Country diary: Winter is loosening its grip as spring takes flight

Tunstall valley, Weardale: Curlews are returning to the dale, and it is a joyous sightThe first day of meteorological spring has passed, but spring pays little heed to the calendar; it tiptoes in with hesitant steps. Hazel catkins, early this year and battered by February's storms, have withered already; snowdrops are mud-spattered by heavy rain; lesser celandine flowers open as the sun melts overnight frost. And now, curlews are returning to the dale.I could hear their plaintive calls well before they appeared over the pines - more than 40 birds, a heartening, joyous sighting of a red-listed species that is becoming scarcer. They wheeled in a wide circle, dangling long legs in their steep descent into the sheep pasture, landing with a few quick running steps before regaining their poise and probing for worms with elegant curved bills. Continue reading...