WELCOME !
WHAT CAN BE FOUND ON SITE
OUR VOLUNTEER WORK
PICTURE GALLERY-Page 1
OUR ANNUAL COMMUNITY OPEN DAY
GROUP PICTURE GALLERY
DOG WALKERS AND THEIR DOGS.
PICTURE GALLERY -Page 2
ANTI-SOCIAL ACTIVITIES
WILDLIFE PICTURE GALLERY
WILD FLOWERS OF KINSON COMMON
HISTORY of KINSON COMMON
BIRDS
BUTTERFLIES & MOTHS
PAST MEMORIES IN PICTURES AND WORDS
FUNGI OF KINSON COMMON -Page 1
INTRODUCTION OF GRAZING MANAGEMENT
PLANT LIST FOR KINSON COMMON
NAMED AREAS OF KINSON COMMON
FUNGI OF KINSON COMMON- Page 2
GEORGE'S NATURE ALBUM-Page 1
GEORGE'S NATURE ALBUM -Page 2
GINNY'S PAGE
MEMBERSHIP & LATEST NEWS
LAURA'S NATURE GALLERY
RICHARD'S PAGE
BIRD SURVEY
MEMBERS VIEWS
VAL PEPIN'S PHOTO'S OF THE PAST
Contact Information for FRIENDS OF KINSON COMMON
Links for FRIENDS of KINSON COMMON
Message Board
Guestbook
Event Calendar
Mail Form
|
Hello, I'm Richard.....
 | I have known the Common since I started working for Bournemouth Borough Council way back in 1991.It was one of several sites that I looked after for 10 years up until 2001. I then went to work at Hengistbury Head for three years.
During that time, a lot of good work was carried out on the Common by the Countryside Officers and the Friends of Kinson Common. Having not visited the site for over 2 years, I could really appreciate the differences when I came back to help with some walks. There had been considerable changes- improvement works on the waterfall; two super new stretches of boardwalk; extensive tree clearance; and of course, the introduction of cattle.
Considering it is surrounded by housing, Kinson Common is a remarkable site. It has a superb range of flora and fauna, with interest all the year round. At the time of writing this, fungi are the focus of attention. The site has many wonderful wildflowers, including three species of Orchids ( these too seem to have increased in numbers in recent years), a wonderful buttercup meadow, and lots more. A good number of bird species make the Common their home, including two of the three British woodpeckers, various finches, tits, warblers, crow species and more. Other, harder to spot species, such as Nuthatches, Treecreepers and even the occasional Kingfisher, can also be seen.
If you stand in the right places on the Common, it is easy to forget where you are- it can look and feel ( and even sound) like you are in the middle of the New Forest. And always, right through the year, there are different things to see and hear and smell. Perhaps the real appeal of Kinson Common is that it is big enough for you to feel like you have had a good walk and a good explore, but small enough for the keen observer to get to know every nook and crannie. Added to that, you never know when you might come across something new- a new bird, flower or fungus, for example- something new to add to the list.
The Common is enjoyed and watched over by a great group of people, the Friends of Kinson Common. It is clear how much they love the site, and how much they enjoy being there. The site is very lucky to have them, and they are very lucky to have the site. I know I always thoroughly enjoy leading walks with them, and I look forward to leading more in the future.
Following are some photo's from my walks around the site..
|
|
Amethyst deceivers
 | Laccaria amethystina.
This is one of my favourite mushrooms. It's a combination of the colour of it, and its wonderful name, that makes it so appealing.
The Amethyst Deceiver loves to grow in leaf litter like this. Amazingly, it is edible, despite being purple !!
I like to think that it is called Deceiver because its colour would lead you to believe it might be poisonous - but that's not the reason !!
Apparently, all the Deceivers vary in cap colour, and so can be difficult to identify, and that's where the name comes from.
( I prefer my version !!) |
|
Bay Bolete
 | Boletus badius
This is definitely a Boletus, andI think it could well be Boletus badius.
This group of fungi are very distinctive looking, particularly because they do not have gills underneath the cap but pores, which look rather like a sponge.
The Bay Bolete bruises bluish-green( I think there is a picture of this elsewhere on the site)
|
|
Russula species
 | I think this could be Russula atropurpurea ( Purple Brittlegill or Blackish-Purple Russula) or Russula nigricans ( Blackening Russula).
As a group, the Russulas are very distinctive with their clean white stems and gills and their colourful caps.
|
|
Stinkhorn beginnings....
 | I have never seen anything like this before.
This is what is known as a Stinkhorn "Egg" .
The Stinkhorn, Phallus impudicus is of course one of the smelliest of the fungi.
|
|
Brown Rollrim
 | Paxillus involutus.
Taken on 23rd October, 2006.
These large and very slimy fungi were growing up on Two Barrow Heath. Apparently, if they are consumed in sufficient quantity, they can be deadly poisonous.
It is a reminder of just how careful you have to be if you are handling or considering eating fungi . |
|
Glistening Inkcap
 | Coprinus micaeus.
Taken on 23rd October, 2006
Looking at the list of fungi from the walk the other weekend, I am certain that is what these are.
I first saw them on the Saturday(21st). They were on a log just off the path by the bridge and waterfall. They were looking superb on the Saturday, but had gone well past their best when I returned to photograph them on the Monday.
As with many beautiful things in nature, fungi are frustratingly short-lived.
|
|
Lumpy Bracket
 | Trametes gibbosa
Looking at the pores underneath, I think this is Lumpy Bracket. It was growing out of a log above the stream, just by the boardwalk.
I found it in mid-September during one of my Monday Morning Meander's. It was lovely the way the sunlight, reflecting on the water, was illuminating the underside of the fungus.
|
|
Work in progress....
 | This Garden Spider ( Araneus Diadematus) had spanned a huge gap between two trees to start building this web, which was at head height ( about 6 feet off the ground).
We found the spider at the start of a Monday Morning Meanders on the Common on the 18th September. By the time we got back at the end of the walk, around 2 hours later, she had finished her work, and was sat in the centre of the web, waiting for a meal to arrive.
|
|
Poole Lane Meadows
 | The buttercup meadow put on a super display this year. This picture was taken during a most enjoyable evening walk on the Common.
I am pretty sute the buttercups are the Meadow Buttercup- Ranunculus Acris.
It was a wonderful sight.
|
|
Sunbeams
 | This picture, taken in October, proves that with nature and the landscape, it is all about being lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time.
On the morning this was taken, the sun was creating some amazing effects as it shone between trees and branches.
|
|
The Common
The Common lies in old Kinson Town
A haven for insects and flowers
A tiny place, but so much to see
It will keep you busy for hours
It has been here for a long long time
And there are reminders of the past
Burial mounds where ancient folk rest
Fine structures built to last
As the seasons change across the year
There is always something to find
A woodpecker nest, a buttercup field
Strange mushrooms of every kind
It's hard to remember where you are
Once you have left behind your car
Surrounded by streets of bricks and mortar
A green oasis with stream of clear water
As you walk through meadow and through glade
To watch Speckled Woods in dappled shade
Hear soaring Buzzards in blue skies mew
Or watch a moth drinking morning dew
It's hard to remember where you are
You feel you haven't walked that far
Yet here you are by heath and stream
And this place is real, it's not a dream
So as you meander around today
Listening and looking for things to see
Be prepared for an all-star cast
Of butterfly, beetle, Blackcap and bee
You are on the Common in old Kinson Town
A wonderful place whether sunshine or showers
With nature of every kind to discover
It will keep you content for hours and hours
|
My Kinson Common walks
| Early Morning Bird Walk |
Saturday 24th May |
5.30am |
Ditto |
This page has been visited  times. |
