As autumn arrives across the Yorkshire Wolds, the countryside undergoes a dramatic transformation. With the harvest wrapping up, tractors are out cultivating fields—and the shift in the agricultural landscape dictates how local wildlife survives. Taking to the skies with my drone, I get a bird's-eye view of how farming and wildlife intertwine at this time of year.
An Autumn Banquet
Flocks of gulls and thousands of migratory golden plovers descending on newly turned soil for an easy meal.
But for some wildlife, the plough is unsafe. Watch as a brown hare breaks cover when a tractor gets too close. Some stubble fields are left over winter, and these provide hunting grounds for buzzards and kestrels, as well as vital feeding stops for pink-footed geese arriving from the Humber Estuary to feed on spilled grain.
Farming practices don't just change the view—they create essential seasonal lifelines for our resident and migratory British wildlife.
