Waterside Natural History Society walk at Veals Lane Hythe
Roadside verges and landscaping make up a significant
proportion of our countryside that allows wildlife to flourish. Main roads,
motorways and roundabouts provide a natural corridor within years of being
constructed. Smaller lanes and pathways provide the same function but in
addition have a long-established flora and fauna that make them rich in a
variety of wildlife. The walk along Veals lane was chosen to investigate the
plants, insects and birds that have made this area their home and also to walk
along a little travelled part of the Waterside.
Veals Lane was accessed from West Street near the Marina in
Hythe. A small footpath sandwiched between houses and a drainage channel led
out past the Marina and into the countryside towards Marchwood.The man-made
channel drained the low-lying area behind Dibden Bay. The Bay which was once
mudflats has been filled in to about three feet above the high tide level with
the intention of building a container port. The footpath follows the original
coastline as can be seen by the presence of mooring ropes and hawsers sticking
out of the bank. A short stretch also borders the railway line to Fawley.
Rainfall in the early part of the year and the recent warm
weather has meant that annual plants have grown at a prodigious rate and the
footpath at the rear of the houses was quite overgrown. Geraniums thrown out
from one of the houses had also become established with patches of pink and
blue flowers.
Rushes, Sedges and
Cord Grass lined the drainage channel. The Cord Grass was planted in order to
stabilise mudflats and can be seen in many areas along the South Coast but has
been marooned further inland along the drainage channel.
Hogweed and Hemlock Water Dropwort were seen growing in the shady
areas and Corky Fruited Water Dropwort on many of the hedge side banks. The
Hemlock Water Dropwort as its name suggests can be poisonous. Corky Fruited
Water Dropwort is not a name heard every day but has become quite established
in the local area and can be seen as a small version of Cow Parsley growing
along many of the roads. The purple and yellow flowers of Bittersweet or Woody
Nightshade which clambered through the hedges are sometimes identified wrongly
as Deadly Nightshade which is a stout erect plant with brown flowers.
Roses have flowered prolifically in many gardens this year
and the wild varieties of Dog Rose and Field Rose were in flower along the
hedgerows. Hidden at the bottom of hedges wild flowers such as Lesser Knapweed,
Heath Bedstraw, St John’s Wort, Red Clover and even a Broad Leaved Hellebore
were seen. The short grass of the low-lying meadows allowed Birds Foot Trefoil
to cover the ground alongside White Clover which attracted many Honey Bees, White
Tailed Bees and other insects.
Meadow Brown Butterflies were a constant companion
throughout the walk attracted to the flowering Blackberries which also hosted the
occasional Large Skipper. Marbled White Butterflies patrolled the vegetation
along the drainage channel. Blue Damselflies were attracted to the water with
Keeled Skimmers and a Gold Ringed Dragonfly on the higher vegetation. The
insistent call of Wood Pigeons around the houses gave way to the more tuneful
Blackcap and Chiffchaff along the lanes.
The walk provided plenty of interest but on the hottest June
spell for 40 years became hard work on the return back to Hythe.
The indoor meeting for June was an illustrated talk on ‘New
Forest Ponies- more than meets the eye’ by Suzanne Kemp. What meets the eye of
most visitors to the New Forest is the sight of ponies wandering freely about
in all weathers without food or assistance of any kind. This could not be
further from the truth as illustrated in the talk.
Owners of the ponies, of which the speaker was one, carefully
manage the ponies so that the qualities of the breed are maintained and the
Forest benefits from their presence. Only the Mares remain outside but the
stallions are kept on the farm for most of the year and only a regulated number
are allowed out in May and June of each year to maintain stocking levels.
It was reassuring to learn that ponies are well suited to
the cold and wet of winter but seek shelter from the hot summer temperatures
and biting insects.
With all the facts and information, the talk proceeded at a
brisk trot and it was good to learn of the love and care given by the owners
and Agisters to the welfare of the ponies.
