A great weekend of sunsets, bike rides and long walks over the Howardian Hills. Even though the weather forecast lied and said no rain! I hope you enjoy this short video of my walk around the estate of Castle Howard. There was ice on the puddles and in sheltered parts of the forest.
A great weekend of sunsets, bike rides and long walks over the Howardian Hills. Even though the weather forecast lied and said no rain! I hope you enjoy this short video of forest bathing. Find out more about Shinrin yoku below in my earlier blogs.
I was having a sort out of my hard drive and I came across this video of The Beast from the East 2018. It makes me shiver just watching it! Hope you like it.
Much of winter 2018 was generally mild but things changed dramatically during the last week of February as the UK experienced a prolonged cold snap, with widespread heavy snow. It lasted for 10 days, and was compounded by the arrival of Storm Emma.
The cold started to set in on 22 February and in the days that followed, temperatures steadily dropped with sharp overnight frosts.
By 27th February, the temperature dropped to -11.7C overnight and many areas stayed below freezing all day. As lying snow covered much of the country many schools had to close for several days.
Avoiding becoming someone else’s dinner becomes even more challenging at night. Watching these flock of gulls wheeling & turning in the darkening sky, heading for a sheltered spot on the lake. It’s fascinating to watch these huge gyrating bubbles of birds, spinning in the sky, like fish shoaling together to dazzle their predators. When the birds decide it is safe to, they shoot down in a dark tornado of whirring wings.
I hope you enjoy watching the video of the birds swooping and circling the lake.
Time to roost by SJ Butler – the text stays on for 20 seconds
I was having a sort out of my hard drive and I came across this video of the dawn chorus from a few years ago. It must of been late April through to early June as these are the best times to hear it according to the RSPB
The first birds begin to sing about an hour before sunrise. If you listen carefully, you may notice that there is a regular sequence, with some species habitually starting before others. Among the earliest to rise are skylarks, song thrushes, robins and blackbirds, and as they do eat worms there may be some truth to the old saying!
A more relaxed approach is taken by wrens and warblers, that typically appear later. These smaller birds, who are perhaps more sensitive to the coldness of dawn, feed on insects that themselves appear later in the morning.
Enjoying your dawn chorus
If you want to listen to a dawn chorus, then the best days to choose are those with fine, clear weather and little wind. It can be cold early in the day, so remember to take warm clothes. Late April through to early June is the best period, when most species are singing well.
Dawn chorus peaks half-an-hour before to half-an-hour after sunrise, but the variety of song can prove too confusing at that time, so why not get into position a good hour before sunrise, and enjoy the arrival of the performers as each takes their turn on stage.
Dawn chorus peaks half-an-hour before to half-an-hour after sunrise, but the variety of song can prove too confusing at that time, so why not get into position a good hour before sunrise, and enjoy the arrival of the performers as each takes their turn on stage.
sjbutler.photography 