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My garden is inundated with acorns. The squirrels and jays clearly can't keep up. Is there any point in storing some for later when it's very cold? Or will they have cached enough themselves? I don't want to send them all for recycling, if anything would be glad of them later. But the grass and flower beds are smothered with them and I can't leave them there all winter.

hi autumn watch team I am just starting out trying to take wildlife photographs and I would like to know is it legal or illegal to take photographs of badgers do have to have special permission to do this thank you

Is it against the law to take the photographs of badgers as I am trying or hoping to take pictures of badgers at a sett in the local cemetery or will I need special permission to do this thank you

Today I got a shock. There was a peregrine falcon in my garden! The thing is, I live in a town, and surrounded by houses. This is a new experience for me. Is this common? The grusome thing about this, my lawn is full of feathers tonight. It looks like a hapless pigeon has met his maker! I'm filled with excitement and also unnerved a bit. I had to tell someone.

Hi Chris - from one old punk to another, damned fine choice of song titles this year. Congrats on a top show and see you at the 35th anniversary tour.

hi michaela would like to know do still go to raves you used to be a good mover going by your shows on tele and when did you start getting an interest in nature?

Hi Michaela, when will you next be in the North West of England?

Just seen a white jackdaw at Chester zoo. Saw it the first time two years ago. Not part of the zoo's official collection but probably rarer than anything that is. Can be seen around the elephant enclosure.

It's October and that means seal pup time. I had a magical experience at Martins Haven, Pembrokeshire last year when I saw my very first seal pups. I returned today and took my wife to see her very first seal pups. Another magical day with plenty of pups wiggling about on the pebbly beaches and to top it all we also saw several pairs of choughs flying about the cliffs, An experience I would recommend to anyone in the area this month.

We hear much about trees shedding their leaves in Autumn but what about trees shedding their bark? I was amazed to see this wonderfulpatternation revealed on a local tree by rain - the sheltered side of the tree trunk remained dry and dull. Why do these trees shed their bark? I believe this was a Plane Tree - though not very plain! They seem to be shedding their bark all year round! Here's a link to a photograph - and also

A strange sight this morning in the sunlight, stretching across a huge crop field here in Hampshire were thousands of webs stringing across the ground. The field was ploughed and seeded within the last week so no crop has appeared yet. The last crop was oil seed rape. Any ideas what it could be ?

Please could you tell me, what is the difference between a beak and a bill. I've tried searching it on the internet and have got all sorts of differing answers so if Chris is able to advise when to use one or the other I should be very grateful!

We live in sheltered accommodation in Swindon wilts.We have a wonderfull varity of birds we feed & and water. We also have visits from 3 foxs again we feed them, but one in perticular will sit down as to say, is that all I GET. but we give him more. this happens every night around 10pm. When all three are feeding, one is always whimpering. can anyone tell us why.

First starlings of winter have arrived bang on time - saw 8 fly into the garden this afternoon - they always arrive on or near 15 Oct and leave by 15 March. Also had a flock of 50+ goldfinches arrive at my niger feeders yesterday, only flaw is that there are just 40 perches on the feeders!

We have been listening to the Tawny Owls calling in our area for the 9 years we have lived here but about a year ago we were hearing a completely different call. With a little detective work on the internet we found out it was a Male Tawny Owls 'warbling' call but it was said that this was unusual. Our owl calls like this constantly every night and when he is in our garden it is very loud and clear quite haunting. Very occasionally he finishes with a very loud screech. We are wondering why this has started to happen and thought maybe it is a new male that has come into the area. Jan

I visited a friends house today which overlooks the reedbeds of Leighton Moss RSPB reserve. She showed me a birdfeeder which had been dented and said she'd been plagued by grey squirrels pinching the birdfood. She saw a grey squirrel pull the feeder off a branch and pick up a small stone and bash the feeder with it. (hence the dent) to try and reach the nuts. I was amazed and thought this level of intelligence to use 'tools' was confined to higher primates. I know stories of crows and ravens putting nuts in the road for cars to run over and crack then return to eat them but is this a case or a 'rogue super intelligent squirrel' or are they really capable of such things? Paul Liley

Please please Autumwatch when you refer to Spurn Point on friday will you remember that Spurn Point is in East Yorkshire not Humberside, which does not exist. And i should know because i work on Spurn Point... But really glad your coming to our part of the country because its one of the best places in Britain for wildlife especially birds. Nick the postie on Spurn Point......

Hi Gang and a warm welcome to Michaela

I've just been out into my garden in West Yorkshire and heard my gentleman frogs 'calling' to their lady frogs. Is this normal for this time of the year?

Erica - 53 degrees North.

How long do the new queen bumblebees remain in their nest after the original queen and workers have died? My Beepol hive still has 2 new queens sitting on top of the empty cells. Should I encourage them to fly off? Also, I had two previous emergences of queens during the life of the nest which were evicted (quite aggressively) by the workers. Many thanks David Bedford, Norwich, Norfolk.

redwings

quiz: redwing

Its Redwing! I heard the sound and rushed outside to look skyward!!!!

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to watch a group of House Martins fledge from a church in West Stoke with encouragement from two adult birds that had previously been in the nest. The odd thing was, one of the adults was a House Martin, the other was a Swallow... has this happened before? Does anyone know if the swallow could have been a true parent or a surrogate of sorts?? Thoughts would be greatly appreciated!!

It's obvious why those birds bob.. they have Motown on their iPods

Martin Hughes-Games, my Friday night guilty pleasure. ;-)

The sound is very similar to starlings... I have seen them flocking in Leeds City Centre over the past week, and roosting in conifers. A lovely sight to see!

Jack snipe bobbing: a lot waders paddle about with their feet and bob about, probably to disturb invertebrates that they eat

Robert Barton

Could I have badgers visiting my garden? Something is digging large holes under fences, digging around. There appears to be some kind of toilet in a corner that isn't cats. No vegs are being eaten. No sure about putting food out as think that the neighbours cats will eat it. Any ideas?

Bobbing birds: maybe its comparable like why chickens move their heads forwards and back with each step: this is because their eyes are each at one side of their head and so each eye has a seperate vision field. They have to move to see depth then, when they move they can see how far things are away from them.

They bob to mimic the movement of the water and so help their camouflage.

With regard to the bobbing motion of water birds such as wagtails and the like, it seems likely to me that the motion is intended as a kind of camouflage, since a bird standing still against moving water would surely stand out more than one that seemed in constant motion. I'd always assumed this is what it was for.

Jack snipe bob rapidly so that their monocular vision can act in a binocular fashion, allowing them to judge distances and depth of field in their immediate environs.

Hi this morning down in south west shropshire near Bishops Castle, I saw about 6 House Martins.

I think that little bird bobs the way it does as camouflage as from far way it looks like the grass blowing in the wind.

i think the birds dip because they could send vibrations through the water which would attract water beetles

Sounds like a tree creeper to me! (Alistair in Leiden, Netherlands)

I think the Jacksnipe "bobs" up and down because it's moving the water or foliage below in an attempt to attract food to the surface - a bit like a blackbird or thrush on a lawn....

Sounds like the Redwings I just heard on my way to the shops just now.

think the bird call is a wren

Quiz : Unsure what the bird call is but its driving my lovebirds wild !

Great Show guys

We have been feeding badgers for several years. Each year we seem to have young ones visiting our patio but do not see the older bigger ones return. Where do they go? Do the young ones follow scent trails to get to our patio? Please help with this query. Also when we have two or more badgers feeding, they bump bottoms, fight for the nuts and cover the peanuts from eachother. Does this mean they are from different sets?

Could you tell me if this is a Gosshawk or a Sparrowhawk please? It was the size of a pheasant. Thanks

Hi what a fab show, I have seen newly hatched wood pigeon chicks in my garden in the last few days, is it common for them to breed this late, and we think this is their 4th brood.how many brood do they normally have.

I think the birds are bobbing to encourage food to come out.

Please help & advise team....Breeding pair of Sparrowhawks for the past 2 years have virtually wiped out the resident bird population.Blackbird Starling Finch Collared dove main diet.The majority of our predated species were very tame visiting my nieghbour (back doorway porch) and myself in the garage for continued mealworm supply.Only one Female Blackbird and two surviving young from her final brood remain....She had x4 broods this season and out of those only two young at present continue to survive..She has eluded predation for the past 6 years majority of her partners predated.Our resident Robin known for 5 yrs predated month July so tame and fed by hand taken from fence adjacent to our garage rear door.Sparrowhawks Male Female continue their flight path daily...According to RSPB research Sparrowhawks normally only visit urban gardens during November to end February for food source....Please advise team help regarding ANY DETERRENTS to curtail further predation & move this pair of Sparrowhawks on to pastures new.Myself and neighbour would like to capture them and remove them to the Shetlands or Lands end....
Thank you
King regards
Ron & Nancy (Neighbour)

Just wondering where Kate Humble is...

Does the badger webcam actually work, I am not getting any footage.

wheres kate?

I see Chris is keeping the Damned songs coming thick & fast. Spotted 3 so far - History of the World, Fish & Fan Club. Keep it up.

Not sure about A, C and D but B must be the Atlantic salmon?

My sister who lives near Great Yarmouth has already had fieldfares visiting her garden, so they'll probably continue across the country. :)

QUiz A. Geese
B. Dolphins
C. Leatherback Turtles
D. Eels.

A Pink footed geese
B Grey seals
C Dolphins
D Basking sharks

Hi Bryan from Birmingham Travelling without a passport are:

a) pinkfooter goose
b) eels
c) leatherback turtle
d) Sooty shearwater

a Pink Foot Goose
b Atlantic Salmon
c Eels
d Manx Shearwater

a. Bewicks Swan
b. Basking shark
c Eels
d Wheatear

the female tawny owl goes keewick (twit) and the male answers whooo (twoo), although at times the male can call with both but usually not one after the other.

Ooohhh no wait I've got it the wrong way round! Of course B are eels - salmon are going the opposite way!

a brent goose
b salmon
c eel
d shearwater

Your salmon expert got his numbers wrong. He said that salmon in the past (I forget which year he said) were 29% bigger on average than today’s fish and therefore today’s salmon were almost a third smaller. If the first statement is true, then salmon today are about 22% smaller than they used to be i.e. between a fifth and a quarter smaller. Still a significant decrease, but not by ‘almost a third’.

It’s a bit worrying when scientists have numeracy issues and no one had picked it in the studio, as it was a recorded interview!

(Check on your calculator: assuming todays’ salmon weighed a hundred units, then in the previous year mentioned they would have been 29% bigger i.e. 129 units. The percentage decrease is 2900/129 = 22.4%).

why don't you mention the effect badgers have on farming e.g. they carry bovine tb that leads to the death of1000s of cattle a year & costs the country & farmers millions

Missed your programmes tonight but will catch them tomorrow on the iplayer but really enjoyed your badger expert on badgercam and the photo's on now are breathtaking! I am feeling the love! Especially after watching dragonflies all afternoon in today's beautiful sunshine!

I found info about hornets last week very interesting. About a bit more info on various insects especially as they are such an important food for birds? I have just seen a pied woodpecker climb a telegraph pole in my garden and as a magpie flew past the woodpecker climbed around the pole to remain hidden from the magpie. It did this again when a second magpie flew past. I have never seen this before. Do magpies prey on woodpeckers? I am in Switzerland at 1449m and outside it is below zero.

Re bobbing - I agree with posts 29 & 32.

Most birds don't have binocular vision and need some other way of assessing distances.

By bobbing they're using the parallax method - as they shift their viewpoint things at different distances seem to move relative to each other (the bigger the movement the further they are apart). Moving from side to side would be no good because they would be moving in the same direcion as their eyes are pointing, and there would be no parallax effect. Has to be up and down (or forward and back).

Why it should be mainly water birds that do this - no idea!

the other day i was sat on a bench with my son and on it was these funny looking bug things i have asked everyone that i know and no luck ive put them on flickr



or e-mail me at [Personal details removed by Moderator]

if anybody can tell me what they are would love to know

many thanks tony

Bob the (knitted) barn owl baby spotted on Unsprung, behind Level Headed Jo's head. That you Autumnwatch team! As the person who made him, I am very grateful.

What a great show it makes winter feel better to know you can enjoy your show we love you all on Autumnwatch .

Taking time to stop and stare revealed Goldcrests in our Herefordshire garden - what a treat!

Hi

Further to the item on the show about albino/white animals.
I have just returned from a holiday in Toronto, Canada where I witnessed a grey squirrel chasing off a black squirrel.
This made me wonder if the black squirrel was a mutation of the grey, rather like the albino animals we have here in the UK.
Do we have these black squirrels here in the UK too?

regards

Julie

Hello
We have an owl thats outside our house every night. How can we find out more about what type it is and maybe even see it?? THANKS!

Hi loving the programme! Thought I'd report that I saw a pair of grey wagtails in my garden in Dartford, Kent for the 1st time yesterday 16/10.

On my way home from work this evening from Stirling to Falkirk at around 4:30pm, in the wheat fields stubble and in the air above, I estimate there were between 3,000 and 5,000 Barnacle, pink footed or grey lag geese. I could not be sure which species they were, as it was raining very heavily and I watched them from a range of about 200 metres from my car window. The sky was black with them.It was like an enormous flock of starlings. The noise was deafening. They seemed to be in the process of leaving the wheat fields to find a place to roost for the evening. Maybe the mud flats on the river Forth near Grangemouth. I see them quite often at this time of year in the wheat field stubble but usually only 40 or 50 in number.

it is the same time roughly every night i have 3 small fox's running about in my garden , is there a reason why they are chaseing each other like this please,

Just thought I'd let you know about our latest addition to the birds gathering round our nut feeder. A woodpecker, may not be that unusual you think but consider our location, Park Lane, London and the feeder is hanging from our office window. We could not believe our eyes. We now have Robins, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Greenfinches, a pair of Jays who visit in the summer and now the woodpecker.

I heard something today about Black Squirrels (originating from the USA) here in the UK, and what a threat they're providing to both the greys and our native reds. I don't recall seeing/hearing these mentioned on either Springwatch or Autumnwatch and wondered if there's likely to be a feature about them. As if our poor reds haven't had enough of a problem with the greys it looks as though they now have an even bigger one :-((
Jacqui aka 'RedSquirrel'

I keep Mallard ducks in my garden and although they are locked away in the evening (to avoid the inevitable fox takeaway), during the egg laying season I do find that very often the ducks lay all over the garden. Almost without exception the eggs have disappeared by morning - sometimes I see the Jackdaws or Magpies 'crack open' a few but often there is no trace, no shell / no evidence of what has happened to the egg. This conundrum was partially cleared up a few weeks ago when my 'green fingered neighbour David (AKA Joe) was digging up his potatoes - he found a clutch of duck eggs buried amongst them (one egg was blue which positively identified them as my ducks as one lays blue eggs). Question for you is: was it a fox or was it a squirrel - we have good populations of both in our village. None of the eggs were broken - fairly amazing as whatever took them had to jump over a 2 metre wal and cross a road with an egg in their mouth or paws!

No. 75 - Black squirrels are a dark form of the grey squirrel, not a separate species, though they are said to be more aggressive.

They're common in only 3 counties - Beds., Herts. & Cambs. - so if anything it seems to be the normal greys that would be under threat from them. The first black was seen in the wild 90 years ago so the spread so far hasn't been that rapid.

I am well aware of, and very impressed by Chris Packham's remarkable scientific knowledge and accuracy , so I feel I must quibble very slightly with something he said last Friday (14th October) on Unsprung. It is with regard to the pale coloured, but not albino badger, which he described as erythritic. I believe the correct term to be erythristic; certainly this was used by the late Ernest Neal, one of the greatest badger experts this country has ever had (Ref: Badgers, Ernest Neal, Blandford Press 1977). I know it's only one letter, and he was working from memory at the time, but on such things are scientific accuracies based, and I am sure he would appreciate the correction.

How about some coverage on hedgehogs please autumnwatch, they need our help. Any information about them and how to help them survive would be great.

The raven is wonderful. He is so confident. Fantastic bird

Hi, I'm just about to clear out my House Sparrow (colony) nest box (adopted by Blue Tits in the Spring) & two out of the three nest boxes have eggs in! Are these abandoned or are they likely to be 'this season'?? I have seen Blue Tits popping in & out but figured they were checking out nesting possibilities for the Spring. Any advise please. Thanks.

My first question is do blog questions get answers?
There are lots of questions that I would like to see the answers to and very few are featured on the programme, do you post answers on the blog?

As usual a great programme. It inspired me to get out this week and sitting by my local wood in Berkshire I was given a wonderful aerial display by 3 buzzards, 2 red kites and a crow all together. Earlier a couple of crows were mobbing a buzzard, something I have seen on a number of occasions, why do they do this?

Tony P 82 You will find that most people on blogs are only interested in seeing their posts appear and aren't interested in answering anything.

You're very right No. 82 and No 84. What is the point in having questions if you can't answer them or have your questions answered. I wanted to help someone on this blog but I couldn't help them because I couldn't answer them. I tried all sorts of things to get through to them. It's very frustrating!! I wonder whether something can be done about it? Any ideas anyone? Liz

Jacksnipes Bob to give depth perception to the sides – try this on Chris Packham please

Sorry this is late but I’ve only just caught up on Autumnwatch from two weeks ago.

I suspect Jacksnipes bob to give them depth perception to the side. I have always thought this is why pigeons move their heads back and forth. Bobbing gives a similar visual effect.

Our brains interpret the two slightly different images from our left and right eyes to allow us to tell the difference between near and far objects. An animal with eyes on the side of their heads, only has one image on each side. Moving allows them to vary the images and hence perceive depth.

What do you think of my theory Chris?

Peter Hendra, Wimborne, Dorset

Hi
my hubby goes to a place to walk the dog which is boiling with wild life but no one seem's to want to take care or look after this land.He loves to take photo's and record what he see's which includes deer moles voles owls lots of birds(tits finches woodpeckers etc)but the local council seem to disgarde what we have on our doorstep. It is a site that it not policed This site was once a landfill site but now it is briming with wild life. My question is how do we get this site pretected

Hi Autumnwatch team,

You mentioned that there was no sign of woodcocks. Just to let you know recently in Hilborough near Swaffham, Norfolk we had a wonderful sighting of the bird.

Hiya Guys

Would i be right in saying that the smallest Raptor is a Shrike or (butcher bird) and not a merlin. Although they are not related to owls, hawks or falcons their way of life is very similar. They hunt and kill smaller birds mice and frogs.

Carrion Crows have been seen stashing wheat (three or four grains) and bread in grassland - burying it up to beak depth. Are they likely to find and retrieve it?
Thanks

This morning I went for a walk with my dogs in Wentwood, Monmouthshire - and my working cocker brought me a dead bird (long dead I would like to point out). I was very surprised to see he had brought me a cross bill - I had no idea there were any here - Scotland and the New Forest yes - but not my local woods - are they more common than I think. Sad it was dead, but exciting to know it was in the area - are there likely to be more or is that why it was dead - shouldn't be in the area at all - would love to know?

desklid 90 Is Carrion Crows a new comedy film?

My wife and I have recently seen a Humming Bird Hawk Moth in our back garden.
We live in Nuneaton Warwickshire. How unusual is that for the area, time of year or locality?

Can the autumwnatch team go to Flickr

Can the autumnwatch team go to Flickr and identify a sea creature I saw on Merimbula beach NSW Aus

Chris and the team, I would like to know where all the Greenfinch have gone, I cannot remember the last one I saw round here at Eastchurch, Sheppey and they were common before. Even if you look at reports on KOS net you will hardly find a Greenfinch seen. Look at recent sightings on here..or lack of them!! all the best, John.

to chris
please let viewers know about a recently published book called Sky Hawk by Gill Lewis which is about a boy in scotland who finds Ospreys nesting on his farm and the female is tagged with a GPS system and the boy follows it's progress to Gambia and uses his computer to enable the bird to be rescued. It is brilliant I am an aging adult and I loved the book published in 2011.
please read it everyone

I love Autumnwatch and unsprung...and don't mind poo...but Chris handling poo, then throwing aside his smoking jacket and picking up his mug without even a pretence of washing his hands is not a good lesson for the nation. Remember E coli, Salmonella....?
I am a doctor.

I love autumn watch but I must protest the tawny owl is not the most common owl in the UK, it is the teet.........present in almost every household - the teet-owl.

Just wanted to say how great it is to have SpringWatch back and also to lobby the Ö÷²¥´óÐã for more Unsprung. The freedom that Unsprung gives the crew results in a fresh and inclusive programme and the degree of interaction with viewers that it creates is fantastic and quite unique. Every SpringWatch episode without an Unsprung to follow is like a bird without a song, a frog without a chorus or an Ichy without a Scratchy...