FLOODING, STORMS, NESTBOXES AND SPRING

The main topic of conversation this winter has been about the stormy weather and the affect it's had on the land and the people dealing with the after effects.

Flooding has been a huge problem for many people through overflowing rivers and streams, along with high tides and huge waves battering the coastline.

But a number of people have been affected by the rising water table and simply only realised the flooding was happening at their property when it started to come through the floors, not the doors.

In my garden and house we’ve been lucky so far, as we just have a very soggy lawn and borders, but this week it could have been so different following the most vicious storm of the winter so far.

We were subject to 100mph winds and heavy rain, which didn’t lead to massive flooding, but did lead to many trees, power cables and roof tiles down.

Having briefly assessed the damage it’s hard to tell if the house has suffered significantly or not, but luckily the trees and bushes emerged relatively unscathed.

The bird feeders have taken some damage, but I’ve now fixed them. The nestboxes must be more securely tied down than I imagined as they all were in situ after the winds died down.

It enabled me to do stage two of the sparrow nestbox camera construction.

The camera has now been fitted (see below) with a battery and now I’m hoping it’ll work and link up with the wireless receiver and show the inside of the nestbox on my TV, just like the single great/blue tit nestbox.

Next weekend I’ll be testing it and hoping that the wired version isn’t required as that’ll need an order putting in and an extra delay.

The tit nestbox camera isn’t revealing much yet, which I think shows that the roosting sites around the garden are still good enough due to the mild conditions.

It could also mean that the nesting instinct hasn’t yet kicked in, possibly due to the mild winter and the birds unsure of when spring is actually going to start. Hopefully the increase in daylight will start that breeding urge soon and the battle for nestboxes will start.

The spring bulbs are continuing to emerge and the later it goes in February, the closer it gets to spring actually starting to push winter away; whether the weather is any different is anyone’s guess!

IS THE MILD WINTER JUST EARLY SPRING?

Another week of storms has left many parts of the country looking like large inland lagoons rather than farmland or countryside.

While my garden and the part of the country in which it resides has not been that badly affected, there are plenty of very soggy fields and gardens.

Just one small rain shower leaves puddles on roads, paths and fields that last for hours, if not longer, so longer spells of rain leave small floods and large areas of the countryside and my garden with several inches of surface water.

The continuous stormy weather has meant winter has been very mild and now plenty of plants, bulbs and trees think it’s spring.

In my garden there are plenty of bulbs sprouting, while one of the small fruit trees is already showing buds.

The mild winter also means the snowdrops are not the first to emerge out of my bulbs.

How the wildlife is coping with this stormy winter is difficult to evaluate as the breeding season for most wildlife is yet to start. Seals have already been badly affected by the early winter storms during their breeding season and losing many pups.

I’m yet to see any birds making use of the nestbox roost, although given that spring appears to be starting, according to the signs nature is flora is giving, it may not be long before the battle to occupy the nestboxes in my garden starts.

By next weekend I’ll hopefully have two nestbox cameras working so here’s hoping the birds use those nestboxes!

THE BIRDS ARE STILL STAYING AWAY

The birds have started to come back into the garden in the last few days as winter starts to send early messages about the cold weather to come.

The great tits and blue tits have been fighting with the tree sparrows and house sparrows over the right to feed from the fat snack in the garden.

Occasionally a dunnock has appeared and nipped in to get any tasty parts of the fat snack that has flown off while the others have been squabbling.

Apart from the fleeting glimpse of a robin and the evening warning calls from the blackbirds, other birds have so far stayed away.

The jays that were seen frequently near the garden in September and part of October are now nowhere to be seen.

A large beech mast harvest might be the reason why the jays have not been sighted recently, which also makes me think that other natural food resources are in good supply.

One or two reports are suggesting that this winter could be particularly brutal for wildlife with predictions of severe snowfall and very cold temperatures blanketing the country.

If this materialises – and I’m quite sceptical – then people will need to watch out for all wildlife and help out where possible, including providing shelter through nestboxes, food with fat snacks, peanuts and seeds, while also remembering that clean, unfrozen water is essential for birds and other animals.

MANURE ANYONE?

This week the planning for next year is in full swing with lots of crops finishing the harvest and soil being turned over to increase the mixture and give the earthworms a winter job of regenerating the soil.

With lots of leaves about from the recent windy weather it’s a great chance to use them to cover the borders and give the earthworms a helping hand with a ready-made food bank.

My search for horse manure has been rewarded and over the next couple of weeks I’ll be collecting varying amounts to provide the garden with natural nutrients to help with growing plants next year.

I might even plant a few crocus and snowdrops so when spring arrives there will be a colourful scene in the garden while the days start getting longer.

Autumn is an amazing season with the low lying sun reflecting an enormous amount of colour from the ever changing leaves on trees and bushes.

The climbing plant in my garden has already shed its leaves – probably helped by the recent strong winds – but others are reluctant to start turning away from green at the moment.

I think the warm October temperatures (even at night) have led some to hang on for a while. Now we’re about to start November, the temperatures are starting to fall in line with normal conditions for this time for the year and I’m sure the green leaves will soon become a rainbow of reds, yellows, oranges and browns.

For the wildlife, the birds are not spending too much time in the garden, apart from the house sparrows who are gathering in larger groups for shelter and food in the rose hedge. The dunnocks have made a few appearances, but the robins and blackbirds are scarce.

I'll know the natural food supplies are low when the long tailed tits arrive to feed on the peanuts and fat snacks.

I’ll be clearing out the nestboxes soon and preparing them for any winter roosting birds, before they hopefully are claimed for nesting once again next year.

I have another camera nestbox so will try and hook it up to the sparrow nestbox in the hope they nest there again. Given there are three chambers in that nextbox and the camera will only cover one, I do wonder what the chances are of my successfully guessing which one will be used, if  any.

I’ll probably go with the one that was used this year and see what happens.

Right, must go and pick up that horse manure!

OCTOBER PROVIDING LAST CHANCE TO BREED?

As the wet and cool summer gave way for a wet September, most people could be forgiven for thinking October would be cold and even wetter.

So far it's turned wet, but the cold weather hasn’t really materialised, the odd exception apart. In fact the weather is due to become a little milder in the next few days.

This has been backed up by regular sightings of swallows and house martins across the UK, despite the fact they should have been half way to Africa now.

I last spotted a large number of swallows at the end of September, but others have reportedly seen some in the last week, while there’s been one tweeter (excuse the pun) posting about house martins still nesting.

Wildlife has the knack of adapting to weather conditions and changing things like breeding habits, migration and even food sources.

It’s difficult to tell what the long or mid-term results will be of the wet summer we’ve had, but one thing could be our summer migrants staying later, risking their lives, to increase the breeding population for next year.

You could even say (without any biological evidence) that old birds are potentially sacrificing themselves to give their youngsters the chance to keep populations of their species going.

Of course you could also say that they could be first time parents or know that leaving it late will still give enough chances to raise a successful brood as insects hampered by the wet summer continue breeding in to autumn.

I was checking a couple of my nestboxes this week, ones that haven’t been used for nesting, when I came across a dead tree sparrow in one. I couldn’t see any reasons why it had died, other than old age or starvation.

The starvation one seems unlikely as I supply the birds visiting my garden with a range of seeds and nuts, so can only presume it died of old age or a genetic condition. A sad sight, but just part of nature.

The blue and great tits are still enjoying the sunflower seeds, so I’m not clearing up the plants until all seeds are gone.

My garden flowers are still producing a colourful backdrop, and there seems to be plenty of takers to the pollen on offer. I wonder if they, like the swallows and house martins, are relying on late breeding insects to prolong the breeding season and make up for a very poor spring and summer?

Winter and next year will help provide some of the answers.

FEEDERS ARE FULL BUT STILL NO BIRDS

Today I bought my first fat snacks of the winter for the birds.

It can still be relatively cheap (no pun) to by these snacks and the birds love them. The added benefit is any scrapes dropping on the floor can provide food for voles and birds that prefer to feed on the ground.

I use about ten snacks a week so costs about £8 a month to keep the birds with a constant supply.

Today I filled my feeders and felt I was being watched I as placed them around the garden. My feelings were right as the feeders were barely out of my grasp when a robin came to sample the delights.

The robin spent most of the afternoon nibbling on the snacks and was joined at various stages by a couple of great and blue tits.

I'm expecting more arrivals over the next few days, although the weather isn't too cold so the majority of birds do seem to be content with the food they can get in the fields and hedgerows.

Tomorrow I'll be spending a bit of time in the garden cleaning out the nestboxes so hope to catch a few different birds, including chaffinches, goldfinches, long tailed tits and tree sparrows.

More updates next week.

NESTBOX UPDATE

The great tit's nest is becoming more and more comfortable and tonight I watched it snuggling down.

I almost thought it was rolling the eggs over, but it would have been the quickest egg laying in history as I had only looked at the nest an hour ago!

The builder of the nest is female, and sightings of the male in the nestbox have not been made, although that's not to say he hasn't been around.

When will there be eggs? I'm hoping next week sometime, but I'll bring daily updates here with new pics and video.



So life continues outside the nestbox and eggciting (sorry couldn't resist) news from the blackbirds next door. They appear to be using the same nest in the same bush as last year and this afternoon I noticed one was 'depositing' an empty egg shell on the other side of the house.

I did notice the blue tits looking at the nestbox today but yet again they've been too late. Maybe they'll use the nestbox they've been roosting in or even the hole in the wall next door.

I'm hoping to spend a bit of time in the garden this weekend, and will feedback any news on all the birds.

I'll obviously be focusing on the great tits, blut tits and blackbirds, but will be casting an eye for the swallows, goldfinches, tree sparrows and the male pheasant.

An order for mealworms will also be placed so I'm hoping to find out exactly who has chicks next week.

TO FLEDGE OR NOT TO FLEDGE?

After my predictions in the last post about the great tit and blue tit chicks fledging, it appears they like the comfort of their nextboxes too much!

Even with my regular mealworm handouts the chicks appear reluctant to enter the big wide world around our house.

The parents appear grateful of the handouts, as do the blackbird parents, while the robin makes occasional visits. The robins and their fledglings are probably busy exploring the neighbourhood so are rarely seen at the moment.

We're now able to eat, sit and work in the garden without causing any disturbance to the birds. We can be within two feet of the birds and nestboxes without any problem.

Indeed within seconds of me putting mealworms out both great tit and blue tit parents are feeding away.

The garden is now blooming lovely, no pun intended, and I'll be providing images of this in my next blog.

Dunnock and goldfinch parents are regularly seen feeding in our garden, while the dunnock chicks appear to have just fledged and making trips too, begging their parents for food!

The pond is thriving, along with the tadpoles, snails and other creatures living in and around it.

Only a few tadpoles appear to be growing legs, but those are in the early stages. I'm hoping to see fully formed frogs in early July.

Today I'll be carrying out a survey to see how many types of wildlife come into our garden for the RSPB. It only takes an hour and the results can be filled in online. Go to www.rspb.org.uk/naturecount to do yours.

Finally I was away from my office at Connect PR yesterday when news came through of a fledgling great tit flying through an open window. My colleagues donned their wildlife caps and ensured the bird was soon free and exploring outside the building, rather than tweeting with everyone.

NEW LIFE IN THE GARDEN

With new life struggles to be introduced to the political scene in this country, there's lots of young and refreshing life in my garden.

The robins have already raised and fledged one brood, although one was sadly killed by a cat shortly after leaving the nest. But the other four young robins are now exploring their new territory.

Not sure if the blue tits have taken up residence in the third of four nestboxes after being usurped from the one they had occupied for the last two years, but I'm leaving them to it for now.

The great tits appear to have hatched chicks and I'm hoping the mealworms I'm providing help them raise their brood along with other nearby small bird families.

The swallows are providing us with brilliant aerial displays and have been joined in recent days by swifts, which are making a welcome return.

Bees are collecting nectar from plants, bushes and fruit trees in and around our garden and it's good to see natures main pollinators in such huge numbers.

Finally the tadpoles are making good progress and have brought the pond full circle, from a puddle of water to one that contains all sorts of life - not bad for such a small water feature.

More news and pics early next week.

PONDLIFE

What a wonderful weekend of spring weather we've just had. Warm and sunny, just like spring should be on Saturdays and Sundays.

The birds in and around my garden are now in full voice and it was lovely to be woken by them this morning rather than the usual alarm.

While I wait for the first song of my favourite bird the swallow, I love listening to the huge variety of birds including robin, blackbird, blue tit, great tit, dunnock and tree sparrow.

The pheasant is also now becoming a daily singer along with the now seemingly resident chiffchaff, while the greater-spotted woodpecker is making a daily appearance after taking a fancy to the big fat snack on the bird table.

I noticed from the comfort of my bed early this morning a woodpigeon picking dead twigs from the outbuildings next door. It's nest must be very near as it was back very quickly for more.

The activity around the nestboxes has seemingly faded, although this could be due to me giving the birds space and peace to get the breeding process going.

I've started to introduce mealworms to the feeding system as I fade out the usual peanuts and fat snacks.

The biggest development is the pond as I watch the tadpoles hatch and now swim amongst the vegetation. I'm hoping they grow quickly and emerge as froglets soon.

The pond and rockery has been left undisturbed since it was rejuvenated last summer and I'm very pleased at how it now looks.

The blossom of the greengage tree is also an awesome sight, especially as it overlooks the pond and rockery.

I hope next time I update this blog they'll be some positive news on the nestboxes.

You can see the main tit box on the wall but the robin one is on the right of the picture halfway up.

PONDLIFE

A major development has occurred in the pond today, a huge gathering of frogspawn.

I can't say the frogs have found the pond as I nicked it from Sarah's parents' pond earlier today. You could say I've 'adopted' some frogspawn.

It'll be a few days before I know if it's been successful, but I'll keep the blog updated with any news.

As we've been away since Sunday I'm not aware of any news on the blue tits and great tits bartering over the nestboxes.

I should be able to see more of the favourite nestbox tomorrow and hopefully confirm the spring residents.

The garden appears to be waking from the enforced winter hibernation with many bulbs and plants from last year coming back to life. Hopefully we'll have a colourful display in April and May.

Finally the greengage tree is now in full blossom with numerous bees at work collecting nectar.

I'm now going to eat my Easter eggs and hope the birds have some eggs of their own soon.

More updates later this week.