Out & About Summer 2021

What the river keeper saw NICK RICHARDS marvels at the mayflies and other wildlife, signallling summer is on its way, and welcomes back the fishing community. N ick Richards is the river keeper for the Barton Court Estate, near Kintbury.

T he last few weeks have been challenging for all who work in the rural economy but even this sodden and frigid spring has delivered some great delights. The nesting pair of kites continue to entertain and astonish with their mastery of the sky and I was privileged to witness a food pass from one to the other directly above my head and almost within touching distance a few weeks ago. The weather has thrown some staggering blows at the nesting birds with coldest and wettest making it Theriverisanimportantenvironmental resourceandNick’sroleistomaintainthe ecologicalstructureofthelandaroundit. He is responsible for two and a half miles of river bank and plans his days based on the weather and, in fishing season, times when anglers are booked in.

into the headlines and I haven’t yet heard if windiest can be added to that list. I fear that the recent high winds exacted a heavy toll on songbird fledglings, but others have been more successful. The grey wagtails nesting in the structure of one of my bridges have brought off a first brood and while these well grown youngsters are becoming more independent, their mother is again sitting on eggs. The cuckoos are less vocal now and I have had fewer sightings in the last week or two. Their call coupled with the drumming of the greater spotted

woodpeckers inspire confidence that the summer is truly on its way. The river is a dynamic and enthralling environment of changing colours and sounds with an often fast-changing cast of characters. Nothing epitomises this better for me than the arrival of the hirundines – the swallows, martins and swifts animate the meadows and the atmosphere of the valley changes and begins to feel more complete for me. There is a breathless joy in watching the swallows and martins making their perilous swooping manoeuvres to bathe and drink from the river’s surface and the seemingly effortless grace and speed of the screaming swifts as they hawk insects from the grass tops up into the vanishing blue heights. The tree canopy is still thin and bud break is severely delayed in many aged specimens. I fear for the more ancient ash trees. The profusion of Alder Beetles that were such a feature of last summer have overwintered in terrestrial vegetation and their brilliant blue-black elytra (wing cases) have bejewelled the grass in sunny spells. Instinct and hunger have combined to drive them upwards into the Alder trees and the foliage is already more shot-holed than the canvas of HMS Victory at Trafalgar. While the beetles are a plentiful and

Trout trying to catch mayflies on the River Kennet

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O&A SUMMER 2021