Biology Newsletter #11

Biology Department Newsletter Issue 11: week commencing 22 June 2020

Year 7 – ‘Spot it’ with Mr Coleman Over the last half of the Summer term, Year 7 have been having some nature-themed lessons with the aim of getting the boys to appreciate the natural world where they live. This week, I bring you a selection of their splendid efforts at wildlife photography. The boys had to produce a ‘spot it’ guide for the flora and fauna in their locality using the images that they were able to capture.

Shiv, 7M

Leo, 7M

Millan, 7R

Frederick 7J

Niyam, 7R

Remember there are lots of apps out there to help you with your identification.

Even in these technology dominated times, I was genuinely pleased to receive some work emails as they contained excited requests to help identify birds and insects!

Remember dear reader, nature starts with the noticing - how much of the wildlife photographed above can you spot in your garden or local park?

Mr Hardman spots it!

Mr Hardman has been busily embracing nature while we have been in lockdown. The photo on the left is of a wild orchid, growing in the grounds of Aldenham Sailing Club, and the one on the right is of selfheal, Prunella vulgaris, growing in his NoMowMay lawn (see Issue 5 for details). The latter is also found in the grounds at Habs and has medicinal properties, hence its name.

A wild orchid

Prunella vulgaris

Biology Department Newsletter Issue 11: week commencing 22 June 2020

‘Bringing the outdoors in’ - Alexander Jain, 7J There are many ways that you can bring nature into your home. From painting the walls with leaves and trees to just having lots of plants in your house. If you want to do some bird-watching you can build a simple DIY birdfeeder or support your local garden centre and buy from there. You can grow your own food such as vegetables and reduce your food miles and have a positive impact on the outdoors around you. You can also build a bug hotel and look after the bugs inside. Remember to put up insect friendly plants so more insects come to your house. These images are taken inside the naturalist Sara Humphrey's home and she said that "DIY does not have to be perfect as nature often isn't" which shows how creative you can be.

Remember to take pictures of the birds you may find feeding in your garden. This image was taken by David Tipling (RSPB images).

From this article I hope you can try and also bring the outdoors in by doing something as simple as putting some plants around your house which will help you and the environment.

The secret life of parasites Parasites get a pretty bad rap in general!

Parasites are a huge global threat to human life, but some of them could actually help us treat disease. Parasitologist Charlotte Evans explores the secret lives of these frightening organisms New Scientist Live.

This really is not one to watch while you’re eating dinner!

The tapeworm

Corals and probiotics Corals, similarly to humans, coexist with a whole host of microbes which keep them healthy. Research suggests that global warming is damaging to coral at least in part because it damages their microbiome.

This article looks at the use of probiotics as a potential cure for the coral Hakai magazine

Biology Department Newsletter Issue 11: week commencing 22 June 2020

Prep boys making nest boxes The beautiful grounds at Habs are full of nest boxes, little homes for our feathered friends – hopefully you have noticed them. The majority of these are made ‘in-house’, and last year we even had a camera in one of them, providing us with a live feed of the family of blue tits who were living inside which we screened in the Biology department seating area. Mr Hardman has been working hard with 42 Year 6 prep boys in the DT department to make even more of these boxes (for them to take home) and teaching them ‘a shedload of stuff’ on British birds too.

The birds of Borehamwood Someone else who has been watching the wildlife in his garden is Mr Cachuela, our lovely Physics technician. He has sent in this beautiful series of photos of a jay, Garrulus glandarius, which he spotted in his garden stealing the cherries from his neighbour’s tree!

Find out more about this pretty bird here Woodland Trust and The Guardian

Biology Department Newsletter Issue 11: week commencing 22 June 2020

Egyptian geese at Habs A pair of Egyptian geese, Alopochen aegyptiacus, appear to have enjoyed the quieter campus this summer. They have been seen regularly but not frequently over the last year but are normally quite shy. However, it looks like they now believe they own the place. This photo by Adam Jovine in Year 12 shows them on the quad. The fallen leaves makes it look like autumn but the photo was taken on Monday 15th June the first day of lessons for Year 12. Egyptian geese originally come from Southern and East Africa and were introduced as an ornamental bird in wildfowl collections. Some birds escaped and formed small feral populations. They are a tree-nesting species, although they will also use rabbit holes. They breed in January which is not an ideal time to nest in the UK. It has been suggested that the more mild winters have enabled them to increase in numbers, from a small self-sustaining population in Norfolk they are spreading across the south east. In the Netherlands there are over a 100,000 individuals with the population believed to have originated from the Norfolk one. Perhaps Mr Hardman will want to build some large nest boxes for next year.

The Guardian

Biology and engineering

Identification of ‘The Thing’!

This female azure damselfly, Coenagrion puella, was found in one of the Biology teacher's kitchen! Have a close look at the wings. They have evolved to have the minimum quantity of chitin and resilin to enable them to function This keeps weight down and means that the insect does not waste energy constructing unnecessary bulky structures. That is why engineers often look to the natural world for inspiration Biodesign.

Nature has had billions of years to come up with solutions to problems through evolution.

For almost a decade scientists have struggled to identify a large fossil that was found in Antarctica and resembled a deflated football! However, scientific advances have meant that this unloved specimen turns out to be the largest reptile egg ever discovered, a fossilised specimen believed to have come from a giant sea lizard that roamed Earth 68 million years ago! This discovery has challenged scientists’ theories that mosasaurs, large extinct marine reptiles, did not lay eggs.

The Times

Biology Department Newsletter Issue 11: week commencing 22 June 2020

When bees need to move home – Dr A Chapman It was a wonderful sunny day, perfect for hanging out the washing to dry. However, as I walked outside I noticed a strange hum filling the air. Looking up I saw thousands of black dots zooming around. It turns out a swarm of honeybees had taken up residence somewhere in my neighbours’ garden. I retreated inside, washing still wet.

It’s not unusual for bees to seek a new home at this time of year. During spring, existing hives quickly grow in numbers as food sources burgeon. New queens are produced, and when the time is right they take some of the workers to find a suitable new place to build a hive. This is commonly known as a bee swarm. It’s quite a sight and generally harmless; by and large bees will remain passive unless they are disturbed. Similarly hives will happily exist in all sorts of places; we often don’t realise they’re there and the bees happily go about their business without being noticed. However, in this case they had chosen to take up residence in my neighbours’ composting bin, so leaving them be was going to be difficult.

they pollinate many plant species, which makes them indispensable to nature and humans alike. For this reason beekeepers will happily collect and rehome swarms.

My neighbours got in touch with a local beekeeper who came to take a look. His analysis, “a large primary swarm had decided to build a hive in a first-rate location; a spacious container which had a small entrance and a food source nearby”.

The bees had already started to build honeycomb so it wasn’t going to be possible to gather them and move them elsewhere, as would be ideal. The options were; leave them be, eliminate the problem, or encourage them to move on to a new home. Happily, my neighbours chose the latter option. In this case “encouraging them on” meant approaching the composting bin in the correct protective gear and removing the lid, thereby making their hive site less accommodating. A day later the bees had dispersed to find a new home, leaving only the beginnings of the nest. This was by far the best option, and hopefully they have found somewhere more permanent to take up residence and continue their crucial function.

Bees are a vital part of our ecosystem,

Their chosen home

Honeycomb Bee swarm

PPE