Views of the Ock

First water vole of 2012

2012-01-22T06:51:00.000-08:00

Water voles don't hibernate, but can be difficult to spot in winter as they are not seeking mates or defending territories. But there does seem to be some water vole activity on the Ock. For example this burrow looks like it has been recently used.

A bit further upstream, the first water vole of the year has appeared from it's burrow and is eating, even though there isn't a lot of river plants to eat at this time of year.

After finishing, it swam along the bank before disappearing underwater, probably using one of the underwater entrances that their burrows have.

.
Water vole breeding season usually starts in April, but with this mild winter, it will be interesting to see if they start breeding earlier this year.

Winter birds on the Ock Valley Walk

2012-01-17T13:35:00.000-08:00

A cold Tuesday morning seemed an ideal opportunity to start to burn off the Christmas excess by walking to work along the river. Although it can be dark in the morning, there is usually something of interest to see.
The bright flash of a kingfisher is always guaranteed to lift the spirits and seems somewhat out of place and almost exotic on a cold day in January in England.
Kingfishers migrate within the UK, often heading to warmer temperatures in the south, but either this one has decided to see out the winter on the river, is just passing through, or is not yet ready to move on:
.

.
Buzzards are now quite common in Oxfordshire and are usually associated with the open fields and meadows where they hunt. So it is somewhat of a surprise is to see the dark shape of a buzzard as it flies amongst the trees.
Perhaps it is trying to find a suitable nest site? This could be interesting as it is along here that red kites have nested in previous years and they are usually tolerant of each other.
.

.
A more common bird is the robin and they can often be seen, even with it's prominent red breast hidden in the gloom.
Unlike many small birds which from flocks in winter, robins remain territorial and can often be seen chasing each other.

.
And a bird that is always common on the Ock, especially near town, where they are often fed is the mallard. Population numbers are boosted by migrants from Iceland and Scandinavia, but a decline in the wintering population has, perhaps surprisingly, resulted in the BTO classifying it's sat us as amber (http://www.bto.org/birdtrends2010/wcrmalla.shtml):
.

First signs of Spring?

2012-01-05T12:53:00.000-08:00

New Year was spent in the Cotswolds and a walk on New Years Day in Batsford Arboretum revealed some flowers which you would not expect to see till spring...
A snowdrop, getting ready to flower
.

.
And daffodils already in bloom.
.

.
Maybe these are early blooming varieties or maybe spring is starting earlier....

Review of the year - 2011

2011-12-29T14:51:00.000-08:00

As this is probably the last post of the year, it's a chance to look back and reflect on the last 12 months - which have consisted of 48 posts, 131 comments and 3079 photographs (fortunately, only a few of these have featured in the blog).
For what is only a small insignificant river, there have been a suprising variety of subjects - boxing hares (females fending of amorous males): http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/12/festive-plasmodial-slime-mould.html, hobbies chasing swifts and swallows: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/06/annoying-insects.html and slime moulds living bizzare and complex lives (http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/12/festive-plasmodial-slime-mould.html).
So choosing five was always going to be difficult....

Badgers at Wytham Woods: Once in a while, this blog leaves it's native territory and explorer further afield and one of the places it likes to visit is Wytham Woods to the west of Oxford.
Owned by the University of Oxford, it is famous for it's badgers and in spring, members of the public are invited to take part in the badger census (to give the researchers an idea of which setts are active).
This involves sitting silently (and uncomfortably) for several hours watching a designated badger sett: http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/05/badger-census-at-wytham-woods.html
Many don't get to see a badger, but when we did it back in May we saw several and even with a high ISO on a compact camera it is possible to get reasonable pictures.
.

.
Bumblebees: 2011 featured several posts on bumblebees - including one on the seldom seen subject of bumblebee mating: http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/07/perils-of-bumblebee-mating.html
But the best post has to be about Tree Bumblebees:
.

.
First discovered in the UK in 2001, they have spread northwards from the New Forest and it was something special to find one feeding on the lavender in our front garden:
http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/07/tree-bumblebees.html

Sparrowhawk: Garden birds have featured in this blog several times, whether it is under taking the RSPB Garden Birdwatch Survey (http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/01/big-garden-birdwatch.html) or documenting the arguments between Goldfinches on the feeders (http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/12/argumentative-goldfinches.html).
Attracting goldfinches, sparrows, robins and greenfinches into the garden also attracts those who like to feed on them, cats being one, but more welcome visitors are the sparrowhawks. Like this young male seen in October, eating one of the pair of dunnocks that frequented the garden (I'm convinced it was a dunnock, as we only have one visit the garden now):
.

.
The sparrowhawk remained in the garden for 15 minutes, seemingly unconcerned about me taking pictures of it. Until there was hardly anything left of the unfortunate dunnock, but before it left, it allowed me to get my favourite action shot of the year:
.

The original post was back in October: http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/09/return-of-sparrowhawk.html
.
Tree Climbing Water Voles: Another frequent subject of this blog are water voles and they were one of the reasons it was started. The past year has focused on colonies on the Ock http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/05/argumentative-water-voles.html) and at Radley Brook (http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/06/water-voles-of-radley-brook.html)
I have read about water voles climbing trees, but thought it was a somewhat unusual activity until I did a survey for the Wildlife Trust. During it I was suprised to see a water vole swimming along the river, I was more surprised to see it start to climb along one of the branches of an over hanging tree, I was even more surprised as it climbed and climbed until it disappeared out of sight.
.

I kept returning to this part of the river to see them climbing trees, taking two of my favourite pictures of the year providing two posts ( http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/05/water-voles-and-willow-trees.html & http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/04/tree-climbing-water-vole.html)

But as spring turned to summer, they kept away from the trees preferring the sedge and arrowhead that had started to grow.

Otters: Having detected signs of otters back in February 2010, they have been a semi-regular subject on this blog - whether it is finding spraints () or half eaten crayfish (another favourite subject of this blog - http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/08/yet-more-dead-crayfish.html).
So it is perhaps not surprising that the favourite post of this year (or any year) is the sighting of not one, but three otters back in May (http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/05/otters.html & http://www.viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2011/05/more-otter-pictures.html).
Then, during May and June, I saw the otters several times, sometimes it was the three of them (mother and two cubs) and sometimes it was a solitary otter. All sightings were accidental, like this one, taken at 6.30 in the evening when I had gone to look for butterflies and bumblebees.
.

.
What is interesing is most reference books describe otters and shy and nocturnal, but not only have I seen them in daylight, but they seem quite curious and they look up if they here the camera shutter
.

.
And on one occasion one of them swam over for a sniff was less than a metre away.
Unfortunately, my camera focused on the grass in front of it, providing me with the most disappointing picture of the year:
.

It's probable that the cubs have now dispersed and it is unlikely I will see them again next year, and even if I don't, I know I have seen one of the UK's most elusive and fantastic animals and something I will treasure forever.

Many thanks to all who read the blog and especially to those who have left comments, without them it is doubtful if the blog would have lasted this long and without this blog I would never have seen the wonderful array of wildlife that is found on this small river and hopefully I have managed to convey some of these delights.

Thank you, all the best for 2012

Richard

A festive plasmodial slime mould

2011-12-27T02:33:00.000-08:00

On a damp day just before Christmas, there were no water voles, kingfishers and certainly no otters. But there was something which in its own way is just as interesting and has a life cycle more complex and fascinating than most things that are found in the UK:

Attached to a grass stem is a Myxomycete, a plasmodial slime mould:

.
Slime Moulds have featured on this blog before (back in July), but this one is different, identified as Mucilago crustacea - it doesn't have a common name (identified with the help of the excellent Wild About Britain forums):

This is a plasmodial slime mould, it starts life as single celled organisms (called a Myxamoeba), which move slowly consuming fungus spores, dead matter and bacteria.

When conditions are right and two myxamoeba meet, they join to form a zygote, which continues to grow, forming a plasmodium (a multi-nucleus cell), this in turn changes into a fruiting body (sporangium), which produces spores and the life cycle repeats itself:

.
This stage will only last a few days and the fruiting body have almost certainly gone during Christmas itself.

Random Stuff

2011-12-19T13:38:00.000-08:00

Dark nights and mornings, Christmas preparations and not to say horrid winter colds has meant that getting down to the river (or elsewhere) has been virtually impossible recently. Perhaps it's a time to go through some recent pictures which, for whatever reason, did not make it into a post:
.
Buzzard: Buzzards are a frequent subject of this blog, as fortunately at least one pair has been breeding near the river. Although having one fly low overhead is somewhat unusual, especially with the lighting conditions making the patterns on their wings and bodies obvious - as this one seen in late November.
.

.
There are four birds of prey that are often seen by the river, sparrowhawks, kestrels, red kites and buzzards.
What is somewhat interesting is red kites and buzzards share the same food - carrion, rabbits and when times are hard - worms, yet they don't seem to be territorial with each other.
.
Severed Fish Head: There probably aren't too many people in Abingdon who not only get excited about finding a severed fish head, let alone stop and take a photograph of one. But this one, seen along the Ock Valley walk back in October is probably an otter kill.
.

The mother and the two cubs seen back in May would probably have now separated, with the mother driving the cubs out and she seeks to breed again. Could this have been mother? Or one of the cubs trying to set up a territory or a dog otter, living in the nearby Thames, coming into feed and maybe seek out a receptive female?

Kingfisher: The steep banks along the river make the Ock an ideal habitat for kingfishers and it is not uncommon to see the bright flash as one streaks past and they can sometimes be seen sat on a branch watching for fish. But as they are easily disturbed, being able to take a picture of one is unusual. In fact in late November, whilst walking to work, presented one of the few opportunities this year to be close enough to get a picture:

.
As the weather gets harsher and the river gets fuller and starts to freeze, the kingfishers may migrate to warmer parts of the country, where it is easier to find food. Returning in spring to breed again.

Starlings:As regular readers of this blog will know, the starlings at Otmoor are a favourite subject of this blog. It is certainly one of the sights of the county, if not the country with hundreds of thousands of starlings woshing overhead and forming mesmerising shapes.
However, the autumn and winter of 2011 have been very disappointing with starling murmuration consisting of just several hundred, as seen in November

.
There is even a sign saying the starling numbers are significantly down this year, the lack of rain through the summer has meant the reed beds have dried up, as a result predators like foxes make the reeds less secure, so naturally, the starlings have gone on to find safer roosts.

Argumentative Goldfinches

2011-12-10T01:57:00.000-08:00

As winter sets in and the weather gets colder the number of goldfinches in the garden increases, sometimes as many of 30 can be seen competing for the sunflower hearts in the bird feeders.
Most of the times they are harmonious, seemingly not to mind being in close proximity to each other.
.

.
However, occasionally, for apparently no reason, one can take offence at another:

.
A skirmish on the feeder can then often ensue:
.

The skirmish then increases as the birds start to move off the feeder

.
Before taking the argument into the air
.

.
And eventually away from the feeders.
.

.
Any opportunist Goldfinches, watching the argument from a branch nearby, can make the most of the situation:
.

.
With the two trouble makers no where to be seen and the new arrival making most of the opportunity, it seems peace has returned to the feeders, at least for a short while......
.

.
.. That is until a collared dove turns up:
.

Sunday morning wildlife

2011-11-27T04:51:00.000-08:00

A warm sunny late November morning provided the first opportunity for a while to get down to the river and enjoy the wildlife
A nonchalant muntjac just lay by the side of the river, seemingly unconcerned with dog walkers and photographers:
.

.
Growing out of the footbridge, turkey tail fungus:
.

.
Winter migrant red wings have started to feed off the berries on the over hanging bushes:
.

.
And an opportunity, to see three of the four local raptors out hunting within half an hour of each other:
A common buzzard, flying low over the hedges before moving to the field:
.

.
The once extinct in England, but now very common (if slightly fuzzy), red kite:
.

.
And the once common, but sadly seen less frequently , a kestrel:
.

.
Although no good walk would be complete, without some poo, and this looks distinctly like a water vole latrine:
.

Spooky afternoon at Otmoor

2011-11-20T12:00:00.000-08:00

As low lying marshland, otmoor is often shrouded in mist and fog, making it a spooky place to visit on a Sunday afternoon.
Despite this, it was busy, with a lot of people seeking out the short-eared owls which have taken up residency and unlike most owls, they hunt in daylight.
.

.
The owls were easy to see, all you have to do is look in the same direction as a group of birders:
.

.
With it being autumn, the stars of the show are the starlings and this is what a lot of people have come to see, and once again, they put on a breathtaking display, which just can't be captured by a photograph from a compact camera:
.

.
The Otmoor birding blog (http://www.surfbirds.com/blog/OtmoorBirding/) not only has considerably better photographs of the owls, but is an excellent guide to what can be seen at the reserve and I hope to return soon, armed with my DSLR.

Long Tailed Tits

2011-10-31T13:57:00.000-07:00

Along the cycle path between Abingdon and Oxford the hawthorn bushes are now full of berries. Shortly they will be consumed by the redwings and fieldfares which will soon be arriving from Northern Europe.
Until then, the native small birds are making the most of them, goldfinches, blue tits, great tits and this flock of long tailed tits:
.

More signs of autumn

2011-10-23T12:41:00.000-07:00

The recent dark and cold evenings mean the opportunities for wildlife watching on the river get reduced by the day and the chances of seeing water vole, an otter or a kingfisher become virtually impossible (although the chances of seeing an otter are very low at the best of times). Even so, the occasional muntjac deer stumble into view - even if it requires a high ISO and slow shutter speed.
.

However, autumn does provide other opportunities for the wildlife enthusiast in Oxfordshire. There are many sites which are just abundent in Fungus, including what seems to be a parasol mushroom growing at Harcourt Arboretum.
.

.
It's not just woods where fungus can be found, this 'Dead Man's Fingers' is growing in our garden. It can be differentiated from the similar looking 'Dead Moll's Fingers' by bending the stem, which breaks (rather than bouncing back).
Whilst a lot of fungus only produce their fruiting bodies in autumn, this one can be found all year at the base of dead wood, but it has taken the seasonal clearance of the garden to find it.
.

.
Over at Otmoor, the starling murmurations are just starting and although they are not yet near the vast numbers that can congregate there, it is still an impressive sight on a cold autumn evening:
.

Views of Brownsea Island

2011-10-18T14:08:00.000-07:00

Situated in Poole Harbour and owned by the National Trust, Brownsea Island, only two miles across it is home to wildlife that just can't be found in such proximity in the rest of the country.
There is a breeding population of sika deer - they have not established themselves like the more common roe & muntjac deer and can be quite hard to find on the island (apparently, they wait for the day trippers to leave and then congregate by the church).
.

A completely different creature can be found on only one wall on the island and is only 5mm long. The snail Papillifera bidens (it has no common name) is common in southern europe, yet can only be found in one other location in the UK - clivedon house in Buckinghamshire

It is believed it was accidently introduced by a previous owner who imported statues from Greece.

Whilst the island is owned by the National Trust, half of it is leased to the Dorest Wildlife Trust who manage the lagoons, which are a haven for wading birds. Including avocets (the symbol for the RSPB). Once extinct in the UK as a breeding bird, it has now reestablished itself (there are now 800 breeding birds) although feeding sites are still scarce

But the animal which Brownsea is famous for - and which most people come to see - is the red squirrel. Extinct from the south of England and struggling elsewhere, there is a stable population of about 250 animals - helped by the lack of prediators and the absence of the grey squirrel - and autumn is the best time to see them as the trees start to loose leaves and as they bury nuts:

Moorhens

2011-10-06T13:00:00.000-07:00

Moorhens are so common on the rivers in Abingdon that they are often taken for granted, yet they can be somewhat difficult to photograph, they quickly sense the slightest movement and scamper into the undergrowth.
.

Even though they a favourite food of otters, it has been a good breeding year with several young moorhen now finding their independence.
Perhaps one of the reasons they have survived is when it starts to get dark they group together and slowly climb up the over hanging willow trees, safely out of the way of any passing otter.
.

.
Maybe the moorhens shouldn't be too complacent - apparently otters can climb trees as well: http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/gloucestershire/hi/people_and_places/nature/newsid_8468000/8468065.stm

Return of the Sparrowhawk

2011-09-28T14:16:00.000-07:00

Sparrowhawks are infrequent visitors to our garden, the previous visitor has been an adult male - with a grey back and an orange front. But this one is different:
.

.
The brown back and brown front indicate it could be a young male, maybe even raised by the mature male which lasted visited the garden back in October last year (http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/10/birds-of-prey.html).
.

.
Judging the pile of feathers, it seems to have successfully mastered the skill of hunting and from the remains, it seems it's victim is a house sparrow or a dunnock.
What is interesting is the complete lack of bones and internal organs, just feathers - the sparrowhawk had consumed it all.
.

.
What is also surprising was nonchalant it appeared, occasionally looking up as it devoured it's unfortunate victim for several minutes and then giving a glimpse of some seldom seen behaviour before leaving:
.

Views of the Fal

2011-09-25T05:26:00.000-07:00

Rising near St Austell, the river Fal is one of numerous rivers which flow into the Fal estuary in Cornwall and is an idylic place to explore on an early autumn holiday.
The ferry from Truro to Falmouth (and St. Mawes) is an excellent way to explore the river system, with it's creeks and sail boats.
.

.
The south of Cornwall is famous for it's gardens, including Trelissick - owned and managed by the national trust since 1955. Where the banks of the Fal provide the ideal habitat for the rare shrubs which grow there).

.
The river fal is the third deepest natural harbour in the world, as a consequence it is has become a rather strange barometer of the worlds economic climate. Huge ships (up to a 100,000 ton) are mothballed here, either awaiting to be recommissioned, scrapped or sold.
The current fashion is for ferries, here two are moored by the gardens.

Another passenger ferry provides a somewhat strange view from the Smugglers Inn - it also obscures the view of the only tea plantation in the UK. Which the inn servers along with that staple of Cornish holidays (apart from pasties), the cream tea.

Natural History Museum at Tring

2011-09-07T14:24:00.000-07:00

Located only a few miles from College Lake is the Natural History Museum at Tring. It was built for and still houses the collection of Lionel Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild.
Walter Rothschild was an eccentric, in the only way a Victorian from a very wealthy banking family could be. Having failed to make the grade in the family's bank he dedicated his life to amassing an extraordinary collection of dead animals, including:

2000 mammals
2000 birds
2,000,000 butterflies and moths
300,000 beetles
300,000 bird skins
200,000 bird eggs.

The collection was stored in a private museum (paid for by the family) - the Walter Rothschild Zoological Museum - and bequeathed the museum to the country just before his death in 1937. It is now managed by Natural History Museum and has free entry for the public.
Spread over five floors the museum is a jaw dropping monument to one man's obsession with killing and stuffing animals.
.

.
Some of these seem to be rather poorly done, rather than looking like apex predators, the lion and polar bear just look like giant soft toys:
.

In his book, A short history of nearly everything, Bill Bryson describes the sad story of the lesser koa finch, a small Hawaiian bird; only one has ever been seen and this was when it was shot for Rothschild's collection.
The finch, along with the majority of Rothschild's bird collection, was sold to the American Museum of Natural History in order to pay off a woman who had been blackmailing him for years. Even so, most of his British bird collection remains at Tring, including this family of grey partridges:
.

.
It's easy to be critical of Rothschild and is obsession with killing and stuffing animals, certainly the mountain gorilla would be laughable if wasn't so tragic. But employed skilled zoologists, entomologists and ornithologists who helped him catalogue the collection, and in the process discover over 5000 new species, and published 1,700 scientific books.

Even today, the museum plays an important role for illustrators of field guides and for helping to identify recently discovered birds, like the Indian warbler.

College Lake

2011-09-05T13:02:00.000-07:00

Situated on the Buckinghamshire and Hertforshire border is College Lake, a former chalk quarry, now the BBOWT flagship reserve.
When quarrying was ceased in the 1980 the pit was allowed to flood, forming a habitat for summer breeding birds and winter migrants:
.

.
The new lottery funded visitors centre now features a cafe, a display of the mammoth tusks found when the quarry was active and best of all - the chemical toilets have been replaced.
The centre features a splendid living roof of local plant life (even if the lawns are not yet complete) and expansive windows to enjoy the lakes which make up the reserve.
.

.
The two mile walk around the lake is unchanged and the sheep continue to graze the reserve in order to create wildflower meadows on the chalk banks surrounding the lakes:
.

.
Old mining equipment, once used to dig out the quarry has, become a display, looking almost like an installation of modern art
.

.
College Lake makes a great walk in late summer / early autumn, but there isn't much wildlife about - the summer breeding birds have mostly gone and the winter migrants have not yet arrived. Although there was a kestrel, a couple of woodpeckers and a flock of lapwings, somewhat hard to see in this picture.
.

.
College Lake will be a more hospitable in the winter, rather than freezing in one of the hides, it will be nice to be sipping a hot chocolate in the warm and watching the birds.

Last of the summer water voles?

2011-08-29T12:31:00.000-07:00

As summer gradually becomes autumn, the water vole mating season slowly grinds to halt and as they are no longer seeking mates or guarding territories they can be harder to see, especially as the days are now starting to get shorter.
So it is always a pleasure to see them, like this one, making the most of the arrowhead whilst it still grows.
.

Yet more dead crayfish

2011-08-24T10:30:00.000-07:00

Regular readers of this blog would be aware of the occasional post featuring dead and half eaten signal crayfish (identified by the red claws).
Certainly I seem to be building an interesting collection of photographs of these mutilated crustaceans (I wonder if there is a name for this?).Tthe most recent being found during August along the Ock Valley walk:
This one was found earlier in the month, have only lost the end of the tail.
.

The other was found on Saturday and suffered a very violent and frenzied death - having a claw torn off, it's lower half removed (probably eaten) and lost part of it's head.
.

Whilst the death of the first could have several explanations, this one almost certainly is the result of an otter kill.

.
The non native signal crayfish has committed a lot of damage on UK wildlife - eating fish eggs in the thousand, climbing up river banks to eat young kingfishers in their borrow and driving the native crayfish to the brink of extinction.
But maybe the return of otters to UK rivers (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-14557381) has been assisted by this alien (and obviously tasty) invader.

Signs of Autumn?

2011-08-17T14:16:00.000-07:00

Although meteorological calendar has autumn starting in September, there is a definite feeling that the seasons are already changing. Not only are the days getting shorter, it seems to get dark at 8pm now and there is a definite chill in the morning.
There are more obvious signs that summer has come to an end. The lavenders in the garden have lost their flowers and as a result there are no more bumblebeees on them. Having existed for for only the spring and summer, most bumblebee nests will now be collapsing and will no longer be requiring them.
.

.
The blackthorn along the old canal, once in bloom in spring has now produced it's fruit:
.

.
The barley growing in the fields is south Abingdon has now been harvested, leaving just stubble:
.

.
This impressive caterpillar may appear to be a symbol of spring, but it is actually looking to borrow into the leaf litter. Where it will pupate and see out winter, before hatching into an adult hawkmoth next summer.
.

Still with autumn commencing there are other things to look forward to, the appearance of impressive fungus, the starlings forming their murmation and the return of Doctor Who.

Rabbits

2011-08-12T12:04:00.000-07:00

Introduced by the Normans when they invaded back in 1066, rabbits are now a ubiquitous sight in the meadows and fields throughout Britain:

By the 1950's rabbits reached an estimate population of nearly 100,000,000 and were considered a severe pest for farmers, so myxomatosis was released. Having the desired affect of reducing the rabbit population by 99%.

This massive reduction in the rabbit population had various side affects on other species.

Perhaps not surprising, there was an initial increase in plant variety, but this was eventually replaced by scrub. Some invertebrates - snails, marbled white butterflies and burnet moths benefited from the increased grass, yet others - adonis and large blue butterflies suffered, as well as sand lizards and ground nesting birds through the loss of habitat.
Surprisingly, foxes were not drastically affected, as they changed to catching voles, but this had the side affect of decreasing owl populations who now had less voles to catch.
Other predators of rabbits- stoats and polecats - suffered the largest decline in numbers as did red kites and buzzards
Eventually rabbit populations built up an immunity to myxomatosis (although there are still small outbreaks) and the population has returned to an estimated several million and can be seen dashing into the undergrowth near the Ock:
.

.
Not all rabbits are as quick and as rabbit numbers have increased, so have their predators:
.

References:
Collins complete guide to British animals
Mammals of the British isles (Mammal Society)

In search of sundew.

2011-08-03T14:47:00.000-07:00

Whilst most plants gain their nutrients from the soil via their roots, others have have evolved to obtain theirs from other sources - consuming insects.
Such insectivorous plants are the staple of wildlife documentaries, so it somewhat of a surprise to find they can be found only of couple of miles from Abingdon.
Growing in the fen at Parsonage Moor nature reserve is sundew. A fascinating plant that secretes a glue from tentacles on it's leaves, which intices insects (which are fooled into thinking it is nectar) but instead of feeding, the unfortunate insect is stuck to the leaves, which slowly fold in as the insect is digested.
Parsonage Moor is part of the Cothill Fens network of nature reserves which are fed by a series of springs, these feed into the Ock via Sandford Brook. And trying to locate such a small, scarce inconspicuous plant in such an environment is somewhat of a challenge - the fen is covered with tall reeds in which there are small pools where the sundew grow:
.

.
Although there are paths running through the fen, there is a risk of damaging the rare plants and insects which also inhabit the fen, as well as accidentally stumbling into some deep water or scaring the ponies which are used to graze the fen to control the scrub:
.

.
Fortunately another site exists in Oxfordshire where finding and photographing these remarkable plants is a lot more straightforward - the Oxford Universitry Botanic Gardens, where there is an entire greenhouse devoted to insectivorous plants, including Sundew:
.

Slime Moulds

2011-07-21T13:42:00.000-07:00

Although not as dazzling as a kingfisher, as elegant as an orchid or impressive as an otter, slime moulds are possibly the most fascinating organism to feature in this blog.
Classification depends upon preferred text book, favourite biologist or wikipedia page of choice. Having previously been classified as fungus, recent DNA analysis has placed in a different taxonomic kingdom - protozoa.
In the initial phase, slime moulds are single celled microscopic organisms, consuming bacteria and fungus as they move very slowly over dead wood. When they encounter other similar cells they fuse together to form the plasmodium stage, which is still able to move at a speed of 1mm per hour and what looks like the plasmodium stage of a Lycogala terrestre (common name is apparently Wolf's Milk) on a willow tree along the Thames path:
.

.
The plasmodium stage only lasts a few hours, when it runs out of food it releases it's spores:
.

References:
Collins complete guide to Birtish mushrooms and toadstools
University of California Museum of Paleontology: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/protista/slimemolds.html
Universe Review: http://universe-review.ca/R10-18-slimemoulds.htm

The perils of bumblebee mating

2011-07-13T13:33:00.000-07:00

As featured in a previous post, now summer is here, male and queen bumblebees are now on the wing.
As the bumblebee nest reaches the end of its life queens and males are produced. The males hatch from unfertilized eggs usually laid by the queen, but sometimes worker bees will produce eggs that will turn into males (if the queen has died or if it is a large nest). The males fly around in what is called a circuit, using scent drops to attempt to attract a queen.
Although individual males and queens are often seen separately, it is unusual to see them in the act of mating. These two were seen along the cycle path to Oxford, near Radley Lakes:
.

.
At first glance they could be red tailed bumblebees (Bombus Lapidarius), but the dark wings on the female and the lack of yellow stripe on the thorax off the male mean they are more likely to be the cuckoo variety (Bombus rupestris):
.

.
For most animals, the act of mating is often short - during this time they are open to predation, they are not feeding and they could be seeking out another mate. But for bumblebees it is an arduous activity (certainly for the queen) and may last for 45 minutes. After mating the male injects the female with 'bung' preventing her from mating (a chemical chastity belt) and it will be the last time she mates. Unlike male honey bees (which die after mating), male bumblebees are free to mate again.
As the queen is weighed down by a male (and sometimes two) she is unable to fly, which can put them in harm's way, like these buff-tailed bumblebees (Bombus terrestris) seen on the footpath along the Ock Valley Walk:
.

.
They were then moved aside to prevent them being crushed (seemingly unfazed about being picked up by a stick and a leaf):
.

.
Unfortunately a different fate awaited this pair along Mill Road, near the Ock, which seem to have spent so long mating that they were not aware of an on coming car:
.

.
References:
Field Guide to Bumblebees of Great Britain & Ireland: Mike Edwards & Martin Jenner
Bumblebees: Christopher O'Toole
Wild About Britain

Finding water voles at will.

2011-07-08T11:58:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago, this blog was featured In the fantastic Abingdon Blog, with Backstreeter making the comment:
.
"Images [of water voles] got better and better until now the blogger seems able to find them at will".

Although not quite at will, there are at least five water vole populations on the Ock and during spring it is not too difficult to find them - the females are establishing terrorities and the bank side vegetation has yet to recover from winter:
.

.
Now spring has become summer, what was once barren river bank is now covered in nettles, grass and unfortunately himalyan balsam. So it becomes harder to find signs of water voles:
.

.
But if you know where to look, it is still possible to catch a glimpse of a water vole feeding, sometimes in a willow tree:
.

.
But you need to be quick, as they don't always stay on the branches for long.....
.

Tree Bumblebees

2011-07-04T14:33:00.000-07:00

Since 1960 there has been a decline of 60% in the population in the 25 species of UK bumblebees. A contributory source is possibly the 90% loss of habitat since 1930's (source Bumblebee Conservation Trust).
Despite this, there is one bumblebee species that has an increasing population - the tree bumblebee (Bombus hypnorum).
Having arrived from Europe, it was first discovered in the UK in 2001 in the New Forest and has been spreading north ever since. Even so, it is a pleasure to find a female worker in our garden, feeding with the other bees on the always popular lavender:
.

.
Unlike most bumblebees they are easy to identify - with a distinctive brown thorax, black abdomen and white tail:
.

.
Whilst most bumblebees nest at ground level (preferring old mammal burrows), tree bumblebees prefer to nest above ground, finding bird nest boxes the ideal location - perhaps explaining part of it's success.
The Bumblebee Conservation Trust is recording sightings to see how tree bumblebees are spreading throughout the UK in an on-line survey: http://www.bumblebeeconservation.org.uk/tree_bee.htm

Ock Meadow

2011-07-02T04:47:00.000-07:00

In June last year, the Ock Meadow was in bloom as a wildflower meadow:
.

.
Due to the cuts in the set aside budget and the increase in commodity prices, it has become economical to farm the land again, so in November it was ploughed:
.

.
Now, 12 months later and the field is full of barley:
.

Weekend Bumblebees

2011-06-26T10:16:00.000-07:00

The hot weather this weekend has been an ideal opportunity to look for bumblebees and the wild flowers that grow alongside the river are perfect location.
Trying to identify bumblebees can be difficult as not only do several species have the same colour, but the same species can have different colours - so clarifications and corrections are most welcome.
This one is a female worker, probably a white tailed bumblebee (Bombus lucorum) -although garden bumblebees look very similar.
.

.
Although a nunesance in a lot of lawns, the flowering clover is particular attractive to bumblebees especially this female common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum):
.

.
With it's black body and red tail, this female worker is probably a red tailed bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius):
.

Although this bee has different colours, it is probably the same species as the red tailed above, but this is a male.

This bumblebee is probably a queen, as it is a lot larger than the males and workers. The red tail would suggest that it is also a red tailed bumblebee. But the dark wings could indicate that it is actually a cuckoo bumblebee (Bombus rupestris):

Lesser stag beetles

2011-06-23T12:18:00.000-07:00

At first glance, this rather impressive insect could be a female stag beetle. It's the same size - almost 3cm long, has similar jaws and almost identical wing cases and thorax.
.

.
The stage beetle has three spines on the middle segment of it's leg, yet this one only has one. Which according toe the Collins Complete Guide to British Insects identify it is a lesser stag beetle.
.

.
This one was on our patio doors, so it could have recently emerged from our log pile, as they spend up to four years as grubs, feeding on dead wood before pupating. It can then spend up to a year it's adult form as it seeks a mate.
Another encounter with a stag beetle and the fate of this one is less certain. Seen on the Thames path, it has either been attacked by a bird, or more likely, squashed by one of the many walkers who use the path.
.

More from the water voles at Radley Brook

2011-06-16T12:45:00.000-07:00

Most lunch breaks spent watching water voles usually involve half an hour watching an ignored apple core slowly going brown:.
.

.
Sometimes, a water vole may appear then disappear into the reed beds, offering only the slightest of glimpses as it carries of it's prize:
.

.Yet on days like today, they sit and eat the apple core in front of you:.
.Before, once again, returning to the reeds with the apple core:.

Annoying insects?

2011-06-12T10:06:00.000-07:00

Mayfly have featured in this blog several times, having spent over a year as larvae, eating algae those that have survived being eaten by fish, crayfish and dragonfly larvae emerge from the river in late spring and become adults. With no mouth or stomach closeup they appear almost alien.
.

.
The e lucky one ones will live for a day during which they will attract a mate, reproduce, lay eggs and die:
Whilst, the unlucky ones just become part of the food chain. Having survived them as nymphs, adult mayfly are a target for adult dragonflies and damselflies, who find the males easy prey as they bounce up and down in the air trying to attract a mate.
.

.
These along, with the mayfly are prey for swifts who have returned to Abingdon after spending the winter in Africa to raise their young. Darting above the river at high speed, making the most of this abundance of winged insects (making them rather tricky to photograph).
.

.
The swifts - along with the damselflies, dragonflies and the unfortunate mayfly - are in turn prey to a small bird the size of the kestrel with the flying pattern of a swift; these are hobbies that have also returned from Africa and on occasions can be seen darting above the Ock:.

Although when swarming in large numbers they can be an annoyance on a early summer walk, the mayfly in their larval and adult forms are probably one of the most important creatures on the river and without them we wouldn't have the dragonflies, birds, fish and otters that make the Ock such an enjoyable place to walk.

The water voles of Radley Brook

2011-06-06T11:28:00.000-07:00

A small stream in North East Abingdon, Radley Brook has featured several times in this blog. Unfortunately, due to this proximity to the Thames, it is ideal hunting territory for mink, who have been seen this year in the nearby lagoon, making it probably the most fragile water vole colony in Abingdon.

The thick and tall sedge can make it virtually impossible to see if the water voles are still hanging on or if the colony is now extinct.

A good way to see if they are still present is to throw down a small apple core and see if any thing takes it.... after a month of waiting a water vole finally appears and it seems to be a juvenile, so not only are the water voles still present, but they are breeding.

Watching water voles whilst listening to the nearby warblers and the occasional cuckoo, make it one of the best places to spend a lunch break in Abingdon.

Roe Deer

2011-05-23T11:39:00.000-07:00

Of the six species of deer in the UK, only two are native. The largest, red deer, can be found in herds in Scotland, East Anglia and the far south of England (like the new forest).
The other, roe deer, are more widespread and live a moor singular existence. Being nocturnal or crepuscular (active at dawn or dusk) they can be hard to see, so it is an impressive sight to find one starting at you from a field of barley in south Abingdon.
.

They are suprisingly brave and don't seem to mind people taking photographs of them, but a suddern sound or movement can send them leaping across a field:

Like red deer, the males have antlers. The lack of them mean this one is probably a female.

More otter pictures

2011-05-21T11:47:00.000-07:00

It's not everyday you seen one of the UK's most elusive and hard to photograph animals, so here is a few more pictures of the three otters seen last week.

Bubbles in the water indicate that there is obviously something big swimming in the river:

A couple of nimble bodies break the water before diving below:
.

.
Then, possible sensing someone on the bank, the otters show themselves to have a look:

Otters!!

2011-05-17T14:06:00.000-07:00

Otters have featured several times in this blog, whether it is indicting them as the culprit of a crayfish mutilation; hypothesing on five-toe footprints in the snow or analysing the contents of their droppings.
It is one of the new year's resolutions of this blog to try and see an otter in the wild. Whilst photographing water voles one evening, there was a commotion amongst the nearby mallards and not one, but three otters showed themselves.
Having watched them swimming and diving below the water, two cubs (or puppies or kits depending upon noun preference) obliged for a photograph and stuck their heads above the water - photographs are dark and grainy as a high ISO (3200) and no flash was used.
.

.
And the mother who could obviously detect my presence on the river bank came for a closer look:.
.

.
Otters are a controversial subject at the moment (although not as much as badgers). Some, like the Environment Agency, view their return as an indication that British rivers are returning to their former health.
Others, having seen rivers adversely affected by poor management, pollution and the introduction of invasive species like the signal crayfish (who eat fish eggs in vast numbers), view the return of a top predator, which can eat 15% of its own weight each day, as yet another contributer to the decline in numbers of fish and other wildlife, especially aquatic birds.
Yet from conversations I've had alongside the river it transpires there have been otters on the Ock a lot longer than this blog has been in existence, and apparently last year there were three cubs.
So maybe, the Environment Agency's predictions are correct and the river has reached a natural stability, even if some of the damage cannot be undone, and given the otters fondness for crayfish, maybe they can even help the situation.
Two new year's resolutions done (badgers and otters). The next one on the list: a seemingly insignificant, hard to identify and very rare insect.

Update: In an interesting comment below, Anne says "I've read that otters may keep the numbers of introduced mink down".
The relationship between mink and otters is a somewhat complex subject. Otters can attack and drive mink out their territory, but scats and spraints have been found together, indicating that mink can change their behaviour to avoid the otters.
None the less, mink were once seen on the Ock and as far as I'm aware there haven't been any sightings for a few years. So maybe breeding otters have, as Anne suggests, have had an affect and could be partially responsible for recent water vole resurgence.

Water voles and willow trees

2011-05-16T13:39:00.000-07:00

The water vole conservation handbook [1998, Strachan) mentions that 227 different species of plants have been recorded as being eaten by water voles. The ones that live live along the Ock usually prefer sedge in spring and water crowfoot & arrowhead in summer.
However, a colony found whilst undertaking a BBOWT water vole survey seem to have a predilection for eating willow leaves.
.

.
Maybe it's because there is a lack of sedge in this part of the river due to over the overhanging willow trees, but they certainly have the dexterity for it, as none of fallen off yet.
.

.
If they don't fancy willow, then at least one enterprising water vole has found a way to use a willow branch to get at those hard to reach nettle heads:
.

Argumentative water voles

2011-05-08T12:21:00.000-07:00

A remarkable weekend watching water voles - baby water voles, tree climbing water voles and as shown in this series of pictures, argumentative water voles (sometimes it's a wonder they ever breed):

It's good to see water voles have made it into the national press recently, especially when they use the fantastic Terry Whittaker pictures (see blog link on the right):

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1379071/Water-voles-One-Britains-endangered-species-play.html

Thanks to Rachel for providing the link.

Badger census at Wytham Woods

2011-05-07T07:17:00.000-07:00

The past week has been the annual badger census at Wytham Woods, where volunteers are are split into groups and allocated a sett, with the objective of counting the number of badgers seen at the same time.
Ours was at the base of a hill - which meant we had a good a view and didn't have to worry about our scent - whilst badgers have bad eye sight, but very good sense of smell.
.

.
We didn't have too wait too long for the first badger, seen trundling in along a well worn path to the set. Over the next 2.5 hours we had 7 sightings, but only two badgers were seen at the same time as we may have seen the same badger on several occasions. We were lucky, those who studied a nearby sett didn't see a thing.
Using a compact camera (no shutter) and a high ISO setting to avoid using a flash it was possible to get some photographs (even if they are somewhat grainy) without disturbing the badger
.

There are about 250 badgers at Wytham in a multitude of setts, so this census gives the public an opportunity to see the badgers and learn more about them and for the researchers to understand the badger activity at individual sets - which sets have increasing and decreasing populations, allowing them to focus their research.

None of the badgers at Wytham have BovineTB (they are tested four times a year) but the biggest affect on mortality on these badgers is cars - the A45 and the A420 run nearby.
Fighting amongst the badgers can how long they live as many die from wounds infected wounds which occurred whilst fighting.
Last years harsh winter has affected last years cubs and this years very dry spring has made it a lot harder for them to find their favourite foods - snails, slugs and particularly earth worms.

As a result, the average life span of a badger at Wytham is four years, the same as a great tit.

Low flying vultures!!

2011-05-04T12:48:00.000-07:00

There are not many places in the English countryside where you have to duck to avoid being hit in the head by a low flying vulture, but Andover in Hampshire is just such a place, as it is home to the Hawk Conservancy Trust and is a very entertaining place to visit on a long bank holiday weekend.
During the summer they have three flying demonstrations, including 'Valley of the Eagles', which includes a low flying display by a flock of hooded vultures:
.

.
Through using these displays the trust is bringing attention to the huge worldwide decline in vultures, especially the Oriental White Backed Vulture that has suffered a 97% population decline since the 1990's due to the anti-worming drug diclofenac making cattle corpses toxic.
At another flying display there was a chance to see barn owls up close, a bird I have only managed to glimpse on the north Norfolk coast and at Otmoor.
British birds of prey are also suffering, mostly due to habitat loss and as well as nurturing damaged and sick birds, they have a fund-a-bird scheme, with the view to increase the number of artificial nesting boxes.
.

.
The star of the 'Woodland Owls and Hawks' was Nigel, the white faced scops owl:
.

.
The trust is certainly providing an entertaining and educational day as well as assisting in reducing the world wide decline in birds of prey, but there is also a somewhat melancholic sight, to see what is probably Britain's most magnificent bird - the white tailed sea eagle - in an enclosure.
.

Dandelions

2011-05-02T12:00:00.000-07:00

Maybe it is because they are so common or most of us view them as weeds but It is unlikely that people will travel miles to see them and it is even more unlikely that the Daily Telegraph will write an article on the best british dandelion fields.

Which is shame, as the ladygrove fields and meadows have been a sea of yellow and is now becoming a sea of white as the flowers turn to seed:

Their attractive flower, is actually made up of hundreds of very small flowers (called a florets):

Eventually it becomes perhaps one of the most entertaining of plants (after the insectivorous) as flower turns into seed which are then dispersed upon the wind:

Dandelions are not just common to the UK and Europe, but can be found naturally in North America and Mike has some great macro shots of Dandelions on his Slugyard blog:

http://slugyard.com/2011/04/flowers-for-flies/

Bluebell woods

2011-04-28T12:32:00.000-07:00

Individual bluebells are attractive flowers, but they are at their most impressive when seen in their millions in an ancient woodland.
Although these woodlands have decreased by 50% fortunately for those of us in Oxfordshire there are several places where we can appreciate this natural wonder:
Wytham Woods: Featured previously in this blog, the woods to the west of Oxford are owned by the University of Oxford for research, but permit holders can explore them and enjoy the bluebells that seem to appear around every corner where there are beech and oak trees):
.

Harcourt Arboretum: Also owned by the University (and requires a small fee to enter) features a large collection of native and non native plants and trees. Recently, a lot of work has gone into recreating a coppiced woodland, where the bluebells now flourish (this picture was taken in 2009):
.

Bradbury Hill: Near Faringdon and owned by the National Trust, is said to be one of the best bluebell woods in the country and is a very impressive sight (if you don't mind large numbers of male St Mark's flies dancing up and down) and an ideal opportunity for a four shot panorama:
.

To find other bluebell woods in the UK, the woodland trust have produced a useful web site (although Wytham and Harcourt don't make it on the list):
http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/en/visit-woods/Pages/get-involved.aspx

Bluebells

2011-04-27T02:04:00.000-07:00

There are two types of bluebell in the UK, the native 'british' bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) and the spanish bluebell (Hyacinthoides hispanica). The latter was introduced into the UK in the 17th century and is now classified as an invasive species.
Although initially they look similar, there are several obvious differences between them:
Stalks: The native bluebell has a curved stalk, whilst the spanish one is straight.
Flowers: On the native bluebell, the flowers are on one side of the stalk, whilst the spanish ones have flowers on both sides of the stalk
Colour: The native bluebell is a darker shade of blue
Scent: Native bluebells produce a scent, whilst the spanish bluebells don't.
The difference can be seen when comparing a bluebell growing along the ock valley walk to one growing at Wytham Woods:

The problem is not the spanish bluebell replacing or out competing the native ones but the cross pollination resulting hybridizing.
As the bluebells in our garden have traits of both bluebells, they are probably hybrids.
.

More signs of spring

2011-04-20T14:10:00.000-07:00

With temperatures reaching 25 degrees and rainfall becoming a distant memory, it seems spring is turning into an early summer (although with a long holiday approaching, that is almost certainly going to change).
Alongside the Thames, the warblers have returned from their winter migration to Africa and are now in full song, including this blackcap lurking in a willow tree, it seems to have a browner cap, which could make it a female:
.

.
Blackcaps aren't the only warbler, unfortunately a lot of them look the same, but at a guess this may be a willow warbler:
.

.
As mentioned in a previous spring post, the orange tips are in full flight and taking a photograph of a male is very hard as never seem to settle. Unlike the females whilst they do settle are harder to identify - as they don't have orange tips:
.

.
Butterflies aren't the only insect to emerge from hibernation, this queen buff tailed bumblebee is seeking out a nest site:
.

.
And whilst red kites can now be seen all year round (it was only a few years ago when they couldn't be seen at all) the bare leaves of spring mean they too can be viewed seeking out nest sites, like this one on the Ock Valley Walk:
.

You must have a lot of patience

2011-04-16T03:55:00.000-07:00

The title of this post is inspired by a comment made by Rachel to a previous post of mine on water voles.
Whilst it does not require too much patience to see a water vole at the moment on the river Ock, it does require some more to get try and get some photographs.
For the past week I have been getting up at 6.30am and sitting by the river in the cold and being bitten by a multitude of small flying insects, with the best results shown below:
.

Swans

2011-04-13T10:43:00.000-07:00

There are three types of swan that can be seen in Britain, two of these (the bewick and whooper) are winter migrants and breed in the artic circle during winter and when they do arrive, they are seldom seen in this part of the country.
The only breeding swan that breeds in Britain is the mute swan and a pair have taken up residency on the Ock:
.

.
Like other swans, they pair for life (although rare, divorce can happen) and these are probably the same pair that have nested before on the Ock.
As they glide up and down the river, they present an ideal photo opportunity:
.

.
Although they look tranquil, they are very aggressive birds - one of this pair attacked a water vole as it swam across the river. So if they intend to build a nest near the ladygrove meadow it will be interesting to see what the local dogs make of them.

Signs of Spring

2011-04-10T12:47:00.000-07:00

With temperatures reaching 20 degrees, spring has definitely sprung and it is evident in north east Abingdon by the Thames (although the water voles in Radley Brook are currently evasive, assuming they are still there).
Blossom has formed on the Hawthorn and Blackthorn alongside the Thames Path
.

Butterflies are aplenty with many male orange tips patrolling their territory, but they never seem to settle as are seeking out receptive females, making them almost impossible to photograph.
Unlike the peacock butterflies who, when settled, try and disguise themselves by keeping their wings closed, showing their dark underside:
.

.
If that fails, they can open their wings to show their distinctive eye shaped markings to try and frighten any predators.
.

.
Other butterflies include the speckled wood, which have spent winter as either a caterpillar or chrysalis. The one pictured below is probably a male, basking in the spring sun to maintain a consistent body temperature.
.

.
The coma butterfly has the distinctly shaped wings, which when folded look like leaves. Having hibernated over winter in their adult form, they are looking to mate. Having paired, the adults lay their eggs and die shortly afterwards.
For those interested in british butterflies I recommend the excellent 'Butterflies of Britain & Ireland' by Thomas & Lewington
.

.
Meanwhile in south Abingdon, there are more signs of spring - frogspawn in our pond:
.

Tree climbing water vole

2011-04-05T13:14:00.000-07:00

I have heard that water voles can climb trees, but I have never seen it - until this evening:

More water voles

2011-03-31T12:06:00.000-07:00

Now the water vole breeding season has commenced, along with more clement weather and the the water side vegetation having not yet started to grow, it is probably the best time of the year to observe water voles.
Between 6.30 and 7.30 in the evening is as good as time as any to observe them, as they swim across the river...
.

Or lurk just inside their burrows...
.

.
Or just lurk on the river bank....
.

Or lurk in the river itself....
.

Or being argumentative with each other, possibly this is a female fending off the unwelcome advances of a male.

Cats..

2011-03-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

Several posts on this blog have discussed introduced species - mink, rabbits, himalayan balsam and recently grey squirrels. But there is one introduced animal that is more likely to divide opinion than the domestic cat (Felius Catus):
.

.
It is believed that cats were domesticated by the ancient Egyptians and originated in the middle east 100,000 years ago, possibly arriving in the UK with roman settlers. Since then they have become a regular part of our lifestyle. Their excellent hunting skills have helped humans deal with vermin, but now that predatory skill is possibly affecting wildlife. The RSPB estimate they are responsible for 275,000,000 animal deaths each year:
.

.
Certainly when we were growing up, one of our cats had a habit of leaving dead and dieing animals on our beds - maybe they were a gift or maybe she wanted to teach us how to hunt, whatever the reason, there were seldom birds in our garden.
Interestingly, the RSPB research states that despite thelarge number of animal casualties attributed to cats they do not affect the long term animal populations, as the mortality rates of bird and small mammal is so high that most of them would have perished from other causes - disease, lack of food, predated by other animals - for more information: http://www.rspb.org.uk/advice/gardening/unwantedvisitors/cats/birddeclines.aspx

Even so, cats are a frequent sight along the ock and must have some affect on environment, this one for example is investigating what looks like a water vole burrow.
.

A tale of two squirrels

2011-03-19T00:16:00.000-07:00

A common mammal along the ock valley walk is the grey squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis):
.

..
Introduced by our Victorian ancestors, they have become widespread and are an entertaining sight in most parks and gardens (this picture was taken in the Abbey Gardens in Abingdon).
But they are also seen as an eccological disaster (like most alien species) and held responsible for declines in dormouse numbers - by out competing them for food; killing ancient trees - hormonally charged males striping the bark, killing the tree; and reducing the song bird population - by eating eggs and fledglings (although research last year by the BTO seems to refute this: http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8448000/8448807.stm)
However, it's most evident victim is it's native british cousin - the red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). By out competing for food, habitat and spreading the parapox virus (fatal to red squirrels but grey squirrels are immune) the population has been reduced to 120,000 (compared to 6 million greys) with a majority being in Scotland and only fragmented populations in England - Thetford Forest (Norfolk), Brownsea Island (Dorest) and the Isle of White - where this picture was taken at the start of the year:
.

First water vole of 2011

2011-03-14T13:17:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Kate's success in finding water vole feeding signs and latrines (http://staggsbrook.blogspot.com/2011/03/when-voles-grow-wings.html) and the nice weather this morning, I took the opportunity of a walk to work to look for evidence of water voles on the lower ock near ladygrove field and was pleased to see what seems like signs of feeding:
.

.
Then to prove these are feeding signs, a water vole appeared:
.

.
It's always pleasing to see that these small creatures have survived what has been a harsh winter.

Daffodils

2011-03-11T11:09:00.000-08:00

The snowdrops are starting to fade from their former glory, but are being replaced along the Ock Valley Walk by another Monocotyledon (plants that grow from bulbs) - the daffodil (genus Narcissus).
The Collins complete guide to British Wildflowers describes the wild daffodil as pale yellow outer segments and a yellow trumpet. There are several clumps forming alongside the river, but none of them match this description and probably, like the aforementioned snowdrops, have spread from nearby gardens.
Some of them are in bloom.
.

Whilst some are yet to flower:
.

Even if they're not native, they are a pleasant site on what has been several dank and cold days.

Hares

2011-02-26T11:36:00.000-08:00

The land to the west of the A34 is privately owned farm land, but a footpath near Marcham Mill - (Marcham Jubilee Walk), allows members of the public to explore this area and observe an animal that appears to be absent from the east of the A34 - the brown hare.
.

Superficially like a rabbit, the most obvious differences are the long ears and longer legs.

Unlike rabbits they don't have burrows, instead they can spend daylight hours in a shallow depression in the ground (called a form), making them harder to see.

But maybe it's the lack of dogs along the path, but they don't spend look like this and are fairly easy to see. They also don't seem to be too concerned about the frequent buzzards that pass overhead.

Unlike rabbits, they are not social animals, but when territories overlap they can be seen in small collectives (known as a mute of hares!!):

What hares are famous for is the 'boxing' that takes place in March, this when an unreceptive females fights off the unwanted advances of a hopeful male and is a very entertaining sight and like snowdrops mean spring is not too far away.

More Snowdrops

2011-02-23T14:27:00.000-08:00

Although it doesn't have the wow factor of Welford Park, Waterperry Gardens - to the east of Oxford are an ideal place for any budding Galanthophile. What it lacks in quantity, it makes up in variety including with many different species on display.
Including, Galanthus 'S. Arnot', similar to the common snowdrop, but with a distinct green tip on it's outer tepals (technically snowdrops don't have petals, as their petals and sepals are the same colour they are botanically classified as tepals).
.

The Galanthus Dionysus is another species, with a more elaborate flower forming a predominate green rosette.
.

.
Whilst others, like the 'Mighty Atom' are so rare that an individual bulb might sell for as much as £40, that it and other rarerities are kept encaged:.
.

The area by the river Thame contains thousands of snowdrops, mostly consisting of the common Galanthus Nivalis, having spread by vegetatively - an impressive feat as over 200 years the bulbs have divided and then spread by birds and animals - no pollination was involved - to form this impressive scene.

For fans of snowdrops, Shirl has an excellent snowdrop festival blog post on her equally excellent blog, which is well worth reading:

http://blog.shirlsgardenwatch.co.uk/2011/02/snowdrop-festival-visits.html

Snowdrops

2011-02-17T12:15:00.000-08:00

Nothing indicates the end of winter and the approach of spring more then the appearance of snowdrops - and there are more in the garden then ever.
.

The most prevalent in our garden are Galanthus nivali identified by the distinct small green bridge between the three petals that form the flower. Although this is classified as the native UK snowdrop, it was first recorded in the UK as recently as the 1770's.

Along the Ock Valley Walk there are a few small clumps, finding the shade provided by the trees an ideal habitat. Snowdrops don't often spread via pollination (maybe they flower too early in most of the UK to attract pollinating insects), so these are possibly garden escapees, maybe spread by a person or an animal moving the bulbs.
With the different shaped flower they are likely to be one of the other 75 variety of snowdrop in the UK.
.

.
For truly impressive snowdrop numbers, a short journey down the A34 to Welford Park near Newbury, where the snowdrop wood contains hundreds of thousands of snowdrops and where a walk in the sunshine gives a feeling that spring at last is on it's way.
.

More garden birds

2011-02-09T11:50:00.000-08:00

bThe past few days has seen some of the regular visitors that did not drop in during the big garden birdwatch:
.
Greenfinch: There are usually two greenfinches in the garden - a male and a female, according to my RSPB Handbook of British Birds, the population of greenfinches fluctuates by the general trend is up - possibly helped by the trend of people putting out suitable food, like sunflower hearts.
.

Woodpigeon: Several woodpigeons often frequent the garden, seeming to hoover up seed dropped from the feeders.
Woodpigeons are one of the success stories of the UK's move to intensive agriculture (especially now agricultural chemicals are now more controlled) and now seen as pest to some crop growers and gardeners.
.

Collarded Dove: An ungainly visitor to the sunflower heart feeders. There are up to four of them at anyone time, but what is interesting is that they didn't breed in the UK until 1955, when a pair nested in Kent, there are now an estimated 295,000 territories in the UK.
.

Sparrowhawk: This magnificent male sparrowhawk has previously featured in this blog and is seen about once a month, in the same place and never with the signs of a kill. Always a pleasure to see it, but if it had shown up during the big garden birdwatch then the number of birds counted would have probably have been considerably lower.
.

Return of the Robins

2011-02-03T13:36:00.000-08:00

If we had done our 'big garden birdwatch survey' at 10am on Sunday instead of 3pm on Saturday then there would have been different results - for a start there would have been at least 10 goldfinches in the garden and we would have recorded two robins:
.

.
These are the first robins to visit the garden for a long time. Interestingly, they are fiercely territorial, yet these two seemed to tolerate each other. Unfortunately male and female robins look identical, so it's not possible to tell if this is a potential breeding pair or if they were just migrants stopping off.
Apparently, robins can't visually identify each others gender either and the only way a male knows another robin is a female is through it's response to a territorial display.

Big Garden Birdwatch

2011-01-29T11:01:00.000-08:00

The weekend of 29th and 30th January is the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch. The simple concept of spending one hour watching the birds in the garden and recording the highest number of each bird at any one time has become the world's biggest wildlife survey. Helping to provide a snapshot of the health of the UK's bird populations and to see positive and negative population trends.
For fans of twitter it has it's own hash tag #BGBW and the results will be available in May.
.
Our garden survey was undertaken between 3pm and 4pm on Saturday 29th:
.
Starlings: 10
Starling have previously featured in this blog back in October and were probably attracted to the dried meal worms and the pond as a source of drinking water.
.

One of the things that the Big Garden Birdwatch has demonstrated is the number of starlings recorded in our gardens has declined by 75% since 1985: http://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch/results/trends.aspx
South Abingdon seems to have a healthy starling population, somewhat helped by the nesting opportunities presented by roofs of the houses.
.
Goldfinches: 4
A disappointing number of goldfinches, they often appear in charms (collective name for goldfinches) of between 10 and 20, but during this hour there were only four.
.

Goldfinches have been a real success in recent years, possibly because of people who putting out nyger seed for them. We stopped using this as it was often ignored in favour of sunflower hearts - as seen above, with a goldfinch trying to intimidate a chaffinch, it failed and they shared the seeds.
.
Chaffinch: 3
There have been five chaffinches in the garden at any one time, but during the survey there were two males and one female:
.

Chaffinches are traditionally ground feeders, so it's interesting to see that they've learnt to use a feeder.
.
House Sparrow: 2
Like starlings, house sparrows have also suffered a huge decline in recent years (50%), also recorded by the big garden birdwatch: http://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch/results/trends.aspx
.

Sparrows also like the sunflower hearts and eat off the ground or off the feeders.
.
Blue Tit: 2
Blue Tits aren't migrants, so it is good to see a pair has survived the harsh winter and hopefully they'll make use of the garden's nest box.
.

Blackbird: 2
A male and female blackbird are often to be seen in the garden - either winter migrants yet to return to Scandinavia or maybe they are a residential pair returned from migrating to warmer climates in europe. They have been digging for worms, eating crumbs dropped from the feeders and drinking from the pond:
.

.
Blackbirds are very territorial and will chase not only smaller birds (blue tits and chaffinches) but also each other) although they do seem wary of the starlings.
.
Pied Wagtail: 1
A real surprise, I've never seen one in the garden before and it only stayed for enough time to get a quick snap.
.

They are insectivorous and so it wouldn't have been interested in the sunflower hearts or meal worms, so maybe there are small flies over the lawn.
.
Other birds that regularly frequent the garden, but not during the period of the survey, are collard doves, woodpigeons, dunnocks and greenfinches, but one bird that has been absent from our garden for the past couple of years is the robin.
Maybe this national survey will reveal if it is just ours, or if there has been a national decline in robin numbers.

Quiet day on the Ock

2011-01-23T11:22:00.000-08:00

Following the snow and recent heavy rain the river was place on flood watch this week. Now the water and the flood alerts have now receded leaving the river surrounding area with a somewhat drab and dank, but thankfully without the risk of homes being flooded:
.

.
Not much of interest in the river and only a crow taking the opportunity of the now muddy meadow:
.

.
And what appears to be an poorly rabbit adding to the general melancholic feel of the river in January:
.

First Otter post of 2011

2011-01-10T13:02:00.000-08:00

Now the snow has gone, the river has a somewhat melancholic feel to it - there are no water voles, the trees have lost their leaves and the day light does not last long enough.
But there are still things to keep an eye out for, for example, this mudslide has lots of footprints - possibly somewhere a dog has decided to go for a swim..
.

But a closer look shows it could provide access for a different animal, the circled footprint does not appear to be a dog:
.

A closer look seems to show the animal has five toes and not four and the size indicates it could be another otter footprint - this bank being a place where it chooses to enter and leave the river:
.

This latest find is an opportunity to update the Otter map with three new pins (in red), this footprint is marked as C. Whilst B is the footprint I discuss in the post on footprints on 23rd December, and A is the footprint found near the allotments as mentioned by Chris in his response to this post (thanks Chris!!):
.

View Otters 2010 in a larger map.

I have several new years resolutions for this blog and one of them is to get an photograph of an otter. This is very ambitious and although I have 12 months to try I will be as surprised as anyone if I succeed.
In order to be successful there are three techniques to consider:

1. Luck - All my sightings of animals on the Ock are just coincidental - I rarely go out to find something specific, instead I just see what I come across, so although unlikely, it is not impossible that if I spend enough time walking by the river in the evening or night I may come across an otter. This is how I found a badger - another elusive mammal in 2009.

2. Sit and wait - The approach taken by professional photographers to identify a suitable site and wait in one spot for hours and hours. There are two drawbacks to this, firstly I have a day job so I can't spend all night waiting for an otter and secondly I don't think I have the patience.
Another problem is the lack of light, with otters being nocturnal I may catch a glimpse of one but getting a picture would be harder. Although a high ISO setting, a steady hand and the light pollution from Oxford might make a picture possible - but I do want to avoid using a flash.

3. Remote Cameras - Often seen on wildlife programmes and now getting cheaper, the best option would be to place a series of remote cameras along the river - allowing the river to monitored over several days and using Infra-Red it would solve the lack of light problem.
Although I would need to find a secure location, which would mean putting them on private land to the west of the A34.
With a lot of experience, a lot of knowledge and a great deal of effort, camera traps can provide incredible results: http://charliehamiltonjames.blogspot.com/2010/09/is-there-anything-you-dont-take-apart.html (although I don't intend to pictures inside a holt).

Review of the year.

2010-12-30T01:59:00.000-08:00

Looking back over the past 12 months, this blog has consisted of 82 posts, a staggering 150 comments have been received and 2851 photographs have been taken (thankfully most of them have not been posted). And as this is probably the last post of the year it seems a good opportunity to reflect upon my favourite posts:
.
Wytham Woods: During 2010 this blog ventured further afield - from the beech trees of Buckinghamshire to a Ghost Forest in Oxford. But probably the favourite places visited is Wytham Woods near Oxford.
As it is owned by the University of Oxford it requires a permit to visit and as a result you are more likely to encounter a badger than a dog walker.
http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/10/way-through-woods.html
With over 200 different types, it is also a great place to try to search for fungus:
.

Even armed with two field guides and an iPod app it proved to be very difficult: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/10/more-fungus.html
.
Views of Norfolk: Written after a holiday in Norfolk and despite not being near the Ock (or Oxfordshire) it does contain two of my favourite photographs taken this year - a stoat (one of my favourite animals), given it's proximity to a small stream, it could be hunting water voles:
.

And possibly the best kingfisher photo I'll ever take, it did help that I was in a hide - something which isn't possible on the Ock.
.

.
The full post (and seal photos) at: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/09/views-of-norfolk.html
.
Birds of Prey: Once rare, birds of Prey are now quite common. Buzzards now nest near-by; peregrines can been seen in Oxfordshire (I've seen them at Otmoor) and kestrels are often seen hunting over the fields. But to have a sparrowhawk in the garden was a bonus(even though it is a rubbish picture) and I have struggled to get decent picture of a red kite since (once extinct in England, now have made a remarkable comeback), so it was good to finally get one.
.

.
The full post: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/10/birds-of-prey.html
.
Water Voles: Nearly 20% of the this years posts have been about water voles, so there are plenty to choose from, but my favourite is the post documenting the water voles on Radley Brook where I managed to film this one eating an apple core I left for it (not quite Terry Whittaker standard).
..

.What makes this post the best of the year is that it was thought the colony was extinct (a BBOWT survey earlier had drawn a blank) - wiped out by mink, one of which I saw in March:
The full post (and more films): http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/09/movies-from-radley-brook.html
.
Otter:The otter activity in the Ock has become a bit of an obsession in recent posts, perhaps not surprising as it was only 20 years ago that they were extinct in Oxfordshire, now they have recolonised the Ock and the Thames and without doubt my favourite post of the year was back in February when I first found signs of otters (even if it was just a pile of poo!!):
.

.
The full post is at: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/02/in-search-of-otters.html
.
Thank you to everyone who has read this blog in the past 12 months, whether a regular or an occasional visitor and thank you to everyone who has commented on this blog - hopefully there has occasionally been something of interest.

Blog Roll review of the year

2010-12-28T02:58:00.000-08:00

2010 has been a mixed year in the blogosphere, Martin decided to end his 'Gullivers Travels' blog, which was also an inspiration for photography, but on the plus side I've found several excellent new blogs.
So, as last year, I thought I would use this period up to new year to review some of my favourite posts over the past 12 months:
.
Life in an Oxfordshire Lawn - Crane Fly: I am a huge fan of Henry Wallon's extraordinary blog on the wildlife found in his garden, but this recent post grabbed my attention:
.
http://lifeonanoxfordlawn.blogspot.com/2010/12/crane-fly-in-family-limonia-nebeculosa.html
.
In a post in Autumn I tried to identify some of the crane flies I encountered and found it virtually impossible as there are 10,000 species of fly that can be considered as a crane fly and as Henry discusses it is very difficult to identify them. So full credit to Henry for managing to identify his - remarkable.
.
Abingdon Blog - Fox on Ock Street: I am an avid reader of Backstreeter's Abingdon Blog, showing a daily update in our town and it is the first web site I visit each day (followed by the cricket scores on the BBC).
But this post caught my interest, firstly it is one of the best fox photographs I've seen - a lovely portrait of a young fox cub:
.
http://www.abingdonblog.co.uk/?p=275
.
But what makes this post is the 10 comments that follow, showing that blogging is as much dependent upon the commenters as the blogger - especially the last one from Lyndsey "... then I see he’s been killed near town.".

About a Brook: Kate's water vole blog is a gem and one of the inspirations behind my own blog, full of interesting information about the water voles that live in Shropshire it is hard to pick out one post, but this one shows the excellent pictures she has managed to capture and follow the same vole as it grows up.
- keep up the good work Kate.
.
http://staggsbrook.blogspot.com/2010/08/baby-grown-up.html
.
Gardening with binoculars - Starlings: Back in November I wrote a post about starlings at otmoor and mentioned the decline in starlings in the UK in recent years.
I found Gardening with binoculars on the Nature Blog Network and I was fascinated in this post written by Anne McCormack on the same subject. Except hers is written in America, where (as she mentions) starlings were deliberately introduced by the 'The Acclimatization Society' who wanted to introduce european wildlife into America, especially those mentioned in the works of Shakespeare.
Something which is completely unnecessary, as Anne goes onto show, American wildlife is just (if not more) wonderful than what we have in the UK and just makes you wonder, what were our fore bearers thinking.
.
http://gardeningwithbinoculars.blogspot.com/2010/12/critical-mass-of-starlings.html
.
Terry Whittaker - Water Voles: Terry Whittaker is a professional photographer based in Kent and his blog covers many subject, from the depressing - the trade in tiger parts and bear bile to the uplifting - pine martens caught on a camera trap.
But my favourite post of Terry's is his water vole films, which in a few seconds encapsulates why these are one of my favourite animals.
Now I have finally made the leap into DSLR terrioritary, it's very tempting to attend one of Terry's water vole photography workshops.
http://terrywhittakerphoto.blogspot.com/2010/06/mill-stream-water-vole-updates.html
.
A huge thank you to all the blog writers featured and those who haven't, I have learnt a great deal from all these blogs.

Footprints

2010-12-23T13:36:00.000-08:00

I received this intriguing comment on a previous post:

I spotted what I think were Otter footprints in the snow beneath the bridge along the Ock Valley Walk - be interesting to see if you can verify they are Otter prints.

Which has inspired me to seek out the various footprints left in the recent snow and to try and identify them:

Birds: Some bird footprints are easy to identify, such as these left by mallards and moorhens along the ock valley walk.

.
Smaller birds are harder to identify as they just leave small holes in the snow.

Leporids: The two prints at the front and one behind are almost certainly left by a rabbit
.

The other candidate would be a brown hare. I have never seen a hare in the locality, although I have seen them near Wantage, so it is not impossible that they frequent the area.

Canine: There are two species of canine that can be seen along ock, the red fox and domestic dog. This footprint is from a domestic dog, taken in a place that is popular with dog walkers.

Mustelids: There are several species of mustelid that could be found along the Ock - badger, otter, mink and stoats, weasels and polecats.

What differentiates a mustelid footprint from a canine is five toes, whilst a canine has four. This footprint found in south Abingdon could be a badger, but it is hard to count the number of toes but it was found near where I have seen badgers previously:

This footprint was found along the ock valley walk, where the previous commenter said they have seen possible otter footprints.

A close up shows (now circled) five toes, so it almost certainly a mustelid and given it's location it could definitely be an otter and it is where I have previously found a dead crayfish (common otter prey), so thank you very much for the tip-off.

A good example of an otter footprint is snow is from Charlie Hamilton James' Twitter Feed: http://twitpic.com/3if160

As always, comments are very welcome, especially if I have misidentified something.

More Snow

2010-12-21T12:58:00.000-08:00

One of the advantages of living in south Abingdon and working in north Abingdon is the walk to work can be very picturesque after heavy snow and the rivers are at their finest.
The river Ock in south Abingdon:
.

Burford Bridge spanning the Thames.

From the footbridge over the Abbey Stream looking towards the Thames weir.

.
And the view of St. Helens Wharf from Burford Bridge is the classic Abingdon Christmas card scene.

Snow!!

2010-12-18T10:49:00.000-08:00

Fourteen centimetres (5.5 inches) of snow fell in a few hours on Saturday morning and as expected, this caused complete traffic chaos in this part of Oxfordshire.
However, the Ock Valley Walk was very scenic
.

.
The Lower Ock had even frozen in places:
.

.
And a pleasant surprise of two muntjac deer near the town centre.
.

.
And if the snow persists it will be interesting to see what footprints have been left by the animals who have been struggling even more than the local transport system.
The Abingdon blog has more photos of the snow

Otters 2010

2010-12-13T13:43:00.001-08:00

As discussed in recent posts, the recent findings of spraints along the river demonstrate that the spraint found in March wasn't just a single occurrence. So it seems an opportunity to reflect upon the various otter related postings over the past 12 months.
Like the water vole map, a map of otter activity can be plotted using google maps:

View Otters 2010 in a larger map

Pin A: Is the original spraint recorded in February:http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/02/in-search-of-otters.html
It is also the site of the recent spraints as recorded in these two recent posts:
http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/11/return-of-otter.html in November and this one three weeks later http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/12/more-otter.html
Pin B: Is the location of a mutilated cray fish found by Drayton Road bridge , found back in July:
http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/07/murder-mystery-on-ock.html
Although the post considers various options on what killed it, in retrospect I am convinced it was an Otter.
Pin C: Is another dead crayfish, this one was intact, so it may be not have been an otter killing: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/08/crayfish-murders-another-victim.html
Pin D: Is possible otter sighting, seen having retrieved the spraint as described at the end of this recent spraint post: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/11/return-of-otter.html
As with the water vole and other wildlife sightings recorded in this blog they are sent to the Thames Valley Environmental Records Centre.
.
This blog isn't the only record of otter activity in the area and by expanding the map these can be seen relative to the four discussed in this blog, showing the area now covered by otters in this part of Oxfordshire:

View Otters 2010 in a larger map

Pin E: An otter spraint was recorded earlier in the year at Sandford Brook at the Dry Sandford Pit nature reserve (source BBOWT newsletter)
Pin F (near Oxford): The location of an otter spraint recorded at the BBOWT nature reserve at Iffley Meadows along the river Thames (source - BBOWT newsletter).
.
The level of otter activity is perhaps not suprising as the Thames catchement has shown one of the largest increases in otter numbers as stated in the environment agency's 2010 otter survey
In 2000 / 2002 there was no evidence of otters along the Ock and the Thames, yet in 2009/2010 16 out of 20 surveys revealed evidence of otters.
The Environment Agency suggest this could be due to improved water quality in recent years as otters moved in from the west (possibly via the kennet and avon canal) and a reintroduction programme in the Upper Thames area in 1999.
Although otters seldom live beyond 6 years, it may be the relatives of these reintroduced otters that are currently resident in the Ock.
The Environment Agency report also highlights one of the biggest threats to otters is in road accidents, such as the Pin G in the map which is where the dead otter was found at Clifton Hampden mentioned by David in a comment to the original otter spraint post: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/02/in-search-of-otters.html

2011 BBOWT Upper Thames calendar

2010-12-09T11:44:00.000-08:00

Each year, the Upper Thames division of the Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust produce a calendar to assist with fund raising and the 2011 version features two of my water vole photographs - one of the front cover and one for August:

This year the funds will go towards assisting with the BBOWT Cothill Fen project. More details can be found at: http://www.bbowt.org.uk/content.asp?did=26091

Frost

2010-12-07T14:18:00.000-08:00

With the temperature being below freezing for the past few days there have been plenty of opportunities for photographs of the frost that doesn't seem to melt:.
.

All photographs have been taken in north east Abingdon where, unlike south Abingdon, the fields, verges and meadows have not been cut

Yet more spraints...

2010-12-04T07:26:00.000-08:00

It's tempting to say otter spraints on the Ock are like buses, you don't see one for a while and then several turn up at the same time. But this is not entirely accurate as the Abingdon to Oxford bus service is actually very good and reliable.

As mentioned in the post below, the first otter spraint recorded under the A34 was in February 2010 and despite monthly surveys, another one wasn't found till ten months later. This is perhaps not surprising as otters are very territorial with a male otter having a territory of over 20 square miles and whilst a female otter has a smaller territory she will not share it with a male and they only meet on the edge of their respective territories.

Hence it was probable that otters were infrequent visitors, perhaps occasionally moving in from the Thames to feed on crayfish and mark their territory.

However, two days later (19/11/2010) another spraint was found in the same place:

Then today (4th December 2010), not one but two fresh spraints:

So it seems for the time being that there is a resident otter along the Ock and as four spraints have been found in the same location within a few weeks there could be more than one otter. This could mean the bridge is an overlap between two territories or there could be a female with a cub......

Return of the Otter

2010-11-16T13:46:00.000-08:00

In Feburary I found an otter spraint under the bridge where the Ock flows underneath the A34. Since then I have regularly checked the site to find if there are more spraints and nine months later I have at last found a new fresh one:
.

.
Like it's predecessor, it was taken home (in a plastic pot I reserve for such matters) and dissected it. The best way I've found is to soak it water, not only does it come apart but the jasmine smell becomes stronger - making it evident that is an otter.
I suspected that it might contain signs of crayfish - as I have found two dead ones in the past twelve months (one almost definately a victim of an otter), instead it consisted of small fish bones (like the first one), the 1p coin is to give a sense of scale:
.

.
When leaving the bridge, I thought I saw something swim across the river - to big to be a water vole and definitely not a moorhen, although one was making a swift exit. So not only have I found another spraint, but perhaps I got a quick glimpse of one of the rarest and elusive creatures in Oxfordshire.
Like the best animal mysteries, no photographic evidence was recorded.

Murmurations

2010-11-09T11:26:00.000-08:00

Throughout the spring and summer, starlings have been raising their young in the eves of the some of the houses in south Abingdon. Now their young have fledged and are now joined by migrants from europe who enjoy the advantage point provoided by the roofs and aerials of the local houses.
.

Before roosting, probably in the nearby hedges, or when they're startled by a passing sparrowhawk they form flocks which can be quite impressive, consisting of probably more than 100 birds.

However, for truley impressive murmurations (the collective name for starlings) in Oxfordshire is the RSPB reserve at Otmoor, just north of Oxford, where the flocks can consist of thousands birds:

As autumn turns into winter and more and more migrants move to the area, the display can become so impressive as the murmations now consist of hundreds of thousands of birds and these gatherings are now so popular that the RSPB are holding organised walks on 14th and 28th September

Seeing such vast numbers, it is hard to believe they are classified as red listed by the RSPB (a bird of high conservation concern) as starling numbers have declined by 60% since the 1970's. This decline is blamed on the change to mixed farming, a decline in their food sources like leatherjackets (the larvae of craneflies) and a loss of nesting sites. This is despite starling numbers actually increasing dramatically since the 1800's as europe moved to more managed agriculture.
Despite this decline, hopefully sites like Otmoor will continue to host displays that are so impressive they make you want to burst into a spontaneous round of applause:

The BBC website has some very interesting information on murmurations as well as some impressive footage: http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_9175000/9175793.stm

Ock Meadow

2010-11-06T11:42:00.000-07:00

In recent weeks this blog has ventured further afield, exploring the delights of autumn in near (and not so near) locations. However, it had a bit of shock when it returned to it's natural environment of the river Ock.
This is what the Ock Meadow looked like in early June (more at: http://viewsoftheock.blogspot.com/2010/06/meadows.html):
.

.
And this is what it looks like today:
.

.
Although the land is owned by the Vale of White Horse district council it has been leased out to another land owner who is left it fallow, possibly using it as a part of a set aside scheme.
Either the land has changed hands and is now has a different manager or the current ones have decided to change tact and use the land for crops.
Whatever the reason, the ploughing has been quite brutal as no verges have been left. This may annoy local dog walkers who use the field as part of circular walk::
.

.
At least the footpath that forms the 'ock valley walk' has been left:
.

.
With this verge and the ladygrove meadow on the other side of the river, there should be enough habitat left for the water voles. But what the effect will be on the bank voles, field voles and the mice which in habit the ock meadow and the buzzards and kestrels that feed on them, only time will tell. Let alone the plants and insects that had formed the meadow.
The ploughing is very deep, probably with purpose of these plants not becoming weeds.
.

.
Instead of a varied flower meadow, it looks like we could have yet another field of rape seed and as anyone who lives nearby will testify, giving the rivers propensity to flood, growing crops next to it is a risky endeavour.

A day at the beeches

2010-11-02T13:01:00.000-07:00

Located between Slough and High Wycombe, Burnham Beeches is a 500 acre beech woodland and like Wytham Woods it is lucky to have a wealthy benefactor - the Corporation of London
In 1880 it was threatened with destruction as part of planned housing development, so the Corporation purchased it as an area of recreation of the residents of London. Now they employ six keepers, a full time ecologist and several regular volunteers (I was one once when we lived near Maidenhead) who help maintain these fantastic woodlands and deal with the 500,000 visitors to the site each year.
.

.
One of the things the beeches are famous for is what the poet Thomas Gray described as 'reverend vegetables' - the ancient beech and oak pollards.
These pollards were formed when the beeches were common land by the commoners who cut the trees at head height to gather wood and stop their grazing animals from eating the regrowing shoots (as would happened if the trees had been coppiced). Such pollarding has prolonged the life of the trees, some are now several hundred years old:
.

.
Now the commoners have gone, it is responsibility of the keepers to maintain these impressive trees as they form an important and unique habitat for birds, bats, fungus and insects and maintain it's reputation as national nature reserve and an internationally important site for wildlife.

.
Whilst some of the trees have maintained their girth, some have practically rotted away, this tree, named the ballerina, now stands on a very thin trunk, most of it has now rotted away and eventually the tree will collapse. Any pollards that do fall are left in-situ as dead the dead wood helps support the internationally rare fungus and insects that are found at the site.
.

.
Another thing Burnham Beeches is famous for is as a film location. It is where Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves set up camp; Harry Potter met the Thestrals and apparently it's where the Spice Girls met space aliens....

Birds of Prey

2010-10-30T02:27:00.000-07:00

Birds of prey have had an impressive recovery in recent years and are an example of how our attitudes to wildife and the environment has changed.
I saw my first buzzard in cornwall and now they are nesting near the Ock and kestrels can frequently be seen hunting over the meadows. In the past week I have had close encounters with two others:
Having been hunted to almost extinction in England at the end of the 19th Centuary, Red Kites are now a common site over Abingdon. In fact most days will guarrante at least one sighting. This is due to a very successful release program in the Chilterns back in the 1980's. The one pictured below was seen over Radley Lakes, where the combination of good reflective light and low flying bird presented an ideal opportunity for a picture.

.
The other bird of prey encountered this week was a male sparrowhawk in the garden. Obviously attracted to the increasing numbers of grain feeding birds like sparrows, goldfinches and dunnocks that are using the bird feeders in the garden.
Unlike red kites, the decline in the sparrowhawks is not attributed to hunting, but pesticide use in the 1950's which was being consumed by their prey. These had the effect of making the egg shells too thin, hence not enough birds hatched.
The population only recovered when these were banned in the 1970's. Unlike the red kites, there has not been reintroduction of sparrowhawks, instead the 40,000 breeding pairs have recovered naturally as the pesticides have slowly declined in the environment.
This picture is slightly blurred as it was taken through a window.
.

.
Despite the recovery in Birds of Prey and their legal protection, they are still suffer from persecution: http://www.rspb.org.uk/ourwork/policy/wildbirdslaw/wildbirdcrime/birdsofprey.aspx

References:
Red Kites: http://www.redkites.co.uk/
RSPB Handbook of British Birds
Birds of Britain: http://www.birdsofbritain.co.uk/bird-guide/sparrowhawk.asp

Tall Trees

2010-10-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

Located between Abingdon and Oxford, Harcourt Arboretum has been managed by Oxford University as part of it's Botanic Gardens since the late 1960's. The Arboretum was originally created to be part of an impressive entrance to the stately house owned by the Harcourt family, it was sold to University by the last Viscount Harcourt in 1948
Like Wytham Woods (also owned by Oxford University) it is predominately an area for study, with a collection of plants from around the world, including rhododendron and a pinetum of fir, pine and cedar trees as well as an area of restored woodland which has an impressive display of bluebells in spring.
The arboretum is open to the public most days of the week, although a small fee is payable and it is the none native trees - especially the maples - that make it one of the best places in Oxfordshire to see the spectacular autumn colours.
.

It's not only the maple trees that are impressive, the cedar, fir and pine trees most be some of the tallest trees in the county and trying to encompass them in one picture does not do them justice, so they are ideal for panoramic tree photos. Where several portrait pictures are stitched together using ArcSoft Panorama maker:

http://www.arcsoft.com/estore/software_title.asp?ProductCode=PMK5PRO

.
As well as the trees and the plants, the other main photographic subject for visitors are the peacocks that can be seen wondering the grounds.
.

Final Fungal Thoughts

2010-10-26T12:24:00.000-07:00

Over the past few posts I've tried to identify a small number of the vast quantity of fungus that can be found in this part of Oxfordshire. Rather than try to identify yet more fungus (which can be somewhat frustrating). I thought the final post on the subject (for this year at least) would look at different types of fungus.

Parasitic: Where a fungus extracts nutrients from a host, but does not offer anything in return, most like this tar spot on a sycamore leaf may kill the leaf, but will not have an adverse affect on the tree.
.

.
Others like the honey fungus can be a lot more damaging and can eventually kill the host tree. There are also fungus which are parasitic on other parasitic fungus.
Saprophytic: Are fungus that derive their nutrients from dead or decaying matter, for example, this fungus growing on horse dung on a cycle path:
.

.
It is highly probable that the spores were consumed by the horse, passing through it's gut and then germinating when released. Not only is this fungus helping to break down the dung, but it also turning it into nutrients in the soil that will be used by plants and trees.

Symbiotic: With symbiotic relationships, the fungus takes carbon from the plant and returns nutrients in the form of nitrogen and phosphorus. This milkcap fungus is growing around the roots of oak trees, in a form of symbiosis known as mycorrhiza (a relationship between a fungus and a tree).
.

.
In his fantastic book on Mushrooms, Roger Phillips recounts an experiment by NASA, where two pine trees were planted in sterile soil - one injected with a symbiotic fungus, the other not. Fifteen years later the tree with the fungus had grown 5 times larger than the none fungal tree.
This is just one example of how fungi are an intrisinic part of our environment and as Roger Phillips goes onto say, once a habitat is destroyed it cannot be replaced by just planting more trees.

References:
Many different sources have been used in the past few posts. I have stayed clear of posting on internet forums as the purpose of these posts is try and identify them myself, even if I have been unsuccessful in the identification.
The following have been invaluable in my identification quest:
Roger Phillips Mushrooms (Book, Website & iPhone App): http://www.rogersmushrooms.com/
Collins complete british mushrooms and toadstools: http://www.harpercollins.co.uk/Titles/36133/collins-complete-british-mushrooms-and-toadstools-paul-sterry-barry-hughes-9780007232246
Wild About Britain Fungi Pages: http://www.wildaboutbritain.co.uk/fungi

Where I think I have identified a fungus I have used google to search for the scientific name and included the most suitable links.

More Fungus

2010-10-24T11:24:00.000-07:00

As discuissed in the previous posts there are several types of fungus growing by the Ock, but the budding mycologist doesn't have to venture far from Abingdon to encounter a whole range of fungus. One of the best places to see fungi in autumn is in mixed deciduous woodland, like Wytham Woods for example:

The growing in large clumps on a beech tree, this is possibly 'fairy inkcap'.

.
A bracket fungus are easy to spot, but less easy to identify, this one is possibly 'turkey tail', which is very common in deciduous woodland.
.

Another bracket fungus, growing on a the trunk of a fallen oak tree:

This seven spot ladybird is crawling over what could be a cluster of shaggy scalycaps.

Of the 250 fungus photographs taken over the past two weeks, this is probably my favourite.- although puff balls are fun and the brackets impressive (especially the giant polypore) - there is something elegant and unassuming about such small fungus. These are possibly bonnets, maybe a bulbous bonnet. To confirm this, it would require studying the stem to see if there is a disc at the stem. And given the size of Wytham Woods and the small size of the fungus, I doubt if I would ever find it again.