When I was a lad...

Well, there you have it. It turns out I’m now officially old enough to reminisce about how things were different when I was young. Maybe it's a symptom of approaching 40, or more likely because nature really has changed in the 30 years in which my life has been immersed in it.

I now see a lot of things I would have thought unthinkable in my home county of Cambridgeshire when I was at school - nesting peregrines and black-winged stilts; resident, and thriving, red kites and great white egrets; silver-washed fritillaries and purple emperors in my local wood. When I was a lad though, I saw some things that I no longer see.

Dear diary
I’m a prolific/compulsive lister and all the notable nature I have seen since I was 11 is religiously logged - and written about - in A4 diaries (42 of them to be exact). Rare things get the capital letter treatment and sadly, there are now several species whose names appear in caps, but I really wish they didn't. One of these is TURTLE DOVE.

In the mid-late 1990s, I saw turtle doves in every hedgerow or “purring” gently from the telephone wires that criss-cross East Anglia’s flatlands. Turtle doves were everywhere, so didn’t qualify as particularly noteworthy and certainly didn't make the diary each time I saw one. They were just there. Between May and September; turtle doves were an expected part of the landscape like tractors, fields and the never-ending Fenland skies.

Now, the idea of not bothering to record a turtle dove that I see is unthinkable. This is the first year of my life that I have failed to see or hear one of these gentle, beautiful birds, so it really hit home just how rapid their decline has been.

Getting a turtle dove in my binoculars wouldn't have raised an eyebrow, "when I was a lad". Now I'd be punching the air (Andy Hay rspb-images.com)

You're doing your bit to help by being an RSPB member or supporter. Operation turtle dove has swung into action, including tagging birds to help our scientists learn about their movements, both in this country and on migration and wintering grounds in Africa.

You might also have read in Nature's Home Summer 2017 about a new initiative called Gloves for Doves. You donate your pre-loved unwanted 100% cashmere knit sweaters or cardigans to give them a new lease of life and turn into fantastic recycled accessories. For every one received, £5 will be donated to the RSPB to help the conservation of the turtle dove.

Water vole patrol
Another creature that “got rare” in my lifetime is the charming water vole. Summer holidays spent playing by rivers and ditches wouldn’t be complete without the tell tale “plop” of Ratty diving into the water (apparently they do this to warn other water voles of danger). Now, I’ve had to delve into my little black book of friends and acquaintances in the world of wildlife to find out where I can see some near me. It turns out one spot is in Cambridge. With a little bit of time off due to me, I spent a lovely morning walking up and down a chalk stream with crystal clear waters inhabited by sticklebacks. The males looked lovely with a red glow to their bellies.

Cute much? Water voles experienced a drastic drop in numbers, but  there are positive signs of recovery (Ben Hall rspb-images.com)

After an hour of walking, I was feeling a bit despondent. A brown rat had swum across the narrow stream, but its large size and long, thin tail revealed its identify instantly. A grass snake that jumped in from the near bank before zig-zagging frantically across briefly got the blood pumping. As with all the best wildlife encounters, It was just as I had given up and was heading back to my car that I got lucky. I heard a rustle from within a patch of reeds and stopped and stared. I saw brown within the lush green stems – and not feathers, but fur!

The water vole hopped up and posed in classic style, nibbling a fresh young shoot. Seconds later, just to me left, another one swam across the channel – the second classic water vole experience secured. 

Whether munching on a reed, or swimming across a stream, water voles are an absolute delight (Ben Andrew rspb-images.com)

Time to dust off the little black book
So, with water vole nicely in the bag for the year, it's time to reach for the little black book again. I need to see a turtle dove this summer and luckily still know a couple of people that have them on their local patches. I never thought I'd need to be asking where I could find a turtle dove. Times have definitely changed.