Mistle Thrush Not a cloud in the sky early on a bright October morning. In the parkland habitat of Helsington Barrows the sun highlights anthills, a faerie light through tall larch now shadowed by gathering cloud. A clash of darkness and light. I hear mistlethrush, here in small flocks in August. And my focus sharpens as I catch a thrilling call. Winter thrush from the North, autumn migrants whose arrival on a such a warm October morning, seems anomalous, although the season is right.
Hush, be still and on with the cloak of invisibility. Look and listen. The wildwood will come alive.
Hush, be still and on with the cloak of invisibility. Look and listen. The wildwood will come alive.
Croak of raven, soft whistle of bullfinch, jay raucous in the canopy, nuthatch and great-spotted woodpecker- the birds of the wildwood.. Close in my ear, a soft tapping on the bark of a yew. In the tops of tall larch winter thrush are gathering. Clouds cast shadows over the trees, draining colour from birds clustering thick in the weave of branches. When they feel safe they fly down to feed on red arils on dark yew trees but they’re nervous birds and the moment they sense my presence they take to the tops of the larch. A solitary bird stays amongst the larch cones- I know it's a mistlethrush from its confidence. I'm in a glade, out in the open, and no fieldfare would allow my gaze. A dog walker approaches from the opposite direction and a flock erupts from high in a larch.. Always a surprise how many birds conceal themselves amidst the branches. There are good numbers which promises well for this autumn and winter, but you never know. Hunger drives their feeding patterns and they follow autumn fruits. Weather patterns determine their arrival from the North. Impossible to know how long the yew arils of Helsington Barrows will detain them.
It's magical to see a flock of fieldfare and redwing illuminated in flight, sunlit and colourful. And a good light makes them easier to identify. It’s scarcely mid-October and this is a delightful encounter with winter thrush. I think upon all the other locations where I’ve found them previously. This morning, I've seen more winter thrush than in some recent winters. I love them and always hope to see more, and to see them closer and better lit. It's thrilling, the winter thrush experience.
Tomorrow, the Prime Minister will set out further Covid 19 restrictions. So some of those locations may be out of reach.
Tomorrow, the Prime Minister will set out further Covid 19 restrictions. So some of those locations may be out of reach.
The parkland habitat of Helsington Barrows isn’t the wildwood. Most of the wildwood has disappeared from the United Kingdom these days. About 1390 AD, Sir Gawain rode out from Camelot and King Arthur’s court on his quest to meet The Green Knight. It was Halloween and if only we might conjure the wildlife of an English autumn in the late 14th century. Imagine the abundance and diversity. And the poet who wrote Gawain’s adventure doesn’t mention the fieldfare and redwing that must have been everywhere along his route. He creates a picture of fabulous beasts but if the poet were to tell what he actually saw most of us would find that remarkable enough.
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