To my great dismay I found a dead slow worm in the lane today, squashed flat by traffic.
I have searched this area many times over the last twenty five years, in the hope of finding slow worms and have always been disappointed.
It was sad to see a dead one this morning, but it gives me hope that there may be others in the area.
Sunday, 19 August 2012
Saturday, 18 August 2012
Greedy Sparrowhawk
Watched the breathtaking flight and swoop of a sparrowhawk in the garden today, as he went after a blackbird.
Seeing the sparrowhawk answered the question of where are all the blue tits, great tits, long tailed tits and coal tits that used to congregate on the nuts, fats, and seed holders, over the last few days they have all disappeared.
We walked along the river to the nature reserve today.
The yarrow was flowering in profusion, both pink and white.
Seeing the sparrowhawk answered the question of where are all the blue tits, great tits, long tailed tits and coal tits that used to congregate on the nuts, fats, and seed holders, over the last few days they have all disappeared.
We walked along the river to the nature reserve today.
The yarrow was flowering in profusion, both pink and white.
Monday, 13 August 2012
Herons a little boy and other wildlife
I was pleased to see a pair of herons flying over today, daily we see a lone heron fly over, but to see two is very unusual.
We have lived here for almost twenty-five years, an elderly gentleman whom we met in our early days here, told us wildlife in this area many years before had been much greater than at present. He spoke of myriad frogs and toads, grass snakes, slow worms and many, many herons flying to and fro over where we lived. (He had lived in the same dwelling more than sixty years ago.) We have a river nearby and he told us if as a boy he walked left along the river, he would come to an enormous heronry, which sadly has long since disappeared.
A couple of years later I told my then five year old mad about nature, grandson this, immediately he said, "Can we go for a walk by the river?" "Why?" I queried. "To look for their beaks and feet." was his quick reply! "Beaks and feet?" I queried. "Yes" he responded, "that's the only part left now".
As a child my grandson collected many creatures; beetles of all shapes, colours and sizes were to be found in his pockets and scurrying around my kitchen where they were often released to be watched. Worms carried around sometimes in his pockets, more often in his hands, ants were kept in a glass tank and hours spent watching and tending them. Spiders were bred in a huge glass bottle garden jar in the bathroom, the webs built inside were fascinating and dense, and for more than a year Ric found food for them, released the young when too many built up ---occasionally forgetting to put the cover back on their home causing us sometimes to be overrun with spiders! In other containers he kept different types of stick insects, in the conservatory he had salamanders, he grew up with both cats and dogs, if he found an injured creature it was brought back to be nursed and carefully tended until it could be released. Dead creatures were brought back to be dissected, I well remember the excitement of the little boy, dashing indoors to tell me how far down the lawn the intestines of a dissected rabbit stretched, and insisting I watch while he measured them.
I thought when Ric grew up he would be something to do with wildlife, but although he has retained his love for and interest in nature it has not been his work.
We have lived here for almost twenty-five years, an elderly gentleman whom we met in our early days here, told us wildlife in this area many years before had been much greater than at present. He spoke of myriad frogs and toads, grass snakes, slow worms and many, many herons flying to and fro over where we lived. (He had lived in the same dwelling more than sixty years ago.) We have a river nearby and he told us if as a boy he walked left along the river, he would come to an enormous heronry, which sadly has long since disappeared.
A couple of years later I told my then five year old mad about nature, grandson this, immediately he said, "Can we go for a walk by the river?" "Why?" I queried. "To look for their beaks and feet." was his quick reply! "Beaks and feet?" I queried. "Yes" he responded, "that's the only part left now".
As a child my grandson collected many creatures; beetles of all shapes, colours and sizes were to be found in his pockets and scurrying around my kitchen where they were often released to be watched. Worms carried around sometimes in his pockets, more often in his hands, ants were kept in a glass tank and hours spent watching and tending them. Spiders were bred in a huge glass bottle garden jar in the bathroom, the webs built inside were fascinating and dense, and for more than a year Ric found food for them, released the young when too many built up ---occasionally forgetting to put the cover back on their home causing us sometimes to be overrun with spiders! In other containers he kept different types of stick insects, in the conservatory he had salamanders, he grew up with both cats and dogs, if he found an injured creature it was brought back to be nursed and carefully tended until it could be released. Dead creatures were brought back to be dissected, I well remember the excitement of the little boy, dashing indoors to tell me how far down the lawn the intestines of a dissected rabbit stretched, and insisting I watch while he measured them.
I thought when Ric grew up he would be something to do with wildlife, but although he has retained his love for and interest in nature it has not been his work.
Sunday, 12 August 2012
New Squirrel with a long, thin, stripey tail
Today I saw a new squirrel in the garden, he is very thin and has the longest, thinnest tail of any squirrel I have ever seen.
His tail is fascinating, because it is very definitely striped, bands of black, grey and white encircle it. I tried to photograph it, but before I could he was gone.
He didn't stay and eat, but hopefully he will find a settled home here and I shall see more of him.
His tail is fascinating, because it is very definitely striped, bands of black, grey and white encircle it. I tried to photograph it, but before I could he was gone.
He didn't stay and eat, but hopefully he will find a settled home here and I shall see more of him.
Saturday, 11 August 2012
Honeysuckle, buddleias and fuschias
We planted several fuschias recently at the same time as the buddleias, hoping to give the garden an insect lift. I'm pleased to report it has worked as butterflies are visiting the buddleias, bees are paying court to the fuschias and I was delighted this morning to see a large grasshopper, mainly green but with some brown areas resting on a fuschia.
The smell as we walk down the garden is wonderful, firstly you are aware of the powerful scent of the honeysuckle which draws so many moths in the evening, then suddenly another smell takes its place, it is a honeyed, moreish perfume and comes from the many new buddleias recently planted.
Although these plants were put in for the benefit of wildlife, we also benefit from the bonus of the wonderful perfume they bring to the end of the garden.
The smell as we walk down the garden is wonderful, firstly you are aware of the powerful scent of the honeysuckle which draws so many moths in the evening, then suddenly another smell takes its place, it is a honeyed, moreish perfume and comes from the many new buddleias recently planted.
Although these plants were put in for the benefit of wildlife, we also benefit from the bonus of the wonderful perfume they bring to the end of the garden.
Friday, 10 August 2012
More about the Roof Mallards
I wrote recently about a pair of mallards living on our roof, I wondered as I wrote how long it would last, I was soon to find out, because within two weeks they had moved.
During the preceding week there had been a frenzied flurry of mating --- always in the pond, I thought it was a little late in the season, but trusted their judgement. A few days passed and suddenly she was gone and he was mournful. He stayed on the roof, but spent his days searching the garden for her, disappearing into the undergrowth, poking his head and neck under bushes and into large plants. He was very mournful and all the while kept up a quacking and also looking skywards as if expecting her to fly in to the garden.He didn't find her and we didn't know where she had gone.
Five days later she returned, flying into a splat landing on the lawn and hurrying to look for us --- we fed her, she ate enormously and immediately took off again.
He didn't spot her coming and continued searching the garden for her.
Every two days she returned, going first to the kitchen window, flying up and resting on the bird table, if we weren't in the kitchen she went to the lounge patio doors, after that she would do a quick search of the garden. Finding us at last she would walk hurriedly toward us quaking loudly as she did so, (a very different quack to the musical sounds she made when communicating with her precious ducklings). She would follow me to the end conservatory door, where she waited while I fetched her food, these were the only times she ate here rather than at the side kitchen window.
He remained faithfully looking for her day after day, sometimes he saw her when she flew in and hurried across to be with her, affectionately pushing his beak into her face, neck and upper body, and quietly quacking but she had other things on her mind, and although he tried to follow her she always managed to give him the slip.
Sometimes we would be busy indoors, not see her fly in or appear at the kitchen or lounge windows, on these occasions we would be alerted to her presence by a loud urgent quaking from outside and there she would be, standing in the middle of the side lawn, looking in turn from the side kitchen window to the lounge windows and patiently waiting. We always rushed to feed her and after hurriedly devouring her food while periodically stopping, standing very still with her head to one side as if listening, --- I wondered if it was for her ducklings --- she would be gone. She always finished her food, but did not always stop for a drink or a swim in the pond, often giving one last harsh quack as she took to the air.
He had grown tired of living alone on our roof and had returned to the river, he still visited the garden occasionally. His visits rarely coincided with hers, but when they did he would rush up to her chattering quietly and clearly excited, she on the other hand had little time for him.
Eventually he stopped coming, but every second day she returned ravenously hungry and we were pleased to see her and quick to feed her.
Two days ago we took bread and went to the river to see if we could see her. There she was with her brood of tiny ducklings and we were able to feed both her and her babies. It made our day.
During the preceding week there had been a frenzied flurry of mating --- always in the pond, I thought it was a little late in the season, but trusted their judgement. A few days passed and suddenly she was gone and he was mournful. He stayed on the roof, but spent his days searching the garden for her, disappearing into the undergrowth, poking his head and neck under bushes and into large plants. He was very mournful and all the while kept up a quacking and also looking skywards as if expecting her to fly in to the garden.He didn't find her and we didn't know where she had gone.
Five days later she returned, flying into a splat landing on the lawn and hurrying to look for us --- we fed her, she ate enormously and immediately took off again.
He didn't spot her coming and continued searching the garden for her.
Every two days she returned, going first to the kitchen window, flying up and resting on the bird table, if we weren't in the kitchen she went to the lounge patio doors, after that she would do a quick search of the garden. Finding us at last she would walk hurriedly toward us quaking loudly as she did so, (a very different quack to the musical sounds she made when communicating with her precious ducklings). She would follow me to the end conservatory door, where she waited while I fetched her food, these were the only times she ate here rather than at the side kitchen window.
He remained faithfully looking for her day after day, sometimes he saw her when she flew in and hurried across to be with her, affectionately pushing his beak into her face, neck and upper body, and quietly quacking but she had other things on her mind, and although he tried to follow her she always managed to give him the slip.
Sometimes we would be busy indoors, not see her fly in or appear at the kitchen or lounge windows, on these occasions we would be alerted to her presence by a loud urgent quaking from outside and there she would be, standing in the middle of the side lawn, looking in turn from the side kitchen window to the lounge windows and patiently waiting. We always rushed to feed her and after hurriedly devouring her food while periodically stopping, standing very still with her head to one side as if listening, --- I wondered if it was for her ducklings --- she would be gone. She always finished her food, but did not always stop for a drink or a swim in the pond, often giving one last harsh quack as she took to the air.
He had grown tired of living alone on our roof and had returned to the river, he still visited the garden occasionally. His visits rarely coincided with hers, but when they did he would rush up to her chattering quietly and clearly excited, she on the other hand had little time for him.
Eventually he stopped coming, but every second day she returned ravenously hungry and we were pleased to see her and quick to feed her.
Two days ago we took bread and went to the river to see if we could see her. There she was with her brood of tiny ducklings and we were able to feed both her and her babies. It made our day.
Thursday, 9 August 2012
Regenerating the front hedge
Our front hedge has long been neglected and we decided to be severe with it, a lengthy but necessary process. The hedge is formed from Escallonia shrubs and has been in situ for more than thirty years. It is a pretty hedge with pale pink flowers, however due to our neglect it is now more than twenty feet high and although the top is still flower and leaf rich, the lower reaches are brown, bare and dead looking, by hard pruning, we are hoping to replace the dead brown looking bottom six feet, with a lush flower and leaf rich growth.
It is a slow process and the fifteen feet lengths cut off all have to be chopped up, bagged and taken to the tip. I can see this job lasting several weeks, but I am so looking forward to the new regenerated hedge that will be there next summer.
The long pieces cut off have been piled on the lawn, first pile went onto the top lawn, the next pile moved down to the middle lawn, these piles are enormous being fifteen to twenty feet across and eight feet high, there is a lot of work to be done in the clearing of them, meanwhile the pile on the middle lawn, which is outside the patio window and was a source of irritation at first has become a constant delight as it has become a haven for birds.
It is a slow process and the fifteen feet lengths cut off all have to be chopped up, bagged and taken to the tip. I can see this job lasting several weeks, but I am so looking forward to the new regenerated hedge that will be there next summer.
The long pieces cut off have been piled on the lawn, first pile went onto the top lawn, the next pile moved down to the middle lawn, these piles are enormous being fifteen to twenty feet across and eight feet high, there is a lot of work to be done in the clearing of them, meanwhile the pile on the middle lawn, which is outside the patio window and was a source of irritation at first has become a constant delight as it has become a haven for birds.
Tuesday, 7 August 2012
Xylaria Polymorpha and an Escallonia hedge
I was fascinated by some fungus I found in the front garden yesterday, it was like plump fingers growing out of the soil at the base of a shrub called Escallonia.
The finger like projections were black and growing in a semi circular clump around the base of a thick dead "trunk", I had never seen anything like it before, and the thought it looks like dead men's fingers crossed my mind.
Looking it up I did find it is indeed known as Dead Men's Fingers or more correctly Xylaria Polymorpha it is found usually on beechwood stumps but may also be found on other broad leaved hardwoods. This was interesting to me as the shrub I found it on had small elliptical leaves and although it is a broad leaved shrub I had never thought of it as such (until I looked it up!).
My Escallonia is very old, it was planted in the early 1970's, there are several of these shrubs and they are part of the boundary hedge, which has really outgrown itself. I had decided it needed some hard pruning and we were cutting it back to six feet, which meant lopping off up to fifteen feet of mainly bare wood, the top few feet was still very beautiful being densely covered in both leaves and pretty flowers so I decided to try regenerating the plant by this hard pruning.
The ground underneath appeared to be very dry despite the extremely wet summer, ivy has grown all along the ground at the base of this hedge and we will remove this, I used to have hardy geraniums growing all along the outer edge but I have only two left now as I caught a cheeky man complete with gardening fork digging them up! He had the nerve to tell me he and his wife always admired them and he decided to get them for their own garden, telling me they were only wayfaring plants. I explained they were plants I had bought and put in, off he went with his wife and most of my plants. I decided not to replace them, however time has passed and I have now decided they will be replaced. I have some in the garden and will divide them to make new plants.
While looking up xylaria polymorpha (dead man's fingers) I was interested to read there is another fungus called xylaria longipes which is found exclusively on sycamores and is commonly known as dead moll's fingers!
Further investigation showed xylaria carpophila to be found on rotting beech mast and xylaria hypoxylon which is known as stags horn or candlestick fungus, and is found on rotting fallen branches and stumps of broad leaved trees. It is also found very occasionally on pine stumps.
I shall be looking out for these other types.
The finger like projections were black and growing in a semi circular clump around the base of a thick dead "trunk", I had never seen anything like it before, and the thought it looks like dead men's fingers crossed my mind.
Looking it up I did find it is indeed known as Dead Men's Fingers or more correctly Xylaria Polymorpha it is found usually on beechwood stumps but may also be found on other broad leaved hardwoods. This was interesting to me as the shrub I found it on had small elliptical leaves and although it is a broad leaved shrub I had never thought of it as such (until I looked it up!).
My Escallonia is very old, it was planted in the early 1970's, there are several of these shrubs and they are part of the boundary hedge, which has really outgrown itself. I had decided it needed some hard pruning and we were cutting it back to six feet, which meant lopping off up to fifteen feet of mainly bare wood, the top few feet was still very beautiful being densely covered in both leaves and pretty flowers so I decided to try regenerating the plant by this hard pruning.
The ground underneath appeared to be very dry despite the extremely wet summer, ivy has grown all along the ground at the base of this hedge and we will remove this, I used to have hardy geraniums growing all along the outer edge but I have only two left now as I caught a cheeky man complete with gardening fork digging them up! He had the nerve to tell me he and his wife always admired them and he decided to get them for their own garden, telling me they were only wayfaring plants. I explained they were plants I had bought and put in, off he went with his wife and most of my plants. I decided not to replace them, however time has passed and I have now decided they will be replaced. I have some in the garden and will divide them to make new plants.
While looking up xylaria polymorpha (dead man's fingers) I was interested to read there is another fungus called xylaria longipes which is found exclusively on sycamores and is commonly known as dead moll's fingers!
Further investigation showed xylaria carpophila to be found on rotting beech mast and xylaria hypoxylon which is known as stags horn or candlestick fungus, and is found on rotting fallen branches and stumps of broad leaved trees. It is also found very occasionally on pine stumps.
I shall be looking out for these other types.
Monday, 6 August 2012
Month of myriad moths
This is a wonderful month for moths, every evening the kitchen windows are peppered with them.
I am fascinated by their myriad shapes, sizes and most of all their colours. I have two favourites, the first is a beautiful all yellow moth with creamy yellow body and legs. Second favourite is what appears to be an ordinary brown moth until he shows his beautiful orange underwings and then he is truly transformed. They are difficult to spot, because they are only fleetingly on show and then he tucks them away, underneath his brown outer wings.
I am fascinated by their myriad shapes, sizes and most of all their colours. I have two favourites, the first is a beautiful all yellow moth with creamy yellow body and legs. Second favourite is what appears to be an ordinary brown moth until he shows his beautiful orange underwings and then he is truly transformed. They are difficult to spot, because they are only fleetingly on show and then he tucks them away, underneath his brown outer wings.
Thursday, 2 August 2012
Scarface, the last squirrel
Often I have written about the squirrels in our garden, once more their numbers have suddenly depleted, from having six visit us at any one time, we have dropped to just one. I don't know what has happened to the others.
The remaining squirrel is our old friend with the scarred face. I have no idea what caused such a terrible wound It is still a problem to him as it has never healed properly, although it looks as if it has, but it doesn't seem to bother him. The scar is a bright orangey colour and runs across the left hand side of his face from above his eye, across his cheek and on down to the lower section on the left side of his head.
Most of the time it looks well healed, other times the whole left side of his head swells up and his left eye which is larger than the right eye due to being stretched open by the scarring, is filled with pus that oozes from the once again infected wound. He seems unconcerned by this and just brushes the pus away from his eye. I am constantly surprised and pleased that he recovers from these infections and has lasted so long.
I wish I could help him, but I know as tame as he is he would never allow himself to be caught.
The remaining squirrel is our old friend with the scarred face. I have no idea what caused such a terrible wound It is still a problem to him as it has never healed properly, although it looks as if it has, but it doesn't seem to bother him. The scar is a bright orangey colour and runs across the left hand side of his face from above his eye, across his cheek and on down to the lower section on the left side of his head.
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| Another Squirrel -- Not Scarface |
Most of the time it looks well healed, other times the whole left side of his head swells up and his left eye which is larger than the right eye due to being stretched open by the scarring, is filled with pus that oozes from the once again infected wound. He seems unconcerned by this and just brushes the pus away from his eye. I am constantly surprised and pleased that he recovers from these infections and has lasted so long.
I wish I could help him, but I know as tame as he is he would never allow himself to be caught.
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