November Nature Notes 2022

Sicklehome Nature Notes

Before compiling the monthly notes, I look back at the same month in the previous year since comparisons can often be interesting. It was fascinating to see that the photograph for November 2021 was Simon Allen’s excellent image of the course under heavy snow. This year, by contrast, the month ended with ten days of wet and soggy conditions.

One feature of the month, and mentioned by a couple of members, was the large number of Blackbirds around the course. These undoubtedly included a number of migrant birds which find our winter climate and available food supply an improvement on their natal sites in Europe. Although it isn’t foolproof, a look at male Blackbirds (very black with bright yellow bills) will show some without a gold eye ring. Most of these will be Continental birds. The bird in this month’s image looks like a juvenile moulting into adult female plumage, which is about right as the photo was taken in October.

My efforts to identify a few more of our fungi were thwarted by the weather but on one brighter day, someone mentioned small swarms of “midges”. These are, in fact, Winter Gnats in display flight and a species that does not bite or cause any problems.

Some quick updates on matters mentioned last month. There has been some more tree planting, as promised, so fingers crossed for better luck with these. The planting programme was also mentioned in the Midlands Golfer magazine article featured in the October summary and I have received a number of very positive comments about that coverage. Two came from members of other clubs who had read the article, so more kudos for Sickleholme.

Every best wish to all for a relaxing Christmas and for a happy, healthy and wildlife filled 2023.

Bryan Barnacle