0:00:04 > 0:00:10Wales. On this beautiful evening. We have had a really busy weekend here.
0:00:10 > 0:00:15Lots of drama. Especially with our jackdaw's nest and the buzzards.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19Lots to catch up. We are meeting new characters,
0:00:19 > 0:00:26including the colourful Kingfisher. A favourite bird for many.
0:00:26 > 0:00:36And we are visiting the bird colonies on the magical Isle of May.
0:00:36 > 0:00:52
0:00:52 > 0:01:00Welcome back, it is week two, it is Springwatch! Yes it is Springwatch
0:01:00 > 0:01:04it is week three. Coming from the beautiful RSP B Reserve in Wales.
0:01:04 > 0:01:10800 hectares of lovely habitat. Everything from the Morland on the
0:01:10 > 0:01:15hill, the salt marsh, the estuary, we have marshes, lakes and nestled
0:01:15 > 0:01:23in the woodland we have our studio. Throughout the network of habitats,
0:01:23 > 0:01:29we have everything, we have our noses in lots of nests. Now it's
0:01:29 > 0:01:33been a cold spring, the coldest in 50 years. This is having an impact
0:01:33 > 0:01:39on the wildlife and spring is critical. The clans for most to
0:01:39 > 0:01:44reproduce. They have to make it count. Well it is week twochlt
0:01:44 > 0:01:49Did I say week three? It is week two this week! We have had a lot of
0:01:49 > 0:01:56drama while we have been off air, but let's start with exciting news.
0:01:56 > 0:02:00On Thursday last week, week one, we left you with a bird that you
0:02:00 > 0:02:06commonly see in your gardens, the nest of the blackbird. We were not
0:02:06 > 0:02:13sure if there were chicks or eggs but let's see what we got. This is
0:02:13 > 0:02:18but let's see what we got. This is There is the nest, the female, the
0:02:18 > 0:02:21male feeding her and she gets up, there are three tiny chicks born o
0:02:21 > 0:02:25on Thursday. They hatched on Thursday, but what happened to the
0:02:25 > 0:02:32other two eggs? There are five eggs in the nest? Did they hatch out?
0:02:32 > 0:02:36Well, yes, they did. This is Friday. You can see one of
0:02:36 > 0:02:41those eggs. We got it on film.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45Hatching out, a little tiny baby blackbird.
0:02:45 > 0:02:50The mum comes back to brood again. What happened to the fifth egg?
0:02:50 > 0:02:57Well, I can tell you it hatched out on Saturday. There is the mum eating
0:02:57 > 0:03:02the egg. She is taking that calcium back into her system, but, Chris, is
0:03:02 > 0:03:08that unusual with the black birds to hatch over three days? Slightly it
0:03:08 > 0:03:12depends on when they lay the eggs, but the purpose of birds is to get
0:03:12 > 0:03:15them to hatch at the same time to feed them equally and then they
0:03:15 > 0:03:20leave at the same time. They may catch up with the others.
0:03:20 > 0:03:25Well, let's have a look at them live... There is the female. Easy to
0:03:25 > 0:03:30tell the difference. She is brown, the male is more black. Sitting on
0:03:30 > 0:03:36the five chicks. They are very vulnerable. Obviously they are only
0:03:36 > 0:03:41a few days' old. Keep an eye on them on the live cameras.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45It is cosy and snug there. Lovely and warm under the mother. Now we
0:03:45 > 0:03:52always want to bring you new nests on Springwatch. We have another one
0:03:52 > 0:03:57for you. What do you think this nest is? It is up in a tree on site here
0:03:57 > 0:04:01it is rather unlike any of the nests we have had before... It is actually
0:04:01 > 0:04:07a bird that many of you will be familiar with. A hole in the tree.
0:04:07 > 0:04:12There is is a clue. There it is. The greater spotted woodpecker. The male
0:04:12 > 0:04:20and female would have worked together to dig out that hole.
0:04:20 > 0:04:24There they are... You can hear the chicks in there.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29Watch out now, you can tell the difference between male and female,
0:04:29 > 0:04:34the male has a red bit on the back of his head. Brightly coloured.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38There he was going in. We don't know how many chick there is are yet.
0:04:38 > 0:04:44There is the male again. Very, very obvious. Of course these are the
0:04:44 > 0:04:49birds that are a terror of the bird table. Everyone disappears when they
0:04:49 > 0:04:55turn up on the garden feeders but what a treat to see them there.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59don't know how many chicks are in the nest yet. We will get a look
0:04:59 > 0:05:04soon, but it sounds like they will soon come out.
0:05:04 > 0:05:10They sound pretty big. Let's have a look at them live.
0:05:10 > 0:05:15Listen... You can hear the chicks in the nest there.
0:05:15 > 0:05:20They are very noisy. I mean, what do you think? There could be as many as
0:05:20 > 0:05:29eight chicks in the hole. They are all trampling on one another,
0:05:29 > 0:05:36jumping on each other's heads to get the food. The adults a not taking
0:05:36 > 0:05:40the way -- away the faecal sacks, it is getting smelly in there. If the
0:05:40 > 0:05:44adults are not visiting it is difficult to locate.
0:05:44 > 0:05:53We will only know how many there are when they come out. What do you
0:05:53 > 0:05:59reckon? Five.I'm going for four. Six. I'm going up.
0:05:59 > 0:06:06Of course, the great spotted woodpeckers are tinkers. They are
0:06:06 > 0:06:14naughty. We have a letter from Jeremy who says: I have nest boxes
0:06:14 > 0:06:18around the garden. Many come here. This week I had to shoe them away as
0:06:18 > 0:06:25they are destroying the entrance to the nest. Is this typical behaviour?
0:06:25 > 0:06:29It is. I woke up on Saturday morning. The Tommy gun sound of the
0:06:29 > 0:06:33woodpecker outside. It was bluetits being raided from the nest. Then on
0:06:33 > 0:06:37Sunday morning, the same weekend, the great tits. They had both
0:06:37 > 0:06:44broods. Saturday morning in my house, a
0:06:44 > 0:06:49great tit nest, but he has not gotten in, but they are persistent.
0:06:49 > 0:06:53Saturday morning, knock, knock, knock, the postman! OK. What do you
0:06:53 > 0:06:58do if you have a problem with them? Well you can up to a point do
0:06:58 > 0:07:04something about it. Many nest boxes now come with a metal plate. You can
0:07:04 > 0:07:10make it yourself. You put it around the hole to stop them getting in.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14Mine, I have that but they went in down here, but it is better than
0:07:14 > 0:07:20nothing. What can you do? There is a heron on
0:07:20 > 0:07:26one of our live camera, always a fantastic bird to see. Is it
0:07:26 > 0:07:30fishing? Stalking around... They've been eating a lot of eels. I have
0:07:30 > 0:07:36been watching them. Eels is a species very much in decline but
0:07:36 > 0:07:42clearly not here. This lake, it was about 13 years ago a grassy field
0:07:42 > 0:07:48its that been made by the RSP B, it has been colonised. It is good to
0:07:48 > 0:07:50see a top of the food predator in place. There is plenty of food for
0:07:50 > 0:07:59that animal. That is a success story.
0:07:59 > 0:08:05Five minutes in, we have seen a live heron... Hatching birds... Hatching
0:08:05 > 0:08:15birds and great spotted woodpecker. You can keep watching the live
0:08:15 > 0:08:15
0:08:15 > 0:08:17cameras on the website. 24 ours a day. -- hours a day. You can observe
0:08:17 > 0:08:21them BBC.co.uk/Springwatch. Very exciting.
0:08:21 > 0:08:31We have shown you a lot, but look at this, this is what has been
0:08:31 > 0:08:32
0:08:32 > 0:09:14Apology for the loss of subtitles for 42 seconds
0:09:14 > 0:09:19What about that? All in one weekend. Beautiful pictures. Music? A Jimmy
0:09:19 > 0:09:25jazz for me! Stop it! I like that music, myself.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29I prefer a bit of Rebel Waltz. A beautiful weekend. We got lovely
0:09:29 > 0:09:33pictures, but now a more dramatic story we were following last week on
0:09:33 > 0:09:39Springwatch. Let me remind you. With the family of jack douse. We had
0:09:39 > 0:09:44them in a nest box in the barn. Two adults and chicks, looking healthy,
0:09:44 > 0:09:50but they were being attacked by two intruders. We showed you that at the
0:09:50 > 0:09:54end of last week. It did not stop. They kept intruding all weekend. Sef
0:09:55 > 0:10:00entime -- seven times over the weekend they made brutal attacks.
0:10:00 > 0:10:06This is one of them. This happened on Saturday it is not nice to watch.
0:10:06 > 0:10:11It is savage. Both of the intruders are having a go. They seem to be
0:10:11 > 0:10:16picking on one chick in particular. Here he tries to escape. They pull
0:10:16 > 0:10:20him back. It goes on and on.
0:10:20 > 0:10:29If you were watching this on the live cams or on the red button, like
0:10:29 > 0:10:34me you are probably shouting at the screen, going, " Stop it. Hurry up.
0:10:34 > 0:10:39Come back parent bird." The parent bird does come back. There is a
0:10:39 > 0:10:44fight and the intruders go off. The chicks are left looking exhausted.
0:10:44 > 0:10:51At this stage we wondered if they would r get up again. The parents
0:10:51 > 0:10:56are trying to revive them. Let me tell you they did get up again, but
0:10:56 > 0:11:00Sunday, the same thing happened. The intruders come back. They seem to
0:11:00 > 0:11:06pick on one chick again. I don't know if it is the same one. The
0:11:06 > 0:11:10chick is fighting back a little bit... But again, this, it happened
0:11:10 > 0:11:15again at 6.00am. They came back. They had another go. They left the
0:11:15 > 0:11:20chicks exhausted. The chicks left breathing heavily. Once again, I was
0:11:20 > 0:11:26watching it. I didn't know if they would get up. In time they did get
0:11:26 > 0:11:30up. Let us show you the recovery. There is the nest box. This is them
0:11:30 > 0:11:34inside. Looking at them there, you would never know anything had
0:11:34 > 0:11:40happened. They get up when the bird comes
0:11:40 > 0:11:44back. They beg for food. They look strong. They look healthy. If we had
0:11:44 > 0:11:49not had cameras in there, the day before, you would not have knowning
0:11:49 > 0:11:54in had happened. Let's have a look at them live... Let's go in the
0:11:54 > 0:12:01box... One of them is asleep. It is breathing. We know it is still
0:12:01 > 0:12:08alive. The other one... The adult is there. The other we cannot see.
0:12:08 > 0:12:15But I just don't know how long that can go on for. Seven attacks, three
0:12:15 > 0:12:20more today. It just does not seem to stop. Some attack go on and on.
0:12:20 > 0:12:26It is brutal. It appears cruel, but these are the terms to apply in a
0:12:26 > 0:12:30human context. There is a reason for this. Whenever you see this savagery
0:12:30 > 0:12:36occurring in the animal kingdom. There is a good reason. Explaining
0:12:36 > 0:12:43is tricky. It has not been seen that much before. We spoke to Gill
0:12:43 > 0:12:46McIver, he has about 100 nest boxes out there. On one previous occasion
0:12:46 > 0:12:51have they documented behaviour like this. It could be we are getting
0:12:51 > 0:12:56insight into behaviour that is more common. It is tip ically natural
0:12:56 > 0:13:00nest sites where we cannot see in literally. It has been documented in
0:13:00 > 0:13:07Holland. The reason it is happening is likely that the pair that come
0:13:07 > 0:13:12in, the intruders, as we call them. Are a pair of jack douse, lower in
0:13:12 > 0:13:15the social hierarchy. They are desperate to get a nesting space.
0:13:15 > 0:13:21They are thinking that they can stake a claim. That the birds think
0:13:21 > 0:13:26that this is not a good place to breed, that they have lost their
0:13:26 > 0:13:33young, they will not return. These birds, the lower status birds have
0:13:33 > 0:13:38to get on the nesting ladder, this is their attempt to do it, so, yes,
0:13:38 > 0:13:43savage, brutal but being pragmatic, there is a reason for it.
0:13:43 > 0:13:50Still hard to watch. You would not be at the screen shouting stop it,
0:13:50 > 0:13:56like I was, would you? Well, I am interested to see it I think that
0:13:56 > 0:14:06the chicks are fighting back. Now, you are asking about the
0:14:06 > 0:14:13
0:14:13 > 0:14:23ospreys Monty and Glesny. Let's catch up with their story so far.
0:14:23 > 0:14:33This is Monty. He was successful with this court courting game.
0:14:33 > 0:14:37
0:14:37 > 0:14:44Glesni, the female -- the female, laid an egg, but things have not
0:14:44 > 0:14:50been going to plan. Here is Glesni but she a is a first-time breeder.
0:14:50 > 0:14:57When she is threatened by other ospreys, she is leaving the nest.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00That is very worrying. We will have to keep an eye on that and see if
0:15:00 > 0:15:06hopefully she will learn and get back on and the eggs will hatch out.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10Well, from one charismatic bird to another, our cameramen have been
0:15:10 > 0:15:20scouring the river looking for king fishers. Last week we thought we
0:15:20 > 0:15:27
0:15:27 > 0:15:33were too late to see them breeding, but it appears that we may not be.
0:15:33 > 0:15:41Kingfisher courtship takes place each spring. Like many birds this
0:15:41 > 0:15:47couple are running later than usual. They appear identical. All
0:15:47 > 0:15:57apart from the peak of the female which has an orange base. Her
0:15:57 > 0:15:57
0:15:57 > 0:16:01partner's is solid black. These pair of prospecting for the best nest
0:16:01 > 0:16:09site and both are digging out the mud from different holes to keep
0:16:09 > 0:16:14their options open. During the courtship the mail gifts that female
0:16:14 > 0:16:24with a fish. It is conveniently facing head upwards. This is readily
0:16:24 > 0:16:38
0:16:38 > 0:16:44accepted. But the next is reject it. -- -- reject it. Maybe she is
0:16:44 > 0:16:49already full or maybe it is just time to cough up a pellet full of
0:16:49 > 0:16:54fish bones and leftovers from earlier meals. The purpose of this
0:16:54 > 0:16:59courtship feeding is to bring the female into breeding condition.
0:16:59 > 0:17:09Making sure that her body weight is up to her reducing a full clutch of
0:17:09 > 0:17:09
0:17:09 > 0:17:13eggs. But this is also a test for the mail. The female is measuring
0:17:13 > 0:17:21just how much food he can provide at this critical time. If it is not
0:17:21 > 0:17:26enough then maybe he will not be good enough to raise a full clutch.
0:17:26 > 0:17:31Kingfishers are more generalised leaders in the name suggests. This
0:17:31 > 0:17:41time the mail has brought back a juicy dragonfly is his gift. She
0:17:41 > 0:17:52
0:17:52 > 0:17:59seems reticent about this token of love. Perhaps she is trying to knock
0:17:59 > 0:18:04off the legs before she tries to swallow it. With the sunlight
0:18:04 > 0:18:10bouncing off the feathers the iridescent blue colour is striking.
0:18:10 > 0:18:15But it is an illusion. There is no blue pigment at all. The colour is
0:18:15 > 0:18:21reduced by the light refract ting qualities of the feathers and in
0:18:21 > 0:18:28reality the Kingfisher is more of a drab grey or brown colour. It seems
0:18:28 > 0:18:38that the female now has a taste for the dragonfly and courtship is on
0:18:38 > 0:18:41
0:18:41 > 0:18:51track. With househunting beginning in earnest. Kingfisher, a living
0:18:51 > 0:18:57jewel. A beautiful bird. What is interesting, the kingfishers had the
0:18:57 > 0:19:05dragonfly lover but that is a massively powerful predator in its
0:19:05 > 0:19:11own right, in a pond. You probably have dragonfly lava living in your
0:19:11 > 0:19:16pond if you have got one. They have the most incredible weapon, they
0:19:16 > 0:19:21tighten up the anal sphincter and then they squeezed their stomach
0:19:21 > 0:19:26muscles and build-up pressure in their body. Whenever they comes
0:19:27 > 0:19:32close they use the muscles and that pressure to shoot out their
0:19:32 > 0:19:38mouthparts. It really is a fearsome weapon. We have been filming it,
0:19:38 > 0:19:48take a look. Here is the studio. We have these three different habitats.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51
0:19:51 > 0:19:59Look at that. The dragon fly larva in close-up. Just watch this. The
0:19:59 > 0:20:04mouthparts shooting out. He squeezes his body, all the muscles. And then
0:20:04 > 0:20:12it is like a balloon, out it comes. And that poor little tadpole did not
0:20:12 > 0:20:18stand a chance. Toad tadpoles at toxic, they contain toxins but not
0:20:19 > 0:20:24many animals will you. But it does not seem to have any effect on the
0:20:25 > 0:20:31dragonfly B. It is an extraordinary thing. It looks like some kind of
0:20:31 > 0:20:39alien monster. This has all been filmed in the microworld. How fast
0:20:39 > 0:20:49do those mouthparts come out? They shootout at 25 ms. What does that
0:20:49 > 0:20:50
0:20:50 > 0:20:55mean? Well be human eye, we blink at around 400 million seconds. So the
0:20:55 > 0:21:02dragonfly is wearing out those most parts about eight times faster than
0:21:02 > 0:21:10we can actually link. What we have also been doing, we have a number of
0:21:10 > 0:21:14chrysalis is. I went to take a look at them just before we came on air
0:21:14 > 0:21:20to see if I could see them wriggling. But they are not doing it
0:21:20 > 0:21:25yet. These are Painted Ladies, these butterflies. And the miracle of
0:21:25 > 0:21:30metamorphosis is happening inside. The caterpillar is being completely
0:21:30 > 0:21:35reorganised into the adult butterfly. Absolutely unbelievable.
0:21:35 > 0:21:41This is what the adult butterfly will look like. This is the Painted
0:21:41 > 0:21:49Lady. Very few of them are resident in the far south of the country.
0:21:49 > 0:21:55Most of them migrate. We will keep a careful eye on that. They should
0:21:55 > 0:21:59emerge in the next couple of days. You do not have to go somewhere like
0:21:59 > 0:22:05this, 800 years of wonderful wilderness, to see wildlife in all
0:22:05 > 0:22:13with glory. Sometimes all you have to do is step outside your own back
0:22:13 > 0:22:18door. Today I have come to take a look at
0:22:18 > 0:22:25what is potentially the largest nature reserve in Britain. Occupying
0:22:25 > 0:22:30a greater area than all other reserves put together. An area the
0:22:30 > 0:22:37size of Suffolk. I'm talking of course about our gardens. I am going
0:22:37 > 0:22:41to explore them as an ecological resource. It may look like a normal
0:22:41 > 0:22:48suburban garden and it is but it is also a functioning and living
0:22:48 > 0:22:53ecosystem. What does that actually mean? It is a self-contained
0:22:53 > 0:23:00ecological entity made up of all the bits organise and is. -- --
0:23:00 > 0:23:08organisms. It sounds complicated. Let us break it down to understand
0:23:08 > 0:23:15how it works. We can start with biodiversity. That means the number
0:23:15 > 0:23:20of different living things living in an area at a given time. Gardens can
0:23:20 > 0:23:27be incredibly rich in life. One lady called Jennifer Owens studied her
0:23:27 > 0:23:32garden for 30 years and counted no less than 2673 different species.
0:23:32 > 0:23:39How can they all live in a garden at the same time? There are several
0:23:39 > 0:23:44factors. Firstly, time. If your garden has been here for a long time
0:23:44 > 0:23:48that is plenty of time for things to come and find it. Then
0:23:48 > 0:23:56productivity, lots of growth and energy meaning lots of life. But
0:23:56 > 0:24:03perhaps most importantly, spatial complexity. Here is how it works.
0:24:03 > 0:24:09You have got graphs, down on the ground here. Then you have this
0:24:09 > 0:24:16small shrub. That towers above it. You have got bushes and then all the
0:24:16 > 0:24:22way up here, the mature trees. So in essence the more complex your garden
0:24:22 > 0:24:29is, the more nooks and crannies it offers, the more animals it can
0:24:29 > 0:24:35support. For variety really is the spice of life. Bushes, rocks, ponds,
0:24:35 > 0:24:43they all offer different resources for wildlife. Let us pick one
0:24:43 > 0:24:49species. The pond skater. Firstly the niche is where it lives, on the
0:24:49 > 0:24:54surface of the pond. Then what it actually does, this is an insect
0:24:54 > 0:25:00predator. Skating across the surface to grab anything else that has been
0:25:00 > 0:25:07unlucky enough to fall in. And then its position, how it sits with all
0:25:07 > 0:25:13the other organisms in this wider community. As Ade Gardner your
0:25:13 > 0:25:15choices can have a big impact on which animals thrive. You can
0:25:15 > 0:25:22maximise the amount of food available for insects by providing a
0:25:22 > 0:25:26wide range of plants. That is because each shape of flower offers
0:25:26 > 0:25:32nectar to a particular group of insects. Bumblebees can gather
0:25:32 > 0:25:37nectar from open balloons. But only butterflies can reach the nectar at
0:25:37 > 0:25:43the bottom of the deeper flowers. So plans form the foundation of any
0:25:43 > 0:25:48garden diversity. In our garden community here plans are what we
0:25:49 > 0:25:54call primary producers. They take energy from the sun, nutrients from
0:25:54 > 0:25:59the soil, carbon dioxide from the air the sphere and they grow. But
0:25:59 > 0:26:05then things eat them and they are called primary consumers.
0:26:05 > 0:26:11Caterpillar for example. It turn gets eaten by a secondary consumer,
0:26:11 > 0:26:16perhaps they Blue Tit. And then we could get a tertiary consumer, a
0:26:16 > 0:26:22predator. So all the species in the garden become linked from dance
0:26:22 > 0:26:28through to predators. In simple terms that is how the garden
0:26:28 > 0:26:36ecosystem works. But as an ecosystem, what is it? For me it is
0:26:36 > 0:26:40a mosaic, the lawn we can think of as a miniature Meadow. The pond, a
0:26:40 > 0:26:46freshwater pool and then the compost heap, the leaf litter on the
0:26:46 > 0:26:50woodland floor. And most often British gardens" to little pieces of
0:26:50 > 0:26:57woodland. So they attract woodland species like hedgehogs and wood
0:26:57 > 0:27:01pigeons. But no ecosystem can exist in isolation. If this garden was
0:27:01 > 0:27:06surrounded by Tarmac there would not be nearly as many species living
0:27:06 > 0:27:12here acted would not be nearly as sustainable. If you fancy yourself a
0:27:12 > 0:27:18good wildlife gardener over you want to be an ecosystem engineer to
0:27:18 > 0:27:23maximise your patch, you need to think about what is living in your
0:27:24 > 0:27:33entire neighbourhood. It will give you the perfect excuse to be a nosy
0:27:33 > 0:27:43neighbour. Is that what you are, a nosy neighbour? Twitching the
0:27:43 > 0:27:44
0:27:44 > 0:27:49curtains! Is that how you see me? I never have been a nosy neighbour. We
0:27:49 > 0:27:57did try to encourage you to get in your garden is last week because we
0:27:57 > 0:28:02asked everyone to go out and conduct a I/O grid last weekend. 1000 people
0:28:02 > 0:28:12did that and recorded 1702 species in their gardens. That was a great
0:28:12 > 0:28:14
0:28:14 > 0:28:21showing. We also had some national rarities. A very rare ladybird. And
0:28:21 > 0:28:27then someone found an Australian flatworm that could be new to
0:28:27 > 0:28:33science. What about that? That is amazing. That was just one weekend.
0:28:33 > 0:28:38We would like you to do this for the rest of the summer. Species new to
0:28:38 > 0:28:44science! And people have been sending in their comments. One lady
0:28:44 > 0:28:50centres in Limerick. The morning spent loading and snapping, resizing
0:28:50 > 0:28:56and recapping. The evening online filling in forms until I should have
0:28:56 > 0:29:06been snapping! Well done for that. I love it when we get pictures of
0:29:06 > 0:29:10
0:29:10 > 0:29:16children doing this. This is Jacob, taking part in the BioBlitz. He
0:29:16 > 0:29:22discovered the eyelash fungus. Absolutely brilliant. That is just
0:29:23 > 0:29:28what we want to encourage as part of the BBC summer of wildlife. We want
0:29:28 > 0:29:36to inspire you to get out in your own patch and further afield as
0:29:36 > 0:29:42well. We have all the ideas on the website. But if you like a bit of a
0:29:42 > 0:29:46brochure, like me, you can send off for one of those. And you can then
0:29:46 > 0:29:55take that with you when you're out and about. There are masses of
0:29:55 > 0:30:05ideas. We are all in it. And lots of ideas particularly for the kids.
0:30:05 > 0:30:06
0:30:06 > 0:30:13Let's take a quick look at the camera. The owl, , we have a rabbit.
0:30:13 > 0:30:17Michaela just said, it would be great if the owl came down! She is
0:30:18 > 0:30:27not all lovely and sweet! This one is perhaps two weeks old. Now we
0:30:28 > 0:30:29
0:30:29 > 0:30:39take a look at the black birds. They are just being fed. Now we have been
0:30:39 > 0:30:39
0:30:39 > 0:30:44watching the water rail over the weekend.
0:30:44 > 0:30:52Now they have been regular as clockwork. It is unusual to share
0:30:52 > 0:30:58the duties of incubation. This is the male coming in. They have been
0:30:58 > 0:31:07doing it absolutely on time. On Thursday at 1. 15pm. On Sunday they
0:31:07 > 0:31:11changed over at 1. 30pm. It is like a water railway timetable! Oh, no!
0:31:11 > 0:31:14You have been working on that all afternoon! I have been working on
0:31:14 > 0:31:18that They are very shy birds. So the
0:31:19 > 0:31:24views we are getting of this pair at the nest are really privileged
0:31:24 > 0:31:31indeed. We like to bring you a first on Springwatch. Last week we gave
0:31:31 > 0:31:41you the rodentorium. Last week, the loved art of a snail and even a puff
0:31:41 > 0:31:46
0:31:47 > 0:31:51of breath riding from a shrew. Watch this it is a water rail dreaming...
0:31:51 > 0:31:56The beak is under the wing. That was a water rail having a dream. What
0:31:56 > 0:32:06was it thinking about? It is extraordinary. Of course it is not
0:32:06 > 0:32:08
0:32:08 > 0:32:13the only sound we have heard. These birds are vocal. Listen to this...
0:32:13 > 0:32:17You never normally get to hear this, unless you are close to a nest.
0:32:17 > 0:32:27That is a very quiet sound that is being produced. Listen to this
0:32:27 > 0:32:30
0:32:30 > 0:32:34one... Martin, last week when you were introducing a bird, you
0:32:34 > 0:32:39mentioned a sound like the purring of young squirrels, do you think
0:32:39 > 0:32:42that was it? I think it was. But I think, Chris, I think that
0:32:42 > 0:32:47they are talking to the chicks in the egg.
0:32:47 > 0:32:51Do you? Yes. My chicken eggs, before they hatch you can hear them
0:32:51 > 0:32:55cheeping. I think that they communicate with the eggs before
0:32:55 > 0:32:58they hatch out. So she is producing the sound, it
0:32:58 > 0:33:03may be her responding to the chicks? I think so.
0:33:03 > 0:33:08That means that they are going to hatch soon? That would be brilliant.
0:33:08 > 0:33:15We have been saying about how cute they are when they pop out. I
0:33:15 > 0:33:20thought I would show you a photograph to whet your appetite. In
0:33:20 > 0:33:24case we see them later on this week. They are like two black cotton wool
0:33:24 > 0:33:30balls. If we see that on Springwatch. That
0:33:30 > 0:33:33will be a first of some note. I can tell you.
0:33:33 > 0:33:38Now of the birds here have been coping well with the terrible
0:33:38 > 0:33:43weather we have had. Now it is lovely for them, but many seabirds
0:33:43 > 0:33:53have not been doing so well. We went up to the lovely Isle of May to see
0:33:53 > 0:34:02
0:34:02 > 0:34:08how the colonies up there were The Isle of May, one of the UK's
0:34:08 > 0:34:14largest and best-studied seabird colonies. Records have been kept of
0:34:14 > 0:34:18the birds since 1934. This year is proving very different.
0:34:18 > 0:34:28The long harsh winter storms have taken their toll. Far fewer birds
0:34:28 > 0:34:29
0:34:29 > 0:34:35are returning. It's early May, the birds are almost
0:34:35 > 0:34:41six weeks behind schedule. So the race is now on to breed.
0:34:41 > 0:34:46The lower rocky ledges are dom natd by the shags.
0:34:46 > 0:34:50Research has revealed that they are promiscuous.
0:34:50 > 0:35:00-- dominated. Even in a good year, there is is a
0:35:00 > 0:35:01
0:35:01 > 0:35:06divorce rate of 30%. That is a lot of partner-swapping! But this
0:35:06 > 0:35:10disastrous winter has taken its toll on the population.
0:35:10 > 0:35:15Many birds now need to find a new meat.
0:35:15 > 0:35:25-- mate. And with shags it is all about the
0:35:25 > 0:35:25
0:35:26 > 0:35:34size of your crest. Both males and females have them.
0:35:34 > 0:35:44And for shags, the bigger, the better.
0:35:44 > 0:35:44
0:35:44 > 0:35:49Males set up territories, honking and twisting in display.
0:35:49 > 0:35:59The females arrive to make their choice of the male and his nest
0:35:59 > 0:36:06
0:36:06 > 0:36:12But there is always a risk that the male may not accept her attentions.
0:36:12 > 0:36:18His rejection is brutal, but he quickly accepts the next female who
0:36:18 > 0:36:28has a far sue peer yore quiff to her rival. Then it is the female who
0:36:28 > 0:36:28
0:36:28 > 0:36:35jumps on the male's back as the courtship begins.
0:36:35 > 0:36:41On the other side of the island, guillemots and razorbills are
0:36:41 > 0:36:46massing on perilous cliffs. And on the grassy cliff-tops,
0:36:46 > 0:36:53colourful puffins are returning from their winter at sea.
0:36:53 > 0:36:59Puffin numbers have been hit hard. It's likely that they died of
0:36:59 > 0:37:07starvation as a result of the severe weather, stirring up the water and
0:37:07 > 0:37:11making it difficult for the diving birds to hunt.
0:37:11 > 0:37:20But the puffins that have returned quickly re-establish their
0:37:20 > 0:37:29partnerships with a frenzy of colourful beak waggling.
0:37:29 > 0:37:36Then they need to look for a place to nest, which is protected and dry.
0:37:36 > 0:37:46A burrow a perfect. Though often second-hand. They're happy to take
0:37:46 > 0:37:47
0:37:47 > 0:37:53advantage of the rabbits' handiwork. As more Post Officins arrive, the
0:37:53 > 0:38:03pressure on nest holes can get intense.
0:38:03 > 0:38:26
0:38:26 > 0:38:34Having seen off the challenge, it's time to check out the interior.
0:38:34 > 0:38:42For s it is the males that gather nesting materials. Seaweed and drift
0:38:42 > 0:38:48wood are favourites, but getting it home is the tricky bit.
0:38:48 > 0:38:53Their feet may be brilliant for driving but not for clambering over
0:38:53 > 0:38:58the rocks. The females are not much better at
0:38:58 > 0:39:03building, but even a shabby nest on these uneven rocks is enough for
0:39:03 > 0:39:13their eggs. With their clush laid, both parents
0:39:13 > 0:39:19enqueue bait the eggs -- incubate the eggs, turning them so that the
0:39:19 > 0:39:24warmth spread spreads evil. If all three eggs hatch and fledge, then
0:39:24 > 0:39:30that is an encouraging trend. Here is hoping that after a tragic
0:39:30 > 0:39:34winter, the shag population on the Isle of May is on the rise. That the
0:39:34 > 0:39:43puffins and the great wealth of seabirds that also nest on this
0:39:43 > 0:39:47magical island will do the same. I love a puffin. I absolutely love
0:39:47 > 0:39:53puffins. A bit Gaudi for me.
0:39:53 > 0:39:58They are brilliant and comical. Chavvy! Now, seabirds, we hear about
0:39:58 > 0:40:02serious declines in these birds it is worrying, but there is a solid
0:40:03 > 0:40:07glimmer of hope for them. Take the shags for instance, we looked at the
0:40:07 > 0:40:11nest with the eggs, I am pleased to re-count that here is a photograph
0:40:11 > 0:40:16that we have received that shows that one egg has hatched already.
0:40:16 > 0:40:22That is good news. Now, what is really important is that many
0:40:22 > 0:40:27species of seabird are long lived. So they get lots of opportunities to
0:40:27 > 0:40:31So they get lots of opportunities to reproduce themselves.
0:40:31 > 0:40:36Things like cormerants and shags as well. So if they fail, they have had
0:40:36 > 0:40:40a bad winter, if the three eggs hatch and do really well and next
0:40:40 > 0:40:46year and the year after, they have probably done their job. Living long
0:40:46 > 0:40:51enough to have that opportunity. So we do which are about many declines
0:40:51 > 0:40:56in many species but those that are long-lived have a little more grace
0:40:56 > 0:41:01to bide time. It does not mean we can relax our conservation efforts.
0:41:01 > 0:41:06As you say a glimmer of hope. Well from possibly good news, to not
0:41:06 > 0:41:11such good news. In fact it is shocking news it happened this
0:41:11 > 0:41:15afternoon with a star character. The buzzards. Let me remind you there
0:41:16 > 0:41:20were two parent birds and a chick on a nest looking healthy. The parents
0:41:20 > 0:41:27doing a good job of feeding it, but this afternoon. It big surprise.
0:41:27 > 0:41:33Let's have a look at the nest live... One of the adult birds is
0:41:33 > 0:41:40there looking at the chick, but going closer, you can see, very
0:41:40 > 0:41:46sadly, that chick is not moving. This afternoon, unfortunately, the
0:41:46 > 0:41:51chick died. That came as a complete surprise to all of us.
0:41:51 > 0:41:56At this point we just don't know why, do we Chris? We are not sure
0:41:56 > 0:42:01why at all, but we are finding it interesting to see the behaviour of
0:42:01 > 0:42:06the bird. She is very sadly, bemused by the death of the chick. She is
0:42:06 > 0:42:11not getting the response you would expect. The chick is not raising its
0:42:11 > 0:42:18head, not asking for food, so she is curious as to what is the change. So
0:42:18 > 0:42:22you may think when you are looking at this, that there is is a mourning
0:42:22 > 0:42:26process going on but she is just not getting the behaviour responses, but
0:42:26 > 0:42:31what happened to the chick? Last week it was very wet here. The
0:42:31 > 0:42:36female was doing a great job of brooding with the youngster. Keeping
0:42:36 > 0:42:41it warm. They even adapted what they were eating. We saw them finding
0:42:41 > 0:42:46things that they would not typically eat in the normal course of the
0:42:46 > 0:42:51diet. Things like a mole, probably driven to the surface by flooding.
0:42:51 > 0:42:58Lots of frogs. Now buzzards eat frogs but lots of them coming in,
0:42:58 > 0:43:03but then most odd of all, an eel. The chicks was taking them all.
0:43:03 > 0:43:10Growing. Then Thursday, the diet changed. We saw small mammals
0:43:10 > 0:43:16brought in. That is the main prey of things like buzzards. Here is shrew.
0:43:16 > 0:43:20We saw the voles coming in. A number of birds. Even this, grass snakes.
0:43:20 > 0:43:26If you were watching a couple of years ago, you know that the
0:43:26 > 0:43:30buzzards brought in lots of grass nakes. They are common. The chicks
0:43:30 > 0:43:32are used to eating them. So it did seem that the chick was getting a
0:43:32 > 0:43:38seem that the chick was getting a diet of lots of food.
0:43:38 > 0:43:43There was one chick in the nest it was growing well. So a mystery as to
0:43:43 > 0:43:47what happened. We thought it may have choked, but we reviewed the
0:43:48 > 0:43:51pictures. You can clearly see when a bird is choking but nothing it just
0:43:51 > 0:43:58seemed to fizzle out. We can't explain it.
0:43:58 > 0:44:02We can have a look at it dying. This is this morning.
0:44:02 > 0:44:06The adult birds keep bringing food back but it never seems to take the
0:44:06 > 0:44:13food. Our nest watchers said it did not
0:44:13 > 0:44:18seem to feed all morning. The bird is bemused and takes the
0:44:18 > 0:44:24food off. It is not looking the food. It is
0:44:24 > 0:44:28not even turning to the food. But it is walk up to the adult it is
0:44:28 > 0:44:34still fairly active. Obviously not looking good there. That was at
0:44:34 > 0:44:4012.00pm. It perks up again, there is movement but still not feeding. This
0:44:40 > 0:44:48is at 2. 20pm. Again, you would not know that there was anything wrong
0:44:48 > 0:44:54from that picture. Then three minutes later at 14. 23pm
0:44:54 > 0:44:58in the afternoon, the bird, the little chick, stopped moving.
0:44:58 > 0:45:05The adult looks down... It is obviously completely confused.
0:45:05 > 0:45:11It is almost like someone took the batteries out of the chick.
0:45:11 > 0:45:14It came as a complete surprise to It was not something that we were
0:45:14 > 0:45:18expecting at all. Obviously very sad.
0:45:18 > 0:45:24I think that the only way to find out to have the chick would to be
0:45:24 > 0:45:28collect it and perform a postmortem. It could have had a congenital
0:45:28 > 0:45:33disorder it could have been poisoned by something in the food that is
0:45:33 > 0:45:38highly unlikely. There are no chemicals used on the RSPB reserve.
0:45:38 > 0:45:44We may never know. You have to be pragmatic. Like the jackdaws. I am
0:45:44 > 0:45:49not down it is a process and the woods are I live with birds. Yes a
0:45:49 > 0:45:53new nest for you where there is lots of life going on. Look at this.
0:45:53 > 0:45:59These are redstarts. They have chosen to nest in one of our boxes.
0:45:59 > 0:46:03They have eight chicks. Eight blue eggs in there. They have hatched and
0:46:03 > 0:46:09all chicks a feeding well throughout the course of the daytime.
0:46:09 > 0:46:14No adults there. So let's have a look at the adults. Here is a
0:46:14 > 0:46:17redstart. They are great birds. Birds of woodland. They do well in
0:46:17 > 0:46:22the oak woodlands in Wales. Here is a male with the white cap. They
0:46:22 > 0:46:26spend a lot of time foraging on the ground. Resting on a perch and
0:46:26 > 0:46:30jumping down to the ground to collect prey.
0:46:30 > 0:46:36Main insects that they feed on. The males arriving first in the spring.
0:46:36 > 0:46:40Setting up a territory to sing. Then the females arriving later.
0:46:40 > 0:46:42Then the females choose their meat and look for a nest site.
0:46:42 > 0:46:47The nest sites are typically in natural holes.
0:46:47 > 0:46:55Here we see a pair that have chosen one of those.
0:46:55 > 0:47:05They lay a clutch of six to eight eggs, sometimes more. Occasional,
0:47:05 > 0:47:05
0:47:05 > 0:47:13the cuckoos lay into their nests too. They are charming birds. They
0:47:13 > 0:47:18are a member of the thrush family. They have come back in numbers, they
0:47:18 > 0:47:23have been increasing. One of the reasons is that they have started to
0:47:23 > 0:47:31arrive earlier in the spring and the survival rate of the chick has gone
0:47:31 > 0:47:39up. They are such attractive birds with that flash of orange. We have
0:47:39 > 0:47:47got live cameras on some of them. These are in a nest box. Eight
0:47:47 > 0:47:53hungry mouths to feed. That is a pretty high number of chicks. That
0:47:53 > 0:47:59is a worry because everyone has been saying that there are not many moths
0:47:59 > 0:48:04around or caterpillars this year. That is a lot of miles to carry on
0:48:04 > 0:48:08feeding. As they get bigger they will need a lot of caterpillars. Our
0:48:08 > 0:48:17friends have been monitoring the number of chicks fledging from these
0:48:17 > 0:48:25nests for about 25 years now and it has risen from 4.5 25. So that is a
0:48:25 > 0:48:30good thing. I am out in the woods. It seems
0:48:30 > 0:48:36incredible to be coming to you live from the woods. There is a greater
0:48:36 > 0:48:44spotted woodpecker flying around. We have got more than just birds, we
0:48:44 > 0:48:50have got mammals as well. We go now to the rodentorium. It is pitch
0:48:50 > 0:48:58black in there. That is a mouse and overall head-to-head. They cannot
0:48:58 > 0:49:07see each other. They are working just by sound and whiskers. Look at
0:49:07 > 0:49:17that. We have noticed with many of these small mammals, it is not nice.
0:49:17 > 0:49:18
0:49:18 > 0:49:25Look at the side cheek of this mouse. You can just see some tick.
0:49:25 > 0:49:29That is like carrying around a pint of light on your head. The poor
0:49:29 > 0:49:39things, they are smothered in them. This one seems to have it in his
0:49:39 > 0:49:39
0:49:39 > 0:49:45ears. More than an average number of chicks. On Thursday you could
0:49:45 > 0:49:55perhaps remember, if you can see me through this mass of midges, we set
0:49:55 > 0:49:56
0:49:56 > 0:50:02up the trap. That is just for footprints. Inside it is a foot
0:50:02 > 0:50:07print trap. You have got some bait and they walk in, their feet get
0:50:07 > 0:50:14into the ink and they leave these little marks. They are quite
0:50:14 > 0:50:20difficult to interpret so we need to get a guide. You can download this
0:50:20 > 0:50:29from the Mammal Society website. Here is some footprints, you can
0:50:29 > 0:50:36just about the, just there. Little tiny prints. That is a rat, the
0:50:36 > 0:50:41front foot and back foot. If you use this you can hopefully have a bit of
0:50:41 > 0:50:51fun at home trying to work out what these are. That is exactly what
0:50:51 > 0:50:58Debbie Pearce has done. She did it really well. They look like a rat
0:50:58 > 0:51:08print at first sight but it is a heavier mark. It is a hedgehog. As
0:51:08 > 0:51:16well as this we also set up cameras to try to capture larger animals.
0:51:16 > 0:51:24And we have captured a hair on the camera. A fascinating animal. There
0:51:24 > 0:51:29he goes. Sometimes you do not need fancy camera traps like that to find
0:51:29 > 0:51:39out what animals live around you. Sometimes you just need your ears
0:51:39 > 0:51:41
0:51:41 > 0:51:45and your eyes. And a bit of field craft. Most British animals are
0:51:45 > 0:51:50quite shy which means that they are hard to see. Wherever they go and
0:51:50 > 0:51:55whatever they do they leave behind some clues. That is where field
0:51:55 > 0:52:01craft comes in. I will try to use field craft to find out what kind of
0:52:01 > 0:52:09deer are living in this world. There are six species of deer living wild
0:52:09 > 0:52:16in the UK. Fallow Deer, read the and roe deer you're most likely to see.
0:52:16 > 0:52:21Having said that all deer are secretive so even catching a glimpse
0:52:21 > 0:52:27can be hard. But that does not matter because to me finding signs
0:52:27 > 0:52:32of their activity can be just as rewarding. I cannot see any deer at
0:52:32 > 0:52:42the moment but in fact this area is absolutely packed with Fallow deer.
0:52:42 > 0:52:42
0:52:42 > 0:52:49The evidence is everywhere. For prints, all Fallow deer. Here they
0:52:49 > 0:52:56have jumped, they have come along and just sprung across. That is
0:52:56 > 0:53:02where it has jumped and put the whole weight of his body digging in
0:53:02 > 0:53:12there. Over here is pure magic. Fallow Deer have a long history in
0:53:12 > 0:53:14
0:53:14 > 0:53:24the UK and there are some wonderful names. These are known as different
0:53:24 > 0:53:24
0:53:24 > 0:53:31names. The black colour is very much seen in the spring because of the
0:53:32 > 0:53:36grass that they eat. In the autumn they eat more leaves which contain
0:53:36 > 0:53:42tannin so their droppings are brown. This is a fantastic example of the
0:53:42 > 0:53:45playfulness of the Fallow deer. This whole area has been rubbed down to
0:53:45 > 0:53:54the soil because the Fallow deer has been running round and around just
0:53:54 > 0:53:59playing. It is astonishing when you begin to look. Fallow Deer with
0:53:59 > 0:54:05their antlers have very recently been rubbing those antlers, scraping
0:54:05 > 0:54:10the bark off the tree. Fallow Deer will thrash vegetation throughout
0:54:10 > 0:54:15the year but in the spring they often do it to try to break off the
0:54:15 > 0:54:19old antlers so that they can grow a new pair. I have discovered a lot
0:54:19 > 0:54:27about them from the signs in this world but what else is living here?
0:54:27 > 0:54:34This is perfect. Seeker deer have been driving their antlers in,
0:54:34 > 0:54:42probably in frustration. That is quite different. There are signs of
0:54:42 > 0:54:46the deer everywhere. But I still had not seen one. Fallow deer and seeker
0:54:47 > 0:54:55deer live in groups so at any one time there are many individuals
0:54:55 > 0:55:05making lots of signs. But the signs can be much more subtle and harder
0:55:05 > 0:55:09to find. How do you find them? For a start, slow down. You are more
0:55:09 > 0:55:13likely to spot things if you're not marching along. Try sinking down to
0:55:13 > 0:55:20the eyelevel of the animal which gives a completely different live on
0:55:21 > 0:55:30the world. You will see much more. Look at this. Just what we wanted to
0:55:30 > 0:55:39find. This is a bed, the deer has lain down here. But what type? This
0:55:39 > 0:55:46is where the magic word comes in. There are foot 20, this is about
0:55:46 > 0:55:53four centimetres long. That means it is the bed of a roe deer. But
0:55:53 > 0:55:59overhear is something even more interesting. This is so subtle, it
0:55:59 > 0:56:06is the scrape of a roe deer. You would hardly notice it. Perhaps that
0:56:06 > 0:56:12same deer has come along and scraped away the ground. Why has it done
0:56:12 > 0:56:17that? It is a territorial mark. This will be a male leaving sent from in
0:56:17 > 0:56:22between his feet on the ground to tell other males, this is my
0:56:22 > 0:56:29territory come here. So all these subtle signs are here for those who
0:56:29 > 0:56:34care to look. You are particularly likely to see the scrapes of the roe
0:56:34 > 0:56:39deer now in the spring as they are gearing up for the breeding season.
0:56:39 > 0:56:42I have not seen a single deer today but it does not matter because by
0:56:42 > 0:56:52interpreting the signs in the forest I know that there are three types.
0:56:52 > 0:56:54
0:56:54 > 0:56:58The Fallow Deer, the seeker, and the roe deer. On top of that I gained an
0:56:58 > 0:57:03insight into their secretive lives. It just goes to show that a bit of
0:57:03 > 0:57:11field craft can turn an ordinary walk in the woods into something
0:57:11 > 0:57:20much more interesting. Let me give you a strange tip. Instead of
0:57:20 > 0:57:30looking from left to right, scan from right to left and you will see
0:57:30 > 0:57:30
0:57:31 > 0:57:37more. Your brain just picks up more stuff. Nonsense! It is true!
0:57:37 > 0:57:43margin and Michaela, then Martin and Michaela! One tip is to go to
0:57:43 > 0:57:49Richmond Park! Then you do not need to use any field craft. Normally in
0:57:49 > 0:57:55the woods all you see is their bottom. So I will give you a test.
0:57:55 > 0:58:03That is the roe deer. It has a tiny white tail, hardly visible. What
0:58:03 > 0:58:09about this one, the red Deer? Thanks very much! That is easy because it
0:58:09 > 0:58:17is a big bottom and it has got a red tail. What about the one in the
0:58:17 > 0:58:25middle? Muntjac. It is.It has got quite edging around the dark tale.
0:58:25 > 0:58:30And this one down here? That is a seeker deer. Off-white bottom with
0:58:30 > 0:58:39this black and across the top. the last one? That is the Fallow
0:58:39 > 0:58:49deer. It has got this heart shape and this black mark going like that.
0:58:49 > 0:58:54So have a test later and see if you can get them all. We're finishing
0:58:54 > 0:59:04with a bunch of artists! Plenty more coming throughout the rest of the
0:59:04 > 0:59:04
0:59:04 > 0:59:48Apology for the loss of subtitles for 42 seconds
0:59:48 > 0:59:53It is going to be a great week. Tomorrow we have got Iolo Williams
0:59:53 > 0:59:58out with the dolphins. And we can leave you with a cliffhanger.
0:59:58 > 1:00:04Jack doors. Will they survive those continual attacks? And after all
1:00:04 > 1:00:10that cheap being and the curious noises, by the water will then to
1:00:10 > 1:00:15hatch out? Only one way to find out. That is to join us tomorrow
1:00:16 > 1:00:18forced to watch at eight o'clock. Nick Baker will be back with