March 2008

Local Records Centre

The Society needs your help!

This is an opportunity for any member who is used to working with computers and interested in a particular group of species to work alongside our Recorders.

Recorders are experts appointed by the Society to receive and review all the records sent in each year for a particular set of species. They have a complete overview of records ranging from the present back even, in some cases, as far as the 16th century. We are hoping for volunteers to act as amanuenses; helping them to input their data.

We hope that soon all our records will be maintained in 'MapMate', our main database, or on simple spreadsheets. In that way we can learn more by analysing the data in new and interesting ways and it can help to save rare and scarce species threatened by lack of management or inappropriate development.

If you are happy with using simple databases or spreadsheets we would be glad to hear from you.
Please contact Geoff,
email - Geoff(at)toone10.fsnet.co.uk - in the first instance.

Groups where help is particularly needed are Beetles, Grasshoppers and Crickets, Bugs, Marine (in general), Seaweeds and Fungi, though there are many others that need a helping hand.

March 2008

The Historic Environment Action Plan

Alan Phillips reports - 'At this morning's HEAP Steering Committee Ruth Waller asked me to pass on her many thanks to everyone in the Society who had so far been involved in the Historic Tracks project, she praised the Society's input as having been huge.'

Vicky Basford has prepared 15 reports which identify the varied historic landscapes of the Island, such as the Arreton Valley, the Undercliff, and the West Wight Chalk Downland. All of these are available for consultation on the HEAP website, and there is still time to send in your comments.

The Roads Lanes & Tracks report is also included, and Vicky intends to feed all the Historic Tracks data collected by the Society onto a digital-based map later in the year. She will also be working on 5 further reports concentrating on themes such as Climate Change and Coastal Archaeology.

The project now moves beyond the research stage to the public launch of the Historic Environment Partnership later in the year. This should provide many more potential projects for the Society to become involved in!

October 2007

Chris Beer - Whale Watch Azores - When research merges with ecotourism
A talk to be held on 29 October 2007 at the Riverside Centre at 6.30pm, with Chris Beer. This tells of 20 years of Cetacean research in the Azores, the European gateway for whales and dolphins. A success story about how marine biologist Lisa Steiner and marine engineer Chris Beer started as Sperm Whale researchers "only" and provide now a very successful ecotourism business on Faial, in harmony with local people and environment. The entrance fee of £3.00 goes towards the charities British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) and Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS).

May 2006

An exhibition about the Island's Flora is opened at Shanklin Chine
On the 18th of May the exhibition of Island flora at Shanklin Chine was officially opened by Anne Springman who owns the Chine and Bill Shepard, previous BSBI Recorder of the Island's plants, at a well attended event. The exhibition will be open throughout the summer.

February 2006

Derek Reid
We are sorry to hear that the eminent mycologist, Derek Reid, died on 19th January 2006, aged 78. Derek was not a member but he had a long and fruitful association with the Society and many of its members, both living and deceased. He has been the expert mycologist attending every annual foray between 1980 and 2004.

Derek was the former head of mycology at the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew and an international authority on the classification and identification of toadstools and mushrooms, and their allies.

An obituary will be published in The Proceedings.

January 2006

Wall hanging
The Society is the proud owner of a large wallhanging depicting the flora and fauna of the Isle of Wight. It was embroidered for the Society by members of the Isle of Wight Embroiderer’s Guild. The wallhanging has appeared in a number of public displays. It will, in future, be displayed on an interior wall of the National Trust shop and ticket office at Mottistone Manor. The building is an old barn. The wallhanging will be in good company. The roof of the barn is occupied by a roost of bats during the summer months!