Ally Pally Allotments Association

AGM 2014

Wildlife Spottings

There has been some wonderful wildlife spotted on the site this year.

Looking back to the year 2012 to 2013, we had 4 dead hedgehogs reported, with 2 found drowned in a tank. This year there were 2 reported dead, which is still 2 too many. But several also seen very much alive on various plots. The hedgehog population in the UK has declined by 30% in the UK, they said on Springwatch.

Fox cubs were seen again on the site - 5 together. They kindly left Alison and I Kentucky fried chicken boxes on our plot - empty - and pulled out my leeks.

The friendly pair of Mallard ducks appeared again for several weeks on the site and ate all the frogspawn in Annie's pond. They have been immortalised in one of this year's allotment greeting cards.

Lots of birds have been spotted - Blackcaps, Long-tailed tits, Goldfinches, Robins, Woodpeckers, Herons, Geese, Fieldfares, and plenty of squawking Ring-necked parakeets. There were not just one but two broods of baby robins reared in Zoe's shed which is amazing and there are some wonderful photos of them on the CHADAHS website (www.chadahs.org.uk).

Red Admiral, Peacock and Comma butterflies were spotted.

Stag beetle larvae were found on the site - and I really hope they were stag beetles - but rose chafer larvae look very similar but are much smaller. I've put a couple of pictures up on the board to compare. Stag beetle larva can be 11 cm long.

We have had lots of frogs, which is great as on Springwatch they said there is an 80% decline in frogs in the UK because of a virus. So the more ponds we have the better. And in fact the number of ponds on the site has increased from 21 medium and small and 6 large, in 2011, to 26 medium and small and 7 large. There are pictures and information in the Meeting Shed of the sort of wildlife we might see on the site. Do keep putting your spottings on the board, digging new ponds and planting flowers for the bees!!

Sally Chubb,

July 2014