Chris Skinner's Countryside Podcasts Episode 2.38 - Nocturnal Flights and Honeyed Hives
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Sep 20, 2025 Join a twilight wander where bats perform aerial acrobatics against a dusky backdrop. Discover the thrill of a mast year as thousands of acorns blanket the ground, enticing jays to cache their treasures. Delve into an active apiary, witnessing bees transform ivy nectar into golden honey. Explore fascinating plant tropisms, learning how roots seek water and shoots defy gravity. This delightful journey through nocturnal mysteries and autumnal harvests perfectly captures the countryside's seasonal charm.
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Twilight Walk At Fox's Grove
- Chris describes a twilight woodland walk at Fox's Grove with his terrier Rat and an imagined guest beside him.
- He sets the scene for bat species present and the timing of their emergence around dusk.
Different Bat Niches Explained
- High Ash Farm hosts multiple bat species including pipistrelles, serotines, long-eared bats and noctules in different niches.
- Noctules often roost in hollow trees and fly high and straight to river valleys to forage.
Evening Corvid Roost
- Chris walks down a steep bank to listen for a large corvid roost and estimates 1,000–1,500 birds use the site.
- He ties the corvid roost into local movement toward Buckingham Fen, a major roosting site.