Deer have spring in their step
IT’S spring and it’s time for astonishing moments – only recently I have had a stare-out with a roe deer for a couple of minutes and watched as a buzzard took off in front of me and flew majestically along a tree-lined avenue.
I have watched starlings pile onto my bird table ready to feed their young and listened to noisy sparrows arguing in a hedgerow just a foot from my head!
All this has happened within half a mile of my home and I am now getting ready for a couple of months of visiting our wonderful nature reserves and other wildlife sites around the north west.
While I am on the subject I hope you have all taken the opportunity to tell the government that we do not want them to stop protecting the thousands of Local Wildlife Sites around the region and the UK. If you didn’t, talk to your MPs.
I was hearing about a dawn chorus walk at 4am in Bury this week. That may seem early but the best time to hear the big bird noise is when they all wake up – robins, blackbirds and then thrushes are normally first to add to the wall of noise we hear every morning.
Birdsong pretty much goes on all day, so you won’t be missing out on too much – in fact that extra early dawn chorus might just be brilliant through your window.
Let’s get back to the roe deer – still feeding in pretty low-lying areas as there is more vegetation to feed upon. Over winter they have stuck together in groups, in spring they tend to split up and then look for mates. By the end of summer we should be seeing family groups.
Roe deer are easy to spot because of their white behinds. They are not exactly shy and will hop out of your way but then watch from the bushes to study just what you are up to. It amazes me to see a deer and then spot it on the other side of a quite high fence. They can really hit the heights, jumping from a standing start. Think about this – we apparently live in an overpopulated world with millions of people in the north west alone, but there is still room for thousands of these beautiful, graceful creatures. I am always grateful that I live on the West Pennine Moors so I have lots of deer encounters.
Next time you are out walking watch for movement up ahead - you can’t really miss a deer leaping off into the foliage. They will stand and watch you but then they will move on to stare at some other human or small dog. They are quite inquisitive.
The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside is dedicated to the protection and promotion of the wildlife in Lancashire, seven boroughs of Greater Manchester and four of Merseyside, all lying north of the River Mersey. To become a member of the trust go to the website at www. lancswt.org.uk or call 01772 324129. For more information about Cheshire Wildlife Trust call 01948 820728 or go to cheshirewildlifetrust.org.uk.