Meteorological autumn has arrived and bought with it some welcome cooler weather and rainfall. It’s a transitional time of year, with a quietening down of wildlife activity rather than an abrupt halt.
Though ground-nesting birds such as Dartford Warblers and Woodlarks are laying low and concentrating on feeding, you may still hear some ‘Dartie chatter’ or even see a last aerial Woodlark display on a warm, sunny day!
Other delights include late dragonfly spotting on the Thames Basin Heaths and Greenspace on your doorstep walks. Keep your eyes peeled for some of the darters and hawkers.
For those reasons, September is a lovely month to get out for a walk, admire the last of the ling in flower (pictured) and see what you can spot.
Of course wildlife behaviour isn’t always textbook. This year has seen a glut of Clouded Yellow butterflies, likely due to a mass immigration from North Africa and southern Europe. The individual photographed, and two others, were spotted at two different Berkshire greenspaces last week!
We are heading into warmer weather again for the end of September, so we’ll still be encouraging countryside visitors to Be Wildfire Aware.
Enjoy those autumn walks, wherever you choose!
Here at the Thames Basin Heaths Partnership we’d love you to fall in love with local heathland and help secure its future by sharing three simple messages. Everyone can help protect wildlife simply by keeping to main paths, learning how to prevent fires and by discovering ‘Greenspace on your doorstep’. Read more…
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