Wednesday 28 February 2018

WINTER’S FINAL FLING


So winter is unfurling a severe cold spell, just as people started to think about spring.

With snowdrops, crocus and daffodils all blooming in the garden, and many other places, Siberian winds are bringing the most serious winter test to wildlife.

The local birds appear to have already started to pair up – blue tits, blackbirds, robins and long tailed tits have all been seen in pairs in the garden over the weekend.

They, along with dunnocks, great tits and house sparrows, were making the most of the free food on offer, before appearing to greet the new batch of bird seed and peanuts with a variety of chattering in the bushes and trees, while I filled up the containers.

I suspect the feeders will need to be topped up a couple of times in the coming days, depending on just how cold it gets and for how long.

Hopefully this big freeze will not affect the buds known seen on most small trees, including the fruit tree in the garden. Only time will tell

We’ll probably find out in a few weeks, when the trees start to blossom fully.

The weather is probably making some winter visitors, from colder climes, wish they’d stayed put!

Will the garden get snow? I doubt it very much, but the cold will certainly see some casualties among the wildlife, sadly.

Hopefully the food being put out, the shelter (through nest boxes and bushes) and water (unfrozen) will help most, if not all, wildlife survive until spring.

Wednesday 14 February 2018

WINTER CHILL GRIPPING THE GARDEN

The recent cold grip of winter has meant plenty of action on the bird feeders in the garden.

The most popular feeder by far is the peanut one, while the seeds feeder just outside the garden is regularly finished off within 48 hours.

While the birds regularly feeding in the garden includes blue tit, great tit, robin, blackbird, dunnock, long tailed tit and goldfinch, the house sparrow flock is rarely seen.

I presume this is because they’ve found a bigger flock and therefore a bigger resource of food nearby, possibly around the farms nearby.

One of the more interesting developments is there appears to be two blue tits regularly checking out the garden in general, with some focus on the main nest box area.

I saw the main nest box, I mean the next box that’s had a nest in for the last ten years, being eyed up, but who will get there first?

Will the blue tit pair secure the nest box this year? It would appear they are favourites, but only time will tell.

I suspect the house sparrows will return and nest in the triple nest box, while I’m more hopeful of a robin pair selecting one of the hidden nest boxes, perhaps the one in the ivy that has been trained to grow down one side of the garden.


-->
In the meantime maintenance on the nest box cameras now becomes urgent!