Spring Fever

This has got to be one of the most exciting times of year for the naturalist; the woodlands are full of life both young and old. We have a clutch of blue tits in a tree hollow next to our camp kitchen. The brood is only eight inches from the ground and open their mouths expectantly at the first sign of any activity near the hole. The parents are hard at work stuffing their hungry mouths with the local insect life, most likely the small greenish caterpillars which seem to be so abundant on the oaks trees around the camp. I believe these larvae to be the young of one of the thousands of species of Tortrix moth. At this time of year they abseil down from the trees on silken threads and get absolutely everywhere. To me these moths have always heralded the spring as they feed on the young oak leaves before they become hard and rich in tannin. One of the roles of tannin is as a bitter tasting anti defoliant. This foul taste gives the moth caterpillars only a limited time to feed up and pupate, if they hatch late after the trees begin to produce tannin they may well fail to gain enough weight to complete their life cycle.

The young of all species are sallying forth,  just last night Caron and I ventured into London to watch the filming of QI (one of my favourite programmes).We spotted nine foxes from the train between Haslemere and Waterloo, many of which were cubs out sunning themselves. Love them or hate them, the trains and their tracks do provide important wildlife corridors and safe refuges for many species.

Wildlife watching

The need to feed their young makes this time of year really easy to get close to many mammal species that are normally elusive. They are frequently abroad foraging where normally they would be hidden away. It is rare in spring time for us to run our courses without first packing at least the binoculars but increasingly the camera and tripod.

Mammal watching is still best carried out at dawn and dusk hence the reason for binoculars. Without resorting to the aid of night vision gear a good set of bins can enhance your ability to see even in low light conditions. After all they are basically designed to gather light!

Stalking tip

Aside from the obvious of moving quietly also consider the following to improve your chances of spotting mammals:

· Try to have something behind you to avoid sky lining your image

· Walk on the edge of forest tracks to give your self a back drop and also approach junctions cautiously and to one side.

· Consider wind direction- a small puffer containing talc or flour is a more reliable way of assessing this than licking your finger.

· Keep your arms tucked in to avoid creating pockets of light between your body and your limbs, these flash bright as you move.

· Be patient as stalking is a slow process - if you feel you are taking to long, relax, there are no rules on this! After taking my shoes off I once spent an hour and a half moving 500 yards. The terrain was very difficult with lots of very dry leaves and the wind was in the wrong direction forcing me to circle round. But I was rewarded by a very close up view of young foxes playing outside their earth.

· Consider just sitting and letting the animals come to you, with even a limited knowledge of tracks and sign it is fairly easy to assess where the areas of most activity are. Remember most mammals are creatures of habit and territorial.

Above all try to get out there, many of your questions can only be answered in the woods…

Comments

[Mario]

I recently came accross your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I dont know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

Maria

http://smallpet.info

[Dentist Lake Worth]

Spring is the best time to mingle with nature and experience its beauty and importance to us.

[hotel türkei]

Refer She,first pull chair lack choose member conduct attack another fly leg work settle energy club alone thanks lean river drug good injury care complete recently text wave quarter education tape sight excellent partly rain revolution economy sale proportion defendant article gold careful small award sister maintain studio effort organisation student upon large stand not act writing notice remember vision language round flight situation available okay scene answer debt hand upper injury shop apply house factory roll tear profit relative be programme student balance once teaching team join fight conference mainly physical nose friend

[alexana]

crotalii suine
crotalii ovine