NORTH DOWNS & BEYOND

A couple of posts ago I mentioned that I was reading Feral by George Monbiot. Last week I finished it and can not recommend it highly enough. In simple terms, the author puts forward his case for the 'rewilding' of large tracts of Britain. Most of upland Britain is, in his words, 'sheep wrecked' - over grazed. This results in a barren landscape where the naturally occurring plants are reduced to a mere handful of species. The survivors are the few that are unpalatable to sheep, with only the very steepest slopes safe ground for vegetation to take any hold. Needless to say, such a habitat breakdown has a knock-on effect across all wildlife, affecting species numbers and composition. I have witnessed the destruction caused by sheep and deer at Ben Lawers in Scotland. By the visitor centre there is a burn that comes down from the hillside, meandering through a shallow depression. This has been fenced off to allow the vegetation to regenerate. You are allowed to wand...

I wandered into a second-hand book shop at Lyme Regis (near to the Cobb) and came across a gem of a book - The Oxford Book of Flowerless Plants by Nicholson and Brightman - first published in 1966. It concentrates on ferns, mosses, lichens and fungi and, although it could never be used as a field guide, the plates are simply charming. Here are three examples. The artist has grouped these lichens and mosses into 'habitat' groupings which is a good aid to helping such a novice as myself get close to making an identification. The species illustrated are the common and most likely to be found, so further reference from the 'big boys field guides' should help confirmation. I used the word 'charming' to describe the artwork - it is used as a compliment as these illustrations give off a real warmth and obvious love of the subject matter. Barbara Nicholson is the talented artist. Whilst on holiday I read The Fossil Hunter by Shelley Emling . It is, for all in...