Island Life Magazine Ltd June/July 2016 | Page 74

COUNTRY LIFE Countryside news Science meets Ecology meets Art with Tony Ridd What to look out for... I f you’ve been wandering along the beaches of the Bay at low tide recently, you may have spotted a series of decorative tiles appearing on the sea walls… some highly decorative, some more natural-looking... and some just squares of barnacle-free concrete. What you’re looking at, believe it or not, are the first stages of an exciting experiment in marine biodiversity and coastal resilience. To help take this further, a team of Island organizations from The Bay area have been awarded a Partnership Grant by the Royal Society. Sandown Bay Academy, Eccleston George and Arc Consulting are together working on a programme of experimental science covered by the STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, maths) in which art is also playing an essential role. The project is part of a concept called Artecology, being developed by Eccleston George and Arc, and it introduces students to the notion and the practice of making new textures and materials for the marine environment. The 5 miles of Bay coastline has recently become a focus of innovation in the fields of asset resilience (making structures last longer by ‘bioarmouring’ them) and intertidal colonization (enhancing biodiversity on sea defences). Ian Boyd from Arc Consulting said: “It’s tremendously exciting to be a part of such imaginative and ground-breaking work. Artecology is bringing interest to the Island, and to the Bay in particular…” The partnership project will run for 12 months and it is hoped that it will lead to further national and international science and arts collaborations. The Bay CCT is looked after by the team at Arc Consulting: www.arc-consulting.co.uk. 74 Wild Privet Flowers Ragged Robin This is a semi-evergreen shrub, differing to it’s garden variety as it has longish oval leaves with pointed tips. It particularly likes growing on chalky soils, but will adapt well to most soil types and will tolerate our salty winds. What is particularly nice are the strongly scented tubular flowers, followed by clusters of black fruits in the autumn. Becoming less common in the wild, due to loss of its wet meadow habitat, it is a great plant to find because of its ragged pink petals. Often found growing in clumps along field edges, damp woodland clearings and rides. Dwarf and white flowered variants are cultivated and are popular in gardens. Yellow Hammer Moving Moles! The males have an unmistakable bright yellow head and underparts. They prefer wellmanaged countryside hedgerows and scrub land. And can be seen visiting wild bird feeders in the garden, eating with finches, sparrows and buntings. They nest on or close to the ground in short hedgerows. Numbers are in sharp decline and they feature on the Birds of Conservation Concern ‘red’ list. Moles only breed from March to May. The male (boar) visits the female (sow) in her burrow and leaves straight after mating. After a gestation period of 30 days, a litter of 2-7 young is born. They grow quickly, feeding on their mother’s milk, and are ready to leave the nest at about 35 days. They travel overland searching for territories of their own. www.visitilife.com June/July 2016_MASTER .indd 74 14/06/2016 01:50