Santuary and sustenance in the wetlands.

Marshland and waterside areas are attractive to many mammals because they offer good shelter and varied food. Waterside plants are often luxuriant and include dense masses of tall rushes, reeds and sedges where animals can hide. Clumps of alder growing growing at the water`s edge provide roosting spots for bats in crannies behind fissured bark, alder leaves are also favourable with beavers as they don`t contain many tannins. On wetlands, animals are safe from disturbance because few people, and fewer vehicles, venture for over squelchy ground. Some mammals- bats and water deer for example- live near the water and take advantage of what it offers without getting too wet. But beavers, coypus(these are smaller than a beaver, their is debate whether there are any still living in Britain), water voles, water shrews and otters spend a lot of time in the water. Water voles and coypus feed on waterside plants. So in a few places , do chinese water deer.Leaf eating larvae, including many moth caterpillars, also live on plants and both the larvae and the adults are good food for bats. The water itself also provides a food supply for bats, because the larvae of gnats, mosquitoes, mayflies and many other insects live in the water, emerging in their thousands as they become adults. Damp waterside soils are full of earthworms, which shrews and moles feed on. Fish, frogs and other creatures in the water provide food for the carnivorous otter and mink.

Summer in a fallow deer park.

Fallow deer are a pleasure to watch at any season, and one of the best places to see them is in a deer park, particularly in late June when most of the fawns are old enough to gambol together in the cool of the evening. Fawns spend much of the day trotting after their mothers and grazing, but are suckled several times a day. Many does suckle their fawns into the new year. The bucks cast their antlers at any time from late March to early June. They spend summer in a bachelor group while new antlers are developing. When the antlers are fully grown, towards the end of August  for older bucks- the soft covering, or velvet, is cleaned off by rubbing them against trees until they are clean and hard, ready for rutting in autumn. In winter, many park deer are provided with extra food, usually hay, which is placed in racks, or root crops such as swede, which are spread on the ground. From two years old a doe normally bears a fawn every years for perhaps ten years or so, herd sizes increase rapidly. To prevent overcrowding and disease and the destruction of their habitat, the deer are regularly culled, bucks from August to April, does from November to February.Animals of different colour varieties interbreed. A fawn is not necessary the same colour as its parent.

Habitats.

Part fourteen mammals of the mountain sides.

Britain`s mountains are not very high-only one, Ben Nevis is, above 4,000 ft (1,200m)- but they are bleak places for warm blooded creatures to live, especially in winter. For roughly every 500ft (150m) of height above sea level, it gets almost two degrees colder. Rain and mist as well as stronger winds also add to the chill. Trees rarely grow on high, windswept uplands, so there is little shelter. Consequently, few mammals live on the exposed high ground. Although they forage on the heights in summer, red deer and, to a lesser degree, mountain hares move to lower ground for the winter. Small mammals, such as field voles that live amid the upland grass, do not make long migrations. Although they lose a lot of body heat because they have a large surface area of skin in relation to their bulk, they can find shelter in burrows or among thickets of heather or bilberry. Despite the cold, small spiders and insects are surprisingly numerous amid upland vegetation, and provide food for pygmy shrews. Stoats thrive on field voles but will also take meadow pipits and other upland birds. Crows and foxes search the mountain- sides for carrion such as dead hares and sheep. Small herds of feral goats may be seen in a few mountainous areas. They vary widely in colour, ranging from white to piebald, skewbald, dark brown or black. Young goats are not likely to be seen before April. In their winter pelage, mountain hares look like snow against the dark heather. They show up only when they move. On upland slopes they take the place of rabbits and brown hares. Many upland areas now have commercial plantations of dense conifers(some wildlife trusts are now taking some of these out). They rob mountain hares of their living space, but may provide homes for pine martins. Red deer move down the valley during winter, returning in spring. Stoats have great camouflage in winter because of their winter pelage. It also helps to preserve body heat, because white fur radiates less than dark fur. Where there are meadow pipits there may also be pygmy shrews. Both feed on tiny insects among the stones and heather. Pygmy shrews remain well hidden but nay be heard squeaking.

Habitats.

Part thirteen the beauty of limes.

As far back as the roman times, the tall, stately lime tree was planted for its shade and sweet scent diffused by its flowers. Avenues of lime graced the formal gardens of Louis XIV in France and Charles II in England. Afterwards, lime avenues took their place in landscaped gardens of the great landowners. Many of these trees are now reaching the end of their lives, and need to be replaced by young trees. One lime, the silver lime, is particularly resident to heat, drought and pollution, so does well as a street tree where there is space for it to grow. Various species of lime flower at different times, giving bees a continuous supply of nectar for much of the summer. The flowers of large-leaved lime open in June and July, hanging from long, pale green, leaf like bracts.

Hedge Fund.

When it comes to our autumn harvest for our birds there can`t be a richer picking than our hedgerows. In the U.K we are lucky to have masses of them. If you were to line them all end to end they would stretch twenty times around the planet. They are a very rich habitat, replicating a woodland edge they can contain as many as six hundred different species of plants and trees.Many of which produce fruit and berries. During the winter time, birds would do best by eating seeds and insects. The problem is they have to find them and handle them. But berries occur in vast numbers and are easy to spot. In one square metre of hawthorn hedge there can be up to ten thousand berries. Its the bright red against the green background that makes them easy for the birds to spot. They get lots of energy from berries, one hundred grams of blackberries equals fifty calories, one hundred grams of elderberries equals seventy calories and there are as many calories in ivy berries as are in a decent sized chocolate bar. So that's what the birds get out of the hedgerow, but what about the plants? They are demonstrating a fantastic example of co-evolution. These plants have put energy and resources into producing the berries. They have invested so in return the seeds get dispersed, the birds eat the berries and then digest them but not the seed inside. They then fly many miles, the seed then passes through them to germinate somewhere else, not in competition with the parent plant. The seed then colonises another area. Zoochory is what this is called. So if any farmers read my blog, its so important for our hedgerows to be left in the autumn for the birds. Eighty% of our farmland birds rely on our hedgerows for food and for shelter and nesting. If we cut the hedges to early the plants will not be able to establish a longer growth pattern, meaning they will not be able to produce the fruit that is so vital for our farmland birds in autumn.

Habitats

Part eleven how rabbits transform the landscape.

Without rabbits, much more of our downland and cliff tops would be a mass of bramble and hawthorn scrub- not the short, flowered-studded turf that is so characteristic. Rabbits suppress the growth of shrubs by nibbling the growing shoots, but they tend not to eat older shrubs, so established thickets remain. These provide the rabbits with shelter from hungry buzzards, but they give cover to hunting foxes. Nibbling rabbits are very damaging to crops, so farmers try to fence off their fields. Cliff tops are not suitable for crops because of exposure to wind and salt spray, so rabbits are usually tolerated along coastal strips. By their close and constant grazing, rabbits crop the grass as short as if it had been mown. Short turf favours the growth of low growing or creeping plants such as vetches and trefoils, which would otherwise be swamped by long grass and shrubs. These plants attract many butterflies, such as the common blue. The butterflies feed on nectar and lay their eggs on the plants, which serve as food for their caterpillars. The short turf is also highly suitable for other insects, especially ants. The insects in turn attract many species of birds- skylarks for example, common in open country.Rabbits will feed mainly at night, but in undisturbed places will graze by day. Turf near a burrow may be cropped very short, but thistles are avoided.

Habitats.

Part ten the world of minibeasts.

The thousands of species of tiny creatures that live in the leaf litter and soil of the woodland floor can be conveniently grouped under the term minibeasts. They include small insects and spiders, as well as larger creatures such as woodlice, centipedes and earwigs. In addition, there are thousands of species too small to be seen with the naked eye. All the inhabitants of this dark, bustling world spend much of their lives hunting for food, in many cases preying on each other. One way to see minibeasts at close quarters is to take a couple of handfuls of leaf litter ,put it in a large paper funnel and shine light on it from above. Trying to escape the light , and warmth the tiny creatures burrow downwards and fall on to a tray placed underneath. With the exception of fleas and biting lice-which are only likely to be found on mammals and birds-minibeasts are quite harmless to humans. Some of the minibeasts  you might see are bark louse, silverfish, bristletails, springtails, thunderbugs and false scorpions.

Habitats.

Part nine life in a natural pine forest.

Fragments on Britain`s primeval wilderness live on in Scotland, where they harbour a wealth of rare wildlife. Britain`s only large native conifer, the Scots pine, was once more exploited for its valuable timber, but now most forest tracts containing this survivor from prehistoric times are protected in nature reserves. They can be seen in such places as Glen Affric, which is west of Inverness, on Deeside and Speyside, they can also be found in the black wood of Rannoch. The pine forest protects, in turn, the elusive pine martin and the Scottish wildcat(i will be doing a separate blog about the Scottish wild cat in a later blog). The Scots pine also shelter the capercaillie. This amazing bird, with its fantastic mating call and ritual was once extinct in the British Isles. The crested tit also has a population, using hollows in some of the old trees to build their nest. There are also rare and unusual wild plants that flourish in the pine forests. These include chickweed wintergreen, common wintergreen, there are orchids such as the creeping lady`s tresses. Heather and bilberry`s are common throughout the pine forest. Bell heather grows in the driest areas, white cross-leaved  heath, bog asphodel, grass of parnassus and the amazing bog myrtle and its beautiful fragrant are found in the damper areas. Its also an amazing place to come and watch Britain's largest land mammal, the red deer. Birds of prey such as the hen harrier also flourish in the pine forset. The osprey is also now well established on the forest lochs, where it can be seen hunting for fish. The Golden eagle is also well established amongst the pine forest. The remnants of  the once-extensive Caledonian pine forests today form attractive, open woodlands which regenerate themselves  freely and contain trees of various ages. The older trees have flattish tops and bare stems, whereas younger trees are narrow-crowned, with branches to the ground. Young pines spring up in the open woodland unless the heather and moss become very dense, then the pine seeds cannot reach the soil. There is another native conifer that has established itself in the pine forset, the much smaller juniper. The remoter areas of the pine forest provide cover and feeding ground for the three native (shy) animals, the red deer,the Scottish wildcat and the pine martin, although the latter can be lured out by jam sandwiches.

Habitats.

Part eight the nettle feeders.

Nettle patches-found in fields, farmyards, orchards and gardes throughout the British isles are breeding grounds for aristocrat butterflies. Small tortoiseshells, red admirals, peacocks and commas breed regularly on nettles, and painted ladies breed on them occasionally. Butterflies bask on the plants and lay their eggs on the nettles tender young leaves. The stinging hairs have no effect on their hard, light bodies. However they do not feed from the drab flowers, which are a pour source of nectar. When the young caterpillars of small tortoiseshells and peacocks hatch, they live together in a mass of spun silk, eating the nettle tops. Res admiral caterpillars are solitary and live in a secluded leaf tent. The advantage of feeding on nettles is that most grazing animals leave the nettles alone because they are tough and will sting them. In fact, more than forty species of insects, including aphids, bugs and beetles, are completely or partially dependant on nettles for food or shelter. This is why in any area nettles are so important for so many different insects, but some birds will predate the caterpillars. Stinging nettles do what we call pheno plasticity, i have mentioned this in a previous blog but basically its way the nettle control the light for themselves. A female red admiral lays a single egg on a nettle leaf. She will move onto other leaves to lay more eggs.  As peacock caterpillars develop they look distinctly black with orange feet, they are also covered in spines. Small tortoiseshell caterpillars make jerking movements with their heads whenever the nettles are disturbed by a predatory bird. The sudden movement often startles the bird and drives it away. Most nettle-feeding caterpillars leave the mettle patch to form their chrysalis. They often wander many yards to find a suitable place, such as a fence rail or post, tree bark or garden sheds.

Habitats.

Part seven life among redwoods.

In Britain the coast redwood is an impressive tree that has already reached a height of 140 ft(43 meter`s). In its home on northern california`s pacific coast, it has become the tallest living thing on earth, reaching more than 360 ft (110 meter`s). It is remarkably long-lived as it will always throw out new shoots after a tree has fallen, and specimens in America have lived for more than 2,500 years. The oldest and largest stand of redwoods in Britain is the charles ackers redwood grove near welshpool, in powys. Unswept branches and a conical shape distinguish the dawn redwood from the taller coast redwood. Woodland and shave loving plants such as red campion, ivy and herb robert, and plants of grassy places such as common vetch and birds foot trefoil thrive among redwoods. When the branches of a coast redwood in the redwood grove near welshpool were driven into the ground as the tree fell, the branches on the upper side of the fallen trunk developed into young trees. After a tree has been felled, coppice shoots spring vigorously from the cut stump, and some will grow into new trees. Treecreepers hollow out roosting places in the redwoods soft bark. Tawny owls may also be seen amongst the redwood forest, they roost amongst the redwood branches.

Habitats.

Part six life in a beech woodland.

In spring, bluebells and anemones splash beech woods with colour, but in summer the woods are dark and relatively colourless places. Bluebells and wood anemones come up before the beech leaves have fully opened, while enough light is still available for growth. They will continue to grow in heavy shade, while bird`s-nest orchid, which feeds on dead organic matter such as beech leaves, needs no light at all. Beech leaves let little light through the canopy to encourage anything to grow. The leaves are so arranged that all will get some light, but very little filters between them. In the same way, the leaves intercept most of the rain that falls. This lies on the leaves, to be evaporated again after a shower, and does not reach the soil beneath. But the woodland floor, though dry, does provide food for fungi along with small birds and mammals. Wood mice and grey squirrels prize open the beech nuts from the woodland floor. The roots of the beech tree thrive in shallow but fertile soil, spreading laterally just below the surface. Jays are among some of the birds that frequent beech woods to seek fallen beech nuts. Bramblings ,chaffinches and nuthatches are three other birds that take advantage of a beech woodland along with badgers that are looking for a tasty treat, the beech nut.

Habitats.

Part five life in a birch woodland.

Birch, together with willow,hazel and rowan, are (pioneer) species that quickly colonise bare ground. Birch takes root readily in poor soils, and its almost weightless seeds are blown far. Its thin leaves soon rot, this then add nutrients to the soil for the trees roots to eventually re-absorb. The broken down leaves will also enrich the soil for more demanding trees like oak and beech. These two trees will grow into tall trees and eventually deprive the silver birch of light. Birch provides food and shelter for a variety of animals, birds and insects. Redpolls, blue and great tits and a host of other birds feed on birch seeds. The caterpillar of the mottled umber moth will eat the leaves of the birch. The patchwork leaf cutting bee will also use birch leaves, as she lays her eggs individually she will leave some pollen for the eggs for when they hatch. She will then seel the chamber with the leaf, she will continue this process until the chamber is full. Heather and bilberry are among the plants that thrive on the acid soils colonised by birch. The light shade that birch cast encourages the growth of many other plants, too. Young birch trees and the grass beneath them provide food for hares and roe deer. Razor strop and bracket fungus live on dead birch stems, and fly agaric will some times live on the living roots. Birch bark has been used for centuries to start fires, this is because of the natural oils it possesses, i will talking about this more on one of my bushcraft pages. The silver birch is a tree of life giving properties, vitality and nourishment. It signifies new opportunities, new beginnings,birth, re-birth and inception.

Habitats

Part four motorways as havens for wildlife.

The amount of grassland and scrub along the broad verges of Britain's major roads exceeds the total area of all the country`s nature reserves put together. People rarely walk on roadside verges because its unsafe and its forbidden to do along motorways. Because of this they offer a comparatively safe home for all kinds of animals that can tolerate traffic noise. Moles, particularly, benefit because no one needs to plough up their burrows, and because traffic vibration brings worms, their major food, to the surface. Small mammals such as bank voles and shrews abound, and foxes and rabbits are quite common as well. The varied plant life offers food as well as cover to some of the small mammals, but it is often contaminated with salt and oil from the road surface and with lead from the exhausts of cars. Road verges serve as corridors along which animals can spread into our cities and also across wide areas of our country. The actual crossing of roads is a problem , however. Many animals do manage it-even slow- moving moles- but rabbits, hedgehogs, deer and other animals active at night are often dazzled by vehicle headlights and ran over. Many thousands are killed on our roads every year. But their corpses serve as a food supply for scavengers such as foxes, crows, magpies and even buzzards. Rabbits dig their warrens in well drained, undisturbed embankments, but will normally feed in near by fields and not by the road side. Hovering kestrels will be looking for voles, mice and beetles for them to eat.  A newly built road may cut across an established badger trail, and badgers using it may get run over because of this. Early in the morning crows may be seen feeding on the casualties from the night before, such as hares, rabbits and even hedgehogs. Next time you are driving along some of our busy roads have a lookout for some of this wildlife.

Habitats.

Part three the butterflies of summer grassland.

Caterpillars that eat grass give rise to some of the most common butterflies. As their food is widespread and green throughout the year, the caterpillars- and hence the butterflies- have a relatively secure future. All Britain's grass-feeding caterpillars belong to the browns or skipper families. The butterflies are on the the wing between June and September and can be seen in the corners of the field, beside country roads and anywhere else which has long grass like waste ground and old railway tracks. Three of the skippers that can be common among long grass, forever chasing each other, are the small, the large and essex skippers. They are found in open areas, like some of the brown butterflies- the small heath, the marbled white and the meadow brown. Other browns live in places sheltered from the wind. Gatekeepers and speckled woods, for example, keep to hedgerows, tracks or grassy woodland glades where they can be seen basking in the summer sun. Woodland edges and corners of fields warm up into sun traps during the summer months. Brown bubutterflies stake out their territories there, basking in the heat. Ringlets are recluses among butterflies, and prefer wet grassy hollows in or beside shady woodland. Rough open grasslands can become very hot and exposed to winds. Skippers fly fast over the grasses, and are still active on windy days . Marbled whites which belong to the brown family, are sometimes plentiful on chalk grasslands.

Habitats.

Part two the garden pond.

Garden ponds have become life savers for Britain's frogs,newts and toads in the past thirty years. This is because so many of farm and village ponds have been filled in or polluted. Garden ponds will also benefit gardeners because the amphibians they attract will eat slugs, snails and insects. Ponds will attract bathing birds like blackbirds, which in turn may feed on tadpoles. Grass snakes may also be seen in the pond. Foxes may also be seen drinking from our garden ponds. If a pond has smooth sides then hedgehogs may fall into them but can`t climb out, this may cause them to drown. But by putting a little bit of wire mesh, hanging in the water on one corner will enable them to escape. Whether the pond is made from an old bucket or sink it will soon colonised by insects such as pond skater or lesser water boatman. May, damsel and dragon flies will also be seen flying over the pond hoping to catch flies. A few jars of natural pond water tipped into the pond will add plankton, water snails and even water beetles. Frogs and toad will eventually come across the pond, toads generally prefer deeper water to toads, so depending on the size of the pond it will determine whether you will attract toads or frogs. The frogs or toads will leave the pond,  after about two or three years they will will return to the same pond to breed. Newts to will find their own way to the pond. Long grass by the ponds edge will provide cover for the froglets when they leave the pond in June or July. Tadpoles normally prefer to be in a shallow area of the pond where it will be warmer. The resident fish will eat the tadpoles, sometimes quite a few will be taken by fish.  A rockery is a good idea for frogs and toads to hide in during the day. If there is plenty of undergrowth bank voles or wood mice may move in.

Habitats

Part one the woodland floor at night.

Many kinds of mammals, large and small, make their homes in deciduous woodland. Not only do the trees and shrubs provide more shelter from winds, rain and the cold open country, but for mammals that can climb they give extra living and foraging space among their branches. Above all, the different kinds of trees,shrubs and flowers offer a wide assortment of food for the mammals and also a huge number of insects, which are in turn another source of food for the mammals.  A wood covering about half a square mile, can support more than five thousand mice and voles aswell as many shrews, moles, squirrels,  badger and deer. Predators such as tawny owls and weasels and stoats are attracted to these woodlands by the abudance of small mammals. The night flying tawny owl, espeically, depends for food on the mice and voles that forage on the woodland floor. In summer when the undergrowth is dense and small mammals are well hidden it will often hunt over open fields and hedgerows. But when the vegetation dies back again in late autumn and winter, woodland mammals are easier prey. The owl claims a woodland territory  ready for breeding in march. The size of their territory depends on the amount of mice and voles that are available to them. The tawny owl will sometimes eat worms if numbers ger really low. Wood mice feed on more open parts of the woodland floor than bank voles. Several mice will share a space, showing little aggression over nuts, fruits,seedlings and insects it offers, except during the breeding season when they will defend their territory. Woodmice, voles and squirrels will nibble on tops of fungi aswell, boletus is one of their favourites to share. The tawny owl will prey on all of the small mammals that occupy the woodland floor. Below the tawny owls roost you will find its regurgitated pellets, this is all of the indigestable material such as bones and fur. The hazel dormice only ventures out at night to forage mainly among the tree branches. They feed mainly on hazel nuts. They will eat lots of food in late autumn as they are getting ready for hibernation. Bank voles will forage amongst thick cover by day or night. The woodland floor will also be alive with slugs, millipedes,centipedes and woodlice foraging through all of the decaying leaf litter.