Category: Wildlife

We were excited to be part of a survey conducted by Devon Wildlife Trust to monitor the population of the rare Greater Horseshoe Bat. Harewood Farm is near to the closely guarded location of one of the largest colonies of these endangered bats in Northern Europe. The Trust is seeking to gather more information about their habits and numbers.

Over the space of 2 nights in May these were the results of a survey in our entrance field using a bat detector. The device monitors calls and can decipher bat species by their unique frequency range.  Much to our delight the Greater Horseshoe Bat made 3 visits along with other species we had no idea visited our land. The Common Pipistrelle are often seen flying about close to the house but the Greater Horseshoe avoids un-natural light and is rarely seen near dwellings. We’re so pleased Harewood is part of it’s habitat.

We hope to be doing more in the future to further improve the conditions here at Harewood for these amazing creatures.

You can find out more about the project  at the Greater Horseshoe Bat Project

Back in May we started work on a new area near the polytunnel. When it came to moving an old pile of compost we found this gorgeous chap.

One of the joys of living at Harewood is the reconnection with many of the creatures I knew as a child but that have sadly diminished in the urban environment. The Slow Worm that fascinated me in those long ago summers appear to be common here.

And then there are the animals, insects and birds that this townie never knew as a kid that are here to delight and intrigue me. I often marvel at the diversity of birds that come to our feeder… The Nuthatch and the Woodpecker, all the colourful finches and even the House Sparrow which seemed to have disappeared from our old Brighton home.

This year we harvested late and the tall seeded Nap Weed fed a Charm of Gold Finches which wheeled about the fields in murmurations.

More about what we’ve discovered flapping around our meadows next…