“Spring might actually be here” – a note from a South Downs Ranger
April 4, 2024
Assistant Ranger Ethan Purdy shares his thoughts and reflections as spring starts to unfold.
I don’t know about everyone else, but it feels like spring might actually be here. Almost. This time of year, brings a whole host of feeling, which are hard to explain – but I’ll give it a go.
When watching an orchestra, before they start, there is a quiet murmur of chatter, as if beneath the surface of the ground, small conversations in hushed voices. Then, all of a sudden, they begin to tune – and the crowd falls silent. The swell begins with a single note cutting through the quiet. Beginning with an oboe, the sound travels across the hall, all the other instruments joining in the sea of tonality. It’s one of my favourite sounds in the world. A wash of music filling the air. It’s so incredibly exciting.
The world right now feels a bit like that orchestra. Over the winter, the hushed voices have been the slumbering flora and fauna, and yet now, the tuning has begun. The orchestra of our island has begun its performance for the year, and day by day, each instrument has begun to join the symphony. All it takes is stepping into the National Park, to see the changes. Butterflies are starting to fly, and buds are beginning to bloom. Music seems to be filling the air. With longer days and a sun attempting to be brighter, the heavy, sodden coat of winter may not be fully removed yet, but it’s at least beginning to slip.
Here in the Western Downs, in Hampshire, we’ve been putting the finishing touches on our winter jobs. It’s a good feeling, looking back on a season well-spent, especially when the winter’s been a cantankerous soul, throwing endless rain and short days in the way. Despite the best efforts of winter, we’ve ticked off a fair few tasks over the past months, the biggest being the Hampshire Hedge Project. Working with the CPRE, we’ve begun planting a brand-new hedgerow, a highway and haven for wildlife, stitching together the New Forest and the South Downs. And that’s not all – the team’s been busy planting another 250 metres of hedgerow around our patch, further providing habitat for a host of life.
Furthermore, we’ve had a brilliant success in restoring a historic flint and clay lined pond adjacent to the South Downs Way, near Winchester, and two minor restorations near Greatham. These will provide water in the coming months when this becomes a far scarcer resource; far away as that idea may currently seem!
In keeping with spring, we’ve also discovered new life in the Park. New populations of hazel dormice and harvest mice have been found, and changes in management have been made to protect them to the best of our ability.
Not all these successes have been purely for nature either. The team have engaged in Youth Action events, including a Besom Broom making with Ranger Paul Bushell (it’s a traditional form of heathland management). In addition, a bridleway in Binstead has been signed off, opening a whole new area of the National Park, for many people to explore.
Finally, for climate, we have been making moves to increase our use of electric tools. This has come into fruition in the form of solar charging for batteries.