The weather may not back up such a claim, but if you venture out in the sunny spells or simply ignore the sky you will find that Highnam Woods is in the midst of spring. The bluebells are out, so it must be true!

The cuckoo flower (lady's smock) has been out for a while now too, and is providing much needed food for the orange tip butterflies which are easily seen when the sunshines. Other butterflies seen in the last…

Well, it has been a very exciting start to spring at Nagshead. Our first Chiffchaffs arrived on March 21st followed by Blackcaps on the 26th. We were all pretty shocked by the early arrival of a male Pied Flycatcher on March 31st though! This is the earliest ever record for Gloucestershire! Congratulations to Ann, one of our dedicated volunteers who found him on the Short Trail. This beats our previous earliest by five…

It has been a fantastic week on the reserves and looking at the list of sightings you would be forgiven for thinking we were in a remote area of Eastern Europe or Scandinavia rather than Gloucestershire! Hawfinches performing courtship displays, Brambling flocks feeding on beech mast, nest building Crossbills, displaying Goshawks, drumming Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers and Wild Boar sows with tiny piglets have all been seen…

With the weather being so up and down in the past two months I was convinced that our first nest record at Nagshead would be an early Robin or Mistle Thrush but, to my complete surprise, I was lucky enough to witness a mating pair of Crossbills last week and watch the female busily collecting nesting material closely followed by the male. This is fantastic news as Crossbill breeding is notoriously difficult to prove in Gloucestershire…

It's a little chilly out there, but very beautiful with the winter sunshine out on both reserves.

The tits at Highnam were out in force, so I was glad I was able to top the feeders up for them. A nuthatch was eager to snaffle some of the seed and successfully kept the table to herself for a while. I had wonderful views of a buzzard too. It seemed to be happy enough with me being around, and was keeping low in the…

Despite some pretty heavy downpours yesterday morning I couldn't help looking out the office window and wishing I could be outside, so at lunchtime I escaped and headed for Highnam. I took a walk up the hill onto the public footpath, admiring the piles of brash in the recently felled coppice plot on the way, to check how it was looking after contractors tackled the massive tree that had fallen over blocking the path earlier…

Well, it did anyway whether we liked it or not - there was me thinking that moving 400 miles south might mean I escaped the white stuff. I'm secretly glad it hasn't, it was such a beautiful morning, it's always great to get out and see what tracks I can find! The sunshine this afternoon seems to have shifted the snow pretty quickly though.

It didn't take me long this morning to decide that I really did need…

The two Hawfinches from the previous post have now increased to a flock of at least eight! They are still feeding on the same blackthorn and hawthorn bushes at the start of the entrance track up to Nagshead visitor centre giving our visitors a very warm and exciting welcome to the reserve. As you pass the cycle crossing, pull in on the left and view the bushes to the right of the track from the comfort of your vehicle…

At least two Hawfinches have been feeding on sloes and hawthorn berries along the entrance track to Nagshead for the past few days. They are such incredible birds and high on many peoples must see list. It has been a real privilege to watch them behaving naturally and even having scraps with Blackbirds and Redwings over the best feeding spots. Hawfinches are usually an elusive and shy species, luckily these birds have…

A fantastic number of thrushes can currently be seen around Nagshead feeding on the abundance of berries. There is a small rowan at the back of the car park which is being defended by the Mistle Thrush below. The Mistle Thrush has a real battle on its hands, I watched at least five Blackbirds raiding the berries every time the Mistle had its back turned!

Mistle Thrush - Turdus viscivorus, RSPB Nagshead (Photo: Lewis Thomson…

As well as following our antics on the blog, you can now follow us on Twitter @RSPBnagshead for all the latest news, events and sightings from Nagshead and Highnam Woods!

I've just returned to the office from Nagshead and have to share the wildlife spectacle that I have just witnessed. First let me set the scene, it was rotten earlier today with heavy rain and strong winds, but this afternoon the wind dropped and the sky cleared, the low sun lighting up the yellows and oranges of the oak and beech leaves. I was walking the hard forestry track running along the western ridge near the heath…

I've just come in from Nagshead reserve. We need the woodburning stove going this morning, so I popped in on my way down to start it, and went for a walk while it got going. As I headed up the main path I just had to stop. The colours against the pale blue sky were just amazing, and everything felt so still, except for the sound of last nights rain dripping through the leaves. I turned round and just smiled to myself…

I had a wonderful morning at Highnam Woods this morning. The mist cleared to expose beautiful blue sky, which is just lovely to see at this time of year. Although the spectrum of colours in the coppiced woodland isn't quite as striking as that at Nagshead, but the sense of space and open air is just incredible.

As I walked around I was delighted as I listened to nuthatches calling all around me, raven a little further…

Today was one of those special autumn days, starting with a weak veil of mist which the sun quickly burned through to reveal the stunning scene below. Everywhere you looked the Beech and Oak trees were glowing gold, we couldn't have asked for a better backdrop to the opening day of our refurbished visitor centre at Nagshead.

Autumn colours (Photo: Lewis Thomson)

The installation of solar panels, a living sedum roof…

Many of our winter birds have already arrived, with two Bramblings, eight Fieldfares and 30 Redwings seen at Nagshead today! The Bramblings were feeding on Beech mast with three Hawfinches and a small flock of Chaffinches along the main forestry track between Campbell Hide and the heath area. Redwings were feeding frantically on Holly berries around the long trail and a small flock of Crossbills were around the heath. Birds…

Autumn is definitely underway here at Nagshead. The leaves are changing colour and the recent gales have brought a lot of them down already. A few migrant birds are still with us, Spotted Flycatchers, Blackcaps and Chiffchaffs have been the most noticeable. Other migrants are just starting to arrive for the winter, two Meadow Pipits were heard flying over last week and a flock of 40+ Siskins have been feeding on Larch…

Many of our summer visitors have started their return migration to southern Europe and Africa. The last Pied Flycatcher finally left the reserve around the 8th August, a very late date for Nagshead. Some migrants can still be found though, Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps may still be heard singing on sunny mornings and species that have bred further north begin to pass through the reserve as autumn approaches. Crossbill numbers…

 I thought I'd start the day with a quick walk around the short trail. As the breeding season draws to a close I have little idea what to expect to see and hear as I walk around. The now familiar sound of nuthatches accompanied my walk, with tits, wrens and robins joining in from time to time.

As I approached the furthest point of the trail I slowed up and tuned my ears in properly. As I looked up at the rowans I…

Some fantastic birding at Nagshead today, with at least four Hawfinches feeding on the berry laden Rowan trees in the small clearing at the furthest point on the Short Trail. Other species that can be seen feeding here include Bullfinches and Blackcaps.

 Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes, RSPB Nagshead (photo: Lewis Thomson)

A surprise sighting today was of a female type Pied Flycatcher which was seen well and heard…

Bird song may be dwindling but there is still a vast array of fantastic wildlife to be seen (and heard!) around the reserves at this time of year. As summer progresses dragonflies and butterflies become more numerous with July heralding the emergence of exciting species such as the Silver-washed Fritillary and Emerald Damselfly at Nagshead, and the striking White Admiral which can be seen gliding along the rides at Highnam…

Twenty-seven of our 400 nestboxes at Nagshead have been occupied by pied flycatchers this breeding season. This is an improvement on last years 21, and it has meant that most visitors have witnessed these charming birds flitting in and out of boxes or between the trees. The males being so strikingly piebald are easy to see against the green of leaves!

Walking around Highnam Woods yesterday was a delightfully springtime experience. The wildflowers have come into bloom. I saw a great variety of species, including some early bluebells and some late daffodills. Also out in full force is the cuckoo flower. It is so named because it has long been associated with the arrival of the cuckoo to the country. It is the favoured food of the orange tip butterfly, and its leaves…