For many birdwatchers, autumn is the most exciting time of year. But what are they so excited about?

This month I’m rambling along the hedgerows. The pastoral landscape of England is defined by hedges – something rarely seen in the rest of the world – and Shropshire is well-blessed with them.

Birch trees are among the first to start showing their autumn colours – tinged with yellow even in September, and soon to be dropping a golden carpet of fallen leaves. I’m heading out in October…

There’s a great feeling of anticipation in birdwatching at this time of year. Passage migrants, by their very nature, are unpredictable, so you never know what you might see or where you might see…

Say “autumn” to someone with an interest in the natural world and there’s a good chance that person will immediately think of shortening days, falling temperatures, leaves changing colour before…

October is, for me, the beginning of autumn proper. Colder nights, dewy dawns and the chance of frost. I love it!

We’re not quite into autumn yet, but there are definite changes afoot, and I’m looking forward to them. This is a time of fruitfulness, with ripening apples, wild fruits aplenty and the year…

Berries are abundant in August and September and we are lucky to have several more unusual species in Shropshire.

Autumn is traditionally the time to tidy up your garden, ‘putting it to bed for winter’ as my grandfather would say. Times and attitudes have changed, and I’d like to put in a big plea for not…

Our best natural autumn spectacle is the changing colour of leaves in our woodlands. But why does this happen?