SKYLARK SUE’S REFLECTIONS OF NATURE 

February 2014

 

Oak tree against blue sky on the first day of February 2014

Female blackbird and house sparrow at a feeder



Female sparrow

February started bright, though windy and although a few birds were around the garden there still seemed to be an abundance of natural food, so we were seeing less birds than we usually do at this time of the year. On the 2nd the feeders were scrubbed and cleaned: it is important to do this regularly to prevent the spread of disease. We were particularly pleased to see a goldfinch in the apple tree, as although these handsome finches are becoming much more widespread in gardens than they were a few years ago, they are still rare visitors to our garden. Also, when they do come, they feast on the fat blocks, ignoring the niger seed which is meant to be a favourite food. This year, though, we intend to plant some teasels, so maybe they will encourage these birds. Also in the garden were house sparrows, blackbird, wood pigeons and a pair of robins, and there were blue tits in the oak tree across the road.

Dunnock

The 3rd of February brought a magpie and some collared doves to join the blackbirds and sparrows. The next few days saw heavy rain and high winds. On the 5th we recorded an inch of rain in the gauge, and there was flooding all around the Bishop’s Stortford area. Further afield, vast areas of the Somerset Levels were under water, while at Dawlish the stretch of railway that runs along the coast disappeared into the sea when the embankment collapsed.  The West Country seemed to be particularly badly hit by the heavy rain and flooding. There were a pair of dunnocks in the garden the following day. Despite their, at first glance, drab colouring, a closer look reveals that these are delightful, subtly-shaded birds in their grey and brown speckled plumage. They sing sweetly, too. The sky was brilliant blue, highlighting the delicate colouring of the woodpigeons in the oak tree. On the 8^th February, I saw one of the brightest rainbows I have seen for years stretching across some fields in Harlow near a garden centre. It was magnificent, and it was a double bow. We had a magpie in the apple tree the same day. These birds are much bolder than they were even a couple of years ago.

A magnificent rainbow

Flooding at Harlow Mill

Flooding at Harlow Mill

On the 9th of February I went to investigate the river levels at Harlow Mill – the water was pouring through the weir in a torrent, the noise was tremendous. It had burst its banks and was surging along – brown and muddy rather than the usual clear, sparkling water. On a nearby grassy bank, however, there was a beautiful display of snowdrops, a sign that spring will soon be with us.

 

Early sign of Spring

 

Grey squirrel on the feeder



The squirrel had a noticeable white stripe around its middle

There was a grey squirrel was in the garden on the 10th. I hadn’t seen one around lately so presumably, as with the birds, squirrels are finding plenty of natural food around at the moment. The squirrel sat on the fence for at least ten minutes, and had an unusual white stripe of fur around its back, just above the legs, which will make it easier to recognise if it returns. All the usual birds – robins, wood pigeons, sparrows and others were down on the feeders. Later, we had a brief hailstorm, covering the ground and the glass of the conservatory with icy stones.

 

The glass roof was covered in icy hail

 

Long-tailed tit in the bushes

 

Robin singing sweetly in the Town Park, Harlow



Glossy-green-headed mallard at the Town Park, Harlow

Moorhen in the reeds at the Town Park, Harlow

 A trip to the town park on the 12th was feast of bird song, with robins, tits and blackbirds attempting to out sing each other and it was good to see long tailed tits, which have always been one of my favourite birds. There were mallards, moorhens and coots on the lake. However, it was very windy, which made it feel cold, so we didn’t stay for long. A return visit to Harlow Mill on February 16th showed the river still swollen, running high and fast, though beginning to ease a little. Many plants are coming into bloom in the garden, such as hellebore, crocus and mini daffodils.

Still flooded, one week later, at Harlow Mill

A robin poses in the garden



Male blackbird

By the 19th, much calmer, brighter conditions had arrived, and there were more birds round the feeder pole including robins, great tits, blackbirds, house sparrows and collared doves. A handsome male blackbird was enjoying the food on the feeders the following day. A beautiful sunny day on the 22nd showed the opening spring flowers to perfection – crocuses were blooming in the garden, and the cotoneaster was showing off its orange/yellow flowers. Daffodils were also in bloom.

 

 

 

 

Crocuses opening wide in the sun

 

Cotoneaster

 

By February 26th it was noticeable that blackthorn had fully opened everywhere, and its starry white flowers shone from the hedgerows. It seems earlier this year; it’s always a welcome harbinger of spring. Daisies, dandelion and various other small wild flowers were in bloom along roadside verges – the new policy of not mowing verges is paying dividends. The council save money, but also save the wild flowers as they can set seed, meaning the verges will be colourful for most of the year. The weather has been sunny and feeling spring-like of late, and birds such as blackbirds and robins already seem to be pairing up and seeking out nest sites. We must hope there isn’t an icy spell later.

To sum up, this has been, on the whole, a mild month, though with several days of heavy rain and strong winds. There have been blue sky and sunshine days, too, which seem to be fooling the birds into early nesting behaviour.

Collared dove on the bird table

 

 

Wood pigeon illuminated in the oak tree

SKYLARK SUE’S REFLECTIONS OF NATURE 

January 2014

House sparrow in pyrancantha hedge at end of the garden

January 1st turned out to be a wet, grey day. The rain was heavy, and it was quite windy too. There were few birds around apart from the ubiquitous woodpigeons. However, the following day was a complete contrast, with sunshine for most of the day. The birds were more in evidence, with lots of sparrows in the pyracantha at the end of the garden, and blackbird, collared doves, pigeons and others on the feeders. Later the weather turned gloomy and more gales were forecast – it seemed as though this was going to be yet another windy month.

Crow in the tree opposite the garden

Dunnock on one of the bird tables



Bumblebee in the cyclamen

January 3rd turned out to be a crazy day, weather wise. We had sunshine, thunder, lightning, hail, strong wind and torrential rain. The squirrel came down when the weather permitted, as did the collared doves and wood pigeons. The next few days turned out to be a mixture of heavy rain, squally winds and sunshine. The usual birds, such as robin, blue and great tits, sparrows, starlings, dunnocks, blackbirds, collared doves and woodpigeons were visiting the feeders, and there was a crow in the tree across the road. On January 8th I was surprised to see a large bumblebee inspecting the cyclamen in the garden. I noticed that many fields were flooded near Stanstead Abbotts, and which had attracted plenty of gulls, while at Dobbs Weir there were lots of Canada Geese.

 

 

 

Gulls enjoying a flooded field near Stanstead Abbots

The BTO Survey - Our results

Flooded road at Sheering

Flooded road at Sheering

The 11th January proved sunny with plenty of blue sky, and was surprisingly mild for the time of year. We did the Dawn BTO Survey,which was to list the first ten species to arrive at the bird table. Ours were: First arrival, 7.40am Robin, then 7.48 am magpie, 7.50 am blackbird, 7.51 am collared dove, 7.51am sparrow, 7.53am dunnock, 7.55 am blue tit, 8.38 am starling, 8.46am  great tit, 8.56am wood pigeon. We decided to go to Hatfield Forest, knowing it would still be very muddy, and wondered about more tree damage. The road through Sheering was flooded, though passable. I can’t recall a winter that had so much water!

There were plenty of swans, geese and ducks on Hatfield Forest lake

The Chestnut bibs of the male mallards glowed in the sun

The light reflected beautifully through the swan's feathers

The trip to Hatfield Forest revealed nine mute swans on the lake, as well as dozens of Canada geese and mallards, and about twenty Greylags, There were also coots, black-headed gulls, grebe, moorhen and cormorant. In the trees around the edge of the lake, as well as a mistle thrush, blue tits, coal tits, great tits, jackdaws and rooks, we were pleased to see a small flock of fieldfares.

Great crested grebe on the lake

Coots at Hatfield Forest

This tree had many holes in the trunk

A beautifully sunny January day in Hatfield Forest

Plenty of squirrels were about, and there was a kestrel hovering over the grassy part of the forest. The light was beautiful, illuminating the feathers of the swans and emphasising the bright chestnut breasts of the mallards.  One tree had several holes up the trunk, I wondered if they were made by woodpeckers. Everywhere was very, very muddy. There was a frosty start to the following day, but it was sunny later, and the weather continued fairly mild. The sun and blue sky contrasted well with the pinky-cream and grey feathers of a wood pigeon.

 

Coal Tit in the forest

Mistle thrush in the forest

Hovering kestrel at Hatfield Forest

 

As the kestrel descends the sunlight highlights its feathers

Robin singing in the town park, Harlow



Wood pigeons feeding on discarded bread by the lake

Reflections in the lake

Mallards by the park lake

By 16th January, many bulbs such as snowdrops, daffodils and crocuses were shooting, and surprisingly, in the garden there were many plants still flowering from last year. Amongst them were polyanthus, pink, rose and pansy. On a visit to the town park the same day, I noticed that there were not as many mallards as usual; presumably they were finding the flooded fields more attractive. There were plenty of woodpigeons, including a group of eight or so making the most of some bread dumped by the lake. We also saw jackdaws, black headed gull, great tit, moorhen, dunnock and robins. Both robins and blackbirds were in fine song. There were squirrels chasing each other in the trees. White dead nettle was already in flower. It was so mild, it felt like a spring day; the weather had been in the low 50s for the past few days. Damage from the storms was evident, with broken trees and branches.

Storm-damaged tree

White deadnettle already in flower, in January



Blackheaded gull not yet in summer plumage

Grey squirrel

Moorhen by the lake in the town park

First garden snowdrop of the year

 January18th A pile of wood pigeon feathers on the grass verge near our house indicated that a bird had been plucked, probably it fell prey to a sparrowhawk. On the 19th the temperature had dropped a little, but at 44 degrees F, was still mild for mid-January. On January 21st, surprisingly, two robins were already collecting nesting material; one particularly plump one was on the bird table. There was a snowdrop in flower, the first I’d seen in the garden this year and primroses were in full bloom on the grass in the front of our house, which gets most sunshine.

Primroses on the front lawn

The sparrows enjoy the sunshine on the pyracantha



This robin was catching small insects in the conifer

January 22nd, the two robins were about again. One spent a long time in the ornamental conifer, and seemed to be catching insects – there were gnats around. There were two long-tailed tits on the fat feeder; it’s always such a pleasure to see these pretty little birds in the garden. My observation about the robins collecting nesting material on the 21st was read out and commented on by Michaela Strachan on Winterwatch. The weather turned a little colder on the 24th, but it was dry, and our garden visitors included long-tailed tits, a couple of magpies, dunnock, robin, pair of blackbirds, sparrows, great tits and wood pigeons. We’ve had a blackbird around with a black beak instead of a yellow one. I asked naturalist Chris Packham about it, and he said he thought it was European. On the afternoon of the 25th, we suddenly had terrific winds, heavy rain, thunder and lightning, and later discovered that a mini-tornado had passed through the area, ripping roofs from several houses further down the road and felling six enormous conifers that protected a play area. The following day the weather was calmer and we had visits from many of our ‘regulars’.

Broken trees after the 'mini tornado' that whirled through Harlow

 January 31^st. Over the last few days we have suffered torrential rain. Many areas of the country are flooded. Our lawn is like a quagmire. Between the rain outbreaks, the usual birds – robins, blackbirds, blue tits, magpie, pigeons and others –have been down. The crocuses are beginning to bud and the daffodils are shooting, a welcome sign of spring. Apparently this January has been the wettest in southern England since records began in 1910. Many people are in temporary accommodation as their homes are flooded, and the storms have caused thousands of trees to fall or to be broken down.

Collared dove in the garden