ENJOYING THE LOCKDOWN WILDLIFE DURING A HOT APRIL

Four weeks into lockdown and I’m seeing and learning new things about the garden and wildlife.

The original or usual next box looks like it’s got a great tit couple nesting in it, which is great news that it’s being used for I think the 12^th consecutive year since it was put up.

The robins have appeared to stop and nest building trips to the ivy, so perhaps they’re sitting on eggs. Time will tell but I hope so.

A pair of blue tits are nesting in a crevice in the house next door, which is a place they’ve used before. It’s where an old outlet pipe for a boiler was sited, so it’s obviously quite a nice venue for them.

I think there’s activity in the one of the other nest boxes on the wall, the single one, but I’m not sure which birds are nesting there, if any. House sparrows, great tits and blue tits have all been seen taking an interest.

However, the big news is a new pair of breeding birds has been discovered, which is a first for me.

At the back of house, a pair of pied wagtails are busy building a nest under the roof tiles of the old shippons.

It’s really exciting because it’s directly in front of one of our bedroom windows, so viewing the activity is quite easy.

The pond has had a delivery of flowering plants, snails and oxygenating plants, and is still home to the frog.

I’m not sure if the frog has successfully found a mate, I would suggest not, but it’s great that it’s there making itself at home.

Also making themselves at home in the garden has been a range of butterflies, including the peacock, orange tip, speckled wood and holly blue.

News on the planting next time, but there’s lots of growing in the greenhouse, so hopefully lots of successful growth and new life in the garden in the coming weeks and months.

SPRING HAS SPRUNG, DURING LOCKDOWN

The swallows are back, and almost exactly the same day as the previous three years.

The lack of traffic noise has led to bird song being much more audible and just a couple of days ago I heard the distinct call of swallows.

Then today I saw my first one swooping over the fields next to the garden. It means the first sounds was heard in the 8th April and seen on 11th April.

The current sates I've first seen swallows each year, since 214, are:

2014 - 19th April
2015 - 21st April
2016 - 10th April
2017 - 8th April
2018 - 7th April
2019 - 7th April
2020 - 11th April (heard first on 8th April)

It’s typical that during this lockdown we’re seeing really warm spring weather, particularly after the wet and windy last couple of months.

Of course, we’re going to see cooler weather in the coming weeks, but it’s been nice to enjoy the garden and also for a lot longer than usual with working from home.

Sadly not everything is perfect in nature, and this was demonstrated early one morning when I found three dead chicks, perhaps a week old, in the garden not far from the potential location of a robins’ nest.

It has been very cold overnight and a gently frost was on partly visible, so I suspect this had killed them and the parents had removed the bodies.

While it could have been a predator or local cat, the nest location would suggest a cat unlikely and a magpie would have difficulty getting into the thick ivy - the nest is circled along with one of the dead chicks.

What I have noticed since is the robins both being very active in the same location, both with food and the odd bit of nesting material.

I haven’t heard any chick noises, but this is definitely a watching brief, with the male robin (seemingly) singing loudly and often from a series of perches around the garden.

Above the robin nest a pair of blue tits has recently been seen mating, but where the nest is, is another thing.

I suspect they are using the previously unused single nest box that was under the now removed triple sparrow nest box, but await final evidence.

We’ve also found a frog residing in the pond, I say residing because it’s been in there for quite a few days.

I don’t think it’ll be mating and laying frog spawn, but perhaps next year we’ll get that.

Still it’s a good sign that the pond is supporting a wide range of wildlife and plants.

And the pond is looking colourful and is proving to be a great source of food for bees and butterflies – there’s been both orange tip and peacock on most days in the last week.

STORMY START TO SPRING

Storm Gareth has just left its mark on the country, the garden and the wildlife.

The damage has been minimal around the garden, although neighbouring fields and the lanes have seen wind and rain damage.

I’m not sure much of the wildlife has been able to sleep soundly, given the speed and furious noise created by the wind and rain.

The weather doesn’t appear to be calming down or providing spring warmth anytime soon, which means the birds are relying on the feeders to keep them going.

At least it keeps them out of the wind and able to shelter in the bushes and trees, after a feed.

The pond will hopefully be revitalised this weekend with some oxygen-generating plants, but it’ll probably be too late for the frog that spent time trying to come and live in the house with us.

But, it will still provide a home, shelter and water for countless other animals; it’ll be great to teach the girls about pond life in their own garden and see just what happens in spring and summer.

With spring flowers already fading away, perhaps now is the right time for some of nature to take a pause, let the March stormy season pass by, before getting excited about spring and breeding.

AN EARLY SPRING?

Just as winter was gripping the country, with snow and plunging temperatures, then suddenly spring has sprung into life.

The trees are in blossom, snowdrops are brightening the flowerbeds, while crocuses, daffodils and tulips are all emerging.

Indeed, the mild weather has meant the dawn chorus has an extra melody or two added to it, with the local robins being very vocal at first light.

I’ve not checked the nest box cameras recently, but perhaps this weekend will give me chance to have a look – albeit making sure any inquisitive birds aren’t put off from nesting.

The pond will also get a makeover this weekend, with a few oxygenating plants helping create a viable home for many insects and amphibians, along with a water supply for birds.

However, the amphibians are seemingly already attracted by the recovered water feature, although the frog that hopped in the house this week was slightly off course.

A helping hand was required to point it in the right direction, although time will tell if the pond is an acceptable location for the next generation.

The weather forecast looks like it’ll remain very spring-like in the coming days, so perhaps winter has finished.

But, with thick snow laying on the ground in many places last year in March, anyone who thinks we’ve said goodbye to frosts, cold and snow, might be in for a shock.

AUTUMN, WHAT AUTUMN?

Towards the end of August I watched as the swallows chattered excitedly on the telephone wires, probably sharing experiences of the migration to Africa with this year’s youngsters.

This year I counted over 30 which is almost double the amount I counted in 2010, obviously a good year.

I expected to see them fly before September, but apart from a few days with only a fleeting glimpse of them, most appeared to stay until after the recent big storm. Were they telling me something?

It would suggest so as the storm didn’t herald the start of autumn, merely that start of an Indian summer, which in turn appeared to be the catalyst for the swallows to depart.

As we basked in 30c and wall to wall sunshine, so the swallows made their exit and other animals made the most of a late harvest as blackberries ripened in the hedgerows and insects continued to flourish.

The weather has certainly helped my tomatoes ripen and also have a positive effect on my peppers, carrots and chillies.

In the last week I’ve had over 100 cherry tomatoes ripen and I’m expecting at least double that in the next week or so, despite the weather actually starting to behave like October.

The summer has been patchy at best, but it appears to have been good for the wildlife. The blackbirds have raised at least two broods, as have the robins.

I’ve recently heard the blue tits and watched a number of great tits on the feeders, some of which must be this year’s brood from the nestbox.

Talking of the nestbox, I’ve not see any activity in there since the great tits left in early summer and I’ll soon be clearing it out ready for any roosting birds over the winter.

The breeding birds of the summer have shown signs of fatigue as the end the post-chick raising moult, I even saw a male blackbird with a grey head, but this has gradually turned black again.

Finally my pond has helped form a place for a frog to spend time but has produced no tadpoles this year. This winter I’ll be filling it in as my daughter is now walking and exploring everywhere.

In its place I’ll continue the rockery and have a boggy wildlife area until such time as I can have the pond back.