ECOLOGY

Our Heathland Gem click above picture

Delamere prides itself on presenting one of Cheshire's finest golf challenges whilst preserving the nature  of the course its surroundings and wild life (flora and fauna) to the more discerning, by the use of as little pesticides and fertilisers as possible, yet enough to ensure that the course is presented in a manner acceptable to the members. The course features in the R&A web site as one of its exemplar courses. See  www.bestcourseforgolf.org   Coming soon to Delamere, Sheep for more information follow this link Domestic sheep - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wildlife.

Delamere is home to numerous birds both permanent and transient we know when the good weather is coming by the return of the swallows around the club house.

I shall make use of links to the RSPB web site for the information relating to birds seen around the golf course. If you as a bird watcher have seen any that I have missed please e-mail me jjmulder@ic24.net and I shall include them in the list.

The most obvious and apparent as he takes some missing is the biggest the Buzzard (Buteo buteo) there are numerous pairs residing in and in close proximity to the course. Another hunter is the Kestrel (Falco tinnuncullus) who can often be seen sitting in the Rowan by the 16th Tee. The last of the daylight hunters is the Sparrow Hawk (Accipiter nisus). In the evening after dark it is possible to see the Barn Owl (Tyto alba) and the Little Owl (Athene noctua) on cold dark nights on my rabbit forays they are  sometimes seen in the lamp light. Recently seen the Mistle Thrush (Turdus Viscivorus) or was it the Song Thrush (Turdus Philomelos), maybe even the Fieldfare (Turdus Pilaris).

Around the clubhouse as many of you are aware are the Swallows (Hirundo rustica) and House Martins (Delicon urbica) that visit regularly and take such pleasure in decorating our cars and the club house windows. Regularly seen on the front of the clubhouse is the Pied wagtail (Moticilla alba) as they scurry about, they have nested under the bar window in past years. The Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) can be seen on the bridges over the stream mostly by the stewardess as she walks her dog early in the morning. We often have Ducks Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) on the stream and also at times of heavy rainfall on the newly formed pools of water. We have had a pair that for a few years,  have been seen walking their young through the course after hatching. On odd occasions we have Canada Geese (Branta Canadensis) and the odd Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) resting on the pond at the sixth hole before carrying on with their journeys..

Around the course we can see and hear the Skylarks (Alauda arvensis) scared from their nests, as we search for balls in the rough. We hear around us the beating of the Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopus major) or the Green Woodpecker (Picus Viridis) and in the spring wait for that first call of the Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) always a first. We come again to the ponds at the 6th and 15th both homes to Moor hen (Galinula chloropus) and Coots (Fulica atra) and often seen flying over the Grey Heron (Ardea cineria) the bane of all pond lovers. Another regular the Linnet (Carduelis cannabina) supposedly in the gorse but I have not seen any yet.

The Woodcock (Scolopacidae) is disturbed now and again as will be the Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) and other game birds, thanks to the gentleman up the lane, who fetches them in for sport and then never manages to shoot them. Numerous of the pigeon family are resident around the course mainly the Woodpigeon (Columba palumbus) but also Collared Doves (Streptopelia decaocto) and even occasionally thoroughbred racing Pigeons (Columba Livia).

Nesting in the gorse which is now recovering nicely is the Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinela) and also around the course a host of the so called bad guys. The Magpie (Pica pica) and his cousin the Jay (Garrulus glandarius) the other members of the Crow family, The Crows (Corvidae) are guilty of pulling up huge sections of turf in their hunt for the chafer grubs to feed their families.

Increasingly we are getting increasing numbers of sea birds which we think are attracted by the large lakes in the quarries and also attracted by the insects from the turf . Also the Oyster Catcher (Haematopus ostralegus)  these are moving inland to breed. 

There are countless birds that go about their daily routines that are to many to mention, i/e the Tits, Wrens, Sparrows these and countless others can all be found on the RSPB website.

Mother duck and eight chicks set off down the stream another of Anne's

photographs, another absent father. Can anyone tell what it is?

Butterflies, Dragonflies and Damselflies.

After a recent survey it was found that Delamere is home to at least 9 varieties of Dragonfly and Damsel Fly.

Species recorded in an ecological survey include

Brown Hawker

Emperor Dragonfly

Four Spotted Chaser

Common Darter

Azure Dragonfly

Red eyed Damselfly

Blue Tailed Damselfly

Large Red Damselfly

It is also expected that we may see the Southern Hawker, Migrant Hawker and Emerald Dragonfly.

The Ecologists also report that the abundance of wildlife on the course was fascinating and the rough grasses around the pond play an important part in providing good habitat  for butterflies. So that's the end of them then for this year. 

Anyone with an interest can look at David Kitching's web site  by entering David Kitching into a search engine or by visiting www.brocross.com/dfly/dfly.htm  or for   Dragonfly/Damselfly species www.brocross.com/dfly/dfspec.htm 

We have not had any direct Butterfly survey information yet but if interested you can visit www.britishbutterflies.co.uk 

BUTTERFLIES OF DELAMERE FOREST GOLF COURSE

During the year up to 18 species of butterfly can be seen on the course.  The majority of these are common in the Delamere area, but five of the smaller species are scarce, namely the Small Skipper, Large Skipper, Small Copper,  Common Blue and the Small Heath.  These thrive in sunny unimproved grassland, and have survived on the course in significant numbers after being displaced from much of the surrounding area by farming and forestry developments.  The Small Heath deserves special mention, because it has declined significantly in Cheshire since the start of the 20^th century and is now confined mainly to the Wirral and the Pennine foothills.  The Delamere colony is one of the very few on the Cheshire plain which is stable and thriving, and the course management policy of minimising the use of fertilisers and pesticides will have contributed to this.

Species List (18)

Small Skipper, Large Skipper, Large White, Small White, Green-veined White, Orange Tip, Small Copper, Common Blue, Holly Blue, Red Admiral, Painted Lady, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Comma, Speckled Wood, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Small Heath

Pictures & details of these butterflies can be found on www.cheshire-butterflies.co.uk   

Other Animals seen at Delamere

From Top to bottom, The fox regularly seen making his way across, The badger seen at night but not so recently of late, The Weasel recently seen attacking a rabbit on the first fairway, the rabbit saved by one of the green keepers, obviously not heard that we are trying to get rid of them. Pole cat seen now and again at night, The Rabbit, the Bane of our lives, Canines rarely seen at Delamere on a lead but evidence that they are about. Stoat another rabbit eater. The Grass snake seen now and again, now I know you will all laugh and we all thought Colin was drunk when he told us that he had seen a deer stood on the ninth green but it has been seen by a few members, I have seen it in the field in Farm Road, apparently it escaped from a breeding establishment and is fed by people living in the development at the side of Harrington's, Finally the field mouse, he is there though not necessarily seen regularly. If anyone has any additions for me please let me know. Click on the pictures for a link to a knowledgeable site. Mostly the BBC.

 

What is this little chap, found on the 12th green by the Secretary, the possibilities are endless, is it a  Great Crested Newt ( Close the course ) Why is it not near a pond?  No it's not a great Crested Newt, if it was the Secretary would be in trouble. It is probably a  Common Newt (Triturus vulgaris vulgaris) or a Palmate Newt (Triturus helveticus)  follow this link to learn more Newts   They start to return to their ponds in February and March this one was probably lost as it was heading for the club house.

The Course,

The following information is taken from the R&A best practice web site.

This delightful heathland course may only be 6359 yards in length,but it hosts many attractive and challenging holes to be played off tight indigenous turf, onto firm greens dominated by browntop bent grass. The push up greens benefit from the drainage qualities of the native sandy loam soil, which lies over sandstone bedrock. The course has not closed for years and the main greens remain in play throughout. This is achieved through the natural drainage being allowed to perform to its full potential by the implementation of a management programme aimed at promoting firm, dry turf. The consequence of this is fine textured turf and excellent year round playability.

Overseeding with browntop bent cultivars has been carried out in recent years each September, but the quality of the growing environment suggested potential success with fescues and this was achieved in 2004 and will continue in the years ahead.

The native heath land fescue and bent grasses dominate green surround and fairway turf. The colour of these grasses changes with the weather and the course takes a brown hue during prolonged periods of dryness. This gives the course its character and the amount of run on fairways and the type of shot to be played into greens, and off surrounds, will vary depending on the prevailing weather, tightness of the turf and firmness of the ground.

Below is a close up of the dry fairway turf which presents the golf ball for a clean strike. Note the Mottled fairway turf after dry weather and the heather - a combination of indigenous plants which makes for great golf and sustainable course management .

The following information is taken from the Course Policy document..

Delamere Forest Golf Club was founded in 1910 on Crown wasteland in Delamere, West Cheshire. The golf course lies in undulating heath land, the soil type being sandy loam. The indigenous trees are conifers, stunted oak and silver birch. The rough is predominantly made up of heathland grasses including bents, fescues, annual meadow grass and Yorkshire fog. Heather and gorse are a feature of the deeper rough, also reeds provide an unusual hazard in a few damp areas. The greens are of the original push up construction. They comprise a mixture of grass species including bent grasses (Agrostis spp), fescues (Festuca spp) and annual meadow grass (Poa annua).

 The weather patterns in West Cheshire provide an annual average of 35 inches of rain (figures for Little Budworth averaged over 7 years) with frequent frost and occasional snow through the winter. Springs, in recent years, have been poor and late resulting in slow pick-up of growth to greens.

The more observant of you may have noticed a profusion of nest boxes nailed into the trees (not the trees that have been removed, may I add) These have been put in to encourage the owls to nest, funny I have not seen an owl since they went in. Anyway that is what they are and I believe that they will be checked for young owls in the Spring, when they will be ringed and all that sort of thing. 

Stop Press: it is believed that a Barn Owl is residing in one of the nest boxes. Watch this space for further info: 

Bottom left a Barn Owl shot in the forest within half a mile of the club house, roped to a post by father Xmas's Grotto if reports are correct we will soon have our own.

Stop Stop Press: For anyone interested today Friday 16th Jan 2010 the sheep escaped, last seen heading for the 15th green hotly pursued by the Green Keepers, sorry no photographs, I dropped my camera in the rush. Also today we saw a nice healthy looking Fox ambling across the course and last week a plethora (a lot anyway) of Robins and Wrens rooting in the remnants of the Rhodie chopped down on the 10th fairway. Alas we are less one Moorhen found being devoured by one of the buzzards on the first.

This work will be continued as and when time allows.

Should you wish more information about the RSPB click the link on the left.

Copyright Delamere Forest Golf Club 2004

All Rights Reserved

Latest Update 14 February 2010