1st October 2016
Today we have a volunteer from the Hawk & Owl Trust - Barry Gray - joining us on the usual monthly work day on the reserve. He has come along to give us some advice on whether or not our site is suitable for a Kestrel nesting box. A quick look at the grassland habitat is enough to confirm that it is ideal for the Short-tailed Vole, which is the main food of the Kestrel. He shows me where to look for the holes in the long grass which mark where their runs are likely to be and we even find one with a food store of cut grass stems in the entrance. It looks as though we have abundant food supplies to support a Kestrel, but nowhere suitable to put up a nest box. The other option is to install a large pole on which to attach a box.
We don’t see the Kestrel at all this morning, but Barry’s trained eye spots a female Sparrowhawk flying around the reserve. This bird has a distinctive “T” shape to its outline in the sky. He tells me that the female is much bigger than the male, because once the young are hatched, she takes over the hunting duties and can tackle much bigger prey such as pigeons.
Amazingly, this isn’t the only surprise - later on he spots a Peregrine Falcon, quite high up, but he is sure of the identification. They are known to nest around the Church in the Backwell area.
I realise that I don’t spend enough time looking up! I also need much more experience of seeing these birds of prey before I could readily identify them. However, it is exciting just to know that we have Peregrines in our area. Please all keep a look out and report any sightings!
11th October
Over the last couple of weeks, Autumn has really set in and we are noticing the dramatic drop in temperatures. It is now only about 12 degrees on a sunny morning with a fresh breeze as I set out about midday.
The first thing that I notice is that farmers have been busy hedgecutting. The grass verges and the hedges in the lane leading down to Moorend Spout look newly trimmed and quite bare now. Weaving through in places are the bright red berries of the Black Bryony(Tamus communis) shining out to warn birds that they are highly poisonous. It bears glossy heart shaped leaves which turn black in autumn.
It occurs to me that I have no idea how old these hedges might be and am reminded that there is a ‘rule of thumb’ for estimating the age of a hedgerow called “Hooper’s Law” or Hooper’s Hedgerow Hypothesis. It works on the principle that a new shrub species will become established in a hedge every 100 years or thereabouts, so you would randomly select a 30 metre length of hedgerow and keep a note of the number of woody species in that stretch. Each species in that length indicates 100 years in the life of the hedge. I will try to remember to do this when I have someone with me who has a bit more expertise than me.
I have a booklet produced by South Gloucestershire Council on hedges and dry stone walls (amongst my collection of such literature which might one day of use!) It states that any hedges which have big old oak trees in them (which this one does) is likely to be as old as the tree. Holly is also present in this hedge, which grows very slowly, so that also suggests it is an old boundary. It would be interesting to know. Terry might have some idea?
As I approach the Spout bridge I can see an unusual sight - two of the horses which are kept in the field adjacent to ours are down on the riverbank with their heads in the river having a good drink.
I have never seen them do this before. Perhaps their owner forgot to put a bucket of water in their field!
It makes for quite a nice autumnal scene with the red of the berries on the hawthorn trees.
As I cross the boardwalk I encounter the usual dog walkers but also this time I have to make way for a crowd of runners! They head off over the river and up the other side making quite an amusing sight as the scenery or wildlife is obviously not on their agenda!
There is a large Hawthorn at the end of the boardwalk which is a favouite haunt of the Goldfinches- I can rely on them being there most times I visit. You can hear their calls before you catch sight of them. According to my wealth of information which is a wonderful book called “Meadowland” by John Lewis-Stemple - the collective noun for Goldfinches is a “charm”, which is derived from Old English c’irm -describing their twittering song. It is certainly one of my favourite bird songs, they make you feel cheerful. The thistle and teasel heads are now presenting masses of seed on which they will feed over the coming winter. (All photos by Hilary West)
The bleached stems and heads of the Hogweed ( Heracleumsphondylium )stand tall and rigid in the landscape now that they are lifeless. In my imagination they could have been fixed there like statues.
It is now very warm in this sheltered place by the carr and I spot a late flying Red Admiral butterfly going by. By all accounts this has been a worse year for butterfly numbers than the washout summer of 2012 and the reasons are a mystery. Butterfly Conservationists and scientists are beavering away trying to figure out what has happened, as we have had a warmer than usual summer. We must wait for their conclusions but in the meantime the possible cause is modern farming methods really beginning to bite. Despite much good work being done to reverse declines in certain rarer species, it seems to be our common species which are now suffering most. There are only 4 species of British butterfly which overwinter here - The Comma, The Brimstone, The Small Tortoiseshell and the Peacock. The Comma is down by 46% compared to last year and the Gatekeeper down by 40%. Peacocks also slumped to their second worst year (Western Daily Press). The Small Tortoiseshell was a very rare sight this year and they were abundant not so long ago (down 47%). I have recorded all these on the reserve this year, but only ones and twos. Possibly then, it was cold and wet conditions early in the year which are to blame.
Reserves such as ours are going to be very important refuges for these beautiful and evocative insects. We mark our Summers in terms of good and bad “butterfly” years.
All is not gloom and doom however, as Red Admiral sightings are up by 70% and Green-veined White by 58% (results from Big Butterfly Count sponsored by John Lewis and Waitrose). Another year could see the others bounce back if conditions are more favourable.
Our resident Kestrel is around during my visit, flying between the pylons down river and the telephone wires in our field. I am glad to know that ‘she’ is staying around. There is also a Heron patrolling the banks of the Middle Yeo which I see a couple of times on either side of the carr. More confirmation of there being plenty of fish in the rivers.
The only birdsong other than the Goldfinches is provided by the Robin - who is very vocal around now, one of the first birds to start setting up his territory for next year’s breeding season. If you can hear singing, but can’t spot the singer, it is almost certainly a Robin. By chance, I also saw a Great Tit in the hawthorn on the other side of the river.
In the meadow both our ponds are doing well, the second one looking more established now. It does have a lot of blanket weed on the surface, but I notice two pairs of late flying Damselfies -Common Darters(Sympetrum striolatum) who are mating and egg-laying onto the weed, so perhaps that is reason not to clear it too quickly. Common Darters will fly as late as November if it stays mild.
31st October
Halloween - It is a decidedly misty, mellow Autumn day as I start out about 11.00am. The temperature is a very warm and un-seasonal 15 degrees. In the lane the leaves are gently floating to the ground and I can hear the cows in the field over the hedge as they breathe and munch the grass quite noisily! Robin is singly quietly in the Oak tree - all is well on this golden morning.
The banks of the river along to the Spout bridge have been heavily trampled by cows, so I cannot look for signs of Otter prints. There is no spraint under the bridge either.
(All photos by Hilary West)
A Common Darter is on the wing as I cross the board walk but no butterflies, which will often be out and about on such a warm day.
The Kestrel is sitting on the pylons in the far distance, but I can easily recognise it now. I think the roost must be somewhere around the Church in Tickenham and it patrols the area between the Church and our field.
Around the carr area I can hear or see the usual Goldfinches and Wrens but also Blue tits, Great Tits and a Chaffinch or two.
In the meadow I find that there is quite a lot of lying water, although I didn’t think we had had much rain lately.
The ponds are full and I am amazed to find no trace of the bright green blanket weed on pond 2 - has it simply died off or been removed since my last visit? The are still Common Darters buzzing around but finding nothing to perch on.
Walking back I decide to take a quick look at the Land Yeo (on the off chance of catching sight of the Kingfisher!) and am very surprised to see a large shoal of greyish coloured fish, large enough to be seen easily, swimming along the bottom. I have no knowledge of freshwater fishes, but as they had orangey fins, I guess from my books that they are Roach (Rutilus rutilus), which are widespread in English rivers. I may be wrong but whatever they are - it will please our local Herons!
As I walk back I think that the trees are looking beautiful and still heavy with leaves, but the first frosts and gales of November will soon change all that!
I feel that the Autumn chill is really setting in now, at least we can go home and put our heating on, but for our wildlife it will be another round in the battle for survival.
All photos by Hilary West.