Episode 8 Autumnwatch

It's Friday, it's 8.30, it's going to be a wonderfully colourful show.

We have red grouse, red deer, hears and eagles. It's all the colours of

Hello. Welcome to Autumnwatch Live, coming to you from the wild foul

and wet land trust centre. Sadly, this is the last of the current

series but I think we have a good programme. We are going to be

talking about the weather, because we love to talk about the weather.

We are going to be talking about how mild this autumn has been. It's

Confused some wildlife. This was filmed a couple of days ago,

ducklings in November. We will be catching up with our family of

foxes at Pitsea landfill site. you are a regular viewer, you will

know every week we have a guest prefrnter, this week we have Liz

Bonnin. She has been up to the Caledonian forest. It is important

we look after this forest. She has been looking at the difficult

decisions we need to make to conserve it properly. Chris and I

flew north to find out what was making this bizarre sound... And

get a first glimpse of the winter The shy lands of Scotland are the

least populated and wildest part of They experience our most extreme

weather conditions and even this late in the year, the wildlife is

surprisingly active. Lots of animals are grabbing the chance to

feed up before winter. Some are turning white in preparation for

the snow, but not everything is hunkering down. This lake has been

full of spawning salmon. It may be late November, but one of our most

speck lack tar birds is displaying as if it is the breeding season,

the black grouse males are strutting their stuff, but what is

fooling them into thinking it is spring. The highlands in autumn,

full of mysteries. What a place. Fantastic. 3,800

square kilometres, a national park, the cane gorms national park, 10%

of that is above 800m. 25% of all endangered species in the UK live

in this national park. But it has been a very unusual autumn and this

has had an impact on The Cairngorms,. Above 600 metres here

in the Cairngorms, trees can't grow. Here we are on the brink. But above

this, the habitat in the UK is just about as close as you could get to

the Arctic. The Arctic, what better place to go for a spot of sizzling

skiing. Only one problem - there's no snow. You are going to struggle

today. You wouldn't have done last year. Because last year there was

more than two metres of snow here. As we reported earlier in the

series, there was a sprinkling of snow here during October but it's

long since melted. Not surprising because the average daily maximum

temperatures are five degrees higher this year than last year.

has had an impact on the wildlife. Some of the heather is still in

flower now in November. Heather still in flour! That mildness meant

some animals have been able to exploit food resources that they

wouldn't normally be able to get at normally. You wouldn't normally

expect to see bullfinches. My favourites. You wouldn't expect

to see them on top of moors at this time of year. Are they all

indigenous? We get a few migrants but the Scandinavian ones are

bigger and brighter than the UK ones. When it gets harsh, they will

move down and feed in the lowlands on berries and seeds. They are

going to come to my garden and pinch the buds off my apple tree.

That is what apple trees are for! Some creatures have a better idea

of what to do. This is a mountain hare. It's gone into its white coat.

At the moment because there is no snow, it's sticking out like a sore

thumb. So it is making itself more noticeable to predators and they

are around. Whilst we were up there this week seeing these hares, we

saw these skirting overhead, golden eagles and mountain hares are a

principal component of their diet. I can't understand how they survive.

What's happening here is that the hare isn't responding to a coverage

of snow and thinking I will go go white, it is responding to day

length, so some years they get caught out and of few of them get

caught. The weather has been strange in Scotland but it's been

peculiar all over the country. are right, it has been peculiar and

do we like to talk about it! It is a British past time to talk about

the weather. I have to say, even myself, every day I can't help

myself, I've gone "Oh, isn't it mild for this time of "!" We asked

you to let us know your observations of that mild autumn

and you certainly have. It was the best response in the series. You

have been telling us about lady birds quite far north around, we

have had lots of you tell us about bees and wasps. Butterflies, moths,

ducklings, lots of flowers are still in flower. We have apple

blossom in Slimbridge, Joe told us about that. Roses in Greenwich,

down there, outside London. Fox gloves in Derbyshire. Yes, it has

been a mild autumn. In fact, the latest we have heard from The Met

Office has given us a graph, which they have given to Chris. It is a

jolly good graph we have here. We have temperature up the side and

time along the bottom. It starts on 1st September and the dotted line

is the average temperature that is calculated. Until we get through to

the beginning of October, given of November, it's pretty much hovering

around the average but then it veers up here. What we have seen in

November are temperatures well above the average. The average

temperature for November, so far, because we have five days to go,

has been nine degrees, 3.1 above the norm, and the highest ever is

8.8, so this could end up being the warmest November. November is a

transitional month, it often gets warm and gets cold at the end. The

impact on your selection of species here is noticeable. I think because

these are quite dramatic events, they hold a higher resonance with

us. Viewers have told us. In terms of the grand scheme of things, I am

not entirely sure it is going to have that much of an impact. Nature

has the ability of soaking up these warm periods or cold periods.

mentioned at the beginning of the show, some wildlife has been

confused. Let's look at the ducklings we have had here at

Slimbridge, just below the Flamingo pool. There are 10 ducklings

swimming around. This is very unusual in November. They think

it's it's spring. Wlas going to happen to them? They are going to

have a tough time because they are relying on finding their own food.

Whilst things have been mild, this is possibly a sign of not a second

swim, but these birds responding to a forthcoming spring. It is mild so

they have bred. Those Ducklings, if it freezes or gets cold they could

be in trouble. They are already in trouble, because they are looking

for food and they are food themselves. Shake, look at this.

Little ducklings swimming around with mum and look at that, a black

headed gul. It's quite a small gul and wasn't able to carry the

duckling but look at how protective the adult is. The duckling has

squampered off. This herring is far more capable of taking chicks.

Fingers crossed for those ducklings. Whatever happens, that female will

breed again in April and if she fails then she will breed again at

the end of May. Time for our special guest, Liz Bonnin who we

sent to The Cairngorms to cover an emotive issue.

The British landscape gets no more dramatic and beautiful than in the

highlands of Scotland. Its most valuable and important habitat is

the Caledonian pine forest, a mix of trees, heather and all the

animal species associated with it. But as beautiful as this place is,

something is out of balance in this spectacular landscape. One animal

is having a huge impact on all the other species here. I have come to

The Cairngorms to find out about red deer. But I am not here just to

admire them, I am here to find out about what the most controversial

conservation issues today. Without natural predators like wolves and

bears, deer numbers have steadily being growing in the highlands over

hundreds of years. They belong here just as much as all the other

animals, but humans have created an ecosystem with no natural method of

controlling them. Now some people believe that the red deer

population is so out of balance that it needs culling. It is an

uncomfortable idea for most of us but it is the reality of what is

happening here. I want to explore this and my

journey starts on this estate with Derek from the Forestry Commission

Scotland. He works at the sharp end of keeping deer numbers low. We are

not just looking for red deer to get nice and close to them. If you

get the chance, you are going to try and cull one today, is that

right? Yes, we are going to go out stalking and get in on some deer

and maybe shoot one. It goes without saying, I am a bit

apprehensive about it, I have never experienced anything like it before.

I do want to know why it is necessary, why you cull in these

parts? We believe that there are too many deer. Six or seven years

ago when we started to cull, this heather was moan right down to the

moss because of the red deer. -- mown. The heather is just the tip

of an ecological iceberg. Many species depend upon heather and

then there is the precious Caledonian forest that can't

regenerate because deer are eating all the young Saablings, it is --

saplings. This is what motivates the Forestry Commission in Scotland

to get people like Derek out on the moors. There are deer over here in

front of us. We have to get into this position in order that we are

downwind of the deer. Is wind wind crucial? Absolutely They can smell

humans. Deer stalking is tough, even with Derek's expertise it

takes five hours to track down what Closing In on this quarry, Derek

prepares for the final stages of the stalk. As the gun comes out of

its holder I am aware what I am about to witness is going to

challenge me, but I have to be here to fully appreciate this key part

The deer was killed instantly with a clean shot.

I didn't see it go down. It's definitely down. Jeepers. This is

undoubtedly one of the hardest things I have had to witness. I can

certainly appreciate why some people believe humans shouldn't be

killing animals for any reasons. But many now argue that this cull

is necessary for the greater good of nature. To understand this, I

need to see the negative effect the red deer are having on the precious

Caledonian forest and the species that live there.

It's not very nice but we do live in a landscape. If we want to

maximise the benefit for all species, sometimes we have to take

some very difficult decisions. That heather was down to the moss but

now the heather has already bounced back. It is, well managed heather

benefits another iconic Scottish animal, the red grouse. Chris and I

braved the wilds of the Scottish wilderness in our quest to find out

Let's look for animals! Not just any animals, Martin - the red

grouse. They feed mostly on heather. They are a gorgeous russet colour,

with red eyebrows. They are combs like you might find on a cockerel.

There is a direct correlation between the amount of testosterone

and the size of the wattles. As well as the lovely eyebrows, the

males show off with spectacular display flights, calling out as

they fly. This is all testosterone testosterone fuelled. These grouse

have two peaks of testosterone in the year. A minor peak and then it

drops off and in April they will have a resurgence of this hormone

in their body. It is how they secure a fee tale that is going to

stay with them and go through the breeding process. They shoot up,

They might have a scrap there, Chris. One has gone up there.

Thoughts of coffee and cake have gone out of my mind, until now!

The red grouse, it is the essence of the Scottish autumn. It is.

crucial question is, why are they going to all that trouble, all that

showing off now when they are going to breed for months. It is about

winter survival. When they are vocalising, they are driving other

males out of the territory but it is also a love songs for the

females. Sometimes the females will stay with them or move off.

Whatever happens they drive all the other birds out of the area. So

this behaviour is about having the best habitat to get through the

winter and these birds go back and the females are making their choice.

Very Intriguing things are going on in the rivers right now. Have a

look at this. This was filmed much earlier on in one of the very first

Autumnwatch programmes, fabulous salmon leaping up the water falls,

coming from the sea, and now they are coming back to the rivers in

which they were born. That was weeks ago, but now, Chris, what is

going on so many weeks later? will come into the river and some

will stay for a long period of time waiting for the right conditions

for the spawning to occur. Fortunately when we were in the

Cairngorms this week it was one of those times.

This is a trib triof the river, one of the best salmon rivers in the UK.

When our camera man heard the spawning had started, he grabbed

his waders and got there as fast as he could with his underwater camera.

The fish don't seem bothered about it. These salmon are now at the end

of their journey. The males have turned a deep red colour and also

developed a distinctive hook shaped mouth. But really it is the females

who are the centre of attention. This is the male fish protecting

his female. All the males congregate around a female waiting

for the moment of egg-laying. But first she makes a nest in the

gravel bed by striking her tail to dig a pit. The males are are

jostling for position, to be in the right place at the right time.

Whichever male is closest to her will have a chance to fertilise her

eggs. For most of the salmon this will be their final journey as they

put all their energies into the effort to spawn. They are really

suffering from this fungus. They have not been eating. All the

bloches of fungus are signs of their complete exhaustion and after

spawning most will die in the very river where their own lifrs leisure

lives began. It is this spawning which is the the be all and end all

of this part of their lives. It's worked because this is what we find

if we dive into the beds, beneath the gravel, the salmon eggs are

developing. The little fish inside are waiting to hatch out. 95% of

the eye dults die during this process and what we see when we

look into the rivers is lots of fish carcasses floating down. This

might strike you as sad but I have to say there is a beauty in it. The

nutrients of these fish are going back into the ecosystem which

allowed them to grow in the first place all those years ago. It is

odd, I am sure you will agree, we can find a beauty in a dead salmon

because it is part of a functional ecosystem. Perhaps only Chris could

find beauty there! I am not sure I would call it

beauty but I see his point. Time to catch up with our swans here. They

are not the sort of swans we can see behind us. They are here all

the year around. The bewick fly in each year. They come from Arctic

Russia and they are very wild. So far there are 135 individuals here.

It started very slowly. We had three, four weeks ago, now it is

135, which is a lot more than this time last year. They are expecting

about 400. We have seen family groups coming in and fighting for

dominance but we have seen really interesting swans coming in. Look

at these two. These two are divorcees. This is a a divorcee

with its new partner. The rate of divorce among these swans is

incredibly low. They have only seen it twice in 4,000 swans that have

come here, 60 years. It does happen very occasionally. We think it is

because if the pair doesn't breed successfully, they may separate,

which is very sensible, because who knows which one is infertile.

male of the divorced pair has a new partner, they haven't brought

signets back. The female did bring signets back. She didn't want to be

near the ex. They met and went their separate ways. I learnt

something new this week at Slimbridge. We all like doing that.

I learnt how to feed the swans. I actually had to go through training.

I had to be taught how to look demure, when I was wheeling my

barrow. Impossible! Then I had to learn the wrist action of checking

the seed out. I did all right! James Lees has been feeding the

swans here for 11 years. She's training me on what do do. They are

notoriously aware of humans. This autumn will be the first time the

signets have set eyes on people. I have to act just like their regular

feeders or I might scare all the birds away. James will be watching

my every move from the public observatory. We can see some birds

moving. I don't know if this is a good sign but they are walking away

from me. Soon ducks, geese and swans are eating out of my hand. At

the moment, I am not frightening any of the swans. I could only be

this close to these rare swaus because they have learned over many

years that humans here are a trusted source of food. It is

amazing, I am closer to a bewick swan that anybody else could be in

the whole of Western Europe. Slimbridge has created a safe haven

for these gorge jus winter visitors for 60 years. What a privilege to

Loving it, Michaela. I didn't scare any off. When you come to my house,

you are now permitted to feed my chickens. Thank you very much. I am

one of only 21 people in 60 years who has fed those swans. They have

taken 60 years to get those swans there, so it is really important

nobody does scare them off. Thank you very much to Slimbridge for

letting me do that. Thank you to Slimbridge for letting us be here

for the last four weeks and thank you for all the work you do. Chris

and I were lucky enough to see the red grouse but there is another

sort of grouse, much, much rarer, the black grouse. I went out early

one morning to see if I could see something that very few people have

This place, The Cairngorms, is per ferment for the black grouse. They

are not disturbed here. They eat heather and pine needles. Right on

cue, is that strange call. It's almost owl-like. Fascinating, great

flashes of white as these male male black grouse are starting to

display to one another to try to work out who is top. It's called

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 45 seconds

It's a fantastic show. You might wonder why are the male black

grouse showing off at this time of year. Because the main breeding

season is in springtime. We are not sure why they do it. There are no

females here. Females actively avoid male black grouse at this

time of year, so it is all rather I am so jealous. I can barely bring

myself to speak to you. Fantastic, it was amazing thing to see. They

have been on some of those sites for 50 or 60 years, they come back

to the same sites. The big question is, why do they do it? Black grouse

do that every month of the year apart from July and they are

sorting out a hierarchy. They are investing a lot of energy in this.

The dominant males will probably go back to the best territories, so

they srt it out on the ground and go back to the territories, these

are the ones which are the ones best for food and breeding. It's

about status. And here is a fact for you: when they do go back and

mate, one male was seen to mount a stuffed female 56 times in 45

minutes. What an achievement. I congratulate you on a beautiful

fact! Also, you used to see black grouse, people in London could see

them 30 30 milts out of central London, now they have gone. There

are 5,000 males left. Habitat loss, human disturbance and the number of

pheasants introduced into the environment, but that hasn't been

tested, it is just one of those theories. A stunning bird. Let's go

back to Liz Bonnin, she's had a tough look at management in the

highlands but let's see if the management pays off.

The speck lack tar Scottish Highlands are home to some of the

rarest habitats and species in the UK. But it's claimed that this

landscape is suffering because deer numbers have risen out of control

as a result of humans eradicating their natural predators like wolves

and and bears. Just how bad is this damage? I want to see with my own

eyes andth best way to do this is from the air. We are going to take

a quick photograph. Ian Hope monitors deer across the Highlands

and he's come to this estate where I witnessed a cull. His research

helps establish the effects deer numbers are having on the landscape.

What we can do is look at some deer up here and I would expect that we

should see some groups of about 40, 50, 60 deer altogether in herds.

And that's not unusual up here. spot several large herds within

minutes and it is clear the treeless landscape is under stress

as a result. On the lower slopes, Ian shows me the dying remnants of

the old Caledonian forests. For For many years those trees have not

been able to establish a youninger - younger crop of trees below them

because the deer can see them and eat them. It is very good food for

deer. But deer managers have put in place a programme that has meant

that impacts like deer being reduced and allowed the young

seedlings to increase in height. We can see the woodland is much more

dense here, there are more trees and not only that, can you see

clear evidence of young trees coming up from the ground, coming

up through the heather. It's easy to see from up here that high

numbers of deer result in grazed and barren wars. But keeping deer

numbers low on private land to allow regeneration is unusual. Most

estates in the Highlands want high numbers of deer for their hunting

business. The approach here is very different but manager Thomas thinks

it's worth it. What did this place look like 20 years ago, compared to

today? This area looked a bit like a golf course. All the grass didn't

have a seed on it, it was well grazed. It looked like if you went

into an area where where there was sheep, the whole estate was grazed

down. But after culling the land where we are sitting is a a

blossoming new wild habitat, full of heather and young trees that are

growing into the Caledonian forest In the long-term the forest Thomas

dreams of might become loam to Scotland's speck lack tar species.

For a glimpse of that future my final stop is with the Forestry

Commission of Scotland. We have got the most incredible treat. I never

expected to get so close, look at He is a bit over-exsiteded. He is a

rogue capier kailly He is a wonderful creature. He's been

monitored. If there was ever an example of why these pine forests

are incredibly important for Scottish wildlife, this is

definitely it. Of course this is just one of so many species who

rely on a healthy ecosystem. It's been a brief and at times difficult

journey into a very emotive issue. But it's hard to avoid the

conclusion that for the last scape as a whole, the numbers of one

animal, red deer, do need to be controlled to benefit all of the

other wildlife here in the Scottish Highlands. Liz is with us here at

Slimbridge. She's managed to tear herself away. Let's talk about the

red deer. You have shown that you need to understand the issue before

you get too emotional about it and it is a very complex issue. It is a

very complex issue as most conservation issues are these days

because man has manipulated our landscape for so long there is no

simple answer to anything. It was really hard to watch that culling,

but, yes, it is a very important thing to understand why it is

necessary to be done. You have to have been informed opinion? Yes, it

is important to note it is not about getting rid of all the deer

completely. They do play a vital role in the ecosystem in the

highlands. If you got rid of the deer completely, the heather would

be overgrown. It is about balance, everything in all ecosystems, it is

about striking the right balance. Part of the reason we have to step

in and manage them is because we have got rid of the predators.

Could predators be introduced, could that be an answer? I lot of

people were asking that, I was asking that, I hope you are not too

naive to think you could bring the wolves and bears back and allow

them to readdress the natural balance. But wolves disappeared 200

years ago, lynx, 400 years ago because of us. To introduce the

wolves now, with mass presence in the Hay lands, it would be a big

problem. They have been talking about reintroducing wolves for

decades. But wouldn't it be fantastic to have lynx. Justs to

know they were back in the Highlands would be terrific. It is

more of a realistic option but that is going to take take sometime.

What about fencing? They have tried that. It is part of the management

strategy up there, but fencing brings its own problems. If you

fence off deer, you are going to have patches of unnatural over-

grazed areas and overgrown areas, where the deer are separated. Birds

will fly to fences, it kills the birds and it will separate out

other wildlife as well. It is not a solution. Another complex side of

this is the red deer are part of the economy, they bring in money as

well. No question about it. You have You have written a detailed

blog on the website. I spoke to so many people, it was a real learning

experience, we have a lot of the interviews as well on the website

next week. Every evening I would come back and write frantically

because I found it a very, very interesting subject. You are

sticking around for Unsprung. Let us know what you think. I am sure

you have plenty of opinions about red deer management. Last week we

saw a truly remarkable fight between two male foxes at Pitsea

landfill. Remarkable because it is very rare to see that sort of thing,

rare to see them fighting out in the open. But what happened next? I

just had to find out myself, so I went down to get the very latest

news. There are foxes everywhere here,

look at this, here he comes: They have become so used to people. I

have never had an experience like This is the new male that first

appeared in midsummer. He will be hoping to breed with a Springwatch

vixen next year, so he is doing all he can to win her over, including

this submissive behaviour, even though he is much bigger than her.

On the other hand he's been consistently aggressive to the

vixen's three male cubs. He may be drying the cubs away before they

grow big enough to be a threat. By early November there have been no

sightings of the three male cubs for several weeks, even after dark

and most of the site's large fox population come out to look for

food. It's normal for male cubs to dispurse, often moving several

miles away from where they were What about the remaining cub, the

female? This is the Springwatch vixen. You can tell her from a

small nick in her ear and she is with the female cub. On our

previous visits this cub had been very shy, hiding away in the bushes

but she's clearly gained confidence. She's developed a strong bond with

her mother. This grooming is often a way of strengthening

relationships between adults. The adult male is watching. This

relationship could benefit him, too. Female cubs will often stay with

their mother all the way through the next breeding season. They

won't breed themselves but they will help raise the next litter,

their younger brothers and sisters. Here is a real indication of the

female cub's new found confidence. She comes right up behind the male.

Shows all her teeth and she drives him off the hay bale.

Look at the brush, he's magnificent. The Springwatch vixen has seen her

four cubs through the start of adulthood and the new male has

established himself as the dominant male in the area but he is going to

have to wait until January before she is ready to mate again. There

is no doubt 2012 will be another busy year for the Pitsea foxes.

It's amazing to see them out in the open like that, it is a rarity. The

only person I know who has ever had such good views was my aunty. Spem

often hear them in cover but they don't get these sorts of views.

you might hear them, not quite yet, but you might hear this very

characteristic sound... (Fox sound) This is a vixen calling to the male.

She is only in season for a few days. She She must mate then.

is got to make sure they find her. She out in the woods and they

produce a very raucous call. I have heard it myself. I believe the

police have been called on occasion because they have thought someone

has been done away with. The story in Pitsea is fascinating. I

interviewed Sean tailor who manages the site for the owner there and

that interview, not just the foxes, but all the other wildlife down

there, it is all on the website. One of the best bits of my job is

meeting other naturalists, who know more about something than I do,

because for me one of the greatest treats is always having more to

learn and getting to grips with it. Whilst we are up in Scotland this

week I had a chance to meet meet just such a naturalist. Every now

and again the opportunity arising to meet a renowned expert, someone

with passion, knowledge and an incredible selection I could only

dream of owning. Hello, Chris, come in. This is

nine-year-old Jay from Perthshire. It is his bone bone collection I am

here to see. What do you think? think wow, I have never seen so

many skulls in one bedroom in all my life. How many skulls have you

got here? I have about 100, I think, I'm not sure. That's impressive.

What about bones, how many in total? 1,000. From different

animals? Yes. Many of which you found yourself. Mostly all of them,

yes. When I was nine I think I probably had about 6 or 7 skulls.,

not many. On a skull count here, I have been thrashed! Which is your

favourite British skull? The deer. Why? Because it's it's huge.

you get it yourself? The local gamekeeper gave it to me as a

present. I have spied a skull here, is it all right if I take it out?

Yes. This is a very special skull. Yes. Tell me about it It is a

puffin my friend gave to me. We swapped skulls. I gave her a seal,

a pig. Sounds like a gar Dane. One of our viewers has sent a bone in,

you look at that and I will read what she's written. Dear Chris and

Martin, I enclose a bone which is possibly reptile. I found it on our

farm years ago and haven't managed to have it positively identified. I

am hopeful you can. From Daphne Ellis in Warwickshire. On a farm,

she thinks it might be a reptile? Some kind of farm animal, a sternum.

What makes you think that? Do you It is very similar, you have a

pointy bit at one end. Yes. This could be sheep. Or some other kind

of farm animal. I am thinking it could be a sheep. A sheep or a pig.

Daphne Ellis, the expert has spoken, a sternum bone from a sheep or pig.

Cool boy. What a remarkable young man. Instilled so much faith in me

that there is a new generation of great British naturalists waiting

out there. Thank you to all of you who have got in contact with the

programme. You have been out on the message boards with pictures and a

big thank you thank you you from us all. If you want to stay involved

carry on watching our swan cams. We have been talking a lot about how

mild the autumn is but tonight it feels as if it's got chilly. So is

winter taking its hold. Let's find It is chilly out there. The weather

has been blocked, we haven't had the normal westerly winds but it is

changing now. A succession of fronts coming in through the

weekend. You will know the tightness of the isobars meaning

windy weather. There will be sunshine in between. A mixed sort

of weekend, but rain clouds are looming across the north-west.

Before that, it's quite chilly, but those temperatures will rise later

in the night as the cloud increases and it turns properly wet across

western Scotland. Through tomorrow, that wind will be a real feature, a

very, very windy day across the northern part of the country. If

you have plans for the outdoors across the north, be aware of that.

Further south, a nice day, it will be milder tomorrow, but that won't

last. We see the winds flicking to the north-west again. The skies

brighten for Sunday, it's looking a beauty. Showers across Scotland

will begin to turn wintry. Thank you very much. Over the last

few weeks we have been talking very much about how cold it might be in

Eastern Europe but what's been going on there.

We have been promising this cold air coming in. Eastern Europe has

finally got very cold, it is below freezing as is much of Russia.

Let's go back to last year and remind ourselves. This time last

year we had low pressure to the east, high to the west and that

meant the winds were funelling down from the Arctic which caused the

exceptionally cold weather we had last year. This year that cold air

across Russia hasn't made it this far. It has been blocked by high

pressure. That is the reverse of last year. We have had the warm

winds coming up from the south. How warm has it been? We are set to

have one of the warmest autumns on record. Remarkably warm or for some

of us it's been a remarkably dry year as well. It's all back to

normal now. The first days of December, windy and chilly. The

last of the leaves will be blowing off the trees, I fancy. Thank you

to everyone at the BBC Weather Centre for their help. Today I

spoke to Paul at the BTO, about what might happen. He thought this

mild south-westerly might stimulate movement from Scandinavian birds, a

few more red wings coming over here. We have a comment from a lady on

the website who has seen some in the Isle of Wight. We have been

waiting for a Woodcock. We did have a good fall of Woodcock this week.

Adult birds have been seen moving over to the East Coast of Britain.

At last a good number of Woodcock coming through here. Up in Scotland,

we went out and spotted a Woodcock at night, look at this.

We have lost the pictures. That is a tragedy.

I went out this morning, 7.03 to listen to the dawn chorus and saw

like a ghost, sweeping around the tree tops, it was a Woodcock. My

security light came on and I saw it 20 foot drift past me, photographs

tomorrow. We cannot believe we are finishing on a Woodcock. We have

come to the end of Autumnwatch, we are doing a Christmas special, look

out for that and we have a special guest, Santa, take a look at how

happy Santa looks. It's the beard. I social beards with being stern.

We are also going to have a winter special for when it gets really,

really cold. Hopefully we will meet you in the snow and ice. If you

have suggestions for what you would like to see in the winter special,

condact us, because there is time to respond. We hope that you have

enjoyed this series of Autumnwatch. We have done our best to bring you

the full flavour of autumn. And to feature the best of British

wildlife. Autumnwatch Unsprung is coming up soon. We have some guests

with two superstars coming on the programme. But before we go, we

think it is best that we play you out with the highlights of this

year's series. Here is the the very best, the greatest hits of

Autumn has arrived! The leaves are turning.

We are about to see some images which could easily lead to an

excess of leg-rubbing. When this happens, you can get so carried

away you can end up rubbing someone Look at that!

You are just jealous you can't spet with spawning salmon. You haven't