Tag: Robin

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One Day of Christmas

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Having time off has allowed me to catch up on some reading, listening to the birds as I do so. In the mornings I usually notice Blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), Great tits, (Parus major), Robin (Erithacus rubecula), Blackbird (Turdus merula) and Magpie (Pica pica) until eventually a Pigeon (Columba palumbus) wakes up and joins in with the chorus. Although it has been nice to relax, it isn’t long before cabin fever kicks in and I need to be outdoors.

As I went for a walk last week, my mood was elevated. I noticed a red-legged partridge (Alectoris rufa) pecking at food along a path.

For a ground dwelling bird, that prefers to run than fly (in short bursts) when danger is near, it was no surprise that it wasn’t in a pear tree. However seeing this bird did feel appropriately festive.

I also saw some Winter jasmine (Jasminum sieboldianum) blooming; bringing a welcome burst of yellow at this time of year.

Upon my return home I caught the lovely sweet scent Sarcococca confusa too.

The small flowers are insignificant amongst the evergreen foliage but they have an intoxicating aroma that I love. I hope the birds find the black berries to eat.

My other winter flowering plants blooming at the moment are;

– Sarcococca hookeriana

– and Witch hazel ‘Diane’

(Hamamelis × intermedia ‘Diane’)

Both of these plants are fragrant too but their scent is more subtle than that of the Sarcococca confusa.

I enjoy the transition between years. I don’t make resolutions but I love the positive feeling of renewal and freshness that occurs at New Year.

I also like to reflect on the previous twelve months. The highlight (rather predictably) was catching sight of some Painted lady butterflies (Vanessa cardui) after they migrated in large numbers to this shore in the summer.

I have learnt so much about the wildlife that I’ve seen as I have written my blog; it has been a very enjoyable experience. I am grateful for those of you who follow my discoveries, thank you for taking an interest in my ramblings

Best wishes for 2020!

🐝

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First Signs of Snow(drops)

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The cold weather is setting in, days continue to shorten and the gardens seem dorment; it is easy to feel gloomy when the sun isn’t shining. Yet, even at this time of year, life is beginning to break through. Last week Snowdrops (Galanthus nivalis), Daffodils (Narcissus) and Hellebore flowers (Helleborus) started to show themselves. It is lovely to see these small signs of growth. It is a reminder that even in the darkest days small glimmers of hope can be found if you look carefully.

Snowdrops (the Latin name meaning ‘Milk flower of the snow’) are simple yet elegant. There are 2,500 varieties, the rarest are highly prized. Some gardens have collections of snowdrops which can be visited in February such as
Colesbourne gardens and
Benington Lordship garden.

The substance galantamine (contained in Snowdrops and other plants from the Amaryllidaceae family) has been used in the drug Reminyl for the treatment of Alzheimer’s. A fact I discovered when I visited the Chelsea Physics Garden earlier in the year.

Hellebores complement Snowdrops nicely. The Hellebore traditionally associated with Christmas is the early flowering Christmas Rose (Helleborus Niger). It is referred to as a rose because the flower resembles those of wild roses; it isn’t part of the Rosa genus. Other Hellebores (Helleborus hybridus) begin to flower a little later. There are different varieties of each species. Hellebores have a long flowering season, blooming until March.

Cutting back the old leaves of this perennial from late autumn has two advantages. Firstly it enables you to see the beautiful flowers more clearly and secondly it prevents leaf spot from spreading further.

Hellebores are great for pollinators, like solitary bees which are searching for food in early spring. They can also make lovely cut flowers.

Hellebores have a tendency to cross pollinate and self seed easily, producing increasingly murky colours if left to keep growing on. However, the seeds can be cleared quickly by hoeing or by cutting the flowers off before germination can occur.

If these two plants aren’t enough to bring joy at this time of year then hearing Robins (Erithacus rubecula) sing loudly is wonderfully uplifting. Along with Robins other birds are easy to spot now trees are bare.

I had an unusual sighting last week, that of a Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major). It held onto the side of a tree trunk as I entered a garden. I accidentally disturbed it so it crept round to the back of the tree before eventually flying off. It appeared to be feeding. Woodpeckers capture insects or larvae with their long sticky tongues; however during winter they can start eating berries and from bird feeders too.

On route to Wales, at the weekend, I noticed a Kestral (Falco tinnunculus) hovering alongside the motorway. Clearly it was making the most of the brief break in the clouds looking for small mammals, birds, worms or insects.

It was lovely to see the Woodpecker and Kestral last week as I don’t often see these birds.

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Crisp Autumn Mornings

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The clear cold nights and frosty mornings have arrived. I don’t mind crisp starts to the day because eventually the sunshine appears.

As more trees become leafless I find other means of identifying them. I learnt two new trees last week; the first was a Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) and the second was an American sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua). In both instances the first things I noticed on each was their fruit.
The unripe fruit of the Strawberry tree can be seen below alongside the delicate flowers. The common name, Strawberry tree, comes from the ripe red fruit which look similar to strawberries. The fruit of this evergreen tree will be eaten by birds. It seemed strange to see the fruit, from the pollination of last year’s flowers, appearing at the same time as this years flowers.

The American sweetgum tree also gives interest to gardens at this time of year. The leaves turn a rich mixture of yellow through to orange and red and even purple in autumn.

The spiky looking fruit dangle from the branches at the same time as the leaves turn and fall.

I have started noticing more Robins (Erithacus rubecula) hanging around lately; always eager to gobble up insects and worms that I unwittingly uncover as I work.

Moments after taking this photo another Robin swooped down and a fight over winter territory began.

It is fascinating to observe Robins, who can be relatively social towards humans, eagerly defend their patch of garden against other Robins. It is quite a contrast to the other bird which became more noticeable last week; Ring-necked parakeets (Psittacula krameri) flock together. I saw groups of this social parrot flying overhead throughout the week. They have been breeding in the area for a long time and I often see them but not usually every day.

I still notice the occasional bee and on Wednesday I saw a Buff-tailed (Bombus terrestris) bumblebee (the buff coloured tail enabled me to Identify it as a queen). I observed her walking amongst leaf litter. She could have been a new queen, going into hibernation before starting a nest next spring, or an old queen who will soon die.

More fungi are appearing as autumn continues to take hold.

*Once again, please do not use this post as a guide to edible mushrooms. I have managed to identify some but have placed question marks next to those I am unsure of.*

Those I saw last week are;

-The Bitter oyster (Panellus stipticus) fungus

-Collared earthstar (Geastrum triplex) fungus.

-Grey Spotted Amanita
(Amanita excelsa var. spissa)?

-The prince (Agaricus augustus)?

This is the largest fungus I have seen this autumn; the diameter was almost as long as my size 5 boot. It also had a slightly sweet aroma.
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Cozy Evening Reflections

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I am feeling cozy, sitting on the sofa, as I reflect on last weeks observations on a dark evening.

Along with the earlier sunsets, fresh mornings have begun to take hold too. I have been noticing a lot of changes occurring with trees throughout the week. Their leaves are turning autumnal and I have been able to pick fresh apples as I work. Lots of conkers are falling around the bus stop too.

One of the apple trees with lovely sweet apples is pictured below. There were other trees with Russet and Cox apples.

The Rowan tree outside my home continues to have Blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) feeding on insects. Plus I have also seen a Robin (Erithacus rubecula) and two Long tailed tits (Aegithalos caudatus) eating insects on it’s branches, along with a Blackbird (Turdus merula) feasting in the berries.

Mr Blackbird wasn’t camera shy.

I still saw Small white (Pieris rapae), Red admiral (Vanessa atalanta) and Painted lady (Vanessa cardui) butterflies as they took advantage of the late flowering perennials.

On Wednesday I noticed a Painted lady butterfly as well as a Common carder bee (Bombus pascuorum) visiting some Ceratostigma willmottianum which is still blooming while the leaves are turning red.

Some plants have been flowering all summer, such as Geraniums and Verbena bonariensis, and now bloom alongside Sedums, Asters and Autumn crocus (Colchicum autumnale) painting gardens in muted colours.

Sedums and Verbena bonariensis looking lovely amongst ornamental grasses.
Geranium still flowering.
A Painted lady butterfly collecting nectar from an Aster flower.
Autumn crocuses blooming in the lawn.

Cutting back faded perennials was one of last weeks jobs which meant I disturbed a lot of Seven-spot ladybirds (Coccinella septempunctata). So I spent quite a bit of time rescuing them from garden waste bins too.

Lastly, as I walked home late on Wednesday, I ended up seeing a beetle walking across the path in the moonlight and enjoyed the view of the Waxing gibbous moon amongst the clouds.

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An Enchanting Week

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My interest in plants extends to herbal medicine and floral folklore. Often found in gardens, such plants are easily accessible.

I find poisonous plants fascinating too. I would like to visit the Chelsea Physics garden as well as the Alnwick Poison Garden in Northumberland. Over the past week, a few wild flowers that I have noticed blooming would probably be found in these gardens, these are;

– White bryony (Bryonia dioica) scrambling over Dogwood (Cornus). White Bryony has poisonous berries and the plant has a very strong unpleasant purgative affect. A few deaths linked to this plant have been recorded.

– Woody Nightshade (Solanum dulcamara).

Also called Bittersweet the plant would make someone incredibly ill; the berries if eaten would cause vomiting and convulsions. There have been a few deaths linked to this plant. It is from the same family as Deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna, See Woodland Trust).

I saw other wildflowers blooming too such as the intriguingly named Enchanter’s nightshade (Circaea lutetiana). Confusingly this flower isn’t from the nightshade family at all but is actually a Willowherb. One folkloric belief was that this plant would give protection against Elvish spells.

I also saw Field bindweed (Convolvulus arvensis) along the verges.

I continued to see many birds and insects throughout the week. After many days since the last time, I was happy to see the juvenile Blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) back in the Rowan tree (Sorbus). Also on Monday I had a Juvenile Robin (Erithacus rubecula) follow me around. Clearly the instincts for locating food near gardeners starts early.

The first moth I saw last week was an adult female Bee moth (Aphomia sociella). These moths are so called because they lay eggs in bee and wasp nests and also bee hives. Their larvae eat the comb, causing damage and are therefore a pest for beekeepers.

Other moths I saw were two Rosy tabby (Endotricha flammealis) moths

and a Dark arches (Apamea monoglypha) moth.

On Wednesday I was working near a fantastic old Sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) tree. Countless Honey bees (Apis mellifera) and Marmalade hoverflies (Episyrphus balteatus) were busy flying to and fro pollinating the flowers.

As the summer continues more and more butterflies become visible. I have seen lots more Meadow brown (Maniola jurtina), Small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) and Large white butterflies (Pieris brassicae). One of them seen here on some lavender (Lavandula).

Also on Wednesday I observed two butterflies that I have never seen before, a Marbled white (Melanargia galathea) on Verbena bonariensis

and a Small skipper butterfly (Thymelicus sylvestris), also seen on the Verbena bonariensis.

Later on the same day I also saw ten Azure damselflies (Coenagrion puella) around the pond.

On Friday morning, as I was going to work, I had to usher a Common green lacewing (Chrysoperla carnea) outside so it could find some aphids to munch on.

Then lastly on Friday I saw a Harlequin ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) on Brunnera macrophylla ‘Jack Frost’.

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Music to my Ears

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While my colleagues listen to their music via headphones I prefer to listen to nature as I work; especially birdsong which I find uplifting. Recently I have started to really tune in and distinguish different songs and calls as I attempt to identify particular birds. By teaching myself I now recognise Great tit (Parus major) song, Coal Tit (Parus ater) song and Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) call. However I still find it difficult to pick out certain sounds which is why last Sunday I went to an ‘Introduction to bird calls and songs’ nature talk and walk at a local park. We were introduced to 12 birds that we would most likely hear during our afternoon stroll. Most were already familiar to me however I did learn the songs of Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita) and Greenfinch (Carduelis chloris).

The birds we ended up hearing (above the wind and sirens) were;
-Woodpigeon (Columba Livia)
-Carion crow (Corvus corone)
-Magpie (Pica pica)
-Wren (Troglodytidae)
-Chiffchaff
-Blackbird (Turdus merula)
-Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopus major)
-Blackcap warbler (Sylvia atricapilla)
– and Song thrush (Turdus philomelos).

We also saw a (quiet) Jay (Garrulus glandarius) along with a Speckled wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria), Red admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) and some White-tailed bumblebees (Bombus lucorum).

Last week I combined what I learned at this event with my previous knowledge; the birds I was confident I identified correctly were;
-Woodpigeons
-Magpies
-Blackbirds
-Robin (Erithacus rubecula)
-Ring necked parakeets (Psittacula krameri)
-Blue Tits (Parus caeruleus).
-Chiffchaffs
-Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
-Red kite (Milvus milvus)
-and House sparrows (Passer domesticus)

On several mornings I also watched the family of Blue tits on the Rowan tree as I ate breakfast. The parents had nested in the eaves around Easter (see Different sort of Easter Chicks) so it was great to discover they had a successfully reared a brood. I counted 6 fledged youngsters return to the tree and feed on insects together.

Blue Tit acrobatics- One of the youngsters feeding itself.

These weren’t the only sightings last week as I also saw;
-another Red Admiral butterfly

-a Cinnabar moth (Tyria jacobaeae)

-some Ivy-leaved toadflax (Cymbalaria muralis)

-Common spotted orchid (Dactylorhiza fuchsii)

-Pineappleweed (Matricaria discoidea)

-As well as a common frog (Rana temporaria)

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Working with Insects can be Frustrating

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More colour is showing up along the road as the purple of the Common mallow (Malva sylvestris) blooms amongst Common Poppies (Papaver rhoeas) and Ox-eye daisies (Leucanthemum vulgare); a lovely sight as I travel on the bus.

Another plant that is flowering on the verges and lawns now is White Clover (Trifolium repens).

I first saw it on Monday, at the bus stop, as I listened to a Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis).

The Goldfinch can just be heard singing above the drone of the traffic.

A group of Goldfinches is a ‘Charm’ from the old English word c’irm, referring to their singing.

Last monday was the day for noticing Goldfinch as later in the morning I watched a couple of Goldfinch on a nest in a Buddleia (Buddleja davidii).

They weren’t the only birds I noticed that day. In the afternoon a Robin (Erithacus rubecula) kept me company as I weeded. It was quite fearless, frequently getting close to me to collect food as I worked.

I noticed some Scarlet Pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis) flowering too. Other common names for it include Poor man’s Barometer or Shepherd’s clock because the flowers open in sunny weather and close when it is dull.

As it was a a warm sunny day lots of bees were out. On the Catmint (Nepeta) there were Early Bumblebees (Bombus pratorum), White-tailed Bumblebees (Bombus lucorum), Tree Bumblebees (Bombus hypnorum) and Honey Bees (Apis mellifera).

A White-tailed bumblebee busy working.

As the week went on I continued to notice a greater variety of bees visiting the garden;

– Tree Bumblebees, Early Bumblebees, White-tailed Bumblebees as well as female Red tailed bumblebees (Bombus lapidarius) on a weigela.

-Early Bumblebees and White-tailed Bumblebees on some Pale Garlic (Allium paniculatum).

This is the best photo I managed to obtain. The saying about not working with children or animals (or in this case insects) came to mind on Tuesday and Wednesday; descent photos were severely lacking midweek.

On Thursday, as I undertook more weeding, I unfortunately disturbed a beautiful White plume moth (Pterophorus pentadactyla) in the border. The caterpillars, which are green and yellow, feed on bindweed so this was a welcome sighting.

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Singing for it’s dinner

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I made a new friend this morning. As I was digging a Robin (Erithacus rubecula) started singing, when it wasn’t eating the worms and insects I unearthed.

There is an update on the male Pheasant too; he has a partner. I thought he had been quieter lately. I hope I get to see youngsters soon.

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🌞Sunny weather brings many sightings

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Birdsong filled the air throughout the day. The calls I could identify were of Robins, Blackbirds and a Long-tailed tit. I also heard a Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopus major) drumming against a tree and a couple of Tawny owl (Strix aluco) calls in the morning. Once the sun broke through the cloud lots of insects started flying around too.

In the morning I noticed another Harlequin ladybird, this one was sheltering on a Cornus sanguinea ‘Midwinter Fire’. Unlike Seven spot ladybirds I only find Harlequins one at a time.

During the afternoon a female Red-tailed Bumblebee was enjoying the flowers blooming on a Berberis darwinii shrub. Pollen sacks can be seen as well as her proboscis as she collects pollen and nectar.

Lastly, I saw a Small White butterfly warming up on some ivy.

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Natural therapy

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Nature enables me to be mindful, focus my attention on the present moment and help combat my anxiety. I am lucky that I work outdoors (no, I don’t mind the rain and cold weather) it enables me to dose up on serotonin and vitamin D as well as get plenty of exercise. Also, I can observe nature as I work which is great therapy.
Last week was busy but I still managed to take time out of my schedule to focus on nature.
The week started joyfully with a Red-tailed bumblebee flying around me while I was working. It was a male drone, identified by its yellow markings, along with the black and red colouring. I love hearing bees buzzing, especially when it is amplified by a trumpet shaped flower or there is a chorus of them, it is so relaxing.
Then on Tuesday, while retrieving a ladder from the shed, I noticed an adult Robin trying to fly in through the shed door. Realising it probably had a nest in there I left the door ajar and walked away. After a few moments I was glad to see it fly into the shed and reappear with a fledged youngster. It was beautiful to witness this.
On my way to work, the next day, I came across a male Pheasant dining out with some sparrows and two squirrels. The pheasant and sparrows were eating some bread and birdseed (left on the lawn by one of my neighbours). The squirrels were attacking the bird feeders. I have heard the pheasant for a few weeks now but this was the first time I had seen him. The sparrows and squirrels were unfazed by him, obviously realising he was no threat. I love the colours of a male pheasant’s plumage. They are so rich and great inspiration for craftwork. I can just imagine knitting a jumper in those colours, now there’s a thought…
During Thursdays lunchtime I watched a Magpie washing its feathers in a puddle. It was splashing around for about 5 minutes, flew into the nearby conifer only to return to the same puddle for another long cleaning and preening session. Watching it made me smile.
The working week ended with a lovely lullaby. I fell asleep listening to the beautiful song of a male Blackbird. He started singing around 10:20pm. He hasn’t sung at that hour since; perhaps he was only visiting the Rowan tree outside. It is also possible that something disturbed his slumber and the lit streetlights confused his body clock. Whatever the reason for his singing at that time of night it was a lovely way to fall asleep.