The evening's speaker, Gordon Forrest, was introduced. His illustrated talk on Upton Warren Reserve was most interesting and informative. The land has been donated to the Worcestershire Wildlife Trust by John Cadbury and The Trust and its members had built and nurtured the land so as to attract wildlife making the reserve as it is today. The Flashes pool is of SSSI importance having drawn salt from the ground resulting in a salt water pool attracting coastal birdlife, and coastal plantlife thrives. The evening's meeting gave good background information for the following Sunday, a glorious morning, when the reserve's warden, Arthur Jacobs, led our March outdoor meeting. Before arriving at the Flashes, a kingfisher and two peregrines were sighted. At a hide at the Flashes redshank, a little ringed plover, gadwall and jack snipe were amongst the pool's bird species and sea holly was seen. On Moor Pool the first linnet since October had arrived, a nesting mute swan was being protected from canada geese by its territorial mate and a lapwing was mobbing the just arrived oystercatchers. In all 56 species were seen or heard at the reserve.

At the last indoor meeting of the season today (Wednesday) at St Oswald's Church Centre, Broadwaters starting 7.30pm, Brian Draper will present an illustrated talk entitled birds and other wildlife of the Upper Severn.

This Sunday, the outdoor meeting is to Checkhill Lane-Gothersley Lock meeting in Greensforge Lane at 10am.