Swarm

I am not sure it counts as wildlife but we had a swarm of honey bees in the garden yesterday. The initial swarm was so dramatic I didn't check my camera settings and the picture is a bit washed out. They then settled on the trunk of the plum tree before being retrieved in expert fashion by my neighbour Frank who keeps bees and where they had come from originally.

New Species - Hornet

The Hornet (Vespa crabro) is Britain's largest wasp and generally more common down south than in the midlands (though climate change may be affecting that). This is the first I have seen here.

Ducklings update

The two ducklings on the moat continue to thrive. I am continually amazed at how different Mallard families are. This one has a drake in close attendance which is unusual and the ducklings are unusally independent. They tend to stick together but can be seen all over the moat with no adult in evidence. When the four of them, adults and ducklings, get together however they hang out on the bank in close order.

This evening we were visited by the original brood of nine (now five) who had been sighted on a nearby pond. They have no drake and the mother keeps them close at all times. They were back in the stream so I am not sure whether they have been on the moat itself but it confirms that the two ducklings are a different brood.

STOP PRESS - just seen them feeding on the moat

Moorhen chicks at last

Yesterday we saw the first moorhen chicks of the season. They were difficult to count but there appeared to be more than three. This morning I thought I saw six sitting on a floating reed but I can definitely confirm five when I saw them later swimming together with an adult. I think there are eight in total but I am unsure whether that is one brood or two. All will be revealed in the next few days I'm sure. Given that they have been diminishing in number and we normally see the chicks earlier than this it is great to see the chicks at last.

Goldcrest update

A month ago I posted that a Goldcrest had been seen on site as it was a new species for me here. Yesterday I managed to see the tiny bird myself close up and get a photograph of sorts. It was in our Norway Spruce tree and from its behaviour it looks as if it may have a nest in the tree.

Close encounter with a Sparrowhawk

A sparrowhawk flew within a couple of feet of me before veering off into the trees which caused much alarm from the songbirds. It seemed to be on a preysnatching course and I can only assume it knows about a nest behind the shed I was standing next to. I can't see one but I am not sure why else it was swooping down and why it didn't apparently take any notice of me until it was so close.

Blue Tit nesting

For the past few years there have been blue tits nesting just above the front door behind a tiny hole in the stone. I spotted that they were back a few days ago and managed to get a picture yesterday. Both parents were busy flitting to and from the nest yesterday so I presume they are feeding some chicks.

Ducklings update

There are two ducklings currently being reared on the moat. I believe they are not the remnants of the nine ducklings who were born on the moat who moved off up the stream as these have been seen elsewhere in the village. Why there are only two in the brood I am not sure. The mother is attentive but unusually she also has a stay-at-home drake who is often seen with them. All four were resting on the bank this afternoon although my picture does not include the drake. He was disturbed by my photography and moved off

More Butterflies

A second wave of Orange Tips have been flying over the last couple of days. It has certainly been a good year for them so far. There have also been a few Speckled Woods.

New species - Mint moth

I am teetering on engaging with the moth species that are around but haven't yet done so. However one was resting on my side door today so I took a picture and set about searching for it in my 'Field Guide to Moths'. I was puzzling as to why it wasn't in the book until I read the forward where it said that it did not cover micro moths. I hadn't even realised there were such things but this moth was certainly small and a bit of internet research using the excellent ukmoths.org.uk provided the answer. The moth is Pyrausta aurata and is known as the Mint moth as that is one of the larval foods.

New species - Mistle Thrush

This is one of those species that I was expecting I might see at some point and today at last one has appeared. I spotted it because of an altercation it was having with a magpie who was presumably after its eggs or chicks. The altercation continued during the day with the thrush gamely chasing the magpie away on several ocassions.

Duckling drama

There was a duck with just two ducklings on the moat today. I was wondering whether this is the remains of the nine ducklings that were born a few days ago and taken away up the stream by the mother. Certainly the ducklings seem fairly disobedient paying the ducks commands little mind. I am always amazed at how different broods are and mothers are in the mallard world. Anyway I was watching them when dramatically a heron appeared and started circling and I wondered whether it was after the ducklings. Before I had time to get too concerned one of the resident crows attacked the heron and chased it away. The crow almost made contact a couple of times and the slow pace of the heron's wingbeats made the scene exciting as the crow accelerated towards it at high speed. Those crows fear nothing and will chase buzzards and whole gangs of rooks or jackdaws without a second thought.

Dryad's Saddle back, bigger and better

A beech stump I used as a seat had been occupied by a Dryad's Saddle for around three years but it seems to have gone as the fruiting body has not come back this year. However I found a large example with various fruiting bodies with the whole thing around two feet across on a tree stump by the moat so I guess that might be offspring......