The
The beauty of nature is that it just
keeps
keeps giving. The colour and
uniqueness of every sunset is one of
life's
life's simple pleasures, never to be
taken
taken for
taken for granted. So, as the sun
dips
dips to
dips to mark the end of another day,
the
the night
the night shift takes over, and it's
time
time to
time to celebrate the beauty of
autumn.
autumn. Welcome to Autumnwatch.
Hello!
Hello! Welcome to Autumnwatch 2021.
It's
It's our
It's our second programme, coming to
live
live from
live from Wild Ken Hill up on the
north-west coast of Norfolk. Last
night,
night, we
night, we spoiled you, you had an
extra
extra 15
extra 15 minutes, tonight, I'm
afraid
afraid it
afraid it is just a single hour, but
we
we have
we have got plenty to pack into it.
We
We have
We have come to Wild Ken Hill again
because
because we want to show your vision
of
of the
of the future, and they are working
very
very hard
very hard to develop that here,
using
using rewilding and regenerative
farming.
farming. More of that coming up
later
later in
later in the programme. Our mission
as
as ever
as ever is also to show you the very
best
best of
best of British wildlife in the
autumn
autumn season, and we have got our
estate
estate here bugged with cameras
which
which we
which we can effectively see in the
dark
dark with, and we saw this last
night,
night, just after we finished our
programme. Walking rather
majestically onto the path is a
fellow
fellow but. Adorned with those
antlers
antlers which I'm sure will have
been
been finding some use in the rut. --
fallow
fallow buck. I love the way that it
stopped
stopped and looked directly into the
camera!
camera! Absolutely brilliant! And of
course,
course, the rutting is an autumn
spectacle, but with red deer, it is
not
not just
not just the sight, it is the sound
as
as well.
as well. This was filmed in Bushy
Park
Park in
Park in London.
Park in London. STAGS ROAR. The
deeper
deeper the Raw, the more attractive
they
they are
they are to the females. They
drawdown
drawdown the larynx, which lengthens
the
the vocal
the vocal tract. It's a bit like a
Barry
Barry White effect. Used to make my
knees
knees go
knees go weak just listening to that
voice!
voice! Come on, it was a sexy voice,
wasn't
wasn't it? I have vague regulations
of
of Barry
of Barry White in the 1970s. It is
not
not just
not just mammals who produce
characteristic autumnal choruses,
birds
birds do,
birds do, too. These pink footed
geese
geese were moving off The Wash,
heading
heading towards their roost.
heading towards their roost. It is a
lovely
lovely sound, just like a white
noise.
noise. GEESE CRY. Not sure I can
equate
equate that to any 1970s pop stars,
may
may be
may be a
may be a bit early techno. As you
have
have probably realised, we are doing
a
a bit
a bit of
a bit of a sound fest tonight, so we
are
are going
are going to challenge you by
playing
playing the sound of something and
we
we want
we want you to see if you can guess
what
what it
what it is. Have a listen. It's
weird.
weird. It's wonderful. And it's
going
going to
going to be very difficult.
DISTORTED
DISTORTED THUMPING SOUND. Be
imaginative, come up with some crazy
ideas!
ideas! Send them into us at
@springwatch. But bear in mind, that
if
if they
if they are completely absurd, we
are
are very
are very likely to read them out at
the
the end
the end of the programme! Just keep
them
them clean if you want to hear them
on
on air.
on air. In autumn, when you get
these
these clear, still nights and it
gets
gets dark
gets dark earlier, very often as a
naturalist you have to use your ears
to
to connect with the season. In Mull,
what
what about the sounds of your autumn
season
season up
season up there, I hope it is not
more
more dripping torrential rain? I
have
have to
have to say, for some reason,
somehow,
somehow, the rain stopped just
before
before we
before we went on air, so I am very
happy
happy right now. It also means that
I
I am
I am listening to all of those
beautiful, autumnal sounds, and one
of
of my
of my favourite has to be when the
Red
Red Wings
Red Wings arrived. They come over
from
from Iceland. A beautiful call, very
distinctive, the smallest thrush
that
that we
that we have in the UK, and this
time
time on
time on Mull, I am going to be doing
a
a bit
a bit of
a bit of mammalian investigation,
looking
looking at some fantastic mammals.
But
But Gillian, Downing Castle Espie,
what
what are
what are you hearing? Well, we have
a
a new
a new sound that has joined the
Castle
Castle Espie autumn soundscape.
Castle Espie autumn soundscape. That
is
is the
is the call of the greenshank.
is the call of the greenshank. That
is
is another very distinctive sound of
autumn.
autumn. We managed to film one,
possibly
possibly one of the first birds
arriving
arriving here this season. They are
absolutely beautiful birds. An
average
average of only 70 of these birds
are
are recorded here every winter on
Strangford Lough, that is a lot of
miles
miles of
miles of shoreline, to spot one,
that
that means, is a really good spot.
Many
Many thousands of birds flock here
for
for the
for the autumn, for the winter, and
they
they are
they are all after the food that is
hidden
hidden in
hidden in that mode. Later in the
show
show I
show I will be digging in the dirt
to
to find
to find out what is there, and as
you
you know,
you know, Michaela, I will never
pass
pass up
pass up an opportunity to get low
down
down and
down and dirty! We've heard about
that
that online, Gillian, but I didn't
believe
believe it, personally, I was giving
you
you the
you the benefit of the doubt! I am
very
very pleased to hear that it is
actually
actually true. Down here at Wildcat
we
we are
we are using infrared, our thermal
camera
camera will be coming up later in
the
the programme as well. There is a
selection
selection of the cameras that we
have
have got
have got at the moment. A bit of
activity
activity in the foreground that is
our
our hedgerow camera would my. Let's
be
be a
be a bit
be a bit more ambitious than that,
because
because last night, we had an otter
on
on our
on our river cam, let's go to that
now
now and
now and see what we've got. There is
a
a jumping
a jumping fish. She's to this isn't
our
our live
our live camera, this is something
that
that we've been filming and we've
seen
seen quite a lot of our auto. But if
we
we look,
we look, we can see the jumping
fish,
fish, and
fish, and we paused it, rewound it,
it
it was
it was a
it was a brown trout, and shortly
after
after that, the otter came in, went
up
up on
up on the
up on the bank, had a little sniff
around,
around, they are active after dusk
and
and before dawn. They are very
opportunistic and they can change
their
their diet depending on what is
around.
around. Going back to the brown
trout
trout that we saw at the beginning
of
of that
of that clip, there is new science
out
out that
out that says that aughter is in the
best
best condition are the ones found to
eat
eat eels
eat eels and some annoyeds which
include
include brown trout. So I reckon
that
that our
that our aughter there has been
eating
eating some brown trout and is in
jolly
jolly good condition. He looks
beautiful. It does indeed, but it
was
was also
was also quite coincidental, a trout
jumped
jumped just before the otter
arrived,
arrived, and I wonder, did it jump
out
out of
out of the water, as fish do as a
kind
kind of
kind of distraction technique. We
may
may never
may never know! We've also got our
thermal
thermal camera out and about
tonight,
tonight, this is a camera which
picks
picks up
picks up the heat signature of an
animal.
animal. Looking out into the fields
Wild
Wild Ken
Wild Ken Hill, we can see those wild
patches,
patches, and they are brown hares.
Many
Many parts of the country they have
been
been suffering some decline, but
here,
here, they seem to be doing
extremely
extremely well, and down again to
the
the farming methods that are used
here.
here. And
here. And of course, when we were
watching
watching on Springwatch, it was not
just
just about enjoying the brown hares,
you've
you've got to remember the Marsh
areas
areas that were feeding here, part
of
of an
of an essential food chain which is
being
being rebuilt as part of that vision
for
for the
for the future. It is time to go
back
back to
back to Gillian with the promise of
not
not only
not only getting down and dirty but
also
also making a right mess of herself!
Yes,
Yes, it
Yes, it is going to get dirty, I'm
afraid.
afraid. That's because we are
exploring
exploring the intertidal mud flats
which
which are
which are outside here in Castle
Espie
Espie right around Strangford Lough.
It
It is
It is an
It is an habitat, and also an
extreme
extreme habitat, because it is an
underwater round when it is high
tide,
tide, but
tide, but when the water recedes,
creatures
creatures are revealed, or exposed,
depending
depending on whether you are
predator
predator or prey, and this
incredible smorgasbord of vegetation
cover
cover things like eelgrass, as well
as
as worms,
as worms, molluscs and crustaceans
in
in the
in the mud, and all kinds of birds
feeding
feeding on them, the curlew,
greenshank, oystercatchers, or
digging
digging into the mud. So, there is
plenty
plenty of
plenty of food clearly not only in
the
the water
the water but on the surface of the
mud,
mud, and
mud, and in the mud itself. No, of
the
the weekend I took a chance to dig
into
into Castle Espie's very own mini
mud
mud flat.
mud flat. To get an insight into the
rich
rich resources of the mudflats, I'm
going
going to
going to be using this and this to
get
get stuck
get stuck in the mud. Believe it or
not,
not, these mudflats are one the
harshest
harshest habitats in the whole
country.
country. They're exposed and then
submerged
submerged again twice a day, but
even
even so
even so there are plenty of
creatures
creatures in their living there best
little
little lives, and that is what I'm
hoping
hoping to
hoping to find.
I've
I've got
I've got the perfect sample! Just
going
going to
going to have to reach in and grab
it.
Before
Before we
Before we even look at the creatures
living
living here, let's take a look at
the
the habitat. As I was going down
with
with this
with this core sample, I can still
smell
smell it,
smell it, it's a very sulphurous
smell,
smell, rotten eggs, which indicates
that
that this
that this layer had very little
oxygen.
oxygen. That determines what is
going
going to
going to live in the different
layers.
layers. Each layer offers some perks
but
but there
but there are also some
disadvantages. At the top you will
have
have a
have a much more oxygen rich
environment but it is more
susceptible to predation. Deep down,
you
you are
you are safe from predators but you
have
have got
have got to contender with an oxygen
starved
starved environment.
starved environment. Doing this
means
means that you expose whatever is
living
living in
living in their without damaging
them.
them. There is a lugworm. There's no
gold,
gold, but
gold, but I've got a lugworm. There
is
is another one. In such a short
space
space of
space of time, with just one little
club
club of
club of mud, we've found quite a lot
of
of life
of life in there. If you just
imagine
imagine scaling that up to this
whole
whole habitat of Strangford Lough,
that
that is
that is a
that is a lot of food. And of
course,
course, that is what the wildfowl
are
are here
are here for.
I
I tell
I tell you what, I am really pleased
that
that I
that I didn't have my nails done
when
when I
when I was doing that, and I can
tell
tell you,
tell you, it took ages to get rid of
that
that sulphurous smell, but it was
worth
worth it,
worth it, because we got to take a
close
close look, with the help of Patrick
Collins
Collins from Queen's University, at
some
some of
some of the species that were living
on
on the
on the surface of that mud. This is
the
the kind
the kind of stuff we saw, we saw
amazing
amazing creatures, things like these
glass
glass shrimp, they have all kinds of
common
common names, dead shrimp, river
shrimp,
shrimp, they are specialists. We
also
also saw
also saw these things, these are
very
very common shore crabs, this is a
juvenile,
juvenile, plenty of those scuttling
around
around on
around on the surface of the mud,
and
and then
and then this edible blue mussel,
also
also a
also a juvenile, using its
extendable foot to explore the
surface
surface of the Petrie dish there.
So,
So, these
So, these are just some of the
species
species that we found on the
weekend.
weekend. We did take the opportunity
to
to dig
to dig up
to dig up some fresh samples, clean
hands
hands this time, pressure samples
that
that we
that we could show you, because
there
there are
there are some fascinating things.
This
This is
This is a
This is a species that some of you
might
might be
might be familiar with. In there is
a
a rag
a rag worm. Rag worms are an
absolutely fascinating species
because
because they live in the mud and if
you
you remember how compacted that mud
was
was that
was that I was trying to dig up,
these
these things actually move through
it,
it, and
it, and this gives us a really good
chance
chance to
chance to watch how they move. It is
that
that undulating motion, plus
paddling
paddling with those appendages, that
helps
helps them to get through the mud.
They
They are
They are supremely adapted for life
in
in that
in that mode. But it's not just
moving
moving through the mud, they are
also
also known as the Swiss Army worm,
that's
that's because they have a whole
range
range of
range of tools at their disposal for
catching
catching their prey. So, they can
either
either just eat some mud, munch it
down
down and
down and passively take on whatever
prey
prey they
prey they find, but they can also
actively
actively hunt down their prey
actively hunt down their prey with
this
this jaw,
this jaw, and then they use a mucous
net
net to
net to ensnare any prey on the mud.
So
So they
So they are quite extraordinary
creatures. Later in the programme I
am
am going
am going to be looking at another
mud
mud specialist, which absolutely
Loves
Loves this stuff. For now, it is
over
over to
over to Megs.
I
I love
I love seeing Gillian getting down
amongst
amongst the sediment looking at
those
those incredible animals. I know
many
many of
many of you at home like to do the
same
same and
same and you will write in and tell
us
us about
us about it. I have a letter from
Denise
Denise Elliott. She messaged to ask
about
about hedgehogs. How to look after
them,
them, what to do in your gardens,
but
but specifically, what size should
they
they be
they be to survive the winter?
Should
Should they be rescued if they are
out
out in
out in the day in the winter or
summer?
summer? Hedgehogs are nocturnal, so
if
if you
if you see them out and about in the
daytime
daytime at this time of year,
chances
chances are that they might be in
trouble
trouble and need help. If they don't
reach
reach over 500 g before the winter
and
and before they hibernate, they need
a
a helping
a helping hand. Hedgehogs here on
Mull
Mull have
Mull have been recorded since 1825,
so
so unlike
so unlike other islands, it is safe
to
to say
to say they are part of the ecology.
On
On the
On the 11th of September, Val and
Dave
Dave Owen
Dave Owen got a call about a
hedgehog
hedgehog that needed help. I am
grateful
grateful to them that they invited
me
me along
me along to help release it. Last
year
year in
year in 2020, hedgehogs like this
one
one were
one were listed as vulnerable to
extension. In parts of the UK, they
have
have reduced by 97%. It is so
important
important to look after them. This
little
little guy here, nicknamed Mr
Prickles,
Prickles, is almost ready to be
released.
released. When he was found he only
weighed
weighed 240 g. But before he is
released
released back into the wild, we have
to
to check
to check what he weighs. Come on
then.
then. Let's have a look. Just about
800
800 g,
800 g, over double the weight when
he
he came
he came in. It is safe to say he has
had
had a
had a fair bit of food and he is in
pretty
pretty good condition. I think it is
about
about time for his big moment. He is
definitely ready. Come on then,
little
little one. It's really good to give
them
them a
them a place to go initially as they
get
get used
get used to their new surroundings.
There
There is
There is some dry leaves and hay in
there,
there, which will be perfect
insulation as we get closer to
winter
winter through autumn and the
temperature drops. This gives him
the
the opportunity to come back and
find
find security, find a safe place so
he
he can
he can explore his environment and
come
come back. He will be supplemented
with
with food
with food and water. It is a bit of
a
a slow
a slow release back into the wild
and
and his
and his natural territory where he
was
was found
was found wasn't that far away. All
that
that is
that is left to do is pop the lid
back
back on,
back on, just like that and wish Mr
Prickles
Prickles the very best of luck. If
you
you do
you do happen to come across a
hedgehog
hedgehog that is
you do happen to come across a hedgehog that is
cold up somewhere
where
where you
where you don't think it should be,
please
please call your local wildlife
rescuers
rescuers because they will be happy
to
to help.
to help. If you'd like to encourage
hedgehogs
hedgehogs into your own garden,
there
there are
there are lots of tips online on how
to
to do
to do it.
to do it. Halloween and bonfire
night
night is
night is coming up. If you are
planning
planning on lighting a bonfire,
please,
please, please do move the bonfire
before
before you light it. You never know
what
what kind
what kind of animals can be
hibernating. It's not just Val and
Dave
Dave out
Dave out and about looking after the
wildlife
wildlife around Mull, lots of people
are
are looking at otters as well. With
300
300 miles
300 miles of coastline there is a
lot
lot of
lot of roads around here and of
course,
course, otters do tend to cross them
as
as well.
as well. The Mull at a group have
been
been looking at ways to protect
these
these animals and they have come up
with
with an
with an ingenious plan. It was
something
something they put in in 2016, they
just
just have
just have a look at otter
reflectors. Otters are well known
for
for feeding along the shorelines of
Mull.
Mull. But
Mull. But when they make their way
in
in to
in to sleep, they travel inland and
that
that means they have to cross busy
roads
roads like this one. Over recent
decades,
decades, it has been the lead cause
of
of mortality. Excluding natural
causes.
causes. The otter Mull group got
together
together to figure out a solution.
This
This is
This is an otter reflector and has
been
been designed for them. They are at
such
such a
such a level and an angle that when
cars
cars come
cars come along the road shining
their
their headlines, these reflector
panels
panels reflect the light back to the
otter,
otter, causing it to be alert and
hopefully
hopefully deter it from crossing the
road
road at
road at that moment. Since they were
installed
installed in 2016, there has been no
otter
otter fatalities in these specific
locations
locations with these reflectors. A
huge
huge success, if you ask me.
There
There was
There was otter reflectors are
fantastic, they are doing such a
brilliant
brilliant job around the roads of
Mull.
Mull. I
Mull. I really wanted to see an
otter
otter for
otter for myself because I have
never
never seen one. I set a camera trap,
fantastic
fantastic way of monitoring animals
remotely
remotely without causing any
disturbance. It was out for one
night,
night, let's have a look at setting
it
it up.
it up. Here we go. Look what this
is,
is, otter
is, otter spread. Quite fresh, it is
shiny.
shiny. Brilliant to see evidence of
otters
otters like this and that you can
hear
hear the
hear the road a few metres away,
showing
showing the proximity this otter
pathway
pathway has two the Rd. But it is
such
such a
such a fertile area and this graph
suggest
suggest this has probably been aside
for
for otter
for otter spread for quite some
time,
time, this pathway could have been
here
here for
here for quite a few hundred years.
Exciting
Exciting to see. I hadn't actually
seen
seen an
seen an otter, but I did get
evidence
evidence that they are there and it
is
is a
is a brilliant way of knowing there
are
are otters around. But then I did go
ahead
ahead and
ahead and set the camera trap up and
look
look what
look what happened on the first
night.
night. This never happens with
wildlife.
wildlife. Look at the left-hand
side.
Two
Two eyes
Two eyes appear. Look at that. What
are
are the
are the chances, I was so thrilled.
You
You could
You could almost hear it sniffing.
Sniffing
Sniffing otter on your first night
with
with a
with a camera trap, it is pretty
good.
good. Wildlife at this time of year
is
is very
is very reliant on any kind of
resource
resource to confide. Hedgerows are
really
really an
really an important lifeline. Let's
take
take a
take a look at the species they
support.
The
The bright light of a new day
reveals
reveals the full splendour of all
time's
time's berry banquet.
At
At least
At least 2000 species of animal,
plants
plants and fungi are hosted by the
humble
humble hedgerow.
humble hedgerow. By far the greatest
number
number of
number of these guests are insects.
The
The common butterfly is a particular
bramble
bramble lover. Perched on the fruit,
they
they show
they show off the white markings on
the
the underside of their wings that
give
give them
give them their name. The flowers
that
that sustain
them
them in
them in the summer have given way to
succulent
succulent blackberries. Which are an
irresistible autumn lifeline.
The
The seasonal variety is welcomed by
this
this dinner guest.
this dinner guest. The duck bug.
After
After a
After a monotonous summer diet after
feeding
feeding on duck seeds, from which
they
they get
they get their name, these bugs are
turning
turning their attention elsewhere.
They
They are
They are extra and ordinarily well
adapted
adapted for the task. Their
mouthparts are shaped into a tube
with
with a
with a sharp tip, which they used to
pierce
pierce the fruit and suck out the
juice
juice from inside.
After
After the
After the bugs and birds have had
their
their fill, the leftovers won't go
to
to waste.
to waste. Fallen Fruit serves as the
feast's
feast's finale.
feast's finale. An aptly named shab
has
has moved
has moved into position especially
for
for the
for the occasion.
--
-- chub.
-- chub. They lie in wait beneath
the
the surface for the right offerings
to
to fall.
to fall. These youngsters are not
fussy
fussy eaters, they are opportunists,
munching
munching on whatever food is
seasonally available.
As
As they
As they grow older, they will become
less
less sociable and more aggressive
and
and will
and will change their diet to
hunting
hunting eels, frogs, even water
voles.
voles. But for now, they are happy
hoovering
hoovering up the crumbs of the
season's
season's flavoursome feast.
Isn't
Isn't it
Isn't it amazing how many animals
benefit
benefit from a hedge? It can support
a
a whole
a whole ecosystem, so we must never
underestimate the importance of
hedges,
hedges, considering we have lost 75%
since
since the
since the 1960s. Not at Wild Ken
Hill,
Hill, they have 4000 acres, and the
brilliant
brilliant thing is, they let them
grow.
grow. For
grow. For a good wildlife hedge you
should
should only cut it every two to
three
three years, and not at this time of
year.
year. Before we get onto hedges, we
have
have a
year. Before we get onto hedges, we have a
have a live deer. We have two. I
don't
don't think they are muntjac, are
they?
they? Just going on the thermal
images
images in
images in the dark. It is
challenging. They could be Chinese
water
water deer. Chinese water deer have
Teddy
Teddy Bears faces with big noses and
big
big ears.
big ears. They look quite chunky,
they
they are
they are Chinese water deer. It is
hard
hard to
hard to tell in the daylight, but to
tell
tell in
tell in the dark like this is very
difficult. But great to see them,
very
very nice. Let's see what else you
can
can get
can get for us before the end of the
programme. Let's look into one of
the
the hedges. This is where we have
seen
seen a
seen a lot of mouse action. Nothing
there
there right now. But not only have
we
we seen
we seen mice running through the
hedge,
hedge, but we have seen mice are
making
making the most of those berries
within
within the hedge. That is clearly
why
why so
why so many of them are running
around.
around. That is a fantastic source
of
of food
of food at this time of year. You
can
can see
can see the mass of berries in the
hedge.
hedge. Let's look at while Ken
Hill's
Hill's hedges, they are worth
celebrating,
celebrating, billowing with fruit.
This
This is
This is how to manage a hedge for
wildlife,
wildlife, loaded with food. We have
Blackthorn, Hawthorn, Tribbett,
guelder
guelder rose, dog rose, elder and
lots
lots of
lots of species that have been
producing
producing berries, are producing
berries
berries and will produce berries
later
later as
later as well. It's not just mice
going
going for
going for those, it is birds. Birds
that
that will
that will often travel great
distances
distances to come here to eat them.
What
What is
What is interesting about that,
different
different types of bird it will need
different
different types of Berry
specifically for what is inside
them.
them. These are migrants and before
they
they set
they set off they probably went for
the
the darker berries, the ones that
were
were more
were more sugary, so they could put
on
on lots
on lots of fat and that Redwing also
feasting
feasting on those. Resident species,
things
things like blackbirds, they tend to
go
go the
go the lighted rich berries. They
want
want a
want a quick fix of energy. What is
going
going here? Just watch this
blackbird. It appears to be picking
and
and then
and then dropping the berries.
Blackbirds are not clumsy in any
way,
way, they
way, they are choosing the berries
very,
very, very specifically. Picking it
up
up and
up and thinking, I don't want that
one,
one, I
one, I am
one, I am going to try another.
Eventually, the blackbird finds a
berry
berry to
berry to its liking, has a little
bit
bit of
bit of a
bit of a feel and then swallows it
down.
down. So
down. So how are these birds making
an
an active
an active choice about which
particular Hawthorn Berry that they
eat?
eat? There are good berries and bad
berries.
berries. These are good berries.
You
You can
You can see these ones, they look
lovely,
lovely, ready to eat, if you're a
blackbird. And if I show you these,
this
this one
this one looks a bit like a toffee
apple,
apple, it
apple, it is rigid and hard, and it
is
is not
is not a
is not a very good Bury, if you're a
bird.
bird. I've got the bad back dish
here.
here. Look at those. They don't look
so
so tasty.
so tasty. You wouldn't buy those
from
from the
from the supermarket, would you? So,
the
the blackbird is somehow able to
discern
discern between the two. Why doesn't
it
it want
it want the bad berries? Let me show
you
you my
you my toffee apple Bury here. First
of
of all
of all it
of all it has got a hold on the
outside,
outside, which betrays what is on
the
the inside. Up to you 62% of
hawthorn
hawthorn berries have fly or moth
larvae
larvae living with inside them. The
moth
moth and
moth and fly larvae are eating all
the
the tasty
the tasty bits inside the Bury,
which
which means it is not going to be as
useful
useful for a blackbird, and they not
going
going to
going to stick their little head out
of
of the
of the hole because they don't want
to
to get
to get eaten, so they are going to
stay
stay in
stay in there all the time, which
means
means they're going to be pooing in
there
there as
there as well, and it could be that
they
they are
they are making the berries
distasteful, which could be why the
blackbirds in this case don't want
to
to eat
to eat them. It just goes to show
that
that nothing goes to waste. Yes, the
blackbirds discarded the berries,
but
but the
but the insects made the most of
them,
them, and
them, and at this time of the year,
the
the insects will make the most of
any
any discarded easy fruit. This is
close
close to
close to where we're standing now,
it's
it's a
it's a Peartree, the parents are
rotting
rotting on the ground, this is a
good
good example of why you should leave
your
your rotting fruit on the ground,
don't
don't just clear it up all the time.
Lots
Lots of
Lots of insects making the most of
it.
it. You've got wasps and
butterflies, and if you watch
closely
closely you can see some really
interesting behaviour. If we zoom
in,
in, you
in, you can see, in comes a hornet,
knocking
knocking a wasp off its perch,
momentarily stuns it, and then watch
what
what it
what it does, it did cap wasp. Yes,
that
that is
that is what I said, it bites their
head
head off.
head off. And you can see there, the
head
head is
head is separate to the body. It
then
then goes
then goes on to take the legs off,
and
and the
and the wings. So, it immobilises
the
the wasp,
the wasp, so it doesn't fly away and
so
so it
so it doesn't get stung,
particularly if it is a female wasp.
And
And then
And then normally it would chew the
abdomen,
abdomen, roll it into a ball and
take
take it
take it back to its nest. In this
particular case it seems to be
chewing
chewing something, but then it gets
disturbed, doesn't manage to get to
that
that rolling the insides into a ball
stage,
stage, something disturbs it and it
goes
goes off.
goes off. But what's amazing about
that
that is
that is it is predator eating
predator.
predator. Yes, the wasp was eating
the
the fruit, but it is also a fish
eater,
eater, and the hornet is also a
flesh
flesh eater, so that's quite
amazing,
amazing, isn't it? It is, it is
almost
almost like the wasp equates to a
sparrowhawk and a hornet equates to
a
a goshawk, because goshawks will eat
sparrowhawks, and that is what we
are
are seeing, in insect terms. When
Meghan
Meghan was a younger, we had a wasps
nest
nest in
nest in the garden and I put some
jam
jam on
jam on the table and I got her to
Krmencik
Krmencik by the table and I put a
whole
whole load of jam on my nose until
it
it was
it was covered with wasps so that
she
she could
she could see that they were
harmless,
harmless, and then I put a dollop of
jam
jam on
jam on her nose and the wasps came,
I've
I've got
I've got a picture of her cross eyed
looking
looking at the wasps like that!
You're
You're a
You're a memo that? Yeah, I do, I
have
have quite vivid memories of that
moment.
moment. I
moment. I really love wasps so I
really
really won't complain. Now, from the
fiercely
fiercely fabulous to the utterly
divine
divine and adorable, because just
this
this morning, I went out to go and
see
see some
see some seals. Now, we have two
species
species of seals around the UK, most
of
of them
of them I
of them I have to say make their
home
home in
home in Scotland, 40% of the global
population of grey seals are up. But
these
these are
these are common seals. They're
having
having a
having a bit of arrest, after lots
of
of activity diving, eating and
playing
playing in the water, they are now
hauled-out. Absolutely incredible
animals.
animals. A lot of people often ask,
what
what is
what is the difference between
common
common seals and grey seals? Because
often
often they can be quite confusing
especially when they are in the
water.
water. This is what to look out for.
On
On the
On the left-hand side you have the
common
common seal, on the right you the
grey
grey seal. You can see the big
difference in the length of the
snout.
snout. The grey seals have got much
elongated
elongated snouts. And if you ever
get
get a
get a look at their nostrils, the
grey
grey seals have parallel nostrils,
and
and the
and the common have reshaped
nostrils,
nostrils, and the greys are much
larger,
larger, weighing about 300
kilograms, and the commons are about
100
100 kilograms, about a third of the
size.
size. I
size. I don't know where I am
getting
getting squeals from! Begins with S,
I
I don't
I don't know what's happening me
today!
today! Anyway, in 2021, there were
lots
lots and
lots and lots of reports of seal
disturbances, and this is a really
important
important issue. There was research
done
done by
done by the Cornwall seal group
research
research trust and they found that
934
934 cases
934 cases were reported of seal
disturbance, that is over double the
previous
previous year. It's incredibly
important
important that we are responsible
when
when going out and watching
wildlife,
wildlife, especially when the
wildlife, especially when the seals
are
are pupping. Grey seals are
currently
currently pupping offshore, the
common
common seals pupped earlier in the
year.
year. I
year. I went out this morning, and I
practised
practised responsible wildlife
watching,
watching, and this is how to do it.
It
It is
It is always such a joy to come and
see
see seal
see seal hauled-out on the
shoreline. To get here, I stayed
incredibly quiet on my way in and
moved
moved really slowly to cause minimum
disturbance to the seals. To get a
good
good view
good view with a long lens, or a
good
good pair
good pair of binoculars. The seals
behind
behind me
behind me are harbour seals and at
this
this time
this time of year I want to keep at
least
least 100
least 100 metres distance. It's
incredibly important that I try not
to
to disturb them, the last thing I
would
would want to do is force them back
into
into the
into the water, where they could
sustain
sustain injury and also ruin their
resting
resting period, which is why they
are
are hauled-out in the first place.
We
We all
We all know, the best interactions
with
with wildlife come from when the
animals
animals are behaving naturally and
are
are relaxed in their own
environment, so I am going to take a
bit
bit of
bit of a
bit of a minute now and enjoy this
because
because these seals are pretty
spectacular.
spectacular. Now, of course, when
we're
we're out
we're out and about watching
wildlife,
wildlife, all of our camera
operators
operators are using long lenses not
to
to disturb the wildlife. But
Gillian,
Gillian, I've heard the animal that
you're
you're looking at did not actually
require
require a
require a long lens at all? Not at
all,
all, it
all, it requires digging, as you
know!
know! Earlier on, we were digging
into
into the
into the intertidal mudflats and we
revealed
revealed some weird and wonderful
invertebrates that live as it might
seem
seem like
seem like a hidden and alien world,
but
but I'm
but I'm sure those of you that visit
the
the coast
the coast or even live by the coast,
will
will have
will have come across at least the
tell-tale
tell-tale signs of one species, and
I'm
I'm sure
I'm sure this is very familiar to a
lot
lot of
lot of you. There it is, there is
one
one of
one of these structures in the
making,
making, it is actually speeded up
and
and the
and the animal responsible for that
is
is buried
is buried below, the animal is
called
called a
called a lugworm. And there are
literally
literally thousands and thousands of
these
these worm casts that they produce
right
right across the mudflats. They can
occur
occur with such high density that
there
there can
there can be as many as 85 lugworm
is
is all
is all squashed in a single square
metre.
metre. So, clearly, there are a lot
of
of them
of them but it is really worth
taking
taking a
taking a closer look, because they
are
are truly
are truly remarkable creatures.
Lugworm
Lugworm is our very much like
earthworms, they are segmented. But
unlike
unlike earthworms, they do not like
travelling, they are not big
travellers at all, they live
solitary
solitary lives buried in burrows,
and
and they
and they can live for five or six
years,
years, if
years, if they are not predated
upon.
upon. And
upon. And unfortunately, they are on
the
the menu
the menu for lots of things, wading
birds,
birds, fish and crustaceans eat them
too
too and
too and each of them have their own
unique
unique way of extracting these worms
out
out of
out of their burrows. It's worth
taking
taking another look because these
are
are such
are such fascinating creatures.
There
There are
There are two different species of
lugworm.
lugworm. It is the blow lugworm and
the
the black
the black lugworm. We are looking
here
here at
here at the below lugworm. This is
one
one of
one of the ones that we connected
earlier
earlier in the week, and we can see
it
it moving
it moving around in the Petrie dish.
Whether
Whether we've got the blow lugworm
or
or the
or the black lugworm, irrespective
of
of that,
of that, both species like to spend
their
their time in U-shaped, like a U
bend,
bend, burrows, with their head at
one
one end
one end and their tail at the other,
and
and that
and that is how they see out their
days.
days. We've got a diagram here to
show
show you
show you what that might look like
under
under the
under the sand. The head end
show you what that might look like under the sand. The head end
is
where
where they are feeding, as you might
expect,
expect, and a drawdown sand and mud
into
into that
into that feeding funnel, and they
will
will eat
will eat that mud, and they will
work
work away, removing the
microorganisms and the organic
matter
matter from that mud and they will
die
die just
die just it, but everything else
just
just passes straight through the
worm,
worm, out
worm, out the other end, and this is
where
where that faecal mount starts to
form,
form, and
form, and that is what we see as
worm
worm casts. So, it's not just about
food
food on
food on the mudflats, lugworm to
mate
mate and
mate and reproduce, too. But how do
these
these solitary animals find each
other
other on
other on the mudflats? Purely they
use
use a
use a strategy called broadcast
spawning
spawning and autumn is the time for
lugworm
lugworm love. So, at this time of
year,
year, the
year, the males begin to broadcast,
by
by releasing clouds of Seaman. At
this
this point, the sperm in the Seaman
are
are inactive, they remain trapped,
but
but as
but as the tide comes in, it will
disperse
disperse the Seaman but it will also
wake
wake up
wake up the sperm and get them
swimming.
swimming. This broadcast spawning is
synchronised, so all the worms in a
given
given area would release their eggs
and
and their
and their sperm at the same time.
How
How they
How they do it is a mystery, but we
do
do have
do have Professor Gordon
do have Professor Gordon Watson and
so
so immoral from Portsmouth
university to thank for that
brilliant
brilliant research. From that, we
are
are going
are going to go to a brilliant
example
example of someone who has followed
his
his curiosity for the natural world
and
and his
and his passion for music, and in so
doing,
doing, Michael Prime has found a new
and
and unique way of tuning into the
world
world of
world of mushrooms.
Autumn
Autumn is
Autumn is full of sounds, birds
calling,
calling, the crunch of leaf litter
underfoot
underfoot but for sky, there are
more
more worldly sounds -- otherworldly
sounds
sounds to
sounds to be found. Although the
sauce
sauce is
sauce is tantalisingly terrestrial.
What
What we've got here is capable of
amplifying the electrical field of
any
any living organism, whether that is
a
a fungus
a fungus or a plant. I've always
been
been fascinated by plants, by
biology.
biology. And also by music and
sound.
sound. And over the years, the two
things
things have gradually come together.
He
He uses
He uses specialised equipment that
translates bio electrical fields
into
into sound which he uses in musical
compositions and art installations.
Michael
Michael has come to the National
Trust's
Trust's nature reserve in Northern
Ireland
Ireland to attempt to record a
fungus
fungus he
fungus he finds fascinating. I'm
very,
very, very keen to record this one,
Clatherus
Clatherus Acheri, it is a fungus
that
that I
that I have only ever found once
before,
before, years ago, in Sussex, and I
didn't
didn't have my recording equipment
with
with me
with me at the time. So, hearing
that
that it
that it was actually fruiting, right
now,
now, here
now, here in Merlot, I thought, I've
got
got to
got to get up there and do it.
Clatherus
Clatherus Acheri forms an egg like
structure
structure and in the autumn it
explodes
explodes with these tendril
formations, which have led to it
more
more commonly being referred to as
Devils
Devils Fingers or Octopus Stinkhorn,
which
which is
which is a clue to another of its
characteristics.
If
If we
If we have a smell... Absolutely the
smell
smell of
smell of rotting meat. I love that
kind
kind of
kind of alien appearance of it. It
is
is particularly interesting for the
strategy
strategy it uses to disperse its
spores.
spores. It attempts to attract flies
to
to carry
to carry the spores, and it produces
the
the smell
the smell of rotting meat. It has
these
these little blobs of jelly
containing the spores, which the
flies
flies feed on and they then carry
them
them away. And there they are,
actually
actually carrying out some spore
They
They might smell rather hellish, but
for
for Michael, do their bio metrical
signals
signals sound more heavenly?
BLEEPING SOUNDS
The
The fluctuations you hear in the
sounds
sounds are direct mapping of the
fluctuations of the field in the bio
organism.
organism. The electrical field of
the
the fungus is constantly changing in
response
response to its environment. There
tends
tends to
tends to be a regular pulse, almost
like
like a
like a heartbeat. It varies
according
according to whether it is excited
or
or not,
or not, if you like. It might be
excited
excited if it encounters water or
nutrients. Michael has managed to
record
record the sound of this Stinkhorn
to
to add
to add to
to add to his fungal symphony. I
like
like to
like to think what I do is a
collaboration with the organisms
that
that I
that I work with. In the end,
hopefully
hopefully it is a piece of music or
it
it is
it is a
it is a piece of art. But hopefully
also
also it
also it is music with a purpose,
because
because plants and fungi, they don't
interact
interact with us in obvious ways
like
like animals do. It is easy to think
of
of them
of them as being inanimate, which is
completely wrong. And so I hope that
by
by making
by making those processes audible,
people
people can appreciate plants and
fungi
fungi for
fungi for what they are, complex,
living
living organisms. I love that,
absolutely love it. I love the
Octopus
Octopus Stinkhorn. I would love to
see
see one.
see one. I have never seen one. But
also
also Michael is transforming those
bioelectrical sounds into art, which
is
is fantastic. There is little
fluctuations, what he has done, he
has
has taken
has taken the recordings he got from
those
those Octopus Stinkhorn and
transform
transform them into different
voices.
voices. It is the same species but
produces
produces different sounds. He has
laid
laid them
laid them together to produce a
composition made by the sounds of
this
this fungus.
BLEEPING AND BEAT
What
What do
What do people think it might be? We
had
had Dave
had Dave on Twitter, is it an otter
playing
playing swing ball? Someone on
Twitter
Twitter says, is it something with a
sore
sore throat. The sound of a frog
bouncing
bouncing on a drum. But somebody got
it
it right.
it right. Dave on Twitter, my wife
says
says the
says the noise of a spider but my
son
son says
son says a mushroom? Do you think
that
that was
that was just a lucky guess? It must
have
have been. Other than that he has
been
been probing deep into the
bioelectrical fields at the
mushrooms. Top work. Even if it was
a
a gas,
a gas, it
a gas, it is brilliant. Mushrooms,
this
this is
this is the time of year to get out
and
and look
and look for them. Once you get your
eye
eye in,
eye in, you do see some
extraordinary shapes. Not only do
they
they look
they look so strange, but they have
wonderfully descriptive weird and
wonderful
wonderful names. So it is half term,
get
get your
get your kids out, get them to go on
a
a fun,
a fun, funky forage, which is what
Chris
Chris and
Chris and I did yesterday. -- fungi.
What
What is
What is your favourite name for UK
mushroom?
mushroom? There are some amazing
names.
names. My
names. My like Stinkhorn. They do
stink.
stink. I
stink. I like the flirt. It stinks,
as
as our
as our name. And you? I like
destroying Angel, and deathcap. The
poisonous
poisonous ones. I like these. What
does
does this
does this remind you of? It reminds
me
me of
me of a
me of a cinnamon freckled iced bun.
It
It is
It is like an umbrella, it is called
a
a parasol. This one doesn't have it
quite
quite so
quite so pronounced, but they have
or
or can
or can only be described as a nipple
on
on top.
on top. When they open up, they are
stunning.
stunning. They are, in human terms,
edible.
edible. Look at this. Little bit
small
small that one, Chris. Size isn't
important, but what would you call
this?
this? A
this? A dung fun fungi.
this? A dung fun fungi. It skills
inside
inside disintegrate and turn into a
black,
black, using, dripping liquid just
like
like Indian ink. They used to use
that
that to
that to sign people's death
certificates and wills. I am not
entirely
entirely sure that was true. I like
it,
it, but
it, but we have seen two fairly
colourless fungi. These are
beautiful
beautiful colours. I think it is
called
called a
called a deceiver. I say that
because
because they come in a huge variety
of
of colours so it can be difficult to
identify
identify them. If it is dry, they
are
are yellow. This is more tan colour.
Let's
Let's leave the deceiver to its
confusion. This doesn't instantly
look
look like
look like fungi, but it is? It just
doesn't
doesn't have that traditional cat,
the
the mushroom, if you like. It is
called
called golden spindle or spindle
shaped
shaped fairy club. It is there to
disperse
disperse its spores, but how it does
it
it with
it with a
it with a structure like that? It is
amazing
amazing how different species we
have
have seen. Let's see if we can find
some
some more. I still want to find the
flirt
flirt of
flirt of the beef what about the
flirt
flirt talking to beefsteak? Chicken
of
of the
of the woods. Once you start, you
get
get so
get so into it. So many amazing
looking
looking fungi. These look a bit like
a
a beefsteak. It looks like blood
dripping
dripping out. Those are the spores,
and
and if
and if you were to break them apart,
they
they look
they look very meaty on the inside.
If
If you
If you eat them they taste pretty
meaty.
meaty. If
meaty. If you cook them right. Let's
look
look at
look at one that you definitely must
not
not touch, let alone eat, destroying
Angel.
Angel. Very Gothic. A piece of this
the
the size
the size of your little finger nail
would
would end
would end in your life. It is
prudent
prudent at this point, they are
fascinating, great to examine and to
explore,
explore, the best thing to do is not
to
to touch
to touch them in anyway, take
photographs, share them with your
friends
friends on the Internet, send them
to
to us
to us if
to us if you find some special ones,
but
but take
but take care. Very few are
seriously
seriously poisonous, but it is not
worth
worth making a mistake. I do think
people
people who discover fungi, have a
sense
sense of
sense of humour with the name. If
you
you discovered a new species, what
would
would you
would you call it? The ones that are
very
very low,
very low, amorphous, I would call it
toodle's
toodle's revenge. The black one that
flopped
flopped over, I would call it the
limp
limp liquid. You can test your
knowledge
knowledge on fungi, go on their
website
website and there is a quiz.
Appreciating wildlife isn't just
about
about learning loads of facts about
wildlife,
wildlife, often it is just sitting,
watching,
watching, listening and immersing
yourself
yourself in the experience. We are
going
going to
going to let you do that right now
with
with a
with a mindful moment and the beauty
of
of the
of the wildlife from the Lake
District.
You
You know
You know you do your yoga and stuff,
and
and you
and you tell me I have to relax. I
do
do relax,
do relax, and the one way I relax is
listening
listening to the rain. I do it in
the
the woodland, and I can identify the
tree
tree I
tree I am
tree I am sitting under by the sound
of
of the
of the rain on them. That is
meditation, very good for you. I am
going
going to
going to get you excited, we have
something
something on the live cameras. Let's
have
have a
have a look. Look at that. There we
go,
go, it
go, it is
go, it is now. We saw a barn owl
last
last night, what do that is? A barn
owl
owl that
owl that is hovering. That is
exactly
exactly what we saw and it was about
this
this time
this time last night as well. So the
barn
barn owl
barn owl is out hunting. One thing
it
it is
it is worth saying, Michaela, it is
pitch
pitch black. It is hunting primarily
just
just using its ears. But look at
that
that view. That is way too big for
the
the barn
the barn owl. Look at the way it is
hovering,
hovering, almost like a kestrel,
moving
moving across the field as slowly as
possible,
possible, using its giant ears,
hanging
hanging there. Fantastic. It really
is.
is. That
is. That is an amazing shot. Lovely
to
to get
to get that live on the programme as
well
well and
well and that is Mark Yates, out
there
there with his thermal camera to try
and
and get
and get whatever he can. Sensational
stuff.
stuff. Our Autumnwatch list on the
website,
website, we want things you can take
photographs. Princess to the end of
the
the show.
the show. Gillian, what have you got
for
for us
for us tomorrow from Northern
Ireland?
Ireland? I will be finding out how
hair
hair samples are helping out one of
our
our most
our most iconic species, red
squirrels. And I will be looking at
one
one of
one of my
one of my favourite animals, sharks
and
and how
and how they are using the coast
around
around Mull, particularly the spiny
dogfish.
dogfish. Here I will be looking at
the
the wasp
the wasp spider, one of the most
sexy
sexy species of spider and we will
find
find out
find out how it uses its web
effectively. Straight after this
programme
programme you can head over to
Facebook
Facebook live where we will be
taking
taking a
taking a look at the live cameras.
You
You can
You can watch the live cameras any
time
time from
time from ten o'clock in the morning
to
to ten
to ten o'clock at night. We will see
you
you tomorrow, get in contact with us
on
on our
on our social media platforms.
Facebook,
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. We
will
will see
will see you at eight o'clock
tomorrow.
tomorrow. Goodbye.