COUNTRYSIDE, WILDLIFE & FARMING
very well in cities and attracts a host of
butterfly species.
Nettles: Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock and
Red Admiral all lay their eggs on nettles.
Grow nettles in an old pot buried in the
ground to stop them spreading.
Grasses: A whole variety of grasses
support Meadow Brown, Marbled White,
Large Skipper and Small Skipper, so
give the mower a rest and leave a corner
of your lawn or the grass under trees
unmown.
High priority species recorded
on the Island in 2006:
• The Glanville Fritillary is virtually
restricted to coastal landslips on the
southern half of the Isle of Wight. There
are only a handful of core breeding areas
left and it remains a vulnerable species.
• The Grizzled Skipper is a characteristic
spring butterfly of southern chalk
downland and other sparsely vegetated
habitats. This butterfly feeds on flowers
such as Bugle.
• The Small Blue is the smallest resident
butterfly and is often confined to small
patches of sheltered grassland where its
sole foodplant, Kidney Vetch, is found.
• The Adonis Blue is one of the most
characteristic species of southern
chalk downland, where it flies low over
short-grazed turf. Despite its restricted
distribution, the butterfly can be seen in
large numbers on good sites.
• The Pearl Bordered Fritillary can
be seen as early as April in woodland
clearings or rough hillsides with bracken.
The butterfly was once very widespread
but has declined rapidly in recent decades.
From 19th–27th July Butterfly
conservation has its annual ‘Save Our
Butterflies Week’. This is an opportunity
to take part in a national recording
scheme which will help to build a picture
of any changes in butterfly populations
over time. All you have to do is count the
numbers of butterflies on a Buddleia bush
over a period of 30 minutes. For more
details visit www.hantsiow-butterflies.org.
uk.
To find out more about making your
garden wildlife-friendly, contact Wildline,
the free information service on 01489 7764
446 or e-mail: [email protected].
Craig Ratcliff, CAR Gardens
Call to businesses
to become ‘Wildlife
Investors’
Business leaders on the Island are
being asked to show their commitment
to local wildlife habitats by becoming
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife
Trust ‘Wildlife Investors’.
The first Island business to become
a Wildlife Investor is CAR Gardens,
an ethical and organic landscape and
garden maintenance business.
Craig Ratcliff, the proprietor, and
his staff, are passionate about their
work and see membership of the
Wildlife Trust as a significant benefit.
Craig says, “I’m delighted to be able
to support the Wildlife Trust. CAR
Gardens will always seek to enrich
our customers’ environment through
both good design and responsible
horticulture. We believe that having a
beautiful garden must go hand in hand
with caring for our environment for us
and our future generations.”
Debbie Tann, the Trust’s acting chief
executive, explained “the Wildlife
Investor scheme is an effective way to
demonstrate to your staff, customers,
suppliers and the public that your
company is taking a real interest in
local wildlife and the environment. In
return, we hope that we can help you
and your staff to enjoy, and more fully
understand the region’s varied habitats
and wildlife”.
For more information, please contact
Peter Hutchings on 01489 774400, email
[email protected] or visit the Trust
website at www.hwt.org.uk.
life
Members
day on the
Isle of Wight
The Hampshire and Isle of Wight
Wildlife Trust is the largest local
conservation group on the Island,
managing its land for the benefit of
Islanders and visitors and encouraging
others to do the same through
landowner advice, species and habitat
projects, reserve management and
education.
We could not do this work without the
contribution made by our members and
to celebrate this we are inviting them
to a special event in Parkhurst Forest
on 21st June. The aim of the day is to
highlight the work of the Trust, to show
our appreciation of the support the
members give us and also to find out
from them how the Trust is working on
the Island. There will be fun things to do
for children, information on the work of
the Trust, opportunities to raise issues
with staff and a chance to enjoy some
of the wildlife the Island has to offer.
If you would like more information
contact Richard Grogan on 01983
53180 or email [email protected].
Your local
Wildlife Trust
The Hampshire and Isle of Wight
Wildlife Trust works to create a better
future for wildlife and wild places
in Hampshire and the Island. As the
leading local wildlife conservation
charity, it looks after 57 wildlife
reserves, has 27,000 members and 1,000
volunteers. The Trust manages its own
land and advises other landowners how
to manage their land with wildlife in
mind. Staff and volunteers also carry
out surveys and gather data to monitor
how our local wildlife is doing. Find
out more at www.hwt.org.uk.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust is a charity. Join today and help your local wildlife www.hwt.org.uk
www.wightfrog.com/islandlife
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