Goldcrests

A crisp but sunny winter day today. I was pleased I managed to get out for a walk at lunchtime. I enjoyed the fresh air and listening to all the birds calling and starting to sing out as they defend territories and pair up. On my short walk I saw treecreeper, nuthatch, long-tailed tit, robin, great tits, blue tits and best of all goldcrest. Through the tall trees I got a good view of a female goldcrest; I listened for a good five minutes to her call, amazed at how so much sound can come from such a tiny bird. You can hear a clip of goldcrest calling on the RSPB website:

http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldcrest/index.aspx

Salmon on the River Test

Brilliant wildlife encounter yesterday, two adult salmon on the River Test. They were dark pinky red, which is their spawing colour and were enormous! They were heading downstream and at this later time of year had probably spawned. The largest one must have been two feet long, with a huge wide jaw, it was very impressive. I managed to take a video clip of it swimming under the bridge where I was stood, photos are hard to take through water but I hope I caught it well enough on video.

Autumn Leaves

The trees are turning a glorious golden yellow. I've went to the New Forest today to see the autumn colours at the ancient woodlands at Bramshaw. The oaks are turning yellow and the beeches are well on their way to rich brown.

Garden Spiders

Early Autumn is the best time for observing Garden Spiders, their webs appearing stretched between whatever takes their fancy, in this case my garden fence. The intricate patterns on their backs are worth a closer look. The female spider lays eggs at this time of year and protects them until she dies, later in the Autumn. The spiderlings will hatch out in May of the following year. 

New Forest Beech Pollard

I went on a trip to the New Forest today and came across an ancient beech pollard. This beech must be over 300 years old as pollarding of beech and oak was made illegal in the New Forest in 1698, following the ‘Act for the Increase and Preservation of Timber in the New Forest’, which aimed to preserve timber for shipbuilding. Pollarding produces multiple stems at head height, out of the reach of livestock and deer and prior to the Act, beech, oak and holly were often cut in this way by commoners.  Pollarded specimens like the one below, can be considered with a degree of certainty to predate the Act and therefore have the status of being some of the oldest trees in the Forest.

Ancient Beech Pollard, New Forest

Fly Agaric

The end of September is a good time to go in search of the fungus, Fly Agaric.  Fly Agaric is the toadstool of folklore and its bright red colour and white spots make it very distinctive. The fruiting bodies can be seen in the summer months but the best time to find them is from the end of September to mid October. Fly Agaric is poisonous and likely to cause severe stomach upset if eaten.  It is often found in pine woodlands at the base of trees because it has a nutritional association with tree roots, especially birch.

Here is a nice example I found this weekend. This a round young cap, in a couple of days it will open up to form a flat cap.

Fly Agaric

Hedgerow Berries

Today I went in search of ancient hedgerows near Winchester and I was not disappointed. Ancient hedgerows may be defined as those which were in existence from the 18^th century. They are species rich, typically having more than five woody species per 30m of their length. They are important in terms of biodiversity as well as being of cultural, historical and landscape importance. September is a great time to appreciate hedgerows as many of the trees and shrubs are laden with berries. Today I saw all my favourites including bright red hawthorn berries, the deep purple sloes of blackthorn as well as pink spindle and shiny black elder bunches. I saw wayfaring tree, privet, spindle, wild apple, rose hips, buckthorn and also field maple, yew and whitebeam trees, a very satisfying trip.

Ancient Hedgerow