What have you seen
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Went on a walk today that encompassed pastures and woods and the number of first sightings of flowers was something else. Our first Bluebells, Wood Sorrel, Greater Sticthwort, Cowslips, White Comfry and oodles of Wild Garlic plus plenty of Wood Anemones.
Saw and heard Redpolls, Blackcaps, Ravens and our first Duckling which looked very lonely with mum and dad.
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Lovely walk this morning including woods I've not done for ages. Beautiful primroses and celandine, Lords and ladies growing rapidly. Glimpses of blue showing among their leaves. Watched a pair of red kites and the green woodpecker, plus robins, tits and heard the chiff chaffs.
However I'm perplexed by these, I feel sure I should know their purpose but can't recall it 🤔. Several dotted around.
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No idea Bakers.
Had another enjoyable walk today and saw plenty are Lords and Ladies plus masses of Wild Garlic.
Watched a Dipper for a while from a bridge as he went about diving into the water for food. A Grey Wagtail on the river as well plus a lovely Goshawk over a wooded area. Nature didn't seem too worried about Covid and it was nice to join in for a while.
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The Ransom is just starting to show it's flowers now down in Mill Wood, and I guess they will be in bloom at the same time as the Bluebells. However we will be away and miss the scene this year.
After hearing one drumming the other day I was able to spot a GSW today, as well as Long Tailed Tits and a couple of Herons.
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We have lived in our house for 35 years, when we moved in the woods at the end of our fairly small garden had small trees, now they are so tall we live in permanent shade, which I moan about. However, reading posts here I realise they give us, in our garden, creatures that I take a bit for granted. Everyday visitors are - woodpeckers, blackcaps, jays, all breeds of tits, doves, bullfinches etc. The other evening I went out to suddenly realise I had a badger snuffling around a few feet from me. We regularly get deer in the garden, in the spring we have to pull a small piece of fencing back into place or they eat all the plants. This winter a young male took to sleeping in the garden overnight. One Sunday morning I went out to check him and wake him at 9.30 he arose slowly, blinking away the sleep and ambled off ... teenagers!
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On our constitutional yesterday afternoon we had a pair of merlins pass over towards Portsmouth dockyard. Nearly as noisy as the Chinook that followed them.
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Paid a second visit to Chew Valley Reservoir today hoping to see the Osprey before it flew north, but it was a no show. Instead I was treated to the full mating ritual of the Mute Swan, which was very tender until the moment of truth.
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Couldn’t believe our eyes this morning, a very chilly but sunny one here. Seen our first Swallow of the year😁 The mad fool went swooping over and around the garden and then disappeared.
We have not so Wild Garlic planted in garden, out in full splendour. It’s spreading nicely as well.👍Stunning photo BM, they are lovely birds.
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Interesting TDA. Someone has dumped some wild garlic on our footpath, should I let it grow or will I regret it when it romps over everything? We haven't had it growing naturally here and I've been trying to grow a few more wild plants..OH think we should let it romp, I feel a bit cross that a neighbour thinks we want it...
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Beautiful pic caught at the perfect time, there is such life in the eyes-excellent BM👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻
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Mine’s cultivated Brue. A pot I bought a few years ago, to put into a shade spot, along with some ferns. I think it has been in around four years, but is still the original plant plus one other offshoot, so mine hasn’t gone mad. But it covers lots of our woodlands around here. I like it, along with bluebells and celandines. I bought a three cornered leek to put in same area, which is doing ok as well, but not in flower yet. This reminds me of Cornish hedgerows, hoping that might spread a little as well. A lot rarer up here, but garden I worked in had a big clump.
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Thanks Rocky
The Swans were lovely to watch, every time I have seen this before, something has always interrupted the birds. Even got to see the classic heart shaped neck posture, but wrong angle for a pic.
Even better news for me was the Osprey is still in the area, which is surprising as it has been around for a week so far, fingers crossed another will stick around with it.
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Two swallows do not a summer make.
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I was at the golf club last week and whilst on the car park, saw a stoat attack a rabbit. It came with such speed, I was astonished and didn't, at first, notice it's intended quarry. There was a struggle for approximately 30 seconds, ending up undereath my car, before both parties went their seperate ways, the rabbit licking it's wounds. Not the first time I've seen a stoat, but the first time I've seen how ferocious they are! Brave too, taking on an opponent 10 times it's own size.
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We live in Formby on Merseyside, about 1/2 mile from the sand dunes and pine forests. It is one of the few places left to find red squirrels in the UK and we see them most days in the garden.
I'm not into wildlife but the last couple of weeks have been wonderful. The pigeons are well upset as a pheasant and it's mate have just chucked their nest out of the tree behind us. Next morning we woke to the male having a hissy fit at the two squirrels on the fence, I'm guessing his missus was laying eggs and the hubby was worried. No problem as the magpies turned up and gave the squirrels some grief. After lunch it got better as a Mr and Mrs duck turned up again and wandered around. They've visited a few times over the last fortnight.
Hopefully with clear nights we will see the bats again. I'm not sure where they nest but last year they played in the 40ft sycamore trees we back onto.
We also have two woodpeckers within earshot that now the windows are open at night we can hear, along with at least 3 owls that call to each other.
Colin
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ExT, we were walking through Stodmarsh Nature Reserve near Canterbury one year and stood still as a Stoat came trotting along the pathway towards us with a rabbit in its mouth. It was April so I guess it had young Stoaties to feed. It looked pleased as punch, then he looked up over the rabbit's head and saw us. Half a second later he'd disappeared with the rabbit. Never forget it.
I've seen a Weasel take a baby rabbit. Just as quick.
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On a walk around a country house in mid Wales today and spent a glorious 5 minutes watching a beautiful Redstart in some Osiers around a pond. Saw 2 more today plus our first Willow Warbler of the year and all 3 of the UKs Woodpeckers.
Also had a lovely sighting of some Yellow Arum and about a Million Bees, according to the information in an Apiary. Fascinating watching them and reading about them from the information boards.
Capped it off by watching a Red Kite.
You can probably tell we had a great time today.
Oh, and we heard a Little Owl right behind us on the CL last night, about 4 o'clock this morning to be more precise.
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Well the field crickets are now chirping in the field and also heard them in fields whilst out for a walk this pm, have got both black and common redstarts here now all looking for nesting areas, thought I heard the golden oriole also on the walk will listen again tomorrow, also saw a green blacked speckled lizard with a very orange underside but not very big but very elegant.
No red kites here today but have had 3 black kites go over.
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Walking along the Avon into Salisbury yesterday, we saw a peregrine wheeling in the sky. Upon our return observed a female mallard, head on its side eying the sky in a nervous fashion. Looked up and saw a buzzard passing over.
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There is a live webcam for the Peregrines on Salisbury Cathedral.
First hatchlings here....a bit smaller than Peregrines!
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Just heard the Nightingale in the little plot next to OH's shed same area as last year so hopefully it will nest there again, only trouble is now the Jay's and Magpie's are on the hunt for eggs and nestlings, saw a Jay yesterday looking around one of our tit boxes at least it cannot get in it has a metal frame around the entrance mainly to stop the woodpeckers.
Interesting photo brue it could be blackbird trying to look at an old birdbook.
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It does look like a house sparrow egg brue.
Had a pair of Sparrowhawks flying over this afternoon whilst having a cup of tea sat outside.
Got a lot more butterflies emerging now and with the weather warming up there will be many more.
The nightingale is still singing lovely to hear takes me back to my childhood in Shropshire.
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