Change is everywhere I look now. Areas of the park are now covered in crocuses, joining the last of the snowdrops and the occasional winter aconite (see the feature Britain’s Bravest Blooms for more information), along with the daffodils, the blades of which have been...

You can hear it in the air. It’s not anywhere near full song yet but there is definitely a more vibrant sound across gardens and park, as more birds are giving song. They’re on the look-out for mates, defending territories, and generally saying: “Look at me!”.

Yesterda...

Ever-changing, ever moving, the wheel of the seasons is slowly but surely taking us further away from summer. Soon we’ll be saying goodbye to lots of birds, including Swallows. But it also brings us closer to things too, such as the winter migrants that will be arrivi...

Over the past few days the butterflies have been out in abundance, making the most of the glorious weekend we enjoyed. Amongst the Peacocks, Small Tortoiseshells, Large Whites, etc, I have seen several Red Admirals. Big, flashy and unmissable, thanks to their black wi...

I’ve started getting used to checking out a certain branch on Henbury Pond every day to see if the Common Darter is resting on it. Although I don’t always see it, it does seem to be a favourite haunt for this insect. Today it was waiting patiently for me, it’s brillia...

The elderberries  hang invitingly from the trees, plump, glossy, and deep reddish purple, and wildlife is unable to resist its lure. While I watch, Blackcaps eat, while Blue Tits take refuge deeper in the bush by Henbury Pond in Highbury Park. Somewhere nearby but in...

The sun was out, and I’d decided to make the most of it by nipping out with Scamp. She has not been well recently, and had to have an operation, so I haven’t been out and about as much. As we wandered along, I spotted a tiny, petal-like butterfly flitting along just...

It is only August, but already there is change in the air. The summer, sadly, feels as if it is all but over, the weather has been windy, rainy, and decidedly dull, and leaves are already showing signs of starting their turn from lush green to burnished bronze. A...

I’ve seen a good couple of Brown Hawkers around the park’s short grasses, and almost every day now I also see Southern Hawkers by the main footpath, attracted there by the flies that like to dance in the sunshine. I love to stand still in the middle of the path and wat...

At home in my garden, something is nibbling on my cauliflowers. In fact, I now feel that I am ‘growing’ caterpillars rather than cauli! They are, in fact, the young of the Large White butterfly. It has been great to watch them grow from tiny little black, grey and yell...