Friends of Lye Valley
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friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Friends of Lye Valley
@friendlyevalley.bsky.social
850 followers 290 following 2.5K 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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friendlyevalley.bsky.social
For those that had trouble spotting the bird, here's a cropped image showing a Grey Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea) rather more clearly.
#Birds #UKWildlife #UrbanBirding
Just to the right and slightly above centre is a small bird facing away from the camera. The overall impression is light grey, though its flanks and the base of its tail are yellow. To its right is some low growing green vegetation, while the rest of the background shows very shallow water with lots of dead Willow leaves.
November 11, 2025 at 8:13 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
An easy one for Monday morning. Spot the bird. 😃
#birds #UKWildlife
A photo of mixed green vegetation with shallow running water going from roughly top left to bottom right.
November 10, 2025 at 9:49 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Decades ago, part of the Lye Brook was deepened and widened, with peat piled on the banks. One side effect was to block the flow of spring water here. We've made a start on reprofiling this part of the fen, with a view to rewetting this currently dry area. 🌍
#OxfordshireFens #FenRestoration
Roughly in the centre of the photo two men with spades are standing on a raised area of ground. Behind them is a mass of green vegetation, and in front of them bare earth. They're gradually removing peat from this raised area (and mostly our of shot, piling it up to make a bund). To their right is a small trench with a black pipe in it, and at extreme right a couple of dark rucksacks.
November 8, 2025 at 9:23 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Finally some dramatic autumn colours in the Valley. The three tress on the right are some of our disease resistant Elms planted around seven years ago with help from @upperthames.bsky.social to try to attract White-letter Hairstreak butterflies. None yet, but fingers crossed!
#HabitatRestoration 🌍
In the background of the photo to the left is an Oak tree with a mixture of coloured leaves, some still green, some yellow and some brown. To the right are the Dutch Elm disease resistant Elms, which have predominantly yellow leaves. The sky is a mixture of light grey and white. In the foreground is a strip of dead brown vegetation, while immediately behind it is a strip of Reed which is a mixture of brown and green.
November 7, 2025 at 10:46 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Delighted to spot this Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) in the Valley this morning. An occasional visitor here, they love fishing in our ponds. 😍
#birds #UKWildlife #OX3 #OxfordshireFens 📷
@everyheron.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social @tverc1.bsky.social
A medium sized all white bird with a black beak, black legs, and yellow feet is perched on a branch of an oak tree. To the left of the photo from top to bottom is the tree trunk. The Egret is surrounded by still mostly green leaves, while in the background are a number of fallen autumn-coloured leaves.
November 5, 2025 at 2:22 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Another day, another #IDRequest. 😀
Does anybody know what this tiny orange weevil is? Found on our boardwalk a couple of days ago.
#insects #invertebrates #OxfordshireFens
In the centre of the photo a small orange weevil seen from the side and behind. The typical elongated head is slightly out of focus. The left diagonal part of the photo is black, while the rest shows a dark brown boardwalk made of recycled plastic.
October 24, 2025 at 8:36 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
We unearthed this Silphid (?) beetle this week. We understand they eat snails? Anyway, can anybody give an ID from this photo?
#IDRequest #insects #beetles #invertebrates
@judywebb.bsky.social
A small black shiny beetle is facing top left. Its antennae are just about visible, as are a couple of legs. It's sitting on a dark brown plastic boardwalk.
October 23, 2025 at 9:16 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
With four scythers on site this morning, we're making great progress with clearing the fen. We cut a block on the east side of the Valley, and a larger area on the west side (pictured below). Lots more work for our rakers though... 😀
#OxfordshireFens #Conservation #FenRestoration #OX3 #SSSI
🌍
In the foreground, and just to the right of centre a man in short sleeves wearing blue trousers and wellies is using a scythe. In the distance are a number of trees, while in the mid ground a gently sloping area of green, mostly short vegetation.
October 22, 2025 at 2:56 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Our seed collection continues. This time from two of our commoner plants, Angelica and Purple Loosestrife. Both are firm favourites with bees, butterflies, and other pollinators. The seed will be spread in areas of the fen we're still restoring.
#OxfordshireFens #OX3
A woman with a light blue hat, blue top with white sleeves and light coloured trousers is facing to the right. She has a small bright red rucksack on her back. In her left hand is a large black plastic bag, and in her right, a pair of secateurs. She's surrounded by waist high vegetation which is mostly reddish brown. A woman in a bright red and dark blue anorak with a small black rucksack is standing on a boardwalk with two small plastic bags in her left hand and a pair of secateurs in her right. She has light blue jeans and green wellies. She's facing a mass of almost head height vegetation.
October 21, 2025 at 9:04 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Scything Marsh Arrowgrass (Triglochin palustris). Near Threatened in England, it flourishes here. Once cut it will be used as "green hay" in areas of the fen we're restoring to reinforce its local population.
#FenRestoration #OxfordshireFens #RedList 🌍
@bsbibotany.bsky.social @tverc1.bsky.social
A man wearing a blue checked shirt, dark blue peaked cap, and light grey trousers is using a scythe to cut an area of brown vegetation in front of him. The background is a mix of green and yellowing shrubs.
October 19, 2025 at 9:19 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Delighted to welcome two new volunteers to the Valley this week! They were quickly put to work raking the west fen and carrying the cut material to build up the eroded banks of the Lye Brook.
#OxfordshireFens #FenRestoration #OX3 #SSSI #LocalWildlifeSite @judywebb.bsky.social
🌰🌍
To the left of the photo a young man in dark blue clothing is holding a rake with yellow prongs above a pile of cut reed and rush. In the centre a young woman in bright red bobble hat, dark top and bright green leggings also has a rake. Immediately behind the cut reed is a dark green drag sheet, and running from left to right is a brown boardwalk. Behind that is an area of green vegetation. At the far left of the photo a young man in dark clothing with his sleeves rolled up is wearing dark gloves. In the centre of the photo a young woman in bright red bobble hat, dark top and yellow wellies is carrying a drag sheet stuffed with a roll of cut reed and rush. She's walking over an area of short green vegetation while in the background are carious mostly dark green shrubs and ivy plants.
October 17, 2025 at 1:13 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Our Grass-of-Parnassus is now carpeting large areas of the west side of the Valley. Henry Taunt (1842–1922), an Oxford based photographer once described them as “like twinkling stars in the shadowy grass”. Seeing them now it's easy to understand what he meant!
#WildFlowerHour @judywebb.bsky.social
A photo of an area of fen with a mixture of green and brown shortish vegetation. Growing through this vegetation on thin stems are dozens of small white flowers.
August 15, 2025 at 9:39 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
We've got baby lizards! Likely lots of them! 😍
We spotted three juvenile Common Lizards (Zootoca vivipara) and one adult yesterday in a location in the Valley we've never seen them before. They seem to be doing well in the warm weather...
@arc-trust.bsky.social #reptiles #UKWildlife
Just above centre and slightly to the right the head of a lizard. It's facing right, with one eye visible. Its right front leg and foot are also visible. It's leaning on a light coloured piece of wood, and its body and tail are partially hidden by other pieces of wood. Although a little darker than most of the surrounding wood that makes up the rest of the photo, it's very low contrast, making it rather hard to see.
August 14, 2025 at 8:35 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Rock Edge in Headington is one of the few areas of grassland chosen by @oxfordcitycouncil.bsky.social to benefit from their new "cut & collect" mowing regime. Over time this will reduce the nutrients in the soil, allowing more wild flowers to flourish here. Thanks to ODS for cutting this morning. 🌰🌍
Roughly centre is a large blue tractor with black and white wheels, with a large green hopper behind it. To the left a pile of cut grass. In the foreground mostly yellowing cut grassland, and in the background trees still in green leaf.
August 13, 2025 at 1:32 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
#PollinatorPals
With its false nectaries, Grass-of-Parnassus flowers must look very inviting to pollinators. However, the plant cheats, and offers very little in the way of nectar to the insects that pollinate it. Here a hoverfly is trying its luck...
#insects #OxfordshireFens
@judywebb.bsky.social
In roughly the centre of the photo a small white flower with its petals curved inward has a stripy yellow and black hoverfly in it. The large eyes of the hoverfly are facing the camera. It's surrounded by thin green stems with dark markings on them. At the extreme left of the photo is a Grass-of-Parnassus still in tight bud.
August 10, 2025 at 10:02 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
The "scrapes" we created and sowed with native plants in the amenity grassland at Rock Edge are proving popular with the last of the summer's butterflies. Here a Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus) is nectaring on the copious Marjoram still in flower.
#UKButterflies @upperthames.bsky.social #Oxford
In roughly the centre of the photo a small blue butterfly is sitting on a purple flower with its wings closed. It's facing to the left of the photo, and its striped antenna and left eye is visible. The underwing has a number of small mostly black dots, while the hindwing has a row of orange heart shapes markings. Front left is another Marjoram flower, not fully in focus, while the background is a mix of diffuse greens and purples from other flowers.
August 8, 2025 at 1:05 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
OK, so it's a dreadful photo, BUT, it's the first adult Brown Hairstreak (Thecla betulae) butterfly we've *ever* seen at Rock Edge. We routinely count the eggs over winter, but until now, the adults have remained elusive...
#UKButterflies #UKWildlife @upperthames.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social
A light brown butterfly with a bright orange patch on each forewing is nestled down in grass. There are several bits of dead grass covering it. It's facing towards the op of the photo.
August 6, 2025 at 11:47 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Here in landlocked Oxfordshire, we have no chance of contributing to the #ByTheSea challenge. Instead, we'd like to offer this dew covered Grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia palustris). Vulnerable in England and Rare in Oxon, we currently have hundreds maybe thousands in flower.
#WildFlowerHour #Fens
A photo of a delicate looking white flower with curving lines on its petals. The centre of the flower has a bulbous creamy white structure which is surrounded by "false nectaries". That is structures which look like they should provide nectar, but in fact don't (or provide very little). Essentially they're there to fool pollinators into visiting the flower. It is these that have tiny drops of dew on them. The background is all black.
August 3, 2025 at 3:17 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Wasp Spiders (Argiope bruennichi) are continuing to spread. We saw two females with webs within 40cm of each other this week. Although not new to the site, iRecord says the grid reference is outside known modern range. #insects
@britishspiders.bsky.social @tverc1.bsky.social @judywebb.bsky.social
A medium sized spider with black and yellow stripes, and black and yellow stripy legs is facing away from the camera. Its web is partially visible. At the top and bottom of the web are thicker zig-zag sections, the so-called stabilimentum, the purpose of which is not clear. The background is a diffuse green.
August 1, 2025 at 9:12 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Great to spot this fresh Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) butterfly in the Valley this morning. Not seen many here this year. Is anyone else seeing them? 🤔
#UKButterflies #inverts #UKWildlifePhotos #recorded
@upperthames.bsky.social
An orange butterfly with black markings on its wings, and black wing tips with white markings is facing away from the camera, resting on a large white Bindweed flower. Its body is brown with black stripes. Its antennae are visible against the white flower. There are thin green tendrils appearing bottom left. One curls round to the left about two thirds of the way up the photo, and one disappears under the white flower.
July 30, 2025 at 1:18 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Some of our earlier flowering plants have already set seed. Here, one of our volunteers doing a first sweep for ripe Ragged Robin, Yellow Rattle, and Tufted Vetch seed to spread in new areas once the fen has been scythed off at the end of the season.
#OxfordshireFens #FenPlants #FenRestoration 🌍
A woman stands roughly in the centre of the photo wearing a light coloured blouse, dark blue top and light blue jeans. In her left hand she's holding some clear plastic bags, some of which contains seeds. She's on a slight slope (higher top left, lower bottom right) and is surrounded by spikes of purple flowers and lower growing white, and yellow flowers.
July 29, 2025 at 12:47 PM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
Though we say so ourselves, the west side of the Valley is a real head turner at the moment. Masses of the nationally Near Threatened Parsley Water-dropwort contrasting with Purple Loosestrife and a few of our early Grass-of-Parnassus flowers adding to the mix! 😍
#WildFlowerHour #OxfordshireFens
Two women a little distance apart are walking from right to left of the photo on a raised brown boardwalk. They're both wearing light blue tops and dark trousers. The woman on the left is wearing light coloured hat. Both are looking away from the camera towards a mass of purple and white flowers to their right. In the centre foreground and bottom left there are more bushy spikes of purple flowers.
July 27, 2025 at 8:28 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
❗ ANNOUNCEMENT ❗

It's not currently possibly to safely or easily walk the full length of the Lye Valley after some mindless vandal(s) set fire to part of the boardwalk last night. The City Council are aware of the situation, and are visiting today.
@headingtonnews.bsky.social
A section of melted boardwalk, part of which is completely burnt through fills the bottom three quarters of the photo. There is green vegetation to both sides, a small information board top left, and a piece of red and white tape across an unburnt section of boardwalk top right.
July 25, 2025 at 8:28 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
We've got quite a few of these big clumps of Purple Loosestrife. Impressive aren't they? 😃
July 19, 2025 at 9:05 AM
friendlyevalley.bsky.social
The first of our Grass-of-Parnassus (Parnassia palustris) aka Bog Star is now in flower. We're one of the most southerly sites for this plant, and thanks to our ongoing #FenRestoration work we have the largest population of them in Oxfordshire. 😍
🌍 #WildFlowerHour #OxfordshireFens #FenPlants
Top centre is a small white flower on a long thin stalk. Lower down and to the left are a number of unopened buds, some showing white. They're surrounded by other vegetation.
July 16, 2025 at 11:16 AM