Bel's Wood

  I have been itching to write this blog to say that planting is complete. One month on from the revised, delayed, planting day (18th December 2023) and, as my wise planting contractor, says ‘mother nature shows us who is boss as always….’ Over 80% of the trees are in the ground and look great. The frost came again and the roots of the trees froze.To plant the trees these need to be separated which was likely to cause damage. Also the ground has been so wet that when the thaw comes, where the ice was formed can leave air pockets which will lead to the roots being damaged by cold air if planted into immediately. The contractors took the trees off site to their workshop which has no heating but has given some protection. They have said that the trees are of very good quality and look to be in good condition still so are not worried.   Last night the temperature really dropped after some more snow. This is my milk bottle from my doorstep in Kendal which will have been wa...

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 ...

I have enjoyed watching the deer throughout the year both live at the wood and through many videos and stills. I have put together this series of images captured over the year to show the difference between red and roe deer and to show something of their lifecycle. Red deer female March 2021 with juvenile from last year Their long faces and thick necks distinguish a red deer from roe deer. They also bigger but not seeing them together means this doesn't help as much as you might think when looking at photographs. In the flesh there is a difference with the red deer being noisier and they feel like a larger animal when running through the undergrowth. The red deer is the largest land mammal in the UK according to the British Deer Society https://bds.org.uk/information-advice/about-deer/deer-species/red-deer/   Mature female red deer at night   Standing in profile showing the shape makes for easy identification  Roe deer are slighter and they have a dist...