Tisbury Natural History Society
  • Home
    • About the Society
    • Committee
  • Blog
  • Talks
  • Field trips
  • Young Nature Watch
  • Resources
    • Wildlife identification and recording >
      • Local wildlife >
        • Mammals
      • Identification
      • Recording
    • Other useful websites
    • Reading list
  • Contact us

Blog

Not just owls

3/8/2020

 
Other birds are also active at dusk or at night.  Nightingales are the ones you'd think of, but they actually sing during the day - this video recording was made at Alners Gorse, on a trip led by our late and much lamented David Rear.
Another 'night' bird is the nightjar, though it's not exactly tuneful - Collins Pocket Guide likens it to a 'distant two-stroke motor-cycle' (perhaps that's the 'jar' bit).  

On Sunday (2 August), BBC Countryfile had a lovely item about these, on Wisley and Ockham Common - go to https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000lj9g/countryfile-wisley-and-ockham and fast-forward to the last few minutes, after the weather forecast.

Chairman Peter Shallcross had the same - indeed, even more - magical experience a bit closer to home:

'Local knowledge of wildlife is a wonderful thing: one summer evening, as dusk fell, we were directed with accurate grid references to Holt Heath, near Wimborne, to see nightjars. Even as we left the car we could hear the eerie churring call and soon saw several of these hawk-like birds flying close by, displaying and hunting for insects.

​'
On the way back to the car, we began to notice the green light of glow worms on either side of the track, probably twenty or more over a small distance. Seeing this spectacle was the highlight for me, as often the unexpected is.

'There aren't many records of glow worms in Wiltshire, so if you are lucky enough to see any please record it. There are several options for the general public to record any flora or fauna - you can find more about this on our Reporting page.'


Comments are closed.
    Photo: Avocets ​(Izzy Fry)

    ​The headers display photos taken by our members. Do get in touch via the Contact Form if you'd like to submit a photo for selection.
    Get our website news by email:
    Also go to our pages at:

    Facebook
    Instagram
    Twitter

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    August 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018

    Categories

    All
    Birds
    Butterflies & Moths
    Conservation & Biodiversity
    Field Trips
    Film
    Fish
    Focus Magazine
    Fungi
    Identification & Recording
    Insects & Molluscs
    Mammals
    Oysters Coppice
    Plants
    Special Events
    Surveys
    Swifts Project
    Talks
    Trees

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Home
    • About the Society
    • Committee
  • Blog
  • Talks
  • Field trips
  • Young Nature Watch
  • Resources
    • Wildlife identification and recording >
      • Local wildlife >
        • Mammals
      • Identification
      • Recording
    • Other useful websites
    • Reading list
  • Contact us