Let It Rain, Let It Rain, Let It Rain

 Since my previous post we have had copious amounts of rain. Last Monday everything was drying out nicely, but a downpour overnight put paid to that and the fields were once again under water. Here we are on Sunday and more rain has fallen to swell the steadily growing puddles.

 

At the end of February, Yorkshire Water's reservoirs were at 99% capacity and I can't imagine that they've reduced much in the 15 days since that figure was published. I'm still not putting any money on there not being a shortage come August 😉

 

I said we had lots of Roe Deer sightings in the previous update, and things have moved onwards and upwards since that. I saw 12 yesterday morning in groups of 8 and 4.

Eight Roe Deer

Four Roe Deer

Roe Deer in Heslop's, but what is the bird in the background?

With longer days the  local flora is growing in abundance and we are getting a bit more colour with the bursting open of Blackthorn flowers. We should have more hedges in blossom than we do given the hundreds of yards of hedgerow we have hereabouts.  Most trees and shrubs in hedges only produce flowers, nuts and berries (such as haws and sloes) on year-old twigs, so cutting hedges every year means that they provide little food for insects, birds and mammals. Research suggests that a three year cycle of cutting works best.

 

Blackthorn blossom appears before the leaves (leaves before blossom on Hawthorn)

Bird song is now heard each morning (volume and numbers very much weather-dependent) and Yellowhammers are joining Dunnock, Robin, Chaffinch, Song Thrush, Great and Blue Tits plus  (latterly) Wren. Their song comes in at number two in my chart of hit makers, with Song Thrush number one of the early Spring singers.

 

Yellowhammer

We still have the long-staying good numbers of Scaup at the Mere with 12 or 13 seen most days. Even without a scope I had six yesterday morning just off first field.

 

Six Scaup off first field

I was watching a Treecreeper feeding on a tree trunk the other day and clearly saw how it put its head on one side to get its bill under the bark leaves to extract insects. It adaps its feeding style depending on what species of tree it is feeding on.

Treecreeper with head on one side to get its bill under the bark

We had a clear blue sky today and it makes the views so much more beautiful than the usual steely grey.