Jennifer Charter - a local nature-lover

...and some early memories of the Wren Group.

 

JenniferJennifer Charter passed away in the early hours of the morning on 6th February 2022, at the age of 78.

She was a member of the local Conservation Group - the Wren Group - from an an era of that group which feels quite distant now. It is likely that few present members of the group will remember her now; perhaps a few ex-group members may be added to those. Those that do will include Richard Oakman – the present President of the group, Tricia Moxey – who still gives talks to the group, Gill James – the group’s secretary, Susan Winch-Furness, Peter and Valerie Saunders – who have moved to distant Clacton, and there will be a few others.

Back in the late 70’s or early 80s when I met her through our both being in the group, she was a well-known and respected member of the group, and indeed around Aldersbrook where she lived and in Wanstead Park where she would frequently be walking her whippets. She said that she often allowed her dogs to choose the route, which would then lead her into unexpected places and unexpected wildlife.

The wildlife of Wanstead Park was then – except perhaps for some historic studies by such notables as Gulielma Lister – relatively little studied or recorded. The Wren Group itself, was – considering the amount of time it has been in existence – relatively in its infancy. Much of its association (then primarily with Wanstead Park itself) was with practical issues, such as bramble clearing and keeping paths and ditches clear and the like. The Conservators of the Forest – and indeed any other than locals – paid little attention to what went on there, at least compared to the more northerly reaches of the Forest.

So people like Jennifer – who would pass on her observations to me – Pete Saunders, Richard Oakman, Colin Plant, Richard Baker, Ted Godden and just a handful of others, now mostly moved or passed away, were the ‘eyes’ on the Park’s wildlife.

Each of these had particular roles – self chosen, not imposed. Pete Saunders would almost daily walk around the Park, keeping his eye out for problems of management, mis-management, vandalism or creatures in trouble. He was good at spotting individual species – particularly birds. Richard Oakman would visit the Park, and acted as a Group representative, lead walks, introduced speakers at club meetings. Colin Plant was something of a specialist, with a great knowledge of wildlife and compiling a number of publications about those. Richard Baker was, like myself, a beginner in the identification of species – beginning with birds, going on to learn about plants and, particularly as far as Richard is concerned, about fungi, and then other wildlife. Ted Godden was a gentleman; respected in his general knowledge and appreciation of the area’s wildlife and history, and offering ‘nuggets’ of information when out on walks. All of these – including of course Jennifer – would pass on wildlife records to me when I began to compile a primitive database – a card index system – for the Group. I always maintained that we couldn’t conserve much if we didn’t know what we had.

And the other – and indeed more original – side of the Group’s activities was the practical work. This was actively engaged in by Jeff Bosher, who energetically put such a lot of effort and time into work in the Park, assisted by Pete, myself and others. Jennifer’s whippets sometimes helped with the digging. Whether Jennifer did…

Jennifer Sadie and Charlie on the Plain in 2000Jennifer, Sadie and Charlie on the Plain, Wanstead Park, in May 2000Regarding the whippets, it was Jennifer that introduced me to these beautiful creature. When the Aldersbrook Exchange Lands were being opened up to the public, she and I used to walk the dogs there, sometimes accompanied by Ted Godden. I felt that it might be nice to name areas of what we knew as the Old Sewage Works (to Jennifer, sewerage works) after Ted, and I did try Godden’s Field for that open area to the right, as you come in through the stable/allotment gates. It didn’t catch on, sadly, and neither did Sadie’s Wood, which is the strip of woodland bordering that to the south, adjacent to the Bridle Path. The name was for the fact that little whippet Sadie and I used to have a regular route through a corner of the wood – with her treading in my very footsteps to avoid the dreaded whippet-stinging nettles. Indeed, many of the desire-line paths through the whole Exchange Lands that exist now were probably first trod by Jennifer, me, Sadie, Charlie….

And – as yet another aside – the naming of things (places) is a delicate matter. Those deliberate ones didn’t catch on (but Sadie’s Wood, Godden’s Field – come on!), but on the other hand Florrie’s Hill did; it’s on the maps. It was a bit accidental: Pete Saunders always knew the gate at the top as ‘Florrie’s Gate’, so I thought if that is Florrie’s Gate, then this hill will go on my self-drawn recording map as Florrie’s Hill. And I deliberately named that bit of woodland to the south of Perch Pond ‘Aldersbrook Wood’ to see what would happen. Certainly that’s how it is known nowadays by the London Borough of Redbridge. Quite a few areas on the Flats have become known by the names I gave them on my 80’s recording maps.

As for the wildlife records, back then, there were no mobile phones to text instant messages of sightings – let alone ‘apps’. What there was was the telephone when you got home, word of mouth and regular Wren Group meetings to exchange information and ideas. And a newsletter, typed out single-finger-Tippex-style on a typewriter, which was usually 4 or perhaps 5 or 6 pages in length, collated, stapled, enveloped, addressed and either hand-delivered or posted to the members. No email or e-newsletter – and not often even in any colour, just black-and white or greyscale. Early on it was reproduced on a ‘spirit duplicator’. Was that the same thing as the ‘Gestetner’ that we bought? And – think on it – hardly anyone had a camera, let alone a digital one with a lens the size of a respectable cannon, or built into a convenient mobile phone.

Thinking back – which is what we do when someone dies – ‘birders’, or ‘twitchers’ were rare around here then, and naturalists virtually unknown. When Richard Baker and I would wander through the Park or across the Flats on a ‘bird watching’ expedition, with binoculars, we would get stares. We rarely used cameras, because the disappointment of getting a 36-roll of Ilford film returned from the developers with just a few blurred photos of a Wood Pigeon to show for it, was an expensive disappointment.

Jennifer annaA drawing by Jennifer of one of her whippets - AnnaJennifer used to draw the pictures. She was a pretty good artist, and when early digital cameras became available to us (Fuji MX 1700, 1.5MP, 3x zoom) she took some nice photos of the Park – not so much the wildlife, just the atmosphere. She tried to produce some Christmas calenders for the Wren Group, but was admonished by an over-sensitive Conservators’ dictum that any such photography had to be licensed. There were deterrents in those days. Talking of stares – such as when Richard and I were seen with binoculars – I remember the puzzled looks that Jennifer and I got when using our first digital cameras! Once I was buzzed by the police helicopter on Wanstead Flats, as I bent down to examine a moss or something.

Jennifer wrote some nice little articles for the Group’s newsletter. They weren’t technical or scientific, just easily read pieces which reflected her simple observation of a swan walking across Aldersbrook Road, or the bluebells in Chalet Wood. She also contributed regular ‘Wildlife Diary’ articles to St Gabriel’s Parish Church magazine. This often led to annoyance (she was easily annoyed) because the editor would invariably – and usually, unnecessarily, in my view – edit her words, even to the extent that – for example – a Little Grebe would become a small grebe. It’s one of the reasons why when we wrote the name of a bird, plant or animal, we would capitalise the initial letters. Otherwise a Dabchick may well have become a newly-hatched dab.

But Jennifer wasn’t only interested in wildlife – an interest inherited from her mum – she had a range of interests inherited more likely from her dad, too. Early on when I met her she told me that at school she was ridiculed by her teacher, when discussing the Solar System, because Pluto was a dog. Jennifer knew better.

When I first met her and she invited me for a cuppa in her home in Northumberland Avenue, I was somewhat dismayed to find that the house that she lived in was one of the oldest – and possibly biggest – in Northumberland Avenue, right by Wanstead Park. As we approached, just visible behind one of the two great holly trees in the front garden (recognise it?), an upstairs curtain twitched back into place. Very Hitchcockian. Her mum wasn’t one for having visitors, but once I had met her and was accepted I found her to be an intelligent, although somewhat reclusive, woman, with her own natural knowledge of the wildlife around. Jennifer inherited this.

The garden was a wonder. Very overgrown in parts, and with its own stable-block. What lived in there even Jennifer and Mrs. Charter did not know - or perhaps care to find out. But the garden was a haven for wildlife, and Jennifer had made it more so, in a haphazard let’s-use-this-old kitchen-sink way. Plus an elaborate bird-feeder. The bird feeder continued to attract a range of species, including such as Coal Tits and Lesser-spotted Woodpeckers which the up-and-coming birders of the area would have perceived to be rare during some periods. Jennifer invited me round to observe some mammals that were making use of the bird-feeders fall-out. Bearing in mind that Jennifer had whippets and later greyhounds, and a cat – all good mammal-hunters – it was a pleasure to see Field Mice at our feet amongst the tipsy-topsy flower pots. These were observed by the whippets with resignation; they couldn’t catch them, and were told-off if they attempted to.

In the garden, too, were a variety of water-containing vessels – including the aforesaid kitchen sink(s). Each of these provided an alternative universe for micro and macro creatures, including, of course, frogs, toads and newts. In fact the newts in particular also used the house itself as both a winter refuge and a highway between the garden and their holiday/breeding summer quarters in Wanstead Park. I would not have been surprised if there wasn’t a bat roost in the roof, but this was never proved. There were certainly hornet’s nests in the outbuildings, and they were allowed to do their thing.

jennifer gb2aed 220600artJennifer as the 'Edwardian Lady', at an amateur radio display in Wanstead Park in May 2000I mentioned Jennifer’s other interests, touching on astronomy. She became interested – through me – in the idea of amateur radio, and I encouraged her to study for the Radio Amateur Examination (RAE) which would gain her a license to potentially speak to fellow ‘hams’ throughout the world. She studied at Barking College, passed her examinations, and gained her internationally recognised callsign – 2E1FZC (the C-for-Charlie part was chosen because at the time she had a big whippet called Charlie.) Although from her home she mostly spoke to me and one or two local Amateurs in the Ilford area, she (2E1FZC), I (G0LLE) and Martin (G0KCD) would occasionally go aboard HMS Belfast – as members of the Royal Naval Amateur Radio Club – and put out CQ (general call) calls from the Belfast. The responses were usually overwhelming. Every ham in the world, it seems, wanted to contact ‘Golf Bravo Two Royal Navy’ (GB2RN – its callsign), a warship in London, and to speak to a YL (Young Lady – or at least female) was an extra bonus. So Jennifer’s voice was not only heard around Wanstead, but around the world.

Martin – through us – also became a member of the Wren Group for a while. He liked ‘yellow flowers’, and was great photographer. Sometimes quite apparently differing interests overlap – or you can encourage people to take an interest. That’s what the Wren Group was partly about.

More in line with the Wren Group, Jennifer would usually assist me in setting up a display for the Group at a fete in Wanstead Park, or – as used to happen – the Open Day at the City of London Cemetery. She was good at arranging the wares, and making little ‘identify the bird’ puzzles to encourage children – and adults – to perhaps learn more about the local wildlife.

She would accompany us on Group guided walks around Wanstead Park, which of course she knew very well, and on Wren Group walks further afield, perhaps to Essex reserves or the coast or the Chilterns, but eventually leg-trouble hindered those more distant or longer walks. Then it was just keeping going by taking the dogs out, but still spotting wildlife things that others may so easily have missed. I would get reports from her of ‘an interesting’ plant that she had spotted, and I would then check it out, and sometimes identify it as something I had overlooked, or simply not seen. Or a moth would land on her window or come into the house, and I’d get a report on that. All stuff to add to the database of records of the wildlife of the area – for potential ‘Conservation’.

Eventually, though, mobility problems inhibited Jennifer’s ability to get out much, but she would still supply reports of bird or moth activity around house or garden. Once you can’t get out so much – from my own experience – your face and place tends to become forgotten, and people’s memories fade.

The Wren Wildlife and Conservation Group, as it is now titled, has been through a quite long history of ups and downs – sometimes it has held on just by the continued input and support of people like Jennifer. Today, it seems, it is a thriving group with enthusiastic members providing a valuable service – not only to the wildlife and ecology of the area, but in it’s own way to the community itself. It seemed to me that Jennifer’s death might be a good time to reflect not only on her, but on the Wren Group – its history, and some memories of past members.

Paul Ferris, 12th February, 2022