Highlights: Late departures and early arrivals of birds.. A new botanist, new species for old, and the start of a moss survey.. Flies still flying in warm October, and at least three new insect records for St Nicks this month. Weather: Nationally, the 10th= warmest October since 1910! At St Nicks, the highest Wildwatch Wednesday temperatures […]
Weather In contrast to last month, the Wildwatch group was blessed with dry Wednesdays! November’s first Wildwatch meeting had overcast skies, but for the other three Wednesdays we enjoyed sunshine or, at least sunny intervals. Temperatures ranged from 3C to 11C. Observers There were fewer of us during November, compared with last month – between five […]
Weather: Sunny, warm, still! Observers: Doug, Janetta, John, Linda, Steve, Kaye Last week, woolly hats, mitts and frozen fingers. This week, basking in the sun and everything starting to happen. The slightly sad note for an otherwise delightful morning was that some of the most exciting things happened after most of the group had left. […]
Weather: Sunny intervals, short blustery showers, fresh to strong N wind, 8C (felt colder in wind) Observers: Doug, Ian, Janetta, Jim, Kaye, Kaj, Steve, Tim A good turn-out of eight people today, with Doug and Jim coming along for the first time. The recently-melted snow had swollen the two becks, with Tang Hall Beck being particularly full. […]
Weather: Mainly clear and sunny. Cold (-5C to 0C). No wind. 1 to 2 cm of snow lying. Observers: Carrie, Ian, Kaj, Kaye, Tim It was a beautiful, frosty morning when we set off. The paths were icy in parts, but there were no difficulties. Kaye and Ian had previously taken a walk round Osbaldwick […]
Weather: Clear, sunny, cool (4C), occasional cold, light breeze Observers: Claire, Ian, Janetta, Kaye Well, after the rain and the dark, overcast skies, we deserved a bright morning.. and that’s what we got today! Cloudless skies, beautiful light, and some lovely sights! Ian was out early for his usual walk around Osbaldwick Beck (getting 16 […]
Siskin Carduelis spinus Siskins are endearing, acrobatic little finches, which are found throughout the UK. They breed in coniferous and mixed forest, with a preference for Spruce. In North Yorkshire, in the breeding season, they favour woodlands in the North York Moors and the Howardian Hills, but in the winter, they come down to […]
Weather: Drizzle for first half hour, then just overcast. Cool. Very light breeze. Poor light Observers: Ian, Kaye, Janetta The weather might have been dull for this, the first Wildwatch of 2013, but in the bird song and behaviour, and in some of the plant life, there were some promises of the Spring which will […]
Weather: Thin cloud, calm, cold (-2C) Observers: Ian, Kaye, Roger It was certainly a bit nippy today! But the persisting frost added a new dimension to St Nicks, with everything glistening white and shining, despite the dull light. The calm air encouraged the birds to come out and show themselves, and the plants and trees […]
Weather: Overcast. Calm at first, increasing breeze later. Coolish! Observers: Hannah, Ian, Janetta, Kaye, Linda We had a very leisurely stroll round the reserve, spending quite a bit of time looking closely at very small things – such as galls! We strolled along the Bund Path and followed our normal route from there along the […]