We shall be joining our guide, Ian McGuire, for a twilight owl prowl through Ridge Wood and hear him call for the resident tawny owls. Please wear warm clothes and boots and bring a torch. This event has been organised in cooperation with South Glos Council.

Meet at the southern Quarry Road entrance to Ridge Wood, Chipping Sodbury, 7.00pm (until 9.00pm).

We shall be undertaking maintenance of this important amphibian site including the cutting back of vegetation. Please wear gloves and wellington boots.

Meet at the Scott Way entrance to Kingsgate Park, Scott Way, Yate 10.00am (parking is available at the entrance of Shackleton Avenue).

Avon Wildlife Trust’s Southwold Group is very active and would very much welcome more like-minded people to join them. They organise workdays, walks, surveys, fundraising events and it only takes a couple of hours every other month. If anyone wants to help out and try something new then please call Malcolm on 01454 310328 and you will be made very welcome.

This free presentation by Callum Potter of the Cotswold Astronomy Society will be an opportunity to learn more about the wider universe. If the skies are clear we will also walk to nearby St John’ Park to view the night sky. Please wear warm clothes, strong footwear and bring a torch. This event has been organised in cooperation with South Glos Council.

The Old Grammar School, High Street, Chipping Sodbury, 7.00pm (until 9.00pm). 

Our guide, Justin Smith, will help us get to know the difference between mushrooms and toadstools on this autumn mycological adventure. Please wear warm clothes and boots. This event has been organised in cooperation with South Glos Council.

Meet by the Village Shop at the junction of The Nurseries and Itchington Road, Tytherington, South Gloucestershire, 2.00pm (until 4.00pm).

This will be a bit of practical voluntary work to help manage the reserve. and please meet at the northern Greenways Road entrance to the woodland, north Yate, 10.00am (until midday).

Following on from the major pond restoration works at the start of the year, this pond has now become a wildlife haven again full of newts, pondskaters, water beetles and other wildlife. We shall be carrying out general management works on the reserve including vegetation clearance.

Meet at the Kennedy Way Pond, Link Road, Yate Shopping Centre, 10.00am (parking is available at the Yate overflow car park also on Link Road).

Join us for an Open Day at the BTCV Tree Life Centre. The Tree Life Centre is a community project based at Grimsbury Farm in Kingswood where people from many different backgrounds come together to grow trees, shrubs and wildflowers.  There will be a range of activities for people of all ages which may include harvesting, preparing and sowing seed; potting up plants; wildlife and tree identification walks; pond dipping.

Access: Wheelchair access around parts of the site is limited but the area close to the entrance of the nursery is flat and accessible and there will be a fully accessible activity set up in the covered potting shed area. This event has been organised in cooperation with South Glos Council.

Meet at the BTCV Tree Life Centre, Grimsbury Farm at the junction of Grimsbury Roadand Baden Road, Kingswood, 11.00am (until 4.00pm).

Our work morning last Sunday started with a celebration as Cllr Gloria Stephen, Chairman of Dodington Parish Council,  presented the volunteers of the Wapley Bushes Conservation Group with the Green Flag Communities Award. The Green Flag Community Award is the national award scheme for high quality green spaces in the UK that are managed by voluntary and community groups. Wapley is is one of just three sites in South Gloucestershire to receive Green Flag awards this year.

We were very pleased to see so many at our work morning – around 30 people, many of them children. Our numbers were boosted by a community work party from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

With so many willing hands we accomplished a lot of work. The key objective was our annual task of clearing the ditch down through the wood – this year it wasn’t as clogged up as usual. When (if?) we have dry summers the ditch fills up with early leaf fall, but this year it was just a case of clearing some excess clay and removing fallen branches.

Another major task was cutting back fast-growing vegetation along some of the paths. This was of course more onerous than usual. We also cleared some young blackthorn that has shot up among the unmowed part of the orchard grass, and did a litter pick throughout the Reserve.

Our next Wapley workday will be at 10 am on Sunday 4 November, meeting at the Shire Way gate – call Paul Hulbert on 01454 315851 for more details, or just turn up.

Don’t forget that we have a Bat Walk at Yate Common on 19 September and a Wild Food Foray at Wapley on 24 September, and there’s a whole list of local wildlife events shown in Dates for Your Diary. Full details of each event appear on this blog a couple of weeks before the due day.

Come along and enjoy an autumn walk with our guide, Justin Smith, and see what nature’s free larder has in stock for you to take home, cook and eat. This event has been organised in cooperation with South Glos Council.

Meet at the Shire Way entrance to the woodland, opposite Cherington Road, south Yate, 2.00pm (until 4.00pm).

We shall be going on a walk to look at the autumnal delights that nature has to offer at this time of year at Wick and Doynton in the Golden Valley. Our walk leaders will be the experienced guides Richard and Pauline Wilson and please wear walking boots or other stout footwear as this walk will be about four miles or so.

Meet for a car share at the Clock Tower, High Street, Chipping Sodbury, 2.00pm. Please note that ample free car parking is available at the Wickwar Road car park.