West Common and Burton Ridge Nature

By Caroline Steel, former Head of Conservation at Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust. On West Common, the showy meadow flowers are coming out. The sheep’s sorrel is giving views across the common a lovely russet tinge and you can find tormentil, cat’s-ear and heath bedstraw on the lighter soils. Where there is deeper soil you can find meadow crane’s-bill, betony, … [Read more...] about West Common in June

By Caroline Steel, former Head of Conservation at Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust. West Common has kept me sane over the last few weeks and it’s amazing how much there has been to see. For a week or so last month, two little ringed plovers frequented the temporary pond and yellow wagtails were around too: I saw six one day on the playing field. The common has now … [Read more...] about West Common In May 2020

One activity that most of us can still do during the extended lockdown is keep an eye out for birdlife. In the last day or so the first signs have been seen of House Martins and Swallows returning to the area from Africa. Swifts usually follow a few weeks later; they seem to like slightly warmer weather. Since all these summer migrant visitors spend most of their time in … [Read more...] about House Martins, Swifts & Swallows in Long Leys/West Common

By Caroline Steel, former Head of Conservation at Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust. We are so fortunate to have West Common on which to exercise and there’s plenty to look out for and listen to at the moment, while keeping our distance from people. Skylarks are singing! They are selecting territories and will soon be building nests. Eggs aren’t usually laid until May when … [Read more...] about West Common In April

This summer there seem to be more butterflies on West Common than in recent years: do others think so? At the moment there are clouds of meadow browns and both small skippers and Essex skippers (difficult to distinguish). Creeping thistles are generally thought to be ‘weeds’, but at the moment they are providing an excellent source of nectar and later on their seeds will … [Read more...] about West Common In July