SNOW AT CHRISTMAS?

It would appear the title of this blog post would seem unlikely, particularly given the mild start to December.

Of course, things can change in the coldest season, but I suspect the white stuff will stay away until deeper into winter.

The birds have stayed away from the garden mainly, with just the odd visit from a blue or great tit, while the sparrows are visiting quite often to feed on the fat snack or peanuts.

I’ve checked the bird boxes this weekend and surprisingly found only two nests. One in the nest box that’s had nests in it for 11 consecutive springs, while one was also located in the box under the honeysuckle.

The regularly used nest box had blue tits in, and this is, it on the right.

This one was used by a robin family once since 2008, and a robin family used it again this summer. This is how hidden it was in the honeysuckle and here’s the nest in the box itself. The nest outside the box is above, next to the robin one.

I’d noted this earlier on this year, with the local robin pairing spending quite a bit of time in the garden, to recce two of the most unused nest boxes.

The first one they looked at wasn’t used this year and hasn’t been used apart from by a small wasp colony a few years ago.

The surprising find was the triple and new single nest box weren’t used at all, despite the triple one being used for every previous year it has been up.

So, they’ve all had a pre-spring clean, ready for any winter roosting, although with the cameras still not working it might be another bit of guesswork as to whether they will be used as roosting sites.

I do hope the robins use the nest box again this year; and there has been a noticeable presence from one robin recently, including some territory-setting tunes.

With the worst of winter yet to appear, I’m sure the garden will soon start filling up with birds, including the usual winter visiting family of long tailed tits.

WINTER COLD STAYING AWAY?

November has been quite mild so far, and there’s little indication it’ll change in the near future.

It appears the weather conditions have meant the bird feeders aren’t as active as they might be, although the garden is still seeing house sparrows, blue tits and great tits.

The odd robin is now making a regular appearance, while the blackbirds have been heard a few times in the nearby trees and bushes – obviously by their alarm call.

There was a fleeting glimpse of a flock of long tailed tits, while down the lane jays, magpies, blackbirds and a great spotted woodpecker have been seen.

I’ve not seen any further evidence of badgers down the lane, although recent sightings have meant I’m confident of seeing more in the winter months.

The other large mammal around the area has also made itself known this week. A fox has been heard for two nights running calling in the early hours, and quite near the house.

After a few years of little fox or badger activity, it’s been great to see it evidenced recently, while tawny owls have also come back to the area after years of absence.

Perhaps the more elusive wildlife is back to stay, let’s hope so.

WINTER IS ON ITS WAY

The cold of autumn has arrived, and it signalled the garden birds to descend on the garden; feasting on the peanuts and fat balls.

We’ve seen house sparrows, blue tits, great tits, the odd dunnock and a robin (for the first time in weeks).

There has been a number of jays around recently, and it’s great that they are now increasing their presence around the garden, while the local magpies pay almost daily visits.

No blackbirds have been seen for a while, so I wonder if the incident involving the tawny owl and blackbird at night a couple of months ago has impacted on this. If none are seen in the next month or so, then I might suspect it has.

A frost has lightly carpeted the lawn for the last two days, while the nearby trees and bushes are turning lovely autumnal shades of yellow, brown and orange – all apart from the evergreens!

This week feels the start of the change from summer/autumn to autumn/winter, and the early dark nights that we’ll have for the next five months.

Of course, the clocks going back doesn’t have any impact on the wildlife, but it does impact when we can help them with handouts – for me it’s weekends only.

In news from the lane, badgers have once again been seen, with two spotted on separate nights, a week apart but in the same area, exploring the hedges.

It happened around 8/9pm and is great news because we’ve not seen any badgers down the lane for years.

They were seen regularly, along with the odd fox and loads of rabbits, but it’s rare to see any of them now, which is not good for the rabbits because they were seen at least once a week; now they’re seen every six months.