Tree Following ~ The Silver Birch in October
This post is the seventh in my Tree Following series, part of a wider project run by Lucy Corrander from the
Loose and Leafy blog. I am following a Silver Birch,
B. pendula, in Suffolk, UK. You will find the other Tree Follower links on the
Loose and Leafy blog ... so do take the chance to go on a virtual exploration of the arboreal world!
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, let's begin with a couple of diary entries ...
________ _ ________
Diary
Sunday 21 September
Noon
Weather: fair
David had seen a Jay
TFb13 in the garden some days before, and this time it was my turn to watch the bird pecking around in the sandy soil for caches of acorns. We have had a Jay in the garden in previous years, but these two sightings constituted the first visits for 2014, as far as we are aware. I expect the underground acorn store in which fresh supplies could be deposited for the winter was the attraction, but since the bird was very close to the Silver Birch, it seems right to record its presence in this post.
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| Jay in garden a year ago |
Wednesday 25 September
Mid-morning
Weather: fair after a cold start
A flicker of silver caught my attention as a Grey Squirrel tail disappeared in the foliage, only to re-emerge moments later. I have not seen a Grey Squirrel
TFm4 in the garden for quite a while. The creature perched on the trellis, looking towards the coconut feeders that dangle from the Silver Birch. I waited but the Squirrel headed off towards the Local Nature Reserve. I am wondering if it was sniffing out a previous subterranean acorn stash that needed replenishing before the winter.
Postscript: the Grey Squirrel re-emerged on the trellis a couple of days later, but has not been spotted since.
________ _ ________
General round-up
I had anticipated a major change this month, and while it's true that the Silver Birch has been shedding more leaves, it is far from bare. In fact, there are still patches that are still full of green leaves.
There are other patches in which gold predominates.
Strangely the 'other Birch', just the width of the house away, is looking far more autumnal. The ground below is a carpet of leaves and the foliage is lacking the green sheen of its near neighbour.
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Below the 'other' birch, Swedish Birch, B. pendula 'Darlecarlica'
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The two birches are not identical specimens since my birch is Silver Birch, B. Pendula and the other is B. pendula 'Darlecarlica', but I wonder whether this is the only factor causing the different leaf-shedding rates.
New Sightings
I have been particularly interested in two new sightings. One involved a shield bug and the other a woodpecker. We were watching the Great Spotted Woodpecker, no longer such a juvenile, as he (the red patch on the back of the head makes me think it is a male) flitted cautiously from the decking to the coconut.
He pecked away for a few seconds before flying off towards the local nature reserve. No sooner had he departed than a new arrival swept in. It was a Green Woodpecker TFb14, and a 'first sighting' for our garden. The green bird pecked away in the grass, presumably devouring grubs or ants. What a thrill!
The second newcomer was a strange reddish Shield Bug
. I have yet to get a definite ID, but I suspect it may be a late instar
Birch Shield Bug TFi24. If my hunch is correct, there are no prizes for guessing why it might have arrived in our garden. I have to say, though, that it looks more (though not exactly) like the
Red Shield Bug. My jury on this one is still out.
PREVIOUS SIGHTINGS of
birds (on, in and around the Silver Birch) include ...
- TFb1 Great Spotted Woodpecker
- TFb2 Great tit (several frequently on feeder)
- TFb4 Blackbird (I have not seen the Blackbirds so much this month)
- TFb6 Blue tit (several frequently on feeder)
- TFb7 Robin (one or two appearances)
- TFb8 Magpie (about three frequently dive-bombing feeder)
- TFb9 Wood Pigeon (up to ten perching around the feeder area)
- TFb10 Dunnock (two frequently below feeder)
- TFb11 Starling (infrequent appearances of up to three birds)
Previous birds not seen this month ...
- TFb3 Long-tailed Tit
- TFb5 Song Thrush
- TFb12 Carrion Crow (on fence at back of Silver Birch) - first seen on 14 May 2014
- TFb13 Goldfinch
On the
mammal front, previous sightings include ...
- TFm1 (?Wood) Mouse
- TFm2 Bats
- TFm3 Shrew
- TFm4 Grey Squirrel
On the
insect front, previous sightings include ...
- TFi1 Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly [March]
-
TFi2 Buff-tailed Bumblebee [March]
-
TFi3 Brimstone Butterfly [April]
-
TFi4 7-spot Ladybirds [April]
- TFi5 Skipper Butterfly [July]
- TFi6 Meadow Brown Butterfly [July]
- TFi7 Large White Butterfly [July]
- TFi8 14-spot Yellow Ladybirds [July]
- TFi9 Small White Butterfly [May]
- TFi10 Orange tip Butterfly [May]
- TFi11 Harlequin ladybird [May]
- TFi12 Garden Chafer (Phyllopertha horticola) [June]
- TFi13 Ruby-tail Wasp
[June]
- TFi14 Blackfly [June]
- TFi15 Marmalade Hoverfly [July]
- TFi16 Shield bug [July]
- TFi17 Migrant Hawker
dragonflies [July]
- TFi18 Unidentified Damselfly [August]
- TFi19 Comma butterfly [August]
- TFi20 Red Admiral butterfly [August]
- TFi21 Peacock butterfly [August]
- TFi22 Green bottle flies [August]
- TFi23 Ants [August]
- TFi24 Squashbug aka Dock Bug, Coreus marginatus [August]
There have also been plenty of moths.
MY PREVIOUS TREE FOLLOWING POSTS
