Guest blogger: Amy Martin, Information Assistant, Westonbirt Arboretum
The autumn colours are certainly starting to make an appearance here at Westonbirt - this Acer palmatum is a particular favourite of mine, and as it is just opposite the bird viewing area I've had the pleasure of watching its gradual changes over the last few weeks.
The birds, too, certainly seem to know that winter is on its way, and the bird viewing area is getting busier and busier with feathered visitors. There are still lots of young-looking birds around, and we've had up to eight young greenfinches all feeding at the same time!
Not too sure how to tell your greenfinches from you're goldfinches? Well don't worry! We've teamed up with Westonbirt to produce a rather handy bird id panel to make it easy for people to work out what they're watching. It's a great for people of all ages, but children have particularly been enjoying the chance to learn the names of the birds they see in the feeding area.
In other news, the RSPB have joined forces with Gloucestershire Bat Group, and this weekend will be delivering a bat walk! 14 species of bat have previously been recorded at Westonbirt, so we should be spoilt for choice for bats to see and hear! If you are interested in joining us on the walk (this Saturday 29th September), there are just a few tickets left now. £5 per person - enquiries and bookings through Amy Martin, amy.martin@rspb.org.uk. Otherwise I'll let you know how we got on next week!