THE BREEDING SEASON HAS SPRUNG INTO LIFE

In my last post I posed the question about swallows returning, speculating they would probably come this weekend, but little did I know they were much closer than I thought.

I spotted the first on Saturday 07^th April, a day earlier than last year and another one was sighted on Monday.

The previous dates for the first swallow sighting have been:

2017 – 08/04

2016 – 10/04

2015 – 21/04

2014 – 19/04

And they couldn’t have timed their arrival better as the weather is expected to rise dramatically next week.

The wildlife must expect it because the blue tits are constantly hanging around the most popular nest box, while the one nest box that has never been used, aside from a small wasp nest a few years ago, is seeing nesting action!

Not only that but it’s a bird I see around the garden, but has never nested there before.

A wren has been spotted taking nesting material into it and I’m delighted because I’ve spent the last few years training ivy to grow around it and offer a hidden nesting spot. Blink and you'll miss it on this video.

While I don’t expect all seven nest boxes to be used this year, if the wren does use and build to use it’ll mean all have been used at least once and take the number of species up to five – blue tit, great tit, robin, house sparrow, tree sparrow and now wren.

The flora is also showing signs of growth, with the lawn growing fast and the trees and bushes finally realising that winter is finished – well for now!

The robins and blackbirds have gone quiet in and around the garden, but a female blackbird has been spotted with nesting material out the back, so it’s all go on the nest building front, which means egg laying is close.

Insect movement is increasing with the odd butterfly and bee flirting with the garden, finding which flowers have bloomed and taking great interest in the growing tree blossom.

SPRING WILL HAVE TO WAIT… BUT NOT FOR LONG

Once again winter has delivered its weather, proving it’s more likely to snow at Easter then Christmas.

However this blast of cold weather and snow for some, looks likely to be replaced by much milder, some would say typical, spring-like weather later this week.

Most will say it’s a shame that the Bank Holiday weather has been not so spring-like; and the wildlife is probably in agreement.

The breeding season has definitely been on hold, with little sign of nests being built, but plenty of the local garden birds pairing up.

The cold weather has meant a delay in fixing the nest box cameras, although I suspect it might be too late as the milder weather is likely to herald the start of nest building.

Will the extension of winter mean lower breeding numbers than usual, as the breeding season for the local birds will see the first broods fledging in early to mid-May?

Possibly, however the blue tits fledged in mid-May last year and did come under threat from a cold blast at the end of April.

The real indicator for the start of garden bird breeding season will need to see some leaves on the trees and caterpillars munching on those leaves.

It’ll need some warmer weather to encourage the butterflies and moths to lay their eggs, and that’ll be the indicator for the small birds to start laying eggs.

Only time, and hopefully a fully functioning camera, will tell.

And what about the arrival of the summer visitors? Well last year is was the earliest recorded arrival since at least 2013,. The 08^th of April saw the first swallows arrive, with blue skies and temperatures of 20c.

Previous dates for the first swallow sighting have been

2017 – 08/04

2016 – 10/04

2015 – 21/04

2014 – 19/04

In theory we could see the first swallows arriving this weekend, but the average tells us it’ll be the second full weekend of April.

The swallow is my favourite bird, closely followed by the peregrine falcon. Luckily both are seen around here, although the peregrine is resident, it’s more likely to be seen a short walk from the garden, while the swallow can be see daily swooping low over the garden in summer.

A COLD BLAST OF WINTER SHOCKS THE WILDLIFE

I’m sure the swallows are having second thoughts about coming back from a warm Africa, particularly given the cold, snowy and icy week of weather we’ve had.

The regular hailstone storms and overnight frosts have meant a battering for the flora, with at least two tulips having all their petals ripped away and left in tatters on the garden lawn.

The swallows have been witnessed gathering mud for nest building, and while the weather has helped create plenty of mud creating facilities, it’s not been helpful for the purposes of the a nest – rearing young.

Of course an update on this blog wouldn’t be complete without a comment about the cats coming into the garden.

The first, and only, lot of seeds have been planted this year, mainly indoor, but with a few directly outdoors. Poppies and parsnips have been planted outside, but the soil in which they have been planted has once again been desecrated by cats using it as a toilet.

If anyone has ideas on making these cats leave the garden alone and finding alternative toilets, please let me know.

Inside, the seeds of sunflowers, tomatoes, cauliflowers, chillies and broad beans have been planted. The cauliflowers are already showing a couple of green shoots, while the sunflowers are emerging in their pots too.

Of course the seedlings will stay indoors until the weather gets warmer, and they are a lot bigger.

Finally, the great tits have almost completed the nest, but the camera is playing up again so visual images of the inside of the nest box are still not available.