On Friday morning I led an event at the new Tamar Trails Centre near Gunnislake, exploring the mysteries of birdsong for the Tamar Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It was a beautiful blue-skied day, even with some warmth in the afternoon, but the woods were much quieter than expected due to the delayed return of summer migrants. Resident birds too are not singing as much as they would normally at this time of year, being preoccupied with warmth and survival rather than attracting a mate and defending their territories.
In the afternoon I led an 'exploring nature' workshop for families at the same venue, which was very well attended by some lovely youngsters who really seemed to get engrossed and enjoy themselves, making their own birds' nests and learning about birds and their life cycles. Thank you to Tom, Henry, Billy, Hannah, Isla and all of you for being such fantastic participants. Here are some photos from the day.
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| Tamar Valley 5/4/13: Hingston Down, Blanchdown Wood and Devon Great Consols mine, with Kit Hill in the background. There were some late Redwings feeding in the field in the foreground. Despite the sunshine it was bitterly cold in the easterly wind, and you could hardly blame these birds for not setting off north just yet. |
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| One of the birdsong walk participants completing a 'sound card' to depict what she is hearing. |
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| Hannah with the 'bird nest' that she made. |
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| Some brave souls setting forth in search of birdsong. |
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| Tom with his bird nest and treasures found on the walk. |
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| One of the youngest participants designing her own birds' eggs with mum. |
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| Some woodland treasures found on the afternoon walk. |
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