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British Waterways have been able to fund use of the reed-cutter, which has re-cut the channels and rides which were put in last year, as well as putting in some new ones. The old channels had, as expected, been invaded by reeds and this year's re-cutting should help to keep them clear, for the benefit of our wintering Bitterns. So, with a bit of luck, we should have a reasonable chance of seeing them in the next month or two. STOP PRESS! And almost on cue, our first Bittern of this winter has already dropped in, on Saturday 12 December
(Posted 03/12/09 Updated 12/12/09 Archived 01/01/10)
We are holding our ever popular post Christmas walk at Wilstone Reservoir this year instead of Marsworth. As an antidote to all the food, why not come and join us for a leisurely stroll to the birdwatching hide for some mince pies and mulled wine! Park at Wilstone Car Park at 11.00 am, or just wander along to the hide if you are late.
All are welcome, including non-members.
( Posted 18/12/09 Archived 28/12/09)
We are pleased to announce that the Hide at FoTR's reserve at the Tring Water Treatment Works has been reopened. Regrettably, the lock on the hide had been broken, possibly by someone attempting to break in. As it was not possible to repair it, this lock has been removed altogether and we will operate without it for a while - the lock on the gate remains in use. When you leave the hide, can you make sure you close the door securely please. (Posted 22/11/09 Archived 18/12/09)
Regrettably, the new lock on our hide at the WTW lagoon hide has been broken, possibly by someone attempting to break in. We will try to repair it as soon as we can, but apologise for any inconvenience. I will add a further post when the hide is back in use. (Posted 20/11/09 Archived 22/11/09)
As a reminder to members with keys to the Plover Hide at FoTR's own reserve at the Tring Water Treatment Works, the locks have now been replaced with new keyless combination locks, which means that the old keys will no longer work. If you, or any other members, would like access to this reserve we can let you know how to open the new locks, but because the reserve is on Thames Water land, they insist we all sign up to their entry conditions first. You will therefore need to sign a new Thames Water Access Agreement, which I can send you by e-mail (or you can contact me through the Contact Us pages from the left hand menu). (Posted 22/08/09 Archived 20/08/09)
For those of you who have inadvertently forgotten to renew your membership for this year, your membership will soon lapse and you will no longer receive our Grebe newsletter (nor be able to read them online if we change the members password), nor will you receive any further information on events etc. The next Grebe is due out at the end of the month, so please renew as soon as possible.
Our membership year runs from January to December, so all subscriptions were due in January. If you have forgotten, we would be grateful if you could send in your membership renewals as soon as you can please. If you have lost your renewal form, you can download a new one here, which you can print off before filling it in and sending it back with your subscription.
If you are not already a member and would like to join our subscriptions are only £4 for individuals (£2 for under 18s) and £6 for families. You can fill in an application form by clicking on this link.
(Original posting 19/02/09 Updated 20/09/09 Archived 21/10/09)
Meet 9.30am at Mead's Cafe on Sunday morning, the 20th September, for a short stroll to the trapping site where we will open up the moth traps and identify the moths that have been caught overnight.
Peter Hearn will lead the walk to and from the trapping site and we expect to be back at Mead's cafe by 11:30 - noon
This is part of National Moth Night which this year falls on two nights 18th / 19th September.
See www.nationalmothnight.info/ for more information including a colour-marking project and details of other events held nationally. (Posted 11/09/09 Archived 20/09/09)
Tring Anglers will be hosting an angling taster day - similar to the very successful day they held last year. The fishing will be held on the canal near Startopsend and Marsworth Reservoirs and is open to all ages, so do join them if you would like to have a go FoTR will be there too, so come and see us. Parking at Startops car park, Marsworth.
(Posted 08/08/09 Archived 01/09/09)
Come and join us for our annual walk with the North Bucks Bat Group, to find some of the many bat species found at Marsworth and Startopsend Reservoirs.
Meet at Startops car park, Marsworth at 8.30 pm. Bring a torch and some warm clothes if its a bit cool.
(Posted 08/08/09 Archived 29/08/09)
We have had reports of a Wasp's nest inside the hide at Wilstone. We are not yet sure where the nest entrance is, but there are likely to be wasps inside the hide. At this time of the year, wasps are generally too busy foraging and tending to the larvae in the nest to be too much of a problem to us - unless they perceive us to be a threat - but nonetheless, we all need to approach with great care. Notices have been posted at the car park and the hide. (Posted 23/06/09 Updated 29/06/09 Archived 22/08/09)
Mike Collard has asked if, when you are out and about, you could look at the legs of any of our Common Terns carefully.
If you see a colour-ringed bird, please could you write down the colours (some birds colour-ringed in Bucks over the past five years have a split colour - i.e. a single ring with two colours), which leg it is on and e-mail me with the details, which I will pass on to Mike.
Even better if you can read the BTO ring number!
(Posted 20/05/09 Archived 08/08/09)
College Lake's Open Day will be themed around nocturnal wildlife and will therefore be running into the hours of darkness as well as during the day. FoTR will be there (at least during the day) so you can come and see us if you wish.
There will be a guided bat walk, you can learn about moths with moth trapping and there will be talks and activities for all the family running throughout. Come and learn more about butterflies, red kites, the birds here and much, much more.
Refreshments will be available throughout, with music playing in the courtyard for somewhere to enjoy a bite to eat. And there will be a campfire with music and storytelling as the sun sets.
From Tring, College Lake Nature Reserve and Wildlife Centre is just beyond Bulbourne heading towards Ivinghoe and Dunstable on the B488. (Posted 04/07/09 Archived 13/07/09)
Meet local wildlife experts, take part in lots of hands-on activities and celebrate Charles Darwin?fs anniversary. FoTR will be there, so why not drop in and see us. Admission is FREE. (Posted 08/06/09 Archived 13/06/09)
FoTR will be at the Wendover Arm Trust?fs annual Canal Festival, which runs for 3 days this year, instead of the usual two.
We will be hosting a walk each afternoon to see what's about, so why not come and see us sometime over the weekend.
If you are not already a member, you will be able to join, or you can simply renew this year's membership if you haven't done so already.
The Festival is open 12am to 5pm on Saturday and from 10am to 5pm on Sunday and Monday. (Posted 12/05/09 Archived 31/05/09)
Join us next Sunday for our annual spring walk at Wilstone, where we hope to see the returning hobbies and other summer visitors.
Meet at Meads Farm Shop - why not get there a little early and enjoy some refreshments at the coffee shop. (Posted 05/05/09 Archived 11/05/09))We have had a report of a broken fence on the path to the Wilstone hide, which sticks out at eye level. Please take extra care until it is fixed. (Posted 19/04/09 Archived 03/05/09)
We received the following Community Message from Aylesbury Watch Office on Tuesday 14th April 2009.
A number of thefts from vehicle have been reported in the Aylesbury Vale area over the Easter Weekend at beauty spot car parks:-
A purse was stolen from a Volkswagen Polo, parked at Wilstone reservoir between 3pm and 4pm on the 10th April.
Two vehicles were broken into at Startops End, Marsworth on the 11th. A handbag, which had been hidden in the boot of a Renault Megane, was taken. The owner believes that someone may have been watching the vehicle when the handbag was hidden. A second vehicle was also reported broken into at the same location on the same day - again a handbag and contents were stolen.
On the 12th, between 1:45pm and 2:40pm a Volkwagen Polo was broken into in Beacon Road, Ivinghoe - two pairs of sunglasses were stolen.
Two Peugeot 306 vehicles were reported broken into in the main car park of Wendover Woods on the 12th April. One offence occurred between 3:30pm and 4:15pm, where a Kenwood CD player was stolen. The second offence occurred between 3pm and 6:15pm where a handbag, mobile phone and a Sony front fascia were taken.
In Hale Road, Wendover, again on the 12th, between 6pm and 7pm, a Nissan car was broken into and a wallet stolen
Six vehicles were reported to have been broken into, whilst parked in a car park in Church Street, Buckingham, overnight on the 12th to 13th April.
As the weather becomes more favourable for getting out and about in the Aylesbury Vale countryside, please exercise caution when parking your vehicle at local beauty spots. Do not leave items, such as handbags, wallets, and mobile phones in your vehicle. Do not be tempted to 'hide' items in your vehicle - as a potential offender may be watching where you place the item. Take all valuables with you.
Make sure that any suspicious activity in rural car parks is reported to the Police. If possible, make a note of the registration number and type of vehicle. Pass this information to the Police on 0845 8 505 505.
If you have any information that might assist officers dealing with any of these crimes, please call on the number already given, and state that you are responding to this Ringmaster message.
Alternatively, if you do not wish to give your details, you can call Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555 111. (Posted 15/04/09 Archived 03/05/09)
FoTR's Annual General Meeting will be held on Friday 3 April at 7.30 pm.
The AGM will be followed by a very special talk. We are priviledged to be able to welcome Mark Grantham from the British Trust for Ornithology as part of their celebration of 100 years of Bird Ringing. Mark is Population Biologist in their Demography Unit and one of his responsibilities is to organise the Constant Effort Sites (CES) ringing scheme, so it should prove to be an interesting and informative talk, not to be missed.
Drinks and nibbles will be available at the end of the AGM, prior to the talk.
Now for the boring stuff: Entry to the AGM is free to all, but only fully paid-up Members of FoTR may vote. The Committee, of up to nine members, including officers, is elected at the AGM.We have lost two Committee members this year: Les Edwards, Gift Aid Manager, who sadly died in October, and Rosemary Barr, Membership Secretary, who has moved away from the area. The remaining seven members of the Committee are prepared to stand for re-election. These are: Warren Claydon (Conservation matters), Keith Evans (Editor of Grebe and Website and Acting Membership Secretary), Margaret Evans (Minutes Secretary), Peter Hearn (ordinary member), Lynne Lambert (Recorder and Conservation matters), Keith Linger (Treasurer) and Johne Taylor (Conservation matters).
So, as last year, we have TWO vacancies on the Committee, that of Membership Secretary and Chairman; we have operated for over a year now without a formal Chairman. If you think you might grow into the role of Chairman, you are happy to join us as an ordinary member.
Anyone with an interest in the Reservoirs would be welcomed as Membership Secretary or Chairman or even simply as an ordinary member and our work is not onerous. We meet three or four times a year and you can do as much or as little as you wish. Please help to keep FoTR alive!
Members wishing to nominate candidates for election to the Committee, as members or officers, should do so in writing, at least 14 days prior to the date of the Meeting (i.e. by 19 March) to the Membership Secretary, Friends Of Tring Reservoirs, P.O. Box 1083, Tring, Herts HP23 5WU. A similar notice is required for Propositions or Amendments to the Constitution, which should also be sent to this address. Alternatively, you can e-mail your nominations to me here (Posted 25/02/09 Archived 04/04/09)
We are pleased to announce that the hide at Wilstone has been repaired and is now fully open once more. (Posted 12/03/09 Archived 04/04/09)
Regrettably, the hide at Wilstone had to be closed on Friday 30 January, as some of the main support beams are rotten. Posters have been put up at the top of the hide path and in the car park and the entrance to the hide has been taped up. The repair job is greater than first thought and coupled with the snow in the past weeks, the repairs are taking longer than hoped. HMWT report they hope to get contractors on site this week (w/c 16 Feb) so let's keep our fingers crossed! I will let you know when this is completed. Apologies for the inconvenience.
EVEN THOUGH IT MAY LOOK OK, FOR YOUR SAFETY PLEASE DO NOT GO INTO THE HIDE
(Posted 31/01/09 Updated 04/02/09 & 16/02/09; Archived 12/03/09)
We are looking for a new Membership Secretary and a Chairman(!).
The Membership job is not too onerous and the records are kept on an Excel spreadsheet, which we find helps to make sure the various records (Membership, Gift Aid, eGrebe and Treasurer) keep in line. The Membership Secretary and Chairman are also a member of the Committee, which meets three or four times a year, usually in Wilstone on Monday evenings. We are a friendly lot (at least we think we are!) and not all of us are keen birders or the like, although we are keen to make sure the reservoirs are kept at their best for the wildlife and us.
So why not have a go! If you would like to find out more - about the Membership Secretary or Chairman - please email us by clicking here. Alternatively, you can call Keith Evans on 01442 822471 or write to us at Friends Of Tring Reservoirs, P.O. Box 1083, Tring, Herts, HP23 5WU. (Posted 18/01/09 Archived 25/02/09)
Rosemary Barr, who many of you will know, has recently moved away from Tring and as a result, is no longer able to continue as Membership Secretary. We would like to record our thanks to Rose for all her help over the years.
So, we are now looking for a new Membership Secretary (as well as a Chairman!). The job is not too onerous and the records are kept on a fairly simple Excel spreadsheet. The Membership Secretary is also a member of the Committee, which meets three or four times a year. We are a friendly lot, so why not have a go! If you would like to find out more - about the Membership Secretary or Chairman - please e-mail us by clicking here. Alternatively, you can call Keith Evans on 01442 822471 or write to us at Friends Of Tring Reservoirs, P.O. Box 1083, Tring, Herts, HP23 5WU. (Posted 18/12/08 Archived 18/01/09)
It is with sadness that we have to report the death of Les Edwards.
Les was a member of FoTR right from the early years, a member of our first small working party. Les helped with the construction our very first tern nesting raft on Wilstone back in 1994 and he was always glad to give a hand and give lots of encouragement to us all. He nearly always attended the AGMs, raising a hand to second a motion or support a nominee. He loved the countryside, was a keen but modest birdwatcher, but most of all he was a dedicated astronomer; he even had a telescope for a weathervane.
In 2003 he generously volunteered to set up and run our Gift Aid scheme which in the intervening years has raised over £200 a year. He did this despite ill health within his family and latterly to himself. Les died in October after a short illness and he will be sadly missed.
We are investigating the purchase of a new tern raft and if this goes ahead, we have decided to dedicate it to Les in memory of his dedicated contribution to FoTR. (Posted 13/12/08 Archived 18/01/09)
During the week of 6 October work was carried out to improve the reed bed at Marsworth. For more information and some photographs of the work under way, see the Marsworth Reedbed page here (Posted 09/10/08 Updated 17/10/08 Archived 18/01/09)