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Kestrel Wood Conservation Area

The Early Days
The Kestrel Wood Conservation Area was set up in the early 2000’s on neglected, uncultivated land on the Goodmayes Lane allotment site. It was named after a Kestrel regularly seen on site, which used to hunt for small mammals in the open grassland.

Early work consisted of clearing large swathes of bramble, especially along the boundary fence, so that young saplings could be planted. This included thorny shrubs such as Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) and Dog Roses (Rosa canina), which would help to improve the security of the site from intruders.

A mixed hedgerow also provides an ideal habitat for a huge range of wildlife, especially wild birds that use hedgerows as nesting sites and the berries produced by the plants as a food source. The early spring flowers also provide a source of nectar for a wide range of pollinating insects, especially bees.

Thousands of tree saplings were also planted, including species such as Oak (Quercus robur), Ash (Fraxinus excelsior), Birch (Betula pendula), Whitebeam (Sorbus aria), Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus) and Hazel (Corylus avellana). This was on top of various neglected fruit trees that were already on site such as plums, green gages and cherries.

Pond
A pond was dug in the winter of 2007, in the hope that amphibians such as frogs, toads and newts would be attracted onto the site, along with a plethora of other aquatic flora and fauna. 3 years on and it has established well and become a huge success. It has been planted up with water-lilies, flag iris, reeds and oxygenating water weed. Both frogs and toads have been spotted, along with the larvae of several species of dragon and damsel fly. However, we are yet to find any evidence of newts.

Tree Planting and Bramble Bashing
Serious work started again in late 2008, after the battle to save the allotment site from development had been won. More bramble was cleared and new plots were created in order to cope with demand. A large section of hedgerow was cleared of bramble, and cut back in the spring of ’09 to maintain its hedgerow shape. Any gaps in the hedge were replanted with hawthorn, and a path was created running alongside it in order to make maintenance easier. A pathway was cleared through the bramble in various areas so that the entire site was once again accessible.

Tree planted started again, including new species such as Alder (Alnus glutinosa), Field Maple (Acer campestre), Spindle (Euonymus europaeus) and Guelder Rose (Viburnum opulus).

In December 2009 the local guide troop was on site to plant 40 saplings of Flowering Cherry (Prunus), Silver Birch and Mountain Ash (Sorbus aucuparia). These benefitted from being staked and protected with tree shelters. The London Wildlife Trust has also worked on site in January 2010, and helped to clear bramble from another section of the hedgerow. The Redbridge Nature Conservation Team has recently organised working days on the reserve, allowing members of the wider community to access the site.

Biodiversity
Numerous log piles have been constructed in various locations in order to encourage stag beetles and other insects. We currently have both Stag Beetles (Lucanus cervus), which is Britain’s largest terrestrial insect, and Lesser Stag Beetles (Dorcus parallelipipedus) on site. Stag beetles have become endangered in Britain due to habitat loss and are listed in several conventions protecting them from harm, so we are extremely lucky to have them.

Log piles also provide habitat for various species of fungi and lichens, of which there is a huge diversity of in the autumn, visible when the mushrooms spring up.

The pond contains several species of dragon and damsel flies and their larva, along with other aquatic fauna such as water boatmen, snails and water beetles.

Bird species on site includes huge amounts of starlings, magpies, sparrows, robins, blackbirds, magpies, collared doves, wood pigeons and blue tits to name a few. Green woodpeckers have also been spotted, along with the return of a Kestrel in early 2010.

There are also two fox dens onsite, supporting a healthy population of urban foxes. We are incredibly lucky to have these magnificent animals living in our towns and cities, and they do a good job of eating pests such as slugs and snails.

Bats surveys recently carried out by the council have identified several bat species living in nearby Goodmayes Park and in the large Poplar (Populus nigra) trees in the next door Goodmayes recreation ground. We hope to attract these bats onto site as our tree stock grows.

A trial wildflower meadow has been sown next to the pond. This is somewhat of an experiment and it will be interesting to see how well it flowers in the summer of 2010. If successful we may try to extend our areas of wildflower meadow, or plant various perennial wildflowers.

Future Plans
There is plenty of work to be carried out on the conservation area in order to boost its biodiversity and encourage more flora and fauna onto the site. Over the coming weeks, months and years we plan to:

• Continue to maintain the hedgerow as it grows and make it more effective as a natural security barrier
• Develop another pond, in order to create a more suitable habitat for newts, who need large networks of water basins to flourish
• Continue with tree planting whilst managing our current stock
• Boost the diversity of flora in the area by managing grassy areas as meadow
• Build a living willow hide from which to bird watch
• Construct more log piles, bird and bat boxes and generally develop habitats for wildlife
• Carry out surveys to get a better understanding of exactly which species of birds, reptiles, amphibians, mammals, insects, fungi and plants we have on site. Doing this will help us establish whether we have any rare or endangered species on site, and what we can do to encourage them
• Organise ‘working parties’ of volunteers to help achieve these plans and make the conservation area part of the local community.