18th November 2018
Work Party
  • Work on Island 4, following on from Phil Shirley’s work earlier this week, to ensure that the waterway westwards from the car park bank, along the wall at the rear of Mulberry House/Millstones, to its joining with the main diagonal flow at the junction for islands 4, 5 and 8,  is clear of growth, debris, etc and that the water can flow unimpeded
Year 6
Heritage Lottery Project News
(email from Eddie Oram, Hon Secretary
Darshill & Bowlish Conservation Society 25/7/2018) 

I am delighted to inform you that the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) have approved the revised application discussed at our April AGM and have awarded us a grant of £20,000 towards the cost of delivering the Darshill & Bowlish Heritage Project
 
The HLF grant represents 65% of the estimated project cost, leaving DBCS to raise the remaining £10,670. A business contact of mine has provisionally agreed to contribute £5,000 – I will now be seeking confirmation of that pledge, whilst Brian Allen, our project fundraiser, has identified a number of charities, companies, and statutory bodies that he will contact seeking further contributions. The plan being that our project becomes fully funded from third party donations.
On Satuday, 25th August the Darshill & Bowlish community came together to celebrate the award of a Heritage Lottery Fund grant outside one of the only two remaining handle houses left in the country. You’ll have seen it – it’s a local landmark on the A371 Shepton Mallet to Wells road and was used to dry teazels used in the manufacture of woolen cloth. Now the work really starts.
Biodiversity Surveys September 2018
The Biodiversity Surveys got off to a good start this month, with Becca Brown’s visit to Darshill and the Greater Horseshoe Bat Roost on 12th September 2018.
Using equipment kindly provided by Becca; clickers and bat detectors enabled the two of us to count the bats outside.  Quite a task as some bats were returning, as others left, however twelve to fourteen bats were registered.
The night camera was set up to record their flight and the results will be processed next month.  Becca is a member of the Somerset Mammal Group, and she will return in April 2019, to undertake another garden bat count. 
Report by Jane Williams
Freshwater Survey of the River Sheppey 2018

Jane Williams organised and led a river dipping survey on a sunny afternoon on Wednesday, 10th October 2018. 14 species were identified, the photographs to the left show some of the types seen.

​The full list can be seen in the Nature Observed area, under Freshwater Creatures.