Wednesday 02 September
The second day of September and the second day of Autumn. The start of a new season passed me by yesterday; I never knew that there were different ways of registering when seasons start and end.
This year, Autumn in the UK can start on 1st or 22nd September depending on whether the meteorological or astronomical calendars are used. The meteorological version is easier to follow; four seasons with three calendar months in each. So, Autumn will always be 1st September to 30th November. The astronomical Autumn begins when the length of day equals the length of night – twelve hours of each. The spring equinox is when it balances again.
What is clear, is that the leaves on the trees in our garden and down the lane are crispy and tired. Some of them have already fallen and have been blown into a golden drift at the edge of the track. Starting to blacken in places where the damp conditions won’t dry out.
Invertebates are hiding inside or under the parasols of large flower heads, especially the many sunflowers. And the birds feeding habits have also changed, moving away from mainly seed to fat balls and suet. Getting themselves intentionally larger in readiness for what might be a very long journey south.
Meanwhile, we prepare to open our doors to our pupils on Friday. I think that if you were to right a give-point checklist of things to identify the season, that Autumn would be the easiest;
- Shorter days
- Falling leaves
- Fattening birds
- Cooler nights
- Berries and seeds
The Bald Birder 