Island Life Magazine Ltd February / March 2016 | Page 68

COUNTRY LIFE

Enjoy your own

‘Springwatch’

A

fter the seemingly endless dark days of winter,
the arrival of Spring is always something of a
magical turning point in the year.

As the days get longer, signs start to
appear everywhere, showing the natural
world bursting back into life.
From a calendar point of view, Spring
is usually said to start at the beginning
of March, although it’s not until March
21 that we actually celebrate the Spring
Equinox - the date on which day and
night are of equal length.
This lovely season sees the days getting
longer and (hopefully) the increasing
sunshine bringing new growth in the
plant and animal kingdoms.
It’s the time when birdsong reaches a
peak and delicate flowers appear, which
in turn attracts bees, butterflies and other
insects. Animals that hibernated over
winter will suddenly appear on the first
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warm days of Spring, so keep your eyes
peeled and you might be rewarded with
a fleeting glimpse of a hedgehog, frogs
and toads, a lizard, grass snake, or a huge
fat queen bee.
Other animals such as red squirrels also
become more active at this time of year,
and will be easier to spot.

Spring Watching
We’ve all seen and enjoyed the BBC’s
Springwatch programme – but there’s
no need to be a passive telly watcher.
This is the ideal time of year to go and
do a ‘Springwatch’ from your own back
garden, local woodland or just around
the neighbourhood where you live.

Darling Buds
All you need to watch the progress
of Spring is a hedge! Look out for the
bursting of those delicate Hawthorn
buds, and new fresh green leaves
followed by its creamy frothy white
flowers in late April or May. The blossom
was once known as ‘May’ but in many
places, flowers actually now appear in
April, so be prepared.
Queen bumblebees
Look out for the first bumblebees on
warm days in March! These will be the
queens that have successfully survived
the winter and are now seeking nectar
and pollen from Spring flowers.
Migrant birds
Chiffchaffs are usually one