A Wild Halloween
Wildlife Trusts
Partner organisation of the Watches
Halloween is a time for magic, myths and monsters. But you don’t need to turn to the creations of Hollywood for your fright night fix - nature has creatures every bit as creepy, kooky, mysterious and spooky.
If you watch a horror movie this Halloween, there’s a good chance you’ll hear the haunting ‘huhuhuhoo’ of a tawny owl. For decades this sound has added atmosphere to spooky scenes of impending terror, but you don’t need to visit a ghost-filled graveyard to hear it! On autumn evenings the real thing can be heard echoing through woodlands, parks and even gardens as tawny owls defend their territories.
The classic creepy creature is one of our closest neighbours, their eight long legs sending shivers down the spines of many people. We’re all familiar with the house spiders that scurry along skirting boards, but the UK is home to an incredible variety of spectacular spiders – around 650 species! There’s the tiny, black-and-white striped zebra jumping spider, that can leap more than ten times its body length, and the diving bell spider that spins its own silk submarine, filling it with air to create an underwater home.
In autumn, male house spiders are wandering in search of a mate, which is why we often see more of them in our homes. If this is a frightening prospect for you, spare a thought for the poor male, doomed to die after mating. Unlike him, you’re in no danger as spiders are unlikely to bite unless roughly handled – and very few are even capable of biting a human, with those that do inflicting minimal damage.
For myths and legends, look no further than our forest fungi. With spectacular names like earthstar, destroying angel and amethyst deceiver, the world of fungi is one of fantasy. The origins of some names are obvious, like the evil-smelling devil’s fingers, with its blood-red tentacles reaching up from the ground like a demonic starfish. Others carry more mystery, like the witch’s butter fungus. Legend has it that if this wavy orange-yellow fungus grows on the door of a house, a witch has cursed the family within.
Nature has an endless array of tricks and treats on offer, so what weird wild wonders will you discover this Halloween?
