Natural History in Barnsley
Here is our programme to September 2023.
From April it consists of fields visits on Saturday mornings and Wednesday evenings.
There are two indoor meetings: a talk on ‘Rewilding’ by Chris Tomson on February 22nd and a talk on ‘True Bugs’ by Stuart Foster on March 22nd.
You can see the programme on the ‘Programme’ page. To see it here without downloading it, just click on the blue link.
‘Aspects of Biodiversity in Barnsley’ was a presentation given by Peter Roberts at the Barnsley Nats meeting at Barnsley Town Hall on Wednesday 25 January, following the AGM. His presentation included lots on the landscapes, habitats and wildlife found in Barnsley. He touched on the problems they face as well as on what we should do to conserve them. Peter also covered the importance of wildlife records and the role of the Barnsley Biological Record Centre.
His talk was based on the information in the Barnsley Biodiversity Action Plan. Have a look, it’s online at http://barnsleybiodiversity.org.uk/ Comments welcome!
The records that Barnsley naturalists and others provide are really helpful. Let’s carry on recording the wildlife of Barnsley.
Has any one seen the Green Comet ? Doug asks.
The Green Comet will be closest to the earth and the brightest on the 1st February. It will be difficult to see being faint but observable.
It was last seen from earth 50,000 years ago in the Stone Age.
I can just about remember it. Doug.
Doug handed out a New Year Quiz at our Christmas Social. For those who have not seen it, here it is …
[Click the link to see it on your screen without download.]
And here are the answers!
Barnsley Nats Annual General meeting took place on Wednesday 25 January 2023 at Barnsley Town Hall. The previous agm was in 2019; the 2020 agm was cancelled because of the covid-19 pandemic restrictions. After the business meeting, there was a presentation on Aspects of Biodiversity in Barnsley
There were questions, comments and suggestions for the programme and publicising the society..
We re-elected the members of our committee. New committee members would be welcome; get in touch to find out more about it. We meet three times a year and have plenty to talk about!
The papers for the meeting are attached:
[Just click on the link to read online]
Report on the years 2020-23
2020-23 accounts
A trip down the microscope with Howard, Jill’s Christmas Quiz, and Cake!
Thank you to everyone who came to our Christmas Social; a nice get-together.
Thanks especially to Howard for his great presentation exploring the microscopic world — how he, together with Alwyn, matched the music with the movements was brilliant!
Thanks too to Trevor for thinking of showing us the video on the ‘power of nature’. If anyone missed it, we can forward it to you: just get in touch.
And thanks as always to Jill for setting the annual Christmas Quiz. It was a great quiz, and nice to be able to do it in person this time rather than online.
And good to have time together to chat with some cake!
Doug gave out copies of a New Year Quiz —here it is.
[Click on the link to view without downloading]
Here are the answers!
We had a great frosty time on Saturday 10th December viewing the birds in the open water left free of ice on Elsecar reservoir with more Great Crested Grebes than usual. And a Water Rail spotted briefly coming out on the ice.
We started by going into the woods near Elsecar Heritage Centre to immediately hear and see a Great Spotted Woodpecker.
Spotting the remaining fungi as well: including Oyster mushroom(Pleuratu ostreatus), Sulphur Tuft(Hypholoma fasciculare) and Willow Bracket(Phellinus igniarius).
Then retiring to the Milton Arms or the Teepot Cafe.
Wildlife on the Yorkshire Coast, a presentation by Geoff Carr on Wednesday 23rd November was fascinating. Geoff covered a whole stretch of coastline with great images of the birds and other wildlife to be found. He pointed out for us the slippages down the cliffs that have preserved former grassland habitats now lost above the cliffs. A great talk that provoked a lot of discussion.
On Saturday 12th November we have a field visit to Anglers Country Park for the birds of open water and scrub; looking for fungi as well. We will start with the hide(s) and go on round the water and possibly into some woodland areas.
We are meeting at 10 am in the main car park at Anglers Country Park, Haw Park Lane, Wintersett, WF4 2EB, grid reference: SE375153.
Car parking free for 2 hours, £2 for 3 hours.
An afternoon of surprises, as yesterday I found Dog Stinkhorn in Langford Wood, with Blackening Waxcap and Pestle Puffball on the stack at Dodworth . Quite a few Fly Agarics on the climb up to the Stack. Doug
After looking for fungi at a number of sites we decided to go back to Dodworth Stack on Saturday, 8th October. We had a productive and enjoyable visit; our thanks to Doug for arranging and leading this field visit. Watch out for his report.
‘The Catastrophe of Bare Peat’ a talk by Robbie Carnegie on the work of Moors for the Future
Our next meeting is a talk entitled ‘The Catastrophe of Bare Peat’ by Robbie Carnegie. It will give an overview of the work of Moors for the Future, the issues they are tackling, and what they are doing now and in the future.
The talk is on Wednesday 19th October at 7pm in Barnsley Town Hall, S70 2TA. Finish by 9pm
Everyone is welcome so if you know of others interested in moorlands, the issues they face, and the work of Moors for the Future, then do pass on the invitation.
For those who haven’t been to a Barnsley Nats meeting at the Town Hall before, use the Experience Barnsley entrance and ring the bell!
Parking on council car parks and on-street parking spaces nearby is free after 6pm. Some town centre on-street parking may have different rules.
Five Barnsley Naturalists went along to the performance by Simon Armitage, the Poet Laureate, and his rock band Lyr. Entitled “Barnsley An Unnatural History”, it ‘celebrated Barnsley’s Eldon Street through the lens of its former Natural History Museum’. Yes the old Barnsley Nats museum!
We particularly enjoyed the piece in three parts, ‘A brief chronicle of birds in the Autumn and Winter months of 1886/7’, based on Thomas Lister’s weekly articles of bird sightings in Barnsley Chronicle. Thomas Lister was the President of Barnsley Naturalist Society in our society’s early days.
Barnsley Nats talks are back! Ron Marshall gave a stimulating talk on wildlife in Scotland at our first indoor meeting for two years, on Wednesday 21 September.
Illustrated by fantastic photographs, Ron took us from Ardnamurchan to the Hebrides, from the Cairngorms to the Shetland islands.
He shared with us his experiences of pine martens and otters, ptarmigans and mountain hares, and a considerable range of birds of land and sea.
A great commentary Ron, giving us an insight into the behaviour and characteristics of Scottish wildlife. We can’t wait to visit the places you told us about.
Saturday September 10th, 10.30 am: A visit to Worsborough Mill Country Park , looking in particular for plant galls. We had have the benefit of Tom Higginbottom and some other members of the Plant Gall Society. More on what we found to follow.
