I MUST admit I have been something of a coward during the recent snow.

I have always been interested in the nocturnal life of our wild animals.

Many sleep in the daytime and are more active at night. At least they avoid direct competition with us, and our traffic.

I try to do a night watch at least once during each month of the year, but January 2013 was a problem until the last week when rain gave way to snow and ice.

My night began outside my front door when I heard the barking sound of a roe deer.

I had to be in the Lake District by 8am, and so I stopped close to Dallam Tower, at Milnthorpe, off the A6 road towards Kendal. As soon as I turned my headlights off, there was enough starlight for me to watch a herd of fallow deer wandering about feeding as they went.

There were some pale animals, but all are easily recognised by the prominent white patch on their rump.

Nobody knows for sure whether the herds of parkland fallow deer are native, or whether they were introduced.

Even then there is a confusion because some ‘experts’ say that they were introduced by the Romans, and others that they were brought by the Normans who loved to hunt them.

Others say they have been found in Britain as fossils. I don’t care because they are such beautiful creatures and very much part of Mother Nature’s wildlife.

Look out for signs of spring

AT this time of the year I look back at last year’s diary for April and think spring.

In April 2012 the wood anemone was looking at its best, and earning its name as the Wind Flower.

The Greek word for wind is anemos. These white flowers stand out against the greenery, and are common all over East Lancashire. The flowers shake in the slightest of breezes and are a welcome sight in spring.

Now is the time to look out for the first of the spring flowers, including snowdrop, butterbur, daisy and coltsfoot. Daffodils will begin to peep out before coming into flower.

Once spring has sprung, I start thinking about woodland walks and, although the beech is not the commonest species of tree in our area, it is easy to walk around.

Beech leaves decay very slowly, but as they do they produce a very acid soil.

Very few plants will grow in this soil and so the ground is free from undergrowth.

Some creatures love beech, especially the chaffinch and the grey squirrel. Both feed on beech nuts which are full of energy-rich oil.

In the old days, before we could buy furniture polish, beech nuts were crushed by using a rolling pin. The oil produced makes an excellent furniture polish!

Beaufort blew winds of change

AS the snow and ice of mid-January gave way to wind and rain, I began to think about how we record wind speed, and what damage gales can do.

If I was a squirrel leaping about in a gale of Force 9, I would stay at home in my drey and pray for the wind to abate.

The idea of a wind scale is credited to Sir Francis Beaufort, the Irish peer.

He made his list in 1805, which was Trafalgar year, and he eventually became a Rear Admiral. I do get a bit fed up when nobody seems to make their mind up regarding when to use feet, or metres. To convert wind speed, all you do is multiply the figures given, right, by 1.6.

It is said that the idea of publishing wind speeds was suggested by Daniel Defoe (1660-1731), but it was Beaufort who developed the system scientifically. The admiralty, however, have always been cautious and it was not until the 1830s that they finally accepted the system.

The first ship to use this measurement was HMS Beagle.

The Captain was Fitzroy and his naturalist was Charles Darwin.