Wrest Park

Today I went to Wrest Park to explore the Gardens and see what wildlife it was home to. As it turned out I saw lots of interesting creatures and plants. The Irises were starting to grow and sprout new leaves in the ponds ready to produce a colourful display in a few weeks time all being well. There were a couple of species of pond weed growing in abundance (I couldn't say which species, I'm not very good at pond weed). There was no frog spawn as yet but then I didn't see any frogs either!

A bit further along there was a Red Kite soaring over some fields. It was quite far away but it's pale head could just be made out and it's forked tale was clear. There were a few pairs of lapwing in the field that the Red Kite kept worrying and they would fly up calling 'Peewit, peewit' before coming back down to the ground again. A couple of skylarks were also up in the air and their song was falling down on the breeze to be heard from where I was stood. I'd only gone a couple of hundred metres and seen lots already.

There were sticky buds on the Horse Chestnuts, empty Beech nuts next to the new buds on the Beech trees and old seeds still hanging on the Sycamore trees. There were birds singing – Robins, Wrens, Great tits, Blackbirds to name just a few more, as well as Bumble Bees making zig-zagging flights over the grass.

In some ponds there were signs of life with some silver fish gliding along the water before disappearing back underneath the surface – I don't know what they were or what they were doing. It could have been feeding or some sort of display. Fish behaviour is something else I need to find out about!

Pond skaters were darting around on the surface of the water. I just caught sight of them moving out of the corner of my eye as I was looking at some pond weed. Coot were feeding and swimming around, seemingly trying to pick fights with each other. A Grey Heron flew over, there were Mute Swans and Greylag Geese walking around paying very little attention to anything else.

In the two hours I spent walking around I saw loads of species of plants, birds and insects as well as a few fish. I think that was two hours well spent!