Summer's End... Or is it?

Well it depends on your perspective I suppose. The weather this week has certainly felt pretty summery. It's been very warm and dry. The fears we had that the moor would start becoming inaccessible a couple of weeks ago are gone. However, if you look at things with a more careful eye, you'll see that Autumn is beginning to take hold. 

When I arrived back from my week away, one of the first things I noticed was the skies looking rather empty over the farm. As I predicted, the swallows left on migration while I was away. It's strange to think that they could be flying over the Sahara desert right now (I have no idea how fast they move on migration so if you're going no! they wouldn't have got that far or no! they'd be much further by now, then I apologise).

Another migrant has put in an appearance this week. We only see wheatears during spring and autumn as they pass through. They must spend the summer somewhere further north. I was watching one from the car as I was taking in some electric fencing, trying to get close enough for a photo, and thought this was the best I was going to manage as it kept flying away.

So I finished up my work and drove to the other end of the reserve to put the fencing up in a new field. And there, sitting on the gate, was another wheatear, and this one let me get much closer.

So, it's clear the birds think it's autumn. The trees too are starting to show the signs. They still look reasonably green, but there are hints of reds and yellows creeping in, and if you walk up in Swell Wood, there's a few more leaves gathering on the ground.

They say autumn is the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness, although I find it's more often the season of storms and gloomy cloud, but this week we've had some misty mornings. Indeed, on Monday, when I went out to do the early cattle checks, I could hardly see where they were in the field, and it stayed that way until about midmorning before becoming increasingly hot. There has also been a good deal of fruit around. The West Sedgemoor garden has a number of fruit trees which are giving their bounty and the hedgerows are filled with berries. So perhaps they're right and I'm wrong about autumn, but we'll see.

We've been seeing the cranes gathering into a larger flock, often feeding out in the open fields where the grass has been cut. On Tuesday I saw this group.

 I count more than thirty birds, the largest group I've seen for a while.

 Although I see them quite often, its always a spectacular sight

 They are one of the things I will miss most when I eventually leave West Sedgemoor

It's been yet another busy week for us. With my holiday last week and Paul (Assistant Warden) off this week, and then Ashley (Estate Worker) off next week, there's just too much to do and not enough hands. I was at Greylake on Thursday, catching up with some strimming, but the reeds keep getting bigger and it's hard to keep up with them. So I apologise if you find yourself squashing past them when you visit.

Some of you may have seen the announcement about the Avalon hide opening at Ham Wall and be wondering when we are going to be opening at Greylake and Swell Wood. I can assure you we are working on it and hope to open soon, but as stated, we are shorthanded, not just on staff but also on volunteers, who do a great deal for us in normal times. Although we are starting up volunteer work parties, we are keeping these to low numbers and have to work differently. So we ask you to be patient just a little longer.

I spoke to a visitor at Greylake on Thursday, who said he'd spotted and photographed an otter in the water just outside the picnic area. I have yet to see one on the reserve but this shows that they are around and in broad daylight too. Keep your eyes peeled and you could be lucky. I'm always rushing or making lots of noise so I probably have no chance!

With all the busyness, I haven't managed many photos this week but I have one I forgot to put in the last blog. On our work party, one of our vols rescued this little caterpillar from a branch he was cutting and took it to safety. My Facebook group identified it for me as a knot grass moth caterpillar, quite a common species but still interesting to see, and very colourful.

So that's it for this week. I'll try to bring you more photos next week but it all depends on how much time I get and also whether the wildlife appears. The summer migrants may have left but the winter ones haven't yet arrived, and the number of butterflies and dragonflies is starting to fall, leaving me searching for sightings to show you. It won't be long before things start to change though.

Take care,

Kathryn