This morning, I
saw a greater spotted woodpecker in an oak tree and
watched it as it started drumming. This is the first
drumming that I have heard this year. The sound should
become increasingly common in the coming weeks. Nearby, a
green woodpecker was calling, with its familiar 'yaffle',
from a large ash tree, in which green woodpeckers have
nested successfully in the past. The green woodpecker did
what Now is a good time for learning to identify trees when they are without their leaves. A walk around your own 'patch' allows you to take a close look at trees which you already know the identity of. Features such as size, shape, growth habit and type of bark are all useful when identifying trees in winter but, on this page, I have concentrated on the twigs. There are also some twigs on earlier pages. Watch for clusters
of brown, scaly buds on oak trees (December 28th) and you may see various types of galls,
such as the ones shown above. Some buds make quite a
contrast with their supporting twigs, such as the black
buds on greyish green ash twigs and the green buds on the
darker |