Showing posts with label Wildlife Survey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wildlife Survey. Show all posts

Saturday, 27 January 2024

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2024

 

Female Blackcap, quite a regular visitor

 

David and I spent an hour doing the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch this afternoon. We felt our results were disappointing, but that may be more to do with the fact that we did our count in the afternoon this year (when many birds are less active) rather than in the morning. We often see Great tits, House sparrows, Magpies and Blackbirds. We sometimes see a Great spotted woodpecker, a Song thrush and a Wren. None of these put in an appearance today. 

You can see our results in the list below.

 


 

I wonder how you fared, or perhaps you will do a count tomorrow (28th). The full results will be released by the RSPB on 12 April 2024. 

Back in 2010 when we were still living in Swansea, we counted these birds. Last year (2023), from the same suburban Suffolk home as this year, we submitted this list

I don't know whether our local bird numbers have decreased or whether the new time of day had more to do with our result than other factors. Yesterday when we were on a very local walk, we counted a slightly different mix of species (Greenfinch, Blackbird, Blackcap, Great spotted woodpecker, Great tit, Redwing and Starling), either from observation or from sound via the Merlin Bird ID app. It's good to know that we still have Greenfinches in our area as we rarely see these birds.

 

Saturday, 2 May 2020

First Month of Butterfly Counting



I began the Butterfly Conservation Garden Butterfly Survey at the end of March, so I have just completed my first month. Habitat, of course, is very important in terms of attracting wildlife. Our Suffolk garden faces east (meaning a fair bit of shadow in the second half of the day) and has sandy soil. It is probably 'average+' in terms of size for a suburban plot. We grow wild flowers from seed (poppy and cornflower). We also sow nasturtium seeds. We have a silver birch tree, a holly, two small hawthorns, a couple of acers and a conifer. Shrubs around the edge include buddleia, laurel, weigela, hydrangea, viburnham and spirea. We have left almost all the grass unmown (I have a little labyrinthine path through it, but otherwise it is as nature intended), and we allow nettles and a bit of bramble.

Obviously I am not out butterfly-spotting in the garden 24/7, but I would have hoped to have seen a Red Admiral by now. We rarely see Small Tortoiseshells here, but it is always a joy when they visit. I wonder what butterflies you are seeing, and what new species I will be able to list in May. It's certainly an enjoyable lockdown activity, not only because the arrival of each butterfly is a cause for celebration, but because everyone's records in this particular survey will help Butterfly Conservation with their invaluable work to ensure that butterflies are a feature of the nation's gardens for years to come.


P.S. Please join me on my new lockdown poetry venture here. I would love to receive your Peacock butterfly-inspired five-liners whether you are an experienced poet or simply prepared to have a go at something new! This first submission window closes on 13th May.

Saturday, 25 January 2020

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch, 2020


As you can see, we took part in the RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch this morning. Do see if you can take part and do a count, too: Monday 27 January is the last day for this.

We spotted ten species of birds in one hour in our suburban Suffolk garden (showing the maximum number of any one species seen at a time)...

  1. Wood pigeon: 4
  2. Blue tit: 6
  3. Great tit: 1
  4. Robin: 1
  5. Starling: 2
  6. Magpies: 2
  7. Jay: 1
  8. Blackbird: 2
  9. Blackcap: 1
  10. Dunnock: 1
Sadly some of the 'usual suspects' failed to show up, notably the colony of Long-tailed tits and threcharm of Goldfinches. These were both included in my 2019 count.


Saturday 25 January 2020 at 12.50...



Our 'other garden wildlife' included Common Frog (sightings up significantly since we added a tiny pond to the garden), Grey Squirrel and Hedgehog. 


If you have taken part, I wonder what you saw. This was my count for 2019...

Monday, 18 February 2019

Looking for Frogspawn at Felixstowe


We took a short trip to the Landguard end of Felixstowe on Saturday afternoon to see if we could find any frogspawn. This area is monitored closely for wildlife by the Landguard Bird Observatory.

The weather was very grey, but mild. There were one or two rabbits in the scrub that fronts the container park for the port.



The photo above shows the backdrop. If you turn round, you can almost see the sea.


It only takes a few minutes to reach the pond. It seemed smaller than we remembered.


There was a lot of weed so it was difficult to distinguish one form of life from another.


I darkened my photo once I was home to see if a bit more contrast revealed anything further. What can you see?


The photo above shows the pond... and the one below shows two insects. I thought they might be a kind of water beetle but on enlarging the photo a bit, it is clear that they are a species of fly.



We may return in a few weeks. The photo below shows a scene from the same pond, taken on 10 March 2014...


If you come across clumps of frog spawn, do consider recording them here on the 2019 PondNet Survey.

Monday, 28 January 2019

RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2019

 

I did my RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch survey today. The weather was cold and clear, with a fair bit of sunshine. The gusting wind had died down, but it was still breezy.

I decided to take a slightly different approach this year, and I hope it didn't mean that I missed too many birds in the process. Inspired by sculptor and fellow blogger, Jennifer Tetlow's bird-watch, which resulted in her clay 'Wren', I decided to add a creative element (not to the counting, of course!) by writing a draft Haiku/俳句 for each species seen. I am leaving these Haiku in their 'raw' organic state for now, but may polish them up in due course. I thought you might be interested to see how I got on...

small, bright and hungry,
hanging on the silver birch –
blue as this cold day

Blue tit (right) and Great tit (left), 28 Jan. 2019

here for a moment,
the Great tit departs at speed,
its bill full of fat

Goldfinch (record shot), 28 Jan. 2019

the clock ticked slowly:
suddenly a single finch
sprinkled red and gold

Long-tailed tit, 28 Jan. 2019

so slight and graceful,
Long-tailed tits slip through the leaves –
white clouds, pink feathers

Blackbird (old photo)

she touched down at last,
squeezing her umber feathers
between two branches

Robin, 28 Jan. 2019 (though by this time it had left the nest)

not an early bird,
but its fire-cracker waistcoat
gleamed from an old nest


Wood pigeon (old photo)

last bird on the list 
how strange it was on its own:
where were the pigeons?


Sadly, a number of our 'usual garden suspects' (Dunnock, Wren, Chaffinch, Coal tit...) failed to show up. This may be because of the weather or on account of a recent Sparrowhawk visit. Others were 'there', but could not be counted because they did not land. The rest of the Goldfinch flock fell into this category along with two Collared doves (I hope one was the dove I hadn't seen since the Sparrowhawk paid us a visit) and a Carrion Crow. A Magpie and a Starling showed up almost immediately after my time was up so could not be included. I took photos of them. 



The numbers on the chart below indicate the birds I counted in my garden from 12.30 to 13.30 today...


The animals I have seen in our garden during the last year (just Grey Squirrel and Hedgehog)...  It's quite possible we saw a Stag beetle in among the Cockchafers, but I can't be sure: we definitely had a dead one on the grass a couple of years ago.


And, sadly, I didn't have a single House Sparrow. We rarely see House Sparrows in the garden. 


These are the birds who came just after the count...

(Ringed) Starling, 28 Jan. 2019
Magpie, 28 Jan. 2019


Tuesday, 17 July 2018

Updated Home Patch Species List

We have been up in the north and over in Galloway, enjoying glorious sunshine, so my apologies for the lack of recent postings. Perhaps our most unusual sighting took place on our journey when we stopped at RSPB Fairburn Ings to see the astonishing sight of Spoonbill chicks in their nest. Those with scopes had a better view than we did, but it was, nonetheless, a memorable experience.

Holiday wildlife photos will follow in due course, but for now I am posting an updated version of my home patch species list, 'HP' in my list below standing, of course, for 'home patch'. Dates with a green background are first sightings (in 2017). Dates with an orange background are first sightings (in 2018).

The list began with Lucy Corrander's Tree Following meme in mind. I am continuing it for my own interest, and think I will now omit unidentified creatures. There have, for example, been plenty of unidentified moths over the last two or three years. With identification in mind, I am trying to post more on iSpot this summer.

Avian sightings - unlike the Big Garden Birdwatch, a bird seen clearly from the house or garden counts for my purposes. We have, for example, yet to see a Grey Heron landing in our home patch, but we have had several good sightings of these birds flying over in the direction of the local nature reserve, one road away, and perching on a neighbour's roof. We have often heard the local Tawny Owl, but I am not counting 'birds heard' (unless they are also seen) at present.


  • HPb1   Great Spotted Woodpecker
  • HPb2   Great tit
  • HPb3   Long-tailed Tit
  • HPb4   Blackbird  
  • HPb5   Song Thrush   
  • HPb6   Blue tit 
  • HPb7   Robin
  • HPb8   Magpie 
  • HPb9   Wood Pigeon
  • HPb10 Dunnock  
  • HPb11 Starling 
  • HPb12 Carrion Crow 
  • HPb13 Goldfinch
  • HPb14 Jay 
  • HPb15 Green Woodpecker
  • HPb16 Wren 
  • HPb17 Bullfinch [[19 January 2017] 
  • HPb18 Sparrowhawk
  • HPb19 Mallard
  • HPb20 House Sparrow 
  • HPb21 Chaffinch
  • HPb22 Grey Heron 
  • HPb23 Collared Dove 
  • HPb24 Coal tit
  • HPb25 Redwing [[20 January 2017] 
  • HPb26 Kestrel  [[8 June 2017] 

Mammal sightings
  • HPm1 (?Wood) Mouse
  • HPm2 Bat ... [first 2015 garden sighting 7 May 2015] [Apr/May 2015]  [[22 Jan 2017]  [Aug 2018]
  • HPm3 Shrew 
  • HPm4 Grey Squirrel  [Jan/Feb 2016] [Feb/Mar 2016] [Mar/Apr 2016] [Jul/Aug 2016] [2017][Aug 2018]
  • HPm5 Stoat
  • HPm6 Hedgehog  [9 Aug 2018]

Insect sightings
  • HPi1 Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly [March 2014] [[27 February 2017] 
  • HPi2 Buff-tailed Bumblebee [March 2014] [Jan/Feb 2016] [Mar/Apr 2016] [2017]
  • HPi3 Brimstone Butterfly [April 2014]
  • HPi4 7-spot Ladybird [April 2014] [Oct 2014] [Apr/May 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Sept/Oct 2015] [Mar/Apr 2016]
  • HPi5 Skipper Butterfly [July 2014]
  • HPi6 Meadow Brown Butterfly [July 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
  • HPi7 Large White Butterfly [July 2014] [Jul/Aug 2016]
  • HPi8 14-spot Yellow Ladybirds [July 2014]
  • HPi9 Small White Butterfly [May 2014] [Apr/May 2015] [Sept/Oct 2015 - caterpillars]
  • HPi10 Orange tip Butterfly [May 2014]
  • HPi11 Harlequin ladybird  [May 2014] [October 2014] [Sept/Oct 2015]
  • HPi12 Garden Chafer (Phyllopertha horticola) [June 2014] [June/July 2016] [18 May 2018]
  • HPi13 Ruby-tail Wasp [June 2014] [May/June 2015] [May/June 2016] [[21 May 2017] 
  • HPi14 Blackfly [June 2014
  • HPi15 Marmalade Hoverfly [July 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Jul/Aug 2016]
  • HPi16 Shield bug [July 2014] [Apr/May 2015]
  • HPi17 Migrant Hawker dragonflies [July 2014]
  • HPi18 Gatekeeper Butterfly [Jul/Aug 2016]
  • HPi19 Comma butterfly [August 2014] [June/July 2016] [2017]
  • HPi20 Red Admiral butterfly [August 2014] [October 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015]
  • HPi21 Peacock butterfly [August 2014] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Nov/Dec 2015] 
  • HPi22 Green bottle flies [August 2014] [May/June 2015]
  • HPi23 Ants [August 2014] [Apr/May 2015]  [May/June 2015] [Jul/Aug 2015] [Sept/Oct 2015 ] [Jun/July 2016] [2017]
  • HPi24 Squashbug aka Dock Bug, (Coreus marginatus ) [August 2014] [May 2018, mating]
  • HPi25 Birch Shieldbug (late instar?) [September 2014]
  • HPi26 Lacewing [October 2014] [Sept/Oct 2015]
  • HPi27 Cereal Leaf Beetle [Apr/May 2015]
  • HPi28 Painted Lady [2018]
  • HPi29 Rosemary Beetle [[Sept/Oct 2015] [May/June 2016 - four] [May 2017]
  • HPi30 Hawthorn Shieldbug [May/June 2015] 
  • HPi31 Forest Shieldbug (Pentatoma rufipes) [Sept/Oct 2015] 
  • HPi32 Early Bumblebee [Mar/Apr 2016] 
  • HPi33 Species of Miridae [Mar/Apr 2016]  
  • HPi34 Cranefly [May/June 2016] 
  • HPi35 Crossocerus, wasps family Crabronidae [May/June 2016] 
  • HPi36 Wasp Beetle (Clytus arietis) [May/June 2016]
  • HPi37 Tree Bumblebee (Bombus (Pyrobombus) hypnorum) [May/June 2016] 
  • HPi38 Moth Least Black Arches (Nola confusalis) [May/June 2016] 
  • HPi39 Holly Blue Butterfly  [[26 May 2017]  
  • HPi40 Dark Bush Cricket (nymph) [[18 May 2017]  
  • HPi41 Common Cockchafer  [[18 May 2017]  
  • HPi42 Scorpion Fly [May2017] [[23 May 2017]  
  • HPi43 Soldier Beetle (Cantharis rustica [2017] [[23 May 2017]    [13 May 2018]
  • HPi44 Cabbage Bug (Eurydema (Eurydema) oleracea)  [2017]  [[9 June 2017]  
  • HPi45 Light Brown Apple moth (Epiphyas postvittana) [2017] [[23 May 2017] 
  • HPi46 Large Red damselfly (Pyrrhosoma nymphula)   [9 May 2018] 
  • HPi47  Common Blue butterfly (Polyommatus icarus  [11 May 2018] 
  • HPi48  Speckled Wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria  [15 May 2018] 
  • HPi49  Ruby Tiger moth (Phragmatobia fuliginosa  [18 May 2018] 
  • HPi50  Mint Moth (Pyrausta aurata  [24 May 2018] 
  • HPi51  Mullein Moth larva (Cucullia verbasci  [14 June 2018] 
  • HPi52  Silver Y moth (two)   [August 2018]
  • HPi53  Rove Beetle (Platydracus stercorarius)   [September 2018]
Molluscs

Arachnids