The cold weather has finally arrived and while we had a few early fieldfares both they and the redwings are now arriving in serious numbers.
Their collective handiwork on the fruit, ably assisted by other birds, can be seen on the trees and on the ground in the orchards, already some hawthorn bushes have been stripped of their juicy red haws.
Is it a sign of another hard winter? Some say yes and some inevitably say no, but when the waxwings arrive we'll know it's getting serious.