Garden Moths and Birds Update

I put out the moth trap for the first time this year last weekend as the Garden Moth Scheme was starting again.

I trapped 2 new species for the year -

Common Quaker (Orthosia cerasi) and

Common Plume (Emmelina mondodactyla)

Its a shame the Common Quaker had laid eggs in the pot - it doesn't happen very often but I will keep the eggs in the hope they will hatch. We have Birch, Hawthorn and Hazel which the larvae eat.



I will put the trap out again this weekend.





Common frogs and Smooth Newts are moving about in the pond but no frogspawn yet.....

We saw a Grey Heron (new bird species for the year) on the lawn this morning making its way to the pond and no doubt on the hunt for frogs. No photo I am afraid it didn't stay long.

Nesting activity has commenced with Blue Tits checking out the nest boxes, female blackbirds collecting nest material and taking it into one of the holly bushes and a wren is making a nest in ivy on the patio wall. The male wren makes several nests and the female will finish the one of her choice.


I saw my first bumble bee (one of the white-tailed species) whizzing past the kitchen window on Wednesday but still no butterflies.

Garden Moth Trapping Session - Monday, 7th March

Min Temp -3.2 degrees Centigrade

15w Actinic Skinner Trap

Moths 0!


Will try running the trap again this weekend - looks as though it may be a little milder!

First Moth Trapping of 2016

I put the moth trap out for the first time this year last night - to be honest with low overnight temperatures forecast I probably wouldn't have bothered but it was the weekend that Garden Moth Scheme started. Unsurprisingly, there were no moths in the trap this morning! As the trap is all set up and a dry night is forecast I will try again tonight as some moths do fly in cold temperatures.


Sunday 6th March, 2016

Min Temp -1.3 degrees Centigrade

Garden Moth Scheme Week 1

15w Actinic Skinner Trap


Moths 0

Garden Birds and Flower Update 2016

List of Birds Seen in the Garden 2016 (so far) - in order of appearance

Coal Tit

Great Tit

Blackbird

Wood Pigeon

Magpie

Blue Tit

Robin

Long-tailed Tit

House Sparrow

Carrion Crow

Dunnock

Lesser Redpoll

Goldfinch

Wren

Goldcrest

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Starling


I don't count flyovers just species that are actually using the garden in some way. Sadly, no Greenfinches (although I've never seen any diseased birds here they are becoming increasingly uncommon here). Collared Dove is another species that rarely visits these days and Chaffinches have always gone in phases - sometimes ever present and sometimes missing for several years. There's still time for a visit from a Blackcap or Siskin.



Belatedly, a list of plants in flower on New Year's Day

Bergenia
Lobelia
Nasturtium
Coeropsis
Chrysanthemum
Wild Primroses
Primula
Kerria
Corydalis


Mahonia is now in flower awaiting the arrival of the first bumble bees.


A few flower photos taken a few weeks ago


Groundsel

Lungwort - now in flower

This mystery plant was also in flower on 1st January - haven't a clue what it is so would love to know if anyone has any ideas of id.

Camelia buds - flowers are now appearing

Buds on Rhodendron

Primula vulgaris (Wild Primroses) - were in flower before Christmas but they often flower early in our garden.

The Snowdrop I planted last year just emerging - it now has buds

One of the two Hellebores I planted last year has survived (no sign of the other one).

Bergenia

Pot of dwarf daffodils

First Moth of the Year

I spotted my first moth of 2016 last Thursday on the garage window.

Dotted Border (Agriopis marginaria)

A common and widespread species found in woods, hedgerows, shrub, gardens, heathland and moorland. The female is flightless. The larva feeds on various broad-leaved trees such as oak, hawthorn, blackthorn,elm, sycamore and apple.

Nacreous Clouds

Photos of rare Nacreous clouds in the UK have been appearing in the news and on social media over the last couple of days and yesterday in the late afternoon we saw some from the garden.

The clouds are also known as Mother of Pearl clouds and form at temperatures of -78 degrees centigrade in the lower stratosphere (around 10 to 20 miles up whereas common clouds are around 5 - 6 miles above the surface of the Earth).

Beautiful they may be but they can be destructive - it is believed that they may speed up depletion of the ozone layers as the ice crystals in the cloud act as catalysts encouraging chemical reactions with the CFC gases released into the atmosphere which break down ozone.

RSPB Garden Birdwatch

I spent an hour yesterday counting garden birds for the RSPB Garden Birdwatch. It was a low count (probably the lowest ever) this year but the garden has been very quiet bird-wise this Winter.

Birds Seen in the Garden



Robin x 1

House Sparrow x 5

Wood Pigeon x 2

Blue Tit x 3 (one individual was investigating the nest-box in the Whitebeam)

Magpie x 2

Blackbird x 2

Coal Tit x 1

Dunnock x 1

Wren x 1




100 yards from the garden around 15 Magpies were congregating in a noisy and squabbling manner in a clump of trees.


I am sorry for lack of posts so far this year. I've been trying to decide whether or not to continue using this as a separate blog for my garden wildlife or to revert back to putting it all on Ragged Robin's Nature Notes. I will probably carry on with this one and perhaps put a link to it on my main blog. I still get visits from a couple of people to RRNN who I think in the main were only looking for moth posts so they must think I have given up on my moth trap and spend all my time church crawling and visiting NT properties!