Song Thrush – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was a small child on a mission – to see wildlife and to feel the joy of observing …
Chaffinch – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Male chaffinches are such beautiful birds, and I’m not the only one who thinks so; female Chaffinches agree with me. In fact, …
Coal Tits – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
I’m a man on a mission. I’ve recently rediscovered my old nature notebooks from when I was a child and I’m on …
Robins – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
As a twelve year old boy, seeing any wild bird was a thrill. Seeing a Robin was a particularly special occasion, especially …
Woodpigeon – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was very excited to see a fat Woodpigeon and record it in my childhood nature notebooks. I was …
Blue Tits – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was a 12 year old boy heading off into the woods with the intention of finding wildlife. I …
Jay – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Jays always seem like exotic birds to me. They’re pink! They have a crest! They have blue and black feathers! They look …
Great Tits – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was busy compiling my nature notebooks. I was twelve years old when I started them and was very …
White Clover – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was busy lying in the grass looking at the clover. White clover is beautiful and highly productive because …
Feeling alive
Seeing birds close up, in the wind, with rain on the horizon and a glorious sunset in progress, sat at the top …
Swallows – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Swallows seem unearthly. Their flight is so elegant, so fast and so controlled they seem as if they inhabit a different world. …
Fulmar sunset flypast
A ragged-tailed Fulmar is alive to every variation in the breeze as the sun sets at Noup Head.
Sea Urchin – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago today I was happy with my head in a rock pool and beach-combing in South Wales. Today I’m happy …
Cockles – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago today I was 12 years old and combing the beaches in Tenby looking for interesting finds for my nature …
Shore crab – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was a 12 year old boy and was busy writing my nature notebooks. I made detailed drawings of …
Hermit Crabs – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
40 years ago I was on holiday and writing my nature notebooks with a full account of every species that I identified. …
A Wren in the garden – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was 12 years old and had just started my nature notebooks. I drew what I saw on holiday …
Green Veined White – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Butterflies are very noticeable insects. They have large bright wings and fly during the day. How they escape being eaten by birds …
Dandy Lions – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was twelve years old and had been using a Single Lens Reflex camera for a couple of years. …
Brittlestar – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was scouring the beaches at Tenby looking for any interesting living creatures. As is so common, I only …
Dog Whelk – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
One of the greatest things you can have as a child is a love of the natural world. To have the capacity …
Beadlet Anemone – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago today, on 11 August 1976, I was 12 years old, my family were on holiday in South Wales, and …
A sense of taste
Hardly any bird species have a sense of smell – and that probably means they have very little sense of taste either. …
Casting a shadow upon yourself
Evolution is a wonderful thing. Being grey above and white below is a classic countershading strategy used by many seabirds and often …
Seabird City
Noup Head, the RSPB reserve, is seabird city. Here is a Fulmar, crouching ungainly on the cliffs, waiting to wheel into the air.