For more information, move your mouse around the picture below
- some pictures link to other pages

Things to look out for in February

February can be a month of paradoxes: the mild, sunny days encourage us out and about, and within a few minutes, we are running to find shelter from the wind and rain! The occasional warm, sunny day may elicit some insect activity, and although February is the start of much plant and animal life, birds remain the most prominent.

In gardens and the countryside, the early morning air is filled with the songs of resident birds, such as mistle thrushes (Turdus viscivorus), blackbirds (Turdus merula), starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), robins (Erithacus rubecula), rooks (Corvus frugilegus), and lesser & greater spotted woodpeckers (Dendrocopus minor & D. major) to name but a few. Click here to find out more information about garden birds you may see. If you wish to feed garden birds, please remember that you should change the type of food throughout the year, as some food may be harmful to chicks. Click here for more information from the RSPB.

On coastal and inland waters, look out for the effects of the breeding season, which includes beautiful colour changes in wildfowl such as the shoveler (Anas clypeata), mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), wigeon (Anas penelope), and the graceful courtship dance of the great-crested grebes (Podiceps cristatus). Of all the wetland birds, the geese are most prominent.

Also look out for butterflies such as peacock (Inachis io), comma (Polygonia c-album) and brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni) on early flowers, or wood ants waking up, and catkins on budding trees.

You can also get involved nationally with 'Springwatch' with the BBC in conjunction with the UK Phenology Network.

Good places to visit in February

Elmley National Nature Reserve and RSPB Reserve

Jeffrey Harrison Memorial Trust Reserve, Sevenoaks

Kentish Stour Countryside Project area

Riverside Country Park, Gillingham