Wildlife – We are out in the garden …

Redwing – a winter visitor that feasts on the garden berries

Every year we are delighted to see the Redwings (Turdus iliacus) arrive from Scandinavia. Part of the thrush family the Redwing has a striking white supercilium above the eye and a white submoustachial stripe. It is however the bold rusty red patch under the wings that allows you to identify these birds with confidence.

In our garden they tend to come for the berries. This year they seem to have started on the holly berries which they finished off well before Christmas. They are now working their way through the Pyracantha (pictured) but as yet they have not started on the Cotoneaster. In a week or so when all the Pyracantha have gone I suspect we will see them sitting in the tall cotoneaster at the end of the garden picking away at those berries as well.

These birds are rarely on their own and we typically see a small flock visiting together calling each other with a sharp ‘tseep’. Once our berries are finished they will wander off across the fields and hedgerows searching for other berries and worms.

According to the RSPB website Redwings migrate by night in loose flocks. In autumn, redwings gather along the Scandinavian coast at dusk before launching off on their single 500 mile flight across the North Sea to the UK.

Some redwings also come from Iceland to winter in Scotland and Ireland. Others come from Russia and Scandinavia to winter in southern England and further south in Europe.

Redwing call

Audio Credit Patrik Aberg Xeno-canto

Six on Saturday – Summer Butterflies

It is not just the flowers that make the garden a beautiful place to be. Today is a scorcher. For me this simply means keeping cool with a long drink sitting in the shade of a large tree. The butterflies however love it and it is so lovely to feel that we have created an environment where they can flourish.

The weather this year seems to have been perfect for them giving us a large number of individuals and a great variety. Here are six that I have captured on camera in the last week or so.

One: Red Admiral

The Red Admiral is a migrant coming in waves from North Africa and continental Europe throughout the spring and summer. Increasingly however there are reports that it is over wintering here in the UK. The migrants lay eggs in the UK which subsequently produce a fresh new generation of butterflies.¹

In Britain and Ireland, the most important and widely available larval foodplant is Common Nettle (Urtica dioica). However, Small Nettle (U. urens) and the related species, Pellitory-of-the-wall (Parietaria judaica) and Hop (Humulus lupulus) may also be used.¹

Two: Gatekeeper

The Gatekeepers in our garden seem to be quite feisty little creatures and seem to spend a lot of time time chasing off other larger butterflies that come close. They like the same habitat as Ringlet and Meadow Brown butterflies which we also see in the garden and close by in the countryside.

The caterpillars feed on various grasses with a preference for fine grasses such as bents (Agrostis spp.), fescues (Festuca spp.), and meadow-grasses (Poa spp.). Common Couch (Elytrigia repens) is also used.¹ At least something is eating the couch!

Three: Small Tortoiseshell

A very common butterfly but no less beautiful for that. It has been rather scarce in our garden in recent years so I am delighted that it is back in some numbers this year. The caterpillars fee on common nettle (Urtica dioica) and small nettle (Urtica urens).¹

Four: Comma

The Comma butterfly has very characteristic scalloped edges to its wings which allow the hibernating adults to be almost invisible amongst dead leaves.

The caterpillars’ most widely used foodplant is Common Nettle (Urtica dioica). Other species used include Hop (Humulus lupulus), elms (Ulmus spp.), currants (Ribes spp.), and Willows (Salix spp).¹

Five: Peacock

Another unmistakeable butterfly which loves the Lysimachia and Buddleias in the garden. We have huge numbers across the garden this year which is so lovely to see.

The caterpillars feed on Common Nettle (Urtica dioica), although eggs and larvae are occasionally reported on Small Nettle (U. urens) and Hop (Humulus lupulus).¹

Six: Silver-Washed Fritillary

This might be stretching the rules of this meme a little as this Silver-Washed Fritillary was not photographed in our garden but in nearby Hampton Wood. These are large woodland butterflies (wing-span c. 72-76mm). They do not sit still very long so I was delighted to get a chance to get this one in a sunny clearing. As they fly they flutter almost like tissue paper in the dappled sun of the woodland glade. The caterpillars main foodplant is Common Dog-violet (Viola riviniana) growing in shady or semi-shady positions on the woodland floor.¹ My next challenge is to entice them into our woodland garden.

Well that is it for this week. We share the garden with a host of other creatures and certainly my enjoyment of our garden is not all about the flowers. This post is a contribution to the Six on Saturday meme which is hosted by The Propagator. Click on the link to be inspired by what other plant lovers are enjoying this weekend.

Further reading

¹ Butterfly Conservation Website – There is a wealth of information about all of these species on this website including further details of their lifecycle, when they fly and distribution maps across the UK.

Marbled White Butterfly

A week or so back (26 June 2020) I was lucky enough to come across this beautiful Marbled White butterfly on a warm sunny morning whilst walking our springer spaniel in local fields. It was warming itself in the sun and was kind enough to stay still long enough for me to catch this photograph.

The Marbled White butterfly usually flies from late June through to early September in areas of unimproved grassland ¹. According to Patrick Barkham ² it is relatively common in midsummer woodland edges and rides in south-west England but rarely occurs in the east or north of the country. The Marbled White ( Melanargia galathea ) is in the family Nymphalidae which includes the striking and often colourful butterflies like Peacocks, Red Admirals and Small Tortoiseshells. The Marbled White is in a sub-family of the Nymphalidae call the Satyrinae which are commonly called the Browns. The Marbled White is a Brown that is in fact white!

On the food plants for the caterpillars, Butterfly conservation ¹ state that “Red Fescue (Festuca rubra) is thought to be essential in the diet of larvae but Sheep’s-fescue (F. ovina), Yorkshire-fog (Holcus lanatus), and Tor-grass (Brachypodium pinnatum) are also eaten. It is thought that several other grasses may be used, but the full range is not known.”

UK Distribution (live link to Butterfly Conservation Website)

Life Cycle (live link to Butterfly Conservation website)

Further reading

¹ Butterfly Conservation (butterfly-conservation.org)

² The Butterfly Isles by Patrick Barkham (ISBN 978-1-84708-127-8)

Garden Ecology: Green Woodpecker (Picus viridis)

The Green Woodpecker is supposedly a fairly common bird in the UK (c. 52,000 pairs) but we see it only rarely in the garden. The Great Spotted Woodpecker is a more regular visitor and often comes to feed on the peanuts in the bird feeders.

The Green Woodpecker is the largest of the British Woodpeckers and is the size of a large pigeon. It typically feeds on ants probing ant nests with its strong beak and long tongue.

This individual is an adult male as it has a crimson-centred moustache. The female has a black moustache.

It seems that the Green Woodpecker (unlike the Great Spotted Woodpecker) does not drum. Their song is a very characteristic loud ringing laugh (click to play)

Audio credit: Olivier Grosselet, Xeno-canto

Scarlet Tiger Moth – garden wildlife

Last autumn I attended a fascinating nine week course at the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust on macro moths. I did hear the comment “what do you want to do a course on moths for?” a number of times but it was a fascinating evening class.

It has helped me appreciate the sheer diversity and number of moth species in my garden alone. Most importantly it has helped me understand what I need to do to make the garden a more friendly habitat for both the adult moths and their caterpillars. Of course many of these caterpillars are also food for the many birds we have nesting in the garden as well at this time of year.

The Scarlet Tiger (Callimorpha dominula) is a relatively large moth (23-27mm). It is typically a southern moth in the UK (south of the Wash), in the south west and rarely in the south east. It has unmistakable white and yellow spots and blotches on black on the forewing and a largely red hindwing which can just be seen in my photograph.

The adults fly in June and July by day and at night. Its preferred habitat is wetlands, including riverbanks and ditches, grassland, coastal habitats (not applicable here!) and gardens ¹.

According to wikipedia the caterpillars mainly feed on comfrey (Symphytum officinale), but also on a number of other plants including Urtica (nettles), Cynoglossum (borage), Fragaria (strawberries), Fraxinus (ash), Geranium, Lamium (dead-nettles), Lonicera (honeysuckle), Myosotis (forget-me-not), Populus (poplar), Prunus (cherry), Ranunculus (buttercup), Rubus (blackberries et al), Salix (willow) and Ulmus (elm) species). All of these are in plentiful supply here in the lanes and in the garden.

Further reading

¹ “Concise guide to the moths of Great Britain and Ireland” by Martin Townsend and Paul Waring (ISBN 978-1-4729-6583-7)

Scarlet Tiger Moths are in the family Arctiidae, subfamily Arctiinae which includes the tigers, ermines and footman.

It has been a rather blustery day…

It has been so windy this weekend that taking pictures for ‘Six on Saturday’ (and doing any gardening) has been a bit of a challenge. Luckily there has been surprisingly little damage. My other challenge has been limiting myself to just six as there are so many beautiful things emerging in the garden. Anyway here are my six for this week.

One: Anthericum liliago major (St Bernard’s Lily)

We saw this plant in the white garden at Bourton House Garden in the Cotswolds a couple of years ago and just had to have one. It is lovely and has established very well. Next year I think we will have a go at dividing it and spreading it further around the garden. If you get a chance to visit Bourton House Garden is excellent.

Two: Eleagnus commutata

This deciduous Eleagnus has been very successful growing in the long grass at the edge of the shrubbery. It is currently covered in sweet smelling yellow/cream flowers and fills the air with scent even on a windy day like today.

Three: Angelica archangelica

These plants have been a long term project. One of those spectacular, tall architectural plants that take a bit of time to grow. They are biennials and I originally sowed the seed early last year planting them out in the early autumn. This year they have come of age and the bees and insects absolutely love them. They are tall (nearly 6ft) and magestic plants that stand up well despite the strong winds we have had this weekend. I am pleased with them but I think my wife is less impressed!

Four: Robinia

This tree was originally grown from a small seedling. It took a little while to get going but now each year it is covered with masses of white, fragrant, pea-like flowers. It is something we always enjoy but beware it does have some seriously dangerous spikes.

Five: Dutch Iris ‘Red Ember’

As growers and former event florists I think we are both fans of dutch iris and typically grow the mixtures which are blue, white and yellow. This year we tried the variety ‘Red Ember’. It has a rather lovely exotic colour and I wouldn’t be surprised if we grow it again next year. What we do need to do I think is decide what other plants would complement it in the border at this time of year. Any views welcome.

Six: Greenfinches

Next for something completely different. Greenfinches (Carduellis chloris) have been in trouble in recent years and their numbers have declined across the UK due to disease. A recent decline in numbers has been linked to an outbreak of trichomonosis, a parasite-induced disease which prevents the birds from feeding properly.

Over the last couple of years we have heard the characteristic calls of greenfinches but they have remained high in the trees and rarely ventured closer into the garden. This year we seem to have a group of three (perhaps juveniles) that have been skipping around the shrubs in the garden together. Worth a place in the ‘six’ for this week I think.

The Six on Saturday meme is hosted by The Propagator. Click on the link to be inspired by what other plant lovers are enjoying this weekend.

First cuckoo of the year

Out walking the dog this lunchtime (30th April 2020) we heard our first cuckoo of the year (Cuculus canorus) across the Warwickshire fields.

The RSPB website highlights the rapid decline of this bird which is now considered a red list species but its sound is so evocative of early spring and summer. It has a slim hawk- like shape with sharply pointed wingtips. The adults typically arrive in April with the adults leaving again in July with the young leaving in September.

It is well known of course for its remarkable habit of laying eggs in the nests of other birds and subcontracting the care of eggs and young to small songbirds.

Cuckoo song:

Audio credit: David Farrow, Xeno-canto

Photo credit: Vedant Raju Kasambe / CC BY-SA (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)

Peacock Butterflies

The warm weather of the last few weeks has certainly brought out the first of the butterflies in the garden. The first to emerge are those that have over-wintered as adults. The Peacock butterfly is one of a select bunch of hardy British butterflies that can survive the cold in the United Kingdom hibernating as adults. Others include the Small Tortoiseshell, Comma, Red Admiral and Brimstone.

If you want these beautiful creatures to have a safe haven it is important that you don’t spend too much time clearing away and tidying up. These butterflies need a safe undisturbed place in a shed or wood pile. Don’t cut back the ivy and other climbers as this is also a good hibernating spot for other over-wintering butterflies and also moths.

Of course, these over-wintering insects are also food for our garden birds in the harsh winter months and we often see the tiny wrens darting in and out of the ivy collecting food and potentially making nests later.

Over the last few weeks I have had the pleasure of seeing Peacock, Brimstone and Orange Tip butterflies flying through the garden. Rather than over wintering as adults the Orange Tip butterflies over winter as a chrysalis emerging early in the spring to lay their eggs.

All of these butterflies have emerged early so that they can mate and lay their eggs on the fresh spring growth of the caterpillar food plants. The Peacock caterpillars feed on stinging nettles, the Orange Tips on Cuckooflower and garlic mustard and the Brimstones on Buckthorn and Alder Buckthorn. Once again don’t be too eager to clear the garden of all these wild plants if you want your garden to be rich in animal wildlife.

As a child I remember with great pleasure collecting Peacock caterpillars, feeding them up on nettles in a jam jar until they pupated and then waiting eagerly for the butterflies to emerge and fly away freely. The fascinating lifecycle of these creatures and their beauty continues to enthral me to this day.

What happens in the garden at night?

It has been some time since I set up the wildlife camera in the garden to see who is wandering around in the night. This is what we caught on camera in the last 7 days (ignoring the squirrels, pheasants, rabbits, dogs and gardeners of course). See what you can recognise!

Goldfinch – a colourful winter resident

A decade ago Goldfinches ( Carduelis carduelis ) would have been a very rare visitor to our garden here in Warwickshire. In recent years however these small birds with their almost tropical, bright coloured plumage seem to be regular visitors and seem to stay with us all winter long.

It is reported that in the 19th century Goldfinches were often kept as caged birds with many individuals being taken from the wild. Thankfully the sale of wild birds is now illegal and their numbers have recovered well with an estimated 1.2m breeding pairs across the UK.

We rarely see Goldfinches visit our bird table or feeders but they often sit around in groups in the taller trees. In winter we see them perched together soaking up the last rays of evening sunshine before the sun sets. It is rather nice that the collective noun for a group of Goldfinches is call a Charm.

P1030663 — Goldfinches in the garden soaking up the late afternoon January sunshine

Described as a “colourful bird of weedy, over grown rough ground” they feed mainly on thistle heads and teasles and other small seeds (I take no offence as to the indication this gives to the state of our garden – we garden with biodiversity in mind!),

They are very lively and sociable birds and we nearly always see them flitting around the garden in groups. Their twittering song is charming and easily recognisable:

Goldfinch song:

Audio credit: Ruud van Beusekom, Xeno-canto

I am not sure where in the garden they nest but we do see them flying in and out of some of the larger evergreen conifers. Goldfinches nest later in the year than many other garden birds so that there is a good supply of food (mainly regurgitated seeds) for their young. This late nesting may well be something worth considering when planning your hedge cutting regime for next year.

Goldfinch Nest (Photo credit: South Notts Ringing Group – real-time link)

Further reading

“The Crossley ID Guide – Britain and Ireland” by Richard Crossleyand Dominic Couzens (ISBN: 978-0-691-15194-6)