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Papurau Newydd Cymru Ar-lein papuraunewyddcymru.llgc.org.uk
Welsh Newspapers Online  welshnewspapers.llgc.org.uk

Try this to see how we're featured in the English versions

http://welshnewspapers.llgc.org.uk/en/search/query?rows=80&query=%22cardiff+naturalists+society%22&date[min]=1844&date[max]=1912&sort=score

Sorry I'm not a Welsh speaker if anyone knows it please post a suitable link in a comment

Eulogy to MaryG

Eulogy to Dr Mary Gillham Delivered by Andy Kendall on behalf of Local Nature Societies I, like Mary have had the honour of being the president of the Cardiff Naturalists’ Society and am here to express our deepest respect and our fondness for her Mary was not only one of the most illustrious members of the Cardiff Naturalist’s’, she was one of the most loved . And not just by us, I know that she was loved and respected by all of the local wildlife groups and organizations. Including, the Merthyr Naturalists, the Wildlife Trust, SEWBREC, the Cardiff Park Rangers, the staff from the institutions of the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff and Swansea Universities and of course the National Botanic Gardens of Wales where she was recently honoured as one of the top female botanists of Wales in an exhibition She gave to us all in terms of knowledge, learning, and understanding, and shared enjoyment in discovery Some of us were honoured to be present at her 80th birthday party and we shared with her the highlights of her years of exploring wales and the world. At that event we were entertained to a poem written by her close friend Mairead Sutherland whom’ I know she missed dearly and who’s work I have adapted and would like to present to you here When Mary was born in London town She little knew she’d be renowned For writing books and long-haul travel Her life history I’ll now unravel. When war broke out and food was short She volunteered to do her part And though her work mates thought her barmy She joined the Women’s land Army. She fed the stock and drove the plough Monitored milk yields of the cow. When war was over, tired of monotony She went to ‘Aber’ to study Botany. To write her thesis for her PhD She chose Skokholm in the Irish Sea To study the effects on plants of guano Dear to her heart as we all know. Worldwide postings came her way She stayed a long time from the UK. Five brave lassies of which she was one Sailed to Antarctica, the first ever done. Then Mary felt the call of home Through Africa she did roam She stopped at Robben Island on her way Though with Mandela she couldn’t stay Back then in Wales she joined Extra Mural And taught many students of all things rural With an hour of chat plus one of slides And field trips organized besides. Aldabra called her when rumours rife Said a US base site would cause there strife To the endemic nature living there Mary, when asked, listed all things rare. President and Honoured by Cardiff Nats On Merthyr’s committee she  also sat A founder member of Glamorgan Trust On all their deliberations she was a must. She lectured still and also lead trips From fungus forays and fun pond dips She edited and illustrated our news letter No one did these things better. And in Mary’s cottage on the Garth There was always a welcome at her hearth. In her garden filled with cats and flowers She whiled away many long happy hours. She drew and painted and wrote her books She gardened, entertained and cooked. There was no limit to her gifts Through her life she calmly drifted. With Mairead she travelled through sun and gales Ate ostrich legs and crocodile tails But both martyrs then to hips and knees They cruise more gently on the seas. So here we’ve gathered to celebrate The life and times of our mate To the end keen of brain, though weak of knee The multi-talented Mary G. Some were also able to be with her at her 90th when we had a more intimate celebration where I presented a visual celebration of Mary. I simply entitled it Naturalist, Writer, Artist, And above all Friend MARY GILLHAM Delivered by Rosemanry Hutton,  Mary's goddaughter Mary would want this to be a day that celebrates her life, not a day of mourning and sadness. She was a woman who dealt with the circumstances she found herself in and made the best of them. There was no room in her life for long term regrets, ‘could have been’s or ‘should have been’s. She often told me that in a different era she would love to have been married and had children. Circumstances prevented that happening and she was well aware that by devoting herself to her joy of the natural world sacrifices had to be made.  Mary was my godmother and I would like us to celebrate her life today and for many years to come.  Mary Gillham grew up in a different world from ours. In the 1930’s she went on exciting camping holidays as a child with her parents and brother John, her uncle and aunt and cousins Stella and Marjorie. They drove around Europe by car and camped in rural places without the crowds and restrictions we have now. The war put an end to that freedom, but it opened doors for Mary. She wasn’t happy in her office work as a civil servant, and with the war effort was able to change direction and become a land girl.  The stories she told me were nothing like the fun and loose morals depicted on TV and in the cinema. Mary told me that it was exceptionally hard work, but it gave her a taste for life in the country. After the war, the government gave youngsters who had missed out on a university education, due to their war work, a second opportunity to apply to study there. Mary took advantage of the offer, achieved a first class degree in botany from Aberystwyth University and was launched on her career. When I was a child, I think I was eight, Mary set off on an academic expedition to Australasia which was expected to last for several years. She firmly believed that as my godmother, she should recognise each and every birthday and Christmas with a gift for me. So amidst all of her other preparations, she took the trouble to sort out a whole range of suitable presents from her own possessions  and gave them to my mother to distribute at the appropriate time. They included a necklace of African seeds, a wonderful old doll with a china head and a paintbox that she had used for some of her botanic illustrations. The first time I realised the significance and fascination of Mary’s work was when on holiday as a teenager in Wales with my parents and brother Anthony. Mary had recently moved into her Welsh cottage and we visited her there. We were treated to a slide show from her travels and the pictures were superb and truly eye-opening. At the time we didn’t have television at home, and wild life programmes weren’t made anyway, so I had never seen anything remotely like those pictures. Moving the clock on rapidly, Mary was staying with us in Reigate for Christmas when the devastating Asian tsunami struck. She was up and dressed before us on Boxing Day, and quietly watching the TV news in the kitchen. I will never forget her shocked look and white face as she told us the news about what had happened. This was her territory - the natural world. Her extensive travels and insight into how people lived elsewhere, gave her far more insight than us into what the terrible consequences of the tsunami were likely to be. Mary was a born teacher who never stopped sharing her knowledge with others. She liked nothing better than showing off the natural delights of her beloved Wales. I spent an August week with her on my own, and each day she planned different outings and adventures. It was delightfully old-fashioned, like a ‘Famous Five’ story. We even had picnics with jam sandwiches and ginger beer. Mary was a great listener and very open to suggestions. On one of the occasions when Dave and I visited her at her Cottage we noticed how hard it was for her to drive her old car and park it in her very difficult garage. We suggested she change to a modern automatic car with power steering, and within a few weeks she called to say there was a new car on her drive. Old fashioned she may have been in many ways but she never lost her sense of adventure. The highlight of the later part of her life was to be awarded an MBE for her services to natural history. Dave and I were delighted to be invited, together with Anthony, to Mary’s medal ceremony at Buckingham Palace. It was a wonderful occasion, and we were thrilled to be able to share with Mary something which she so clearly enjoyed. I have lost a much loved and admired godmother, my aunt Stella has lost a much loved cousin and we have all lost a friend who has left us a treasure trove of memories, slides , drawings and books that will ensure that her dedication to natural history will never be forgotten.

Brynna Woods - A preview

Many of our membes will remember our excellent christmas presentation from Robin Davies-Rollinson where he showed us a number of excellent nature and local history video's

Well with impecable timing he's provided us with a sneak preview of one of our upcoming trips so Brynna Woods (see programme http://cardiffnaturalists.blogspot.co.uk/p/programme.html)

Just click on the picture to watch the video

Robin's video as usual is full of information and has some excellent picture to whet your apetite for the forhcoming visit

Andy

Social Grooming in Long Tailed Macaque Societies

It is with great pleasure that we announce the winner of the 2013 Cardiff Naturalists Society Biosciences prize awarded in honour of Professor Ursula Henriques

The 2013 winner is Imogen Fox for her work entitled Social Grooming in Long Tailed Macaque Societies (Sabah, Borneo)

Imogen gave a brief presentation to her work to the CNS at a recent meeting where she was given a cheque and a certificate by Mike Dean Secretary of the society

Once again a real credit to university and to her personally, showing the quality of work that can be produced by a person with real enthusiasm for their subject. Once again the society are proud to be supporting excellence in the students at the university


Full Details of the award and information about Professor Henriques can be found Here

Dr Mary Gillham 1921 - 2013

It is with great sadness that we announce the death of Dr Mary Gillham Mary passed away at around 9:30 Saturday 24th March having been taken into hospital from the nursing home she had been in for the last few weeks We all mourn the loss of such an inspirational person. I remember when in my younger days as a member of the society and clearly just a beginner when it came to things botanical I would be taken by the arm and shown plants of many different types and the insects upon them. She never failed to be able to educated and inform in a manner that was also entertaining and inspiring. I never tired of hearing her tales of adventures in Antarctica and such places and I know she enjoyed hearing all our takes of adventures during member’s evenings and the like once her travelling days were over. I know that she was still enjoying her old travels until recently because in the last year I had to help out when her slide projector packed up and she wanted to borrow one so she could keep looking at them. Mary contributed so much to the society over the years as president, editor and speaker and leader of so many walks, and of course as expert being able to identify so many unknown plants that were put up as pictures in many of our talks I know she will be sorely missed. If course it was not just to our society that she contributed, but to Merthyr Nats, the Wildlife trust and many other groups and  it was for these reasons she was rightly recognised in the 2008 Honours with the MBE for services to Nature Conservation in South Wales. Mary never married, wildlife was her first love, but that did not stop her having many close friends and I know many of you also  remember Mairead Sutherland who she shared many adventures with even up into their 80’s they were exploring and causing mayhem wherever they went, of course always with e smile between them. Her books were a feast of information and the fact she was writing and publishing them into her 90’s was simply incredible. To those who do not know Mary as well you will find a page about her on the CNS website at http://cardiffnaturalists.org.uk/htmfiles/maryg.htm on that page you will find a link to a biography and celebration some of our members prepared for her 80th Birthday party. We showed some of this again at her 90th celebration which we combined with our Christmas celebrations in 2011 Andy Kendall

Wild Bird Protection, Cardiff Naturalists’ involvement in the 1890's

In Cardiff Naturalists’ Newsletter Number 98, March 2013, there is an article by Mary Salter with the title above 

As Mary says in the article "In May 1890 an event took place which inspired members of the Cardiff Naturalists Society to take up the cudgels on behalf of wild birds."

In the small format available within the newsletter it is not possible to provide documents that Mary refers to in a large enough format to be readable so here they are 

Click on a picture to see them full size and read them 

 

You can read the full article in the newsletter which is available free to members

Older copies are made available through the website, but if you want to read it sooner why not join the society. Details on how to are on the JOIN US PAGE above

Request from Flat Holm Island Society

Hello

I am writing on behalf of Flat Holm Island society.

In Cardiff Council's budget proposals for 2013/14 it is proposed to “Cease Operation of Flat Holm Island and Consider Options for its Disposal”.

Flat Holm Island is a valuable community and educational resource to the People of Cardiff and surrounding areas. The island is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, Local Nature Reserve and a Special Protection Area, because of the maritime grassland and rare plants such as Rock Sea-Lavender, Wild Leek and Wild Peony. During Spring and Summer the island is also home to a significant breeding colony of Lesser Black-backed Gulls and is also home to slow worms, common lizards and Peregrine Falcons. Historical features on the island include the remains of a cholera hospital and Victorian and WWII gun batteries.

The council are proposing to cease operation of Flat Holm Island at a time when they planning to increase the spending on Senior Management at the council by £1.1 Million!
We would appreciate it if you could bring this matter to the attention of your members and encourage them to show their support by doing the following:

Show your support by signing our petition at:
http://www.change.org/en-GB/petitions/cardiff-council-save-flat-holm-island-2
Write to Cardiff Council voicing your concerns - consultation@cardiff.gov.uk
Cardiff Council
County Hall
Atlantic Wharf
Cardiff
CF10 4UW

You can also follow our progress by liking our Save Flat Holm Island facebook page.
https://www.facebook.com/SaveFlatHolmIsland
www.flatholmsociety.org.uk

I hope that you are able to support us and pass this message on to your members.

Kind regards
Jo Morgan

Grants and Fundraising Officer
Flat Holm Island Society