Friday 19th September - the evening was very warm and humid with no wind and the sky clouding over after sunset causing a swift change in the atmosphere with distant storms appearing.
Lightning lit up the clouds every few seconds all around us but no rain fell here on the riverside.
The air was filled with insects, mainly moths and 'daddy-long-legs', easy prey.
A warm and humid evening as the sun set over the riverside.
Very large numbers of bats were active from the start, before the sky darkened and the storm clouds
gathered and threatened rain. Common Pipistrelle mixed with a few Soprano Pipistrelle bats were the most numerous and the hunting was easy. Daubenton's bats were detected in darkness near the bridge, close to the water whilst the Pipistrelles hunted along their flyway hedge and down to the old oaks, around and back. A few Noctules, the large, high-flying bats were seen approaching the river, just visible, before
plunging into the darkness of the old thicket. The ivy was starting to flower, attracting a host of insects.
Thunder rumbled and lightning flashed but was sufficiently distant to be of no danger. The riverside remained dark apart from some areas where new road lamps flashed their intrusive light through branches, like searchlights.
It was very good however to detect so many bats foraging along their traditional flyways where they have hunted for hundreds of years, establishing roosts in the old welcoming oaks year on year.
It's our task to protect the old oaks and the riverside ecology for bats - fragile creatures which depend on the continuity of this very special habitat for their survival in our world.
A Full Daytime Record of Wildlife on the Riverside:
Sunday 21st September 2014
The morning was fine but much cooler with a fresh northerly breeze, very damp with heacy dew on the grass, the river flowing well after the rain a couple of days ago. Low cloud but with some blue sky allowed glimpes of the sun lighting up the bright yellowing of the Hazel leaves and Rosa canina now bare of leaves but full of rose hips. Most of this year's unusually prolific hedge bindweed was disintegrating with just a few bell-like flowers remaining, providing late nectar for insects such as hoverflies.
Despite the wind, there was a lot going on in sheltered areas, the river's meanders providing plenty of these. Chiffchaffs (6) were still active, some given away by their contact calls and others by small quick movements amongst the leaves, far quicker than the blue tits (15) and great tits (10) foraging nearby.
Robins (15) were now slightly more vocal, giving short songs, alarm 'tics' or high thin calls which sometimes are given as a prelude to full song. Only two wrens were seen, both giving short calls and finches were scarce too, with only two chaffinches and two greenfinches seen. House sparrows were very quiet today with no sound from the brambles, perhaps they were suffering from the sudden shock of a cold night as they remained in the most sheltered and sunny places on the along river(30). Blackbirds (7) were also keeping to the shelter of the banks none singing but one or two giving alarm calls. Tiny birds, goldcrests (2) need to feed most of the day - one was see flying into the sunny side of a conifer and another was heard but unseen in another tree nearby. A great spotted woodpecker suddenly called out form an old ash and another was seen flying across the river (2). The other woodland bird, the nuthatch (3), usually remains quiet over the summer months but now one was heard calling loudly and two more were heard upstream in the oaks. Once nesting is over they advertise their presence to all inhabitants of the wood.
This coming winter will be hard for jays and squirrels as there are very few acorns on the oaks this year. The jays today (4) were clearly searching from tree to tree but will have to survive on other nuts and fruits.
Above the trees a group of linnets suddenly flew across to a hedgerow (20), quieter than goldfinches which were remaining well hidden within the thickets. It was good to see house martins (16) flying in the distance, catching insects. There must have been some very large swarms of insects carried up into the air by the breeze as over 100 corvids suddenly appeared in the sky, turning and dipping in a chaotic flock, rooks (30), jackdaws (70) all intent on catching insects, perhaps flying ants. A group of crows (14) had been foraging on the slopes of the new basin but had given up and retreated to the field margin where the earth was softer. They were in the company of some woodpigeons although most of the woodpigeons (30) preferred to perch in the large trees, good vantage points catching the sun. A few herring gulls were seen in the air (10) and 3 magpies.
The star today was a fine hobby which dashed across the sky and out of sight behind a hedge - then a large group of crows flew up and rapidly disappeared. The hobby then reappeared over the hedge further downstream.
Good thermals today brought out the buzzards (4) - two were seen gliding over the hedgerow and oaks, flying close together, were carried south by the wind and out of sight, then reappeared, to be joined by two more buzzards and between them a kestrel taking advantage of the wind, distinguishable by its size and flight.
Down on the river a characteristic call caused me to look down to see a flash of yellow as a grey wagtail flew down along the fast flowing stretch of the river, its traditional habitat - and in a more sheltered corner a moorhen moved onto a bankside island, on its own now after rearing several young.
A commanding Southern Hawker dragonfly patrolled the river bank where small insects were numerous and in sunny areas Large White butterflies (3), a Green-veined White and a Comma butterfly were seen together with a bright male Brimstone (2) flying into the wild meadow where it was sheltered and warm and a second Brimstone flew up into a filed maple nearby. On the shaded, wooded banks, Speckled Wood butterflies were numerous, chasing in pairs or threes, flying high and low (19).
This cool weather turned out to be just an interlude as the heat and humidity rapidly returned, delaying the true autumn weather.
