THE early signs of autumn are creeping across the Wee County like an unstoppable wave, and no more so than down by the River Devon, where the pom-pom-like seedheads of creeping thistles sweep across the banksides in a downy sea.

Their purple flowers are long-gone and have now transformed into fluffy balls, and when the wind blows, the seeds will be swept away into the air on their parachutes of long 'hair'.

Creeping thistle is an important plant in the overall ecological scheme of things, with their purple flowers earlier in the year attracting many butterflies and other pollinators.

Rowan trees in the glens and gullies of the Ochils are hanging heavy with glistening red berries, and by the edge of nearby woodlands, guelder-rose berries are ripening with haste.

This shrub often prefers areas of damp ground, hence its old name of swamp elder. The drooping berries often stay hanging after the leaves have dropped in autumn.

On the River Devon, the first salmon are now entering the estuary at Cambus before running up-river to their gravelly spawning beds. Salmon in the Devon are traditionally late runners, with most not entering the river until September or October.

Warblers such as blackcaps and whitethroats are silently slipping away to their wintering grounds in the south, and sand martins will be gathering in places like Gartmorn Dam in preparation for their autumn migration to warmer climes.

Hopefully, the autumn will be more benign than the wet, cold spring and summer our wildlife has endured this year.

Leading wildlife charity Butterfly Conservation has revealed very low numbers were spotted in this year's annual Big Butterfly Count. On average participants are seeing just over half the number of butterflies they were spotting this time last year.

The unusually wet and windy spring, coupled with the colder than usual temperatures this summer have contributed to the lack of butterflies. Butterflies (and many other insects) need warm and dry conditions to be able to fly around and mate.

If the weather doesn't allow for this there will be fewer opportunities to breed.

Paradoxically, and in broader terms, the impact of climate change has seen some butterfly species increase their range in Scotland, including the speckled wood, which is much more frequent in the Clackmannanshire than it used to be.

This year I have seen my first holly blue and small skipper butterflies in Scotland, both of which have expanded their ranges from the south.