I feel very grateful to spend much of my time following nature’s rhythms, in my work as a freelance ecologist on the estate around ‘Wilderness Reserve’, by the Suffolk coast. As cold weather lingers, certain species become more apparent in the landscape. Wildlife is forced to be more resourceful, increasing their efforts to feed when food availability is low, and to stay warm when temperatures fall. Despite the challenges which come with it, winter’s quiet beauty is undeniable. Winter ringing studies and bird counts are squeezed into the shorter daylight hours and often take place in low light conditions or complete darkness. In each of these scenarios, tried and tested optics and thermal imaging technologies are a must. Over the winter, my Leica gear has revealed some of the creatures and behaviours which are often best hidden.
What the eye can’t see…
As I wandered through the wood pasture in a heavy frost, I scanned the tussocky grasses. The shaggy grass sward could be perfect for Short-tailed Vole nests, I thought to myself, imagining a Barn Owl diving down onto its unsuspecting prey. The field looked completely empty, so I paused to scan with my thermal monocular, the Calonox View. Two white blobs appeared in the field, seemingly out of nowhere, a pair of large ears in the heat signature gave one away – Brown Hare! I had walked past them without the slightest clue of their hiding place. I was able to position myself close enough to capture an image of them sparring gently in the morning fog.
In parts of the estate’s historic parkland, many ornamental tree species can be found, which in some cases, were planted over 150 years ago. One species which isn’t native to Suffolk is the Giant Sequoia. I’d read about an interesting bird behaviour in the past but hadn’t spent enough time searching to observe it in real life. The tiny Eurasian Treecreeper will excavate small cups in the fibrous bark of Giant Seqouia using its beak, to use as a roosting hole. The bird can then nestle into the holes to stay warm on particularly cold winter nights. With daytime evidence of the empty roosting holes, I headed out on a few particularly cold nights, equipped with a thermal monocular to scan the bark of the giant tree. Surely enough, perfectly snuggled in the small hole, a Treecreeper was roosting. On passing the tree in the evening, I would check to see if the bird was roosting, and on several occasions, surely enough, it was present. I was able to photograph this unique behaviour, using a dim headtorch and long exposure photograph.
Every February in this remote part of Suffolk, a small team of local bird ringers, a BTO ringer and I head out on several evenings, to survey the overwintering Woodcock. Many Woodcock are resident in the UK, but their numbers are bolstered in autumn when Finnish and Russian birds escape the extreme cold and migrate here for winter. This cryptically camouflaged wading bird spends much of its time in woodlands, where it roosts and feeds on the floor. Woodcocks forage in soft earth with their long bill, probing for insects and worms. They are largely nocturnal, and under the cover of darkness, will venture into clearings and out onto grassland to feed. Although these birds are extremely hard to find in the daylight, we were able to catch several individuals in February using thermal technology, under BTO licence. The heat signature of a Woodcock can be clearly identified when birds are feeding in open grassland, their distinctive squat posture and skulking walk the main giveaway.
Hoping to recapture birds ringed in previous winters, the aim of this study is to help track movements and migration patterns between breeding and wintering grounds, and to monitor survival rates and population dynamics. After being caught, the bird is weighed (Often weighing around 300g, the same as a can of soup!). A wing measurement is taken and a unique metal ring is attached to its leg, before the bird is released under the cover of darkness.
Feathers and Winter Light
Despite the short days, the quality of light at times in February was extraordinary. I stood by the edge of the frigid lake, its surface somehow keeping an icy crust at bay, whilst carrying out a winter bird count. Scanning the water body, a small flock of Wigeon dabbled, as Goosanders dived in the distance. Starlings dropped down from bare bushes onto the flooded marshes below to feed alongside Lapwing.
Many of these species’ numbers are given a boost in winter, as they migrate from northern and continental Europe to feed in our milder climate. Their numbers appear to move with the cold, as they seek feeding opportunities. In a matter of weeks, their numbers would inevitably dissipate once again as they move away to breed. In scenarios like this, clarity is essential to discern the smaller waterfowl species, checking through them one by one with the Leica APO Televid 82 scope.
Despite the often-merciless cold weather of winter, the relatively late sunrises are relished by wildlife watchers, already dreading the 4am sunrise alarms to come in spring and summer. My winter wildlife highlight presented itself in the final week of February, on a commute into work. Whilst driving slowly past a tree nursery, a ghostly white figure caught my eye. With my Leica Noctivids handy on the passenger seat, I scanned in the figure’s direction, in an area of shadow not yet painted by the glow of the rising sun. Not one, but TWO Barn Owls were hunting together above the overgrown margins and long grass growing in between the tree saplings. After a period of weeks with no sightings, I spent the coming mornings observing the Barn Owls hunting behaviour, watching through my binoculars where the birds would perch to watch and listen for their prey. I was able to capture some images of these wonderful birds during a run of beautifully clear mornings.
As winter began to wind down at the start of March, the countryside felt both quiet and full of vigour. My kit had revealed things that I would have almost certainly missed. Shapes in the darkness and flickering wings over flooded fields. As beautiful as winter has been, I’m so ready for spring…
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