We know that many of our members will miss their usual visit to Highdown Gardens this Spring so please click on the video below and enjoy a short virtual tour of these beautiful Gardens that we are so fortunate to have on our doorstep.
https://www.facebook.com/highdowngardens/videos/184065679320989/
Due to the ongoing Coronavirus situation, we have had to cancel the planned beach clean on Saturday 16 May and the next members’ meeting on Friday 29 May. We continue to keep our future meetings and activities under regular review, but will of course abide by Government regulations and advice. Any updates on our activities will be posted here as well as in our regular e mails to members.
Now that the weather is not so good, you could try these ideas from the comfort of your
house:
If you are still feeding birds, open your windows and try taking photos of birds on your feeders. You can even try through the glass. Even better if you can get a picture of a bird in a tree.
If you have a nest box or you know where a robin or blackbird, say, has made a nest, try keeping a record of 
activities: taking in nesting materials, feeding young and fledglings. Keep a note of key dates and you can even record your findings on the website of the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO): www.bto.org.
A walk up the Rife is a must in May. The white Cow Parsley is in full 
bloom all along the banks and the Yellow Flags (Yellow Iris) are just coming out. Soon, the Early Marsh Orchids will be in bloom.
Two birds to look out for on the Rife which like the reeds. Reed Buntings sing from the tops of reeds or from bushes. Their song is a dull few notes but they are a lovely bird. Reed Warblers sing from lower down in the reeds and have an interesting chatty, jittery song which seems to go round in circles. They make their nests in the reeds whereas Reed Buntings usually nest in scrubby vegetation nearby.
Please see below a wonderful video of Arundel Castle Gardens with the tulips in bloom:
Butterflies: the early blues are Holly Blue and there are now Comma,
Peacock and Red Admiral, Green-veined Whites as well as Small White, Brimstones and lots of Orange Tips.
Look out for Bee Flies – they have a characteristic long pointed proboscis which is not only used for gathering nectar but also as an ovipositor into a host mining bee which it parasitises. Also keep an eye out for bright red Lilly Beetles.
If you want to help bees, why not 
make a home-made Bee Hotel (see
photo) and this is the perfect time to leave part of your lawn unmown to
make a mini-meadow.
There is a litter of 6 fox cubs nearby from a den under a shed is a nearby garden. The father helps feed the cubs while the mother keeps mainly in the den.
Clive Hall has reported a few 
mornings of passage migration over the
sea: Sandwich and Commic Terns, Common Scoter, Med. Gulls, Brent Geese,
Whimbrel, Arctic Skua, Kittiwake, Bar-tailed Godwit.
Common Whitethroat are back on the Rife but only a few Willow Warblers
heard. On Highdown,and especially up McIntyre’s Lane there are pairs of
Linnets, Common Whitethroat. Lesser Whitethroat, Blackcap, Chiffchaff
and lots of Skylarks.
We seem to be moving out of lockdown into ‘alertness’, which means more freedom to go out – keeping the 2 metres ‘social distance’, or wearing masks where we cannot do that, and that more shops will be opening soon, beginning with Garden Centres. I know that many Conservation Group members have been helping their friends and neighbours with shopping and other essentials, and it may be necessary to keep this up for a few more weeks at least. As before, if you know of anyone who needs help but not getting it please let me know – EdMiller43@msn.com
If you are lucky enough to be near woodland or can walk along hedgerows, April is the perfect time to identify woodland flowers. Most flower early before they are shaded by the tree canopy above. The following is a list of 20 found in Patching Woods. See how many you can find, some may even be in your garden:-
Wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa) white/pink flowers
Primrose (Primula vulgaris) pale yellow flowers, large crinkly leaves
Bluebell (Endymion non-scriptus) blue, with cream anthers, long thin leaves
Dog’s Mercury (Mercurialis perennis) tiny, inconspicuous flowers
Violet (Viola species) blue/purple flowers, heart-shaped leaves
White Dead-nettle (Lamium album) white flowers, nettle-like leaves
Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata) white flowers, other name Jack-by-the-Hedge
Ladies Smock (Cardamine pratensis) pale pink flowers, other name Cuckoo Flower
Greater Stitchwort (Stellaria holostea) white flowers, quite tall
Red Campion (Silene dioica) red flowers, tall
Lords-and-Ladies (Arum maculatum) purple or yellow spadix with green spathe (hood)
Wild Garlic (Allium ursinum) white flowers, strong-smelling, edible
Ground Ivy (Glechoma hederacea) violet/blue flowers, leaves kidney-shaped
Red Dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum) pink/purple flowers, square stems
Wood spurge (Euphorbia amygdaloides) tall, tiny flowers in yellow/green, cup-like bracts
Wood sorrel (Oxalis acetosella) white flowers, trefoil leaves, in ancient woods
Lesser Celandine (Ficaria verna) glossy yellow flowers, heart-shaped leaves
Goldilocks Buttercup (Ranunculus auricomus) small yellow variable petals, divided leaves
Early Purple Orchid (Orchis mascula) purple flowers in spike, black spots on leaves
Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) very tall with purple flowers, large soft leaves
To help you identify the flowers, you can take photos on your phone or camera and then use the internet or an identification book to help you. I can recommend The Wild Flowers of Britain and Ireland by Blamey, Fitter and Fitter, second edition, 2013. Please
do not pick the flowers. If you make your own list in a note book, record when and where you find the flowers and then you will build up a useful plant list.
A collage of 12 of these woodland flowers may help your identification.
During these unparalleled times it is reassuring to observe that nature continues to thrive all around us.
Please see our Nature Notes page for up to date observations and suggestions from the Group’s wildlife expert, Tricia Hall.
The warm weather is beginning to bring out the butterflies. Look out for the following in your garden or on your daily walk. These are common April butterflies:
Peacock, often a pair doing a dance, spiralling into the air.
Small Tortoiseshell, often sunning itself on the ground.
Orange Tip, small, the female has grey rather than orange tips.
Small White, the first of the ‘cabbage whites’ to emerge.
Green-veined White, like Small White but underside has grey/green veins.
Brimstone, yellow, distinctive shape, female very pale yellow.
These 6 butterflies are shown on the collage to help you. See if you can tick off all 6 by the end of the month. Have you started your plant list yet? Now you can make a list of butterflies as well! Let me know if you record all six. There are other species as well which you may see. You could try and photograph them if they settle.
Look out for other insects in your garden. Have you seen a Bee Fly? They are very common this year.
The Rife on a sunny spring day and a members front garden in Ferring
