Gwent Wildlife Trust
Ymddiriedolaeth Natur Gwent

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News


Magor Marsh Reserve Open Day    Saturday 19th July 2008 from 2pm until 5pm


Vandals Endanger Children’s Lives at Magor Marsh


The big news is Wyeswood Common - Back to the Future!  See the Wyeswood Common web page.


Download a copy of the detailed Local News for Spring 2008 including a "Recreating Wyeswood Common" special.


Magor Marsh Reserve Open Day 2007

What a great afternoon we had on Saturday 15th September 07! Over 450 people chose to come to the Magor Marsh Reserve Open Day.  The sun was shining, the dragonflies were buzzing and everyone became thoroughly absorbed in the multitude of activities available on the site. Over 100 children took part in the pond dipping and saw amazing creatures lurking in the depths of the reen – water scorpions, sticklebacks and beetles, dragonfly nymphs and newtlets.

Magor Marsh Activities.  Photo: J Prince

Many people joined our organised walks around the reserve, others found their own way round the boardwalks doing the self-guided trails. On the way round they found out more about the creatures that live on the reserve, the history of the site, watched candlesticks being made on a pole lathe and gazed at the birds through binoculars set up by Gwent Ornithological Society in the bird hide.

Back at the centre there were even more activities for children and families – face painting, badge making, dragonfly making and lucky dips. There were lots of stalls raising awareness of other wildlife issues including our GWT campaign against the levels motorway (CALM). 70 children managed to complete the quiz collecting stamps as they went around all the stalls.

We’ve already had fantastic feedback from those who came. Some new volunteers came forward and we had enquiries from schools keen to visit the reserve with their pupils. We look forward to welcoming them. All in all the day was a great success for Gwent Wildlife Trust.


E-mail newsletter

We have started a monthly email newsletter to members.  Please email the Trust office if you would like to start receiving this newsletter.


Hiricium Fungus. Photo: R Bakere

Rare fungus at Silent Valley

One of the highlights of the summer has been the first record for Wales for an endangered fungus – the Tiered Tooth Hiricium cirrhatum.

See the web page for more photos of this stunning and distinctive toothed bracket fungus and more information.

 


Successful Trust Quiz

The annual GWT Quiz, organised by the Trust’s Blaenau Gwent group, was held very successfully on Tuesday 18 Sept. The winning team was led by the Trust’s Assistant Chief Executive, Roger Finn – their victory is attributed entirely to the near absence of any natural history questions!  A great time was had by all, and the proceeds from the quiz will make a very useful contribution to the Trust’s resources.


New Education Centre

We are very excited by the distinct possibility that the regeneration of the Ebbw Vale steelworks site will provide an environmental education centre run by Gwent Wildlife Trust. We are working closely with Blaenau Gwent Council and the Welsh Assembly, and an area around the old water treatment works has been identified.

With our flagship Silent Valley Local Nature Reserve just down the valley, this should achieve our ambition of having an exciting base to open people’s eyes to the wealth of wildlife in the Valleys.

Our initial surveys of the water treatment works turned up 100 species of wildflowers in one hour, including a species of Cudweed which is now listed in the plants Red Data Book, and a beautiful spike of Southern Marsh-orchid, along with dragonflies and damselflies including the Broad-bodied Chaser.


Opencast threat to new lichen

We have had to put a very strong response in to Torfaen County Borough Council in opposition to an application for opencast coal extraction at the Varteg, between Pontypool and Blaenafon. Detailed survey work has shown a wealth of wildlife around the pit tips and on patches of old grassland. Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly and Keeled Skimmer, Common Lizard, Stonechat and Grey Partridge are all under threat. Wetlands on the site are valuable for newts and rare mosses. Most strikingly, a lichen found on the site appears to be new to science. There is the possibility that this planning proposal could make this species globally extinct before it is even properly scientifically described and named.


 

Gwent Wildlife Trust home page.