A month of rapidly cooling temperatures, nights dropping to minus 20. And with the sub-zero, an impressive collection of birds at my feeders, not least a Hazel Grouse and a grand total of seven species of woodpecker, including Three-toed Woodpecker and five White-backed Woodpeckers.

Equally impressive have been the mammals - highlights including a Polecat in the first week, both Stone and Pine Martens on a nightly basis and one Beaver active despite the snow and ice. Also a Yellow-necked Mouse on my feeders.

With the purchase of a trip cam in summer 2012, my eyes were opened to a whole new world, a privileged glimpse into the happenings of the night.

Placing the camera at carefullly chosen localities on my land in Labanoras, the results have been little short of amazing - Wild Boars galore, Raccoon Dogs, Badgers, both Pine and Stone Martens, an unexpected Polecat ...the camera truly has begun to reveal the secrets of this otherwise secret nocturnal world.