For me it's not been a classic period for nature watching recently. Dark when I leave the house, dark when I return so not much opportunity to photograph birds and beasties. But I have noticed a few things all the same.

• It's finally got properly cold, with snow hitting much of the country in recent days. I'm not convinced the second/third flush of strawberries growing in my garden will ever ripen now!
• I haven't seen a single Redwing or Fieldfare this winter, which is unusual. I heard of them being in the country a month or two ago, but I've not seen any evidence of them.
• Similarly the bird feeders in my garden have been relatively quiet. The most notable birdlife is Long tailed tits, Robins and Blackbirds recently. Plus Sparrows, Blue tits and Great tits as ever. They're the boiled potatoes of birds in my garden.
• Magpies can sometimes be heard quite late (e.g. 10pm) shouting from the trees. I'm not sure at what – perhaps at cats or each other.
• There weren't nearly as many big brown house spiders running across my living room floor of an evening over recent months compared to years past.