LIVE Wildlife Cameras

For Autumnwatch 2021 we’re hoping for a TV first - to bring live remote thermal camera images of the wildlife at Wild Ken Hill. The marshes are home to a huge number of wildfowl and waders; amongst them will be Marsh Harriers roosting. In Autumn, the overseas visitors are arriving - Wigeon and Teal will be coming in from Scandinavia and Russia to spend the wintering months benefitting from the milder British weather.

Five of the six species of deer found in Britain live at Wild Ken Hill. Fallow, Red, Muntjac, Roe, and Chinese Water Deer, and we hope to see what they’re up to with our remote and thermal cameras.

Cameras placed around and, in the river, and streams may spot Brown Trout, and if we’re lucky, the resident Beavers. Will we catch a glimpse of the kit born here in the summer - the first to be born in Norfolk in more than 600 years?

Pre-filmed Stories

As ever, Autumnwatch have produced a number of pre-recorded films covering the length and breadth of the country, bringing geographical diversity as well as a wide variety of animal, scientific and cultural stories.

Wasp Spiders, Devon

As Autumn takes hold on a heathland in Devon, the vibrant colours of heather may be fading but deep in the grasses a covert operation is underway. A female wasp spider is setting her trap. Her aim is to snare any unlucky insects that cross her path and she has positioned herself perfectly. As insects go about their daily business, one wrong turn and they could find themselves caught up in her sticky web with little chance of escape.

With lightning quick reactions, the female wasp spider wraps her prey in a band of thick, inescapable silk. She administers an immobilising bite which not only paralyses her prey but the venom turns it to a palpable mush before she ingests it. But just like the rest of the animal kingdom… there’s good reason for her efforts, as at this time of year she needs all the nutrients she can get as she prepares for the next generation.

Autumn Hedgerows

Autumn offers a berry bonanza for a whole host of our British wildlife and our hedgerows are a perfect spot to take advantage of its offerings. Dormice use the cover of night to feast, whilst squirrels and our resident and migrant birds make the most of the daylight hours to build up their energy reserves. There is however, one unlikely character in our freshwater rivers and waterways that is also making the most of Autumn’s blackberry bounty. Favouring areas with overhanging brambles and tree roots, chub lie in wait beneath the surface for the ripe offerings to fall. A seasonal treat for these savvy berry lovers.

BBC Children In Need, Northern Ireland

Fourteen year old Julia was diagnosed with a benign brain tumour at the age of 7. Not only did her family have to come to terms with this, but Julia’s mother was also diagnosed with cancer in 2016, 2018 and again in 2019. In the summer of 2020, Julia began suffering from migraines, her brain tumour had grown and needed an operation to remove it. Julia then had to undergo a lengthy process of chemotherapy. For both her and her family, the support offered by the cancer fund for children and BBC Children in Need has been invaluable. They offer retreats at Daisy and Narnia lodges in a beautiful setting in Northern Ireland, a place where individuals, groups and families are able to go to receive support and a place to be themselves. The support has allowed Julia and her family to continue living their best lives, including spending time outdoors, local walks and watching the seals hauling out on beaches.

Knot Spectacle, Norfolk

At RSPB Snettisham (close to Chris and Michaela at Wild Ken Hill) our cameras will capture one of the Britain’s most dramatic and exciting spectacles. It will be the chance to see UK wading birds - primarily Knot - in their hundreds and thousands, literally being pushed off the mudflats by the fast, incoming tide. They take off in one great throng, performing an incredible aerial show, a mass of swarming birds, only to settle a little further along the mud flat, for it all to happen again and again, until they must rest on the lagoon the other side of the sand bank when they are finally defeated by the incoming tide.

Wash Waders, Norfolk

Michaela Strachan will be in Norfolk helping with work to protect one of our most important areas for migratory birds. The Wash is the largest estuary system in the UK with muddy tidal creeks and rolling sand dunes, and at its peak can attract 300,000 waders and wildfowl... more than any other place in the UK. Species here include Oystercatcher, Curlew, Black-tailed Godwit, Grey Plover, Turnstone, Redshank to name but a few!

It’s a perfect pitstop for birds coming to and from far flung places like the Arctic, and Siberia to refuel on the rich buffet of crabs, cockles and inverts that the habitat has to offer. But to understand how the wildlife is doing, you have to catch them safely first…..

The Sound Of Fungi, Northern Ireland

Autumn is full of sound. The whoosh of a starling murmuration, the roar of a stag, and the crunch of leaves on the ground. But have you ever considered that Autumn speciality – Fungi - to be noisy? Yet they are, giving off bioelectrical signals which can be recorded. We join expert Michael Prime in Northern Ireland as he attempts to create a Fungi symphonic orchestra. And the star turn is a rarity - the octopus stinkhorn or devil's fingers. This beauty erupts and forms arms that unfold to reveal a pinkish-red interior covered with a dark-olive spore-containing gleba. In maturity it smells like putrid flesh. But most importantly, does it sound heavenly?!

Isi The Scribe, The Lake District

Throughout history, there’s been many an artist inspired by our outdoor spaces and wildlife. Autumnwatch is taking Isi the Scribe, who is a zoologist and spoken word artist, up to Cumbria where he hopes to see red squirrels in the wild for the first time. Badgers are another ambition.

Autumn is his favourite season, and Isi hopes to marry his animal knowledge with poetry to capture his experience of the mountains, lakes and wildlife in this stunning part of the country. He will also talk about how getting out in nature and particularly by water is beneficial to his well-being and mental health.

Mindful Moments

These short films allow some mindful escapism within the natural world without the distraction of music or commentary. This Autumn the subjects include badgers, brittlestars on the sea bed, red squirrels and the mesmerizing flocks of birds in our Welsh countryside.

Autumnwatch Digital

The Autumnwatch digital team are already running at full pace and will be providing a wealth of exciting extra content for those that just can’t wait for the BBC Two programmes.

We'll be bringing stories from the UK's wild places, right into living rooms, at a time of year when we might feel detached from the outdoors. Our live wildlife cameras will be streaming every day, with tales from the Norfolk rewilding project, bird-feeders and everything in between. You can tune in on iPlayer or at www.bbc.co.uk/autumnwatch, where you can also find lots of additional content.

Our audience are engaging with the natural world right outside their window and we want to see what they are seeing! We'll be showcasing the best of the footage and photos that our viewers send in, tagging @BBCSpringwatch on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

There will be extra clips not seen on TV, revealing the natural magic of Autumn as it arrives across the country, and regular highlight packages from the remote cameras will provide a more in-depth insight into the secret lives of the animals we are covering.

As ever, Watches’ digital team will be on hand to answer viewers’ wildlife-related questions on Facebook and Twitter, working with partner organisations and experts to respond to even the trickiest of inquiries.

Join us for what’s going to be a really exciting and colourful season. We can't wait to share with you just what we've got in store!