Newsletter July 2013 English-speaking Section

http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_About-us.87-1-0.html

Saturday, 31 August 31 2013: 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM

Meeting point: church in Troine

For more information and to register:

http://dayinnature20130831.eventbrite.com/#

Guided excursion looking for the typical birds of the

Ösling in the context of the LIFE Éislek project.

The LIFE Éislek project (Fondation Hëllef fir

d´Natur) aims to restore the diversity of wetland

habitats at 11 sites in the Natura 2000 network in

the Éislek region and improve the conservation

status of three target species (Whinchat, Red-

backed Shrike, Violet Copper).

A Day in Nature: The birds of the Ösling

Photo ©

Tom Conzemius

Saturday, 28 September 2013 from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM

Meeting point: at the farm (see link below)

For more information and to register:

http://visitorganicfarm2013-eorg.eventbrite.com/#

Join the natur&ëmwelt English-speaking

Section to visit an organic farm, the Kass-Haff

farm.

The visit is for parents and children who will be

able to pet and feed the animals (i.e. cows,

horses, goats, hens, pigs, rabbits) as well as

hear from the farmers on what the animals

need and how they behave.

A Day in Nature: Organic farm visit

Photo © Kass-Haff

Saturday, 23 November 2013 from 9:30 AM to 2:30 PM

Saturday, 8 February 2014 from 9:30 AM to 2:30 PM

For more information and to register:

http://fitbynature20131123-eorg.eventbrite.com/#

http://fitbynature20140208-eorg.eventbrite.com/#

Are you looking to earn Service hours on your

Mérite Jeunesse?

If so, come and work on our Fit by Nature events!

The area between the towns of Brouch and Bech is one of the last known places

in Luxembourg where the Grey Partridge(Perdix perdix) breeds.

The natur&ëmwelt English-speaking Section is organising a "Get Fit by Nature" to

clear part of a site to open it up to create a wildflower meadow surrounded by a

diverse hedge row, which will provide shelter and a barrier against agricultural

fields.

An explanation of the site, its importance and the future plan for the development

of the site will be given at the event.

Fit by Nature... ...for the Grey Partridge

Photo © SICONA

We would like to thank our volunteers, Pooneh Poostchi, Laura Gouvras, Lindsey Stokes and John Ward for their translations of web pages of www.naturemwelt.lu.

There are still more pages to translate to provide further information to our English-speaking members. You do not need to be a professional translator to help us!

Would you like to contribute?

Contact us: ne.english.section@gmail.com

Tools such as these can do most of the work for you:

http://translate.google.com

http://www.linguee.com/

Volunteering: Translation of web pages

We are looking for 2 people to help us in our communication and marketing, such as informing our mailing list of our events using online tools (e.g. mailchimp, eventbrite).

Do you know anyone who could help?

Would you like join our committee to help organise events and activities?

Contact us: ne.english.section@gmail.com

Volunteering: Communication and marketing

When I set off on 13 April, I had no idea what to expect. My parents had only told me that it had

something to do “with mussels in Luxembourg”. At first I couldn’t take them seriously, mussels in

Luxembourg? I would soon find out that there really are mussels in Luxembourg.

My parents had organised a lift for me and at 08h30 sharp (on a Saturday morning!) a lady collected

me. Before heading off to natur&ëmwelt's Mussels Rearing Station, we had to pick up another person

at the train station. Our destination then was Lieler, Luxembourg. Neither of us really knew what this

trip was about nor where Lieler even was! All we knew was that we were heading north and after an

hour’s drive we finally got to Lieler.

Here we had an introduction to the freshwater mussels. I was quite amazed to hear that they even

existed in Luxembourg, or for that matter that freshwater mussels even existed at all! We were told

how useful freshwater mussels are to river and streams since they are filter feeders. They filter the

water and make it cleaner. We then went on a walk to the rearing station for the freshwater mussels.

At the station we were shown a film (with French subtitles) which showed the life cycle of a river

mussel and the dangers they face. Most mussel offspring don’t survive because they suffocate. They

grow in the gravel of rivers and stream, but sediment seals the gaps so the mussels cannot breathe.

We were then given a tour of the station and shown how they try to keep the species alive by the

means of raising the mussels until they are big enough to survive on their own, and releasing them

into their natural habitat.

This was A Day in Nature on 13 April 2013: Mussels in Luxembourg?

Photo © natur&ëmwelt

Philip Murdock, Volunteer

Video with German subtitles:

http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_Life-project--freshwater-

pearl-mussel.41-2-0.html

The ‘Kaiserstuhl‘ is a volcanic pimple in the landscape: on its own, in the Rhine plain in the

bottom left-hand corner of Germany. Actually, it’s a bit more than just a pimple. It includes a few

villages, a bit of market gardening, and a lot of wine-growing terraces, carved back-breakingly

out of the hard rock, but with a remarkably thick cover of wind-blown loess soil.

It’s a very special region, with an equally special fauna and flora. It’s one of the warmest

places in Germany. It’s why a group of naturalists from the English-speaking section of the

national conservation organisation ‘natur&ëmwelt’ went to visit it one weekend this May.

It was, as everywhere else this year, a late spring, and we timed our visit to perfection. The

Kaiserstuhl’s star, a breeding colony of spectacular Bee-eaters, arrived together with us, joining

some of the region’s other resident or recently returned ornithological specialities, like breeding

Hoopoe, Wryneck, Peregrine Falcon and Hen Harrier. Birds and humans got very good

sightings of one another.

This was a Weekend in Nature on 4, 5 May 2013: Birding on the Emperor’s Seat

Photo © natur&ëmwelt

Bee-eaters Our group enjoyed expert guidance and fieldcraft from

some really knowledgeable members and friends. It won’t

be the last such trip we’ll be doing. If you want to know

more about our present and future plans, and about how to

join in on our walks, excursions and practical conservation

activities, drop us an e-mail at

ne.english.section@gmail.com.

David Crowther, Volunteer and Committee Member

Picture this scene: a meadow covered by knee-high grasses, flowers clumped in small but

perfectly formed summer bouquets, sun smiling down – suddenly there is movement. One of

us takes flight – gamboling through the grass like a spring lamb, butterfly net swishing

manically from side to side in hot pursuit of the elusive quarry.

There is no evil intent – merely a desire to net one of these fluttering beauties, capture it briefly

in an observation jar and then meticulously pore over every nuance of its markings, wing

shape, size and how it compares to the treasures found previously by others in our party. We

all become observers of detail – fine details like shades and tones of colour, shape and

pathways of line markings, position of spots and colour on wing parts.

A whole new world in miniature is opened up to us who have embarked on this learning

expedition to the far north of Luxembourg in Basbellian on a site that is perfect for viewing the

focus of our expedition – The Violet Copper.

Our expert guides for the Day in Nature - from Caterpillar to Butterfly - are Marie, a butterfly

specialist and Mikis (an ornithologist) both representatives of natur&ëmwelt. They provide us

patiently with their extensive local knowledge and answers to questions coming from those

within the group who are already astute and knowledgeable about butterflies, moths and other

local wildlife; others of us on the beginning of our learning curve.

Continued on next page

This was A Day in Nature on 16 June 2013: From Caterpillar to Butterfly

This was A Day in Nature on 16 June 2013: From Caterpillar to Butterfly

Photo © Mikis Bastian

Bee-eaters

Mikis expertly and effortlessly nets a Violet Copper in the

first few minutes of our arrival on site. This tiny specimen

(wingspan of 24 to 26 mm) exhibits vibrant blue and orange

colouring in the male of the species and orange/brown in

the female. We are enchanted equally by the colour and

size but mostly by the revelation that this butterfly is quite

rare and often confined to small sites such as this swampy

wet grassland.

For me, learning more about the work of natur&ëmwelt has

been a revelation. I had limited understanding of the scope

of the work and the commitment by this organisation to the

understanding and development of the ecology of

Luxembourg. My Day in Nature with this group of

interesting, and knowledgeable people has served to

inspire me to learn and be more involved.

Mrs. Pat Tunney, Volunteer

A guide on butterflies in French or German can be

downloaded from this webpage:

http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-

emwelt_ShowNews_News.1-2-184-2.html

Articles (EN) Translated by Our Volunteers:

Freshwater pearl mussel

http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_ShowNews_News.21-1-94-0.html

Organic Station SIAS (Syndicat intercommunal à vocation multiple)

http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_ShowNews_News.20-1-106-0.html

EU Parliament lacks nerve for agricultural policy change

http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_ShowNews_News.1-1-249-10.html

Agriculture, nature and biodiversity (Emeschbaach Farm Project) http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_ShowNews_News.20-1-183-0.html No Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and pesticides in our plates! http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_ShowNews_News.1-1-50-2.html

The apprenticeship hive and the wall of wild bees http://www.naturemwelt.lu/natur-an-emwelt_The-apprenticeship-hive-and-the-wall-of-wild-bees.59-1-0.html

Further documentation

Videos:

Brochures (EN):

Coming soon, you can help translating them.

Articles:

Weimericht – des pelouses calcaires protégées?

An article about the site where we had our 2 February 2013 event.

http://www.slideshare.net/neenglishsection/regulus-2013-no-3-weimericht-junglinster-

orchard

Buying local at Luxembourg's markets

http://www.wort.lu/en/view/buying-local-at-luxembourg-s-markets-

512b8e75e4b0367ed8ec3872

http://www.visitluxembourg.com/en/place/marketsandrummagesales/weekly-markets

http://www.visitluxembourg.com/en/place/marketsandrummagesales/monthly-markets

Shop local, says butchers' association

http://www.wort.lu/en/view/shop-local-says-butchers-association-

5125f910e4b08b5cc9bdaaec

Further documentation

Contacts: ne.english.section@gmail.com

Coordinator for the section: Mr. François Benoy, f[dot]benoy[at]naturemwelt[dot]lu Tel. +352 29 04 04 15 route de Luxembourg, Kockelscheuer, L-1899, Luxembourg

Committee: Ms. Francesca Heffernan, Ms. Mea Shepard,

Ms. Marianne Thiry, Ms. Marie Kayser, Mr. Mikis Bastian, Mr. Marc Thiel, Mr. David Crowther, Mr. John Park