Toad and Friends: This Week in Our Wild Garden

 

We looked out the window yesterday morning at about 10.30 ... and were greeted with the sight of this rather magnificent toad. This is the second time we have seen the toad on our patio this summer. 

 

I have decided to post the extremely poor record shot above as much as a note to myself as anything. 

The point is that I saw the Migrant hawker in the lower half of this image, and took a quick photo, little realising that there was actually a second dragonfly above (see black arrow). Result: the top dragonfly has been cut in two unnecessarily. It was only a record shot (a quick first image in case the creature flew away), and as such the quality doesn't worry me too much; but what concerns me is the fact that even after this photograph had been taken, I still failed to notice the second insect. I have been thinking about William Blake and his famous, albeit metaphorical, line about seeing a universe in a sand particle; well, it seems I need to sharpen up my powers of observation and concentration considerably.

Below: this is a better image of the top dragon (which in mind at the time was the lower and only one, so presumably by this time the lower one had flown), showing off the distinctive yellow golf-tee marking on S2, just below the wings:

 

 

The photo below shows one of our two Wasp spiders. You can see a white food parcel near the top and what will become a second once the spider has completed her task. I'm wondering if she has wrapped up a small bee.

And finally for now, my first garden sighting of a tiny 22-spot ladybird. The sun was in completely the wrong place and the insect was only about 3mm in length, but at least I was able to identify it from the poor-quality photo. 

There have not been many butterflies about this week in the garden; perhaps it has been too windy. Even so, we have logged Peacock, Red Admiral, Large and Small White, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Comma and Holly Blue. I wonder what the weekend will bring. I am still hoping to see my first Painted Lady of the season.

 

Down by the River Deben

 

 

Sutton Hoo (installation inspired by helmet)

We have enjoyed some waterside bird-watching recently at NT Sutton Hoo. These are our sightings (and 'listenings') so far. Merlin, the Cornell bird ID app has helped us along the way. We have found the app pretty reliable, though I suspect it is designed for users in the US. The bird recorded as a 'White Wagtail' was probably a Pied Wagtail.

 

 

3 March

• Avocet (a)
  
• Dunnock
  
• Lapwing
• Long-tailed tit
• Oystercatcher (b)
  
• Treecreeper
• Shelduck (c)
  

9 March

• Buzzard
• Curlew (d)
  
• Goldfinch 
• Great spotted woodpecker
  
• Great tit
• Pied/White Wagtail 
• Pheasant
  
• Redshank (e)
  
• Siskin
• Wigeon
• Plus: (a), (b) and (c)
  

17 March

• Blue tit
  
• Chaffinch
• Magpie
  
• Robin
• Plus: (b), (c) and (d)
  

30 March

• Blackbird
• Carrion Crow
  
• Chiffchaff
• Green woodpecker
• Herring gull
  
• Jackdaw
  
• Rook
  
• Skylark (f)
  
• Wren
• Plus: (b) and (c) 

We also saw a Muntjac:

 

The Oystercatchers in the next photo were on this rampike.

 

1 April 

• Black-backed gull
• Canada goose
• Mallard
• Mute swan
• Song thrush
• Teal
• Plus: (b), (c), (e) and (f)
  

 

36 species in total so far since 3 March. Those with a letter, such as (a), have been seen on more than one occasion. 

 

*

There were quite a few ladybirds, mainly but not exclusively 7-spots, on the Sutton Hoo site and a few butterflies: we noticed Peacocks, Small Tortoiseshells and Red Admirals. We saw a beefly on Saturday, and two shieldbugs this afternoon on the gorse. 

A New Ladybird for My Records

I was on a dragonfly and damselfly quest last Sunday afternoon when my attention was diverted by this ladybird. It was so tiny that I needed the magnification provided by the lens of my camera to convince me that it really was a ladybird. 

I have seen a lot of ladybirds over the years and have submitted many sightings to the UK Ladybird Survey, but I believe this beige and black 16-spot (Tytthaspis sedecimpunctata) was a first of its kind for me. It often eats pollen and favours damp grassy landscapes. It is not averse to aphids. 

This is just a quick post, but it would be fun at some point to gather my photos of the different species I have encountered. 

There have been very few ladybirds in evidence in my neck of the woods this year. It would be interesting to know if you have had more sightings ...

 

The Garden Today

 

My fledgling list of wildflowers seen in the garden in 2021 has doubled today.

1. Daisy (20  February)

2. Violet (18 March)

3. Chickweed (19 March)

4. Dandelion (19 March)

The Chickweed was tiny and was almost hidden in between paving slabs, but the Dandelion was positively shining in the sunlight, our first decent sunlight for days.

There were quite a few 7-spot Ladybirds and even more Pine ones, including a mating pair. You can see the distinctive rim in the photo below. These ladybirds are very small.

 

The photo below shows the difference in size between the two varieties.

 

 I noticed one snail in between some old planks of decking.  

Unfortunately I could not really see the lip of its shell to see if it was brown. I gather we are likely to return to dark cloud tomorrow so I expect I will have to wait a bit longer for my first butterfly. My earliest Bee-fly sighting here in Suffolk was on 24th March, so perhaps I will see one of these this year before a Peacock, Red Admiral or Brimstone graces our garden.

First Go with TrailCam and a Mixed-Bag of Garden Sightings

The top photograph shows David installing our new TrailCam in the hope that we might be able to record a few night visitors over the coming weeks. We have never used one before, but spurred on by reports from a couple of friends who have recently set up these cameras, we thought we would buy a fairly basic model and see what happened. I have a good idea of the creatures who visit our garden by day from the Homepatch Species List I have been keeping for the last few years, but little idea of what happens after dark or when we are inside. 

The second photo shows a kind of tunnel between the ivy and the fir tree. We have often seen cats in that area, but two of the regular felines have now moved elsewhere with their families, and we rarely see a cat in the garden. 

36 hours on and we uploaded the film. There are no great revelations to date (and thankfully perhaps, not even a rat), but the camera had been triggered several times, mainly in the dark, once yesterday morning in thick fog, and a few times in the daylight. 

The Blackbird below is the first identifiable creature to be caught on camera. Watch this space!

We have checked the garden for more ladybirds, and have located more 7-spot and Pine varieties. We have also seen a couple of bees . . .

 

. . . and a hoverfly (below), complete with shadow.

The 7-spot below is definitely keeping company with what are probably spiders, though I haven't been able to count their legs with any accuracy. I had wondered if they were Dock bug nymphs as we get a lot of Dock bugs in this part of the garden, but I don't think they are a good enough match.

We have had wasps' nests in the garden the last couple of years (well, one in the shower vent, so perhaps more in house than garden), so it was no real surprise to see this insect inspecting last year's nest site, which, thankfully was definitely in the garden and not in the house. I am fascinated by most insects, but do not get on well with ticks or the Common Wasp. I shall post this picture on to iSpot.

It has been a joy to see our Crocus, Miniatire Iris and other bulbs opening in the sunshine. We have a good show, albeit a miniature one, of Tête-à-têtes, in readiness for St David's Day (though these may technically be more Narcissus than Daffodil ... I wonder if you know).

Back to our mix of ladybirds again ...

 

 

 

And finally for now, a rather gruesome photo of what seems to be some kind of (perhaps beetle or weevil) larva demolishing an earthworm. A tiny corner of roofing felt came adrift from the old shed and this is what was underneath it ... I am hoping the folk on iSpot can enlighten me as to what exactly is going on.

 

After some fairly dormant months in our home patch, it suddenly seems as though there is a lot of activity even if I am still awaiting my first butterfly sighting!

Flowers, Insects and Fish at NT Oxburgh Hall, Norfolk

The weather was set fare on Saturday so we took a picnic lunch to NT Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk.

It was good to see more signs of spring, including this Arum Lily and...

...these lovely primroses.

There were a number of 7-spot Ladybirds, mainly on the dry leaves. I guess some may have been emerging from their over-wintering layers.



Some were scuttling about or resting in the sunshine.



We ate our sandwiches by this flint churchyard wall where I noticed a Red Underwing (Catocala nupta) in 2016. Sadly we failed to find any moths this time.



This was the view over the wall, of which more in a moment.

I always enjoy seeing the Oxburgh Hangings, stitched by Mary Queen of Scots and Bess of Hardwick, but on this occasion the spring weather kept us largely out of doors (though we did visit the tea room and secondhand bookshop).

I noticed this log-bench by the path in the woodland area, and thought what a brilliant bit of recycling. I could do with one of these benches in our own garden!

We could see these beehives in the area near the orchard. If you don't keep bees or have space for a hive, you might like these Green&Blue bee-bricks, which I read about on Instagram - or you might prefer to place an insect hotel in your home patch: my hotels have certainly been taken over by some grateful residents.

We heard a lot of munching in the stream and wondered if there could be a Water Vole. We stood and waited, but nothing actually appeared.

However, in another part of the stream, we noticed quite a few fish. I guess they are Sticklebacks, but my fish knowledge is negligible. I wondered if one was preparing to lay (or 'fan') some eggs. Unfortunately my camera failed to cope well with the underwater conditions...

The scene above brought back memories of the tiny BBC Springwatch hero from RSPB Minsmere, Spineless Si!

It is always a joy to find a Bee-fly. I must add this record to the recording list.



The 'summer house' by the stream, designed along the lines of an original that was used by Sir Henry Paston-Bedingfeld and his friends and relations, draws me every time.

On this occasion the summer house was empty so we were able to take up residence for a few minutes!

It was soon time to head to tea room for a slice of lemon and lime cake.

We decided to pay a quick visit to the church next door. There are extraordinary pink terracotta carvings in the chantry chapel.



You will note from the signs above and below that the village uses a different spelling from Oxburgh Hall.

village sign

Light was fading and it was time to head for home.

The Oxburgh Hall sundial