A couple of weeks ago I was asked to give a lecture about the life of the dipper to a group of southern-based naturalists.

Their rivers flowed so slowly that most areas are not suitable for the dipper.

It loves fast-moving streams and rivers and is especially fond of waterfalls.

I told them to visit the Ingleton Waterfalls Walk which is well-signed, safety barriers are installed and there is a good car park and a cafe which is usually open. From East Lancashire it is best approached from Settle and is signed off the A65 road towards Kirkby Lonsdale.

Apart from a strong wind I was lucky with the November weather and my bird count was impressive. As well as no fewer than seven sightings of dipper, I saw grey and pied wagtails and heron and among the trees, nuthatch, great spilled wood pecker, treecreeper, Jay and three woodcock.

Even for those who are not birdwatchers, all day should be spent enjoying this “up and down” walk and here in my opinion are the best series of waterfalls to be found anywhere in England.

There is an entrance fee but when you see what has been spent to keep the walk safe it is worth every penny.

Sanderling had me fooled

I love it when nature proves me wrong and breaks all the rules.

This happened on November 21 when in horrible weather I visited St Annes to watch the winter waders.

At first I saw what I expected — lots of birds called sanderlings.

Their winter plumage is mostly white and they move in and out of the mud flats looking like little clockwork toys.

With them was a bird with a white front but with a beautifully brown patterned upper parts.

I was confused at first but then I realsied that this was a sanderling in summer breeeding plumage.

This is most unusual and I still don’t know if this plumage was because the bird was late to moult or had come into breeding condition early.

This is what I love about the study of natural history.

It always surprises you and this view was worth getting wet and windswept!

The sanderling is a dumpy little wader say about 20 cms long and is best seen on the beach between St Annes and Blackpool.

Its winter plumage is white and so the flocks stand out clearly even on the dullest of days.

I wonder what the other birds made of a summer visitor?

Diving beetle a jaw-some sight

IT may seem strange but the best time to study waterway wildlife is in the winter.

Many insects spend the summer on the wing but they lay eggs in the water and their early life as larvae is spent in our rivers, ponds and canals.

Some of these aquatic insects are fierce predators and none more so than the Great Diving Beetle.

Some have described this as the shark of British ponds.

The scientific name for this Beetle is Dytiscus marginalis.

The marginalis piece refers to the yellow borders around its thorax and its wing cases which are called the Elytra. When it is time to mate the beetles emerge from the water and can fly to colonise near ponds.

Great diving beetles do not hibernate and, although it is only about one-and-a-half inches long, its jaws are powerful enough to rip a fish to pieces.

It is worthwhile at this time of year to do a pond dip using a cheap net and a white plastic dish to view your catch. Do not pick up a Great Diving Beetle as it can inflict a painful bite.

Be sure to put it back where you found it because these days we should all be conservationists.