© Mike Frisby - Langham in Rutland
Here
we
are
at
the
end
of
October
and
it's
raining
again,
this
is
the
fifth
month
in
a
row
that
the
rainfall
has
been
over
100mm.
March
rainfall
was
also
over
the
100mm
mark,
the
total
for
those
six months
was
over
700mm
which
is
considerable
when
the
long
term
twelve
month
average
for
this
area
is
only
a
little
over
600mm.
The
last
couple
of
weeks
have
seen
water
lying
in
the
field
in
places
where
it
has
never
collected
before.
It
seems
strange
that
at
times
we
were
hoping
for
rain
as
everywhere
was
so
dry.
A
much
better
pattern
would
be
for
the
rain
to
be
spread
more
evenly
rather
than
coming
in
isolated
downpours.
Some
of
the
showers
were
very
heavy
with
a
rain
rate
of
over
150mm
an
hour.
A
good
job
they
only
lasted
a
short
time.
The
graph
shows
one
particularly
heavy
shower
at
midday
on
the
2nd
of
June,
155mm/hr
or
just
over
6in/hr
in
proper
measurements! The other line shows the corresponding drop in pressure.
The
wet
ground
must
have
brought
worms
and
insect
grubs
to
the
surface
as
the
birds
were
busy
pecking
away.
They
were
mainly
larger
birds
and
I
was
surprised
there
were
no
blackbirds
or
thrushes;
these
seem
to
have
deserted
the
gardens
for
the
hedgerows
where
there
is
a
plentiful
supply
of
berries.
The
main
feeders
in
the
field
were
jackdaws,
wood pigeons,
crows
and
magpies.
The
black
headed
gull
also
made
a
couple
of
appearances,
I
hadn't
seen
him
all
summer;
perhaps
he
went
to
the
seaside
for
his
holidays.
One
day
there
seemed
to
be
a
lot
of
magpies
so
I
started
counting,
one
for
sorrow,
two
for
joy,
three
for
a
girl,
four
for
a
boy,
five
for
silver,
(this
looks
promising).
Yes
one
more
six
for
gold,
jackpot!
I
was
just
thinking
what
to
do
with
the
lottery
win
when
a
seventh
appeared.
Oh dear,
seven
for
a
secret
never
to
be
told,
now
I'm
wondering
what
that
is.
It was
probably
my
own
fault
the
last
one
appeared
as
I
forgot
to
follow
the
old custom of saluting the magpie and asking how he and his family were.
Talking
of
old
customs
I
am
writing
this
on
Halloween,
the
old
celtic
pagan
festival
of
Samhain
that
celebrated
the
end
of
the
harvest
season
and
the
beginning
of
winter.
Forget
all
the
ghosts
and
ghouls
here
are
some
biological
things
to
worry
you
that
I
read
about
recently.
Firstly
our
native
Atlantic
salmon
is
at
risk
from
the
Pacific
pink
salmon.
They
were
first
seen
in
British
rivers
in
2017
where
they
spawned.
They
spend
two
years
at
sea
so
the
young
should
be
returning
this
year.
The
Pacific
salmon
is
native
to
Alaska
but
was
introduced
into
Russian
rivers
in
the1960's
and
they
have
progressed
along
the
northern
coasts
to
here.
It
is
feared
they
may
introduce
diseases
and
parasites
that
would
infect
our
native
salmon
and
trout
and
compete
with
them
for
food.
It
is
urged
that
any
caught
should
not
be
returned
to
the
water.
Secondly
do
you
have
any
box
bushes
in
your
garden?
Are
any
of
the
leaves
turning
brown
and
falling,
with
black
streaks
and
die
back
on
young
stems?
You
might
have
box
blight,
a
fungus
disease
that
spreads
rapidly
in
warm
humid
conditions
and
is
difficult
to
control.
Correct
identification
is
important
as
another
fungus
disease,
Volutella blight, has similar symptoms but is less serious.
Visit the RHS website for more details.
Thirdly
an
insect
that
could
be
heading
our
way
is
the
spotted
lanternfly.
They
are
native
to
China
,
are
a
pest
to
dozens
of
plants
and
trees.
They
can
trigger
sap
leakage,
wilting,
leaf
curling
and
dieback.
The
UK
has
been
designated
a
'medium
risk'
area,
along
with
much
of
Eastern
Europe,
while
the
eastern
US
and
California
are
deemed
to
be
high
risk,
along
with
parts
of
France,
Portugal,
Italy,
Russia
and
Ukraine.
The
US
Government
tells
people
to
kill
them
on
sight.
The
fourth
relates
to
arachnids,
specifically
ticks.
Most
people
are
aware
that
ticks
can
carry
Lyme
disease
but
recently
some
have
been
discovered
in
Thetford
Forest,
Norfolk
and
around
the
Hampshire
and
Dorset
border
that
were
carrying
the
encephalitis
virus.
They
were
found
on
deer
but
they
can
also
be
found
on
dogs.
According
to
Public
Health
England
the
risk
of
infection
is
very
low
but
it
is
better
to
safe
than
sorry
if
walking
in
areas
where
ticks
are
known
to
be
present.
Precautions
include
keeping
skin
covered,
using
insect
repellent
and
inspect
skin
and
dogs
for
ticks.
There
is
a
vaccine
available
for
people
travelling
abroad
to
areas
where
the
disease
is
prevalent.
It is
believed
to
have
come
to
the
UK
on
migrating
birds.
All
of
these
examples
show
how difficult it is to keep our borders biologically secure.
It
seems
only
recently
I
was
celebrating
an
empty
greenhouse.
It
is
now
full
again
as
all
the
tender
plants
are
back
inside.
The
door
is
now
closed
for
most
of
the
time,
much
to
the
annoyance
of
a
wren
that
has
been
in
and
out
all
summer
looking
for
spiders.
Now
is
the
time
for
fungi
to
make
their
appearance.
Not
all
of
them
are
umbrella
shaped
like
a
mushroom.
One
shaped
like
minute
white
fingers
appeared
in
Munday's
Close.
It
is
called
candlesnuff
as
it
looks
similar
to
a
snuffed
candle
wick.
The
trees
thought
to
have
been
black
walnut
have
now
been
verified
as
correct
examples
of
that
species.
There
are
only
three
other
records in Rutland and Leicestershire.
There
is
just
room
for
a
few
of
quick
notes.
September
was
a
good
month
for
dragonflies,
I
have
not
seen
so
many
on
the
wing
at
that
time
of
year.
A
young
grass
snake
was
unfortunately
run
over
by
a
car
on
Ashwell
Road.
The
squirrel
has
taken
to
carrying
two
walnuts
at
a
time
and
I
managed
to
get
a
photograph
of
him
through
the
dining
room
window
as
he
was
deciding
which
pot
to
bury
them
in.
In
the garden a clump of nerines are putting on a vibrant display.
I
am
always
interested
in
other
peoples
sightings
and
comments
so don't forget to email me on
wildlife@langhaminrutland.org
.
Notes from a Field & Garden -
December 2019