Seeds of Change

By Kerry Williams – Communications Officer, Sussex Wildlife Trust

Wildlife stocked up over autumn. Snuffling noses of Hedgehogs and Badgers sought out juicy worms for their long snooze ahead. Bats had a burst of flitting insect gathering energy before hibernation. Queen bees slurped the final sweetness from lonely flowers. And now, as many of us start our downhill roll to festive decadence, we see Blackbirds and Robins hopping about, curiously side-eyeing kitchen windows – “anything for me?”.

2026 has seen a bird feeding advice refresh, with the RSPB saying seasonal and safe feeding are key to avoiding the spread of trichomonosis, a deadly virus affecting our garden birds.

Firstly, clean feeders regularly and remove uneaten food. Only use hanging feeders, as flat window and table feeders can more easily harbour the disease. Switching up feeding spots avoids build-up of potentially contaminated food underneath.

The risk is higher in warmer months, so from 1st May to 31st October, pause the seeds and peanuts. Some mealworms, suet or fat balls are ok during this time, as these help chicks to feed up to fledge, and the finch species most affected by the disease generally do not eat these foods. From 1st November to 30th April, you can offer a wider range, including seeds and peanuts.

If, on 1st May, you experience a pang of guilt when met with the enquiring faces of your gang of garden regulars – stay strong. This is the season of nature’s plenty, when birds have more to eat in the wild. They will resume their natural foraging behaviours, and you can support them in other ways.

Providing fresh water is important all year round, as regular drinking sites may have frozen. This doesn’t have to be a pond; it can be as simple as a dish of water. Just remember to include an exit ramp of stones for speedy escapes.

You can plant native seed producing plants; Goldfinches are particularly partial to a Teasel. Leave your garden a bit wild. Ditch the mowing and let the grass grow, providing foraging habitat for invertebrate snacking. Deadwood from trees or log piles also encourages insect life and might even create a home for woodpeckers or bats.

Around 20 million people in the UK feed birds – it is undoubtably a joy for many of us. But we are also one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, and our birds are in decline. Hopefully by making these few simple changes, we can keep our birds safe, and our gardens flourishing.

Once again this year, we’re selling our FCG Charity Christmas cards with all proceeds going to St Barnabas House Hospice.There are a choice of 2 cards and we’re using images of the village by the late Tricia Hall – these are the Old Cottages and St. Andrew’s Church, and also a view of Highdown from the Rife.They are still priced at £5 for a pack of 10 cards, and will be available to buy at this Friday’s History Group meeting (6/11), our FCG meeting on Friday 27 November, the joint FCG/FHG social on Friday 4 December, and also the Village Christmas fair on the following day (5 December).

They’ll also be on sale at Pinkerton’s newsagents in Ocean Parade, and we are very grateful to them for doing this.

In addition, the tickets for the FCG/ FHG social will be on sale at the next 2 group meetings as above.They are priced at £14 each and include an excellent buffet meal plus this time live music from local jazz group Catalina. There will also be a raffle and a fun quiz, with proceedings starting at 7.30pm, and we’re sure it’ll be a sociable and entertaining evening.

As an outcome from the National Climate Change Emergency Briefing on the 26^th of October, which was well attended, it was agreed that a working group should be formed within the village to discuss what could be done as a community and to discuss ways to spread the message and engage with a wider group of residents.

To that end, together with the Parish Council, we have started the process of engagement to discuss the make up and outline the remit of the group.

 Further information will be provided as this idea forms up.

Pete Coe – Chairman

‘Riverscapes’ was the theme of a talk by Aimee Felus, of Western Sussex Rivers Trust, to Ferring Conservation Group [on 25 September].  She had coined the word to describe her ideal of a natural river, flowing freely between tree-lined banks, set in a natural landscape.  Most rivers, she said, are now just drainage channels, straightened out, obstructed by weirs and culverts, polluted and lifeless. They ought to be re-imagined as valuable features of the landscape and a critical part of our natural infrastructure.

Pollution was a major issue, whether from sewage outflows, run-off from fertilised fields, road surfaces or industrial processes, but just as important was the over-engineering of watercourses, straightening out meanders, dredging, and building high embankments to drain the land more quickly and build on floodplains.

Western Sussex Rivers Trust, one of 65 trusts across the country, was working on all these problems, from the River Ems on the border with Hampshire to the Arun and its tributaries.  The water companies were managing to reduce the sewage outflows that result from overloading the system by heavy rainfall, and some farmers were working with the Trust on more nature-conscious methods of land drainage. The Trust’s 200 volunteers were working on monitoring pollution in all the local rivers, on removing unnecessary obstructions, and creating meanders upstream, to improve the landscape and help recolonisation by wildlife.

She said there were better ways of preventing flooding. Flood plains should be allowed to flood, and the reintroduction of beavers would help to hold back floodwater with the dams and ponds they create. Some river-related problems were very difficult. Long periods of drought were threatening the future of the chalk streams, but even here there was an opportunity for better water management.

After the break, Graham Tuppen reported recent local wildlife sightings including Tawny Owls being heard across Goring Gap, and showed a lovely video of a Hedgehog feeding in a member’s garden. Stephen Abbott outlined recent planning news, including a most unwelcome application to demolish a bungalow in Sea Lane, Ferring and replace it with 6 dwellings. Finally, Group Secretary David Bettiss paid tribute to two long time and influential members – Clive Hope and Dorian Mason – who passed away recently and will be much missed.

Grassland Gems

By Kerry Williams – Communications Officer, Sussex Wildlife Trust

You may associate fungi with the mossy deadwood and light-dappled leaf litter of a forest floor, but some species prefer more out-in-the-open vibes. Slimy-capped and sporting a rainbow range of hues, waxcap fungi are a group of grassland fungi.

There are around 40 species of waxcap in the UK, and much like their woodland-dwelling cousins, are best encountered during late summer and autumn. Also akin to the fungi norm, their names are fantastic; from parrots to ballerinas.

Some fungi are decomposers, or ‘saprotrophic’, meaning they rely upon decaying matter to feed. This was once thought of waxcaps, but now they are understood to instead be ‘biotrophic’, meaning this brightly coloured bunch get their nutrients from a relationship with living plants.

Despite ongoing research into waxcap ways, symbiotic relationships in nature are nothing new. Most fungi have underground systems called mycelium; masses of tiny threads which connect the fruiting mushrooms we see above ground with trees and other plants, and with one another. These vast networks enable sharing of nutrients, water, and even information.

Waxcaps thrive with minimal agricultural involvement, in grasslands known as ‘unimproved’; those free of pesticides, artificial fertilisers, and which haven’t been drained or re-seeded. Much like the bedded-in bonds of ancient tree roots, mycelia take decades to form and connect, and when soil is cultivated, these life-giving chains are broken. With this in mind, the hands-off approach of rewilding is beneficial for these fungi. Due to intensification of agricultural practices, this habitat is declining, and with it, its grassland gemstones.

In Sussex, the chalk grassland of the Downs is an ideal habitat for waxcaps, and here, fungi join an ancient, well-oiled ecosystem. In warmer months, the nutrient-poor soils support buzzing biodiverse meadows of wildflowers, providing food and breeding grounds for butterflies, bees, and ground nesting birds like Skylarks. Come early autumn, just as the splattered wildflower mosaic fades, the waxcaps pop up to complete the seasonal tapestry.

Where waxcaps be, other grassland fungi likely follow, and as such waxcaps are considered an ‘indicator species’ for corals, earthtongues and pinkgills. So often is this the case, that the term ‘waxcap grassland fungi’ encompasses these other groups.

It’s not all sweeping meadow majesty; waxcaps can be found in gardens, parks, and have a particular penchant for the peace of cemeteries. Keep your eyes peeled on urban ambles for shiny jewels catching autumn sun.

Sparrow House

By Kerry Williams – Communications Officer, Sussex Wildlife Trust          October 2026

I’ve just moved house, and there are some significant upgrades for me to marvel at. Dishwasher. Stairs. Letterbox. Some novelties may wear off, but I can’t imagine I’ll ever get over the little gang in the garden – this house comes with sparrows.

They wait in nearby bushes en masse, heads cocked, peering into the windows of my living room and my soul, until I give in and top up the mealworms. They descend in a flurry, teasing treats from above and cleaning up on the ground. They perch on the wobbly bird bath, perennially tilted by a clumsy Woodpigeon, to take dainty sips, at odds with their otherwise boisterous behaviour.

In sparrow fashion they lord it over this tiny territory of brick and Buddleia, a group of males, females and juveniles, the size of the males’ black bib denoting their status in the apparent rabble. Despite best efforts, my eyes are dragged from my screen, hands stationary on the keyboard, transfixed.

This may be recognised by those who have a similar squad to window watch. House Sparrows have historically been associated with humans and our homes, the last part of their Latin name, ‘domesticus’, translating to ‘belonging to the house’.

Sparrows have learned that we grow, and drop, delicious snacks. Their varied diet of seeds, berries and insects is supplemented by offers in the crumb department. One once landed on my mate’s pub garden plate and crammed in a stodgy beak full of cauliflower cheese.

Sparrows appear ubiquitous, found in rural and urban areas, farmland, gardens, parks, hedgerows, train stations – you name it. But despite their apparent abundance, they’ve suffered a whopping 70% decline since the 1970s and have been on the UK Conservation Red List since 2002. The usual suspects of overdevelopment, agricultural intensification, climate change, habitat and food loss, historical persecution, and predation by pet cats all feature in their population plummet.

You can help your own charismatic crew. Grow native plants for a buffet of seeds and insects, or provide hanging feeders of mealworms or fat balls from May to October, including seeds and nuts from November to April (cleaning feeders regularly, and no flat feeders, to prevent the spread of disease). Water is a lifeline for wildlife all year round. And if you are lucky enough, as I now find myself, to have even a little outdoor space – keep it wild. Your neighbours will thank you.

For those of you who weren’t already aware, we’re very sorry to let you know that our long serving member, bird expert and good friend Clive Hope sadly passed away in Worthing Hospital on 25th August after a short illness. Most days he could be seen on the Pillbox platform or on the Rife with his binoculars and telescope monitoring and recording our local wildlife, and was a great source of knowledge and information about our natural world, supporting many of our group visits and outside activities.

He will be sorely missed by many of us, and I know that you’ll join us in passing on our condolences to his partner Jenny, and his family.

Funeral arrangements

Clive’s funeral will take place at 2.30pm on Wednesday 16 September at Worthing Crematorium. Family flowers only please, but donations to the RSPB if desired.