Wildlife calendar February
In February there are some days when spring seems to be just around the corner, and others when winter keeps a tight grip.
New Forest badgers are clearing out the old bedding in their setts and bringing in fresh bracken and leaves in preparation for the arrival of their cubs. The youngsters will not go above ground until April or early May.
Badgers are quite widespread in the New Forest but unlike foxes they are seldom seen in daylight. An active sett has large spoil heaps, latrines and bedding near its entrances. Badgers and their setts are protected under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992.
Pools and streams are a good place to spot birds such as heron, little egret, goosander, moorhen, mallard and teal. Watch out also for one of the most exotic birds in the Forest – the drake (male) mandarin. Introduced from Hong Kong in the 1920s, these ornamental birds escaped from country estates and were first recorded in the New Forest in the 1960. They are now fairly common around ponds and pools and along woodland streams.
Frogs are emerging from their winter hiding places to make their way to water to begin spawning. Other signs of spring are hazel catkins and the new shoots of grass, nettles, bluebells, dog mercury, violets and cuckoo pint. You might see a few early-flowering primroses, wood anemones and lesser celandines in the woodlands at the end of the month.
Small birds such as nuthatches, tree creepers and different types of tits and finches can be seen more easily when the trees are leafless. They are feeding as much as they can at the end of the long winter and are delightful to watch. Listen out for increasing bird-song: thrushes are beginning to sing.
A mild February day will bring out insects that have survived hibernation, such as small tortoiseshell, peacock, red admiral and brimstone butterflies, as well as bumble bees, winter gnats and hoverflies.
In the coniferous woodlands, you might spot large ant hills constructed of twigs, leaf-stalks and pine needles. These can be almost a metre high and two metres in diameter and are built by southern wood ants, which are also beginning to emerge.
