Harvest Moon—26 September 2026

The day of the Harvest Full Moon—full moons always feel deeply magical, not only because we use the biodynamic planting calendar but also because you can sense the shift of energy downwards into the earth.

Merlin picked up eighteen birds:

Wren, robin, house martin, blue tit, house sparrow, chaffinch, great tit, chiffchaff, blackbird, coal tit, white wagtail, grey wagtail, song thrush, great spotted woodpecker, long-tailed tit, goldfinch, dunnock and jackdaw.

Both white and grey wagtails are among the suggested identifications. Despite their names, the easiest way to tell them apart is not the colour of their backs but the grey wagtail’s flash of yellow beneath—little help when listening rather than looking, I know.

Merlin missed the heron which I heard call as it was flying over the riverbank. Yes, the heron’s one of the four bird calls I can remember.

So that’s nineteen birds altogether. And yes—the house martins are still here.

Birds are identified mainly by sound using the Merlin Bird ID app. The list is a record of what the app detected rather than a confirmed survey, so occasional misidentifications are possible—especially with unexpected or particularly exotic visitors.