ADDER PLIGHT

The BBC Essex radio car came to Cudmore Grove Country Park on Wednesday 9th to help highlight the plight of adders. According to the national survey being carried out by the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust since 2007, the once widespread adder has only been found in 7% of reptile surveys carried out. The ongoing threats of development and disturbance, have led to the decline of adders and that they're in need now of "serious conservation attention".

The park's adders didn't disappoint on the day they needed to show and despite the cloudy and cool weather early in the morning, one adder was lying in its usual spot near some young blackthorn. Listeners to the radio heard an excited reporter describe live that he was standing and admiring this adder "only about two feet away!" I think maybe a few feet got missed off his description in his excitement.
Later in the morning after the sun had come out, the second adder was also out in its usual spot by the track.



The moth trap was put out at the park for the first time this year on Tuesday night. For a change it stayed dry, there was a bit of cloud at times and the temperature hovered about 5 degrees above. As soon as the trap was switched on in the early evening, a handful of March moths, one pictured above, fluttered towards the light. By morning the same number of Marches were seen resting on the trap.



There was just the one clouded drab, pictured above, found in the trap, no doubt the first of several that will come to the trap this spring.

A couple of these Hebrew character moths were seen in the trap in the morning - again another common spring moth. The only other moth noted was the common quaker with three individuals.

Birdwise around the park it has been pretty much the same as recent weeks. There were about 600 brent geese feeding in the fields on Tuesday along with 50+ golden plover, as well as the usual roost of 150+ black-tailed godwits. In a nearby horse paddock there was a mixed flock of 15 fieldfares and redwings.