August is the last month of summer and is of course the summer holidays. This gives you time to look at the abundant nature around you!

Even though it is still summer, you may notice that some trees are starting to change colour. Some trees such as sycamore and field maple will start to drop their seed. These two species from the maple family have winged seed that is carried by the wind so that the tree can disperse the seed farther away from the adult tree and has more chance of growing and becoming new saplings. If you throw the winged seed up in the air you will see it acts rather like a helicopter and can move quite a distance if there is a strong wind. This is one method plants use to spread their seed.

Some trees such as elderberry, blackthorn, hawthorn and wild dog rose have berries now. Of course, probably the favourite of everyone is blackberry which is ripening now and gives us 'free food'.

Of course, most flowers in fields and meadows are past their best as far as colour goes but they are seeding so that there will be a lovely array of colour next year. There are still some plants that have flowers on them and these attract butterflies such as meadow brown, large whites, small skippers and many more of our well known favourites such as peacock and red admiral.

Other insects that you often hear in the long grass but are difficult to see are grasshoppers. The most common grasshoppers in the UK are common green, common field and meadow grasshoppers. These are camouflaged by being green or brown and merge into their backgrounds.

You may notice that especially on hot, dry days that there are swarms of flying ants. These are the female black ants that have temporary wings which after a short flight they bite off again. They fly around looking for new places to colonise.

While the ants are flying around you may notice that the swallows and house martins are flying around enjoying catching and eating them. It really is a feast time for them! Sometimes in August large flocks of swallows and house martins are lined up on telephone wires preening themselves. This is because at this time of year they are moulting, gradually replacing their old feathers with new ones. Young house martins are emerging from their nests but may return if the weather gets bad. Most swifts have left for their return journey to Africa for the winter.

It is not only house martins that still have their young around. Wood pigeons may still be sitting on a second brood of eggs and starlings and jackdaws may still be feeding their young in the nest.

The ripening wheat and barley attracts large flocks of house sparrows that feed on the seeds.

Wading birds such as knot, bar-tailed godwit and plover are returning to river estuaries after breeding on wetlands, higher ground or farther north in the UK. They will now remain here until the winter is over.

If the weather is nice you may visit the seaside. If there are any rock pools, have a look and see what is living in there. The rock pools are filled with water when the tide goes out and many creatures get stranded in these amazing little habitats. You may see shrimps, snails, crabs, sea anemone and even goby fish. The most common shell you see stuck to the rock is the limpet. These hold on tight and are sealed to the surface of the rock so that when the tide goes out and they are exposed to the air, they don't dry out. They wait until the tide covers them again and then they go off to feed on algae amazingly enough returning to the same spot as they have left, resealing themselves on the same rock until they go off to feed again. Science has not really yet discovered how they know where to return to and it is still a mystery of nature.

Please remember that if you go rock pooling and put live animals into a bucket to return them to the same rock pool before you leave the beach.

This is the month of hay making and the grass in the meadows being cut after the wild flowers have dropped their seeds for next year. Even so, some orchids such as the fragrant orchid, the pyramid orchid and the common spotted orchid can still be seen flowering. Along the hedgerows are plants such as traveller’s joy which is also known as 'old man's beard' because of the long, grey, hairy plumes seen throughout winter. Hedge parsley, nettle, brambles and foxglove are amongst the other plants that can be seen now.

Rosebay willow herb is a plant seen in open woods, heaths and waste ground. This plant is also known as 'fire weed' because it was one of the first plants to grow on bomb sites after the Second World War. Plants like this are called colonisers as they often grow where the soil conditions on ground we sometimes refer to as 'brown field sites'. These are areas where buildings have been demolished.

Many plants at this time of the year are blue or purple such as harebell, black knapweed and herbs such as marjoram, basil and thyme. The brambles have blackberries already on them although they are not yet ready to eat!

Of course, the flowers attract many butterflies and day flying moths. Buddleia with its long, fragrant flowers attract butterflies such as red admiral, cabbage white and tortoiseshell, and that is why it is also known as the 'butterfly bush'. It is a very good plant to have in your garden as it also attracts bumblebees.

On warm nights in the countryside it is possible to watch the fireflies dancing above the ground. These are winged beetles and the males produce a light, which can be yellow, green or pale red, to search and attract the female which does not fly. Another name for firefly is 'lightning bug'.

If you look under hedges around sunset, it may be possible to see the bright glow of the female glow worm. This is also a beetle and the female glows much brighter than the male. The glow that comes from the abdomen of the female glow worm attracts the male but also warns predators to stay away as it is poisonous.

Other insects that can be seen now are the dragonflies, especially the large broad bodied chasers aggressively chasing each other above ponds, rivers or wet ditches, and damselflies that are seen more above standing water.

Some birds may be having a second brood now. Young birds such as mallard, moorhen and coot are still with their parents but are mostly feeding themselves now. The cuckoo, the first of the summer migrants are leaving for the long flight back to Africa for winter. The adults leave in July while the young leave later. Flocks or charms of goldfinches often sing from high up in trees or from the tops of thistle stems.

Yellow hammer with their well known song, 'a-little-bit-of-bread-and-no-cheese' and the stonechat that sounds like two pebbles being bashed together, can be heard on top of hedges. If you look up in the sky, the swallows, swifts and house martins are chasing the flying insects. It is a particularly good feast for them when the flying ants take to the air.

Hedgehogs can be heard snuffling around the garden. It is good to feed them but always give them cat food or special hedgehog food (sometimes sold in pet shops now) and water. Never give them bread or milk as it is bad for them.

When you go out for a walk, look out for reptiles warming themselves up in sunny spots especially south facing banks. If you are very quiet you may see an adder or grass snake. The grass snake is completely harmless and the adder will only bite if you step or fall on it. Most of the time they just want to slither away!

So get your books out and cameras and go out and see what you can find!