Date: 22nd September 2021
Time: from 8:15 a.m.
Weather: dry, sunny,
light wind, 10°C to 14°C
My last visit to the site was way back on 18th July 2021 when I had an
exceptionally good species list.
This morning’s visit was very quiet with only 7 species of birds,1
mammal species (a single Grey Squirrel in the trees by Puckles Pond) and no reptiles,
amphibians, butterflies, dragonflies or damselflies.
That is to be expected given that autumn is a quiet time other than on
the coast with the return passage migration of waders and the first arrivals of
wildfowl for the winter.
The only species of note that I recorded was Moorhen: a pair on
Willow Pond and another on Meadow Pond.
Robin was the most conspicuous species and there were several birds calling
or singing across the site. In the late summer, after the conclusion of the
breeding season and their moult, Robins commence singing again to establish
their winter feeding territories. Unusually, both males and females sing.
Although the relative absence of wildlife was expected, I was surprised
at the scarcity of autumn berries such as blackberries, hips, haws and sloes
and the almost complete absence of acorns. My other local patch site around St.
Nicholas Church is far more productive but even there the amount of autumn
fruits and nuts is significantly less than the super-abundance of last year.
I recall reading some months ago that far less autumn fruits and nuts
should be expected since the cold and wet spring reduced the numbers of
pollinating insects for our hedgerow plant species and tree species. This
appears to be what is occurring.
Although my visit was disappointing in some respects, it was a lovely early autumn morning for a walk around the site and the heavy dew revealed numerous beautiful spider's webs.
Species
recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):
Here
are some photos from my visit:
Site totals to date (2021 totals in brackets):
Stay safe, stay well, stay strong, stay connected with nature
No comments:
Post a Comment
If you feel like commenting on my blog, you can contact me by completing the comment form below. I will respond to all comments and enquiries and constructive criticism will always be welcomed.