Weather, Flora and Fauna

Some of the trees on the reserve are covered with Ivy.  It climbs up the bark by using small rootlets that help the stem to cling to the tree.  These can be seen in the photograph below.

By this time last year the Ivy was in full flower, providing nectar for insects on the wing during the winter.  This year, it is only now beginning to open and be available as a food source.

The weather during the year has had an impact not just on the Ivy, but on much of the flora and fauna.  Today this was highlighted with the data collected from bird ringing.  Over 140 different birds were processed but there were less than 30 new birds; the remainder were birds already ringed, ten of them between 5 and 7 years old.  There were few juveniles caught reflecting the abysmal 2012 breeding season.  This pattern is being seen on many other ringing sites.