Scientists from the Meteorological Office use radar data to track approaching storms and changing weather patterns.   The radar works by sending out pulses of microwaves, these bounce off rain drops and other particles in the air.  The time that it takes for this signal to return, plus its intensity gives information about the approaching weather.

Early radar [during the Second World War] also picked the movement of ‘angels’. These ‘angels’ were later recognised as the movement of birds, bats and insects.  Scientists then had to develop techniques to remove this ‘biological scatter / material’, so that they could accurately predict storms etc. By removing this ‘biological component’ of the signal, a lot of biological information about the movement of birds, bats and insects was being ‘discarded’.  

Now, scientists from the University of Leeds have ‘repurposed’ the radar data (from many radar stations, which scan the skies many times each day & night) but this time they remove the data relating to the weather.  This leaves information about the insects moving at a height of some 500 / 700 metres above the ground. 

The results showed that some 11.2 trillion insects are moving during the day, and that this reduces to some five trillion at night.   Some of these insects are actively flying, but some are being carried by the wind  / thermals.  Furthermore, there were more insects above areas such as woodlands, grasslands and even urban areas.  However, the numbers were lower over intensively farmed areas, where plant biodiversity was reduced as compared to woodland or natural grassland.  The numbers were also lower where artificial lighting was high.  

Other work by the CEH, Newcastle University and Butterfly Conservation, has involved surveys of grassland and hedgerows in southern England (Thames Valley) some of which were lit by streetlamp, others were unlit. The areas that were exposed to night time lights had roughly half the number of caterpillars as compared to the unlit areas.  

In another study, LED lighting was set up in fields, and caterpillars' numbers in these illuminated fields were reduced.  The lighting may :-

Cinnabar moth caterpillar.

• Deter nocturnal moths from egg laying.
• Make the night flying moths ‘easier targets’ for predators (such as bats).
• Affect the feeding habits of moth caterpillars.

Whilst it would seem that night time light affects insects and the feeding behaviour of caterpillars,  quite how and why is yet to be determined.

Sadly, the world is losing species, both plant and animal, at a significant rate.  Indeed, some claim that we are now experiencing the sixth mass extinction.  In contrast to previous extinctions (the Permian extinction is thought to be due to an asteroid impact), the present loss of species is largely associated with a mix of direct and indirect human activities. These include :-

• destruction and fragmentation of habitats, 
• Exploitation fishing stocks and hunting (think dodo), 
• chemical pollution, 
• invasive / introduced species, and 
• human-caused global warming

The loss of animal species has knock-on effects in terms of food chains and biodiversity. Plants are also affected as many rely on animals for the dispersal of their fruits and seeds.  In times of global warming, it is essential that plants can reach new areas that are suitable for their growth.  If not, they are stuck in areas where they may not be able to survive in the changed / changing conditions.  This could mean that plant species are lost, together with the ‘ecosystem services’ that they provide (be it food, timber, carbon storage, flood mitigation etc). 

Seed dispersal is also important in terms of recovery from ecological disasters, like wildfires.  Natural forest regrowth usually happens through seed dispersal. If an ecosystem is rich in species, it is generally more resilient to environmental change.  The relationship between fruit / seed dispersal and animals has been significantly affected by the creation of roads, motorways, farms, and the development of cities - essentially habitat fragmentation. 

Animal dispersal is often associated with fleshy fruits.  Whilst this is particularly true / obvious for many tropical fruits, it is also the case for many plants in temperate regions.  Berries, hips and haws are dispersed by animal means, with birds being particularly important agents. Several pines produce large seeds and attract corvids such as nutcrackers and jays. The birds, sometimes called scatter hoarders, collect seeds and bury them in areas away from the parent trees but in habitats suitable for the next generation of trees 

Mammals also play significant roles.  In Africa, elephants are important  seed  dispersers  for  numerous  species; they  have an extra-ordinary sense of smell and will search out ripe, fleshy fruits. Some seeds have been shown to be distributed 60+ kilometres from a parent plant. Not only this, but the journey through the gut of the elephant seemingly increases the chance of germination, and being deposited in the dung reduces the chance of the seed being eaten by beetles.  Some monkeys in South and Central America eat as many as fifty different types of fruit in a day. carrying some off in their stomachs and dropping others to the ground.

In Britain, as part of their diet, foxes will eat various wild fruits, like blackberries; squirrels eat nuts; and mice / voles eat grass and other seeds.  Even invertebrates, like ants, disperse seeds. This may be through the activity of harvester ants, which, like squirrels and other ‘gatherers’,  forage the ground of the wood or forest (collectively) gathering large quantities of seeds and  then transport them back to their nests / colonies.  As they transport the seeds, some get dropped or lost on the way.  Others may be ‘cached’ in or near the nest for later consumption but then are ‘forgotten’ or ignored.

Some fruits contain seeds covered with a sticky substance as is the case of Mistletoe. When birds feed on the fruits, the seeds often stick to the beaks of birds.  Then, they may wipe the sticky seed off on a branch;  or it may be eaten and pass out in the bird’s droppings. The ‘glue’ (viscin) around the seed helps fasten the seed in place.

Even humans carry seeds far away for plants, for example, by taking an apple on a picnic and throwing the core with its seeds into the bushes. Or seeds may transported in the mud sticking to boots and shoes, or indeed on tractors, cars or other machinery.

The loss / extinction of animal species from any given habitat will sooner or later effect the plants.  We are only beginning to fully appreciate the interdependence of life.    The loss of any species - plant or animal - will undoubtedly have unintended and unforeseen consequences which can only be to the detriment of all life on earth.

Big Garden Birdwatch.  Once again the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch is about to swing into action.  This year , it will take place from the 29^th to the 31^st of this month.  To take part, you just need to count the birds that you see in one hour.   Details and guidance are available here : https://www.rspb.org.uk/get-involved/activities/birdwatch/everything-you-need-to-know-about-big-garden-birdwatch/ 

Butterflies (and moths).   If you are interested in adding to your knowledge of wildlife, then the Butterfly Conservation people not only offer guidance on identifying moths and butterflies on their website but a number of online courses. The different sessions will focus on the identification of native and regular migrant butterflies.  One session will be an Introduction to Moths.  Spaces are limited and can be booked on a first-come-first-serve basis. Sessions cost £10 each.

Details to be found here : https://butterfly-conservation.org/news-and-blog/online-id-courses-for-2021.   There is also a UK Moths recorders’ meeting to be held online on 30^th January. “The meeting is open to anyone interested in moth recording and conservation and will be followed by a County Moth Recorder Meeting.” https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/uk-moth-recorders-meeting.  The programme for the meeting is detailed online : https://butterfly-conservation.org/node/4460

Sentient beans ?    Although plants can sense and react to their environment, this does not mean that they are sentient - possessing ‘thought processes’ or ‘intelligence’.  However, an experiment by Professor Paco Calvo at the University of Murcia has looked the ability of french beans to ‘sense’ structures (garden canes, in this case).  He and Vicente Raja devised an experiment looking at the behaviour of potted bean plants.  Some of the beans were grown near to a support pole, others were grown without one. Using time lapse photography, they analysed the subsequent dynamics of the shoots’ growth. It was concluded that the growth was more controlled and predictable when a pole was present.“ Professor Calvo has said “it’s anticipatory, goal-directed, flexible behaviour.”  Details of the experiment can be found in Scientific Reports.

Neonicotinoids again.  To protect bees, the EU agreed a ban on all outdoor uses of the neonicotinoid insecticides clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam in April 2018.   However, it would appear that a number of “emergency authorisations” for outdoor use of these chemicals have been allowed.  The neonicotinoids have been linked to the decline of honey bees, bumblebees and other pollinators; the pesticides affect development of the larvae (affecting the nervous system), weaken their immune systems and affect their ‘homing ability’.

It would appear that the U.K is now prepared to allow the use of the neonicotinoid thiamethoxam to treat sugar beet seed (to protect the crop from virus yellows, spread by aphids).  

Xylose is a sugar that was first isolated from wood, and hence its name. It is one of the sugars used to build the more complex molecules that make up the biomass of wood.   Now scientists from the University of Bath have found a way of using wood-derived xylose to make a ‘new’ polymer that can take a crystalline / rigid form or a rubbery one.  This means that it could have multiple uses from packaging to healthcare.

Plastics are usually made from crude oil, which is a finite resource.  Further studies will focus on biocompatibility and biodegradation of these new materials.

Holly and ivy have seasonal connotations, and due to climate change they are probably looking quite lush and vigorous at present.  Studies have shown that in recent times, holly has spread further north in Europe than ever before - ‘pushing forward’ by some eighty miles since the 1960’s.  Ivy too is on the move, growing vigourously.  However with both plants, their growth can come as a threat to other woodland species, smothering some (Ivy can grow to great heights using its tiny adventitious roots) or when growing horizontally it can affect the herb layer.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/dec/16/plantwatch-holly-ivy-and-how-warmer-weather-boosts-christmas-plants

Siberian forests are under ‘attack’. Not only have these forests seen significant wildfires in recent times, but  wood is being harvested illegally from these great swathes of coniferous  / boreal forest (taiga).  These forests are home to bears, wolves and lynx; and their frozen soils are stores of carbon.   Reports suggest that the illegally harvested timber is entering EU countries

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/16/diy-shops-europe-wood-russia-lumber-taiga-eu

The mountain hare lives in the Scottish Highlands (and the north of England), where it is found on heathlands. The numbers of mountain hare have declined massively over recent decades due to the management of grouse moors. In winter the hares change their dark grey fur to white to match their snow-covered, upland surroundings.   Recent studies have found that there has been a significant decline in the number of ‘snow days’ that these areas experience.  Snow days have been happening later in the autumn and stopping earlier in the Spring, so when compared with the mid-twentieth century there are roughly 35 fewer snowy days.  Unfortunately, the mountain hare’s coat colour is now often ‘out of sync’ with its surroundings.   American studies have shown declines in snowshoe hare populations due to mismatches with their background; and in Norway, mountain hares have suffered increased predation.

https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ecs2.1722

Back in November, Jasper reported on certain species of webcaps.  Now Kew Gardens has reported on six new species of webcap toadstool mushrooms that have been named in the UK this year.   One of which was discovered along the river on the boundary of Heathrow airport; it was found by field mycologist Andy Overall and named after his wife Heather. iIt is named Cortinarius heatherae.   The six ‘new’ species are from the genus Cortinarius, which is important in supporting the growth of oak, beech, birch and pine.

https://www.kew.org/read-and-watch/top-10-species-named-2020

The RSPB reports that the number of woodland birds in the UK, such as woodpeckers and marsh tits, has plummeted by more than a quarter over the last 50 years.  The decline in numbers is associated with 

• habitat loss, 
• climate change and 
• falling biodiversity.

The report expresses particular concern as the decline seems to be accelerating.  However, not all is bad news as the wren population has increased substantially, as has that of the house sparrow (in Wales).

https://inews.co.uk/news/environment/woodland-birds-woodpeckers-steep-decline-uk-report-habitat-loss-797943

PS later this month is the big garden birdwatch.

In many parts of the world, there have been intense woodland and grassland fires.  The smoke from such fires is often hazardous in terms air quality (particulates), breathing and damage to the lungs and heart.   Now another concern has been identified.  As wildfire smoke is a bio-aerosol, it contains not only non-living materials but also microbial spores and bacterial cells.  Once suspended in the air, these particles can travel many miles and may represent a source of infection for humans and other animals.

https://phys.org/news/2020-12-wildfire-microbes-infectious-diseases.html

A greater spotted woodpecker below

Swifts are amazing creatures - they migrate from Europe to Africa and back every winter, they cruise at 70mph and in a lifetime they might fly a distance equivalent to three return trips to the moon.  There is some question about where swifts actually mate - it is certain that they can copulate in mid-air, but they also routinely mate at their nest sites.  Possibly mating on the wing is a lightening quick liaison between individuals that are paired with someone else - a case of a 'swift quickie', that may have the effect of widening the gene pool - even if it's a long shot.  Despite all their aerial stunts, they spend about a month every year incubating eggs or brooding chicks on a solid surface such as a ledge or crevice, an old nest or a specifically designed swift box or swift brick.

Fitting a swift brick

But swifts are under threat, officially classified as "Endangered", with numbers reducing. The U.K. now has well under 100,000 pairs of swifts and the population has halved over the last 20 years or so.  There are many different species but most swifts have the characteristic outline of a short forked tail with very long swept-back crescent-shaped wings.

Apart the need for farmers to pursue more sympathetic methods for the sake of birds, swifts also need good breeding spaces and the RSPB has been encouraging people to make their own swift boxes to go under the eaves of houses and outbuildings.  Although swifts live most of their lives in the air they need somewhere to bring up their young and they prefer nestboxes to be high up - ideally over 4 metres above the ground.  One way to put in nesting spots for pairs of swifts is to install integral "swift-bricks" - nest boxes embedded in the wall which are then scarcely noticeable from the outside.  Some manufacturers make these the depth of a brick, only 100mm deep, but this doesn't really give the swift enough space to turn around so when we put in our seven swift boxes last week, we used deeper boxes which go back about 150mm.  You can get swift-bricks from some of the large brick manufacturers such as Ibstock and Hanson but it's perhaps better to find a smaller supplier - we found Dick Newell in Cambridge - he runs a cottage industry supplying boxes for a cottage-loving bird.   Speaking to him, we wondered how we would clean out the nests from the swift-bricks but apparently that's not necessary: swifts are very fastidious and tidy birds.  Dick, who is a real swift expert, advised us to place our swift boxes in a spot that's sheltered from rain and sun and where the swifts have a clear flyway.  Apparently we can increase our chance of getting swifts to nest in the boxes with swift-like attraction calls, which we might do if they don't find their own way to the lavish quarters we've created.  Dick's website is actionforswifts.com and you can phone him on 01223 860400.

Image courtesy of D M Dodds and Swift Conservation

Identifying swifts isn't always easy because they look a bit like swallows despite not being related; they are in fact more closely related to hummingbirds.  They have evolved in similar ways, perhaps because they both mainly eat insects caught on the wing.  If someone points to birds perched on a telephone wire and asks whether they are swifts the answer is "no - swifts never perch on wires".  Some swift species such as the white-throated needletail are occasional visitors to the UK but they mainly flourish further east, across Asia, where in the winter they migrate south to Australia or India - these are perhaps the fastest swifts of all cruising at more than 100 miles per hour.  Like other swifts, they nest in rock crevices or hollow trees. We are hoping to film "our" swifts if they arrive next spring - but we don't plan to put cameras inside the nesting boxes.  Just because their acrobatics make great films it doesn't follow that they want to be monitored in their living rooms and nest-rooms!

For more information on many aspects of swifts, nesting, urban biodiversity etc - visit Swift Conservation

The RSPB has organised the Big Garden Birdwatch for some forty one years.  This year’s event took place back in January (25-27^th) and some eight million birds were recorded.

The most counted garden visitor this winter was the house sparrow with nearly 1.3 million sightings over the weekend.  This was good news as the sparrow has been in decline for much of the time since the inception of the BGB.  After the sparrow count, starlings were the second most frequently sighted and then the blue tit.

The sightings of long tailed tits, coal tits and wrens were also up, compared to last year.  This year’ winter months have been somewhat ‘kinder’ in terms of temperature.  Small birds tend to be more vulnerable during long, cold winters (food availability and heat loss are problems).

Thus, the top ten birds this year were as follows :

For further details and see to how things have changed over the years - visit the BTO pages here

July and August can be difficult times to watch and appreciate woodland birds. With nesting coming to an end, there is little in the way of birds’ song, and the beginning of summer moult means that many birds prefer to hide away in dense foliage, not because of vanity but rather because they are at their most vulnerable to predation - their feathers are in poor condition during the moult, and their energy levels are lowered by the process. In spite of this, there is still plenty of interest to hear and see, but perhaps it takes a bit more time and effort than at other times of the year.

To draw birds out during this quiet time, we put up a feeder when we are at the wood, and it is Nuthatches and the Tit family that make most use of this.

Among our residents we have at least one family of Marsh Tits. They are delightful birds, and seem particularly bold. At this time of the year they, more than Great Tits and Blue Tits, spend a lot of the day taking sunflower seeds for storage. Our presence seems no deterrent.

But for a while, they posed a considerable conundrum because Marsh Tits are almost identical in appearance to Willow Tits. Their names aren’t very helpful. The Willow Tit has no particular penchant for willows, though it does favour a cooler damper terrain than the Marsh Tit, while the Marsh Tit has no particular penchant for marshland. Their distribution and habitat overlap.

There are differences in appearance, but they are subtle for the non-expert, and even for the expert not always reliable. A pale spot on the upper mandible of the Marsh Tit is a small but clear identifier, if you can see it that is!

Marsh tit WCW, showing pale spot on upper mandible

Marsh tit WCW showing pale spot

Behaviour is also an important clue – the Collins Guide uses the term “fearless” for Marsh Tits. This is less to do with aggression (ref Nuthatches in the previous blog) and more to do with boldness, and our birds certainly exhibit this.  Fortunately however there is one unambiguous distinction - their call. The Marsh Tit’s main call is a sneeze-like itishoo, while the Willow Tit’s is a harsh chaychay sound.

It is great that we host these birds in our wood because both species are classified as birds in long-term slow decline in their numbers. Anything we can do to encourage their nesting is important.  If you wish to follow up this identification conundrum in more detail try the British Trust for Ornithology’s site:

Nuthatches are one of our real favourites. We’ve had them nesting in a box in our walnut tree at home for several years. They are colourful, noisy and bold birds, full of character, with a bit of a mean streak. They will keep the sparrows and tits under control at a feeder, and even a mated pair don’t tolerate each other too well where food is concerned.

They are able to climb headfirst down a tree, a feat not managed even by the Treecreeper. This agility is evident from an early age. We’ve had the privilege of watching young grow with a nest box camera, and they climb around inside of the box well before their feathers are fully developed. When the young leave the nest they don’t fly immediately, but climb into the upper canopy rather like young Tawny Owls.

Martins and Swallows are often considered to be the potters of the bird world, but Nuthatches also like to mould with mud. They can build elaborate structures at the nest entrance, quickly transforming a hole into a deep tunnel to discourage intruders. Even in winter we’ve seen them continue to add to their construction, filling in gaps and plastering under overhangs.

Woodcock wood - at the feeder

Although their diet is primarily insects found in the bark of trees, they are partial to seeds (and broken walnuts) and build food caches in times of plenty. The fierce defence of territory and food cache are one of the same. If you provide a constant supply of sunflower seed, they willingly spend hours in a day back and forth to the feeder. The food caches of our Nuthatches must be enormous affairs, much to the benefit of the RSPB shop!

Last autumn we put up two Nuthatch boxes in Woodcock Wood. Needless to say the local Woodpeckers were quick to destroy the entrances, and we so we fitted metal plates with a 32mm hole.

In early spring a pair of Nuthatches were showing interest. They finally selected a box and began the mud construction. Nesting is now in full swing. Last year in our box at home, six eggs were laid by mid May, and the young fledged in mid-June. Without the privilege of an in-house video in the Woodcock Wood box we cannot keep an eye on progress, but at the time of writing the male is busy back and forth with grubs and insects.

plastering the entrance - a lot of mud already in place - March 2017

Jayne Ivimey and Julia Blackburn have put together an amazing exhibition that makes grown ups cry.  It describes the plight of wild birds in the face of human activities from oil spills and pesticides to loss of habitat from climate change.  The official RED LIST is the list of seriously endangered species and the number of birds on it has recently grown from 36 to 70, so that extinctions now seem almost inevitable for some with humans as the perpetrators.  But this is more than just a lament: it is also a celebration of what the authors call the "miracle of the gift of flight" and the magic of birdsong.   Woodland birds play an important role in the roster of the 70 birds that Jayne has recreated in clay.  Jayne Ivimey has a deep commitment to bird conservation and a few years ago, along with Julian Fitter, she did a large survey of wild birds in New Zealand travelling all round the North Island and the South Island.  It resulted in the setting up of a project to preserve the New Zealand dotterels and indirectly inspired the whole Bird by Bird project.

Jayne Ivimey has moulded 70 life-sized birds in clay, birds that are threatened by humans in one way or another, and made 'in memoriam'.  She did consider glazing the resulting models with a red glaze like some of the Chinese funerary ceramics, but she chose instead to leave them in the more raw, white biscuit state.  The clay birds are packed away in wooden crates reminiscent of the mass graves, or perhaps of industrial farming methods, and their delicate features are highly emotive.    To get a perspective on how dead birds look Jayne visited the huge Natural History Museum collection at Tring in Hertfordshire (over 250,000 birds) and the collection at the Castle Museum in Norwich.  For help with the firing and creation of the clay birds Jayne got help from her sister Joey Scholfield and from Clive Davies, an experienced potter.

She was helped too by woodland experts and owners including Mark Cocker.Julia Blackburn wrote the text of the accompanying book, describing many of the threats to British birds and draws on plenty of ancient and modern thought.  For example, a Gaelic proverb states that, "deserted indeed is that country where no voice of bird is heard."  Even Thomas Aquinas opined on birds: "where there are birds there are angels".  Gilbert White, often described as the father of ecology, wrote, "the nightjar is a wonderful and curious creature, and ... the lark ... carries the joyous sound to the sky."   So what can we do to help, Bird by Bird, to protect what is still left?

Ivimey and Blackburn's conclusion is this: "Here are the birds that are under threat; white and still and silent; beautiful in their form, in the dignity of their being... a patch of nettles can help them, an untamed corner, a mess of bushes.  Weeds.  No sprays to turn a lawn into a carpet of uniformity,  No pesticides. No herbicides.  Just the simple possibility of leaving things alone and remembering that we are one species among many...."

The book is £10 and can be bought direct from the author - email: jayneivimey@gmail.com or from

Jarrold’s of Norwich or the Holt bookshop in Norfolk

You can see the birds exhibited at:

LAND and SEA, The CUT , Halesworth Suffolk IP198BY,  June 4th-July 20th 2019.  01986 873285

or later at:

Norwich Cathedral Gallery . BIRD by BIRD, Nov 8th-26th 2019.

Well, not ours exactly …. but during the spring and summer it’s rare for us not to see and hear the buzzards. In Woodcock Wood they fly above our backdrop of Corsican pine and make forays across the chestnut coppice, occasionally perching in the tall oaks. With open fields behind the pines, this makes the perfect habitat for this beautiful bird.

We are lucky that Woodcock Wood is a small but central part of their territory. We see them most often in spring when the pair renew their vows in noisy and beautifully aerobatic courtship displays. It’s usually their calls that attract our attention, and then it is a privilege to watch their mastery of flight in these displays. They are at their most spectacular when they soar (spiral) upwards on a thermal. The smaller male usually climbs first, with the female following under him, sometimes spiralling in the opposite direction. It is extraordinary how fast they climb … and if we are lucky, they might then come close together, wing tips touching, and then with wings back the male stoops at breathtaking speed. It’s beautiful to watch, and it’s why we are so addicted to watching raptors.

Throughout the summer while the young are being reared, the adult pair continue to display. They frequently soar, or follow the boundaries of their territory, and make their presence known with that evocative call. These flights act as warning displays for potential intruders. Studies have shown that the flight patterns of the courtship and territorial displays form a complex language and act as social signals for mates, young juveniles, and potential intruders.

Buzzards actually spend most of their time perched, either hunting from low perches, or on the bare branches of high trees just watching. During late summer and winter we see less of them, but the breeding pair maintain their territory throughout the year.

In 2017 the pair raised one chick, and we often saw the three together, or the young bird perched high in one of the oaks calling for food. Sadly this year, we saw no evidence of young.

Along with sparrow hawks, buzzards are the most common European raptor. In UK there is little to confuse them with – perhaps in some parts, a rare glimpse of the distant silhouette of a golden eagle, or in wooded areas an elusive goshawk. But most times the only other raptor of this size we are likely to see is the red kite, and the two are easily distinguished by shape and markings.

However in Spain and Portugal, where we spend a lot of time watching raptors, identification can be more challenging. The common buzzard’s plumage is very variable, and their silhouette against a cloudy sky can easily be confused with booted eagles, honey buzzards and others … but that is another story. In Woodcock Wood, when we hear their 'ki ki' call and see their profile we know immediately that we are watching buzzards, and what a pleasure that is!

Thanks to John Hawkins for permission to use these fine photos of buzzards  - see also https://www.zpc-naturefolio.org.uk/john-hawkins.html.    He has requested that they are not to be reproduced beyond this blog without his permission.