On Thursday 5th August a party of 29 from Foxley and our guests travelled by coach to Stamford where we stopped to explore the very picturesque town with its alleyways leading to little streets and squares with their individual shops and restaurants.  Many enjoyed a picnic by the river, although some of us found the coffee shops too appealing and just had to try one of the delicious cakes and pastries on display.
We then re-joined the coach for the short journey to Barnsdale Gardens, which the late Geoff Hamilton began back in 1983.  With the very helpful map in hand we wandered round the individual gardens enjoying the lovely colours and scents, many of these we remembered Geoff completing on the Gardener's World programmes.  The cool woodland and shady gardens were very welcoming, as were the many seats on which we could rest and admire the beautiful plants, as this was one of the hottest days this summer.  I am sure we all came back with some new ideas for our gardens and some of us just had to bring a souvenir from the nursery. Barnsdale is definitely worth a visit if you enjoy gardening.
A huge THANK YOU to everyone for your support and hope you enjoyed the day as much as I did. If anyone would like to do another trip, later in the year, or has an idea, please let me know.       Beryl, Lonning End, 01362 688448
 

At our indoor meeting in July we had another excellent presentation. This time by Stephen Spawls who, recently returned from Africa, talked about Birds and other wildlife of East Africa. 

Outdoors Ray Gribble and Allan Hale demonstrated the delicate task of ringing birds.  The rings are lightweight and cause no distress to the birds but have to be fitted by a licenced ringer. Each ring has a unique number, details of which are held on a national data base. During the ringing process various details of species, age, sex, weight, moult, etc are also recorded. This information is subsequently used to provide information on bird movements, survival rates, population trends and early indications of global environmental trends. A classic example was the  population crash of the Whitethroat in the 1960's which was shown to be due to a drought in their wintering quarters in Africa. The current rise in Chiffchaff numbers and reduction of Willow Warblers in Norfolk may be a result of global warming.

Our field trip last month was to the Sculthorpe Moor Nature Reserve. This is our second visit to this recently restored site of  Special Scientific Interest which is administered by the Hawk and Owl Trust. Opened by the Princess Royal in September 2003 this award winning site offers a rich diversity on flora and fauna and is accessible by boardwalks suitable for wheelchair users.    Marsh Harriers have already returned to breed on the site and it is hoped that wintering Hen Harrier will utilise the site in the coming years. Highlights of our visit were Marsh Tits, a juvenile Marsh Harrier, a Sparrowhawk, Swifts, House Martins and a Barn Owl. Our thanks to Lindsey for his excellent guided walk around this superb reserve.………………………………….

No field meeting this month, instead we have a stand at the ‘Wild about Norfolk Conservation Fair’. This will be held at Broadland High School,  Hoveton on Saturday October 9th.  Also we now have a website which we will be expanding over the next few months. Look us up at www.wvbs.co.uk . 
Our indoor meeting on Thursday October 21st at Lenwade Village Hall starting at 7.30 p.m. is a talk by Malcolm Rains entitled ‘China Revisited’. Also at this meeting there will be an opportunity to buy books and CDs from ‘Wild Sounds’ and bird food and feeders from ‘GJL Animal Feeds’. 

Visitors welcome, non- members £2, refreshments available. 
Colin Wright: 740548 [atomic.colin@virgin.net]