Nature Notes: Autumn
Sep
Autumn drapes our villages in mellow golds and fading greens. David Jones invites us to wander beside him, step by unhurried step, through the quiet poetry of nature
It is at some indefinable time in early September, that summer merges almost imperceptibly into autumn.
Soon, days noticeably shorten and the dews of dawn linger a little longer. Mists descend and meander their way through open fields like a river of white candy floss and gossamer cobwebs, which hang from hedgerow bushes, become laden with ephemeral diamonds. Autumn is a majestic season of subtle tones. Against oft-grey painted skies, the leaves of the Beech shade from copper to orange, whilst those of the towering Oak are dyed a deep bronze.
Autumn is truly a season of plenty, with an extraordinary range of hedgerow fruits and berries to be seen. There are haws on Hawthorns, hips on Rose bushes and juicy black-blue sloes on Blackthorn bushes. Oaks are heavily laden with acorns and freshly fallen, shiny, rich brown conkers, released from their spiky green cases, dot the grass around the Horse Chestnut tree. Once highly prized by schoolboys, in today’s age of computer games, they are left untouched where they lay.
Other natural treasures dotting the woodland floor are brightly coloured Waxcap fungi, their bright red and yellow colours almost shine in stark contrast to the leaf litter and rank grasses. During early autumn, many species of fungi are at their very best and they proliferate in woodlands and grasslands. None are more spectacular than Fly Agaric, with its distinctive scarlet, white-spotted cap. The magical toadstool, which was made famous by author Lewis Carroll in Alice in Wonderland, has since become a familiar illustration in children’s books. The charming but poisonous fungi are generally found under pine, spruce and birch trees. Various other species of mushrooms, like the familiar Inkcap and the beautifully delicate, bright white, almost translucent, porcelain fungi which decorate Beech trees, make a brief appearance before succumbing to keen mid-season frosts.
In the long grass on mellow sun-filled days, the chirping chorus of the Grasshopper can still be heard and the early autumn sunshine keeps bumblebees and butterflies active too. Red Admiral Butterflies and a whole host of other insects are attracted to the Ivy for its valuable source of nectar. Some dragonfly species such as the Common Darter and Migrant Hawker are also still seen on the wing.
Seemingly torn between the death of a season past and the birth of one to come, the Honeysuckle displays both pale yellow, crimson-tinged flowers and bright red berries. Certainly there can be no more a fragrant flower than it in the Welsh countryside. The scent is at its strongest at nighttime to attract moths that feed on the plentiful nectar and transfer pollen from one plant to the next. In the fields and roadside verges, familiar spring flowers like Dandelions, Buttercups, and Clover try and take advantage of the generally mild weather and flower for a second time. These often flower alongside seasonal Harebells, Knapweed, Common Centaury, and Agrimony.
Birdsong slowly picks up in September after the relative summer silence. Charms of Goldfinches, with the blood red cheeks and golden wing bars tinkle, Greenfinches give out an a range of short notes including a characteristic wheezing sound and rural Sparrows cheep, much as they have done most of the year. The cacophonous liquid song of the Wren which is one of Britain’s commonest of birds, with an estimated seven million pairs, can also be heard. Late in the month, Swallows and Martins are seen on overhead wires or gathered in flocks, in readiness for their epic migration journey to central and southern Africa.
Mid-autumn is the traditional time when animals and insects begin hibernation, but yet another effect of climate change is that more species are remaining active for longer. Generally speaking though, by then Hedgehogs are busy looking for hibernation quarters, Great Crested Newts leave ponds and come out onto the land for the winter, Dormice hibernate in specially crafted nests, and some species of butterflies will head indoors to escape the cruel winter frosts.
As the seasonal changes gather momentum, so does the influx of winter visiting birds. Members of the thrush family arrive in droves. Often the Blackbird, seen turning over leaf litter in a search for grassland worms, is not a resident British bird but a migrant, newly arrived here from Northern Europe in search of milder wintering grounds. Another winter migrant which often graces parks and gardens is the Redwing. The smallest of thrushes seen in Britain, the bird is easily identified with its orange-red flanks, whitish spotted and streaked underparts, distinctive creamy eye stripe, and its high pitched ‘seep’ call.
Flitting from treetop to treetop, small flocks of Blue Tits, whose luminous cobalt-blue and primrose-yellow plumage provide a fleeting colourful shadow to lighten the late autumn gloom. And in the hedgerows, with their feathers suitably puffed out to resist chill winds, the Robin redbreast, which will soon feature on countless Christmas greeting cards, sings a cheery song.
Words by David Jones
