STORMY BUT MILD WINTER

Further stormy weather has left people and wildlife with problems over the festive period – not that the wildlife knows much about the festivities.

I’m noticing an increase in the small birds taking shelter in the garden, particularly when the really wet and windy weather sets in.

While this weather provides certain problems for wildlife, the really cold weather of winter will give wildlife even bigger problems because of the lack of food and unfrozen clean water.

Of course the cold weather is yet to arrive and the winter has been fairly mild so far – even if some people think it has been very cold already.

I think I’ve only had five frosts on my car and none were particularly bad.

The one thing the wind does is move the leaves that I’d placed on the borders – as a protection blanket from the cold weather – and also some of the horse manure too.

It means a little bit of extra work to put everything back and provide cover for the small wildlife from the cold and ensure a plentiful supply of food when the breeding season starts in spring.

The next job for the garden is installing the second nest box camera in the sparrow nest box and hope they use it again in 2014. I suspect one of the three sections that make up the nest box will be used because of the number of tree and house sparrows that flock in to the garden every day.

Time will tell, although I’ll be waiting for the wind to stop before getting up my ladder to fix the camera!

RARE WINTER VISITOR IN MY GARDEN

The snow may not have hit us, well apart from the highest mountains, but the wind and rain have certainly made their presence felt.

Watching the weather forecast for the next week and Christmas, it looks like we’ll all get hit by storm after storm, which isn’t good for us or the wildlife we share our space with.

While many people would rather we did without the cold, snow and ice, I rather enjoy these conditions in winter – it shouldn’t happen in spring or autumn for me though.

It gives the chance for wildlife to rest, for bugs to be killed off and for us to enjoy watching trails of wildlife that may have passed in our gardens or on our streets during the night.

Today I watched a first in my garden as a pair of redwing scouted around for food. I can’t recall a time when I’ve seen them anywhere near my house, so today was a real treat.

They only stayed for about ten minutes, but I hope they return during the rest of winter.

The blue tits and great tits are now regulars on my feeders, while the house sparrows and tree sparrows continue to visit daily.

A robin is starting to call from the trees and bushes, presumably staking my garden as part of his territory.

The blackbirds are also returning, although other birds are still reluctant to venture from the natural food supplies.

I’m really looking forward to when the long tailed tits make a visit, as they show that winter is really with us and the natural food supply is low.

Until then I’ll be on the lookout for more redwing and even the odd fieldfare. I think a waxwing is probably out of the question.

STORMY WEATHER BRINGS CHAOS TO WILDLIFE

It’s been a week of shocking weather that has badly affected our wildlife.

Firstly the extremely strong winds that battered the country, swiftly followed by the storm surge that has hit both humans and wildlife.

Hundreds of grey seal pups washed away along the North Sea coasts and I’m sure many birds have been blown off course or away from their intended targets.

My garden hasn’t seen too much negativity, apart from the temporary greenhouse that blew over and the dead leaves that I’d covered the borders with being blown all over the place – more work to fix that required.

What has happened has been more birds frequenting the feeders in the garden since the weather abated.

Throughout the weekend the visits from blue tits, great tits, robins, blackbirds, dunnocks, tree sparrows and house sparrows has increased rapidly.

The weather hasn’t got colder so I can only assume that the strong winds meant they didn’t want to travel far and a good food supply, that is found in my garden, with good areas of cover is the best place to be for now.

Perhaps next week they’ll disperse into the countryside again and utilise the natural food supply – only time will tell.

Christmas is just over two weeks away, but it doesn’t have the feel of winter and therefore Christmas just yet – then again maybe that’s just me.

It means that the final vegetable in my garden will be excavated and hopefully enjoyed by the family during the Christmas Day meal. Once the parnsips are dug up I’ll put some pics up to show whether it’s been a success.

As for the weather, it looks like a mild(ish) week and fairly quiet for the wildlife, which is not too bad after last week’s one in 200 year event!

IS WINTER COMING THIS YEAR?

December is already upon us, but we’re yet to see any really cold weather engulf the country.

There is promised to be a short spell of cold weather, not very cold, this weekend, although that is not expected to last too long.

So what affect will this mild-ish start to winter have on our flora and fauna?

Last weekend I saw flowers emerging from one of the garden bushes, which is highly unusual, and I’m wondering if my horse manure and leaf covered borders and rockery will simply give all the bulbs I planted a false warning about spring.

The rose bush that forms a hedge to one part of the garden has also produced flowers in the last week and while most of the trees have dropped their leaves, I do think some of our plants could be hit by the bitter coldness of winter just when they think it’s spring.

This isn’t something I’m concerned about with the birds, although they still aren’t coming in to the garden in large numbers despite plenty of food for them.

The odd blue tit, great tit, robin and blackbird have been seen feeding, but it’s still mainly the house and tree sparrows making use of my feeders.

I’ll soon know when it’s tough for them because the long tailed tits will visit the garden that is when I really know the natural food supply is in short stock.

One bird I’ve seen a lot of recently, although at a distancer in the field next to my garden, is a whimbrel - at least I think it is. I’ve seen it feeding in groups of up to ten for about a week now and intend to get some pictures when I’m here in the daytime and have more time to use the diminishing daylight to get some snaps. I'll also be taking my binoculars to make sure my thoughts are correct.

Until then I’ll keep an eye on the weather forecast and see how long it takes the small birds to flock to my feeders.

PREPARING FOR THE WINTER FREEZE

Frosts, fog and ice scrapers have been the order of this week, which is why I’m pleased that my garden is ready for winter – and also next spring.

The fallen leaves from a couple of the small trees have provided the borders with a covering of nature’s own fertiliser, while crocus, snowdrop, daffodil and tulip bulbs have been planted in the non-veg areas.

Added to that is the horse manure from a local farm and I’m hoping for a very colourful and early start to spring in the garden.

There is still pruning to do and the dismantling of the temporary greenhouse, but I can do nothing more to help the garden been in the best condition to see it through the coldest season of the year.

One more thing I’ll be doing is fixing the second bird camera to the sparrow nestbox and I hope this is in place by Christmas.

The other camera is still working, well it is at this point of writing, and it’ll be interesting to see when any birds make use of it to roost.

I’ve started to see a couple of blackbirds in the garden and the sparrows, both tree and house have made daily visits, but there’s not been more birds visiting recently.

It’s hard to actually tell to be fair, as most days of the week I’m not here in daylight.

Perhaps a new batch of peanuts will tempt a few more species in, although the fat snacks haven’t had that effect. That said they are being eaten, just not when I’m around.

As we near December and the potential for even colder weather, I suspect the numbers and species of birds will increase – as will my vigilance to the menace of the local cats.

THE BIRDS ARE STILL STAYING AWAY

The birds have started to come back into the garden in the last few days as winter starts to send early messages about the cold weather to come.

The great tits and blue tits have been fighting with the tree sparrows and house sparrows over the right to feed from the fat snack in the garden.

Occasionally a dunnock has appeared and nipped in to get any tasty parts of the fat snack that has flown off while the others have been squabbling.

Apart from the fleeting glimpse of a robin and the evening warning calls from the blackbirds, other birds have so far stayed away.

The jays that were seen frequently near the garden in September and part of October are now nowhere to be seen.

A large beech mast harvest might be the reason why the jays have not been sighted recently, which also makes me think that other natural food resources are in good supply.

One or two reports are suggesting that this winter could be particularly brutal for wildlife with predictions of severe snowfall and very cold temperatures blanketing the country.

If this materialises – and I’m quite sceptical – then people will need to watch out for all wildlife and help out where possible, including providing shelter through nestboxes, food with fat snacks, peanuts and seeds, while also remembering that clean, unfrozen water is essential for birds and other animals.

HORSE MANURE, HARVESTING AND CATS

Another trip to get horse manure – this time three heavy bags of it – and I was ready to get started on the garden again.

The only negative was being struck by an energy-sapping head cold, which meant I was shattered last night and tonight after spreading all that manure.

I harvested the last of the carrots and potatoes, leaving only the parsnips left in the ground. With the colder nights starting to bite, it won’t be long before they come up to – hopefully they’ll last until Christmas.

Once again this weekend I’ve been turning the soil over in the planting areas, trimming back the dead plants and generally giving the garden a good platform to over-winter in a good condition.

This time I wasn’t followed around by a robin, which did surprise me given the huge amount of worms that I was ‘working’ with.

The bird population doesn’t seem to be visiting the house in any numbers I thought they would be, apart from the seemingly combined flocks of house and tree sparrows.

The blue and great tits have been making the most of the remaining sunflowers, foraging on the seeds.

I’ve not seen a blackbird for a few weeks, although I have heard them, while the evening often brings a large number of birds, including chaffinches and goldfinches, to the area with trees and bushes – which also contain one of my bird feeders.

I do wonder if the natural food supplies or the plethora of cats in a couple of the houses here are to blame for the lack of activity from the birds. I suspect it’s a bit of both, but hope that when the colder conditions begin, the birds do make the most of the food I provide for them.

Some of the cats – from a house that doesn’t look after them properly – seem to be making more of an effort to get into my garden around the feeders. I’m making sure that when I see them they are chased away, which doesn’t make too much of a difference.

Perhaps new tactics are required, which frustrates me because why should I, or any other nature lover, have to work at deterring cats from their garden?

It’s a dilemma that many people face and one I think needs addressing overall, particularly in my garden.

Let’s hope the natural food supplies keep the birds with enough food, before they have to dodge the cats to get food from my garden.

PREPARING FOR WINTER AND NEXT SPRING

So today has been all about turning the soil over in the planting areas, trimming back the dead plants and generally giving the garden a good platform to over-winter in a good condition.

The series of pics below show what has been done, before and after.

 

  

I was followed around by a robin, who seemed intent on stealing the odd worm.

The horse manure came with hundreds of worms and I’m hoping more worms in my garden means better aeration of the soil and therefore better soil for growing in.

Time will tell on this so stay tuned for next summer’s ‘bountiful supply and colour’…

The birds have started to come back in the garden in recent days, with the house sparrows joined by blue and great tits – who are taking plenty of the sunflowers seeds.

Watching them hang upside down while they choose the right seed to take away with them is amazing, even if one or two lose grip!

The weather for the week doesn’t look too bad, but I expect that more birds will soon be feeding in my garden – that means tomorrow I’ll be stocking up on peanuts and fat snacks.

MANURE ANYONE?

This week the planning for next year is in full swing with lots of crops finishing the harvest and soil being turned over to increase the mixture and give the earthworms a winter job of regenerating the soil.

With lots of leaves about from the recent windy weather it’s a great chance to use them to cover the borders and give the earthworms a helping hand with a ready-made food bank.

My search for horse manure has been rewarded and over the next couple of weeks I’ll be collecting varying amounts to provide the garden with natural nutrients to help with growing plants next year.

I might even plant a few crocus and snowdrops so when spring arrives there will be a colourful scene in the garden while the days start getting longer.

Autumn is an amazing season with the low lying sun reflecting an enormous amount of colour from the ever changing leaves on trees and bushes.

The climbing plant in my garden has already shed its leaves – probably helped by the recent strong winds – but others are reluctant to start turning away from green at the moment.

I think the warm October temperatures (even at night) have led some to hang on for a while. Now we’re about to start November, the temperatures are starting to fall in line with normal conditions for this time for the year and I’m sure the green leaves will soon become a rainbow of reds, yellows, oranges and browns.

For the wildlife, the birds are not spending too much time in the garden, apart from the house sparrows who are gathering in larger groups for shelter and food in the rose hedge. The dunnocks have made a few appearances, but the robins and blackbirds are scarce.

I'll know the natural food supplies are low when the long tailed tits arrive to feed on the peanuts and fat snacks.

I’ll be clearing out the nestboxes soon and preparing them for any winter roosting birds, before they hopefully are claimed for nesting once again next year.

I have another camera nestbox so will try and hook it up to the sparrow nestbox in the hope they nest there again. Given there are three chambers in that nextbox and the camera will only cover one, I do wonder what the chances are of my successfully guessing which one will be used, if  any.

I’ll probably go with the one that was used this year and see what happens.

Right, must go and pick up that horse manure!

AUTUMN RAIN BUT SUMMER TEMPERATURES

Heavy rain is affecting all of the country, but I wonder what it is doing to the wildlife.

One thing it’s doing to my garden is attracting lots of slugs and snails, plus encouraging flowers and plants to keep producing displays to attract the declining number of insects.

The birds have not been frequenting the garden much, which I presume is down to the amount of natural food available out in the fields, hedgerows and woods around my house.

Only the house and tree sparrows have been seen regularly and even the blackbirds and robins are conspicuous by their absence.

I hope the wet weather doesn’t flood out too many earthworms as these have suffered enough in recent years and they are the aerators of our soils, making sure it doesn’t stagnate. Plus they are food for plenty of other animals.

In the next week or so I’m planning to finish the harvesting of the crops, apart from the parsnips. I’m still collecting ripening tomatoes and have carrots, potatoes and runner beans all ready to be picked.

Once all the harvesting is done I’ll be off to get some horse manure and then mix it in with all my borders and hopefully this will help generate even better plants and crops for next year.

THE CHANGING OF THE BRITISH SEASONS

Autumn has arrived, the last of the swallows have gone and jays are busy burying caches of winter food.

Now is the time when the hard work of our plants and trees starts to pay off as the seeds are taken by birds and mammals and deposited nearby, either through accidentally dropping or through passing through the digestive system and landing with ready-made ‘fertiliser’.

The sunflowers in my garden are proving irresistible to the great tits, while the blue tits are also enjoying the harvest, but having less success with the larger varieties of seeds.

The cooler and wetter weather of recent days has meant sightings of butterflies and bees have dropped to virtually zero, but I’ve seen an increasing number of spiders located in the house.

One such spider, which I thought had not ventured this far north in the UK, was the Noble False Widow, which has been causing increasing amount of concern among the general public.

It’s the less venomous cousin of the Black Widow spider, but is still capable of inflicting a nasty bite when is feels threatened.

To be honest I felt threatened when I saw it in my kitchen, so promptly took it far away from the house.

I knew it was a Noble False Widow because the day before I saw it I’d read about these spiders in a number of papers and researched images online.

The distinct pale pattern on the dark rear abdomen was clear to see and before I thought about a pic, I simply took it away from the house – next time I’ll get a pic, although I hope there’s not a next time!

With the swallows long gone and another six months of waiting to see them arrive back again, I’ve started to notice a number of jays near the house.

I always had them down as shy woodland birds, but in the last two years I’ve seen them on the hard shoulder of motorways, inches from high speed traffic, collecting things.

I’ve also noticed an increasing number of them on the road leading to my house, this week appearing to stuff a food supply in the soft road side verges.

They are clever birds and it appears we have an expanding population of them which is forcing some to come to the less wooded area around my house.

Finally the weather ‘forecast’ for this winter seem to be snow and very cold, which could help rid us of nasty bugs, but also increase our heating bills. No point worrying about it now, if it does happen let’s just try and enjoy it.

SUMMER HOLDING AUTUMN AT BAY

The ‘Indian Summer’ continues and the insects and plants are making the most of the warm and sunny weather.

I’ve seen huge numbers of butterflies, bees and other insects benefiting from the plants and flowers that are producing more flowers in this weather.

Although the chills of autumn are now far away, it’s great to enjoy this weather and look at how the wildlife is doing so too.

One thing that has changed recently has been the garden birds spending less time in the garden because of the natural food in the surrounding countryside.

The weather has been helpful in the harvesting of my garden, with endless amounts of tomatoes, runner beans, carrots and potatoes.

I’ll have to wait for the parsnips, but the hard work of the planting season is now reaping a reward and most it very tasty.

It’s unusual to see me watering the garden in late September, but I have to because of the warmth and growing flora.

One day, probably soon, I’ll be watching the garden being flooded by heavy rain so for now I’ll enjoy the weather.

Perhaps next week I’ll be talking about rain rather than sun, although I’m sure the fauna and myself will be hoping not!

TIME LAPSE HANGING BASKETS

This week I thought I'd share a series of images from the hanging baskets, taken through June, July and August.

Although the images are exactly aligned like a professional time lapse photography sequence, you can still get an idea on how the garden has grown during the three months of summer.

It must be said that the insects and birds have flocked to the flowers with butterfly and bee numbers massively up on last summer.

AND SO AUTUMN OFFICIALLY ARRIVES

I write this as the first autumn storm grips most of the UK, and we now know that summer is long gone.

The biggest thing I’ve noticed this week is the return of the small birds to the garden – including the robin who hasn’t been seen in my garden since July.

The extended house sparrow family, along with the blue tits and great tits are making the most of the fast snacks on offer.

A number of dunnocks are also devouring the garden food, although there are still plenty of insects on the flowering plants.

With a flurry of ripe tomatoes along with runner beans, potatoes and carrots the hard work of earlier in the year is now starting to pay off.

I’m most looking forward to the parsnips which should be ready in November.

One final note for this week is the final departures of the swallows. I’d noticed many this week gathering at various places, mainly in wet weather.

I imagine they were saying to each other, ‘let’s sod off to somewhere warmer’, as they chattered to each other.

And with this autumn storm gripping the country I doubt I’ll see any more this year.

So let’s prepare for the colder weather with the thoughts of when the swallows return and the sun will help breath life back into the countryside.

THE START OF AUTUMN?

The summer and the lovely weather came to a dramatic end this week, with typical autumnal conditions.

I think the worst of the wind and rain missed my garden, although it still had a good soaking!

The biggest thing I’ve noticed in the last 36 hours, since the autumn weather began, is the amount of small birds visiting the garden – I even saw a robin yesterday, a bird I’d not seen for over a month in the garden.

I’ve stocked up on bird food so they all have a back-up supply should conditions get any worse.

That said, the sun has been out today, although with not as much warmth as last week. Although the trees are still all green I suspect the yellows, browns and reds will soon adorn the branches, before carpeting the surrounding floor.

In the coming months lots of flora and fauna will prepare for winter by effectively shutting down, or in some cases simply flying to warmer climes.

The swallows are few and far between now, as they follow the swifts to Africa. The dawn chorus rarely has their beautiful song and the evening singing has been swallow-free for a couple of days.

 

In the garden my sunflowers are out in force and they’ll soon provide the birds with a plentiful supply of autumn seeds – although I’ll be keeping a few myself for next year!

 

The harvesting is still continuing with tomatoes, carrots, potatoes and runner beans all being in good supply.  The parsnips will be last, but should be ok for roasting at Christmas – oh no I mentioned the C word in September!

 

Right that’s it for this week, I wonder my post next week will see more information about birds coming back in to the garden for food.

 

 

IS AUTUMN ON ITS WAY?

Another quiet week in the garden, with only updates coming from the flora – mainly the sunflowers.

There are now nine sunflowers that are over 6ft tall and in the coming days I expect that number to increase.

I’ve already started collecting some tomatoes and runner beans from this years’ crop, and with potatoes, carrots and parsnips, along with plenty more tomatoes and runner beans, it could be one of my best years for crops.

There are three different varieties of tomatoes, Italian Roma, Gardener’s Delight and Cherry, in my garden and I’m going to choose the best tasting one for growing next year.

I’ve already started collecting seeds from this year’s blooms – poppy, sunflower and sweet pea – so next year I can grow without the extra help from packet mixes.

The summer looked like turning into autumn at the end of this week, but looking at the weather forecast it looks like we could be in for at least a few more days of lovely summer weather.

Only one concern for me, and probably many others, is the lack of rainfall. The ground is drying very quickly and I’m watering the plants almost every night – which is obviously working.

The visits from the birds have been rare this week, with only a fleeting glimpse of a female blackbird.

I’ve not seen any robins for at least a month and the blue tits and great tits must be among the birds having a great time in the surrounding countryside.

The swallows have been swarming most evenings, but I get the feeling that it’s mainly the young from this year and that most of the adults have headed off back to Africa.

The swallow is probably my favourite bird and I always get very excited by its arrival in spring/summer. It’s one of my favourite sights and sounds of nature and my heart always sinks when I know they’re heading south and I won’t see them for seven or eight months.

One day I’ll have a house with a barn or similar type building that will attract swallows and I can watch them more closely again, just like in my childhood. One day!

SUMMER RAIN FAILS TO DAMPEN GARDEN SPIRITS

The recent rain has been tempered by warm temperatures as summer turns out the traditional British weather for August.

I’m not sure what affect it’s had on the bees and butterflies that have frequented my garden recently, but I imagine they have not been exactly enjoying themselves.

That said, there are still plenty of flowers and with that plenty of nectar in my garden, which should help them through the wet days.

The birds are still spending most of their time away from the garden, with only fleeting glimpses or sounds from a few.

They are coming around because the feeders are emptying, but are seemingly shy; perhaps because of the parents’ moulting.

The swallows are still thronging the telephone wires and roof tops, singing their beautiful tune when the sun is shining.

I’m hoping they stay around for a few more weeks, as the swifts seem to have already left for their winter retreats.

I’ve not seen much of the sparrowhawk that swooped and almost landed on my head recently, but with a seemingly high number of young birds arriving this year, I think she’ll be back.

With autumn on the way soon, it’s time to start thinking of making sure we have enough feeders and food ready for when the weather turns cold and the natural supply of food becomes scarce.

I know that if the long tail tits come calling to the garden, the natural food supplies in the countryside are running out and the food supplied in my garden becomes vital to them.

Finally I’m still waiting to hear from a few rescue centres about re-homing a hedgehog. I’m hoping to be able to help one or more out soon and provide them with a lovely new home.

IS THIS AUTUMN OR SUMMER?

Not the most exciting week in my garden, as autumn seemed to show its intent while summer still exists in the calendar.

The wind and rain we’ve experienced recently hasn’t been the weather we all wanted for the second half of summer, especially considering the lovely weather of July.

But it appears to have not been too negative for the wildlife.

The spring rain and early summer heat has combined to deliver plants and flowers with an inexhaustible supply of nectar and pollen, along with shelter for insects and invertebrates to breed; with many producing lots of young.

The bees and butterflies have been seen in much bigger numbers this year and have mainly been seen on the buddleia and the sunflowers.

I’ve not counted the different types of bee species in my garden, but there have been at least five different types, while a similar number of butterflies have been feeding on the buddleia.

The bird life has been fairly quiet this week with the odd sighting of a female blackbird and chatterings of house sparrows, some of which I presume used the nestboxes in my garden.

One thing that has been lovely to see, has been the amount of young blue tits – at one count six chicks – while a smaller number of great tit chicks have also been regular this week.

So with autumn weather set to continue, how will that affect the wildlife sightings in my garden?

FLORA IN MY GARDEN

This week I’m looking at the flora in my garden, as the flowers, fruit and veg start to really take over.

The birds have been very scarce this week, with only a few visits from a female blackbird and the odd young blue or great tit.

There was one exciting moment when I could hear the alarm calls of about 100 swallows and turned to see a female sparrowhawk swoop across my garden and perch in a small tree, about a foot right above my head.

It then proceeded to try and flush one of a few small birds in the trees and bushes out, but appeared to fly off without any kill.

A very heart stopping moment for me and I’m pretty sure the sparrowhawk didn’t even see me.

On to the flora and the poppies are still flowering, but have been taken over by the sunflowers. I’ve got five varieties this year, but only the Russian Giant, Red Sun and Teddy Bear ones have so far flowered.

 

I’ve grown sunflowers for the last five years, all from seed, and they are brilliant flowers for attracting insects and birds.

 

The insects take to them first (as you can see with the bees on a couple of the images), before the birds take the seeds towards autumn time.

 

I’ve also had a beautiful lily flower, but I’m not sure of the variety as it was in a mixed bag that I planted at various places in the garden.

 

All three varieties of tomatoes are growing well, although none are ripe enough to pick, while the potatoes and carrots could soon be harvested.

I’m going to leave the swedes until autumn or earlier winter, so we can enjoy them on the darker nights, with maybe a few potatoes and carrots.

When the colder weather comes I love making a roasted vegetable and meat dinner. One day I’ll have a big enough garden to have a much bigger supply of vegetables and make more dinners from things grown myself.

So onwards with the flora, while the fauna explores the wider area to see which areas it will have successful foraging trips when the cold weather sets in.

A SAD END TO THE NESTBOX BREEDING SEASON

A week of mixed emotions for the wildlife in my garden, with nature showing its cruel and kind sides.

The house sparrow family in the new triple nestbox successfully fledged earlier this week, after much encouragement from the adults.

I don’t know the exact number of chicks but it was at least three, possibly four, so a good level of fledglings from the nest.

The pleasing thing is this nestbox was only put up in March, so it shows the poor weather in early spring must have delayed the nesting instincts and hence why the box looked so good once those instincts kicked in again.

The cruel side of nature showed itself on my camera nestbox, as the third brood of the year failed.

It had two house sparrow eggs, not three as previously thought, and one hatched on the same day the other house sparrows fledged from the other nest.

The chick was being fed and brooded by the female as she tried to hatch the other egg. After just three days of life I saw the chick wasn’t moving yesterday morning (see below image) and wondered if it was just resting.

 

My fears increased when I couldn’t see or hear the parent birds and by the evening I realised the chick had died and the other egg had failed.

I could see flies on the chick so decided to remove the nest from the nestbox and clear it out. The fascinating thing was seeing how the house sparrow nest was built on top of the blue tit nest, but just looked like it was one nest.

 

 

 

 

The camera nestbox is now empty and it’s sad to see after such a good spring and summer for breeding.

 

Overall I’m pleased that two birds have used it for the first time in the same year and they both managed to fledge youngsters.

Speaking of which there has been lots of young blue and great tits visiting the garden in the last few days. I’m hoping some will have been raised in the camera nestbox, and that their parents, or even one of them, will return to it next spring and raise another generation of tits.

TO FLEDGE AND HATCH OR NOT?

The house sparrow families are still growing, albeit at different rates, with one almost ready to fledge and the other schedule to hatch.

I suspect the fledging family are reluctant to go away from the relative safety of the nestbox given the recent stormy, if warm, weather.

Perhaps when this weekend’s weather calms a little will we see the nest empty, although whether it’ll soon be a hive of activity again with egg laying, is another question.

The camera nestbox family, which has already fledged two house sparrow chicks, has three eggs being incubated by the parents – mainly the female.

I suspect we’ll see fledging and hatching from the two families with 24-36 hours of each other, so stay tuned to my twitter account for updates.

In other news the poppies, sunflowers and other flora are contributing to a large number of bees and butterflies visiting the garden to feed on the variety of nectar rich flowers.

This is really good news after the poor weather conditions in 2012 that had negative effects on both populations.

Some of the usual suspect garden birds are now showing up, complete with at least some of the chicks they have fledged.

This particularly applies to the blue tit and great tit families, although yesterday I saw my first fledgling robin of 2013, complete with a breast that had hints of orange/red to it. This bird was probably hatched and fledged earlier in the year and is now independent from its parents.

I’m expecting more of this years’ fledglings to start visiting the garden again now their parents have had chance to change their worn out ‘clothes’ for a set of new feathers.

How many will we see during autumn and winter? Let’s make the most of the rest of summer before we start to find out!