To view a different period, click on the appropriate link in the table below.

Look out for in:
Jan/Feb	March	April	May	Jun/Jul	Aug	Sept	Oct	Nov	Dec

Interesting Features to be seen in December

Only the oaks now have significant amounts of leaf and the wind whistles through the bare forest. The ground is carpeted by soggy leaves, to be processed by worms and fungi into a rich compost. Beneath this protective layer perennial flowering plants are already developing for the coming season. Soon spring shoots will be poking through, including those of celandine, snowdrop, dog’s mercury, ramsons and bluebell. Insect food becomes harder for the birds to find, but a supply of berries and nuts keeps them going. Redwings and other winter thrushes shelter from the harsh weather in the sunnier glades of the forest. Muntjac and fallow deer browse on low growing shrubs leaving tell tale hoof prints on the muddy rides. Badgers also remain active. In the quarry small parties of bullfinches show up prominently in the bare hawthorns, and parties of chaffinches, greenfinches and the occasional brambling can also be seen. The old man’s beard has lost its leaves, the bare tendrils now just holding onto their fluffy fruits. Rabbits are now short of food and turn to gnawing at the bark of saplings, helping the reserve managers to keep some open grassland for summer butterflies and the rich mixture limestone grassland plants.