25/11/10: Fine stand of Annual Nettle in North Heath alley

Here's part of the largest and most luxurious stand of Annual Nettle (Urtica urens) I've yet found, growing in an alleyway in Northumberland Heath, London Borough of Bexley.


The leaves of the plants in this colony are particularly sharply and attractively 'cut'.

3/10/10: From Lesser Calamint to a riot of red Apples

Lesnes Abbey Conservation Volunteer (LACV) work today.

Great to see such a fabulous show of Lesser Calamint (Clinopodium calamintha syn. Calamintha nepeta) flower at its only know site in London, near the ruined Abbey.

Lesser Calamint, at Lesnes Abbey. Second, close-up shot, shows it next to fellow Labiate Black Horehound (Ballota nigra).

In the mud round the lower of the Abbey ponds were several Trifid Bur-marigold and some Celery-leaved Crowfoot (Ranunculus sceleratus). The alien water fern Azolla, present last year, appears to have died out, maybe because of the hard winter, the subsequent drought, silt clearance or some combination of these.

After some pond-clearance work with LACV members up in the woods themselves, I made my way to the 'sea wall' at Crossness, via Belvedere railway station, during which time the weather improved somewhat. Unusually, there was only one Shelduck in sight and few Mallard, but lots of Gadwall. An unidentified Hawker Dragonfly whizzed past.

There was an Asparagus plant by the Incinerator. Towards Erith, by the fence at Dee Dee removals, a previously unnoticed Apple tree (pictured below) now stood out with its massive crop of small (27mm diameter) red fruits, looking just like cherries when viewed from above.

Further east, and past the pinkish-flowered Rosa rugosa previously noted on the upper 'shore' below the sea wall, I spotted a white-flowered specimen in the same habitat, though with only one bloom that was by now 'going over'.

In Erith, Annual Nettle (Urtica urens) was still present along the fence line around the former Riverside Swimming Baths site.

30/9/10: Danson Park aliens, new plant records and fungi

There were a lot of aliens in evidence at Danson Park, Bexleyheath, this afternoon. Apart from the Canada Geese, Ring-necked Parakeets and Grey Squirrels (slightly fewer after a dog-owner sat impassively on a bench while her mutts chased and killed one), there were a pair of Egyptian Geese which are turning up in parks all over London (but this was my first record of the species in Bexley Borough - no doubt it's been 'clocked' by serious local Twitchers already, however), a bevvy of Norway Maple seedlings, lots of Turkey Oak saplings seeded from the mature specimens and various clumps of Michaelmas Daisies.

A pair of Egyptian Geese (Alopochen aegyptiacus), with Danson Mansion in the background. The natural range of the species is mainly the Nile Valley and south of the Sahara.

In the Old English Garden there was the alien Narrow-leaved Ragwort, which is now all over the north of the Borough, at least from Erith to Belvedere/Abbey Wood, and which top botanist from the BMNH Mark Spencer says will probably be a major invasive nuisance in 20 years. In the 'potager' (mixed flower and vegetable) border of the OEG were some 8 plants of Fool's Parsley. I've only found it in 4 other places in London so far (of which 3 are in Bexley), and only a single plant in each case.

To the north west of the Mansion, where a lot of grit has been spread on the ground, both Swine Cress and Lesser Swine Cress were found, along with a lone Garden Radish.

Other new plant records for me from the Park (all on the sandy mounds/bare ground on the mini golf course near the Crook Log entrance) included Parsley Piert, Weld, a single Common Stork's-bill and 14 plants of Annual Nettle (Urtica urens), the latter probably under-recorded as it looks similar to seedlings of the usual large perennial one, but now I've got my eye in for it, I still think it's uncommon in Bexley - and this is only the third place I've found it in the Borough.

Annual Nettle (Urtica urens), Danson Park mini golf course

There were also several species of fungi out, but I'm no good on ID-ing these so readers will just have to enjoy the pictures without knowing what they are (but if you do, please leave comments .......)

Various Fungi at Danson Park

23- 26/4/10: Four days of firsts

Four days of first evers, firsts for the year and firsts for Bexley Borough - as far as my own recording effort goes anyway.

23/4 - My first ever Blackcap (yes, I'm not very good on birds - yet ....). Very good view of a male in a Willow by the Cray along By-way 105.

Lots of Marsh Marigold in flower along the By-way 105 and Footpath 106 sections of the Cray.

Marsh Marigold in flower by Footpath 106 on the River Cray

10 Tufted Duck at Five Arches Lake. Large Terrapin basking on a small island in the lake - presumably released by someone who found it too big to handle any more.

Speckled Wood, Peacock, 1 Comma and (first for year) one Brimstone on Foot's Cray Meadows. 4 Stock Doves (my first record of them in Bexley).

Several Chubb in the river. Grey Wagtail.

On the sewer embankment by Thames Rd Wetland was my first Odonatan of the year, a Large Red Damselfly. I also found two Grass Snakes not far from the River Cray (the first I've found myself and, embarassingly, only the second and third I've ever seen in the flesh).

Five Shelduck were in flight over 'flooded field north' on Dartford Marshes by Bob Dunn Way, and two more were at the confluence of the Cray and Darent where there were also a few small waders.

Two adult Foxes were brazenly running around by Howbury moat towards dusk.

24/4 - first sighting of a Grey Heron actually using the Thames Road Wetland (TRW) site.

Lots of Spotted Medick in flower along the Thames Rd bank of the TRW. My first ever conscious spotting/identification of the Annual Nettle (Urtica urens) which is presently abundant in the 'amenity shrub bed' mulch here.


Annual Nettle (Urtica urens), Thames Rd Wetland site. Note short flower clusters

Also 9 flowering plants of Common Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum) here, my first ever record of the species, which is thought to be native to East Anglia and is occasional elsewhere, presumably as an escape. They no doubt arrived on this site in dumped soil/aggregate. Clearly one of those things that's unpalatable to rabbits .....

Common Star of Bethlehem (Ornithogalum umbellatum) by Thames Rd, Crayford

25/4 - London Natural History Society field trip - Erith Marshes (north of Belvedere) / Crossness.

Highlights were:

- Linnets
- Male Reed Bunting
- Whitethroat - (my first conscious sighting ever, or at least since I was a teenager)
- Lesser Whitethroat - my first ever - making its way up a stubby electricity pylon by a disused factory, doing a passable impression of a Treecreeper as it did so
- Some Swallows
- A Jay
- 2 Little Ringed Plover
- Great views of a male Garganey (my first ever) off the sewage works outfall (the best view several seasoned birders there had ever had of the species)
- About 15 Gadwall here also
- plus 2 Whimbrel - new to me
- plus 1 Black-tailed Godwit
- plus 1 Common Sandpiper (possibly another first for me, certainly in recent times)
- 2 Tern sp.
- 4 Wheatear (the group I was with at the time counted a total of 6), male and female, in a field south of the ghastly Incinerator

Thanks to the folks with the better equipment and ID skills who pointed several of these things out to me! No pics from me I'm afraid, still limited to my mobile phone camera ......

I should also mention the far from common Small Tortoiseshell butterfly seen. There were quite a few Peacock butterflies in what seems to be a good year for them.

There were swathes of Scurvy Grass in several places (probably English) along the Thames foreshore towards Erith (new species for me if either this or Common Scurvy Grass - latter said not to occur in SE England, at any rate it wasn't Danish scurvy Grass. I'll need another look to get a postive ID).



Scurvy Grass (probably English - certainly not the Danish) on Thames foreshore between Crossness and Erith. Plus a washed-up football.

Sedum album and Sedum acre found below the sea wall by a disused jetty towards the ADM site.

- Several Shelduck on the foreshore towards Erith
- 2 Oystercatchers on a 'stand-alone' platform (roughly opposite the Veolia premises on the Essex bank).

The day was rounded off superbly by this fabulous rainbow over the river (pictured here - but not done justice), which disappeared into the clouds, emerging to appear as if it was going to ground on the south side of the Thames. Even my wide-angle mobile phone cam lens couldn't have got it all in .....

26/4: Today's 'first' was my first record of Shining Crane's-bill (Geranium lucidum) in Bexley Borough or, indeed, anywhere in London south of the Thames. One plant skulking under a bit of fencing surrounding the ditch by the bl**dy awful new car park running down towards the river at Hall Place. Seed probably brought in during construction / 'landscaping' work.