Not just owls

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.'