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.

A SURPRISE VISITOR

So we did have a summer this year, it was in May and June. July and August must be the new autumn!

The warm weather helped to give some wildlife better conditions to raise their young, but it then became too dry as all wildlife need water.

One of the major worries was the pond behind our house. It’s been home to coots, moorhens, reed beds with various insects, fish and a number of ducks. This is despite its relatively small size.

Unfortunately the farmer who owns the pond used almost all of its water to spray on his crops. While this is understandable, the system that was used had more leaks than a Wales farmer’s market or all the country’s water firms put together!

I noticed on a number of occasions the birds floating on what was left of the pond looking very confused with what had happened.

Since the rain started the pond has filled up thanks to an incoming small stream, but is now almost breaching the ‘dam’ wall at one end. It’s at the highest level I’ve seen in three years.

Unfortunately most of the wildlife will have either perished or found somewhere else to live/breed.

My pond is still teeming with life as the number of frogs increasing and tadpoles decrease. I’m not sure how many will survive the first year of life but I hope some will return to spawn when the time is right.

The garden is now in full bloom after and very well watered. The flowers and various plants, bushes and crops have attracted all sorts of insects, butterflies, and moths.

It’s fantastic to see so many of these creatures making our garden sufficiently interesting for them to visit, feed and breed.

This of course attracts birds and we’ve had frequent visits from the blue tits and great tits youngsters born in and around the garden.

One noticeable sight is the amount of goldfinches, swallows and swifts flying overhead or nearby feeding on the wing or in the surrounding fields and bushes.

But, the most exciting moment came when I noticed a bird I’ve never seen before was spotted nearby. It must live within 200m of our house as I’ve spotted it on numerous occasions observing the scene from the same lookout post.

The bird in questions is a little owl and we feel extremely grateful to be able to share our neighbourhood with us.

I first noticed it when a blackbird was issuing an alarm call in a field adjacent to our house. As it was still light I investigated what was bothering it and watched a similar sized bird fly up to a telegraph pole. I then noticed it on the same pole in the subsequent days and was able to identify it.

With a new arrival in our house due any day, updates may become infrequent as Sarah and I become enthusiastic parents! Hopefully we’ll do as well as our local wildlife.

THE CHICKS ARE BACK

I say the chicks (blue tits) are back, but obviously not in the nestbox, just visiting the garden for the titbits on offer.

I'm hoping they take a liking to any insects that eat any of my vegetables or roses!

It's been a quiet few weeks since the blue tit, great tit and blackbird chicks fledged, but the skies have been taken over by the swallow fledglings, with their enchanting summer song both on the wing and at rest on the telephone wires.

When they first fledged the swallow youngsters would sit on the edge of our roof calling for the parents to feed them.

But in the last few days the birds have been through their moult and are starting to return to the garden for food and maybe a glimpse of where they grew up.

The pond has suffered with the hot dry weather and I've been forced to add water to it. Luckily many of the tadpoles are now little frogs and are often seen resting on the edge of the pond and even exploring the surrounding rockery.

I'm hoping they utilise the pond from now on when required, especially as the big pond behind the house is almost empty after the farmer has continually drained it to feed crops.

What's most concerning about this pond is it's been designated a wildlife conservation area. So the draining of it makes a mockery of what it is there for in the first place.

THE MIRACLE OF FLEDGING

As spring turns into summer (not judging by the weather!), the circle of life is once again asking for auditions to join the big wide world.

The first from our garden to join was the robin family. I've not seen the chicks since their fledging in April/May, but I'm hopeful they'll be back soon after exploring the local neighbourhood.

I've been leaving the birds mealworms since April, to help supplement the diet of caterpillars and other tit bits provided to their young.

The main benefits have been the great tits in our garden and the blue tits in next doors. I still feel the blue tits are our family, as they only moved next door after the great tits took over 'their' nestbox.

Anyway the blue tit and great tit chicks were flapping their wings and chirping away for over a week, leading me to think they didn't want to leave the nest.

I came home about 8pm from work one night this week and witnessed a chick fledging bonanza. Two blue tit chicks were in the garden calling for food from their parents, while the great tit chicks were playing hide and seek with me in the hole of the nestbox - see video below.

With several cats lurking I managed to rescue both blue tit chicks and put them in the relative safety of the honeysuckle bush, while also watching the great tit chicks take it in turns to fledge or stay in the nestbox.

I watched from the lounge window as the blue tit parents then fed the youngsters, but grew anxious as the smaller chick failed to follow the others into a nearby tree.

With my mealworm handouts the parents of both blue and great tit chicks fed their fledglings in the same tree, while I waited to see if the smaller one's chirps would be heard and rewarded with a feed.

After a while it was obvious I had to intervene, so with careful hands I scooped the blue tit chick and placed it as high as possible in the tree its siblings were being fed in. With Springwatch on record, I was able to watch as the parents eventually recognised their offspring and began feeding it.

Meanwhile the great tit chicks had eventually all fledged (6 in all), although a little help from the parents tempting them with food was required.

I continued to watch the blue tits feeding their chicks, while the great tits seemed to have flown to another tree in the field next door to our house. Just as dusk was falling the rescued blue tit chick tried to fly further up but didn't quite make it, landing on the ground nearby.

This was when fate intervened in a way I find very unkind. One of the lurking cats must have been watching this fledging and feeding frenzy from closer than I thought, and pounced on the chick before rushing off.

I immediately raced after it and was joined in my pursuit by two blackbirds, a blue tit parent and several tree sparrows. Goodness knows what the neighbours thought!

Unfortunately the cat escaped my clutches and the blue tit parents had lost one of their offspring. I cruel blow after such tenacious and hard work bringing them to fledge.

While I accept nature will also pick off the old and weak, I don't accept domestic cats and their indiscriminate killings of wildlife.

The next morning the dawn chorus including the blue tit and great tit chicks calling for food, so I'm hopeful of them returning to our garden later in the summer.

I was amazed both sets of chicks chose to fledge at the same time, and at the precise moment I came home. It was as if they waited for their 'grandparent' to come home before saying bye and thank you for the food and accommodation.

Last year the blue tits did a similar fledging, waiting for a Saturday and me to be in the garden. I'm really pleased our garden seems to be a favourable place to nest and bring up chicks.

We've been here for three years and have seen two blue tit families, a great tit family and a robin family all successfully bring up chicks in those years. This year was the first time two families were raised on our garden, next year I'm hoping the blue tits come back and we make it three!

Now I must hope the blackbird chicks fledge soon, safely and with wonderful summer weather in which to explore the neighbourhood.

On a final note the tadpoles are now developing legs and should be hopping off in a few weeks time.

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.

GARDEN UPDATE IN SUNSHINE

The weather is finally behaving like it is spring and the wildlife seems to be back in the full swing of reproducing.

My garden’s robins may have fledged one brood, but it seems they or another pair are busy feeding another lot of youngsters nearby.

Both parents seem to know when I’ll be putting the mealworms out and have become quite tame.

The great tits nesting in the old blue tit’s nestbox are also keen on the mealworms and I’m hoping their chicks will fledge this weekend.

As for the blue tits I’m still waiting to see if they’ve nested in the third nestbox, but I’m sure they’ve chosen another place to bring up their new family.

The tadpoles and pond/rockery area is vibrant, with the young frogs developing nicely and seemingly enjoying life in a pond that is full of life, both flora and fauna.

The rest of the garden is coming to life with a big planting session planned for this weekend. Fingers crossed the vegetable, fruit, herb and flower planting will bring success throughout the spring, summer and autumn.

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.

NEW LIFE

I went away for a week, that was then delayed for a further five days due to the Icelandic volcano, and I've come back to a garden full of new life with more promised.

A very quick update on the main points:

1. The robins appear to have small chicks as both parents are dashing to and from the nest with live meals including worms and the mealworms I've provided. I'll not be going near the nestbox and hope to get images and video from afar. The robins are friendly so hopefully they'll allow me to work in the garden while they feed and then fledge their chicks.
2. The great tits have taken over the blue tit nest box and are busy building a nest. I did think they were feeding chicks but on closer inspection it appeared to be horse hair, or something similar.
3. The usurped blue tits look to have chosen a new nestbox and could be building a nest. It's close to the front door so I don't want to disturb them too much by constantly looking. But if this is true then we'll have three new families in the garden this spring.
4. The tadpoles in the pond have grown and most appeared to have survived the transfer from Yorkshire, so I'm really pleased.
5. The garden and surrounding trees and bushes are now coming into leaf, with blossom brightening up the place. There's been plenty of bees around the garden and I'm hoping for a spectacular spring and summer of wildlife watching.

On a final note today has seen the return of the swallows. A lovely sight as they glide serenely over the house and farm buildings. I suspect they delayed their return and followed me back on Saturday. ;~)

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.