General Chat

The swans in next doors garden hatched yesterday, 7 cygnets all grey & fluffy & really cute. Bit of panic as well yesterday as the crows were kicking off at about 4.30am, got up to look out the window & a fox was in the garden but the male swan saw it off, then last evening another swan flew in, don't know where it come from but again male saw it off, thought there was going to be real trouble as very territorial. They will most likely take little ones on river today, then they leave the nest & move further up to another spot. :-)

I have at least two hedgehogs feeding from cat biscuits left out for them with water bowls nearby. They usually appear separately but as I couldn't distinguish between them I wasn't sure if it was one greedy one coming back for seconds! The other night one was tucking in and another came along and barged the first one away. They had a bit of a tussle, one rolling itself up in a ball and both disappeared.

I saw one eating biscuits this evening but because I am not watching constantly others might be visiting too. I am now out of biscuits but have some tinned catfood to use and a bag of hedgehog food so can continue to put food out.

We have numerous bird feeders out, and have robins, blackbirds, blue tits, finches, sparrows, starlings (nesting in the gutters next door), and noisy pigeons. Sometimes there are magpies and jays in the hazel tree or fir tree which are at the end of our garden next to the hedge. The garden ends about 35ft from the house so it's easy to watch from the window. On the other side of our hedge is a field, unplanted this year as there have been people testing the water table. Gulls wheel across the field often.

Sadly the field is up for sale as a building plot for houses, something we definitely don't want. It's often waterlogged so the last thing we need is housing which will cause more water in our gardens, quite apart from the noise and dust of a building site for months and the loss of the view and noise of more households so close to us! There Is currently a flight path over the field and sometimes the Red Arrows circle over it before landing at Norwich airport close by.

Lizxx

WE've had 12 Jackdaws on the front lawn this afternoon. Jenny wren has been for her mealworms and oh has a Robin who feeds from the rail around the pond. The Robin takes worms away and feeds his mate up by the box hedge so I think they may be nesting there this year.

I have had Phil and Philomena Pheasent round the back patio for their corn when I do the chickens. Just went round there and corned the big girls and two pheasents flew over my head just a couple of feet above me.

We've also had a few Brimstone butterflies and two small tortoiseshell ones and some other ones which I could'nt tell you what they were.

The solitary bees are busy around the hole in the bamboo box so its all happening down here.

Mel North Devon.

Just hopped over neighbours fence at bottom of garden while swans on river, they have 1 egg, they lay every other day untill finished laying then sit so all hatch out same time. Will sit for 6 weeks. Each year she has laid more, last year had 10 eggs, 9 hatched & 7 survived. Been doing some digging & Robin around, also seen the wren today.

Blackbird nest next to our living room window - grandstand view :-D

We have birds squabbling over whose turn it is for a bath, yesterday a blackbird was in the bird bath for ages with a sparrow trying to join him. The sparrow gave up, further up the garden a blue tit was also having a bath in a different bird bath and up on the patio a bit later a magpie had a bath and shower from the water feature.
this week we have seen two orange tip butterflies a small tortoiseshell and a couple of cabbage whites. there are not as many birds feeding at the moment just Great tits and collard doves.

We had two ducks visit us yesterday. A real surprise :-D

Thought it would be nice to do a garden watch & list what animals you can see in your gardens in the lockdown, It can be any kind of wild life, birds, butterflies, anything. We all live in different kinds of houses, flats etc. All nature is busy at the moment.
Even from a window if you are in a flat. We have a pair of swans nesting in next doors garden for 4th year running, no eggs yet but nest looks like it is finished so should be soon.