Bel's Wood

It's been a busy summer at the beck. With water being short I have picked up some great wildlife shots and here are a selection of my favourites.  This tawny owl has hunted in the beck and on the videos below you can hear the alarm calls from the blackbirds who will have had young chicks at this point. Tawny owl hunting In this shot the owl is being chased - by it slowing down I can see that the chaser is a Jay. The screeching is urgent and I have included the longer version below where the second shriek is heard off camera. I have seen a male and female fox pretty consistently over the year. This looks like a juvenile so they must have had a successful year. I like the way the moth photobombs the video at the end. There are many squirrels so it would be wrong not to include them! No red squirrels sadly. I have picked up these Sparrowhawks in the beck - sometimes bathing. I think the one that peeps is the juvenile although the same size as the parent here. This is an unusual captur

Having delayed planting from January to November 2023 to address the bracken problem, the work to try and reduce its vigour has been taking place over the summer.                     The first signs appeared in May when the bluebells were in flower. It grew quickly through the month but the hot June with no rain did appear to slow the vigour of the growth somewhat.                           It reached full height by late June             I was struggling to keep the paths open and so the first mechanical cut took place on July 2nd.  It is a lovely feeling to be able to walk around again without shoulder height bracken to contend with. The mower has a wide turning circle which leaves margins where I want to plant with untouched growth.     Growth on the right is about 1.8m high. I have cut the margin on the left along about 6m - this took me an hour - see video below The second cut was planned for late August. The bracken has returned less vigorously this year. I’d like to think that