The Badgers of Rydal

 

Last time we chatted, I mentioned that I was starting work on a new book, looking at the state of British mammals in times gone by and how they are fairing now. On rainy days, I've been poring over old texts, but every now and then, I manage to get out and about with Ishbel and Mattie, and take a few photographs. Such was the case last weekend, when we visited Rydal Water.

And this is the reason. For many decades, the staff at the Glen RothayHotel have been leaving kitchen scraps out for the badgers that live in the hotel grounds. On Friday night, I was rewarded with a brief glimpse. The badger approached, cautious as a kitten and as silent as an owl, but was spooked by people leaving the bar rather noisily, and left with great alacrity. On Saturday night, we watched and waited in the comfort of our room (thanks to a webcam provided by Cumbria Wildlife Trust) and when they appeared, we took it in turns to slip out and meet them. I'm 65 now, and this is the first time I've seen a badger in the wild.

Rather than go straight home on Sunday, we popped next door to Rydal Mount, where Wordsworth spent his final years. He was born in Cockermouth, just upstream from where I am now living, so it seemed rude not to pop in while we were in the area. I fell in love with his garden. Totally unstructured, with paths, lawns and little hideaways all over the place. Plenty of birds... but no mammals.

Until we got back to the car park. And there, in the middle of the day, hopping about without a care in the world, was a wood mouse. Leastways, I'm pretty sure it's a wood mouse. The back legs look too big for a house mouse, but I've yet to have it confirmed.

Illustration from Cassell's Natural History, Martin P Duncan Vol.1 (1896)

The other little fellow that I've been studying is the mole. Fascinating, solitary little creatures. Did you know that a mole's home is called a fortress and that they all follow the same design? No, neither did I. Anyone have any moles on their land, up here in Cumbria, that I can come and photograph?

Steve's Vintage Collectables. (click to visit)

Whilst wandering around Wordsworth's house, I noticed a number of antiques similar to those that I have on sale. Nice to see them in their original settings. Retro, vintage and antiques are tipped to be big sellers on the Christmas present market this year, as people shun modern manufactured goods. Just a thought.

Steve's Books (click to visit)

And books make great Christmas presents. Easy to wrap. Easy to post.

Until next time, all the best,

Steve

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All the best,

Steve

Grasmere & Rydal Water: The most loveliest spot than man hath found

Welcome to 'The most loveliest spot than man hath found’ as Wordsworth described Grasmere whilst staying at Dove Cottage just outside the village. Our walk today will take us down the west side of the lake, along the River Rothay then on to Steps End Wood via the south side of Rydal Water to the village of Rydal.

There are cormorant, heron, ducks and geese upon the water but the most prominent wildlife as we walk along would appear to be these marvellous midges. Granted, they are a bit of a nuisance, but at least they're not bloodsuckers. These are Chronomid, or Non-biting Midges, and we can tell this, firstly by the feathery antennae of the males, and secondly by the fact that they are not biting us. This is a male mating swarm that we are walking through, all out looking for partners. Most of their lives are spent as aquatic juveniles, quite often feeding on detritus, generally keeping ponds and streams clean, and providing a banquet for their local community.

At the end of the lake we enter Deerbolt Wood along the banks of the Rothay, full of Chaffinches, Robins, Great Tits and this little fellow which I've not come across before. This is a Marsh Tit, Poecile palustris, which looks very similar to a Willow Tit and pretty much like a Coal Tit. Luckily, he's just sneezed at us, which is a bit of a giveaway. Marsh Tits begin their song with a 'Pi-tchoo' which is very distinctive.

We also have little pools of water to investigate. No frog or toad spawn as yet but we do have an adult common toad lurking in the shadows. I reckon that this is a female. She appears to have a couple of reddish warts on her hind leg, which females are prone to, whereas males are not.

The same set of waterfowl on Rydal Water as on Grasmere, but here at the swampy end, apart from a pair of apparently house-hunting Mallards, we also have a patch of very showy, yellow flowers. You may well have these in your garden pond. They are American Skunk Cabbages, brought over from The States after the second world war and are very popular. The problem is, that they spread and totally take over, and have to be ruthlessly controlled. Sometimes, unwanted plants are dumped in the wild, but their seeds are also quite capable of finding their own way to nearby wetlands. As they out-compete native plants this is rather worrying. They are already considered an invasive species, just over the border in Scotland. If you are looking for an alternative, non-invasive, addition to your bog garden, the Asian Skunk Cabbage with its elegant white flowers, is a good bet.

And finally, as we cross the footbridge over the Rothay and into Rydal we are joined by, of all things, a bat. He's flying very fast, swooping low over the water, even flying beneath the footbridge, and pretty obviously feeding on the plethora of midges. This may explain why he is out so early in the afternoon, as I'm pretty sure he's one of the Vespertilionidae, the so-called Evening Bats. The flight seems too rapid for a Pipistrelle and, given that he is feeding in this manner and we are in woodland, I would hazard a guess that he's a Daubenton's Bat.

So, here we are in Rydal village and there's a regular bus service to take us back to Grasmere. I have to agree with Wordsworth, it is certainly one of the most loveliest spots than man (and midges) hath found.

Until next week, we'll enjoy our new found freedom as lockdown begins to ease, here in the UK.

Steve

Steve's Books

The Quick Guide to Creepy-Crawlies All you need to know to identify any type of insect, spider, worm or snail very simply and find out more about it. Yvonne: This was a gift for a family so that the children can understand what they see on days out. The second was for me. Logical and easy to use. If you know anyone who likes nature you can be confident that gifting this book will give years of pleasure.
The Eggs of Saramova A science fiction novella for those who don't like science fiction. A fast-paced thriller that is, literally, out of this world. Now available for free on The Author Reads podcast. https://anchor.fm/author-reads	£7.50 Paperback edition
Not Just For Twisted Women by Steve Daniels  A light-hearted look at life through the eyes of the fairer sex. Janet: If you are short on time but enjoy reading and are maybe not into long extended novels then Not Just For... Twisted Women provides readers with concise stories that stand alone and most certainly entertain with their ultimate twists. Loved it. Helen: A very good read! Well written and entertaining! Margaret: Each quick tale gives a glimpse into a character's life and has an often humorous twist at the end. I would love to read more. Yvonne: These days many people find it hard to find the time to read a novel, so this book of short stories is ideal to dip into. It is also makes a good gift.	£4.99 Paperback edition

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Down by the Derwent

That Wordsworth was a romantic fellow: “I wandered lonely as a cloud..” I mean, I ask you, has anyone seen a lonely cloud in Cumbria? Ever? Had he been of a more pragmatic turn of mind he may have come up with something like this…

But these are fair weather clouds so let us take a stroll together down by the Derwent, starting by its confluence with the Cocker where Jennings’ brewery nestles comfortably between. This magnificent old tree, dominating the foreground, has a large spherical growth larger than a football. This is a canker and is the tree’s reaction to an invasion by small sac fungi, probably Botryosphaeria stevensii.

At this point we must leave the river bank, climb a stile and take to the fields where a group of Corvids are feeding. More than a third of all birds in the family Corvidae are in the type genus Corvus which includes the rooks, crows, jackdaws and ravens which can be difficult to tell apart. Jackdaws have a grey nape, pale grey eyes and call ‘chack’; ravens are much bigger than the other three and call ‘cronk’; crows and rooks are all black and of similar size with a similar cawing cry. The easiest way to tell them apart is from their beaks: black:crow [bc] white: rook [wr] – [bc] are together at the beginning of the alphabet, [wr] are towards the end of the alphabet.

Here in the hedgerows holly and hawthorn provide berries and haws for birds such as this blue tit. There are also great tits, sparrows, chaffinches and goldfinches around and that whirring, brindled body that just scurried off in the field on the other side of the hedge was either a partridge or a hen pheasant.

Back by the riverside we have a welcome splash of yellow, the flowers of an Ulex bush, commonly known as gorse, whin or furze. I wonder if it has attracted any insects? In a word, no. Insects and other creepy-crawlies are very thin on the ground still at the moment.

This bit of ironmongery is a sluice gate and it has been here since at least 1700 and was used twice a year to allow the gote, or ditch, behind to be cleared. The gote was a fast running ditch, or race, used to power the mills that were built along side it. Hence its name; Gote Mills Race. Lurking behind the felled tree to the left is a beautiful colony of bracket fungi.

For those of you who have followed my blog regularly it will come as no great surprise that at the end of a good morning’s walk I like to suggest that we rest awhile at some local hostelry. Today is no exception so I suggest that we adjourn to my favourite hostelry on Cockermouth’s Main Street, The Bush.

Although insects and other creepy-crawlies are very thin on the ground still at the moment that’s no reason not to buy a book about them. Get to know them before they arrive in all their varied forms.

 https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1694436756

Crete Nature Catch-up

Series 1 - Welcome to Lasithi

Series 2 - The Rhythm Of Life

Series 3 - A Journey Begins

Series 4 - The Milonas Valley

Series 5 - This Is Ferma

Series 6 - Upland Villages

Series 7 - The Forty saints

Series 8 - Sunday Strolls

Series 9 -Stormy Weather
Series 1O - The Grand Tour