative research by Moulton College and University of Northampton PhD researcher Emma Coulthard has attempted to shed some light on the life of moths, and how land managers best conserve them in fragmented lowland landscapes.

One part of the study has examined whether moths pollinate hedgerow plants and it is these findings that will be presented at the Global Conference on Entomology in Malaysia (click www.gce2013.com for more details). Emma showed that nearly three-quarters of visitations to bramble flowers were from moths at night, indicating that they offer a true ecosystem service.This would explain why large numbers of species of moth can be supported in what would seem to be sub-optimal habitats.

So when you think about conservation, don't just think about otters, mink or red squirrels - consider the plight of the humble moth, a much ignored insect group.

Welcome to Moulton College!

If you are reading this and you are a new student, then a warm welcome from the countryside management team. We hope you have a great year!

We are:

Mel Reynolds - Curriculum Team Leader in Countryside Management
James Littlemore - Senior Lecturer in Countryside Management
Geoff Guy - Lecturer in Gamekeeping
Paul Foskett - Lecturer in Countryside Management
Katie Aldham - Lecturer in Countryside Skills (p/t)
Stu Wootton  - Lecturer in Countryside Skills (p/t)
Emily Howard-Williams - PhD Researcher
Emma Coulthard - PhD Researcher

Check back here for weekly updates to our blog which will feature articles and news onyou as our further and higher education students, as well as features on academic research and other news from time to time.

Cheers!