seeds of the plants on the cliff tops above or nearby foreshore areas, so there is plenty of
Wild Cabbage, Kidney Vetch, Sainfoin, Spiny Restharrow, and some Rock Samphire.
The sea wall around it offers deep-sea fishing, and supports great quantities of the
uncommon Curved Hard-grass just above. A few years ago large numbers of Common
Spotted Orchid appeared, and of huge size. The soil has plenty of nutrients, but the few
plants had little competition. Last year loads of very rare Early Spider Orchid appeared,
and on 10th of May this year we went to see them. There were over 4,000 of them, many
of them large and very photogenic. The sward is still not closed, so it is easy to see the
plants. If you get the opportunity, do go next year and see for yourself.
Wandering at Belhus Woods Country Park, we noticed a young Stoat running across in
front of us, its identification being confirmed by the black tip to the tail even though it
was only the size of a Weasel. Later a dead Common Shrew was seen in the path, twice
as big as the dead Pigmy Shrew I saw last year, that looked not much bigger than a
bumble bee. The staff tell me that Stoats, Weasels and both Shrews are abundant in the
Park, but the first two are rarely seen, and the last two only when dead. Other mammals
present include Badgers, Hedgehogs, various Bats, Moles and, unfortunately, the Muntjac
deer. This little fellow, never seen, ate the flowering spikes off hundreds of marsh orchids
last year. Fortunately, they did not return, as this year's crop of orchids, counted in mid
June, were about 450 flowering spikes, making a splendid display. In July a dead Mole
was on the ground, and we noticed its very large digging 'hands' and long snout. I saw an
Adder sunning itself on a dry spot nearby.
Jill Ireland phoned me in late May, asking me to accompany her to an open area near
Aveley. She had found both the Subterranean Clover and the Spring Vetch, and wanted
to show me the site. So we set out and found not only those uncommon plants, but also
Clustered Clover (only 4 sites in Essex, and Nationally Scarce), and Knotted Clover,
Slender Trefoil, Bird's-foot, and more members of the Pea Family than I have ever seen
all in one place before (see plates 1-2 and insets). The land looks rather unpromising at
first, rather poor, sandy, acid grassland, as shown by lots of Sheep's Sorrel, and part of it
a graveyard for about 20 burnt out cars and the rest looks very ordinary. Until you get on
your knees, when suddenly you realise that there is hardly any grass but a collection of
many different tiny Pea flowers, mostly under one inch high. Among them were three
different Forget-me-nots, Field, Early and Changing, and a patch of Thyme-leaved
Sandwort. Later in the day my husband took photos of them all, so now we have a stunning
photo-gallery of tinyworts, the botanists equivalent of the birders and mycologists lbjs.
In late June a group of about 12 people set out to study and record plants on Tylers
Common (the old Upminster Common, just North of the A127), and we found a number
of interesting plants, notably several flourishing patches of the Lesser Gorse, also Zig-
zag Clover and two different Pondweeds: Curled Pondweed in the pond by the farm and
Broad-leaved Pondweed in the little pond around the spring. Sadly, Parrot's-feather was
there too. After lunch we went on to Jury Hill, some 4 or 5 miles to the East, and saw
4
Essex Field Club Newsletter No. 39, November 2002