Autumn in Hartley Wintney

Autumn seems to have come early this year with the last two weeks of August feeling a bit chilly and wet. There is that slightly cold nip in the air, even on sunny days that I associate with the changing of the season. That’s not a problem for me as I love the autumn! The heath is looking especially beautiful with the Ling and Bell Heather in flower, the purple broken up with the bright spots of yellow Dwarf Gorse flowers. The wildlife of the heath and surrounding area is preparing for hibernation, fattening themselves up to last over the winter months. This can sometimes be the best time to spot wildlife as they are fairly active, hunting around for food.

For some it is also the mating season. On Hazeley Heath you can see small herds of Fallow Deer. These medium size deer are easily recognisable by their white spotted coats and white rump patch. The males also have flattened antlers. There are a few different colour varieties, including entirely black Fallow Deer, and the beautiful white Fallow that I often spot at the heath. Autumn heralds the start of the rut, kicking off in late September and peaking in October. The male deer or ‘bucks’ groan loudly during the rut to defend their territory and attract does. This display behaviour in males can escalate to parallel walking (sizing each other up!) or battling with antlers. Fallow Deer were introduced by the Normans in the 10th century, although some suggest that the Romans attempted to introduce it here much earlier. Fallow Deer were prized as ornamental species and were protected in Royal Hunting "Forests" for royal sport. During Mediaeval times many deer parks that held Fallow Deer were established and these and more recent park escapees have given rise to the free-living populations in Britain today. The Hazeley Heath herd are almost certainly escapees from Bramshill Police College. Our native Deer species the Roe can also be seen at Hazeley Heath. They are reddish brown in summer, becoming paler in the winter with short antlers. They mate in August, the female making a high pitched piping call to attract the males, who then make a rasping noise as he courts the female.

September can be one of the best times to spot reptiles. Hazeley Heath has a healthy population of Adders, Grass Snakes, Slow Worms and Common Lizards. Reptiles hibernate during the winter and tend to return to the same hibernacula site year on year.  In September young snakes are being born, but some adults will start returning to their hibernacula, ready for the winter. A hibernation site or ‘hibernacula’ has to be dry, free from frost, and safe from predators. Typical hibernacula include living root systems, unused burrow networks, and especially the root systems of trees that have been blown over and have then overgrown. By the end of September all snakes will be in close proximity to their hibernacula. In October they may still be active, but some will go into early hibernation. Juveniles have less time to be able to fatten up, so they mostly won’t enter hibernation until November. Some juveniles will follow scent trails to a different hibernacula site from their origin in order to avoid mating with their kin next season, thereby aiding genetic diversity within the species.

Over the summer our local ornithologist does a breeding bird survey on the heath. After last winters snow and cold weather we were not expecting particularly good results, but in some areas we were pleasantly surprised. The Dartford Warbler, that we were not expecting to see at all, had 2 breeding pairs in the Mattingley Parish end of the heath that has the majority of the European Gorse that they need for their habitat. There was also breeding Nightjar, Woodlark, Tree Pipit, Stonechat, Linnet and Yellowhammer over the rest of the heath. The Tree Pipit is a summer visitor to the UK and has been in severe decline for the last 25 years, and is now listed as Red Status by the RSPB. In 2001 we had 8 breeding pairs on the whole of the heath, this year we only had 1. Their preferred habitat is newly planted woodlands or open heath, and so it is important we preserve the heathland of Hazeley for the conservation of this species.

Autumn will also see the completion of the first year of the Hazeley Heath grazing trial. In October the wire from the temporary electric fencing will be removed as well as the gates for the winter months. The first year of the trial has had its ups and downs and teething problems as any new project would, but I think, all in all, it has been a good start to this 5 year project on the Hart District Council owned section of the heath. The grazing trial is being run to see if grazing is a more sustainable approach to the management of the heathland and if it is compatible with other uses of the heath. If you want to find out more information about the grazing trial you can read the grazing trial project proposal on the HDC website at www. hart.gov.uk/grazing_trial_draft_proposal.pdf or read the grazing trial sub-committee meeting minutes on the Hazeley Heath page of the website.

As for the rest of the Commons autumn is a fantastic time to see fungi. There are thousands of different species of fungi in the UK, some of them edible and some which are very poisonous. The Deathcap is the most poisonous fungi in Britain and it is also very common. It can be found in woodlands, especially with Oak trees. Poisoning by this deadly mushroom is characterised by violent vomiting, diarrhoea and severe abdominal pains while the toxins attack the liver and kidney cells. There is a delay of between 6 to 24 hours before any symptoms begin, by which time the damage has been done. After a day or two of sickness there is a period of apparent recovery, when the patient may feel they have escaped danger, but within another couple of days death results from organ failure. Despite years of research on the Deathcap mushroom, no antidote has ever been found. There are several other deadly poisonous species, some of them aptly named, including the Destroying Angel, the Panthercap, the Red-staining Fibrecap, Poisonpie, Fool’s Webcap and the Deadly Webcap, which in the past has been mistaken for Chanterelles. My advice would be to avoid picking wild fungi unless you are an expert! There are however plenty of British species that are very tasty and good to eat. The most common include Fairy Ring, Parasol, Field Blewit, Shaggy Inkcap and the Oyster mushroom.

The Hartley Wintney Commons are also a great habitat for bats, the crevices and cracks in the old Oaks creating perfect summer roosting sites. Autumn is a good time to see them. They are very active at this time of year as they are breeding as well as fattening themselves up for winter hibernation. During the breeding season the male bats of most UK species use special mating calls to attract females. Towards the end of the autumn bats will begin periods of torpor, when their bodies will shut down for short periods of time in order to save energy, before they enter long term winter hibernation.

Autumn also heralds the start of the winter season for the ranger team. The birds have finished breeding and we can begin our programme of winter works, including meadow cutting, scrub bashing, coppicing and more. If you would like to get involved with the conservation of your local nature reserve and do some volunteering, please email the countryside service on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it to find out more.