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August 2021 August 2021

THOMAS WILLIAMS EDUCATIONAL BERE REGIS WILDLIFE AND
FOUNDATION ENVIRONMENT GROUP
Registered Charity - 306172
At the time of writing the fine, warm, sunny weather
Long established members of our village community will already be aware of this has finally arrived. Please do your bit by topping up
local grant making charity. your bird bath or if you haven’t got one put out a
Nowadays, we generally refer to the trust as “The Williams Trust” and many saucer of water for birds and hedgehogs. They’ll
parishioners are aware that it makes financial contributions towards the appreciate it and you will have the joy of seeing more
education of young people in the Parish, especially in cases of greatest need. wildlife in your garden.

Grants to individuals in previous years have ranged from assistance with
equipment costs for undergraduates, 6th former travel costs and support for Grasshoppers and Crickets
apprenticeships. Local youth organisations, including the school, Scouts and the
Swimming Club have also benefited. If you walk through meadow areas or
any long grass around the village you
The Trustees of the charity are very much aware that as the community has are almost bound to see little creatures
changed and grown over the years, the profile of the Trust has become less well- jumping away in front of you. They may
known and there are many cases of real need which have not been able to be crickets or grasshoppers and they
benefit. To that end, we have stepped up the publicity for the grant application are in the same family group of
process with advertisements in this publication, posts on the village Facebook Orthopteroids of which there are about
group and posters made available in schools and public places. 25,000 species worldwide. Each are
typically up to an inch long. They have
Although there is a limited fund of money available (even more so as a result of rear legs that are disproportionately
the pandemic’s effect on investments), and grants are only made once a year in large in relation to their bodies allowing
August, our aim is very much to give smaller amounts of money to a greater them to jump long distances. So, how
number of applicants as this really does meet the aim of the Trust “to seek to help can you tell them apart?
young people in the Parish with a contribution to their educational costs, priority
being given to those most in need”. The main difference between a grasshopper and a cricket is that crickets tend to
have long antennae, grasshoppers have short antennae. Most crickets (but not
The application process is very straightforward, completed on-line via all) come out at dusk, whereas grasshoppers tend to be out and about during
www.williamstrust.org.uk. Young people are encouraged to make the the day. If your hearing is good you may hear the summery whirring sound that
applications themselves, although for those under the age of 16, it is understood crickets and grasshoppers make, primarily by the males to attract a mate.
that a parent or guardian may make the application. Crickets make this sound (stridulating) by rubbing their wings together, while
The award decisions are made at the Trustee meeting at the beginning of grasshoppers stridulate by rubbing their long hind legs against their wings.
September. Grants are usually paid out before the end of that month - in time Grasshoppers detect sound by means of little 'ears' at the base of their abdomen;
for the start of the new education year. in crickets these are on the front legs. Grasshoppers mostly eat grass, but crickets
are partial to animal matter as well. In the UK there are 11 native species of
grasshopper, and a similar number of crickets, although more actually live and
In 2021, the closing date for applications is Friday 27th August and the breed here.
grant application form will be available on the website from 1 July 2021.
Unsurprisingly, the varied species of grasshoppers and crickets favour different

habitats. The field grasshopper (which favours open sunny grasslands) is one of
the commonest in the UK. The field grasshopper is usually mottled brown in colour,
Can you help?
with barring on the sides. Its eggs are laid and overwinter in the soil ready to
The Trustees are seeking to bolster the Trust’s funds, to raise additional capital and hatch the following summer.
to generate more income for grants in the future and are keen to encourage

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