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Friends of Lye Valley

@friendlyevalley.bsky.social
960 followers 323 following 2.6K posts

We care for this 14,000 year-old internationally rare habitat, a tufa-forming alkaline spring fen, together with the calcareous grassland of Rock Edge. Headington, Oxford. www.friendsoflyevalley.org.uk

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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 11h
Well, if you love wildlife, and have a spare fiver or so, consider giving it to the Wildlife Trusts to help to buy the Rothbury Estate in Northumberland, a 3,800 hectares (9,500-acre) site... They're so close, and appeal now runs to end of October... www.wildlifetrusts.org/appeals/roth...
wildlifetrusts.org
Donate to Secure The Rothbury Estate | The Wildlife Trusts
Stretching over 3,800 hectares, the Rothbury Estate in Northumberland is abundant with opportunity. It’s the largest continuous area of land to appear on the market in 50 years. Its sale creates a uni...
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Sunrise on Warneford Meadow, Oxford this morning, all mist and spiderwebs. A Linnet overhead was my 63rd species this month, equalling my best ever monthly total on my local patch @friendlyevalley.bsky.social #ukbirding #oxford #urbanbirding
A misty September sunrise over Warneford Meadow, Oxford
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Little Green Space @lgspace.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
A request! We can't grow this account fast enough. So please follow us if you aren't already, and please share this post to spread the word. Help us do our bit to share positive solutions to the nature & climate emergencies, and bring more nature into people's lives. Thank you 😊🐝
A bumblebee on a yellow dandelion
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Despite dry conditions there has been just enough rain for a few #fungi to appear in Lye Valley. First a Pluteus perhaps ephebeus (Sooty shield mushroom) on dead willow. Note the nice pink gills & a single Bay Polypore on a drier piece of dead willow. @friendlyevalley.bsky.social #fungifriends
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Headington News @headingtonnews.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
The Friends of Lye Valley are one of the three finalists for the Biodiversity & Ecology Award in the Oxford Climate Awards 2026: content.govdelivery.com/accounts/UKO...
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
I know everybody probably has them now, but it was a great joy today in Lye Valley to encounter this big hawthorn overgrown by flowering ivy, literally humming with many Ivy Bees on the flowers. Now I wonder where they are nesting ? - lawns nearby no doubt @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
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Mary W @swift33.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Clouded Yellow butterfly seen whilst walking down the boardwalk in the Lye Valley Nature Reserve today 💛 @friendlyevalley.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social OX3
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The value of a Lye Valley #fen log pile in full sun for #reptiles. There were three juvenile Viviparous Lizards enjoying basking in the morning on these old willow logs. Two legged it as I reached for the camera, leaving this one. Nice Slow Worm juvenile nearby @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
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Headington News @headingtonnews.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Eco Fest in the United Reformed Church, Collinwood Road, Risinghurst this Saturday (19 September 2026), 11am to 3pm
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Burst pipe floods Oxfordshire wildlife meadow for fourth time
Repeated flooding of a key conservation site in Oxfordshire leaves a charity frustrated.
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
This week, attractive seeding heads have caught my eye in Lye Valley #fen. Here are fluffy Hemp Agrimony, maroon seeds of Parsley Water-dropwort, green-striped seeds of Wild Angelica & the maroon splashed with silver of opening flowers of Common Reed waving in the wind @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
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Mark Walters @mark-walters.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Great to see the positive effects of the peat restoration work in the Berwyn mountain range. The small wooden dams are holding back rainwater & re-wetting the peat. Any overspill is also being partly held back right on the edge of the Craig Berwyn ridge creating mini infinity pools on the cliff edge
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
Astonishing to see an OSPREY over the Lye Valley, Oxford, this morning! The second patch record, after the first back in March; I never expected another over the city! It has a distinctive notch in its left wing, so it may be identifiable elsewhere #patchgold #UKbirding @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Osprey over OxfordOsprey over Oxford. Note the distinctive notch in its left wing, so it may be identifiable elsewhere.
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Lovely to see all the small life in Lye Valley #fen today. A Long-winged conehead female and a Dock bug enjoying the warmth of the boardwalk. An orange coloured Garden Spider and the strange egg case of a Wasp Spider. The adult wasp spider nearby escaped the camera @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Which insects like to feed on Grass of Parnassus flowers in Lye Valley #fen today? Stripy hoverfly, probably a Vestal Cuckoo Bumble Bee queen and a Small Copper Butterfly for starters @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Finally some migrant birds in the Lye Valley, Oxford. A brief male Redstart, plus two Spotted Flycatchers this morning, the second and third of the autumn, all decent birds in the city. #ukbirding #migration #oxford @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Spotted Flycatcher, Lye Valley, Oxford.
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 27/08/2026
It is almost peak Devil's bit Scabious in Lye Valley #fen, the purple haze just does not come out in the photo. The purple bobble flowers are where all the insects are -spot the painted lady I never even noticed in first photo. @friendlyevalley.bsky.social Well worth a visit to see this display.
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Greenpeace EU @greenpeace.eu · 27/08/2026
Protecting bogs and peatlands is essential for fighting the climate crisis, and also for persevering the species of plants, animals, birds, insects and fungi that rely on them Europe's bogs must be rewetted and rewilded!
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
The first Spotted Flycatcher of autumn was in the Lye Valley area of Oxford this morning. Hopefully not the last! @friendlyevalley.bsky.social #ukbirding
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 19/08/2026
Great to see my eldest help out the @friendlyevalley.bsky.social volunteers this morning. Seed collecting, raking and scything under the expert eye of @judywebb.bsky.social, accompanied by a magnificent Grass of Parnassus display (and a Wasp Spider!) #LyeValley #Oxford #conservation
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 13/08/2026
Nice to see this pristine Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) butterfly in the Valley yesterday. You can tell they're having a good year when they turn up in our wet #OxfordshireFens! #InsectThursday #UKWildlife #Nature #Photography #ECK @upperthames.bsky.social @tverc1.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social
A butterfly with mostly orange wings with black spots, and black tips with white spots is supping nectar from a pink Hemp Agrimony flower. Its wings are open, and its white tipped antennae are visible. it's facing roughly towards 11 o'clock . There are a couple of yellow buds at the bottom left of centre, with the rest of the background diffuse greens, pinks, and some yellow.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Our Grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia palustris) is having another spectacular year. From just a few plants, careful seed collection over the last decade has led to a stunning display, with literally countless flowering plants. A real conservation success! 🌍 #WildflowerHour @bsbibotany.bsky.social
A cluster of small white flowers on long thin stems fills the centre of the photo, with a few other flowers towards the left. They are growing through a plant with small green crinkly leaves, and small purple flowers, Marsh Lousewort, nationally Vulnerable, and Rare in Oxfordshire.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
We were joined this week by a couple of entomologists looking for bugs, leafhoppers in particular. We look forward to their records with interest! #inverts @tverc1.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social @kitenet.bsky.social
A man with dark blue jeans, a light blue shirt and grey hat is standing amongst low vegetation holding a large white sweep net with yellow edging at arms length. The background is a mix of taller reed and Hemp Agrimony in flower.A man is standing in the centre of the photo with light coloured trousers, a blue jacket and light cap. He's looking to his left. He's holding a white net on a short handle in his right hand, and in his left, a Perspex "pooter" with clear tubing attached. He's standing in knee high vegetation against a backdrop of masses of Hemp Agrimony flowers.A man just left of centre is using a modified leaf sucker to collect insects from the vegetation.Two men standing in knee high vegetation are staring into their respective sweep nets.
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Great to talk about the “Birds of the Lye Valley” at the Friends of Lye Valley AGM this evening. Their work is critical in maintaining this important SSSI urban site, more details here: www.friendsoflyevalley.org.uk @friendlyevalley.bsky.social #ukbirding #patchbirding #oxford
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
A grass fire in The Slade entrance to the Lye Valley was promptly extinguished by the Fire Brigade yesterday. Thankfully there was no damage to neighbouring properties, and the fire was restricted to an area about 30m x 2m. Ironically it was due to be cut today... @headingtonnews.bsky.social
On the left of the photo a burnt strip edged with short brown grass. Top left a singed "Mile-a-minute" vine. From the centre to the right of the photo a stony path. Also on the right in the mid distance a wide metal fence, and behind it, another stony path. In the background is a major road, The Slade with a red car driving past the entrance. Also in the background from the centre to the right are overhanging trees with green leaves.
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alexvonwitzleben.bsky.social @alexvonwitzleben.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
In Amsterdam, residents can apply for the city to remove the pavement stones and prepare a narrow planting bed helping Dutch streets become greener, cooler and better prepared for heavy rain. #ActOnClimate #Smartcities #ClimateActionNow
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
A flyover Cuckoo this morning is only the fifth patch record and the first ever in autumn. This species was not recorded between 2020 and 2026 and is an exceptionally rare bird in the city. Also the first Yellow Wagtail of the year overhead 👌🏻 @friendlyevalley.bsky.social #ukbirding #Oxford
Warneford Meadow, Oxford The tiny reedbed in Churchill Meadow, currently holding a Reed Warbler.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
patchworkchallenge.blogspot.com/2026/07/tom-...
patchworkchallenge.blogspot.com
Tom Bedford's local patch - Lye Valley, Oxford
This guest blog post is written by diligent patch birder Tom Bedford about his Lye Valley patch. A huge thank you to him for writing this ex...
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
Spot the Lizard! 😀 #JustForFun #reptiles 🐍
A photo of a couple of old logs, with a tangle of dead stems and some green vegetation to the left. Somewhere in the photo is a Common Lizard.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
We were delighted to welcome seven #volunteers from Amey, who chose to spend one of their two "social impact days" this year helping us with our #FenRestoration. Their help was much appreciated! #OxfordshireFens #conservation @judywebb.bsky.social 🌍
On the left a young man in dark jeans, a brown tee-shirt and a green peaked cap is standing on a boardwalk that passes through lush green vegetation on both sides. He is handing a clump of peat to a woman who is standing next the boardwalk, on the fen itself. To her right two other woman are waiting as part of a human chain to pass the peat to the side of a brook where they're using it to create a low bund to retain water on the fen.Two men are raking cut dried grass onto a drag sheet. The one on the left is in blue jeans, wellies, a dark top, and a dark peaked cap. The one on the right is wearing orange hi-vis trousers, a light coloured tee-shirt, and a dark cap.On the right of the photo two men are standing on a boardwalk. One is holding the back of a drag sheet filled with cut reed, while a woman with blue jeans and a dark top is holding the front. She's already on the fen, and the man with the drag sheet is about to step down. Going from the bottom left corner of the photo, a line of previously dumped straw coloured cut reed can be seen along the banks of a brook which is not visible.Just left of centre a young woman in short black leggings and a reddish top is pushing a wheelbarrow full of root balls of Pendulous Sedge that has been dug out from the margins of a dried up pond. Behind her another woman in pale blue dungarees is partially visible.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Delighted to spot this female Wasp Spider (Argiope bruennichi) in the fen this morning, the first of the year for us here. 😍 #inverts #UKWildlife #OxfordshireFens @britishspiders.bsky.social @tverc1.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social
A largish yellow with black rings on the abdomen and legs is viewed from the top. It is facing downwards, and the head isn't visible. The strands of the web are visible, and below the spider is a zigzag section of the web called the stabilimentum, the purpose of which is unknown. The background is a jumble of thin lush green stems.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
The very first of our Grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia palustris) or "bog star" flowers are just starting to open. 😍 Let's hope this is another bumper year for one of the southern most populations of this plant. #WildflowerHour @bsbibotany.bsky.social @tverc1.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social
Just above the centre a small white flower with grey lines on its petals and with yellow anthers is growing on a longish stem, surrounded by other low growing vegetation.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
In 2022 we reintroduced Creeping Marshwort (Helosciadium repens). Endangered on the GB #RedList, there are only a handful of sites where it now grows. This week, we sheared round and over it to simulate the grazing it needs. @bsbibotany.bsky.social @freshwaterhabitats.bsky.social #WildflowerHour
A woman in a white top and dark trousers is kneeling on the ground facing left. Behind her dense vegetation, in front the vegetation is much shorter. She's holding a pair of wooden handled shears with red markings on and round the handles.A close up photo showing Creeping Marshwort leaves and flowers. There are seven tiny white and pink umbels on short stems.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
Sooo many butterflies in the Valley at the moment. Here's a pristine Green-veined White (Pieris napi) refuelling on some of our Ragwort flowers. 😍 They love the damp lush conditions in our #fen. #inverts #UKWildlife @upperthames.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social #OxfordshireFens
Just to left of centre a a mall white butterfly with prominent green lines spreading from its body to wing tips. It's facing right, and and its proboscis is probing a small yellow flower. The yellow florets nearer the camera are defocussed. The background is a plan dark green with a couple of lighter patches top and bottom.
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Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust @bbowt.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
We’re hiring - Fen Futures Project Officer 🌿 Join our team and help restore some of our rarest wetland habitats. You'll deliver an exciting project focused on conserving endangered invertebrates of lowland alkaline fens, including the Southern Damselfly. Apply now: www.bbowt.org.uk/jobs/fen-fut...
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 05/07/2026
A fasciated Water Figwort (Scrophularia auriculata) plant. Caused by genetic mutation, viral infection, or the bacterium Rhodococcus fascians, it causes these wide and flat stems, with many more flowers than usual. #OxfordshireFens #WildflowerHour @bsbibotany.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social
A wide and curved green stem with red edges is covered in tiny red flowers and small green seeds. the background is slightly defocussed long green leaves.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 27/06/2026
*** TODAY! *** Please come to see us if you're in Oxford! (Given the heat we can't guarantee being there till 6pm though!)
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Sheets of Bog Pimpernel in flower in Lye Valley #fen ..And can you spot also the leaves of Marsh Lousewort and some of Grass of Parnassus popping up through the pimpernel? @friendlyevalley.bsky.social #wildflowerhour
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Tony Gillie @drtonygillie.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
For today's #BirdOfTheDay theme of #RedBeaks I've chosen one of the UK's most widespread birds, the Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus). This one was skulking round one of the silt interception ponds in Oxford's Lye Valley. #UKWildlife #birds #ECK #NaturePhotography @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
A chunky, rather rounded bird with a grey front, greeny golden back, long yellow legs, and a red beak with a yellow tip. It's facing right, and the background and foreground are a messy tangle of dead looking vegetation and sticks. Its brown eye is in sharp focus.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Our Marsh Helleborines are just coming into flower. 😍 Vulnerable on the #EnglandRedList, it's Scarce in Oxon, and Rare in vc23. Thanks to our continued #FenRestoration work, this is now probably the best place to see them in Oxfordshire. @bsbibotany.bsky.social #WildflowerHour
In the foreground three flower spikes on reddish stems are growing through otherwise green vegetation. Each spike has up to ten or twelve flower buds, a few if which are just open.
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
We spotted this pristine Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus) butterfly in the fen a couple of days ago. Although common, they have a relatively short flight period, so enjoy them while they're around! #UKWildlife #UKButterflies #NaturePhotography #inverts 🦋
A dark brown butterfly with white edging to the wings and small black dots near the edge. It's sitting on a green leaf facing up and slightly to the left.
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The Oxford Nature Network @biodivoxford.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Join Ecologist Judy Webb to learn about the history & ecology of Lye Valley in Oxford - a 14,000-year-old internationally rare habitat 🍂 Find out more thenaturefestival.org @morethanadodo.bsky.social @bbowt.bsky.social @friendlyevalley.bsky.social @naturerecovery.bsky.social @ecioxford.bsky.social
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Friends of Lye Valley @friendlyevalley.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
We've currently got hundreds of Common Spotted Orchids dotting the fen here. Numbers seem to be increasing year on year thanks to our ongoing scything and raking. Worth a visit if you're local! #WildflowerHour #OxfordshireFens #orchids 🌍
In the centre a clump of four pale pink orchids. They have distinctive darker pink spots and stripes on their three-lobed lips. The flowers are densely packed in short, cone-shaped clusters. The background is a variety of light green vegetation.
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
This spectacular Elm Pouch Gall was found on leaves of Lye Valley's disease resistant Elm trees, Ulmus minor var Ademuz. Made by aphids Tetaneura ulmi. Presume they have now left the gall through the hole? @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
A recent storm brewing in Lye Valley fen, luckily it passed without a deluge this time & we could get on scything, raking & especially giving a work experience vol (in dayglo orange) a lesson in Austrian #scything by an experienced volunteer @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
Flowers just starting to bloom in Lye Valley fen - Purple Tufted Vetch Vicia cracca and maroon flowered Water Figwort Scrophularia auriculata both visible from the boardwalk. @friendlyevalley.bsky.social A pity too wet for any insect visitors #Wildflowerhour
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
First smart soldierflies are now on the wing in Lye Valley fen. First a female Common Green Colonel Oplodontha viridula, then a female Banded General Stratiomys potamida. Both sitting out a rain shower @friendlyevalley.bsky.social @uk-soldierflies.bsky.social @dipteristsforum.bsky.social
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Tom Bedford @tombedford.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
If you’re in the Oxford area next Friday, 12th June, I’m talking about the “Birds of the Lye Valley Area” at 1:45pm, with lots of pictures and sound recordings. Lunch is also available (but is not compulsory!): www.bullingdoncommunityassociation.co.uk/articles/com... @friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Male Redstart Firecrest Sparrowhawk
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
As rain drenched our stalwart volunteers for @friendlyevalley.bsky.social this week, a new scarlet tiger #moth waits things out sitting on its comfrey food plant. Roll on the sunny break between the (much needed) showers for some flying around...
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Judy Webb @judywebb.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
@friendlyevalley.bsky.social will be there, showing off Lye Valley fen..
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