Spring vigour is almost at its burgeoning best up north, and my work has now moved away from the heavy lifting of winter and survey season is now upon us.

The last month has been dotted with moth, otter, willow tit, newt, bat and badger fieldwork. It's always an exciting time of year for me and provides much motivation, especially when previous conservation work has dictated a species population increase within the survey data. Working with protected species like badgers, bats and great crested newts is a real honour and seeing them regularly is really something.

Sometimes it takes the reaction from someone from outside the world of nature conservation to me explaining these processes, to remind myself of just how fortuitous I am to be a ranger.

Where newts and badgers have prospered, others have sadly not been quite as lucky. Spring is a spectacular time of the year with life and rebirth everywhere to see and hear. Animals like otters will move between their usually large and solitary territories and others this season, and that can mean crossing roads in order to reach a mate. We were notified recently of an otter that had been hit by a car and killed on the main road. A harsh reminder of the way in which we can affect wildlife. If it was up to me there would be a speed limit decrease on every road in the country at this time of year. The impact this could have would be monumental. I can only dream.

Sticking to speed limits, I have had many close encounters with blackbirds of late, flying low across roads from hedgerow to hedgerow. A speeding car leaves an otter very little chance of avoidance. Something to ponder.

It’s a very sad sight, and the only positive was that it gave us the opportunity to take a very close and few and far between look at such a beautiful mammal.

The amphibians have been on the march again and I have frequently been on toad patrol, moving our warty wanderers into safety. I’ve observed frogs in ‘breeding balls’ and signs of otters moving into the ponds and feasting on the momentary bounty of coupling herptiles, but perhaps the most interesting and quite frankly outlandish viewing of the season so far was undoubtedly an encounter between a leech and an ill-fated newt.

You may have seen something similar if you have watched David Attenborough’s Wild Isles recently, but seeing a newt being devoured alive from the inside out by a leech is certainly a first for me. Nature is nothing if it isn’t gross, fascinating and downright savage.

Always learning.

In previous writings, I have raved about the archetypal first signs of spring. The classics like bluebells, lesser celandines, orange-tip butterflies and ramsons. But this year I have new and alternate heralds of spring.

A plant that for me is now synonymous with the spring is one which spreads by creeping rhizomes along damp riverbanks, carpeting the ground with its large, rhubarb-like, heart-shaped leaves and pale, pinkish panicles.

The scientific name for butterbur Petasites is thought to derive from the Greek word petasos, referring to the Thessalian sun hat worn by the ancient Greeks. Butterbur was also used historically to wrap and keep pats of butter cool in the sun. A spring early riser, it is a charming plant and one of my latest favourites. As the new flowers emerge, it is a sure sight that springtime is in motion and a reminder that in just a few weeks there will be a butterbur bestowal at many riparian riversides in the area. I for one, love it and it’s a burst of colour that I now look forward to each year, bringing a close to the winter months.

J.R.R. Tolkien even named his innkeeper at the Prancing Pony Inn in Bree after it, Barliman Butterbur.

Amongst the flowering opposite-leaved golden saxifrage, cuckooflower and dog violets is another star of the show, and a fairly rare find at that. Common toothwort is an absolute weirdo of the plant world. It is a parasite of roots and usually lives on elder and hazel. This strange wildflower grows in shady woodland habitat and possesses no chlorophyll, as to survive it saps all the nutrients it needs from its host. Rich in folklore, it was widely believed that it could be used to treat toothache, seemingly because the flowers resemble (dodgy) teeth. It has also been dubbed ‘corpse flower’ as it was believed to flourish on the spot of buried bodies.

In spite of all that, it is a truly unique and enchanting plant.

An early Sunday morning walk along Hadrians Wall last month led me to the picturesque and iconic Sycamore Gap. With the buds ready to burst on the famous ‘Robin Hood Tree’, there was a lovely soundtrack of calling curlews, skylarks and meadow pipits. A saunter past the nearby Crag Lough revealed one of the biggest swan nests I’ve ever seen, dominating the reed bed. Beating the crowds allowed a tranquil moment to take in the natural beauty of the area and a wall so steeped in history, folklore and popular culture.

I left absolutely determined to grab a shot of the sycamore for each season of 2023.

Finally, back to the garden. Recent developments have seen prevalent marsh marigold around the pond margins covered in pollinators, a recurrent male sparrowhawk patrolling the tree line, migrating woodcock flyovers, constant wood mouse sightings and numerous majestic male pheasants strutting their stuff on the lawn.

The local foxes have been sharing the patio with our hedgehogs almost every evening and it was a superb surprise to see a male hedgie trying his very best to persuade a seriously aloof female to mate. Twenty minutes had passed before he finally gave up, trotted off for a drink and then back under the hedgerow he went.

But in terms of surprises, there is no doubt that a reveal of my wildlife trail camera one recent morning topped the lot. The video quality was terrible, but sufficient enough to make out what was happening. A roe deer had drifted in from the nearby woodland and ended up on our patio! With only its legs visible on camera, it was clear that it had clocked its own reflection in the patio doors and hurtled off to ‘safety.’ Absolutely thrilled to finally see one in the garden. Scary things though those mirrors.

Another blog post on the way soon as a trip to the island of Ireland is on the horizon and a no doubt nature packed adventure lies in wait.

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