Our indoor programme of lectures starts in the Autumn. The venue for these is the Evergreen Hall, Cornhill, Allestree, Derby. For details on how to find this - click on or touch the button ‘MEETINGS VENUE’ on left.

During the spring and summer we have a varied programme of outdoor meetings, taking place in Derbyshire and neighbouring counties, to explore a wide range of wildlife. All non-members are welcome to join us - and you definitely don't have to be an expert!

Our Programme of Talks and Walks

Last Walk of 2024

Saturday 5th October (outdoor meeting) (M) 10:30am

We visitTicknall Limeyards for our annual Fungus walk with Pete Smith.

Meet in Ticknall Village on the A514, Main Street DE73 7JF (SK359240) (W3W)

cowboy.imparting.maximum. Parking is either at Ticknall Village Hall Car Park (10 mins walk away) DE737JX (SK352240) (W3W) chilled.shelters.washable

or alternatively park on the roadway at the meeting point.      

Talks for 2024 / 25

Friday 11th October 2024

Arctic wildlife in Alaska, Svalbard and the Lofoten Islands by David Charlton. 'This talk describes and illustrates the wildlife and flora of the Arctic seen during visits to the Lofoten Islands and Svalbard in northern Norway and to the wilds of Alaska.  Glaciers, mountains, polar bears, walruses, reindeer and the beautiful flowers that grow on the tundra. What a paradox that some of  the loveliest flowers thrive in the bleakest of environments'.

This will be a Memorial Lecture to Gerry Gatenby who had a keen interest in Alpine plants.

Friday 8th November 2024

The Natural History of Herzegovina by Denis Bohm who leads tours to show naturalists the birds and wildlife, including orchids, reptiles and butterflies. Photos and short videos of landscape from a variety of habitats will reveal fascinating details of, to us, this unfamiliar country.

 Friday 13th December Members Social

Friday 10th January 2025

 

Thomas Bewick: The Original Sources for his Natural History Engravings by Graham Rowe, Senior Lecturer, Environmental Sciences, University of Derby.

Tyneside-born Thomas Bewick (1753–1828) is best remembered as an English wood-engraver and natural history author. The single-volume History of Quadrupeds (1790) and two-volume A History of British Birds (1797 & 1804) sold particularly well and went through many editions in Bewick’s lifetime. Given the size of the woodblocks, the quality of the work is exquisite, each a miniature masterpiece. When cut across the endgrain, Boxwood was hard enough for Bewick to achieve a finer level of detail than found on normal woodcuts. Bewick is acknowledged as reinvigorating the centuries-old art of wood engraving. Bewick is also known for his ‘Tale Pieces’ or ‘Tail Pieces’ (both serve equally well); small woodcuts of eighteenth-century rural life that tell a tale (often containing rascals and cruel humour), mostly printed on empty spaces at the tailends of various section of Bewick’s works.

Friday 14th February 2025: The Science of Food by Jim Campbell

Food is not just for survival, it is a cultural and social activity responsible for many cuisines and tastes. But why do different people have different taste preferences?  Why do many women crave chocolate? The answers may surprise you.

We explain the scientific complexities of boiling an egg; why milk in a pan will boil over, how you can prevent it, and how nature provided each cook with the perfect emulsifier that is essential in baking to mix fat with water. We will look at how vitamins and minerals keep us healthy, and we go on to explain the reactions that ensure toast is much more delectable than a boring slice of bread, thanks to studies by Louis Camille Maillard. Surprisingly, it’s the same reaction that preserves Palaeolithic specimens in peat, and allows us to study coprolites from dinosaurs.

If you prepare food, then you’re a scientist. Not for nothing were cookery classes at school called ‘domestic science’. Bring your scientific knowhow up to a new level.

Friday 14th March: My Garden in Close-up by Bill Grange

An illustrated talk, focussing down on the plants and often overlooked small creatures inhabiting my Allestree, Derby, garden, revealing some intricate details which may be surprising to many people.

Friday 11th April 2025: Bees as Pollinators by Karen Burrows

Considered by many to be the star pollinators, this talk will discuss what makes the honeybee a good pollinator, how the honeybee achieves large scale pollination, their limitations and the threats of the modern environment. We will conclude with a look at some of the other pollinators who lack the PR of the honey bee and how the average person can help this diverse group.