Emily Foot - Wildlife Trust Officer for Ceredigion
Ceredigion has 20 nature reserves which are managed by ourselves. We do this with the help of volunteers who are guided and supported by Em Foot the Wildlife Trust Officer. For more information on how you can help locally then the Ceredigion Volunteer Work Programme Autumn 2011 is available to download
Recent highlights 2011: Ceredigion is home to many beautiful woodlands, including the spectacular upland oak woodland Coed Simdde Lwyd, the ancient semi-natural woodlands of Nanteos, and the wonderfully varied Coed Maidie B Goddard, near Llechryd.
Em Foot, WTO for Ceredigion, has achieved great improvements to these reserves, including significant tree safety works at both Nanteos sites, and hazel coppicing at Old Warren Hill.
Trees have been thinned to promote diversity at Coed Maidie B Goddard, and path improvements undertaken, with new bridges installed.
Heather in Coed Simdde Lwyd Photo by Em Foot
Coupes have been opened up in Coed Simdde Lwyd to create a more varied structure in the canopy, and create a wider range of habitats.
Future work: There is still much work to be done to enhance the Ceredigion woodlands for both wildlife and for the visitors to the nature reserves. Em plans to construct a new path in Coed Simdde Lwyd, creating a circular route for walkers. It will run across the top of the reserve, linking two existing paths.
New bridges in Coed Penglanowen and Old Warren Hill will improve visitor access, and sycamore thinning in Old Warren Hill will restore the balance of native tree species. Em also hopes to reduce non-native species like rhododendron and snowberry in this reserve, and provide interpretation panels and benches in several woodlands.
- We Have a Match
On 13th January 2012, Manx Whale and Dolphin Watch carried out a boat survey to capture some photo-identification (photo-ID) images of the bottlenose dolphins that have been sighted around Douglas Bay recently. Following a successful survey, they po...
- Woods and Hedges in Ceredigion
We’ve had some chilly but beautifully sunny days in the last month, some not so sunny days too! We did another day of hedgelaying at Caeau Llety Cybi, where we managed to join up most of our previously started sections to give a good section of la...
- Gold Under Bracken - The Beauty of Our Landscape, More than Skin Deep
The January meeting of the North Ceredigion Local Group saw a fantastic number of 70 people attend. They came along to hear local group member, Richard Hartnup. Richard worked for many years for the Soil Survey of England and Wales. Now retired Ri...
- The Bridges of Ceredigion
The new footbridges have been installed at Old Warren Hill. They have already been well introduced to the Welsh weather they will have to endure with the gale force winds and lots of rain we’ve had (one has already had the stream washing over the top...
- Bramble Bashing in Ceredigion
Our traditional winter scrub clearing work has continued in earnest this month along with a few other, different tasks. At Pennar Fawr we cleared some brambles and seedlings that were encroaching on the grassland. We also opened up the parking area ...
- Warwickshire's Natureforce Visit Ceredigion
Eight Warwickshire volunteers, known as Natureforce, had their 5thvisit to help out on Ceredigion’s reserves this month. We spent a beautiful sunny day at Rhos Fullbrook squelching around in the mud putting in 8 more sections of boardwalk a...
- Ceredigion Local Group Meeting November 2011
The November meeting of the North Ceredigion Section of the Wildlife Trust South and West Wales, was held last Monday evening the 7th of November, attracted a huge turnout of both Section Members and students to Lecture Theatre A6 in the Llandinam Buil...
- Marsh Fritillaries return to Fullbrook!
Having briefly mentioned that we found marsh fritillary webs on Rhos Fullbrook last month I (Em Foot) thought I’d expand a bit on our surveys and the butterflies themselves. Every year marsh fritillary larval web surveys are completed on several s...
- Conservation Work in October, Ceredigion
We had a blowy morning at Penderi Cliffs cutting back the path vegetation to improve accessibility. We were lucky enough to see the local chough flying around the cliffs. At the top of Old Warren Hill we spent a day cutting down sycamore regeneratio...
- Ten Years of Butterfly monitoring at Teifi Marshes and Coed Maidie
It started at Teifi Marshes in 1999. I suddenly found myself with time to use entirely for myself. What to do. Beyond the age where I might be paid for work lessened the search. I didn’t fancy working in charity shops- needed something more active. S...