LET'S TALK NATURE

.................. with Gary Fenwick

May Avian Arrivals.

There are lots of species of birds that we can only see in the summer, and so we should treasure their presence because, before we know it, they will be flying south to spend the winter in milder climes (southern Europe and Africa). I always find it really pleasing when I see my first Swallow or Cuckoo or Willow Warbler. At the time of writing, I have seen my first hirundine, a Sand Martin on 22 nd March. Slightly smaller than a Swallow, I saw two on the east coast and I marvelled at the fact that these two tiny birds will quite possibly have literally just flown over the English Channel and 2,500 miles overall!  

Locally, in a woodland only a couple of miles from Middle Rasen, there have been breeding Turtle Doves for a decade or more, until the last couple of years when all I have seen is a lonely individual. Sadly, the Turtle Dove has reduced by 99% between 1967 and 2020. In 1993 I saw six together on some wires near to West Rasen, now I have no chance whatsoever of seeing such a sight. And when did you last see or hear a Cuckoo locally? The last local one I saw was a juvenile at Toft Newton Reservoir in 2020, although I was amazed to hear at least half a dozen in the lovely Coedydd Aber valley, North Wales in May last year.  

On a positive note, any hedgerow in any of our local country lanes, could host a Whitethroat, with its hoarse drawn-out call and stand-out white throat! And one bird which surely everyone notices are the Swifts in August, screeching over-head with scythe-shaped wings, take notice of them because by the end of August they will be gone!  

MAKING A HEDGEHOG HIGHWAY  

It's the time of year that hedgehogs will be waking up from their hibernation, so I thought that I would make a plea. Given that hedgehogs can walk up to two miles in a night to find food or look for a mate, the ability to roam freely is really important. They therefore need gaps in garden fences or a space under gates to get around. What they actually need is a space 13cm x 13cm to walk through, which fortunately would be too small for the majority of cats and dogs. You and your neighbours could create a hedgehog highway by cutting a hole in your fence or removing a brick or two from the bottom of a wall, you could even purchase a hedgehog friendly gravel board if needed.  

My own boundary has natural gaps under my fences, and I am sure that will be the case for many. Interestingly, the only hedgehog I saw last year was in a strip of garden that I left to mow until after May….no mow May! You could also put out a saucer of meat-based pet food, to supplement their regular insect diet, but always ensure that a dish of water is also available. Additionally, do please try to avoid using Slug Pellets and if you have a garden pond (a great idea) make sure that there are several gently sloping slipways around the edge of the water to allow animals to escape if they fall in.

Gary Fenwick - April 24

45th RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch

On 27 th January the community focussed Market Rasen library participated in the 45th RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch and I was invited to help identify the birds (and take along my binoculars and telescope!) The event had been publicised for children, even though the national event is citizen science for all ages, but it was wonderful to have lots of primary school children's eyes excitedly looking out for the birds and being disappointed when the many Gulls just flew over, so we weren't able to count them!

In the hour we spotted eight species of bird, but the aspect of the morning which I enjoyed the most was to see the wonder and interest that the children had for the birds. I had Logan, who was thrilled to see a Woodpigeon through the telescope, he said it looked so close and he thought he was “picking up food for his family” and I had Bobby, who went through the ‘Birds of the British Isles' book and was intrigued by the fact that I had seen so many of them! One child got upset when he couldn't see a Dunnock in a tree, and I thought I know how you feel! But the Mums and Dads who brought their children along, will be taking their children out and about, notebooks in hand, and they will be recording the birds they see…and we therefore have another generation who care about the natural world around us. Priceless!

MOTHS ARE BETTER THAN BUTTERFLIES!

So, moths are all dull, plain, brown pests that chew through the vegetables, or even your clothes! If that's what you thought, then think again! And if you like nature and think you need to travel far and wide to see living creatures that you've never seen before, then I can tell you that's not the case! In all but the coldest winter nights, put out a white sheet, shine a torch on it and creatures you've never seen before will appear as if by magic. Scientists don't really know why moths are attracted to light, but I bought a moth trap in March and since then I've identified 1,286 moths of 191 different species. There are around 2,500 moth species in the UK and only 59, at a push, butterfly species. So, I've got a lot more to see!

Science has proven that moths pollinate our plants more efficiently than butterflies and they come in all shapes, sizes and colours. Look at the pictures of two common moths below, both from my garden this year. But moths only fly at night I hear you say. Well, no - there are approximately 130 species of day flying moths, more than double the number of butterflies.

Don't get me wrong, butterflies are great too, but there is a whole world out there, in your garden and elsewhere, of stunning insects to delight and intrigue. As my 2 year-old grand-son said when I showed him a Canary-shouldered Thorn - ”Wow”.

Gary Fenwick Feb 24

Often, when in the countryside and if you're vigilant, something can surprise you. In mid-October I was walking around Covenham Reservoir (looking for and finding an uncommon Slavonian Grebe), when I spotted something peculiarly white in some trees close to the reservoir. Looking through my binoculars I could see it was a rare albino squirrel, amazingly after a couple of minutes I spotted another one close by!  

Albino squirrels are incredibly rare, with estimates suggesting that there is only one albino squirrel for every 100,000 regular squirrels or just 50 in the UK. They have white fur with red eyes because they lack melanin (the pigment that gives your hair and skin colour). Albinism is an inherited genetic mutation, so it's clear that the two I saw must be siblings. They should be able to live the normal 3-5 years for a squirrel, although their brightness does make them more visible to predators!

Gary Fenwick dec 23

When I was a very young man I remember my dad took me to a slideshow about the birds of the Highlands and the expert speaker showed some footage of an Osprey diving into a loch and catching a fish. I was mesmerised by what I saw and I vowed there and then that one day I would see an Osprey in the wild. I even hoped that I might one day be lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time to see the holy grail….an Osprey hunting!  

Fast forward 45 years and I have achieved that ambition multiple times. The last time was on 7th September when an Osprey showed the fishermen at Toft Newton Reservoir (TNR) how to do it, after it emerged from a plunge into the cold water with a sizeable trout (see picture). I now know that the bird in question was a 5-year-old ringed in the nest in the Scottish Highlands and a bird which this year bred in the Tweed valley. It was migrating from there to West Africa, obviously using TNR to refuel. It will take 20 flying days to get to its winter destination.  

Strangely I saw an Osprey at TNR in 1994, 95 and 96 and then there was a 25 year gap before my next one, on 2nd Sept 2021 and then I saw one last year and again this year! I wonder when the next one will be!?

Gary Fenwick Nov 23

I have been asked to follow up my article last month with some further musings about my wildlife experiences. The request came the day after a very exciting encounter with a rare bird, so there was no need to think about what to write about!

I have been going to my local patch, on and off, since my first visit on 15 th  November 1992.   The concrete bowl which is Toft Newton Reservoir doesn't immediately strike you as a productive place for birds, but when you watch the same place time and again, you get lucky and see interesting birds passing through regularly.  In the past three years (semi-retirement has wonderfully given me more time), I have visited at least 150 times each year. On 31 st  July I was present on the patch, nice and early, and had walked more than halfway round without anything of note to see. Then out of nowhere, under the gathering grey skies, a Gull appeared, but it looked a bit strange. I lifted my binoculars to my eyes and immediately saw that the Gull was actually a large Tern, with a prominent red bill, a rare Caspian Tern. The British Birds Rarities Committee have already asked for photographs and a description, something in a lifetime of birding I've never been asked for before ! 

MOTHS

This morning I found the impressive Privet Hawk-moth (picture attached), with a wingspan of up to 12cm, which I caught in my moth trap (all moths are released unharmed!). The picture doesn't really give justice to what is a fearsome looking moth! (The moth is on an egg box because that's what I put on the bottom of the trap).I started mothing, to add to my birding and butterflying, only in April this year and I have seen 69 species of moth in that time. It's amazing to discover what's lurking in our gardens at night, you can attract in a trap tiny micro-moths, beetles and macro moths in an amazing array of shapes, sizes and colours.

The Privet Hawk-moth generally flies in just June and July and is Britain's largest breeding moth. In the north of Lincolnshire, we are towards the northern limit of its range. They feed on, wild and garden Privet ( Ligustrum ), Holly, Honeysuckle, Snowberry, Vibernum tinus, Forsythia and a few other plants. Who knows what I might find next time!

Gary Fenwick (August 23 ed)