Page 34 - br-april-2022

April 2022 April 2022

BERE REGIS WILDLIFE AND
ENVIRONMENT GROUP

With brighter, longer and warmer days the signs of
Spring are now all around us. Primroses are in bloom
and bluebells will soon be adorning our local woods,
the first swallows will soon be arriving (do let us know
when you see your first), while other birds will be active
building their nests and incubating their eggs. You
should be able to see many if not all of these sights along the riverside path,
helped by the conservation work our volunteers have been doing over the past
years to create a wider range of habitats. A very big thank you to all our
volunteers. Come late Autumn the conservation working parties will resume. We
hope to see you there.

Bluebells

As April arrives this is the time of year to enjoy that
most English of sights - the nodding heads, wonderful
blue carpets and sweet smell of bluebells. Native
English bluebells are abundant in local woods
including those on Black Hill and Kite Hill. They
provide much needed nectar for bees, butterflies
and other insects. Bluebells are part of the hyacinth
family of plants. Do look out for the occasional white
flower head among the bluebells. This is the result of
a genetic mutation. It is estimated that about one in
ten thousand bluebells are white – try counting!”
Our native bluebell should not be confused with the
Spanish bluebell, which is commonly found in
gardens. The Spanish bluebell has a more upright
habit, with the flowers all around the stem. The native English bluebell has a
drooping habit with flowers to one side of the stem. Unfortunately, the two
varieties can hybridise threatening the existence of the native English bluebell. So,
if you have Spanish bluebells in your garden we would encourage you to remove
them.

Violets
Another wild flower to enjoy this month in our woodlands, grasslands and
hedgerows is the violet. There are two types – the dog violet and the sweet violet.

The sweet violet (pictured) is a low, creeping plant with broad and glossy leaves

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