:00:11. > :00:16.If I'm honest with you, it is a little wet here at the moment, but
:00:17. > :00:19.we won't let that dampen our spirits. Certainly not.
:00:20. > :00:22.Tonight we discover how one of the UK's most charismatic raptors
:00:23. > :00:24.is surviving in our cities, and begin to uncover
:00:25. > :00:54.And high ahead, the geese honk and the curlew cries. It Autumnwatch!
:00:55. > :01:03.Yes, hello and welcome to Autumnwatch 2015, coming to you from
:01:04. > :01:09.the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust reserve here at Caerlaverock. A
:01:10. > :01:13.couple of minutes ago, we saw this. This is an our thermal camera, so
:01:14. > :01:17.this is not looking at light or colour, it is looking at heat. You
:01:18. > :01:24.can see the dark spots there are the eyes of a badger. Something dropped
:01:25. > :01:33.out of its mouth! A bit of worm? Saliva. It is still relatively
:01:34. > :01:38.early. I wouldn't mind betting it has gone out to where the geese have
:01:39. > :01:42.been all day, having a sniff around. We have large numbers of geese,
:01:43. > :01:46.12,000 on this part of the reserve, and natural mortality and disease
:01:47. > :01:49.would suggest that every now and again, one could operate clogs
:01:50. > :01:54.during the daytime, and that could represent a nice meal for the
:01:55. > :02:02.badger. But if it comes across an earthworm, it will help itself to
:02:03. > :02:06.that. Like pink spaghetti. But where are we? We are in south-western
:02:07. > :02:14.Scotland on the Solway Firth, a fantastic race. Not just the
:02:15. > :02:17.Caerlaverock reserve, RSPB, Scottish National Heritage also have reserves
:02:18. > :02:24.here, and they protect a huge area of this low-lying land. It is mild
:02:25. > :02:28.up here on the West Coast, ample, productive, and that accounts for
:02:29. > :02:30.the fact that in winter, it attracts a vast number of waders and wild
:02:31. > :02:36.file to the area. The barnacle geese a vast number of waders and wild
:02:37. > :02:40.are one of the main attractions, and they arrive here in their thousands
:02:41. > :02:45.from September. Over 40,000 this year, record number. They get into
:02:46. > :02:50.quite a routine when they get it, and this is what we filmed last
:02:51. > :02:58.night. Every night, the leave their feeding grounds, flying in flock
:02:59. > :03:04.from 20 of them up to thousands. And they fly off to the mudflats where
:03:05. > :03:09.they feel safe and protected, and that is where they stay for the
:03:10. > :03:12.night. So that's where they overnight, but
:03:13. > :03:18.morning? Well, they all come back again. They
:03:19. > :03:21.morning? Well, they all come back feeding grounds, the salt marshes,
:03:22. > :03:27.and one of the things they do is they clean. Fresh water, they need
:03:28. > :03:29.to clean, and it is very important that the barnacle geese stay
:03:30. > :03:37.to clean, and it is very important waterproofed. They do that in two
:03:38. > :03:40.ways. They preen, and they use their preening gland to waterproof their
:03:41. > :03:48.feathers. They also have interlocking feathers, there are hot
:03:49. > :03:51.as at the end of their feathers, but it is important that the feathers
:03:52. > :03:53.are clean for them to be able to do that. So it is the oil from the
:03:54. > :03:58.preening that. So it is the oil from the
:03:59. > :04:03.feathers that repels the water. That's when cleaned its bottom on
:04:04. > :04:08.landing! A bit of a water-ski there. And it is a social time, you can
:04:09. > :04:13.hear there is a lot of noise. A great thing to watch, and that is
:04:14. > :04:18.what they'd you every morning. That is a flock, but let's look at one of
:04:19. > :04:22.the individuals. Keep your eye on the middle there, and you will see
:04:23. > :04:29.that this particular barnacle goose is auditioning for the circus.
:04:30. > :04:31.Slightly embarrassed afterwards. You mentioned the individuals, but they
:04:32. > :04:36.recognise each other by looking at each other's faces. They have that
:04:37. > :04:40.very characteristic white panel either side of their head, but they
:04:41. > :04:43.use them from display and facial recognition, because each one has a
:04:44. > :04:48.different shape, and the amount of lack, the smudging that goes from
:04:49. > :04:52.the beak up to the eye, means that when they are looking amongst one
:04:53. > :04:57.another, they can tell each other apart, not just using that but also
:04:58. > :05:00.sound. Because they each have eight unique call that they can produce
:05:01. > :05:04.when they get lost, and they come here in family parties, they don't
:05:05. > :05:11.want to get split up. If they'd, they wander through the flock
:05:12. > :05:19.producing what scientists call the loud caw. They go through making
:05:20. > :05:23.this call, and they reunite with their group. Imagine if you are now
:05:24. > :05:27.witnessing a game of footy, and it is an international, about 40,000
:05:28. > :05:32.people there, I go off to get a pasty, and as I get back, someone
:05:33. > :05:38.scores a goal, and I shout, Michaela! Michaela! You are never
:05:39. > :05:41.going to hear me, are you? I know your voice well, but I wouldn't be
:05:42. > :05:46.able to hear it with that many people. But they can, and it is that
:05:47. > :05:51.diagnostic. I'm not sure I believe that. How can they possibly tell the
:05:52. > :05:56.difference? They all sound exactly the same! Are you questioning the
:05:57. > :06:02.integrity of contemporary science? I want a reference. How do they tell?
:06:03. > :06:05.They have recorded the geese under produced sonograms which show the
:06:06. > :06:09.pattern of sand, and you can see that they are different. The extreme
:06:10. > :06:13.examples, I reckon to the human ear we would hear a difference as well,
:06:14. > :06:19.but obviously not in a flock of 40,000, that is the difference.
:06:20. > :06:24.Remarkable bit of biology. Let's go live to Folly Pond and see what is
:06:25. > :06:33.on there. There are some swans, I think they are mute swans. No, they
:06:34. > :06:40.are whoopers! Slightly elegant in the beak, longer in the neck. It can
:06:41. > :06:46.be tricky to tell. They are little late this year, and that is because
:06:47. > :06:52.they have read a little later, and they have to wait for the cygnets to
:06:53. > :06:55.put on enough weight to make this incredible journey, so they are all
:06:56. > :06:59.a little late. Two new families turned up today, so they are still
:07:00. > :07:02.coming in. Now, just over here behind us in our
:07:03. > :07:07.studio in the barn, we have another camera setup. Let's go to it live
:07:08. > :07:12.now. It is in the corner behind our sofa. And because Martin and
:07:13. > :07:16.Michaela still so many peanuts, we thought they might attract a few
:07:17. > :07:22.mice. And at five o'clock this morning, they did. The first mouse
:07:23. > :07:27.came in. It is a little wood mouse, and you can see it has those are
:07:28. > :07:30.very large ears. And it has got very big eyes, and even in black and even
:07:31. > :07:34.in black-and-white, that means we can tell it is not a house mouse.
:07:35. > :07:40.House mouse, smaller ears and eyes. You don't seem many house mice
:07:41. > :07:47.around even in houses now as you do would mice. It has dashed off with
:07:48. > :07:55.that peanut, it is going to cache that, and it will keep coming back.
:07:56. > :08:01.And I've you have said that, we have a live one in our hedge can. This
:08:02. > :08:06.camera is along a path in a hedge. That is very sweet. And owl will
:08:07. > :08:14.just pop down and have a little snack there! Oh, Martin! Don't spoil
:08:15. > :08:23.it. That is what is happening right in, right now. Remember I was at
:08:24. > :08:28.that weir in the centre of Dumfries? This is a superb place to
:08:29. > :08:42.set birds in the day, including the exotic and resigned. -- goosander.
:08:43. > :08:49.They are remarkable fishing birds. I think this one has a huge sea trout.
:08:50. > :08:53.In fact, the other goosanders spend more time trying to pinch food of
:08:54. > :08:58.other goosanders than hunting for themselves. How is it going to
:08:59. > :09:04.swallow that? It is nearly as big as that! This is where one animal tries
:09:05. > :09:10.to steal food from another animal that has courted. It can't get it
:09:11. > :09:19.down, it is a huge meal. And then a black backed gull comes in and puts
:09:20. > :09:26.an end to proceedings. But it is fantastic, the weir, to see all this
:09:27. > :09:30.wildlife. I love the goosander, too, very elegant. And a lot of locals go
:09:31. > :09:40.down there with cameras to take beautiful stills. We are not sure if
:09:41. > :09:44.this is an eel or a lamprey. There are three different species of
:09:45. > :09:50.lamprey. There is a lot of energy in that photo. And look at this. Two
:09:51. > :09:56.lovely little otters. That yellow leaf in the top left oils it a bit.
:09:57. > :09:59.Sorry! We love all of your photographs, so please do keep them
:10:00. > :10:04.coming in, on Facebook, on Twitter, on our website, and we will try to
:10:05. > :10:08.get some of them out before we come off air tomorrow. A couple of weeks
:10:09. > :10:15.ago, Martin went to the Isle of run to see if he could solve the mystery
:10:16. > :10:21.of what rutting radio get up to after dark. The first night, he fell
:10:22. > :10:28.asleep. How can he solve the mystery if he is snoring? Did you stay
:10:29. > :10:29.awake, Martin? I did stay awake, and I sold some incredible mysteries.
:10:30. > :10:49.Well, let's find out. The red Deer of Rum, and rutting is
:10:50. > :10:50.in full swing. Crucially no one knows how much of their behaviour
:10:51. > :11:03.goes on at night. And that is why I am here. Parked
:11:04. > :11:10.right beside the rutting Green, my thermal cameras reveal the deer in
:11:11. > :11:14.total darkness. And on this, my second night, it is all setup rather
:11:15. > :11:24.nicely, with a familiar stag that on the scene. Here he is, back again,
:11:25. > :11:30.Smooths is in charge, and he has an enormous harem here. I cannot
:11:31. > :11:44.believe that he is going to hold onto these finds all night, --,
:11:45. > :11:52.hinds, because there are other stags all around waiting to Stalin Jim.
:11:53. > :12:00.Last night, Smooth was challenged by another stag, and I'm determined to
:12:01. > :12:05.stay away tonight. He has gone a long way to turn the noses of the
:12:06. > :12:10.hinds, who have gone up the hill, and he is turning back down. How
:12:11. > :12:13.could he see that? He knew they were leaving, and he went and got them
:12:14. > :12:19.back, and now they are back. Here years. Does he have amazing
:12:20. > :12:26.nocturnal vision, or is he using smell and sound alone? Either way,
:12:27. > :12:34.that was very successful. Well done, smooth. But while he keeps busy,
:12:35. > :12:44.other stags are closing in on his hinds. An enemy from before is right
:12:45. > :12:49.down on the green, he fought with Smooth in the daytime. And a much
:12:50. > :12:59.younger stag is scattering the hinds, a troublemaker.
:13:00. > :13:07.Anemones has seen him, and he is not having it. He is rushing, driving
:13:08. > :13:13.him away. He has driven him away, coming right up close to us,
:13:14. > :13:20.actually. And that as a youngster that has been causing so much
:13:21. > :13:24.trouble. Anemone has just driven him off. These stags must be able to see
:13:25. > :13:42.in the dark. It is incredible. Smooth is still nonstop rounding up
:13:43. > :13:49.the hinds. This is a brand-new discovery. Even in the depths of
:13:50. > :13:56.night, there is no rest for a stag with a harem. He sniffs each in
:13:57. > :14:04.turn, checking for signs they are not coming into oestrus. Hello,
:14:05. > :14:10.Anemone is back. Smooth has seen him. They are running at full tilt
:14:11. > :14:14.in the darkness, over extremely rough ground. I can't believe I have
:14:15. > :14:29.seen so much activity. Excuse me! Well, it has been a night
:14:30. > :14:32.full of revelations here, but tomorrow night, I am going to move
:14:33. > :14:38.locations to see what else we can discover. And we will bring you the
:14:39. > :14:45.conclusion of Martin's discover. And we will bring you the
:14:46. > :14:49.the Isle of Rum tomorrow. discover. And we will bring you the
:14:50. > :14:54.Researchers had no idea that that amount of activity went on in the
:14:55. > :15:01.dark. Let's take a look at it again, because there you have the stag,
:15:02. > :15:05.Smooth. He chases off a rival, and that ground is really rough, and he
:15:06. > :15:11.obviously can see what he is doing. So I guess the question is, how do
:15:12. > :15:14.they see in the dark? Today, we spoke to a chap, Chris
:15:15. > :15:19.Dickson, he is an animal Today, we spoke to a chap, Chris
:15:20. > :15:23.ophthalmologists, and he told us a lot about dear. They have
:15:24. > :15:27.ophthalmologists, and he told us a on the side of their head, so they
:15:28. > :15:29.have panoramic vision. We have a field of view about 170 degrees,
:15:30. > :15:35.there is is about 310. They have field of view about 170 degrees,
:15:36. > :15:39.also got diagrammatic vision, so they don't see the same colour
:15:40. > :15:43.ranges we do, they are sort of red green colour-blind, so in daylight,
:15:44. > :15:46.their vision is nowhere near as good as ours, and something that we can
:15:47. > :15:52.discern a 200 metres, they can only see at 20. But at night, their eyes
:15:53. > :15:57.come into their own. I have a model of an eye here. They have a much
:15:58. > :15:59.larger pupil on the front of the eye, and it is horizontal, which
:16:00. > :16:05.means that it can open far more widely, letting in lots more light
:16:06. > :16:11.through the lens into the back of the ICOM so more light, but then it
:16:12. > :16:16.is down to the receptive cells at the back of the eye. There are two
:16:17. > :16:20.types of these, rods which are sensitive to low light levels,
:16:21. > :16:24.particularly good in the dark, and in deer, they have ten times the
:16:25. > :16:29.number of those compare to the number of cones. Cones are the ones
:16:30. > :16:33.that produce colour but are not sensitive, and we have 30 times the
:16:34. > :16:37.number of cones rather than the rods. It suggests therefore that the
:16:38. > :16:42.deer can see much better than us at night. But they have one truly great
:16:43. > :16:55.trick up their sleeve or in their eye. It is this, and it is called
:16:56. > :16:59.the tapetum lucidum. The light passes through those cells, and if
:17:00. > :17:03.it misses any, it bounces back through the cells for a second
:17:04. > :17:09.attempt. Therefore making the whole I a lot more sensitive. So it is
:17:10. > :17:12.bigger, it has a bigger pupil, more of the light-sensitive cells that
:17:13. > :17:19.work in low light levels, and they get to goes at it because of the
:17:20. > :17:23.tapetum. And I can show you a tapetum now. Michaela has shifted
:17:24. > :17:27.herself over to the other side of the yard, and she has a friend with
:17:28. > :17:33.her, and I will shine this really bright torch on the pair of them.
:17:34. > :17:36.Look at that. There is no eye showing coming back from Michaela,
:17:37. > :17:41.but Midge the dog, you can see sparkling in the night. That is
:17:42. > :17:46.because Midge is descended from Wolves, and they hunt in low light
:17:47. > :17:49.levels. So having good lowlight vision is an asset, and it is
:17:50. > :17:55.something that has been maintained in dogs as well. But it isn't just
:17:56. > :18:00.dogs or predators that have this, lots of other animals, too. We have
:18:01. > :18:05.been looking at them over the years on Springwatch. Otters, if you look
:18:06. > :18:10.carefully. This one will spin round, and there you can see the tapetum.
:18:11. > :18:13.And a badger, you can see both of these animals are very nocturnal, so
:18:14. > :18:17.you would expect them to have the structures, and the rabbit as well.
:18:18. > :18:21.It is being hunted, so it needs to be able to see the things hunting it
:18:22. > :18:27.in return. But it is not just mammals that have them. Sometimes
:18:28. > :18:31.you can see little tiny sparkles coming back on the path when you go
:18:32. > :18:35.for a walk at night, and they can be from the tapetum in the eyes of
:18:36. > :18:44.spiders. That is really interesting and explains why the red Deer
:18:45. > :18:51.You do not need good vision to spot the wind farms around here, they are
:18:52. > :18:57.noticeable. There is one right on the edge of the Solway Firth here
:18:58. > :19:00.where we are. And we can see it. With hundreds of thousands of birds
:19:01. > :19:07.flying to this part of Scotland in the autumn, do they affect incoming
:19:08. > :19:14.flocks? They have been a problem for vultures and raptors in Spain with
:19:15. > :19:17.many collisions. I was keen to find out what impact those turbines have,
:19:18. > :19:31.if they have an impact on the birds here.
:19:32. > :19:37.54% of the UK's wind turbines are up here in Scotland. Many of which are
:19:38. > :19:44.near to Caerlaverock on the Solway Firth Soave a threat to migrating
:19:45. > :19:50.wildfowl? The wildfowl and weapons to have mapped every wind farm in
:19:51. > :19:54.the area and cross-referenced it with the flight paths of many
:19:55. > :19:58.migrating wildfowl. Doctor Larry Griffin is spearheading the
:19:59. > :20:05.research. But looks like a sketch, at! That is
:20:06. > :20:14.easy. It gives you a sense of the transit. At migration time. That is
:20:15. > :20:18.35, 50 whoopers ones. The research shows geese and swans fly along
:20:19. > :20:23.specific routes, to allay along river valleys. By working closely
:20:24. > :20:27.with the wind farms at the planning stage, the turbines can be placed
:20:28. > :20:30.away from the main flight paths. It is clear you would not want one
:20:31. > :20:33.right there. There were points you would say it
:20:34. > :20:37.would be better if you do not at it there and maybe the hills to the
:20:38. > :20:43.North of an area might be better for geese and swans. There are only a
:20:44. > :20:47.couple of species we can comment on and the applications might not be
:20:48. > :20:59.good for black grouse and raptors, species we do not have data for.
:21:00. > :21:03.So the evidence suggests our Barnacle Geese and whoopers ones are
:21:04. > :21:12.safer now but what about our birds of prey? The RSPB's Chris Rowley has
:21:13. > :21:13.been assessing the impact on raptors since wind farms first arrived in
:21:14. > :21:19.Scotland. What collisions have there been
:21:20. > :21:23.here? Perry Green collisions across Southern Scotland. At least four hen
:21:24. > :21:30.harrier collisions -- Peregrine Falklands. Whitetail eagle
:21:31. > :21:35.collisions, it in 2014. I would have thought raptors with the amazing
:21:36. > :21:38.eyesight they have would see these. They have fantastic eyesight but
:21:39. > :21:42.their habits mean they are more vulnerable to turbines than you
:21:43. > :21:47.would expect. Kestrels, they are a hovering species looking for small
:21:48. > :21:53.voles and they do not look above, they were at the ground and they can
:21:54. > :21:58.shift without taking their eye of the prey and they can be hit by a
:21:59. > :22:02.turbine. More wind turbines will go up in Scotland so look into the
:22:03. > :22:05.future, it is important to people making these decisions talk to
:22:06. > :22:09.people like yourself with the data and the knowledge and the signs.
:22:10. > :22:13.That is why we are here, to protect an environment, birds of prey are an
:22:14. > :22:18.important part of that and geese also so it is important to gather to
:22:19. > :22:23.work to see the turbines do not get put in the wrong places for
:22:24. > :22:27.wildlife. The RSPB must support wind farms? We for renewable energy as a
:22:28. > :22:32.solution to global warming and climate change and reducing CO2 at
:22:33. > :22:37.emissions and wind farms are key to that. We are for them but in the
:22:38. > :22:42.right places, wrong places, they will damage wildlife.
:22:43. > :22:47.With Scotland's commitments to obtain 20% of energy from renewable
:22:48. > :22:51.sources by 2020, over a thousand more wind turbines will be built and
:22:52. > :22:58.so the positioning will continue to be of critical importance to our
:22:59. > :23:03.birds, especially at migration time. It is sad to hear four hen harrier
:23:04. > :23:11.is have been hit in those wind farms. A beta for bird we have
:23:12. > :23:17.enjoyed often, most recently when we went up to Orkney, a very delicate
:23:18. > :23:22.bird, beautiful bird. This spring, we heard about the loss of a reading
:23:23. > :23:25.hen harrier in Lancashire which had been fitted with satellite tags,
:23:26. > :23:32.four, and their movements were being monitored carefully by the RSPB. But
:23:33. > :23:37.the signals suddenly stopped in suspicious circumstances. We
:23:38. > :23:41.promised to update you and unfortunately, the body of those
:23:42. > :23:45.harriers have still not been found, nobody has come forward with
:23:46. > :23:50.information and leisure constabulary have said they are not currently
:23:51. > :23:57.investigating further -- Lancashire. We have also got ripped ports that
:23:58. > :24:02.if e-mail hen harrier had been shot in the Scottish lowlands in August
:24:03. > :24:07.-- reports. It is illegal to shoot a protected species like a hen harrier
:24:08. > :24:10.and the RSPB has said there is an ongoing police investigation and
:24:11. > :24:16.nobody has been charged. If you want to know more, it is on the website.
:24:17. > :24:18.From a raptor in big trouble to one that is doing rather better, David
:24:19. > :24:30.Mundell investigates. This is Reading. Busy modern town.
:24:31. > :24:32.It is rush-hour and thousands of people streaming from the
:24:33. > :24:37.surrounding villages and countryside. But it is not just
:24:38. > :24:44.people coming into town. In recent years, a large herd of prey has been
:24:45. > :24:52.commuting in as well. The red kite. And I can see one now. At this time
:24:53. > :25:00.of year, up to 400 come into Reading every day. But 25 years ago, there
:25:01. > :25:07.were less than 100 kites in the entire country. A project has seen a
:25:08. > :25:10.massive resurgence. Professor Mark Fellows from the University of
:25:11. > :25:12.Reading is studying this growing phenomenon.
:25:13. > :25:16.It is truly extraordinary. The phenomenon.
:25:17. > :25:22.I have seen at once is 60 looking like
:25:23. > :25:25.I have seen at once is 60 looking amazing. At this time of the
:25:26. > :25:29.I have seen at once is 60 looking will you see
:25:30. > :25:45.I have seen at once is 60 looking more, the young will disperse to
:25:46. > :25:46.I have seen at once is 60 looking But there is not much later in
:25:47. > :25:56.Reading today. Enough to support just 20
:25:57. > :26:02.Reading today. Enough to support on? It is not roadkill, the
:26:03. > :26:06.Reading today. Enough to support something else bringing them in. The
:26:07. > :26:11.handset is surprising. In scale at least. According to Mark's study,
:26:12. > :26:14.handset is surprising. In scale at one in 20 households feed the
:26:15. > :26:21.kites, that is over 4,000 families. This garden is a typical red kite
:26:22. > :26:28.food bank. Its owners, Dave and Christina, provide a regular meal.
:26:29. > :26:31.Is that raw chicken? Yes, it is. We started a couple of years ago
:26:32. > :26:32.Is that raw chicken? Yes, it is. We dividing the Sunday carcass from the
:26:33. > :26:37.roast and it started. We dividing the Sunday carcass from the
:26:38. > :26:41.encourage them much but we give them some meat. Dave has the perfect
:26:42. > :26:46.place from which to watch this unusual words table. Now
:26:47. > :26:51.place from which to watch this have to wait. -- bird table.
:26:52. > :26:53.You have to wait. -- bird table.
:26:54. > :26:55.a good have to wait. -- bird table.
:26:56. > :27:04.arrives, it is a signal it is safe kites follow.
:27:05. > :27:19.It kites follow.
:27:20. > :27:29.the scene before it comes down. It is quite strange,
:27:30. > :27:29.the scene before it comes down. It circle, he gets lower and lower. You
:27:30. > :27:45.can see every twist of his Look at this! That is incredible!
:27:46. > :27:47.Look at that! This is the first time I have
:27:48. > :27:49.Look at that! This is the first time so it is just incredible to see
:27:50. > :27:55.these wonderful birds so close. The these wonderful birds so close. The
:27:56. > :28:01.agility and the speed and the size as they come down so low is just
:28:02. > :28:04.incredible. I think when they get up close, that
:28:05. > :28:08.is when you realise. In the air, I think when they get up close, that
:28:09. > :28:17.they are just a silhouette. When they come down, it is just amazing.
:28:18. > :28:23.The five foot wingspan is impressive but does attracting so
:28:24. > :28:28.many big birds of prey and our gardens impact other animals? The
:28:29. > :28:33.RSPB's Jeff has been looking into the evidence.
:28:34. > :28:38.Kites look big but they are quite big for birds of prey. They are
:28:39. > :28:42.opportunists and will look for any available food source but the main
:28:43. > :28:47.force -- food source is scavenging, food that is already dead. Risks to
:28:48. > :28:54.pets and children and garden birds is zero.
:28:55. > :28:57.As for the kites, feeding and endangered species in autumn and
:28:58. > :29:06.winter when natural food is scarce would seem beneficial. But could it
:29:07. > :29:08.have a detrimental effect? In any situation where you feed wildlife,
:29:09. > :29:13.there is a danger they could become a light upon it and with other
:29:14. > :29:18.raptors, it has happened. But if you do not feed the right food, that
:29:19. > :29:21.could cause direct damage to the kites and ill-health. If people feed
:29:22. > :29:25.the right food and not too much and not to regulate, that will not cause
:29:26. > :29:30.great damage. But if you feed poor quality food, bacon and sausages, a
:29:31. > :29:37.lot of salt and additives, that is not great for the kites.
:29:38. > :29:40.The return of the red kite is a huge conservation success. And the fact
:29:41. > :29:46.that they've ring so much pleasure to so many people even in urban
:29:47. > :29:48.areas is something I find truly inspiring -- the fact that they
:29:49. > :30:01.bring. It is a great word, and it really is
:30:02. > :30:06.a great conservation success story. From ten pairs in the 1930s to over
:30:07. > :30:09.3,000 today. We have the only growing population of red kite
:30:10. > :30:16.anywhere in Europe, the rest are shrinking, which is good. Something
:30:17. > :30:19.to celebrate. It is not just read kites making the most of their lives
:30:20. > :30:26.in the city and earlier in the week, Chris went to investigate badgers in
:30:27. > :30:27.Brighton and we asked you to send in pictures of urban badgers you have
:30:28. > :30:45.spotted and plenty of you did. This is from Cumbria, that one is
:30:46. > :30:48.sitting on a fence! And this is from Belfast, this is interesting because
:30:49. > :30:55.when we did a survey, we didn't have any sightings in Belfast, so we are
:30:56. > :30:59.still adding to it. Barbra Hughes sent this one, this is a pole
:31:00. > :31:07.dancing badger, that is from Wesley in the West Midlands. And this is
:31:08. > :31:12.from Minehead in Somerset. It looks like he is watching out bread for
:31:13. > :31:19.his badgers. That looks a little fast. You saw those animals all
:31:20. > :31:24.going for what we call human food, so because we have access to those
:31:25. > :31:28.animals down in Brighton, the ones Dawn was studying, so we thought we
:31:29. > :31:32.did a trial of our own to see a city badgers have learned to eat human
:31:33. > :31:37.food as opposed to their country cousins. So whilst I was down there,
:31:38. > :31:45.I put natural and human foods out. We had mealworms, roast chicken, jam
:31:46. > :31:51.sandwiches and fruit. What would the badgers go for? Would they go for
:31:52. > :31:57.those human foods, the tasty chicken? They certainly did. Chicken
:31:58. > :32:02.or jam Sam Wood is, the human foods, were top of their gender, and they
:32:03. > :32:06.munched their way through those, and only when they finish those do they
:32:07. > :32:14.ever go near the others. The first one this one takes is a jam
:32:15. > :32:18.sandwich. They did then come back and finish off the mealworms and
:32:19. > :32:24.fruit. But they always took the other stuff first. So to compare
:32:25. > :32:28.that behaviour to Rowell badgers, we set up a similar experiment here
:32:29. > :32:36.around the reserve. We put the same foods out for them. And this is what
:32:37. > :32:41.happened on the first night. The badger took absolutely no notice of
:32:42. > :32:46.any of the food, and the same thing on the second night, doesn't even
:32:47. > :32:49.seem to notice that it is there. The third night, it is running in the
:32:50. > :32:54.opposite direction. And then look what happens. Our experiment is
:32:55. > :32:58.spoiled little by a domestic cat that comes in, taking a liking to
:32:59. > :33:08.that chicken. It can't believe it's luck! It a lot. Do you know how many
:33:09. > :33:17.times it came in? Eight times. Do not what that makes it? Octopussy!
:33:18. > :33:23.The badger was watching the cat, and the cat would actually scare off the
:33:24. > :33:26.badger, wouldn't it. Cats are dominant, then badgers, then foxes.
:33:27. > :33:32.Cats don't have to much to worry about. It can definitely smell it is
:33:33. > :33:37.there. But he still isn't taking any of the free food. In fact, he seems
:33:38. > :33:42.a bit nervous of it. We almost wonder if even knows it is food.
:33:43. > :33:48.Look at that, definitely sniffing, but it is nervous of it. And we did
:33:49. > :33:51.that same experiment in another couple of areas around here where
:33:52. > :33:56.they have a jazz, and the same thing, none of them took the free
:33:57. > :34:00.meal. We did our best to be scientifically diligent, we did it
:34:01. > :34:06.in a few areas. Dawn did it properly, eight sites, ten
:34:07. > :34:10.recordings, all at the same time of night, rigidly controlled. But it
:34:11. > :34:13.seems that those badgers in Brighton have learned to take the human food
:34:14. > :34:16.because they know the benefits that would have, whereas up here because
:34:17. > :34:21.these animals have never encountered that sort of food before, they can
:34:22. > :34:24.undeniably smell it, but they haven't yet learned to take it, and
:34:25. > :34:29.that is possibly why they are avoiding it. You might argue, why
:34:30. > :34:32.didn't they come and take the fruit and mealworms, because that is
:34:33. > :34:37.closer to the smell is a would normally have taken. Maybe it was
:34:38. > :34:40.because of our smell on the bowl. We would have to repeat the experiment
:34:41. > :34:45.with the same amount of integrity that Dawn uses. Interesting results,
:34:46. > :34:49.though. Yes the fact that they completely refused what is a
:34:50. > :34:55.fantastic food. Nobody refuses a free lunch, except Aja is at
:34:56. > :35:01.Caerlaverock. So what are they eating? We have seen them sucking up
:35:02. > :35:07.worms like spaghetti, so we send Martin at to look for some badger
:35:08. > :35:13.poo. I think I might be able to help answer this mystery. I am at the
:35:14. > :35:16.back of the Folly Pond, and if you can you can see the path up and
:35:17. > :35:21.down, and there is another one back here. These are made by badgers, and
:35:22. > :35:25.I think this footpath that I am walking along, they use that, too.
:35:26. > :35:35.We know they do because we have found some badger scat along here.
:35:36. > :35:38.We sent it to Swansea University and Warwick University to be analysed,
:35:39. > :35:42.for them to get a deep analysis of what they are eating. But we have
:35:43. > :35:48.also found one ourselves, and look at that. Identity now if you can
:35:49. > :35:57.see, but there are bits of urged here inside this badger scat. We
:35:58. > :36:08.have seen an Springwatch that badgers eat herds. Generally they
:36:09. > :36:14.eat 25% of worms, 25% fruit, 25% serial and 25% insects. But when the
:36:15. > :36:18.results of the scat that we sent to the universities came back, we were
:36:19. > :36:22.in for a big surprise. Look at this. It doesn't look like much at first
:36:23. > :36:33.sight, but if you look at the bottom, you can see a crab claw, and
:36:34. > :36:38.above it is a carapace of crab. So the badgers
:36:39. > :36:40.above it is a carapace of crab. So How on earth can that happen? What
:36:41. > :36:47.we did is we have been filming out on the mudflats way down there, and
:36:48. > :36:55.this is what we saw. Here is the badger moving around. And you can
:36:56. > :36:59.see the badger is very opportunistic, looking for anything
:37:00. > :37:03.they can possibly find. Bear in mind the tide will have come in and out
:37:04. > :37:09.on the mudflats. Leaving behind creeks and pools, and the badger
:37:10. > :37:18.could find anything, crabs or dead birds. They are scavengers. Now, Dr
:37:19. > :37:22.Dan Foreman who did that analysis for us, he said there is nothing in
:37:23. > :37:28.the literature about badgers eating crabs at all, so this is a first.
:37:29. > :37:34.These Caerlaverock badgers are being opportunistic in their diet.
:37:35. > :37:38.Fascinating stuff. Autumnwatch is mainly all about migration, and many
:37:39. > :37:42.of our greatest migrator is were born way back in the lazy days of
:37:43. > :37:56.summer. This is a tale about life and death.
:37:57. > :38:04.Dawn breaks on the Skerries. Small islands just off the North Wales
:38:05. > :38:15.coast line. Home to countless sea birds.
:38:16. > :38:36.And they all flock here for one reason. To breed.
:38:37. > :38:51.Yet, of all the wildlife living on this rugged coastline, it is the
:38:52. > :38:57.common and Arctic terns that have the hardest time. It is late July,
:38:58. > :39:00.and with autumn approaching, the chicks must grow up fast, because
:39:01. > :39:07.they will have to travel the furthest of any UK bird on
:39:08. > :39:11.migration. But 2015 has already been a tough year.
:39:12. > :39:16.migration. But 2015 has already been early summer caused many nests to
:39:17. > :39:17.fail. Chicks that have survived are younger and more vulnerable to
:39:18. > :39:25.predators. Soaring over younger and more vulnerable to
:39:26. > :39:32.cliffs, greater black backed gulls search for an easy meal. Working
:39:33. > :39:38.together, adult terns drive off the attackers, and defend their chicks.
:39:39. > :39:40.together, adult terns drive off the The juvenile chicks are still very
:39:41. > :39:56.vulnerable, so their parents can't leave them alone
:39:57. > :40:07.This time, brave parents have done enough. But
:40:08. > :40:12.with their own chicks to raise, the gulls will be back. With danger
:40:13. > :40:15.averted, there is time for the youngsters to fit in some flying
:40:16. > :40:20.lessons, and essential skill to master if they are to survive the
:40:21. > :40:23.journey to Antarctica this autumn. But all their practice might not be
:40:24. > :40:29.enough to help them against the ultimate island raider, the
:40:30. > :40:34.peregrine. This aerial assassin flies from the mainland twice a day,
:40:35. > :40:42.timing his hunting does target the novice young terns of the colony. It
:40:43. > :41:06.folds in its wings, and the hunt is on.
:41:07. > :41:12.Terns choose to face the dangers of these islands for the rich and
:41:13. > :41:16.plentiful sees that surround them. And learning to fish for their food
:41:17. > :41:22.is another talent the juvenile is must get to grips with. But young
:41:23. > :42:00.wings tire quickly, and taking a moment's rest can spell disaster.
:42:01. > :42:15.Unfortunately, some terns will never escape these relentless predators.
:42:16. > :42:23.Despite the relentless dangers these chicks face, this year, well over
:42:24. > :42:25.2000 of them survived the summer, and their epic journey to Antarctica
:42:26. > :42:43.has now begun. Look at that beautiful sunset. It
:42:44. > :42:47.really is an epic journey, and I know we talk about it often, about
:42:48. > :42:51.Arctic terns going from the Arctic to the Antarctic, but it still
:42:52. > :42:58.baffles me how they do it. It is a small bird, four-month-old,
:42:59. > :43:04.unaccompanied, over 34,000 kilometres, about 22,000 miles. I
:43:05. > :43:08.know. Unbelievable, I'm completely overwhelmed how little bird can do
:43:09. > :43:15.that. And then of course they come back again. The oldest Arctic terns
:43:16. > :43:19.can get to 36 years old, you can cut your late distance it has flown in
:43:20. > :43:22.its lifetime! You get easy with that, and I will talk about the fact
:43:23. > :43:26.that there are a lot of other birds on the move of the moment, and we
:43:27. > :43:30.rang round bird observatories, please is set up on the coast of the
:43:31. > :43:33.country to monitor closely either through visible migration or
:43:34. > :43:38.catching the birds, the movement of birds around the coast. Earlier in
:43:39. > :43:41.the week in Portland Bill in Dorset, there were hundreds of Goldcrest
:43:42. > :43:47.going through, numbers the likes of which they haven't seen since the
:43:48. > :43:54.1980s. In Suffolk, not quite so active. Over here at Bardsey in
:43:55. > :44:03.Wales, a tremendous event they Skyfall of finches. 9000 were
:44:04. > :44:06.chaffinches. And then finally up here, the usual couple of thousand
:44:07. > :44:12.field there's coming through, but also 966 blackbirds and 100 robins,
:44:13. > :44:17.too. Lots of activity. Today, things were little slower. The best we
:44:18. > :44:23.could come up with was Dungeness, where there were 1000 goldfinches.
:44:24. > :44:25.You can keep your open for other garden birds that might be on the
:44:26. > :44:30.move this year. Typically chaffinches. These are migrants, a
:44:31. > :44:36.lot of them come from Scandinavia, as will Red Wings like this. And
:44:37. > :44:39.birders will be hoping for a show of these things, waxwings, all the way
:44:40. > :44:46.from Russia with Love, and aren't they special? Rest is to look for
:44:47. > :44:50.them, supermarket car parks. They plant loads of trees that produce
:44:51. > :44:53.berries. I have seen loads of them in supermarket car parks. I will be
:44:54. > :44:58.off to the supermarket now, then do a bit of shopping and bird-watching
:44:59. > :45:02.at the same time! We have other question about migrating birds. Will
:45:03. > :45:06.back birds in my London garden migrate south?
:45:07. > :45:14.They are largely resident and if things get tough, they might go to
:45:15. > :45:18.the South Coast or occasionally Northern France. But in the winter,
:45:19. > :45:23.lots of them come over from Germany, polling, Scandinavia and you can
:45:24. > :45:29.sometimes tell them apart, they will be darker, and so is the bill, not
:45:30. > :45:36.yellow bill of the resident blackbirds. And some might go as far
:45:37. > :45:39.as North Africa. It is an exhausting business, migrating. Especially for
:45:40. > :45:47.this little chap. Somebody sent this photograph in. This is a Goldcrest.
:45:48. > :45:52.It has just arrived. It landed near Scarborough. It has fallen fast
:45:53. > :45:55.asleep. You just don't know how long it has been out over the sea. Tiny
:45:56. > :46:02.bird coming in from Scandinavia probably. And if the wind is against
:46:03. > :46:05.them, they get caught out over the sea and the tails of the birds
:46:06. > :46:12.landing on beaches, they are relatively common. And quite if you
:46:13. > :46:18.get picked off by predators. Oh, no, really? Yes, you come all that
:46:19. > :46:23.weight and a fox or something get to. They are the perfect target.
:46:24. > :46:28.Keep sending in your photographs to Twitter and Facebook.
:46:29. > :46:35.Yesterday, you were naming a swan. I was, we had a swan to name and we
:46:36. > :46:39.picked the name which you chose, Obi-Wan Kenobi. And love is in the
:46:40. > :46:47.air today. I feel like a swan ballet! This is upside down. That is
:46:48. > :46:54.its mate. So love is in the air on the pond. And we have Obi-Wan Kenobi
:46:55. > :47:01.hound and eight is in front. We thought he arrived single but
:47:02. > :47:08.today, his mate has also arrived. And this is what they do when they
:47:09. > :47:13.meet. A lot of wind flapping. It is really rather romantic. That one has
:47:14. > :47:19.not got a name, we should name that as well. He is so pleased with
:47:20. > :47:24.himself. We thought he was single because the mate had not been
:47:25. > :47:28.spotted. They paired up last year and they spend the summer in Iceland
:47:29. > :47:32.and they flew back, one in bit later than the other and they are back
:47:33. > :47:37.together. Not successful yet but next year they might come back with
:47:38. > :47:42.some young. Fantastic. Tomorrow morning, you can look at our
:47:43. > :47:45.programmes on the red button with Autumnwatch extra which begins at
:47:46. > :47:49.seven o'clock, you can join Richard Taylor Jones at eight o'clock. Brett
:47:50. > :47:56.Westwood at one o'clock and Lindsey at four p.m.. The fine is -- the
:47:57. > :47:59.cameras go off at 7:30 p.m.. Now, we do like to champion the
:48:00. > :48:04.underdog. We have heard flying all over the pilot and deer with night
:48:05. > :48:09.vision. What about the little guys? We have a beetle in this country
:48:10. > :48:12.with the most unsavoury habits but the most extraordinary life cycle
:48:13. > :48:16.because the adults look after the young.
:48:17. > :48:29.But what happens to the fallen in this season of change?
:48:30. > :48:33.A mouse lies unnoticed, but its parting won't be in vain, because
:48:34. > :48:46.Yes, I give you the extraordinary sexton beetle.
:48:47. > :48:49.This male is colourful and pretty, and he has a dark talent.
:48:50. > :48:59.Chemo receptors on his antennae detected
:49:00. > :49:03.the mouse's sulphurous bouquet from more than a kilometre away.
:49:04. > :49:09.And he is not alone in catching this whiff of death.
:49:10. > :49:11.So, before he can work his magic, he will have to fend
:49:12. > :49:18.Like gladiators in the ring, they fight ferociously,
:49:19. > :49:35.Triumphant, our male claims his prize.
:49:36. > :49:41.And next on the scene is someone rather more welcome - a female.
:49:42. > :49:46.And what's more, she's in the mood for love.
:49:47. > :49:51.Now, sex on a corpse isn't everyone's idea of fun, but for
:49:52. > :49:58.Over the next 24 hours, the couple will mate
:49:59. > :50:02.and lay eggs many times over, but they do also have other work to do.
:50:03. > :50:10.Transforming the body into a nursery.
:50:11. > :50:16.Their secateur-like mandibles slice through the fur,
:50:17. > :50:24.Antibacterial and antifungal secretions from their mouths
:50:25. > :50:33.and their anus anoint the skin to slow the decay of the flesh.
:50:34. > :50:36.Out in the open, this carrion bounty is at risk of being stolen,
:50:37. > :50:48.Like miniature bulldozers, they plough the soil, and as if
:50:49. > :51:13.Scattered singly through the soil are 20 eggs laid by the female.
:51:14. > :51:14.Nearby, the stripped corpse no longer
:51:15. > :51:30.Three days pass, and underground, new life is stirring.
:51:31. > :51:40.A tiny ghostly spectre just four millimetres long.
:51:41. > :51:47.It may be blind, but it knows exactly where to go.
:51:48. > :51:50.Its siblings have hatched, too, and, drawn by the pungent scent,
:51:51. > :51:58.When they arrive, the adults are waiting, which is
:51:59. > :52:00.just as well, given that these hatchlings initially are completely
:52:01. > :52:10.You see, they don't have functional mouthparts of their own.
:52:11. > :52:13.The male and female masticate the flesh before tenderly feeding it
:52:14. > :52:26.Surrounded by this banquet of decaying meat,
:52:27. > :52:38.the saprophagous nestlings will soon begin to feast on their own.
:52:39. > :52:47.Just three days later, and the young have tripled in size.
:52:48. > :52:54.Now the pickings are slim on the once plump carcass,
:52:55. > :52:56.so soon, these fattened youngsters will leave and pupate.
:52:57. > :52:59.Then they will overwinter in the soil before emerging as adults next
:53:00. > :53:08.New life has blossomed beneath the graves.
:53:09. > :53:20.Oh, I do love a story with a happy ending.
:53:21. > :53:29.I think it is the first time those eggs have ever been filmed hatching.
:53:30. > :53:36.Wonderful story. Amazing. I am disappointed we have never seen
:53:37. > :53:41.sexton beetles on CSI X might that is because criminal pathologists use
:53:42. > :53:45.these beetles to see how long a corpse, often human, has been lying
:53:46. > :53:51.in a spot. They look at the larvae and they measured the head cap sure,
:53:52. > :53:55.the width of that, and it enables them to age the animals so they can
:53:56. > :54:02.tell how long the body has been in that place. A range of beetles and
:54:03. > :54:06.flies as well. So these animals are very useful to them and that part of
:54:07. > :54:11.their science is very well-known because they have been studied for
:54:12. > :54:15.that purpose other aspects, we are still grappling to understand. That
:54:16. > :54:21.is phenomenal, really interesting. Dead good! I can see you as a doctor
:54:22. > :54:29.of criminology delving into Retton flesh, you a doctor? -- rotten
:54:30. > :54:35.flesh. No! I think you would enjoy it. We like a good experiment and we
:54:36. > :54:41.like pie charts so we have at them together and we are doing a seed pie
:54:42. > :54:46.chart experiment. We set it up yesterday and we put out three lots
:54:47. > :54:49.of seeds, sunflower, oats and barley and we wanted to find out which the
:54:50. > :54:53.garden birds prefer at this time of year.
:54:54. > :54:57.The result was very surprising. They seem to go for the sunflower seeds
:54:58. > :55:02.in the husks. He would not think they want because it takes a while
:55:03. > :55:07.to get the husks of, the handling time is quite long. But at this,
:55:08. > :55:15.they are all going for the sunflower seeds. A big surprise. Look at that.
:55:16. > :55:19.There is another thing that we noticed and this will not be a
:55:20. > :55:24.scientific breakthrough for anybody! That is that the greenfinch
:55:25. > :55:29.dominated the table. As soon as they watch on them, they drove off the
:55:30. > :55:35.other birds. They are like a bunch of blokes breezing into a R,
:55:36. > :55:39.ordering themselves a round of drinks and they stay there all
:55:40. > :55:43.night! # Aim. You cannot push your way
:55:44. > :55:48.through to get a drink of your own. That is what they like. It makes
:55:49. > :55:53.sense if they can dominate the food, they can feed more efficiently. That
:55:54. > :55:58.is what this experiment is about, we hope to see which choices they make
:55:59. > :56:01.to optimise their ability to get energy for as little return as
:56:02. > :56:05.possible. So the result of our first
:56:06. > :56:14.experiment is 100 sent off the sunflower seeds, 100%. -- 100%. You
:56:15. > :56:19.do not often get a like that. Birds should go for the most energy, that
:56:20. > :56:24.they have the least efforts to get. It is quite tricky. We have taken
:56:25. > :56:30.that one step further, the experiment. This is what we have now
:56:31. > :56:39.put out. We have put out sunflower seeds, sunflower hearts and peanuts.
:56:40. > :56:44.What do you reckon? Martin? Peanuts, I think now, maximum energy.
:56:45. > :56:48.Exactly, what do you reckon? I think the grenfinches will go for the
:56:49. > :56:53.hearts so they do not have to remove the husks but the small birds that
:56:54. > :56:56.cannot get in because of the grenfinches like the tits, they will
:56:57. > :57:01.probably take away a peanut because it is that much bigger for each
:57:02. > :57:05.journey so they will get more return. We will see tomorrow. We
:57:06. > :57:10.will give you the results of that tomorrow. Quickly to live camera
:57:11. > :57:18.now. This is what we recorded earlier. A little earlier. Ed barn
:57:19. > :57:29.house hunting. Look at that! -- Abe Ban Powell. We filmed this, roughly.
:57:30. > :57:33.Has it caught something? The barn owl? The end of the mouse we saw
:57:34. > :57:45.earlier. Again, amazing night-time vision. It means the wonder of the
:57:46. > :57:49.fields, hence the old poem. There you go, it was a poem, I do not know
:57:50. > :57:55.where that came from. That is the end of the show, what have we got
:57:56. > :57:58.tomorrow? Let's take a look. We will find out about a ground-breaking new
:57:59. > :58:02.projects to help the UK's cutest mammal.
:58:03. > :58:07.And I do finally solve the riddle of the deer in the night, it is
:58:08. > :58:11.brand-new science. I do not care if the Martians land in the car park
:58:12. > :58:18.because that is not a perch, it is big pedestal! It will be the world's
:58:19. > :58:22.finest bird. Luckily, the world never dies so we will be back
:58:23. > :58:28.tomorrow. Seven o'clock if you want to see this programme. Preceding
:58:29. > :58:32.that tomorrow is Unsprung which is on at 7:30pm. You really do not want
:58:33. > :59:01.to miss it, I've missed you, you really do not. See you!
:59:02. > :59:10.I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him.
:59:11. > :59:15.People lie, Danny. Are you threatening me?