:00:29. > :00:36.Its icy embrace can transform our countryside...
:00:37. > :00:55.tries to survive and waits for the warmth of spring to arrive.
:00:56. > :01:01.there are wildlife spectacles to be discovered all over our island.
:01:02. > :01:07.but others can be right on your own doorstep.
:01:08. > :01:10.I'm at the Cotswold Water Park, transformed after
:01:11. > :01:14.decades of industrial-scale quarrying into a series of lakes
:01:15. > :01:18.and ponds that have returned the landscape to its former glory.
:01:19. > :01:25.As a result, it's now teeming with wildlife, especially birds.
:01:26. > :01:27.I grew up just down the road from here,
:01:28. > :01:31.but funnily enough this water park is a bit of a mystery to me.
:01:32. > :01:35.But I've been promised the chance to spot some of the migratory birds
:01:36. > :01:38.that stop off here, and to find out about
:01:39. > :01:43.the life both above and below the water.
:01:44. > :01:46.And while I'm here, I'll be looking back at some of the Countryfile
:01:47. > :01:51.team's favourite encounters with some wonderful winter wildlife.
:01:52. > :01:55.Have they got free run of the airport?
:01:56. > :01:59.Matt checks in on a bit of Irish wildlife.
:02:00. > :02:02.We've seen a few aeroplanes land and they don't even twitch an ear.
:02:03. > :02:07.almost like a bit of a thrill for them.
:02:08. > :02:13.Wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor-Jones is in Scotland
:02:14. > :02:17.with some unusually easy-to-find subjects.
:02:18. > :02:23.How's about that for a truly Scottish winter scene?
:02:24. > :02:27.There've got to be at least 20 up there.
:02:28. > :02:34.revisiting the ponies that inspired his interest in rare breeds.
:02:35. > :02:38.They live out on the moor all year round,
:02:39. > :02:40.and they are perfectly designed for it.
:02:41. > :02:54.They've been living out here for hundreds, if not thousands of years.
:02:55. > :03:04.a series of large lakes created by decades of gravel extraction.
:03:05. > :03:08.There are now more than 150 lakes across 40 square miles,
:03:09. > :03:13.spanning the three counties Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire
:03:14. > :03:24.reedbeds and water make it ideal for all kinds of wildlife.
:03:25. > :03:33.But I'm here to see the big winter visitors - the birds.
:03:34. > :03:38.More than 200 species call the park home during the year.
:03:39. > :03:46.At the moment, that's around 20,000 wintering water birds.
:03:47. > :03:50.With numbers like that, it should be fairly easy to do some spotting,
:03:51. > :03:53.but I've enlisted the help of Kim Nilsson from the Cotswold
:03:54. > :03:57.Water Park Trust to help me with the task of identification.
:03:58. > :04:02.And we need to tread carefully and quietly, because 20,000 birds
:04:03. > :04:08.could become zero if we spook them and they bid a hasty getaway.
:04:09. > :04:11.Kim, what have we got out here? There's coot, to begin, isn't there?
:04:12. > :04:17.and then we've got a nice selection of duck today. Right.
:04:18. > :04:20.Most of the ones we can see at the moment are wigeon.
:04:21. > :04:22.The wigeon have come in for the winter,
:04:23. > :04:25.they are one of the early ones to arrive. Yeah.
:04:26. > :04:32.Oh, yeah! They are one of the diving ducks.
:04:33. > :04:34.They will dive down to catch their food
:04:35. > :04:37.and they'll go under for quite some time.
:04:38. > :04:43.you've got dabbling ducks that feed near the surface, and diving ducks.
:04:44. > :04:46.And the goldeneye are one of the divers, they'll go down quite deep.
:04:47. > :04:51.It seems kind of surprising that a warm-blooded animal would
:04:52. > :04:55.It seems amazing they can get enough calories to survive these
:04:56. > :04:58.kinds of temperatures, because it is cold today, isn't it?
:04:59. > :05:02.but where they've come from, everything is probably frozen solid,
:05:03. > :05:05.and the colder the weather gets, the more duck we get here.
:05:06. > :05:08.They just go wherever they can find food and shelter.
:05:09. > :05:11.If it gets incredibly cold here and we freeze up,
:05:12. > :05:13.then they'll just move further south.
:05:14. > :05:16.But most of them will stay for the winter.
:05:17. > :05:19.Some of these are well-travelled birds.
:05:20. > :05:23.Goldeneye come to our island from Scandinavia and northern Russia.
:05:24. > :05:28.Wigeon come from similar colder climes like Iceland.
:05:29. > :05:30.And shovellers, here most of the year,
:05:31. > :05:37.have a huge shovel-like bill to scoop up their food from the surface.
:05:38. > :05:40.Later I'll be discovering more about how the water park makes this
:05:41. > :05:48.the perfect home for birds and other wildlife.
:05:49. > :05:51.But first, to County Antrim in Northern Ireland,
:05:52. > :05:54.where Matt went in search of an ancient wild species
:05:55. > :06:07.Only found on the Emerald Isle, the Irish hare was once widespread,
:06:08. > :06:14.but it suffered a long-term decline over the last 100 years.
:06:15. > :06:17.Dr Neil Reid from Queen's University
:06:18. > :06:22.and is an expert in one of Ireland's best-kept secrets.
:06:23. > :06:26.Genetically, how different are they to the other hares around the UK?
:06:27. > :06:28.They're a type of mountain hare, so they are a subspecies of
:06:29. > :06:31.mountain hare, similar to the Scottish mountain hare,
:06:32. > :06:35.they are behaviourally very distinct,
:06:36. > :06:40.so they occur right down on the seashore to the tops of mountains,
:06:41. > :06:42.and they are truly native to Ireland.
:06:43. > :06:46.They are really very fast, they can move at about 45mph.
:06:47. > :06:48.Can they? And they are incredibly agile,
:06:49. > :06:51.so they can turn 180 degrees on the spot at full speed,
:06:52. > :06:55.and that allows them to escape from foxes and other predators.
:06:56. > :07:02.Neil is currently looking at the causes of the rise
:07:03. > :07:09.and fall of hare numbers across 12 sites in Northern Ireland.
:07:10. > :07:17.This is where these canes come into it.
:07:18. > :07:20.Neil marks out a grid system around the camera.
:07:21. > :07:22.By measuring the distance of the animals from the camera
:07:23. > :07:26.we can calculate the density of the animals within the field.
:07:27. > :07:30.He then repeats this grid system 12 times with 12 cameras
:07:31. > :07:37.he can then estimate the number of hares in the whole area.
:07:38. > :07:41.so if you simply move through the field,
:07:42. > :07:46.The footage is then used to assess the impact that
:07:47. > :07:53.things like predators and changes in agriculture have on the population.
:07:54. > :07:57.Neil's also found Irish hares have set up home
:07:58. > :08:11.Despite its busy runways and round-the-clock operations,
:08:12. > :08:16.the airport has an average density of hares around ten times higher
:08:17. > :08:26.I'm off on a runway safari with John Jeffers from the Operations team.
:08:27. > :08:31.Have they got free run of the airport? They certainly have, yes.
:08:32. > :08:35.It's so wonderful just to see them bobbing about all over the place,
:08:36. > :08:40.because you're managing for a completely different reason.
:08:41. > :08:45.We operate what the civil aviation authority would call
:08:46. > :08:49.And that's to deter birds, believe it or not.
:08:50. > :08:51.So, for 11 months of the year, we try and keep
:08:52. > :08:53.the grass at a length of 150 millimetres.
:08:54. > :08:59.That's exactly right, birds don't like long grass. Yeah.
:09:00. > :09:01.That habitat just seems to suit the hare.
:09:02. > :09:04.It gives them enough cover for themselves and the leverets.
:09:05. > :09:08.And so do you do anything to increase or decrease the numbers?
:09:09. > :09:11.Absolutely nothing. Nothing at all? Absolutely nothing, no.
:09:12. > :09:19.We've seen a few aeroplanes land. They don't even twitch an ear.
:09:20. > :09:22.No, they don't. They seem to like the noise and the vibrations,
:09:23. > :09:32.Look at them two, having a go! CROW CAWS
:09:33. > :09:35.You must get quite a nice reaction from passengers.
:09:36. > :09:37.Yeah, the passengers talk about them all the time,
:09:38. > :09:41.so when you're parking your car you see them, and then
:09:42. > :09:43.when you're taxiing out to go on your holidays,
:09:44. > :09:49.So they're almost an icon of the airport. Yeah.
:09:50. > :09:52.It seems these Irish hares have no plans to
:09:53. > :10:02.jet off from the airport any time soon.
:10:03. > :10:06.Today I'm in a corner of Wiltshire that is part of the vast
:10:07. > :10:13.1,000 hectares of water - that's around 2,500 acres.
:10:14. > :10:17.It's perfect for wintering birds like teal,
:10:18. > :10:25.These lakes are created when the quarrying companies move out.
:10:26. > :10:28.After the valuable gravel and sand has been extracted,
:10:29. > :10:32.the pits fill with water and nature slowly takes over.
:10:33. > :10:47.This quarry closed in 2003 and will become part of the wider
:10:48. > :10:55.Ben Welbourn is from the charity the Cotswold Water Park Trust.
:10:56. > :10:58.It's their job to advise and supervise
:10:59. > :11:01.when the quarries are returned to nature.
:11:02. > :11:04.The quarry companies will have quite a strict restoration plan
:11:05. > :11:13.What do they have to do once they finish with their business?
:11:14. > :11:17.Hopefully, a rich landscape that has got varying depths of water,
:11:18. > :11:21.a mosaic of habitats, and attracting all sorts of different species.
:11:22. > :11:24.A lot of the water park is fun, isn't it - the kayaking, the canoeing.
:11:25. > :11:28.What percentage is there of fun stuff to serious stuff?
:11:29. > :11:31.There's plenty of fun stuff if that's what you want to come
:11:32. > :11:34.here to do, but it's about balancing that also with
:11:35. > :11:37.the importance of biodiversity and public access
:11:38. > :11:40.and allowing the public to enjoy the landscape that is developing.
:11:41. > :11:49.The Trust's wardens are out in force today.
:11:50. > :11:51.One of their regular tasks is keeping this
:11:52. > :11:57.patchwork of habitat in peak condition for all the wildlife here.
:11:58. > :12:01.Industrious around here. Some willow for us to chop. Yep.
:12:02. > :12:05.Well, we try not to chop it all down,
:12:06. > :12:09.but it is mainly to allow the reedbeds to establish. Oh, OK.
:12:10. > :12:13.Reed bed is one of our biodiversity action plan target habitats.
:12:14. > :12:16.It's really important for all sorts of species.
:12:17. > :12:21.So we come in and take out patches of the willow wherever we can.
:12:22. > :12:23.What happens if you didn't take this out?
:12:24. > :12:26.It would take over quite quickly. Right.
:12:27. > :12:28.And then what do you do with this willow?
:12:29. > :12:32.We have a nice big bonfire to keep the volunteers warm!
:12:33. > :12:35.I tell you, today you absolutely need it. You really do.
:12:36. > :12:39.what sort of wildlife might you guys get to see while you're working away?
:12:40. > :12:42.Well, if we're really lucky, we might see one of our other
:12:43. > :12:44.target species, and that is the bittern.
:12:45. > :12:46.Oh, wow! I didn't know you had bittern here.
:12:47. > :12:48.We do, yeah. I'll come down more often.
:12:49. > :12:51.They haven't bred yet, but we're hoping it won't be far off.
:12:52. > :12:56.We're starting to see more and more otters in the water park,
:12:57. > :12:59.and of course they love reedbeds, too. Great.
:13:00. > :13:02.So, it's clearly working, all this clearance you're doing.
:13:03. > :13:05.It's creating these great habitats for all sorts of different species.
:13:06. > :13:11.It is working, we just can't take our eye off the ball. Absolutely.
:13:12. > :13:15.Work like this should help bring in even more wildlife to the water park.
:13:16. > :13:28.This is a seasonal wonder that isn't difficult to find here,
:13:29. > :13:33.although I'm told it should be approached with caution.
:13:34. > :13:37.This exposed peninsula of salt marsh, shingle
:13:38. > :13:43.And at this time of year, it's one great big maternity ward
:13:44. > :13:54.All these new mums and pups need someone to keep an eye on them,
:13:55. > :14:00.Hi, Eddie. Hello. How are you doing? Good, not too bad.
:14:01. > :14:03.These seals are three miles away at the end of this beach,
:14:04. > :14:10.Just as well, as these mums do not react well to people or dogs.
:14:11. > :14:14.Originally came with more of a bird-based background, and have
:14:15. > :14:16.been working with seals more and more
:14:17. > :14:19.as the seal population has increased.
:14:20. > :14:25.Learning on the job. Learning on the job, and learning very quickly.
:14:26. > :14:29.Twice a week, Eddie comes to these windswept sands to count
:14:30. > :14:34.With such a rapidly expanding colony, it's vital
:14:35. > :14:44.Yeah, some have got mum with them, some haven't.
:14:45. > :14:46.Where do you start when it comes to counting?
:14:47. > :14:49.We're going to be on the top of the dunes,
:14:50. > :14:51.we're not going to approach the seals.
:14:52. > :14:53.Unless we get blown into them! Exactly, yes.
:14:54. > :14:56.We'll walk alongside each other along the top of the dunes,
:14:57. > :15:01.You'll be counting on the right, I'll be counting on the left.
:15:02. > :15:04.Are you sure that's all right for you?! You've got more than I have.
:15:05. > :15:08.You've got about three! I thought it would be a good baptism by fire.
:15:09. > :15:11.And you don't click the clicker until you're level with the pup,
:15:12. > :15:13.and then you walk on, and you don't click the next pup
:15:14. > :15:21.With the cold swell of the North Sea starting to push up the beach,
:15:22. > :15:28.So, from here we've got one, two, three, four...
:15:29. > :15:31.Yeah. I'm counting that one next to mum, there. Yeah.
:15:32. > :15:39.And then I can see another two, three... Three more there, yeah.
:15:40. > :15:45.As I continue to click away, it's not hard to believe that
:15:46. > :15:53.around 40% of the world's population of grey seals breed in the UK.
:15:54. > :16:00.So, one, two, three. Three. Yeah. OK, there we go. Yeah.
:16:01. > :16:02.How old do you think that one is there?
:16:03. > :16:07.That one's probably just three days old, tops. Yeah.
:16:08. > :16:16.to protect seals, and from that point onwards,
:16:17. > :16:20.And then they started working their way down the East Coast.
:16:21. > :16:25.they hit Blakeney, and since then have just flourished.
:16:26. > :16:30.Presumably if the colony keeps on expanding, there's a danger
:16:31. > :16:33.that seals and humans will clash. Yeah, absolutely.
:16:34. > :16:37.We are already seeing the evidence of it, and the seals are spreading
:16:38. > :16:44.The team don't advise people to walk here during breeding season,
:16:45. > :16:51.There are organised trips for enthusiasts.
:16:52. > :16:54.Time to tot up our numbers and see how many new arrivals there are.
:16:55. > :17:04.Well, there's either something in the Norfolk air
:17:05. > :17:07.or something in the Norfolk water, but it is working, whatever it is.
:17:08. > :17:21.To keep track of the colony, Eddie plans to photo ID some of the mums.
:17:22. > :17:24.Is it easy to identify them? It's not easy.
:17:25. > :17:28.Especially not here when there are so many cows on one beach.
:17:29. > :17:30.But there are a few things you can look for.
:17:31. > :17:33.The side of the neck, they seem to be quite distinctive markings on
:17:34. > :17:41.or scars, then take a photo of that area.
:17:42. > :17:45.Eddie hopes to take on some more experienced volunteers for this
:17:46. > :17:57.project, but for now he'll have to make do with me.
:17:58. > :17:59.I'm meant to be taking pictures of adult females,
:18:00. > :18:03.but the pups are so cute, I can't help myself.
:18:04. > :18:10.And there are lots to take photos of.
:18:11. > :18:15.So that's the hope of the photo ID programme,
:18:16. > :18:20.to be able to trace females like this one, year-on-year. Yeah.
:18:21. > :18:22.It will teach us more about the colony, build up
:18:23. > :18:27.a picture of the cows that are pupping here.
:18:28. > :18:40.and counting some of our most striking winter wildlife.
:18:41. > :18:44.Back in the Wiltshire corner of the Cotswold Water Park, I've been
:18:45. > :18:47.spotting some of the many wintering birds that are making
:18:48. > :18:50.a stopover here, from far-flung and less forgiving climes,
:18:51. > :18:56.But I'm going to find out what lies beneath the water,
:18:57. > :19:06.This is Jack Perks. He joined us on Countryfile in the warm sunny days
:19:07. > :19:15.Jack describes himself as a fish twitcher, and he uses some rather
:19:16. > :19:20.special underwater cameras to study the behaviour of freshwater fish.
:19:21. > :19:23.Jack, how's it going? Yeah, good, thanks. No fish for us today, then.
:19:24. > :19:25.No, after something feathery, for a change.
:19:26. > :19:30.Right, similar techniques, though? Well, no, not really. Go on.
:19:31. > :19:35.When I do the fish, I don't tend to take plastic fish with me.
:19:36. > :19:39.So the idea is using this fake rubber duck,
:19:40. > :19:41.placing it out with a camera attached to it
:19:42. > :19:48.You sound confident. What are these other decoys for?
:19:49. > :20:01.Camera three. Is camera three, which... I love it, Jack!
:20:02. > :20:14.Well, it's an experiment, really, because I've never done
:20:15. > :20:17.this before, so it is all new, so haven't got a clue if it's
:20:18. > :20:20.going to work, but I'm reasonably confident something will happen.
:20:21. > :20:25.Yeah, and you've had success in the past with similar set-ups, have you?
:20:26. > :20:28.Yeah, so I've done more tamer waterfowl in parks
:20:29. > :20:30.and things with birdseed to encourage them,
:20:31. > :20:33.and I've got some nice underwater footage of things like
:20:34. > :20:37.pochard diving, black swans and mute swans feeding.
:20:38. > :20:39.So I have got underwater footage of waterfowl in the past,
:20:40. > :20:42.but not the kind of wild, migratory birds.
:20:43. > :20:44.So that's going to be the test today.
:20:45. > :20:49.All I'm going to say is, don't mess it up.
:20:50. > :20:54.With such state-of-the-art equipment, what could possibly go wrong?
:20:55. > :20:59.Well, for a start, it looks like we scared everything away.
:21:00. > :21:08.see those decoys, they'll come back.
:21:09. > :21:19.That's got to convince any bird. It's convincing me.
:21:20. > :21:22.Fingers crossed we'll have more luck later.
:21:23. > :21:26.As Jack knows, wildlife is difficult to capture at the best of times.
:21:27. > :21:29.But winter can also present unique opportunities,
:21:30. > :21:35.especially for our wildlife cameraman, Richard Taylor-Jones.
:21:36. > :21:37.When I'm in Scotland, three species really come to mind,
:21:38. > :21:41.and that's the red squirrel, the red deer and the crested tit.
:21:42. > :21:44.And winter is the best time to film them, I think,
:21:45. > :21:59.A very friendly group of conservationists have
:22:00. > :22:02.come to the woodland here and they've set up a feeding station.
:22:03. > :22:05.You've got this lovely big mesh of peanuts here which the
:22:06. > :22:09.birds are going to absolutely love, and then just over behind me,
:22:10. > :22:12.we have a squirrel feeding box, and the squirrel will come
:22:13. > :22:15.and sit on this platform here, use its head to flip the lid up
:22:16. > :22:23.and get to the lovely peanuts inside.
:22:24. > :22:29.Well, it hasn't taken long before we've got coal tits...
:22:30. > :22:31...which are distinctive by the lovely white
:22:32. > :22:44.They've almost... Yeah, they've completely taken over the feeder.
:22:45. > :22:48.And actually, a crested tit, the bird I was after, has just snuck in
:22:49. > :22:51.whilst I wasn't looking, and it's over by the squirrel feeder.
:22:52. > :22:55.It's gone underneath the squirrel feeder
:22:56. > :23:07.because the long-tails have just completely hogged the bird feeder.
:23:08. > :23:13.They are specialists of the Caledonian pine forest, and there
:23:14. > :23:17.are probably only about 1,500 breeding pairs
:23:18. > :23:22.They are quite common here in Scotland,
:23:23. > :23:26.but, you know, nationally, they are incredibly scarce.
:23:27. > :23:35.An absolute treat, and a real symbol of the Scottish woods here.
:23:36. > :23:55.(Now, you'll notice that there's actually a bit of grey in his coat.
:23:56. > :23:58.(That's not because he is halfway between a red and a grey squirrel,
:23:59. > :24:01.(this is what happens to red squirrels in the wintertime.
:24:02. > :24:04.(They have a summer coat which they moult out in the autumn
:24:05. > :24:12.(for a thicker, warmer winter coat that has a greyish tinge to it.)
:24:13. > :24:15.And he's doing exactly what I thought, he's using his head
:24:16. > :24:20.to flip up that lid and reach down to grab some nuts.
:24:21. > :24:25.You can hear the road behind me, you can hear cars whizzing behind me,
:24:26. > :24:28.so it just goes to show you, these aren't difficult animals to see.
:24:29. > :24:32.You could just park up, pop out and see this very,
:24:33. > :24:46.Red squirrels and crested tits - tick!
:24:47. > :24:59.I've had a tip that just 15 minutes away on a grouse estate,
:25:00. > :25:10.How's about that for a truly Scottish winter scene?
:25:11. > :25:15.There've got to be at least 20 up there.
:25:16. > :25:20.Normally I'd never be able to get this close to them.
:25:21. > :25:22.But there's a very good reason why I can,
:25:23. > :25:48.and it's all down to the keeper here.
:25:49. > :25:51.You can see that there's one of the stags here that has
:25:52. > :25:59.And the reason he's got the antler like that is probably that it
:26:00. > :26:05.It's a very, very soft material as it initially comes out of the head.
:26:06. > :26:09.And it probably got a knock, and it sent it in the wrong direction.
:26:10. > :26:12.And of course, the stag will lose those antlers
:26:13. > :26:16.and then grow a whole new set next summer.
:26:17. > :26:19.So it's a deformity that probably isn't going to
:26:20. > :26:24.if it's even caused him a problem at all.
:26:25. > :26:27.So there you go - three animals in one day.
:26:28. > :26:30.Red squirrels, red deer, and crested tits.
:26:31. > :26:34.It just goes to show that winter can be a great time to get out
:26:35. > :26:49.captured by Richard Taylor-Jones in Scotland.
:26:50. > :26:55.Jack Perks continues his filming mission trying to capture bird
:26:56. > :27:01.behaviour under water at the Cotswold Water Park, we are off to the coast.
:27:02. > :27:06.The Wirral peninsula stretches out ten miles into the Irish Sea.
:27:07. > :27:10.This sliver of land sits quietly in the shadows of
:27:11. > :27:15.Every winter, it's home to tens of thousands of birds that flock
:27:16. > :27:20.here seeking sanctuary, as Matt discovered.
:27:21. > :27:24.This mysterious landscape is at the mercy of the tides that lap
:27:25. > :27:28.and sap its shores every single day, making the land appear
:27:29. > :27:34.and disappear, and sometimes changing its shape entirely.
:27:35. > :27:39.a once thriving resort on the River Dee.
:27:40. > :27:42.It has all the usual holiday destination requirements -
:27:43. > :27:53.Only these days there seems to be one vital element missing - the sea.
:27:54. > :27:57.Elizabeth, this is a seaside town, but without the sea.
:27:58. > :28:01.You're absolutely right. No, there is no sea now, it's all silted up.
:28:02. > :28:04.The sea was here, I suppose, to the last war,
:28:05. > :28:08.but since then it has just rapidly developed as marsh.
:28:09. > :28:12.And how has that happened? Several processes. All estuaries silt up
:28:13. > :28:15.because more silt is brought in by the tide
:28:16. > :28:21.But in the Dee, it has really been speeded up by man.
:28:22. > :28:25.In the early 18th century, when ships couldn't get up to Chester,
:28:26. > :28:31.Parkgate was lucky because the water actually came round
:28:32. > :28:36.But then finally what did for Parkgate, I suppose,
:28:37. > :28:39.was the introduction of a very vigorous grass called Spartina
:28:40. > :28:44.which was intended to stabilise the silt, but actually spread
:28:45. > :28:53.all the way up, three or four miles that way.
:28:54. > :28:55.It's very odd, isn't it, when you look back
:28:56. > :28:59.and you see this lovely row of very traditional seaside buildings,
:29:00. > :29:02.and then you look out and there's just grass.
:29:03. > :29:05.It's still a place people come to, even though there's no sea.
:29:06. > :29:14.The shifting silt being dragged in and out by the tide may be
:29:15. > :29:17.bad news for Parkgate holiday-makers,
:29:18. > :29:21.but this type of landscape is great for migratory birds.
:29:22. > :29:25.This is West Kirby, about eight miles from Parkgate,
:29:26. > :29:29.and here the silty flats have become the perfect winter stopover
:29:30. > :29:31.for tens of thousands of our feathered friends,
:29:32. > :29:41.transforming the Wirral into a wildlife wonderland, if you will.
:29:42. > :29:44.Matt Thomas is a coastal ranger on the Wirral.
:29:45. > :29:48.He loves this enigmatic landscape and the birds that fly here.
:29:49. > :29:55.There's an amazing amount of food for them here.
:29:56. > :29:57.As you can see, there's just wide open spaces.
:29:58. > :29:59.So there's all this food, all this space.
:30:00. > :30:01.So they just congregate here in huge numbers,
:30:02. > :30:06.as a stopover on a southward migration to Africa,
:30:07. > :30:11.I mean, we're talking big numbers, aren't we? Yes, loads -
:30:12. > :30:17.which is quite an amazing number, really. Yeah. Yeah.
:30:18. > :30:20.Well, it's coming in pretty quick, isn't it, this tide now... It is.
:30:21. > :30:27...so we'd better clamber up these rocks. Yeah.
:30:28. > :30:30.It's a real inconvenience for the birds when the tide comes in,
:30:31. > :30:34.as it covers up their watery dinner plate for hours.
:30:35. > :30:36.But they feast until the last possible moment,
:30:37. > :30:40.before the tide forces them into the air.
:30:41. > :30:43.Obviously they can't feed when the tide's in, so where do they go?
:30:44. > :30:46.Right, there's lots of high tide roosts around here.
:30:47. > :30:49.There'll be some in the marshes over there, some on the armour stone
:30:50. > :30:52.round the lake here, and lots on Hilbre Island as well.
:30:53. > :30:56.That's the island just behind us? It is, yes.
:30:57. > :30:59.Seeing the birds at close range at high tide is a possibility
:31:00. > :31:04.if you don't mind being stranded for seven hours until the tide goes out.
:31:05. > :31:08.But I'm planning to get us a private window on this secret world,
:31:09. > :31:21.Well, it's not just a treat for me, this, is it, Matt? No.
:31:22. > :31:23.This is something new for you as well. It is, yes.
:31:24. > :31:27.Normally the islands are accessed at low tide - either on foot
:31:28. > :31:29.if you're a member of the public, or as one of the coastal rangers,
:31:30. > :31:31.I tend to go out there in a Land Rover.
:31:32. > :31:42.So yeah, it's a bit of a treat for me to be out on the boat as well.
:31:43. > :31:45.There's a collection of three little islands.
:31:46. > :31:47.Yes, we've got Little Eye just down there,
:31:48. > :31:53.And together they make up the Hilbre Islands Local Nature Reserve.
:31:54. > :31:55.This one here's loaded with oystercatchers, isn't it?
:31:56. > :31:59.Well, you know, they're measured in the thousands at this site.
:32:00. > :32:02.So there's lots of oystercatchers, there'll be loads of curlew as well,
:32:03. > :32:07.I mean, it's a special place, isn't it, for that. Absolutely fantastic.
:32:08. > :32:13.ELLIE: Matt on the Wirral, with a close-up look
:32:14. > :32:27.Earlier, I left Jack Perks in the water.
:32:28. > :32:30.I wasn't being cruel - although it is pretty nippy.
:32:31. > :32:32.But he was laden with cameras and gadgets
:32:33. > :32:34.to try and capture the underwater habits
:32:35. > :32:38.of the Cotswold Water Park's feathered visitors.
:32:39. > :32:47.'Now, come on, Jack. It can't be that bad - can it?
:32:48. > :32:51.'But Jack's got something else up his sleeve.'
:32:52. > :32:54.As a backup, instead, I put some cameras round the sides,
:32:55. > :32:56.just to watch if birds went in and out. Oh, OK.
:32:57. > :32:58.And we did get birds going in and out.
:32:59. > :33:00.So I do know they did land, so I know the decoys didn't
:33:01. > :33:03.scare them off or anything, they did go into the water. Cool.
:33:04. > :33:05.That's your best shot, shall we have a look?
:33:06. > :33:09.Round the back... And these guys almost hit the camera.
:33:10. > :33:11.And those were teal coming out? Yeah, they were teal.
:33:12. > :33:14.And the chances are you wouldn't have got that shot
:33:15. > :33:16.with a human by that camera. No, no, they...
:33:17. > :33:22.So it is still a different shot, but not quite what we might have wanted.
:33:23. > :33:25.just a little bit of work on it, we'll...
:33:26. > :33:29.Just keep going with duck decoy. That's it.
:33:30. > :33:34.So Jack's happy with the principles, if not the result.
:33:35. > :33:44.a flock of teal in for the winter from the Baltic or Siberia.
:33:45. > :33:48.and heading to a place just down the road
:33:49. > :33:50.where we're guaranteed to see wildlife,
:33:51. > :33:57.but for the most unfortunate of reasons.
:33:58. > :34:00.But first, in pockets across the country,
:34:01. > :34:03.hardy breeds of ponies spend much of their lives
:34:04. > :34:12.Now, Adam is well known for his passion for rare breeds.
:34:13. > :34:15.But one kind of wild pony in particular
:34:16. > :34:22.I've got three older sisters, and when we were children, my dad
:34:23. > :34:25.gave us a rare breed each to get us into rare breeds conservation.
:34:26. > :34:28.And he gave me the Exmoor ponies here.
:34:29. > :34:31.So we've had them on the farm for about 40-odd years.
:34:32. > :34:33.And his first three came off Exmoor -
:34:34. > :34:35.he was given them by a guy called Ronnie Wallace.
:34:36. > :34:41.and I'm heading down there to help them with their annual gather.
:34:42. > :34:53.Exmoor National Park has a wild beauty, whatever the weather.
:34:54. > :34:56.People come here to enjoy the rugged landscape
:34:57. > :35:07.A group of volunteers are gathering to help husband-and-wife team
:35:08. > :35:12.David and Emma Wallace round up their herd of wild Exmoors.
:35:13. > :35:29.David and Emma Wallace have gathered a large team of people
:35:30. > :35:32.to help them bring their Exmoor ponies off the moor,
:35:33. > :35:36.And before they set off, David's just giving them a briefing.
:35:37. > :35:47.So what's the plan now, David, you're splitting everybody up?
:35:48. > :35:49.Yeah, we're organising everybody, Adam,
:35:50. > :35:54.and making sure that we get an even distribution of vehicles and ponies
:35:55. > :35:59.We're hoping to find today somewhere near about
:36:00. > :36:01.30 to 40 ponies, something in that region.
:36:02. > :36:03.And the reason for bringing them down at this time of year?
:36:04. > :36:06.It's time to wean the foals from their mothers,
:36:07. > :36:09.it's the annual time of the year where we are separating out,
:36:10. > :36:12.we need to see whether we've got lots of little girls,
:36:13. > :36:17.the fillies, or whether we've got lots of little boys with the colts.
:36:18. > :36:19.Great. Yeah, looking forward to seeing what we've got -
:36:20. > :36:22.it's like Christmas today. Fantastic!
:36:23. > :36:25.Well, I remember your father Ronnie Wallace giving my dad
:36:26. > :36:27.three Exmoors when I was just a little boy.
:36:28. > :36:31.Yes, and I remember as a little boy too
:36:32. > :36:34.delivering them to your father too, up in the Cotswolds
:36:35. > :36:38.so it's wonderful that you're here today witnessing this annual event.
:36:39. > :36:42.and despite the weather, I'm really looking forward to it.
:36:43. > :36:45.Yeah, glad we've been able to organise a good Exmoor day for you!
:36:46. > :36:52.Right, let's go get some ponies! Yeah, let's go and be cowboys!
:36:53. > :36:58.All they've got to do now is find the ponies, and round them up.
:36:59. > :37:02.There's a convoy of cars coming up the road
:37:03. > :37:19.and rain. I'm not quite sure how they're finding these ponies.
:37:20. > :37:21.How you getting on, have you seen many?
:37:22. > :37:23.Yes, we saw some just over the back of the hill there
:37:24. > :37:28.come up across the road already, so we're just doing
:37:29. > :37:31.another sweep of this side of the moor, make sure we've got everyone.
:37:32. > :37:40.Great. All right, good luck. Thank you!
:37:41. > :37:42.Just pulled over and spotted a group of Exmoors here
:37:43. > :37:48.And the horse riders and quad bikes are coming across the moor
:37:49. > :37:54.These animals are quite wild, they live out on the moor all year round,
:37:55. > :37:56.and they're perfectly designed for it,
:37:57. > :37:59.they've been living out here for hundreds if not thousands of years.
:38:00. > :38:01.They've got these really broad foreheads
:38:02. > :38:04.and the rain just runs off their eyes,
:38:05. > :38:06.and their tail fans out over their rump.
:38:07. > :38:10.And they've got amazing fur, that keeps them warm and insulated
:38:11. > :38:21.And believe me, out here on Exmoor it can get VERY harsh.
:38:22. > :38:24.It's not just the riders that get a thrill.
:38:25. > :38:27.There's plenty of spectators to enjoy it as well.
:38:28. > :38:30.Sue, I know you've been very involved in the Exmoor Pony Society.
:38:31. > :38:33.And I've never been up for the gather before. It's very exciting, isn't it?
:38:34. > :38:36.Ah, it's your first time? It is. Oh, it's wonderful.
:38:37. > :38:38.I've been coming to watch gatherings more years
:38:39. > :38:43.and when you see a whole group of them break the skyline,
:38:44. > :38:47.galloping in towards you, all identical, it's fantastic.
:38:48. > :38:49.How long have they lived up on the moor?
:38:50. > :38:51.We are talking thousands of years, because we think
:38:52. > :38:55.they're a relic population of the original British hill pony.
:38:56. > :38:59.The first wild ponies came to Britain over 100,000 years ago.
:39:00. > :39:02.And we think they've been here ever since,
:39:03. > :39:10.so you're seeing something pretty special.
:39:11. > :39:23.I've never seen so many Exmoors in one place at one time.
:39:24. > :39:28.'as more and more Exmoors are driven off the moor
:39:29. > :39:32.'before the next part of their journey.'
:39:33. > :39:34.That's the first bit of the moor gathered -
:39:35. > :39:41.into the second bit of the moor, and then into the fields,
:39:42. > :39:47.into what they call the funnel, down the road to the pens.
:39:48. > :39:51.The Exmoors look magnificent as a herd.
:39:52. > :39:54.They're an enchanting and versatile breed,
:39:55. > :39:59.And are never more at home than here on Exmoor.
:40:00. > :40:02.They love coming out and having a gallop across the moors.
:40:03. > :40:06.They're sure-footed, they don't mind the terrain. So, yes, brilliant.
:40:07. > :40:09.And is there any interaction between them and the wild ponies?
:40:10. > :40:12.We sometimes get the free-living ponies following us
:40:13. > :40:15.on our rides, but they don't cause us any problems.
:40:16. > :40:22.The team managed to gather 30-odd ponies off the moor.
:40:23. > :40:25.And now there's just one last trot down the lanes
:40:26. > :40:35.there's a well-earned reward for everyone.
:40:36. > :40:40.It went really well, actually, considering the weather today,
:40:41. > :40:43.we've gathered all our ponies off the hill,
:40:44. > :40:49.It's very exciting to see the mares coming off with their foals.
:40:50. > :40:54.we'll be weaning the foals from the mares.
:40:55. > :40:57.And then the mares and stallions run back up onto the moor?
:40:58. > :41:02.The foals are weaned from them, they'll go back out onto the hill
:41:03. > :41:05.and enjoy a winter without a foal annoying them.
:41:06. > :41:09.And then hopefully give birth again in the spring. Wonderful.
:41:10. > :41:13.There we are, the most ancient indigenous British breed of pony,
:41:14. > :41:24.gathered safely off the moor for another year.
:41:25. > :41:28.Now for one of my favourite moments on the programme.
:41:29. > :41:33.the landscape of award-winning author Helen McDonald,
:41:34. > :41:37.and the bestselling book which has propelled her to fame.
:41:38. > :41:41.It's the story of how training a goshawk helped her cope with
:41:42. > :41:45.the loss of her father, and she told me where it all began.
:41:46. > :41:49.'I glanced up, and then I saw my goshawks.
:41:50. > :41:54.'a pair soaring above the canopy in the rapidly warming air.
:41:55. > :41:57.'There was a flat hot hand of sun on the back of my neck,
:41:58. > :42:01.'but I smelt ice in my nose seeing those goshawks soaring.
:42:02. > :42:07.'I smelt ice, and bracken stems, and pine resin. Goshawk cocktail.
:42:08. > :42:16.Those lines are from her book, H Is For Hawk,
:42:17. > :42:20.and this is where she first saw those goshawks -
:42:21. > :42:29.Good morning, Helen. Hello, hi. Are you all right?
:42:30. > :42:31.Very well, thank you. Nice to meet you. You, too.
:42:32. > :42:34.So, this is a good place for the goshawks, then?
:42:35. > :42:35.It's a brilliant place for the goshawks.
:42:36. > :42:38.There are a good few pairs here. They're very hard to see
:42:39. > :42:41.during most of the year, but in the spring they do tend to leave
:42:42. > :42:43.the kind of forest canopy and go up into the air,
:42:44. > :42:45.and they do these amazing display flights.
:42:46. > :42:49.what other signs could someone look for?
:42:50. > :42:50.They do eat a lot of crows and pigeons,
:42:51. > :42:53.and if you find a burst of white feathers, or black feathers,
:42:54. > :42:56.or jay feathers, even, often that's a goshawk kill.
:42:57. > :43:00.'These birds are exceptional predators.
:43:01. > :43:03.'Scouring the woodland at speeds of up to 50mph,
:43:04. > :43:07.'they can bring down prey more than twice their size.'
:43:08. > :43:11.They use kind of stealth to hunt, like an Apache helicopter.
:43:12. > :43:15.and they kind of sweep along and grab stuff on the ground.
:43:16. > :43:19.'Once widespread in Britain, goshawks had been driven to
:43:20. > :43:22.'extinction by the end of the 19th century.
:43:23. > :43:27.'a small population has been slowly re-establishing itself.
:43:28. > :43:35.'There's now around 400 breeding pairs in the UK.
:43:36. > :43:37.It's all a bit quiet out there this morning.
:43:38. > :43:40.It is quiet, but this is the right time of day to see goshawks.
:43:41. > :43:42.You know, it's a sunny morning, and now's the time
:43:43. > :43:47.when they'll start to leave the forest and spiral up into the sky.
:43:48. > :43:53.They are. I'd been a falconer for many, many years, on and off,
:43:54. > :43:56.and I'd trained a lot of different hawks, but never wanted a goshawk.
:43:57. > :43:58.You know, they're legendarily highly strung,
:43:59. > :44:01.they're incredibly ferocious and difficult to train. Right.
:44:02. > :44:04.My father died very suddenly in 2007,
:44:05. > :44:06.and suddenly I started dreaming of goshawks.
:44:07. > :44:10.I just really knew that I needed to train a goshawk.
:44:11. > :44:13.It must have been a very tricky time during training, not least because
:44:14. > :44:17.What can you remember from that time? When you train a hawk,
:44:18. > :44:20.it's a very complicated and difficult and ancient process,
:44:21. > :44:22.and it involves you withdrawing from the world of humans.
:44:23. > :44:25.But, eventually, I got her to fly free, and I was watching her fly
:44:26. > :44:28.and hunt like a wild hawk, and that was a much greater distraction.
:44:29. > :44:32.That was... That was like losing myself in the wild, you know?
:44:33. > :44:36.and all the things that I wanted to be, she was.
:44:37. > :44:38.She didn't suffer grief, she wasn't human,
:44:39. > :44:41.she didn't have any sense of the past or future, you know.
:44:42. > :44:44.And I think that was a tonic to my soul, really,
:44:45. > :44:50.Helen called her hawk Mabel, but long before Mabel,
:44:51. > :44:54.even as a child, she was fascinated by birds of prey.
:44:55. > :44:58.'I was sure they were the best things that had ever existed.
:44:59. > :45:00.'My parents thought this obsession would go the way of the others -
:45:01. > :45:06.'dinosaurs, ponies, volcanoes. It didn't. It worsened.
:45:07. > :45:09.'When I was six, I tried to sleep every night with my arms
:45:10. > :45:15.'This didn't last long because it is very hard to sleep
:45:16. > :45:22.'with your arms folded behind your back like wings.'
:45:23. > :45:24.Just down the road at the Suffolk Owl Sanctuary,
:45:25. > :45:28.they're looking to instil that same enthusiasm in today's visitors
:45:29. > :45:42...flown by Andy Hume, the sanctuary manager.
:45:43. > :45:49.And it's roughly between five and six times better than our own.
:45:50. > :45:52.If you had the eyesight of Willow, you'd be able to read
:45:53. > :45:56.your favourite magazine from about half a mile away.
:45:57. > :46:01.She's got these huge pointed things here. They're not claws.
:46:02. > :46:05.They're talons. Good lad, well done.
:46:06. > :46:09.It's easy to see why Helen fell in love with these
:46:10. > :46:15.incredible creatures. Andy's agreed to let me fly Willow.
:46:16. > :46:18.So, when you call her, I'll get you to put your arm out dead straight,
:46:19. > :46:21.nice and level, so it's like a branch of a tree. Yeah.
:46:22. > :46:26.And you're going to look over your shoulder at the oncoming bird. OK.
:46:27. > :46:32.OK, so if you put your arm out straight, nice and level.
:46:33. > :46:36.Will she come straight away? There we go. Come on, then, Willow.
:46:37. > :46:49.'And meeting Willow today is bringing back
:46:50. > :46:55.'memories for Helen of her goshawk, Mabel.'
:46:56. > :47:01.'My heart jumped sideways. She's a conjuring trick.
:47:02. > :47:08.'A griffin from the pages of an illuminated bestiary,
:47:09. > :47:14.'something bright and distant, like gold falling through water.'
:47:15. > :47:19.'Goshawks can live up to 20 years, but Mabel only lived for six.
:47:20. > :47:21.'Helen hasn't flown a goshawk since then.
:47:22. > :47:25.'And today we've got a surprise for her.'
:47:26. > :47:30.He's gorgeous. He's really, really pretty.
:47:31. > :47:35.'Happy enough sat on the wrist of falconer Matt Lott,
:47:36. > :47:40.'but these birds won't just let anybody handle them.'
:47:41. > :47:50.Oh, he's fine. We really weren't sure how this was going to go.
:47:51. > :47:55.You see that intense predatory kind of curiosity.
:47:56. > :47:58.Goshawks are always looking around, always wanting to see what's there,
:47:59. > :48:03.can I hunt it, can I kill it, can I eat it?
:48:04. > :48:31.Just like old times, Helen. How fabulous. Magic.
:48:32. > :48:40.'But next, I'm heading to a place that gives our favourite wildlife
:48:41. > :48:43.'a helping hand when it needs it most.
:48:44. > :48:46.'First, though, here's the Countryfile weather forecast
:48:47. > :49:18.Records were smashed, warm across the UK, two bridges above average,
:49:19. > :49:20.confusing the wildlife but with all that warm air we had a lot of rain
:49:21. > :49:34.throughout the month of It all started with the record
:49:35. > :49:39.24-hour rainfall in Cumbria, leading to scenes like this. Rainfall
:49:40. > :49:44.records were smashed across many parts of the country. There was more
:49:45. > :49:48.than 800 millimetres of rain in Cumbria, one metre of rain falling
:49:49. > :49:52.in one place in North Wales, the wettest December on record in Wales
:49:53. > :49:56.and the wettest month ever in Scotland. There is more rain this
:49:57. > :50:00.week as well. Low pressure, slow-moving over the UK for the
:50:01. > :50:05.start of the week will dominate our weather, and these weather fronts
:50:06. > :50:08.are slow-moving in Scotland so more rain for eastern Scotland. So wet
:50:09. > :50:15.and windy day tomorrow for eastern Scotland. Away from your bright and
:50:16. > :50:20.sunny intervals, beefy showers across Wales and southern England,
:50:21. > :50:24.some hail and thunder, quite a few heavy thundery downpours across
:50:25. > :50:28.Wales and southern England, gusty winds, difficult travelling
:50:29. > :50:32.conditions can be expected. Further north, the show is not as heavy but
:50:33. > :50:35.they will become more widespread through the afternoon, through
:50:36. > :50:40.northern England, a lot of showers through today for Northern Ireland.
:50:41. > :50:45.A lot of rain to come for Scotland in the East with that onshore wind,
:50:46. > :50:49.could be four inches, very gusty in the north, and also some big
:50:50. > :50:53.crashing waves just as we are seeing now. Even into Tuesday, it is wet
:50:54. > :50:57.and windy still for eastern Scotland, I'll swear, some sunny
:50:58. > :51:02.intervals but a field more showers breaking out, some slow-moving
:51:03. > :51:07.downpours -- elsewhere. Temperatures similar to those of today,
:51:08. > :51:11.struggling to make seven or 8 degrees. Very much colder and under
:51:12. > :51:14.the rain across northern Scotland and eastern Scotland. No pressure
:51:15. > :51:20.begins to slink away in the middle part of the week. A brief respite on
:51:21. > :51:24.Wednesday. Still a lot of clouds and showery rain although not a sweat.
:51:25. > :51:30.There could be some fog patches which will be slow to clear in the
:51:31. > :51:36.morning. -- not as wet. More rain coming in from the Atlantic, low
:51:37. > :51:40.pressure, along with a front, a band of rain arriving in the west later
:51:41. > :51:43.on Wednesday, moving fairly quickly across the country overnight and
:51:44. > :51:49.will be gone from Northern Ireland and most of England and Wales by the
:51:50. > :51:51.state lunchtime. Sunshine following although the rain will continue
:51:52. > :51:55.across the north and east of Scotland with snow over those
:51:56. > :51:59.northern hills. This is the weather map for Thursday into Friday, that
:52:00. > :52:04.weather from store close to northern Scotland. South of it we have a
:52:05. > :52:08.westerly airflow with blustery wind, some sunshine but also clusters of
:52:09. > :52:11.potentially heavy showers and the potential for more wet and cold
:52:12. > :52:16.weather in the north-east of Scotland. So the week ahead is very
:52:17. > :52:20.changeable, as you can see. We have showers, or longer spells of rain,
:52:21. > :52:34.and at times it will be quite windy as well. Not as mild as it has
:52:35. > :52:37.We've been looking back at some of our close encounters
:52:38. > :52:42.And I've been spotting the wintering birds that can be found
:52:43. > :52:47.at the Wiltshire end of the Cotswold Water Park.
:52:48. > :52:50.But now I've headed just a few miles south to a place where
:52:51. > :52:59.wildlife only ends up if there's a problem.
:53:00. > :53:03.Oak and Furrows Wildlife Rescue Centre is a small charity.
:53:04. > :53:11.They take in all kinds of native wildlife, and animal carer
:53:12. > :53:16.Katia Whitfield has one special patient to introduce me to.
:53:17. > :53:19.We've had two tawny owls brought in recently
:53:20. > :53:21.that we've got in here at the moment.
:53:22. > :53:24.This one was found about three or four weeks ago
:53:25. > :53:27.on the side of the road. It had a knock to the head.
:53:28. > :53:37.Oh, goodness. So, what's your plan with this one?
:53:38. > :53:45.So her next step is to just go out into an aviary and strengthen up
:53:46. > :53:48.the wing muscles, get used to being back outside again
:53:49. > :53:52.before we release her back where she came from.
:53:53. > :53:54.When she came in, she was in a very poorly state, and she was
:53:55. > :53:57.rolling around a bit, and we weren't sure she was going to make it.
:53:58. > :54:02.But I'm very pleased to say that her chances look very, very good.
:54:03. > :54:06.You've done a good job. She looks in good condition. Thank you.
:54:07. > :54:12.'This is a busy place. They care for more than 3,000 casualties a year.
:54:13. > :54:16.'Only last year, the centre moved to these new and bigger premises.
:54:17. > :54:20.'It was founded by Serena Stevens more than 20 years ago.'
:54:21. > :54:24.What was it that prompted you to start the wildlife rescue centre?
:54:25. > :54:29.what had happened is a starling had got stuck behind our brickwork.
:54:30. > :54:32.It had fallen down. We hand-reared the starling.
:54:33. > :54:34.Some people, obviously, got to hear about this,
:54:35. > :54:37.and kept bringing us the odd bird or little thing that needed help.
:54:38. > :54:43.And my daughter, Millie, who loved animals and birds,
:54:44. > :54:45.basically wanted us to open a wildlife centre.
:54:46. > :54:50.Did you ever envisage it would become this formal set-up like this?
:54:51. > :54:55.No, I never ever thought it would get this big. What's your remit?
:54:56. > :54:59.Do you take in all wildlife? It is all native wildlife.
:55:00. > :55:03.We do get thrown in for good measure the odd kitten or something,
:55:04. > :55:06.and, obviously, we've got volunteers or myself that is a bit too soft
:55:07. > :55:12.and take them on but, no, mainly it is all British wildlife.
:55:13. > :55:15.'As well as nursing animals back to health, they bring in school groups
:55:16. > :55:19.'to learn more about their work and the wildlife.' There we go.
:55:20. > :55:23.And that is a nice healthy looking hedgehog.
:55:24. > :55:33.'it's hedgehogs that make up most of the patients.'
:55:34. > :55:37.Now, these are all the little truckers,
:55:38. > :55:40.they're all hedgehogs that have been to the vets for different reasons.
:55:41. > :55:44.So they all have to go back into their little bedrooms
:55:45. > :55:47.for the night, and we have to check them, put them back into the cages.
:55:48. > :55:50.Oh, right. What's the chief reason for them being brought in
:55:51. > :55:55.Most of these poor little fellas are brought in because they're found
:55:56. > :55:58.wandering around in the daytime. I see, looking for food?
:55:59. > :56:00.Absolutely trying to get up their reserves, trying to get up
:56:01. > :56:03.their weight. They know they're obviously hungry,
:56:04. > :56:05.and, as you know, last night was absolutely freezing.
:56:06. > :56:08.They try to find some bugs, or worms, or something out there.
:56:09. > :56:12.The saddest thing is people normally don't pick up hedgehogs
:56:13. > :56:17.until they are really gone downhill. And that is really annoying.
:56:18. > :56:20.And it's not the public's fault, but nine times out of ten they come in,
:56:21. > :56:24."for the last few days in the daylight." It's a bit late by then.
:56:25. > :56:27.You just think, "Ugh..." But it's not their fault.
:56:28. > :56:29.It's just trying to teach the public,
:56:30. > :56:32.basically, hedgehogs are nocturnal, and absolutely, no,
:56:33. > :56:34.you never see a hedgehog out in the daytime.
:56:35. > :56:39.If you do, you've got to question why. Oh, dear. Good luck to you.
:56:40. > :56:46.Right. Right, over to the cage next to Barry and Darren.
:56:47. > :56:53.Surely that will make him put on weight. Too delicious to turn down.
:56:54. > :57:00.'The hedgehogs in the care of Oak And Furrows will stay here
:57:01. > :57:06.'until the spring when they'll be released back into the wild.'
:57:07. > :57:09.Well, we're only a few days into the New Year,
:57:10. > :57:12.so there's still just about time to buy your Countryfile calendar
:57:13. > :57:20.for 2016 which features the happy hedgehog on the cover.
:57:21. > :57:25.The calendar costs ?9.50, including free UK delivery.
:57:26. > :57:31.You can buy yours either via our website:
:57:32. > :58:00.Please make cheques payable to BBC Countryfile calendar.
:58:01. > :58:04.A minimum of ?4 from the sale of each calendar will be donated
:58:05. > :58:12.and our look back at some winter wildlife highlights.
:58:13. > :58:15.Next week, we'll be in Hertfordshire. See you then.