Wild and Wonderful: Acer negundo

Showing posts with label Acer negundo. Show all posts

Monday, 8 February 2016

Tree Following - January and early February 2016

Welcome to my Tree Following post for January and early February 2016.

These tree posts form part of a wider project initiated by Lucy Corrander from the Loose and Leafy blog and continued by Pat at The Squirrelbasket. May I express my thanks to you both.

I am based in Suffolk, UK, where I have been keeping an eye on an Acer negundo (aka a Box-leaf Maple). I am also continuing to watch my Silver birch, B. pendula. Those of you who have read my previous posts will know that I love following the Silver Birch; but, for some slightly indefinable reason, I have not found the Acer negundo a very rewarding tree to follow. I may exchange it for a small flowering cherry sapling that we were given four years ago. I will let you know my thoughts on the matter in a month's time!

You will find the other Tree Follower links by clicking the Mr Linky link here ... so do take the chance to have a look at these new posts!

Once again, the main activity this last month concerns the birds who live around my home patch. Many of them showed up on cue - in, on, around or under the Silver Birch - during the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch. You will find my report here.

Since my last TF post, I have noted the following ...

The feisty Robin (and another Robin)
Blue tits, a large cluster
Great tits, again a good number of these
Long-tailed tits, always in a small group
Starlings, every so often
Blackbird, around the tree, rather than on it
Magpies
Wood pigeons, the usual suspects
Carrion Crows, three noisy ones!
Greater Spotted Woodpecker - a male and a female
Bullfinch, male - seen once during its brief spell in our patch
Grey Heron, seen overhead twice, going in opposite directions
Sparrowhawk, which flew past the Silver Birch and on over the fence
Goldfinches, a large charm
Collared Doves, a pair
Jay, a few days before the Birdwatch.

There has also been a Grey Squirrel, who is perching precariously at the top of the Silver Birch as I type. A large black and white cat has visited the base of the Silver Birch on occasions, leaping up at a Magpie who was hovering by the coconut feeders.

On the insect front, I have one early moth to report, but it flew off before I was able to identify it or take its photograph. I also watched a queen Buff-tailed Bumblebee fly past the Silver Birch, and I gather from friends on Facebook that there have been other sightings of these bees during the past month.

And now for a few photos for this month ...

Silver Birch - this morning

Slow signs of spring (Silver Birch)

Acer negundo, looking pretty wintry still

Great spotted Woodpecker, male

You can see his back-of-the-nape red band very clearly

The Grey Squirrel managed to knock the lump of fat (with berries) to the ground ...

... ate as much as it could, and managed with some difficulty to carry the remains over the fence.

One of the Dunnocks at the foot of the Silver Birch

Blue tits feeding in peace

One of the Starlings

Above and below: Magpie (before the cat leaped up)

I mentioned in January that I would post my full TF species list once again this month. I shall probably continue to do this every other month or at intervals as it is becoming rather long! Here it is:

(Largely) Silver Birch Sighting Update
The few Acer negundo entries have been marked as such.

Avian sightings (on, in and around the Silver Birch, seen at any time since I began the Tree Following project over a year ago) are shown in pink.

I have marked the 'wild things' seen during this last month in yellow.

To date, the only birds seen on the Acer negundo are TFb13 Goldfinch and TFb19 Chaffinch.

TFb1 Great Spotted Woodpecker (a male and female)
TFb2 Great tit (several, often on feeder)
TFb3 Long-tailed Tit (large family, including juveniles)
TFb4 Blackbird
TFb5 Song Thrush
TFb6 Blue tit (several frequently on feeder)
TFb7 Robin (the feisty Robin has put in frequent appearances)
TFb8 Magpie
TFb9 Wood Pigeon (up to ten perching around the feeder area)
TFb10 Dunnock (two occasionally below the feeder)
TFb11 Starling (one or two)
TFb12 Carrion Crow
TFb13 Goldfinch
TFb14 Jay
TFb15 Green Woodpecker
TFb16 Wren
TFb17 Bullfinch (a single visit from a male)
TFb18 Sparrowhawk
TFb19 Mallard
TFb20 House Sparrow
TFb21 Chaffinch

New bird species this month ...

TFb22 Grey Heron (I have seen these in our home patch before, but apparently not since the start of my Tree Following observations. There is a stream in the local nature reserve at the back of our garden, so we see these birds occasionally).
TFb23 Collared Dove (a pair)

Mammal sightings include ...

TFm1 (?Wood) Mouse
TFm2 Bat ... first 2015 garden sighting 7 May 2015 [Apr/May 2015]
TFm3 Shrew
TFm4 Grey Squirrel (high up on the Silver Birch) [Jan/Feb 2016]
TFm5 Stoat
TFm6 Hedgehog, a single sighting

No new mammals this month.

Insect sightings include ...

TFi1 Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly [March 2014]
TFi2 Buff-tailed Bumblebee [March 2014] [Jan/Feb 2016]
TFi3 Brimstone Butterfly [April 2014]
TFi4 7-spot Ladybird [April 2014] [October 2014] [Apr/May 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Sept/Oct 2015]
TFi5 Skipper Butterfly [July 2014]
TFi6 Meadow Brown Butterfly [July 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi7 Large White Butterfly [July 2014]
TFi8 14-spot Yellow Ladybirds [July 2014]
TFi9 Small White Butterfly [May 2014] [Apr/May 2015] [Sept/Oct 2015 - caterpillars]
TFi10 Orange tip Butterfly [May 2014]
TFi11 Harlequin ladybird [May 2014] [October 2014] [Sept/Oct 2015 - on three on Acer negundo!]
TFi12 Garden Chafer (Phyllopertha horticola) [June 2014]
TFi13 Ruby-tail Wasp [June 2014] [May/June 2015]
TFi14 Blackfly [June 2014]
TFi15 Marmalade Hoverfly [July 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi16 Shield bug [July 2014] [Apr/May 2015]
TFi17 Migrant Hawker dragonflies [July 2014]
TFi18 Unidentified Damselfly [August 2014]
TFi19 Comma butterfly [August 2014]
TFi20 Red Admiral butterfly [August 2014] [October 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi21 Peacock butterfly [August 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Nov/Dec 2015] - flew past window
TFi22 Green bottle flies [August 2014] [May/June 2015]
TFi23 Ants [August 2014] [Apr/May 2015] [May/June 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Sept/Oct 2015 Acer negundo]
TFi24 Squashbug aka Dock Bug, Coreus marginatus [August 2014]
TFi25 Birch Shieldbug (late instar?) [September 2014]
TFi26 Lacewing [October 2014] [Sept/Oct 2015]
TFi27 Cereal Leaf Beetle [Apr/May 2015]
TFi28 Unidentified Moth [Nov/Dec 2014] [Feb/Mar 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Sept/Oct 2015]
[Jan/Feb 2016]
TFi29 Rosemary Beetle [[Sept/Oct 2015]
TFi30 Hawthorn Shieldbug [May/June 2015]
TFi31 Forest Shieldbug (Pentatoma rufipes) [Sept/Oct 2015]

No new insects this month.

Arachnids

TFa1 Zebra Spider (about ten) [Apr/May 2015] [May/June 2015]
TFa2 Garden Spider (Araneus diadematus) [May/June 2015]
TFa3 Unidentified spider

No new insects this month.

And finally ...

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Friday, 8 January 2016

Tree Following 2016: December and early January

Happy New Year!

Welcome to my Tree Following post for December and early January.

The following three photos of the Silver Birch were taken this morning. You can see the profusion of catkins.

The main activity this last month concerns the birds who live around my home patch. I have yet to see a bird perch on the Acer negundo (no surprises here, but *why* is this tree so unattractive to so many species, I continue to wonder?).

The Silver Birch has had a constant stream of visitors in the last month, although there have been no new 'firsts' to report. I have noted the following ...

The faithful feisty Robin (and another Robin)
Blue tits, a cluster
Great tits, again a few of these
Long-tailed tits, always in a small group
Starlings, every so often
Blackbird, around the tree, rather than on it
Magpies
Wood pigeons, the usual suspects
Carrion Crows, three noisy ones!
Greater Spotted Woodpecker - one visit noted to date in 2016

On the mammal front, there have been many visits from the

Grey Squirrel (possibly just one squirrel, but a very hungry one at that!). S/he has been a regular visitor, perhaps due to the mild weather, and has broken a branch off the Silver Birch in a lively attempt to reach the coconut and fat feeders. These have constantly ended up on the grass as a result. The Blue tits seem to have enjoyed gathering round on the grass for a change, but most of the other birds have been wary of feeding at ground level in this exposed way.

Cute little vandal!

Blue tit with broken Silver Birch branch and coconut feeders that dropped to the ground

I have not seen any other creatures this month, but - like many of us - I have been busy with festivities and other activities.

I love the Silver Birch, but am still tempted to 'ditch' the Acer negundo: it has been a dull tree to watch. However, when I was last thinking along these lines, a host of Ladybirds arrived (and those who follow this blog will know how interested I am in these creatures); so perhaps I should hold out for the moment and try looking a bit harder!

I will add my complete list of sightings next month. Meanwhile, happy watching!

And finally ...

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Monday, 7 September 2015

Tree Following - August to September 2015

Welcome to my Tree Following post for August and early September.

These tree posts form part of a wider project run by Lucy Corrander from the Loose and Leafy blog. I am based in Suffolk, UK, where I am following an Acer negundo (aka a Box-leaf Maple). I am also continuing to keep an eye on my Silver Birch, B. pendula.

You will find the other Tree Follower links on the Loose and Leafy blog ... so do take the chance to have a look around!

August has been a strange month for us, with day after day of grey sky and a fair amount of rain. I think there must have been sunny interludes as I can remember trying to keep the wasps at bay, but the evenings have seemed dark and autumnal.

Strangely with the seasonal changes going on all around, my two trees have not changed as much as I might have expected.

There were a few brown leaves last month: there are still a few brown leaves. The nearby Downy Birch has definitely got more brown leaves, and a number of yellow ones, too.

There were toadstools along what seem to be the root lines of my Silver Birch: there are still toadstools.

The Acer negundo was displaying its seed keys. These are still green and they continue to hang in the same manner. Come to think of it, the dispersal of Silver Birch seeds appears to have slowed. This may or may not actually be the case: it may simply be that the lack of light has stopped me from noticing the dispersal.

Acer negundo keys

What of the wildlife? I watched a very small fly alight on the Acer negundo, but failed to see it once it had landed. Otherwise this tree has been something of a barren area in terms of insects and small creatures. I would love to know why.

The Silver Birch, on the other hand, has continued to attract a large family of Long-tailed tits. They chitter-chatter away and are a delight to watch. There are plenty of Bluetits, too, of all ages. The Great tits head up the pecking order when the Magpies are elsewhere. I have seen the Grey Squirrel on a couple of occasions, and there are two Wood Pigeons who like to vie for the best perch on the fence next to the trunk. Sadly we have not seen the hedgehog again.

Silver Birch

Silver birch, September 2015 (see here for Sept. 2014)

Butterflies have been few and far between. I suspect the Whites were largely attracted by my nasturtiums. There have only been a couple of Red Admirals, and they have made the white Buddleia their destination of choice (a second was spotted some days after my Buddleia post here).

There have been Lacewings on the window at night and one or two moths. Whether the Silver Birch has anything to do with their presence is hard to say.

My least favourite visitors this summer have been the Hornets. One flew in to the house through an open upstairs window and was incredibly difficult to get out again! No stings reported, I am relieved to add.

I expect we will notice more radical changes next month when I will post my updated list of species seen around my two trees. I am not an autumn person, though I have to confess that I do enjoy the rich colours that appear before the frosts set in.

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Friday, 7 August 2015

Tree Following - July to August 2015

Welcome to my Tree Following post for July and early August.

These tree posts form part of a wider project run by Lucy Corrander from the Loose and Leafy blog. I am based in Suffolk, UK, where I am following an Acer negundo (aka a Box-leaf Maple). I am also continuing to keep an eye on my Silver Birch, B. pendula.

You will find the other Tree Follower links on the Loose and Leafy blog ... so do take the chance to catch up with happenings in the arboreal world!

The Acer negundo is growing at a rapid rate. It is largely the foliage, of course, at this time of year; but the tree seems to be spreading out in most directions. I have to confess that I am still trying to find a way to 'connect' with this tree. Perhaps this is the poet in me rather than the citizen-scientist, but it certainly helps when there is more than a clinical interest! I wish I could find more insect or avian life in, on or around this tree. The only thing to mention is that there were (possible) hedgehog droppings underneath it. I would love to have hedgehogs in the garden again: I have not seen a live one for over a year, and that was in the grounds of the Cathedral of the Isles on Great Cumbrae, off the Scottish coast!

Acer negundo, summer 2015

Acer negundo seed keys

I have no idea whether the following observation is of any significance in relation to either the Acer negundo or the Silver Birch, but since Sunday there has been a crescent trail of mushroom-like toadstools, almost linking the two trees. Is this a sign of early autumn (I hope not!). More investigation is required.

A trail of fungi, August 2015

The Silver Birch continues to fascinate and delight me. The sap has continued to rise (and fall, by which I mean drop), but I have not seen any more Cockchafers or Stag Beetles. The other birch, a Downy Birch just a few metres away, has dropped a lot of sticky sap on the cars. This has been a honeypot for wasps to the extent that I began to think that we must have a nest.

Silver Birch, summer 2015

It is not only sap that has been falling. We have watched the Silver Birch 'raining' its showers of seeds (and pollen, I think) in the wind. On one occasion I stood underneath the boughs with a sheet of paper.

These Silver Birch seeds landed on my sheet of paper

The coconut feeders on the Silver Birch have been much appreciated by family groups of Long-tailed tit (my favourites), Blue tit and Great tit. There have been times when all three have come at once.


Apologies for photo taken through glass!

I was having coffee one day when a streak of silver caught my eye. It was a juvenile Grey Squirrel. It scampered up the bark and leaped on to the coconut. It clung on there, despite swivelling round and round, for about fifteen minutes. Having been disappointed on our recent Scottish holiday that we only saw one Red Squirrel, I am not sure how pleased I should be about the arrival of this Grey one ... but it was a joy to watch.

I didn't have my camera to hand, so a here's a Squirrel pic from earlier in the year!

There have been so many Woodpeckers out and about in Suffolk recently, but, alas, I have not seen (or heard) the ones that frequented our garden earlier this year. The Wood Pigeons are out in force, and the Blackbirds come and go.

We have had some wonderful Marmalade Hoverflies, but their presence may have more to do with the Gazanias. I should like to think my new des res insect hotels have played a part! On the strength of these sightings, I have joined the Hoverfly group on Facebook. We saw one Dragonfly, but it was too quick for us to identify. There have been no Damselfly sightings to report around either tree ... as yet. Large White butterflies are frequent visitors at the moment.

This is the fifth sunny day in a row, and I, for one, am doing my best to cling on to summer. There are a few brown leaves on the Silver Birch, but you have to search for them. A colony of Winged Ants took centre stage two weeks ago, but their presence was part of a national irruption that happens each summer. There have been several 7-spot Ladybirds around the Silver Birch: I have just voted for this insect in the Royal Society of Biology (UK) insect poll. If you are UK-based, you might care to cast a vote, too. You can read about the selected insects here (and I love their allocated epithets!).

As you may know, I always enjoy keeping an eye out for similar trees on my travels. Last week we were at NT Dunwich Heath, where the Silver Birches were attracting a particular butterfly. I believe it is a Grayling (and a first sighting for me, although there were several about that day). These butterflies frequent coasts and heathland and are often - or usually - seen at ground level on sandy soils. Perhaps these butterlies were taking advantage of the sap. Graylings hide their forewings behind their hindwings when they are stationary. It is often possible to make out the 'eye-spot' wing marking when a butterfly first comes to rest: you can see this spot in my photo below. The species is listed under the Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP).

Grayling on Silver Birch at NT Dunwich Heath

Next month we will begin to think about the season of mists, but for now I hope the summer suns continue to glow. Oh, and don't forget to see if there are any Perseid meteor showers above your trees in the days to come.

Silver Birch Sighting Update

Avian sightings (on, in and around the Silver Birch, seen at any time since I began Lucy's Tree Following project over a year ago) are shown in pink.

I have marked the 'wild things' seen during this last month in yellow.

To date, the only birds seen on the Acer negundo are TFb13 Goldfinch and TFb19 Chaffinch .

TFb1 Great Spotted Woodpecker
TFb2 Great tit (several, often on feeder)
TFb3 Long-tailed Tit (large family, including juveniles)
TFb4 Blackbird
TFb5 Song Thrush
TFb6 Blue tit (several frequently on feeder)
TFb7 Robin (frequent appearances)
TFb8 Magpie (about three frequently around below the feeder)
TFb9 Wood Pigeon (up to ten perching around the feeder area)
TFb10 Dunnock (two frequently below feeder)
TFb11 Starling
TFb12 Carrion Crow (one every so often)
TFb13 Goldfinch (a small charm)
TFb14 Jay
TFb15 Green Woodpecker
TFb16 Wren
TFb17 Bullfinch (a pair)
TFb18 Sparrowhawk
TFb19 Mallard
TFb20 House Sparrow
TFb19 Chaffinch

Mammal sightings include ...

TFm1 (?Wood) Mouse
TFm2 Bat ... first 2015 garden sighting 7 May 2015 [Apr/May 2015]
TFm3 Shrew
TFm4 Grey Squirrel

STOP PRESS

TFm5 Stoat !!! (As I looked out through the window yesterday morning, 5 August 2015, towards the Downy Birch at the front, I noticed a creature outside the front door. I waited and to my astonishment it ran back and forth twice more before heading into some undergrowth. At first I thought it might be a rat, but it did not have a rat's tail and was quite a different shape and colour to the rats I have seen in the past. I wondered if its short tail had perhaps been severed partway along, but it is possible that this was just the point at which the normal fur turned into the black tip. Of course, if the juvenile was still very young, its tail may have been very short. It looked incredibly like these kits here in the top photo. We live in a suburban area, but we back on to a nature reserve. I am guessing it was a youngster, who had perhaps taken a wrong turning after a fright. I have seen stoats before, but never SO close to home!)

Insect sightings include ...

TFi1 Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly [March 2014]
TFi2 Buff-tailed Bumblebee [March 2014]
TFi3 Brimstone Butterfly [April 2014]
TFi4 7-spot Ladybird [April 2014] [October 2014] [Apr/May 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi5 Skipper Butterfly [July 2014]
TFi6 Meadow Brown Butterfly [July 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi7 Large White Butterfly [July 2014]
TFi8 14-spot Yellow Ladybirds [July 2014]
TFi9 Small White Butterfly [May 2014] [Apr/May 2015]
TFi10 Orange tip Butterfly [May 2014]
TFi11 Harlequin ladybird [May 2014]
TFi12 Garden Chafer (Phyllopertha horticola) [June 2014]
TFi13 Ruby-tail Wasp [June 2014] [May/June 2015]
TFi14 Blackfly [June 2014]
TFi15 Marmalade Hoverfly [July 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi16 Shield bug [July 2014] [Apr/May 2015]
TFi17 Migrant Hawker dragonflies [July 2014]
TFi18 Unidentified Damselfly [August 2014]
TFi19 Comma butterfly [August 2014]
TFi20 Red Admiral butterfly [August 2014] [October 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi21 Peacock butterfly [August 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi22 Green bottle flies [August 2014] [May/June 2015]
TFi23 Ants [August 2014] [Apr/May 2015] [May/June 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi24 Squashbug aka Dock Bug, Coreus marginatus [August 2014]
TFi25 Birch Shieldbug (late instar?) [September 2014]
TFi26 Lacewing [October 2014] (about fifteen)
TFi27 Harlequin Ladybird [October 2014]
TFi28 Moths (though not so many in December) [Nov/Dec 2014] [Feb/Mar 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015]
TFi29 Cereal Leaf Beetle [Apr/May 2015]
TFi30 Hawthorn Shieldbug [May/June 2015]

Arachnids

TFa1 Zebra Spider (about ten) [Apr/May 2015] [May/June 2015]
TFa2 Garden Spider (Araneus diadematus) [May/June 2015]

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