TellUs: Natural Wonders of Autumn!

The beautiful wonders that occur in the Autumn-time

Autumn is that wonderful time of year where the temperatures begin to drop, the nights draw in quicker and the leaves embrace the ground. Oranges, mochas and golds cultivate the landscape and hot chocolates defiantly become more appealing. 

Autumn is an important time of year for the Earth as well. The Earth is extremely intelligent and nature once again shows us a glimpse of its wonders.

Hopefully this blog will get you in the autumn, cosy spirit and provide a new-found appreciation for the beautiful Mother Earth! Sit back with your cosy jumper, hot chocolate and blanket and lets get into it!

Trees snuggle up for winter

Beautiful autumn trees (Source: Daily Mail)

Starting with the most obvious sign that our good-friend autumn has arrived, is the change in colour palette we experience in the landscape. Why does this happen though? 

So the tree’s start to realise that they need to prepare for the winter. Shorter days and cooling temperatures mean there is not enough light for photosynthesis to occur. As their food production systems start closing down, the green pigment (chlorophyll) reduces. This allows the stunning yellow and orange pigments to shine through. After some time the leaves all fall, to prepare fully for winter and aren’t seen again until the new year.

Fungi fun-time

Fungi in full-force! (Source: Countryfile)

We’ve experienced the warmth of the summer and now the dampness of the autumn begins to set in. This creates an eruption of mushrooms and toadstools! They emerge from logs to forest floors to fields and they come thick and fast. 

What we then see are our little fungi’s preparing to release their spores that give rise to the next generation of fungi’s. In the UK alone there are around 15,000 species of fungi all with ranging features, sizes, colours and shapes. However be aware as many are extremely poisonous, so don’t go picking them willy-nilly or even touching them!

A nutty treat

Conkers are probably the most well-known autumn-related nut! (Source: Countryfile)

What we also picture when we mention autumn is a cute, little squirrel munching on a nut in our back garden. Well, there’s a reason for this! The autumn season provides an abundance of fruits, nuts and seeds into the world. These tasty, treats are a huge hit for an array of animals who want to increase their fat reserves for the winter and their hibernation. Also we’re a fan! 

Many animals and birds love fruits such as blackberries, rose-hips, sloes, crab apples, elderberries and haws. Acorns are a firm favourite of jays and squirrels, which they 'cache', for the winter.

Misty mornings

A beautiful misty morning! (Source: BBC)

Cooling temperatures, prolonged nights and an increased moisture in the air creates the perfect recipe for a misty morning! It becomes the perfect time of year to walk your dogs in the stunning fields, parks and open spaces that the country has to offer. Why not research some lovely nature walks around your area and enjoy the outside!

Friendly faces

Parade of starlings! (Source: Mike O'Carroll/ Alamy Stock Photo)

Hundreds of thousands of starlings flock together in parade-style and come together as one! This event coincides with the autumn and winter seasons over many fields and woodlands. 

The reason for this display is to seek out their communal roosting site for the long nights, so make sure you take a look for them just before dusk! Also it’s assumed that they gather together for protection from predators. Also they need to keep warm and pass on their knowledge about good feeding sites.

Sweet ivy

Ivy and its delicious berries! (Source: Naturespot)

As we know many plants lay to rest in the autumn time and await their spring blooming. However for the ivy it is their time to bloom! These yellow-green flowers are an essential source of nectar for bees and butterflies before they hibernate. The berries produced are great food sources for birds when most other fruits have disappeared at this time.

As ivy is a vital food source for the wildlife, so recording the timing of the flowering and fruiting needs to be monitored to help assess the effects of any changes occurring within ecosystems. Perhaps you may like to record ivy yourself and take part in a Nature’s Calendar which can be found online and is so important for research purposes!

The UK Airbnb

Bird migration! (Source: The Wildlife Trust)

The UK turns into a bit of a bird Airbnb around this time of the year! Birds such as swallows, swifts and cuckoos leave the country to migrate to warmer countries for the autumn and winter seasons. As they depart tens of millions of other bird species arrive from places such as Scandinavia, the Arctic and northern Europe where winters are a lot more harsh. The UK provides a warmer climate for these birds and food is easier to find. Such birds include thrushes (fieldfares and redwings), swans, ducks, geese, wading birds and water birds that migrate to the coast. The BBC have a wildlife migration hotspot page where you can look at these travel patterns for yourself and in more detail!

I hope you enjoyed this autumn-themed blog and that you’ve been inspired to appreciate your surrounding, the animals and nature in its purest form! 

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Check out my previous blog: https://www.tellusabouttheenvironment.com/2019/10/tellus-planet-committed-to-sea-level.html