by Andy Johnson

Robin

Nature Notes – May 2023

1st May 2023

Recently the north of England was subject to a ridge of high pressure and a NE airflow. These conditions were ideal for the creation of Britain’s only named wind ‘The Helm Wind’.

Rook in nest

Nature Notes – April 2023

2nd April 2023

Those of you who live near the Green or at the top of Ham Hall Lane are well aware of the rooks.

Squirrels

Nature Notes – March 2023

2nd March 2023

While admiring the spring flowers in the church yard, I noticed grey squirrels chasing each other along the church wall.

Fieldfare

Nature Notes – February 2023

31st January 2023

At last signs of spring: great tits, robins, starlings, mistle thrushes and song thrushes are all starting to sing.

Otter

Nature Notes – January 2023

6th January 2023

Ten years ago the sight or a photo of an otter on the Swale would have made the local newspapers. Today they are more common than kingfishers.

Nature Notes – December 2022

1st December 2022

by Andy Johnson The Twelve Days of Christmas is an old English Carol* featuring mainly animals.  A partridge is an English or grey partridge. Turtle doves are now rare but occasionally seen locally. French hens are thought to be Breton hens. Calling birds (or ‘colly’ in early versions) meant blackbirds. Gold rings were thought to…

Nature Notes – November 2022

27th October 2022

Tuesday 18 Oct. began sunny but by mid-afternoon the easterly wind and grey clouds brought a huge migration of red-wings and blackbirds from Scandinavia.

Goshawk

Nature Notes – October 2022

1st October 2022

Summer is over and after a very good breeding season and swallows, house martins and swifts are on their way to Africa.

Robin

Nature Notes – September 2022

31st August 2022

We recently had a hummingbird hawk-moth feeding on flowers in our garden. These day time feeding moths migrate from around the Mediterranean to Britain and Northern Europe.

mole

Nature Notes – August 2022

27th July 2022

Graham Bourne recently complained that he had ‘mole problems’ in his lawn. Sure enough there were the tell tale mole hills.