4        SANDHOUSE LANE NATURE RESERVE – Di Parsons

Due to the car park closing at 8pm at Stockgrove Country Park (scheduled for this evening), it has been decided to visit Sandhouse Lane instead – this is the visit previously scheduled for 23 June, which was cancelled due to the exceptionally hot weather.

Sandhouse Lane is a small nature reserve off the A5, packed with flowers and insects. At its centre it has a brick-pit which is now a water-filled lake surrounded by trees. This is home to many types of insects; in particular, Bedfordshire’s first Downy Emerald Dragonfly – an insect scarce north of the Thames was found in 2006.The lake and trees have around them meadows containing many varieties of wild flowers and an area that was once an asphalt works. This shows the effect on flowers of attempting to grow in tarmac, such a restrictive substance. One of the highlights is an area growing several varieties of orchids.

Meet in the car park of the Flying Fox pub, on Sheep Lane just off the A5 south of Little Brickhill, from where we will car-share to the site.
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9        CLOPHILL LAKES NATURE RESERVE – Peter Meadows and Greensand Trust – Sunday 10.30am -12.45pm

Clophill Lakes is a new nature reserve in the heart of the Flit valley between Clophill and Chicksands. It lies in Greensand country and is managed by the Greensand Trust. With much of the site being recognised as a County Wildlife Site the Nature Reserve is managed to provide a mosaic of habitats such as wetlands, flower-rich grasslands and woodland which support a wide range of species, including otters, wetland birds , dragonflies and damselflies.

The entrance is on Shefford Road, Beadlow, Beds SG17 5TR, off the A507 just outside Clophill village. The postcode is unreliable, so please search for Clophill Lakes Nature Reserve, or use grid ref TL105383 or What3words: twice.half.protrude. 

Meet at 10.30 am in the car park which uses an ANPR system.An ANPR parking system is operated onsite. Parking must be paid for before leaving the car park (by card or contactless at the payment machine) and costs £3.50 for up to 3 hours and £5.50 for over 3 hours. 

The Riverside Cafe at the Reserve is open from 9.30 to 4.00.

11       LODGE LAKE/LOUGHTON BROOK – Gary Fowler and Martin Ferns

An easy walk around the lake edge, good for birdlife such as herons, tufted ducks, little grebes and other birds skulking and fishing among the reedbeds; maybe a cormorant or a little egret. Then a stroll north towards Bradwell Abbey along Loughton Brook, looking for kingfishers. Mostly on leisure paths.

Meet at car park on Bradwell Road (off H4 Dansteed Way) MK8 9LG,
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18   OUZEL VALLEY PARK  – Eavesdropping on MK Bats – Carla Boswell – 8pm

25      OUSE VALLEY PARK/STONEBRIDGE LAKES – Florie Bryant – Parks Trust

An easy walk through Ouse Valley Park, ending at Stonebridge Lakes which Martin Kincaid helped mastermind! The site is becoming a wildlife haven, with numerous waterfowl moving in. The Parks Trust would love to do a site survey with the help of MKNHS members to work out what visitors (flora and fauna) are present over summer. We will then wander back to the car park.  The route is fairly flat, some is paved but some walking will be on rough grassland with holes and bumps. Please bring binoculars if you have them, otherwise there will be some available to borrow on the night.

Meet at New Bradwell Allotments car park, off Newport Road, MK13 0DY SP823415 float.ivory.rings  

01      No Meeting

08      No Meeting

15      MEMBERS’ EVENING

Your opportunity to speak to members for 10-15 mins about interesting wildlife sightings or experiences you have had over the summer. If you’d like a ‘slot’, contact Linda Murphy in advance or at the start of the meeting.

22      FROM BEATRIX POTTER TO OUTER SPACE: THE EXTRAORDINARY JOURNEY OF LICHENS

Lichens have travelled a remarkable path through science, culture, and even space. Jagoda Zajac, Society Webmaster and Lichen enthusiast, will explore how these quiet, overlooked organisms have captured attention from Beatrix Potter’s early scientific studies to modern laboratories, revealing a world where resilience, creativity, and unexpected usefulness meet. Along the way, we’ll learn about some of the surprising roles which lichens have played in human history and the natural world.

NB this talk will be preceded by a brief Special General Meeting of the Society

29      PLASTICS IN OUR OCEANS (Zoom Meeting)

Vicki Bush, Senior Education and Community Officer (Marine Specialist) Gibraltar Point LWT/NNR will join us via Zoom to talk about what is happening with plastics in our oceans and to our wildlife. Find out a little more about the situation, what impacts we see in Lincolnshire and what we can do about it.

06      LOOKING FOR THE GOSHAWK – THE LOST RAPTOR

Writer, naturalist and conservationist Conor Jameson will give a personal, narrative account of the natural history of this mystery-shrouded bird of prey: how it lives, where it lives, and why it might be missing from our lives. His search takes him to some unexpected places, at home and abroad. This adventure turned into an essay which won BBC Wildlife Nature Writer of the Year in 2010, and subsequent book. 

A sub-plot in this story brings him to Buckinghamshire, on the trail of T H White, author of The Goshawk (and The Sword in the Stone, etc). His Goshawk story centres on a cottage in a wood, and Conor set out to try to find it… 

13      MEMBERS’ EVENING      

Another opportunity to speak to members for 10-15 mins about interesting wildlife sightings, experiences or issues you’d like to share with other members. If you’d like a ‘slot’, contact Linda Murphy in advance or at the start of the meeting.

20      REPTILES AND AMPHIBIANS IN BUCKINGHAMSHIRE

Agni Arampoglou and Claudia Bernardini from the Bucks Amphibian and Reptile Group (Bucks ARG) will talk about Reptiles and Amphibians in Buckinghamshire, some of the challenges they face and the work of the Bucks Amphibian and Reptile Group.

27      VOICES IN THE MIST: A CURLEW RECOVERY TALE FROM OTMOOR

David Wilding is Site Manager at RSPB Otmoor. His talk will look at work done on the Upper Thames Tributaries to save the curlew, with a particular focus on the RSPB’s work in the Otmoor Basin.

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03      ASTONISHING COSTA RICA – PART 1

Society member Justin Long takes us on a journey across Costa Rica – one of the most fascinating and biodiverse countries in the world, sharing his photos of this remarkable country, and the astonishing wildlife he encountered along the way.

10      EMBERTON COUNTRY PARK

Samuel Flowers, Manager of Emberton Country Park, will talk about the history of the park and the wide range of wildlife that can be found there. He will also explain plans for a Bioblitz next year, and how you can get involved.

17      THE END-CRETACEOUS MASS EXTINCTION AND THE ORIGIN OF MODERN BIRD DIVERSITY (Zoom Meeting)

Daniel Field is an evolutionary biologist and palaeontologist interested in the evolution of birds and other vertebrates, particularly how, when, and where Earth’s modern vertebrate biodiversity arose. He is the Professor of Vertebrate Palaeontology in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Cambridge. He joins us via Zoom this evening to explain how new fossil discoveries cast light on the evolutionary refinement of the distinctive features of modern birds, and the origin of the modern bird group itself. These discoveries help illustrate the role of the end-Cretaceous mass extinction in kickstarting the evolutionary diversification of modern birds.

24      QUIZ NIGHT

Once again Ann and Mark Strutton will test our grey matter with an array of taxing questions, all with a natural history twist. Teams of four or more will be assigned on the evening. Please bring your own refreshments (and brain power).

01      THE MOTHING YEAR (Zoom Meeting)

Colin Smith has been trapping and studying the moths of Lincolnshire for many years and will join us on Zoom tonight to show us the variety of moths found through the seasons in that County and talk about the seasonal adaptations they have evolved and how they cope and change with the differing weather patterns.  Lincolnshire is not so far from Milton Keynes and so a lot will be relevant to this area too.

08      FARMING THE LAND FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS

Martin Lines farms arable crops in South Cambridgeshire and leads the Nature Friendly Farming Network. This involves him in working with farmers, government, retailers and the finance sector. This evening he will give a brief overview of current farming policy and the challenges facing farmers, before looking at how we move towards a farming landscape and business model that delivers for food production, nature and future generations. Martin will draw on practical examples from his own farm and the wider Nature Friendly Farming Network to show what that can look like in practice.

15      CHRISTMAS PARTY

A chance for us all to socialise, relax and reflect on the past year with some good food and drinks. We will circulate a list in the preceding weeks so that you can tell us what dish you can bring along!

Next Meeting: Tuesday 5 January
Details will follow in due course.