TORRENTIAL RAIN, FLOODS AND FROSTS – THE SPOOKY PART OF AUTUMN

As Halloween approaches, the first frost of the autumn landed in the garden.

While it wasn’t particularly harsh, it’s certainly a sign of things to come and the wildlife will have certainly taken note.

The rain over the weekend caused all sorts of problems for many people and the lane we live on became a 6-8 inch deep torrent of water for many hours.

Luckily it diverts off the lane before the house, but the incessant rain meant the garden was a soggy mess for a couple of days.

It’s hard to understand what impact it’s had on the wildlife around the garden, however I’m sure it’ll have impacted feeding for many – apart from those who love the wet conditions, including the local badgers.

The garden has seen a number of visits from a number of jays over the last few weeks, with their warning call often heard when we step out of the house.

The bird feeders are being consumed fairly quickly, although the peanuts are being shunned in favour of the fat snacks – probably easier to eat!

I suspect the next few days and weeks will see the number of birds coming into the garden on the increase, although it’ll be hard to tell in the week as the clocks going back now mean evenings are definitely dark, while mornings are too busy with breakfast and getting ready for school and work to spend much time looking out of the windows in the garden.

I’m expecting a flock of long tailed tits to be seen again soon, and it’ll signal the lack of natural food on offer.

It’s the that the food we supply to our feathered friends becomes really important, so the garage will soon be increasing in supplies – albeit in containers that will prevent rats and mice getting at them!

COOLER CONDITIONS SIGNAL WINTER DARKNESS

Not one day has passed this month (October) without rain falling. While this has been fairly represented across the UK, it must mean we’re on for a pretty wet autumn.

The flora is gradually feeling the effects of the wet and cooler weather, and with sunlight in limited supply most plant-based organisms are ‘retreating’ to their winter states.

The wildlife has been generally out of sight so far this month, with only small flocks of house sparrows visibly on a regular basis.

As we near the end of the year I’ll soon start reflecting on how the seasons change the garden, starting with how it emerges from winter into spring.

I’ll do it in quarters, starting with January to March.

With not much free time available due to work, darkness and the children, there’s plenty of work to do in the garden.

Clearing things for winter will have to wait until November, but always being mindful that wildlife will be relying on certain elements of the garden or shelter during the cold weather that winter brings.

Autumn and winter are the times of year that mean viewing wildlife that’s active in the day is limited to weekends.

It also brings opportunities to view nocturnal animals, particularly the mammals and birds (bats, badgers, owls and foxes), all of which have been seen or heard recently.

Let’s hope my daughters finally get to see a fox in the flesh – or ‘real life’ as they both say.

AUTUMN IN FULL SWING

The wet and windy weather we often associate with autumn has arrived, and with it bringing plenty of flooding.

It’s still been fairly warm in the garden, which means lots of slugs and snails creeping around, with some having found their way into the house.

Figures suggest the average garden has about 20,000 slugs and snails, and given the amount I’ve seen at night recently, that figure doesn’t surprise me.

Unfortunately, there are still no signs of hedgehogs, which are a great natural predator of slugs and snails.

However, during a dry interlude at the weekend I was clearly some parts of the garden from a build-up of debris from the weather, when I came across this large toad.

It’s been a while since I’ve seen a toad around the garden, but it’s great to know the range of species it does hold – even if I don’t see them often.

The toad eventually sauntered off after I’d discovered it’s hiding place, but I’ve no doubt it’ll be hiding around the garden still as the food source is good and there are plenty of place to hibernate over the winter.

The small flock of house sparrows that have been roosting in the wall foliage are still around, although I suspect October will see them find somewhere else with more shelter when the leaves do fall down.

The bird feeders are being used more frequently, and the numbers of great tits, blue tits, robins and dunnocks using them has increased slightly in recent days.

I suspect it’ll continue doing so in the coming weeks, so it’s time to stock up on fat snacks and peanuts for them.

In the meantime let’s hope they all keep dry(ish) in the autumn deluge.