The First Frost, October 28th 2019

Monday 28th October - the first frosty morning of the autumn after the rain, mist, wind and finally sun of the previous week, the expected cold spell moved in. It was clear and sunny for the first part of the survey then high cloud moved across and the day became colder again.

The frost had rapidly thawed leaving the riverside very damp. The river was flowing fast but the level had dropped by about a meter, the water still muddy. Small clusters of leaves and twigs lay under the trees, blown by the wind, with single leaves. Walking under the old oaks dense carpets of acorns crunched underfoot, even more than there were last year, but mainly from different oaks.

Acorn carpet under an old oak on the river bank - too numerous for wildlife to cache.

How soon will they be gone?

Jays (4) were busy in the trees and long grass, no noisy fights over food at present. Heavy wood pigeons were numerous today (34), most in the trees but some on the ground, foraging warily, flying off if intruders approach too close. Their observations and reactions always serve as a warning to other birds which take off as soon as a woodpigeon signals alarm. Only one collared dove was seen. Magpies (7) were restless, flying from one tree to another, calling - but unusually, carrion crows  (16) were far noisier and more numerous today. There was a small group having a very loud and angry altercation which seemed to last for about two hours. 

Some distance away 35 starlings were seen in small quiet groups, flying in and out of their day-roost which is layered with flowering Ivy. Ivy was flowering in other areas too, attracting crowds of insects, mostly wasp-types and bees.

Flowering Ivy attracting numerous insects. There will soon be clumps of 

Ivy berries forming which will in turn provide food for winter migrant birds

as well as resident birds.

One low-flying song thrush was seen, but blackbirds were more numerous (17), still just our resident resident birds, ranging along the entire stretch of the rivers checking on the locations of Rosa canina rose hips, a good crop this year, and other fruits small and large, in advance of icy weather when foraging on the frozen ground becomes difficult. It was good to see that the first fieldfares, only two at present, had arrived. The wind direction just beginning to become more favourable for migration from the east. There will be redwings and 'European' blackbirds with them and, according to recent studies, possibly migrating robins as well! At the moment 21 robins were seen and most heard as well but only singing very short snatches of song or making alarm calls. They predictably guard choicest berries such as Elder, Holly and Spindle. Wrens were sheltering in the undergrowth, only 10 seen with two singing - and two dunnock, also well hidden. It was quiet and high calls gave away the presence of two goldcrests and nearby a single blue tit was seen collecting spiders from the corner of a bat box. Elsewhere  a total of 34 were seen in various trees searching for insects whilst 15 great tits were seen - a group following each other with a few (3) long-tailed tits from Ash trees to Willows over the river. A single chiffchaff was calling in the thicket there. Behind the Willows a weak call came from a bullfinch in a favourite sheltered location.

House sparrows (about 80) had sought out warm sheltered places after a freezing start to the day, with some groups eventually singing together well hidden under brambles. Others were low down under the river banks, bathing in shallows. Perhaps the river water feels warm after a frosty night. Some goldfinches (18) and starlings had joined singing sparrows which had chosen a taller thicket in the sun.

In the same area a treecreeper was making its way up a tree trunk then flew off to a larger mature tree.

Above, a great-spotted woodpecker was seen flying across, then another flew north and a third was heard drumming! (3) whilst low down on the grass, a green woodpecker called loudly, yaffling.

Familiar calls came from several of the old oaks long the river - these were from nuthatches (6) which are certainly making their presence known, commanding prime nest sites as they start preparing their nests well in advance over the winter.

Overhead 4 calling jackdaws were seen, about 10 black-headed gulls and 14 herring gulls, some calling. I looked up - the gulls had disappeared but a fine juvenile buzzard was flying low, chased by a single crow.  The buzzard shook off the crow and headed straight towards me flying low over and across a bridge to investigate a road-works vehicle nearby.  Maybe it would find small mammals on the verge, disturbed by the road works!

  

Spiders and Bats

October 2019 has been a fine month for watching the diversity of wildlife along the river, conditions changing from day to day. Our temperate climate here allows for frequent changes which other countries don't have. A continental climate means summer is summer and winter is winter, with predictable weather most of the time, although climate change may be affecting this. 

Rivers flowing through a landscape can have a very local effect and provide habitat for more species of wildlife than other regions. 

Insects are a key to this. What have spiders and bats in common? They prey on insects which are very often most numerous in riverine environments. Spiders and bats often go unnoticed until conditions change, and their presence becomes more visible:

A spiders web on a misty morning 22nd October 2019

This web was laden with water-droplets, until they evaporated in the sun.

Another web on the same morning quite close to the ground

and the river bank.

Bats forage when light-levels are low, spending the daylight hours roosting in darkness hidden away unnoticed by creatures which might otherwise prey on them.

Here the huge old oaks along the river provide excellent roosts, with old branches providing cavities in the bark where there is space for bats to squeeze in and hang onto the rough surfaces. 

 An old oak on the edge of the river at the end of an important bat flyway.

As soon as light levels fall, bats fly out of their roosts mostly in old oaks 

some distance from the river and make their way along a hedge

and trees down to the old oak where they immediately start to catch aerial

insects over the river surface and in the trees above. They move on along the river, catching insects as they go, as the vegetation on the banks forms a directional guide for them to follow. When they have finished for the night they usually follow the same route back to their day roosts. They do not fly in strong winds or driving rain, so mature vegetation and trees provide shelter and enable them to continue foraging.

Fruitful September

September 2019 was warm with summer clinging on but an increase in showers, all good for ripening fruits and berries.

Friday 27th September was a typical day, mild with frequent sudden light showers coming in with the southerly breeze. The ground was scattered with acorns crunching underfoot and oaks still laden with many more, both green and ripening brown shells. The river was running well after a sudden high surge and then dip in the level the previous week - due not to the weather but to the necessity of having to temporarily empty the Mill pond upstream in order to facilitate repairs to piping at the mill and giving a chance to restore the Tern platforms on the pond before the winter. This all happened very quickly and it was soon back to normal with no loss of aquatic wildlife.

Along the river on the day of the survey clouds brought in short-lived showers between warm and sunny spells and it was interesting to note how wildlife reacted. As dark clouds approached, bird activity increased - as they sensed the rain, they made direct flights to the nearest dense trees to shelter with no procrastination such as stopping in mid flight to forage on berries or insects. I did the same, choosing to stand under the shelter of the nearest old oak tree, the ground underneath remaining quite dry. There were good opportunities to observe from across the grass, through the rain, or turn to a hedge with sheltering robins and dunnocks.  

This Comma butterfly was about to open its wings and bask on the Bramble leaf to soak up the sun.

When the wings are closed it's almost invisible when amongst autumn leaves, but its signature - the white marking shaped like a comma, gives it away. The white comma visible here looks as if it's painted on but this is just how we see it, given a good view. This one is an overwintering Comma, a dark form which will very soon find a place where it will hibernate during the winter and wake us up to the Spring when we see it appear on the banks as early as March. During the summer the eggs are laid on fresh Nettle tips which the caterpillars eat when hatched -  like many of our butterflies the caterpillars need Nettles as a food source. If you get rid of the Nettles you destroy most of the butterfly population!

A Red Admiral was seen basking in the sun on some fallen leaves, two Small Copper butterflies were erratically flying along a sunny bank and numerous Speckled Wood butterflies were chasing and basking in the sun, high and low amongst the trees.

 Insects were always the first to emerge as soon as the rain cleared and the sun warmed up the leaves. Over the river banks, bees, flies and wasp species could be seen buzzing around wild flowers and seed heads, butterflies too.

Amongst the grass - a very small Cricket (centre)

This is probably a short-winged Conehead with

long antennae - although foreshortened in this photo.

Strong-flying dragonflies, the Southern Hawkers were still numerous over and away from the river.

Two Common Darters were perching on twigs in a sheltered and sunny area.

Numerous spiders had been at work, spinning webs across brown grass seed heads and thistle tops which had been very successful in trapping many small insects.

House sparrows were seen and heard amongst their traditional hedgerows, dropping down to shelter when it rained, continuing to sing (about 50). Robins (22) were more numerous now, with many singing territorial songs which they will continue to sing throughout the winter months. Blackbirds and thrushes were keeping a low profile with only seven blackbirds and one song thrush seen today.

October should see them appear in new 'winter' plumage.

Elderberries ripening 

Blue tits (45) were out foraging for insects as soon as the rain stopped whilst Great tits (25) continued to forage lower amongst the dry understory and roots with wrens (8) some singing, and dunnocks (3) all sheltered by the still-green leafy tree roots and ivies. Long-tailed tits (5) were seen in the Willow canopies in the sun. As usual, nuthatches were seen and heard amongst the huge strong oak branches (4),  juveniles now seeking out their first nest sites with older nuthatches guarding the nest holes they have traditionally used. They will also be caching nuts. A tap-tapping sound will be heard when Nuthatches are shelling nuts, usually wedged in a branch twig. A single treecreeper flew up and out of an old oak when a nearby nuthatch called. Great-spotted woodpeckers have had a good summer rearing young and several have been seen with adults. Today three were seen, one climbing the trunk of an Ash tree, gleaning insects, another was calling from an oak and another was seen flying across from oak to oak. Three goldcrests were also seen in the oaks, making fine contact calls, their conifers not providing such good shelter as the oaks still in leaf.

Goldfinches (25) were numerous but in scattered groups in thickets sheltering from the rain, not singing as much as usual. Their favoured food being dry seeds from Dock, Thistles and grasses, dry weather suits them better, as with other finches. No greenfinches or chaffinches were seen. 

Only one blackcap was heard but three chiffchaffs were present in willows nearby, moving fast.

 About thirty wood pigeons were present today, most quietly feeding on the ground under the trees. Six jackdaws were seen flying out of the woods and nine magpies in various places, not seeking shelter from the rain. Herring gulls, making the most of the breezy weather were fling across (10 or more), with five starlings and fifteen carrion crows.

A fine finish was the sighting of at least forty house martins flying together with about seven barn swallows over the river, catching insects for some time. Suddenly a sparrowhawk appeared from nowhere and flew amongst the group. They seemed quite fearless approaching it rather than flying away; the sparrowhawk was unlucky and quickly flew off.

Autumn Appears

Autumn - a Speckled Wood butterfly from above - on a Bramble leaf

Autumn is an optimistic season with new beginnings and future promise. Seeds fall and take root, leaves fall to create compost to feed them. Young resident birds set out to find new territories along the rivers whilst winter migrants are already heading for our temperate shores to avoid ice and snow in their northern summer breeding grounds. 

Late August is as usual a quiet time for birds as most are busy feeding up for winter and this year the crops of wild berries and nuts has been especially prolific. Last year the summer heat advanced growth of most fruit-bearing plants and lack of water throughout the summer meant that some fruits did not mature. Berries dried out and went to seed and leaves fell early.  When it eventually rained, some new green growth appeared but was too late to fruit.

  This year is different:

Friday 30th August 2019 started bright, with light cloud remaining warm but becoming breezy. The river was flowing low but clear and the grass and most vegetation remained remarkably green with good carpets of clovers and birds-foot trefoil. Umbellifers and thistles were flowering well and covered in insects - bees, hoverflies and butterflies. Nettles were not so prolific and mostly going to seed however.

The bright yellow flowers of Fleabane, attracting many insects, were starting to go to seed, having spread and done very well this year along verges.

Robins (18), were either 'chinking' - usually a first sign of autumn and chasing or giving short versions of territorial song, whilst wrens (6) were singing very quietly. Blackbirds (5) were keeping low, mostly out of sight - they are present but keeping a low profile as were 3 song thrushes scrabbling amongst leaf- litter. House sparrows are now at the stage where they have formed groups and fly around together and roost together, sometimes merging to form much larger groups. About thirty were present today, with more hidden in dense brambles, quite quiet. Perhaps there was a sparrowhawk around.

Woodpigeons were now more numerous (34), some nesting as usual.  One  pair of collared doves was seen near their nest site, their fledged young being well-hidden. A silent Jay flew across into trees and nearby directly above me a great-spotted woodpecker called.

Seven carrion crows were seen in various places and six herring gulls flew across. Five Black-headed gulls were also seen in the air - maybe the first of many to fly inland from the coast this autumn. Numbers of blue tits seen were reasonable, (62) with family parties exploring new sources of food such as blackberries. Long-tailed tits were easily seen today as their contact calls could be heard and the birds seen moving amongst the tree canopy above the river (21). Numbers are good this year as conditions have been good for nesting, with few gales and floods to damage their carefully built but fragile nests.

Great tits (20) were active too, adults accompanied by yellow-cheeked young. They are less easily seen as often forage in undergrowth and tree roots, like the dunnock - only one seen today.

One treecreeper was visible climbing a youngish tree whilst one goldcrest was foraging in a conifer.

A look at a recently seeded field revealed a scattered set of birds feeding, mostly wood pigeons but with  about six magpies here and there where new shoots were growing up.

Close to the river, largely hidden in a thicket was a group of singing goldfinches (more than 15), and two bullfinches were skulking in a Blackthorn, the male calling softly. A single chaffinch called from a poplar. Of the summer migrants, only a single blackcap was alarm-calling from the willows and three chiffchaffs were contact-calling, two of them probably young. These 'migrants' of course may prove to be amongst the few which stay here over the winter, as winters become warmer.

Nuthatches are very much with us all year, (6) the young now spreading out to choose suitable territories for nesting, whilst finding abundant food on the way.

Gatekeeper butterfly on thistle flower -

note the double 'spot' on the wing.

Butterflies and dragonflies:

Meadow Brown butterflies were still about amongst the grasses but Gatekeepers and Speckled Woods were more numerous today. Large Whites were ranging the banks and fields.

Southern Hawker dragonflies were quite numerous, patrolling the banks of the river, one chasing a  Migrant Hawker. Brown Hawkers were also present.

The breeze probably caused some to seek out more sheltered locations.

Riverside Spiders

August is a good time to spot spiders on vegetation with their prey, insects, most abundant.  One of the most common spiders is the Nursery Web Spider -  Pisaura mirabilis which can be found amongst bramble fronds and leaves. It's quite small and feeds on smallish insects which it catches, not in a web but by lurking and sprinting a short distance to catch its prey.

It does make a fantastic web but the purpose is to protect its young as its reactions are fast enough to catch insects directly, usually from the surface of a leaf.

Nursery Web Spider on bramble leaf

The web which it creates in order to protect its eggs and later hatched spiderlings is extremely strong and as can be seen here, a strong twig or bramble frond is used as the basic structure for the 'roof' of the 'tent'.  The female spider then sits on the roof of the tent to keep watch and catch food. The bramble leaf is quite small! The adult spider itself when stretched out is only about 14mm long.

Another interesting spider is the Crab spider   Misumena vatia.  This also waits to ambush its prey but uses its ability to change colour in order to merge with the bright flower it sits on motionless for many hours. It chooses a strong flower normally visited by insects, usually coloured yellow or white then gradually changes its colour to that of the flower petals:

Crab spider on flower petal

This spider however could not change from bright yellow to pale pink, even after 24 hours!

It was probably successful in catching insects nevertheless. It pounces and grips insects with the crab-like action of its front legs. The petal was less than 1.5cm in length.

Spider web - probably the start of a Nursery Web, after heavy rain,

showing how strong the the single web strands are. Raindrops are caught up

in the strands which are stronger than nylon thread.

Autumn Approaches - a Summary of August

The extremes of late July thankfully over, the riverside resumed its gentle progression into autumn with huge numbers of bees (many species) and Gatekeeper butterflies on the creeping thistles and native wild flowers and grasses. Although not a first in this area, some Emerald Damselflies (Lestes sponsa) were seen in the river where they seldom appear due probably to the flow of the water. This August there was a section of slow-moving water for a while until the rain came.The dense aquatic vegetation protected them. Male and female Banded and Beautiful Demoiselle Damselflies were seen in the usual places along the river and banks when the sun shone and some were even seen over the river at the new East Arun bridge construction site where it was sheltered from the wind by temporary walkways for the construction workers. Their presence is a good indication of water quality.

During the second week of August occasional cloudbursts cooled the air but conditions remained mostly warm and humid. After some heavy rain on 9th Gatekeeper butterflies thronged the thistle and bramble patches and a Small Copper butterfly was seen too amidst the more common butterflies such as Large Whites and Meadow Browns. Moths were emerging from their sheltered grasses when the sun appeared.

The Small Copper is easy to identify - not only is it very small but it has 

bright orange forewings and band on the hind wings - with distinctive black spots.

Southern Hawker Dragonflies were quite numerous this year, patrolling their territories along the banks. The weather was a lot cooler on 13th although sunny later.   A walk over a rough area of field with a good variety of wild grasses and flowers proved to hold plenty of interest as many butterflies were seen here. Large Whites, Meadow Browns and Gatekeepers were common but others were quite new, including Common Blues, Small Heath and Brown Argus.

Brown Argus, a very small but distinctive butterfly, very active.

Like the Small Heath, this butterfly was flying low and perching

very near the ground, easy to miss. Two or three others were seen

not far away.

Elsewhere, not far away, thousands of bees, species of Hoverfly, 

and some day-flying moths were seen on creeping thistle, Knapweed, umbellifers

and daisy species.

The following day 14th, it was much cooler with rain most of the time, then on the day of our meet, Sunday morning 18th, everyone out and about was soaked. However house sparrows were singing loudly in a dense hedgerow.

Records for the end of August, including a full survey on 30th will follow soon…

The Day after the Hottest Day - July 2019

Friday 26th July 2019 - time for a wildlife survey along the riverside.  

The day was cloudy and very damp after a night of thunder and lightening, with one very heavy cloudburst. The river was running fast but not high and the heat the day before had had little effect as the ground had remained damp. Most of our planted trees were fruiting well with other trees such as Oaks having very young acorns forming. Hawthorn and Blackthorn were showing new berries - food in plenty for wildlife later in the year.

The wet vegetation filled the air with a mixture of scents, with Meadowsweet dominating on some of the river banks and in the wild field.

Meadowsweet has flourished this July and transformed the riverside here. Amongst it are other flowering plants such as Bird's foot Trefoil and Fleabane.

The plants here form perfect habitat for birds and amphibians and the two river meadows remain an active location for hibernating reptiles - their ancestors having been translocated from neighbouring fields nine years ago.

Wild flowers and grasses elsewhere were prolific too with good mixes of fruiting brambles, thistle, vetch, clovers and honeysuckle all attracting insects such as overflies and bees, even in the cloudy weather. As soon as the clouds cleared, more bees headed for the thistles, and the butterflies appeared too. Meadow Browns, still present, Ringlets, Speckled Woods, Large Whites and Gatekeepers, the most numerous by far now.

Woodpigeons were busy nesting with some calling loudly (27), whilst starlings were elsewhere - only 5 seen here. Two collared doves were nesting in the ivy, only 3 carrion crows but 6 magpies and two rooks were seen with jackdaws absent. Herring gulls (16) were seen in some areas but no black-headed gulls today. Singing is not the priority for most birds now - blackbirds (15) were seen silently foraging, some still collecting food for young  but song thrushes (7) were singing together with wrens (15) which were probably still guarding their territories amongst the river bank roots. Robins were scarce (6) with juveniles most visible. As usual dunnocks were in hiding with only 3 seen. Blue and great tits were not seen in large numbers either (12 and 10) but it was good to see three coal tits, very close, two of them juveniles in the oaks and nearby high calls revealed two goldcrests with another in conifers (3).  Further south a group of 9 long-tailed tits were foraging high in the canopy and a single chiffchaff called (a contact call). In the same area, well hidden amongst willow leaves a blackcap made a very short song then two more, probably juveniles were seen in the same willow (3).

Over the past few weeks the noise from a roller levelling off a sports field has been disturbing the usually peaceful area but did not seem to affect birds much. The work has finished now and the area will be seeded and left to grow and settle over the winter. Wildlife will take over - it will be interesting to see which species.

Meanwhile, work was still going on during this survey but there were loud cries from a green woodpecker close by, forging for ants,  and a treecreeper was seen in the shade making its way up a tall tree trunk. Nuthatches were seen in several places - a family group of juveniles were calling to each other in a dense oak and nearby field maple (7).

Young green Hazelnuts on Hazel tree. 

Soon the ground underneath the trees will be littered with green nut shells and leaves - a sign that  jays and squirrels are plundering the unripe nuts.

Two great-spotted woodpeckers were seen - one alerting me with a loud call, the other flying across from an old ash tree, meanwhile a sparrowhawk dashed from a thicket and flew out of sight. Sparrowhawks often lurk along the river hoping to ambush sparrows or even woodpigeons bathing in the shallows. Today there were fewer house sparrows than usual seen (27) many of them juveniles, the adults still nesting, raising another brood. Goldfinches however were more numerous, with about 35 seen, again many of them juveniles, taking advantage of the seeding wild flowers and grasses. Teasels,  thistles and dock are the main attraction at this time of the year and will remain so throughout the winter. They are now forming singing groups, choosing dense thickets for protection. A single silent female bullfinch was seen flying into a thicket and just one chaffinch was seen too.

Checking the river during the cloudy weather did not reveal any dragonflies or damselflies but these were seen on other days. (will be in a separate post during August).

Whilst looking down onto the water however, a  kingfisher flew down from a bare branch over the river and disappeared around the steep bank.