On a damp evening following rain during the day, about twenty members met in the car park close to All Saints Church, above the village of Bow Brickhill. This was the Society’s first evening visit to Bow Brickhill Woods since 2015 so it was a new venue for many participants. The plan was to explore two areas: the churchyard of the 15th-century church and nearby woodland and woodland clearings.
Background
The Bow Brickhill Woods are a significant visual feature to the south-east of Milton Keynes. The woods are a part of the Greensand Ridge which stretches across three counties from Leighton Buzzard to Gamlingay in Cambridgeshire. It is primarily composed of greensand, a type of sandstone. Habitats throughout the Ridge are much influenced by acid soils and include: lowland heathland; ancient woodlands; wetlands such as marshy meadows; lowland meadows and species-rich pre-18th century hedges.
While the general image of the Brickhill Woods is that of evergreen conifers, the area we visited was mainly a variety of deciduous trees.
Throughout the year woodland birds such as the green woodpecker, great spotted woodpecker, nuthatch, jay and common crossbill can be seen/heard. However, there was very little evidence of bird song/calls on this visit.
Our route covered three main habitats: the churchyard; the more open areas mainly along paths at the edge of woodland, and woodland itself.
The Churchyard
The Churchyard is well maintained as a wildlife mini-meadow of grasses and herbaceous plants. Common Knapweed, Smooth Hawksbeard, Common Birds-foot trefoil, Ribwort Plantain, Lady’s Bedstraw, Harebell, Germander Speedwell, Sheep’s Sorrel, Common Ragwort and Yarrow were all in flower but sparsely distributed. Sweet Vernal Grass, Yorkshire Fog, Soft Rush and Bracken were also listed at this location. Field Grasshopper was found in the meadow area and was the only insect identified during our evening visit.
Woodland edges and clearings
Heather, a classic species of acid sandy soil habitats, was found in a number of places (including one small patch in the Churchyard); flowering was already over. Broom and Gorse – again species of acid heath habitats with flowering over – were also found in this habitat. Cocksfoot (a grass), Common Nettle, Creeping Thistle, Cleavers, Ground Ivy, and a Yellow Archangel cultivar were all thriving on the path edges as were Brambles. But the most interesting find was Climbing Corydalis which again is found on acid soils including woodland edges.
Woodland Trees, Shrubs and Fungi
Mature canopy trees included Beech, Sweet Chestnut, Hornbeam, English Oak, Lime, Ash, with the occasional Sycamore, Silver Birch, and Scots Pine. Hawthorn, Blackthorn, Hazel, Elder, Holly, and Ivy made up the understorey such as it was. Beech is unusual in that it thrives on both well-drained sandy soil and calcareous soils. Our one fungus of the evening, Dryad’s Saddle, was found on a fallen dead beech tree in the woodland.
Mosses, Lichens and Gall
With the aid of close-up photographs, identification of a number of lichens, and mosses were made and are included in the attached Species List, together with Snails and a Beech gall midge. These wildlife Orders are not listed very often at our outdoor evening meetings and this Species list therefore includes photos of all such species observed.
Thanks
Our thanks to all those participants who have contributed to the listings and in particular Jagoda for her remarkable photographs.
Joe Clinch and Mervyn Dobbin (co-leaders)