Countryside

30 Days Wild 2020: My Wild Month

/ Laura Tuke / 1 Comment

I have always lived a wild life. For this I have my family to thank, being raised in the middle of the beautiful Dorset countryside, immersed in everything Mother Nature has to offer. It has been my playground, my classroom, my escape, and my counsellor. It is a part of who I am. This is why I am so passionate to protect and conserve our natural world, and why I now make it my mission to share all it has to offer with the rest of the world.

So when I heard about 30 Days Wild, I just had to get involved! The month-long challenge aims to bring people closer to nature, get people learning and exploring, and make a positive difference for wildlife in the UK. This year I made it my goal to spread the word, and before the month started, I began blogging about the challenge in the hope of inspiring others to also get involved (check out How to… Get involved in the June 30 Days Wild challenge). The response was amazing!

Once June was under way, I also made 30 Days Wild a focus of each and every day for the whole of the month. I got to try some new things, learn some new knowledge, help some worthy causes, share with others about nature and wildlife, and most importantly, I got to explore and spend valuable time out in nature. I enjoyed every minute, so join me now as I take a look back at how wild my month of June really was!

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30 Days Wild – June 2020

Day 1 – Monday 1st (Work):

For the very first day of my 30 Days Wild, I started with a bang, showing my support for my local Wildlife Trust by becoming a member. By joining Dorset Wildlife Trust, I have joined 25,000 other members helping to conserve and safeguard wildlife in Dorset and on my doorstep. I look forward to now doing my bit!

Day 2 – Tuesday 2nd (Work):

For my second day, I was faced again with the challenge of completing a Random Act of Wildness alongside a busy day at work. I achieved this though, by taking a break in the evening to watch a wild webcam in the form of BBC Springwatch’s live nest cams. It was amazing to get a different perspective of the nests, such as being right inside a Jackdaw’s nest!

Day 2

Day 3 – Wednesday 3rd (Day off):

On my first day off during the challenge, I was able to go for a long walk out in nature, seeing what I could discover on my way. Despite it being a rainy day, the wildlife did not disappoint, with lots of different birds and insects making their presence felt, from families of Long-Tailed Tits to chattering Magpies.

Day 4 – Thursday 4th (Day off):

With another day off work, I decided to combine taking in nature with another of my passions, horse riding. On a hack with my next door neighbour’s mare Marsha, I got to get some really great views of the beautiful countryside near where I live, combined with views of some great bird species, such as my favourites, the birds of prey.

Day 5 – Friday 5th (Work):

Over the last couple of months I have tried to regularly upload a new post to this blog every Friday. To combine 30 Days Wild with my recent How to… series, on this day I uploaded a piece about making a home for wildlife, and in particular a hotel for bees. To do this post, I got to make my very own hotel, which was very rewarding, so if you would like to make your own, why not check out my easy guide: How to… Make Your Own Bee Hotel

Day 5

Day 6 – Saturday 6th (Day off):

I love growing my own fruit and vegetables, and then being able to pick and eat them! So I was happy on this day off, that I got the pleasure of picking my family’s first gooseberry crop, though it took a while after to top and tail all of them! I also spent time listening to my bird songs and calls CD to do some revision before going out for a walk to test my knowledge. I now love being able to instinctively know when I can hear certain species, such as a Blackcap or Yellowhammer singing in the landscape!

Day 6

Day 7 – Sunday 7th (Work):

I spent the whole of my Sunday making a note of the species that I came across as I went about my usual day before, during and after work. I was able to realise just how lucky I am to work outside and spend so much time out in nature everyday!

I also spent the evening catching up on Springwatch with the company of one of my house cats!

Day 8 – Monday 8th (Work):

During my 30 Days Wild, I wanted to donate to a wildlife cause. I decided that one cause I wanted to support was the Marine Turtle Conservation Project, which without funding would not be able to continue their important work. It was also well timed as the 8th of June was World Oceans Day!

I as well finished my day excitingly helping with Barn Owl nest box checks in my local area, now that I am fully licensed. This included the Barn Owl box on my family’s own farm and it is definitely looking positive for them this year!

Day 9 – Tuesday 9th (Work):

On this day, I was lucky enough to go out hacking on horseback whilst at work, and rode through some really spectacular countryside. It was one very busy day at work, so when I got home I also relaxed with some wild reading, including a great fictional book by zoologist Delia Owens called Where The Crawdads Sing. Her imagery of the North Carolina marshland is absolutely stunning!

Day 9

Day 10 – Wednesday 10th (Day off):

For my day off, I wanted to spend time really taking in the natural world around me and exploring the finer details. In this way, I got to see some incredible things from a hunting Sparrowhawk and Digger Bee nests to strong smelling Honeysuckle and mating Yellow Shell Moths. There is just so much to see if you give yourself the time to take it all in!

Day 10

Day 11 – Thursday 11th (Day off):

The day before during my walks, I had collected some Barn Owl pellets from beneath two nest sites, a tree and a nest box, on my family’s land. I then spent the next day soaking the pellets and teasing them apart to see what they held inside. From the nest box site, there was Field Vole, Mouse and Common Shrew bones, whereas from the tree site there was Field and Bank Vole, Common and Pygmy Shrew, and Brown Rat.

I also spent some time identifying plants that I had seen out and about, including learning to identify a Male Fern that my cat was very interested in helping me with!

Day 11

Day 12 – Friday 12th (Work):

This Friday, I once again combined 30 Days Wild with my recent How to… series, uploading a post on making small changes to your own life to help our planet. For example, walking and cycling more, thinking before you buy, and cutting your water usage. If you want to get inspired yourself, check out my post: How to… Help the planet one small step at a time.

I also spent some time on this rainy day, appreciating the beauty of the falling rain.

Day 12

Day 13 – Saturday 13th (Day off):

I spent my Saturday wild and busy. My activities ranged from identifying pollinators to organising equipment ahead of the autumn bird ringing season. I am always happiest doing something but doing something outside is even better!

Day 14 – Sunday 14th (Work):

There is nothing more valuable than your own parents passing down their knowledge to you, and with mine it is no different. I have my Mum to thank for the foundations of all my wildlife knowledge today, from bird song to plant species. This year my Mum has been teaching me about chalkland species, using the chalk mound my Mum and Dad have created themselves on our farmland. It has been so enjoyable listening to my Mum as she IDs and teaches me each and every species on the ridge!

Day 15 – Monday 15th (Work):

The ever-changing sky is a source of wonder and life. I took time over the course of a whole day, appreciating it and watching it change, from cloud watching with white fluffy and dark rain clouds to an unexpectedly beautiful sunset!

Day 16 – Tuesday 16th (Work):

One of the acitivities I definitely wanted to do during 30 Days Wild, was to make my own bird food, taking me back to my childhood. I kept it simple with lard and bird seed, and packed the food into different shaped recycled containers for some variation. I then left it in the fridge overnight with the aim of testing it the very next day!

Day 16

Day 17 – Wednesday 17th (Day off):

I began my day off by putting out my homemade bird food in the garden. Unfortunately it was a bit hot, and the food kept melting off its strings! It was a hit with the local fledged Starling chicks though, and eventually disappeared within 48 hours.

I also took my mum and dad to my bird ringing trainer’s private nature reserve for a a different walk. It is such a lovely place to be, and gave us all some inspiration of how we can make more homes for wildlife on our own land. To finish the day, I helped pick some of the fruit growing in my family’s garden, my favourites being the strawberries!

Day 17

Day 18 – Thursday 18th (Day off) :

People who read my blog will know that I love the woods! It’s a place I go to when I want a break from the world or just to watch the seasons change in a place where it’s at its most noticeable. So as part of my 30 Days Wild, I headed into the woods for a spot of forest bathing and a refresher. The day’s rain did not even stop me!

Day 18

Day 19 – Friday 19th (Work):

Due to my love of spring and wildlife photography, for this Friday on my blog, I uploaded a post about my favourite photos from spring 2020. It was great to reflect on my own spring and to look back on some great moments, making it easily one of my favourite posts so far this year! If you want to take a look, check out my Spring 2020: In Photos. 

I also headed out into my family’s land after work, to revisit a favourite camera trapping spot from this spring. Once there, I set up my camera trap again, and looked forward to seeing what I might catch this time around.

Day 19

Day 20 – Saturday 20th (Work):

After work, I signed up to the BTO’s Garden BirdWatch, which is currently free for everyone to take part, and allows me to upload what I see in my garden at home every week. I also took time out to focus on my mental health, and completed a wild guided meditation, lying on the grass in my garden. I picked this particular meditation as it incorporates taking in the sounds around you, such as the sounds of nature. It was so surreal for me to relax outside and then reopen my eyes to see lots and lots of baby starlings looking back at me!

Day 20

Day 21 – Sunday 21st (Day off):

As it was Father’s Day, for my Sunday off, I got to spend lots of time with my dad. This included two walks also with my mum, where we tried to see what nature had to offer us, which included birds of prey and wonderful Skylarks. To top off an active day, I also pulled on my trainers for the first time in a couple of weeks, due to an injury, and went for a run through the countryside around my home. I just cannot get enough of being outdoors!

Day 21

Day 22 – Monday 22nd (Work):

For my Monday, I completed two different Random Acts of Wildness. Firstly, I began writing down all the birds I saw in my garden during the day as part of the BTO’s Garden BirdWatch.

I then made a donation to charity. I may not have a lot of money, but at times like these I realise how lucky and fortunate I am in life. So when I saw another great cause, I had to get involved and donate!

Two years ago, during my Master’s in Conservation and Biodiversity, I got the opportunity to go on a field course to Kenya, with a lot of organisation from Adventure Upgrade Safaris. They even got me a cake for my birthday! Now without tourism, the company are struggling and without our support, they will not be able to continue for the future. They need our help to survive!

Day 22

Day 23 – Tuesday 23rd (Work):

This day was an exciting day for me! It was the day that, after work, I got to retrieve my camera trap that I had put out last Friday!

Though I had previously captured my best camera trap photo this year in this location (a fox cub), I did not know what to expect this time around. My camera trap did not disappoint though, and the photos included those of the fox cub I had previously seen, a rabbit and some really great photos of some badgers!

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Day 24 – Wednesday 24th (Day off):

On a day when I really needed it, I got to spend my day off doing some things I love. My bird ringing group starts the autumn migration ringing season on the 1st of August and so to start my Wednesday, I helped with some of the preparation for the season. For example, we completed an important but often overlooked job, re-dying our mist nets with a special dye mix.

I also excitingly spent some of my day ringing Kestrel chicks and, now that I am fully licensed, helped with Barn Owl nest box checks. This led to me also getting to ring Barn Owl chicks and getting some great views of some Little Owls!

Day 24

Day 25 – Thursday 25th (Day off):

Another activity I really wanted to do during my 30 Days Wild, was to do some wild baking. I decided on making some simple vanilla cupcakes and decorating them with minibeasts in different colours.

My time spent baking was not without some drama though, as I ended up modelling icing during an afternoon of over 30 degrees heat! Despite this, I soldiered on through runny icing, with the much needed help of my mum, and had some great fun, whilst making some yummy cakes topped with interesting and colourful creatures!

Day 25

Day 26 – Friday 26th (Work):

For my last Friday of 30 Days Wild, I uploaded to my blog another brand new post. This time my post followed on from last Friday’s spring upload, and focussed on how spring unfolded this year. If you want to have a read about how my extra special spring actually turned out this year, check out my Spring 2020: How It Happened.

Day 26

Day 27 – Saturday 27th (Day off):

This day was another day of relaxing in nature. This included watching and recording the birds in my garden, going for a long horse ride through the Dorset countryside, and exploring the flowers growing in my garden and on my currently ‘no mow’ lawn.

Day 27

Day 28 – Sunday 28th (Work):

With it being especially rainy during my day at work, I made it my priority to spend my lunch break outdoors during a break in the weather. It was a much needed refresher! Also, having completed my first week of the BTO’s Garden BirdWatch yesterday, I spent my evening uploading my results to their website. It was exciting to see how the week actually went!

Day 28

Day 29 – Monday 29th (Work):

I spent this Monday rushed off of my feet at work. To keep my brain relaxed though, I came up with the plan of spending my day attempting to noticing the wildlife around me and seeing if I could find a species for each letter of the alphabet. I had a very successful day of it, alongside being very productive at work, leading to only one species missing (the letter X)!

The response to me completing this activity was absolutely amazing on Twitter. It gave me a real sense of joy to see everyone’s support, so thank you everyone!

Day 30 – Tuesday 30th (Work):

Today was the last day of June and the final day of 30 Days Wild. However much I would have liked to have finished with a bang, it would not have fit my true and busy day. Instead, today was a day of appreciating and being grateful for the natural world around me. This may be in the form of what I encountered on my travels or seen out of my window, or by taking in other people’s experiences such as through books and on twitter. I treasured them all!

Day 30

My Highlights

This June has been a wild rollercoaster which I have absolutely loved! Spending time focussing on nature each and every day has enriched my days, relaxed me, and allowed me to connect further with the wild world around me. If I had to pick some highlights, these would include my wild alphabet becoming popular on Twitter, making wild cupcakes with my mum, expanding my knowledge of plants, ringing my first Kestrel and Barn Owl chicks, and sharing my 30 Days Wild on social media.

I have learnt and experienced so much this past month, and I am now inspired to continue making the natural world an important part of each and every day, and to share my passion with as many people as I possibly can. I hope that if you participated in this year’s challenge, that you also had a great month. Otherwise here’s to next year’s 30 Days Wild!

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Spring 2020: In Photos

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

As the world was thrown into disarray with the full force of a pandemic, our daily lives were hit by lockdown, slowing and grounding to a halt. For the natural world outside our windows though, spring was just beginning, with days warming, buds bursting, and migrants making their return. Even when our own lives were being disrupted, the natural world was carrying on.

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For me, spring has been a real lifeline this year. With the natural world bursting with life, I was able to draw real strength from the return of the swallows, the flowering of the bluebells and the trees becoming cloaked in delicate new leaves. Every moment I could spend out in nature gave me the strength to continue as if nothing had changed, cherishing every moment for what it was. For this I am grateful, and I really appreciate that I am lucky to have the beautiful Dorset countryside right on my doorstep.

As spring begins to make its exit, I wanted to take some moments to reflect on a time that has taught me a lot, brought me some real magic through the natural world, and will be remembered for as many good memories as those eclipsed by Covid-19. To begin with, here are a selection of my favourite photos from this spring. They range from spring wonderment to heart-warming moments, that all mean something to me.

Spring 2020 in photos

1) Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly – The photo featured above was taken only last week, and reminds me of how valuable the time I spend expanding my knowledge of nature really is, including the identification of butterflies and flowers. I found this Small Tortoiseshell butterfly on a 10m long chalk mound that my parents have created for wildlife within our farmland, and it really is coming into its own this year!

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2) Bluebell & Spider – When the bluebells are flowering, it has to be one of my most favourite times of the year. As the woodland floor transforms to a carpet of blue purple, I feel at my happiest and enjoy noticing new details each year, such as the spider hunting on these drooping bells.

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3) Goldfinch – I love the simplicity of this photo of a Goldfinch taken back in March. The bright colours of the bird vividly stand out from the swelling buds and bare twigs of the hazel in this hedgerow. It was enough to brighten a moment on a decidedly chilly spring day.

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4) Stitchwort – Every flower is unique and different in its own way. With Greater Stitchwort, every flower stands out like a small white star, carpeting verges, hedgerows and woodlands alike.

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5) Dandelion Seeds – Now as an adult I still hold on to the child-like curiosity that a dandelion invokes. With hundreds of parachuting seeds waiting to fly, this dandelion creates a beautiful fluffy silhouette in the spring sunshine.

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6) Lleyn Lamb – This photo is as it seems, a photo of a sleepy newborn lamb, born earlier this year. I am proud to say that I come from a farming background in the heart of Dorset. It has been this that has provided me with a spectacular backdrop to learn about the natural world around me, given me the knowledge and experiences to be able to make informed decisions about how I live my life, and given me an understanding of the important relationship between the environment and modern agriculture.

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7) Wild Garlic & Insect – I love to notice the details in nature and get down to the level of the ‘small things’. This may be noticing the curl of an unfurling fern, the patterns on the petals of a tiny flower, or the jewel-like colours of an insect exploring a cluster of star-shaped wild garlic flowers.

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8) Sunrise – One of the best times of day has usually come and gone by the time most people have woken up in the morning. A sunrise is a golden time though to get out, listen to the birds singing and watch as the world wakes up around you. There is nothing like it!

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9) Dark Rabbit – One of my more unusual sightings this year has to be this rabbit, that has notably darker fur compared to the usual European rabbit. It was small in size, and though showing wild instincts, it was slightly less fearful of us humans. Everyday it could be found sunning itself in a small open area within vegetation situated behind our farm buildings.

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10) Moschatel – Every year I try and learn one new species of flowering plant that can be found in our woodlands and surrounding countryside. This year it was the turn of Moschatel. An often overlooked flower due to its greenish colour, Moschatel is also known as Townhall Clock, due to its flowers having 5 faces that make it look like a cube or townhall clock in shape.

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11) Chiffchaff – One of my highlights of spring every year is the return of the Chiffchaff. When I hear this bird sing for the first time each year, I feel like spring has truly arrived, so I am particularly saddened when their singing finally falls silent as autumn grips the landscape.

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12) Feather – This photo is a good example of the beauty of detail. It is simple, but a spot of light highlights the real elegance of this contour feather, now left to lay amongst the vegetation.

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13) Aberdeen Angus Calf – This inquisitive and interestingly marked calf is another photo that connects with my farming roots. Spring is synonymous with new life, from on the farm to the wider countryside, and this little one was just one of many, precious and to be celebrated.

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14) Spider & Hart’s-Tongue Fern – Some days I walk along in my own world and the wildlife around me merges into one. Other days the world becomes bigger though and I see every detail pop out at me, such as with this spider making its home on a Hart’s-Tongue fern.

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15) Fox Cub – As people who follow my blog or social media will already know, this spring I have had fun yet again using my camera trap on my family’s land. This has to be one of my favourite photos from this year! It was a totally unexpected surprise when this fox cub turned up on my camera trap.

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16) Vole Bones – With the return of breeding barn owls to my family’s farm, I had some fun one afternoon dissecting the pellets left by these owls. It is definitely a very rewarding feeling when you are then able to identify the species the bones you find come from. Here I believe this mandible to be from a bank vole.

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17) Field Rose – I have always loved taking photos of flowers and capturing their small details. Here a field rose, you can clearly see the reproductive organs from the stamens to the stigma.

How to… Identify Hedgerow Plants

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Whizzing past our car windows, naturally bordering our fields and gardens, or providing a home for wildlife. Often going unseen and unnoticed, hedgerows are a widespread and overlooked habitat right on our doorsteps. Bountiful and bursting with life, each hedge is unique from the next, with a story to be told and a world to be explored.

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From butterflies and birds to hedgehogs and dormice, an incredible number of species rely on the plants in our hedges for their survival, such as food, shelter, and corridors along which to travel. They do not just play a role for wildlife though, holding value in the wider landscape, providing us with services such as stopping soil erosion and buffering pollution. In this way, hedgerows have been important for humans and wildlife alike for hundreds of years!

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The first hedgerows can be dated back to the Bronze Age, when farmers cleared woodland to grow crops, leaving carefully maintained strips to act as boundaries. Some of these strips of ancient woodland can still be found today! Since then hedges have grown in popularity, but following the Second World War, many were ripped up to provide more space to grow food and for development. Despite approximately half of all hedges in Britain being lost during this time, thankfully the remaining were given protected status in 1997.

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The hedgerows rolling across our countryside today are a piece of history, full of life and colour and provide us with a whole host of resources. So, why not try and see this for yourself, and take a moment to see what you can find in a hedgerow local to you? To help, here’s my simple guide to identifying some of our iconic hedgerow species.

Hedgerow Plants

Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa)Blackthorn

  • Family: Rose – related to fruiting trees such as cherries and plums
  • Size: Up to 4m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Blackish and thorny
  • Leaves: 2-4cm long, oval-shaped tapering to a point with toothed margins
  • Flowers: Snow-white and 5-petalled with red-tipped anthers in the centre. Flowers late March-April, appearing BEFORE the leaves
  • Seeds: Produces fruit (sloes) which are small blackish plums with a bluish powdery surface. Tongue-numbingly tart to eat but popular to flavour gin
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout most of Britain
  • Fun Facts: Blackthorn, long used for making items such as walking and riding sticks, has long been associated with witchcraft

Spindle (Euonymus europaeus)Spindle

  • Indicator of an ancient hedgerow
  • Family: Staff-vine
  • Size: Up to 9m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Bark and 4-sided twigs are deep green, darkening with age
  • Leaves: 3-13cm long, shiny, mid-green, oval-shaped tapering to a point with finely toothed margins, and turning distinctively pinkish-red in autumn
  • Flowers: Greenish-white and 4-petalled in small overlooked stalked clusters. Flowers May-June
  • Seeds: Distinctive 4-lobed bright coral-pink berries
  • Range: Less common in Scotland and Ireland, found throughout England and Wales, but most frequent in the south
  • Fun Facts: The hard dense wood of spindle was used from ancient times to make spindles, whereas the leaves and seeds were powdered to dust on the skin of children to drive away lice

Cow parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris) Cow parsley

  • Family: Carrot – related to species such as parsnips and poison hemlock
  • Size: ~1m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Stems are hollow and furrowed, often becoming purple
  • Leaves: Fresh green, 3-pinnate, and sharply cut
  • Flowers: White, forming clusters known as umbels. Flowers April-June
  • Seeds: Round, smooth and broad-based
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain and strongly associated with hedgerows
  • Fun Facts: Its folk-name is ‘Queen Anne’s lace’. This comes from a folk tale which said that the flowers would bloom for Queen Anne and her ladies in waiting and reflect the delicate lace they wore

Common Hazel (Corylus avellana)Hazel

  • Family: Birch – related to species such as silver birch, alders and hornbeams
  • Size: Up to 8m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Bark coppery brown, smooth and tending to peel
  • Leaves: 5-12cm long and almost circular with sawtooth edges
  • Flowers: Male= lemon-yellow catkins; Female= Tiny and bud-like with red styles. Flowers January-March BEFORE the leaves
  • Seeds: An edible nut encased at first in a thick-green husk before ripening in autumn
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Hazel rods have historically been used for a range of purposes from hurdles and coracles for fishing to house building and basketwork

Dog Rose (Rosa canina)

  • Family: Rose
  • Size: Up to 4m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Arching stems with broad-based strongly hooked prickles
  • Leaves: Dark green and oval-shaped tapering to a point with toothed edges
  • Flowers: Flat and fragrant white or pale pink, with large petals and hairless stalks. Flowers June-July
  • Seeds: Fruit, known as a hip, that is egg-shaped and bright red
  • Range: Most common and variable wild rose, widespread throughout Britain, but most frequent in the south
  • Fun Facts: Adopted as a symbol of the British monarchy and England since the reign of Henry VII. It is also a valuable medicinal plant, with its hips being made into a Vitamin C rich syrup for children

Field Rose (Rosa arvensis)

  • Compared to the Dog Rose, the Field Rose is shorter, growing up to about 2m, with slightly smaller, cup-shaped creamy-white flowers that flower about a fortnight later, from June-July. Also, the flowers’ sepals are often purplish, the styles are in a column, and the hips are smaller and often more round. The Field Rose’s range does not stretch as far north as that of the Dog Rose, being absent from Scotland

Roses

Common Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)Hawthorn

  • Family: Rose
  • Size: Up to 10m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Very thorny and hairless
  • Leaves: Leafing in April, the leaves are shiny and roughly oval-shaped with 3-5 deeply cut lobes
  • Flowers: White fragrant (sickly sweet) flowers with pink/purple anthers, only one style and 5 petals. Become deeper pink as they fade
  • Seeds: Fruit, known as haws, have a single seed and ripen to a bright red
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Hawthorn is linked to Christian, pagan and medieval rites, and has ancient associations with May Day. Bringing hawthorn blossom in your house was believed to bring in illness and death upon you

Elder (Sambucus nigra)Elder

  • Family: Previously in the honeysuckle family , but now reclassified in moschatel
  • Size: Up to 10m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Strong smelling with corky and fissured bark
  • Leaves: Dark green, pinnate with 5-7 leaflets
  • Flowers: White, small and fragrant in flat-topped clusters with yellow anthers. Flowers May-August
  • Seeds: Produces a juicy edible purplish-black berry
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Has many uses from wines and jams, to toys and dyes. Also, it was believed that planting an elder tree near your house would keep the Devil away

Field Maple (Acer campestre)Field Maple

  • Family: Soapberry – related to horse chestnut and lychee
  • Size: Up to 25m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Twigs downy
  • Leaves: Much smaller than sycamore at 4-7cm long and wide, rather bluntly lobed (3-5), and dark green. Turn distinctively amber in autumn
  • Flowers: Yellowish-green and carried in upright spikes. Flowers May-June after the leaves
  • Seeds: The seeds, known as keys, are winged and paired forming an angle of 180 degrees
  • Range: Common in England and East Wales, but less common elsewhere
  • Fun Facts: Wood used for furniture veneers, wall panelling, and violin-making, but previously used to make domestic utensils such as drinking bowls. As with all maple trees, the sap of the field maple can be used to make maple syrup

Bramble (Rubus fruticosus)Bramble

  • Family: Rose – closely related to species such as raspberries and dewberries
  • Size: Up to 4m tall or long
  • Stems and twigs: Prickly and half-evergreen
  • Leaves: 3-5 broad, toothed leaflets
  • Flowers: White or pink and flowers from May onwards
  • Seeds: Fruit is the familiar edible blackberry that starts green, then turns red, finally ripening to purple-black
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Folklore dictates that blackberries should not be picked after Old Michaelmas Day in October, as the Devil has sullied them. Brambles were also previously planted on graves to stop sheep grazing

Pedunculate or English oak (Quercus robur)

  • Family: Beech – related to species such as beech and sweet chestnut
  • Size: Up to 40m tall
  • Stems and twigs: Massive rugged grey-brown trunk and broad crown
  • Leaves: 10-12cm long, oblong, usually broader at the base and lobed, turning brown in autumn
  • Flowers: Yellow-green catkins flowering April-June
  • Seeds: Produces the familiar acorn, with scaly cups and clusters carried on long stalks
  • Range: Widespread and common throughout Britain
  • Fun Facts: Druids in Celtic Britain held the oak tree sacred, with the oak becoming an English national symbol of strength

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Sessile oak (Quercus petraea)

  • Differs to Pedunculate Oak in that the leaves taper to an unlobed base and have long stalks. Also, the clustered acorns are almost stalk-less with downy cups. Prefers more acid soils and is more common in the West of Britain

Oak Trees

Other species

  • There are lots of flowering species to also be found at the base of hedges. To help with identifying these, check out my ‘How to… Identify Woodland Flowers’ guide, to help with crossover species, such as bluebells, primroses, and moschatel

All photos and drawings are my own

How to… Identify British Woodland Flowers

/ Laura Tuke / 2 Comments

At this moment, as spring moves on, the natural world outside our doors is going through one of its busiest times. From birds nesting to the leaves bursting, the world around us is buzzing with the promise of new life.

During spring, one of my favourite things to do is walk in the dappled light beneath an increasing canopy, between steadfast trees and amongst undergrowth blooming with colour. Walking through a woodland is an easy way to lose yourself for a little while and give yourself a much needed lift. To connect further, an easy way on a woodland walk is to pick out the plants and animals that you can recognise around you. This can often be more difficult than first thought.

So to help you be mindful of the wonderful world out there, I have put together a simple guide to some of my favourite woodland flowering species that are easy to find during spring. It is time to get out there and explore!

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Well known flowers

Primrose (Primula vulgaris)Primrose

  • Size: Low carpeter; up to 12cm tall
  • Flowers: Pale yellow (there are pink-purple forms) with a deep yellow eye and honey-guides
  • Stems and leaves: Long shaggily hairy stems with wrinkled and toothed leaves, that are hairless above and hairy below (up to 15cm long)
  • When does it flower? March-May (heralds the arrival of spring)
  • Where can it be found? Woods, hedgebanks and grassy places throughout Britain

Lesser Celandine (Ficaria verna)Lesser celandine

  • Size: Up to 30cm tall
  • Flowers: Solitary with 8-12 glossy yellow petals and 3 sepals
  • Stems and leaves: Hairless with leaves that are long-stalked, heart-shaped, and dark green. Sometimes bear dark or light markings
  • When does it flower? February-May
  • Where can it be found? Woods, grassland, hedges, waysides, bare ground and by fresh water throughout Britain

Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scriptus)Bluebell 2

  • Size: Up to 50cm tall
  • Flowers: Azure blue (though sometimes pink or white) with cream-coloured anthers. Fragrant and bell-shaped with six turned-down lobes
  • Stems and leaves: Long, narrow, strap-shaped, keeled leaves
  • When does it flower? April-June
  • Where can it be found? Carpeting woodlands, hedges, scrubland, on sea-cliffs and mountains in most parts of Britain

Common Dog-violet (Viola riviniana)Common Dog-Violet

  • Most common wild violet species in the UK
  • Size: Up to 15cm tall
  • Flowers: Unscented with petals that are blue-violet but variable, usually overlapping. Stout spur, curved upward, blunt, notched at tip and paler than petals (often creamy)
  • Stems and leaves: Hairless or only slightly downy leaves and stalks. The leaves are long-stalked, heart-shaped, pointed at the tip, and as broad as they are long
  • When does it flower? March-May and sometimes July-September
  • Where can it be found? Woods, hedges, pastures, heaths and rocky areas throughout the British isles

Sweet Violet (Viola odorata)

  • Size: Up to 15cm tall
  • Flowers: Blue-violet, often white, occasionally lilac, pink or yellow. Only fragrant violet in Britain
  • Stems and leaves: Leaves are heart-shaped, downy and enlarged in summer
  • When does it flower? February-May
  • Where can it be found? Woods and hedges over most of the British isles

 

Plants known to some

Wood anemone (Anemone nemorosa)Wood Anemone

  • Size: Up to 30cm tall
  • Flowers: Solitary white (sometimes tinged purple) that nod when closed
  • Stems and leaves: About two-thirds of the way up each slender stem is a ring of three leaves (trifoliate), each divided into three toothed segments. Rising above the leaves is the solitary flower
  • When does it flower? March-May
  • Where can it be found? Carpeting woodlands in spring, as well as hedge-banks and occasionally grasslands throughout Britain

Greater stitchwort (Stellaria holostea)Greater Stitchwort

  • Size: Up to 60cm tall
  • Flowers: Deeply cleft white petals
  • Stems and leaves: Stalkless, narrow and long-pointed leaves with a slightly grey tinge (15-60cm long)
  • When does it flower? March-June
  • Where can it be found? Across woodlands, hedgerows and scrub areas throughout Britain except some northern isles

Wild Garlic/Ramsons (Allium ursinum) Wild Garlic

  • Most common and only native broad-leaved garlic
  • Size: Up to 45cm tall
  • Flowers: White star-like flowers
  • Stems and leaves: Have leafless flowering stems. The leaves are broad, flat, lanceolate and distinctive smelling
  • When does it flower? April-June
  • Where can it be found? Often seen growing in large clumps in woods and shady places throughout Britain

Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)

  • Size: Up to 30cm tall
  • Flowers: White flowers with no gaps between the 5 unnotched petals. Produce reddish fleshy strawberries that have protruding pips
  • Stems and leaves: Hairy. Leaves are trefoil on long stalks and are brighter green on top and pale below. Lower leaves form a rosette
  • When does it flower? April-July
  • Where can it be found? Woods, scrub, and grassland throughout the British Isles

Strawberry

Barren Strawberry (Potentilla sterilis)

  • Size: Up to 30cm tall
  • Flowers: Unlike wild strawberry, there are gaps between the slightly notched white petals. Produces unstrawberry-like non-fleshy fruits
  • Stems and leaves: They are hairy, but unlike wild strawberry, they have smaller, shorter stems and blue-green leaves
  • When does it flower? Earlier than wild strawberry, from February-May
  • Where can it be found? Woodlands, scrub, hedgebanks and other dry banks

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Less known plants

Yellow Archangel (Lamiastrum galeobdolon)Yellow Archangel

  • Size: Up to 30cm tall
  • Flowers: Yellow and two-lipped, with the upper lip being helmet-shaped and the lower having three almost equal-sized lobes
  • Stems and leaves: Hairy and patch-forming, with leafy and upright flowering stems. The leaves are long-stalked, oval in shape, dark green, irregularly toothed and borne in opposite pairs
  • When does it flower? April-June
  • Where can it be found? Woodlands and hedgerows in England and Wales

Early Purple Orchid (Orchis mascula)Early Purple Orchid

  • Size: Up to 40cm tall
  • Flowers: Form a spike on a stout, upright stem. Usually some shade of purple, sometimes pinkish or white, and are three-lobed with three inner and three outer petals. The upper five petals are oval and form a hood; the lower petal extends into a long lip. Scent described as tom-cat-like
  • Stems and leaves: Lance-shaped, varying from broad to narrow, and usually have round, purple-black blotches on their upper surface
  • When does it flower? April-June
  • Where can it be found? Frequently in woodlands, and is widespread throughout Britain

Moschatel (Adoxa moschatellina)Moschatel

  • Also known as townhall clock and is the only species in its family
  • Size: Up to 15cm tall
  • Flowers: Flower heads greenish, almost forming a cube with one flower on each side (5 petals each) and one flower on top (4 petals). Scent is musk-like, likened to almond or elder blossom
  • Stems and leaves: Hairless with long-stalked trefoil leaves, that are positioned in one pair on each flower-stalk
  • When does it flower? March-May
  • Where can it be found? Woods, hedge-banks, and rocky mountain places, locally common throughout Britain

Herb-robert (Geranium robertianum)Herb-Robert

  • Size: Up to 50cm tall
  • Flowers: Strong smelling and deep pink, occasionally white, with rounded petals that are not notched
  • Stems and leaves: Hairy with stems that are often reddish and leaves that are fern-like with 3-5 lobes
  • When does it flower? April-November
  • Where can it be found? Shady spots on hedgebanks, rocks and walls or in woods throughout Britain

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All photos and drawings are my own 

Barmy about barn owls: Owl pellets

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

Currently we have at least one pair of resident barn owls on our 250 acre Dairy Farm, with one notable pair being seen amongst our farm buildings and fields closest to the centre of the farm.

On 26/05/16, I found a barn owl pellet within our straw barn, which was at least 1 month old. Through my interest in barn owls and the other species living on our farm, I then soaked the pellet and teased it apart to find the small mammal bones within.

The pellet was filled with lots of bones, such as shoulder blades, hipbones, femurs and humeri.

Selection of small mammal bones
Shoulder blade
Shin bone (tibia/fibula)
Hipbone (pelvis)
Femurs and Humeri

From the skulls and jaw bones found in the pellet, I was able to identify the four skulls to species level. Two skulls were from common shrews…

Common Shrew mandible
Common Shrew skull
Common Shrew skull

…and two skulls were from field voles.

Field Vole mandible
Field Vole skull

It was really interesting to be able to get closer to the small mammals that can be found on our farm, whatever the level of species abundance. It also gave me the opportunity to brush up on my skull and bone identification skills with the help of an RSPB owl pellet identification guide, which can highly recommend to others

(https://www.rspb.org.uk/Images/Owlpellets_tcm9-133500.pdf). 

I also recommend to others to get out at this time of year and to find your own owl pellets to learn more about the owls and prey species in your local area.

Winter into spring: April on the farm

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

April is one of my favourite months of the year on the farm. During April, the Dorset countryside begins to burst into new life. Newborn lambs bounce in the fields, newborn calves snooze in the fields in the spring sunshine, birds begin to nest and raise a new generation, and flowers carpet the woodlands.

Plants this April still followed a trend of being late, with some woodlands not becoming decked out in their full splendour during this month like in past years. Still Bluebells, wild garlic, early purple orchids and late wood anemones began to coat the woodland floor. Also, the woodland ferns began to unfurl in the woods later than usual.

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During this April, trees were very much still late, with sycamore and silver birch finally bursting into leaf. Oaks were noticeably asynchronous in their bud burst, with some trees on there way to being in full leaf and others yet to start.

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18/04/16

April saw the main crop of migrants arriving on warm winds. This year our barn swallows returned on April 6th, exactly the same date as in 2015! By the time we were fully into April, bird breeding pairs had been firmly established, and the nesting season for many bird species was fully under way. During April, more birds can be heard singing at dawn than any other time of year, which is quite magical to hear.

This year the tawny owls are breeding later than last year, but by the end of April the first hissing calls of tawny owl fledglings could be heard resonating through Dorset woodlands.

Life could be seen blooming everywhere throughout April. Dog violets and cowslips, among other species, were seen flowering along roadside banks.

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27/04/16

Brimstone butterflies, orange tip butterflies, and peacock butterflies all began to emerge during the first half of April.

Throughout April, I made myself busy amongst the mounds university revision, by setting up my camera trap at different popular sites around our farmland. It was amazing to see the first badger cubs emerge from their den, and even more special to me, was being able to watch fox cubs beginning to explore above ground with their siblings, during the second half of the month. Fox cubs have to be my highlight of beautiful April!

10th-11th April
10th-11th April
10th-11th April
10th-11th April
10th-11th April
10th-11th April
10th-11th April

 

Badger cub! 14th-15th April
Badger cub! 14th-15th April
Badger cub being carried! 14th-15th April
Badger cub! 13th-14th April
Badger cub! 13th-14th April
Badger cub! 13th-14th April
Badger cub! 13th-14th April

Winter into spring: March on the farm

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

With the month of March comes the arrival of spring, symbolising the start of another year’s new growth and a transition following the bleaker winter months. March has often been associated with the saying ‘comes in like a lion, goes out like a lion’, referring to the weather. This was true about this March, with wild weather and strong winds featuring at the beginning of March, before the weather becoming more calm as the month progressed.

As traditional, during March, wildfowl made a sudden departure, fox cubs were born, buzzards established breeding orders, hawthorn and elder broke into leaf, small tortoiseshells emerged, nest building began, small warblers such as chiffchaffs returned from Africa, crocuses flowered, summer visitors began to return, and winter migrants began to migrate to their summer territories.

Though primroses, daffodils, celandines and blackthorn first flowered during February, it was nice to see all these flowers still blooming throughout March. Song birds during March could be heard singing, and the first woodland flowers began to come out at the end of March. The traditional ‘Mad’ March hares also made an appearance, with females resisting the advances of amorous males.

The beginning of Spring is symbolised by lengthening days and increasing temperatures. At the end of March, with the clocks going forward an hour, lengthening days were fulfilled, but this year the increasing temperatures did not make an appearance during March. After the stormier weather at the beginning of March, a cold spell set in, halting the advancement of Spring. This was symbolised with sycamore and silver birch being late coming into leaf, wood anemones and ferns being late to come out in the woods, and Blackbirds nesting late.

On the farm, new lives began during March. Aberdeen Angus suckler cows gave birth to their calves and three of our four mules gave birth to lambs, highlighting one of my favourite parts of the farming calendar.

Taken by Marilyn Tuke (18/03/16)
Taken by Marilyn Tuke (18/03/16)
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26/03/16

My highlight of March was beginning to use my new Bushnell camera trap to photograph and video the wildlife on the farm, including the local badgers.

25th-26th March
26th-27th March
27th March
28th-29th March
29th March
29th-30th March
29th-30th March

Winter into spring: February on the farm

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

February is often described as the bleakest month, with the land still gripped in winter and the coldest temperatures often being reached. It cannot be ignored though, that February also brings the promise of coming spring, with the feeling in the air beginning to change, as the month progresses.

Some mornings a light frost can be woken up to, but still frosts are less frequent this winter, than they used to be.

Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke

Plants are beginning to stir in February, with catkins (male flowers) hanging from hazel trees, celandines appearing, pussy willow flowering, primroses flowering, and gorse flowering in the hedgerows.

Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke

This year on our farm though, blackthorn is flowering early in February, along with horse chestnut trees already coming into bud and the buds beginning to burst.

Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke

Animals are beginning to become more active in February, with brown hares becoming easier to see in the fields, rabbits becoming ‘frisky’, female foxes being pregnant, and grey squirrels giving birth in their drays. Also, badgers are beginning to give birth to cubs too, with the most obvious sign of this being remains of grass seen around the entrance tunnels to setts, left from where badgers have dragged grass down into their setts to make nests.

Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke

As well at this time of year, starling flocks begin to disperse, as individuals head back to their breeding ranges and rooks begin to build their nests in preparation for breeding. The drumming sound of great spotted woodpeckers can now be heard more frequently, as males defend their territories against other males and attempt to attract a female. This is the same with the dawn chorus, as in February it begins to pick up, due to males defending their territories and advertising themselves to available females.

Conditions were mild towards the end of February this year, leading to insects, such as honeybees and butterflies beginning to become active.

In relation to the farm side of life, in February our four sheep were brought inside in preparation for iconic spring lambing at the end of March.

Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke
Photo taken by Marilyn Tuke

My highlight of February, was beginning to hear blackbirds singing at dawn and dusk as the month came to an end, which is a traditional sign that winter is over.

Winter into spring: January on the farm

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

January is often a cold and bare month, no leaves on the trees and an atmosphere of dormancy. But I say, if you just look closely enough, beauty is still there to be found.

January is the month when snowdrops begin to spring from the earth, hinting at the new life that is to come with spring.

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Trees stand bare and leafless, showing off their magnificent skeletal shapes.

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The last of the autumn’s berries still laden the hedgerows throughout January this year, in particular bright red rose hips.

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As well, windfalls still lie beneath the apple trees from last years crop, ready for the taking. Badgers make frequent trips to the orchard to take advantage of the food source, and all that can be seen as evidence of these raids, are the discarded left overs of apples out in the nearby fields.

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Many gulls feed on the farmland fields during the daytime, with the flocks being mainly made up of herring gulls and great-black backed gulls. Usually also during the winter, flocks of starlings feed around the farm, but they only appeared for the first time this winter, near the beginning of January. Currently they can be seen flocking on the fields to feed or chattering away in the trees around our farm buildings. As well, iconic of this time of year, fieldfares and redwings can be seen feeding in the fields.

During the daytime, lots and lots of birds visit the bird feeders in the garden, to feed on peanuts and mixed seed. These bird species include, blue tits, chaffinches, great tits, goldfinches, house sparrows, dunnocks and great spotted woodpeckers.

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During the night at this time of year, tawny owls can be heard calling, as they attempt to rekindle pair bonds before the breeding season begins from February onwards. Also, female foxes can be heard calling to males, as they become receptive for mating.

Some mornings are woken up to a frost covered landscape. It makes things look particularly magical with the ground sparkling in the morning sunshine. With changes in winter weather though, these mornings have become rare in Dorset during this winter.

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16/01/16
16/01/16

This January, change is in the air. Not the change of tradition, but change that feels wrong. Daffodils began to shoot from the beginning of January and primroses appeared in the hedgerows.

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My highlight of January 2016 has to be, seeing a lone kestrel hunting close to our house everyday. A magnificent sight to see a bird hovering, still in mid air, before swooping down to catch a vole.

Brilliant barn owls

/ Laura Tuke / Leave a comment

When I arrived back home a week ago from my first year of uni, I was told that my friend had seen a pair of barn owls on my home farm. These owls were seen to be using a barn owl box that had been put up by my Dad a couple of months ago. As barn owls had been seen by my family and myself on our dairy farm before, this year my Dad had decided he wanted to give them a helping hand, in the hope that they would use our box to breed. The news that it was possibly being used already, excited me. Consequently, I wanted to see for myself that the box was actually in use, and planned a barn owl box stake out the following evening.

I headed to where the box was situated at 20:45 and positioned myself in a cubicle barn across from the box, where I could look through a gap up at the box and surrounding possible perches. Patiently I waited, with no sign of either adult birds, though I could hear an individual screeching noise coming from the box, which made me aware that an adult bird was present.

After a period of only blackbirds, magpies and pheasants being heard, I heard a screech come from the nest box, followed by an adult female barn owl flying out of the entrance hole of the box, and landing on a metal roof truss a couple of metres from the box. After a few minutes of the female scoping her surroundings, she flew a couple of metres further, perching on a second roof truss. There she preened her feathers, stretched and defecated, before returning back to the nest box.

It was amazing to actually got to see the female up close, closer than I had ever seen one before. From this sighting, I could deduce that the female was going through the processes of incubation, though I cannot say at what point the female started sitting. On my walk back home from the barn, I disturbed the male who had been sat on a bank of grass not too far off from the barn.

I am looking forward to keeping an eye on the pairs’ process, and a family friend who is a licensed bird ringer is hoping to make a visit to us at the end of June to check the barn owl box. If there are chicks and they are big enough, he is hoping ring them. I cannot wait!