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No, not tales of brave knights and fearsome creatures. For that you'll have to wait for our 'Medieval Christmas' event that is being planned. Instead I'm talking about insects. With the warmer weather of late we have been seeing ever increasing numbers of both dragonflies and damselflies. These breed in the pond by the wildlife hide and also in the reedbed sewage treatment system. Meanwhile butterflies flit amongst the trees or sun themselves in clearings. Peacocks and Red Admirals are particularly prominent with their bold colours.

 On Sunday 10 August we will be holding a family fun day to look at these and some of the other smaller residents of the woods. As part of the 'Summer Bugs' event we will be going on a mini-beat hunt to find what creepy-crawlies live in the forest. Participants will also get the chance to make a dragonfly from pipecleaners, design their own insect and build a bug boudoir to put in their garden to encourage beneficial insects like ladybirds to set up home there. There are two separate sessions, 10:30 am - 12:30 pm and 1 - 3 pm. Places are strictly limited so advance booking is essential, call us on 01780 444691 to secure your place. The event costs £2 per child, with accompanying adults free.

True to form, the red kite chicks have been popping on and off the nest for all of last week. At anyone time, visitors could see anything from an empty nest to all three youngsters, sitting around and bickering. Some of the spats have been quite fierce, although no grudges ever seem to be held. One minute the chicks can be pecking one another, the next quietly grooming each other.

The kites should hopefully still be viewable on the camera if you were to come to our 'Birdwatching for Kids' class. These are being held each Wednesday morning through the summer holidays and cost £2 per child (accompanying adults free, but only one adult per booking). Places are strictly limited, so please phone us on 01780 444691 to secure your place.

In the last post to this blog we reported that the eldest chick had flown the nest. We are pleased to announce that all three chicks are now airborne. The youngest chick hung on in the nest for ages, but finally went on 11 July. The chicks do reappear at the nest from time to time as the parents drop off food for them there, but this will tail off as the chicks become more self sufficient. Instead it will become easier to see kites flying around the centre as the youngsters stretch their wings.

The exciting news is that the eldest chick is now airborne. It has been keeping us all on tenterhooks for the past few days by hopping around on branches near the nest and disappearing from view. But finally on Monday it took the plunge and made its maiden flight. The middle chick looks set to follow it soon as it too have been spending increasing amounts of time on branches away from the nest, only just visible to the camera. The youngest bird is still something of a homebody though and is staying in the nest.

 Which is not to say that once the chicks can fly we won't see them on the camera again. They will continue to hang around the nest as the parents will keep bringing in food for them. Eventually though they will have to fend for themselves, and so will disappear. Usually towards the beginning of August.