Wildlife Habitat

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[omar mullick]

underriver wildlife section test

[Juliet Simpson]

If you have any interesting sightings of plant, animal,bird, amphibians - any wildlife, please post here. We are having a bat-box making session in the barn at Romshed farm March 30th. Read about it in the Underriver Newsletter. All ages welcome.
Juliet

[Alan Dagnall]

If you a pond in your garden, it's worth going out after dark with a torch to see if you have any Great Crested Newts. They are much bigger than our more common two species of newt, a conspicuous cream stripe on the tail and the males have a pronounced crest that runs down the length of their back and tail. You will find that numbers will build up over the weeks until April/May. A word of warning - it is illegal to handle them so look but don't touch!

Alan

[Alan Dagnall]

We have toad spawn in one of our ponds for the first time. It differs from frog spawn in that the eggs are in long strings rather than clumps. Please be aware of any amphibian spawn if removing excess vegetation from your pond at this time of year. In fact, it's probably better to wait until the end of June now.

Alan

[Juliet Simpson]

The bat box making at Romshed Farm on March 30th was blessed with wonderful weather and 20 bat boxes were made. 3 are going to be put in the wood in the recreation ground.

[Juliet Simpson]

The larsen traps to catch magpies are being used now until June as they are territorial before nesting. They are condemned as cruel to magpies but the death is quick and every magpie which fails to breed saves hundreds of song bird eggs and fledglings. Our tidy land management makes safe nesting for these small birds difficult. Hedges need to be very thick and few like this exist. It's good HABITAT which preserves wildlife.If you want a larsen trap in your area ring 07787 531808.

[Audrey Bootle]

The new pond on the old coach Road is duly attracting fresh water shrimps, passing mallards and growing watercress. It has also successfully drained the swampy part of the field.

[Alan Dagnall]

First swallow of summer this afternoon hunting for insects over our wildlife pond!

[Alan Dagnall]

More summer visitors today, whitethroats singing in the lane, a hobby swooping over the fields and a wheatear sitting on the fence post of our neighbouring field.

[James King]

Male Lesser Whitethroat singing in paddock scrub along Rooks Hill, N of Absalom's Farm, Underriver on 28th April.

[Alan Dagnall]

First House Martins of the year appeared today.They usually arrive about a month after the Swallows but sadly, not in such big numbers as they used to when we moved to the village just over twenty years ago. Then, they nested in large numbers throughout the village but sadly their numbers have declined possibly through the use of insecticides in sub- Saharan Africa where they over winter, killing the insects on which they depend to make the return trip to Europe in the Spring.

[Juliet Simpson]

May 4th I heard a cuckoo! The first I've heard here for 3 years. The previous 51 years I heard them frequently from April 16th.

[Alan Dagnall]

11am. Peregrine Falcon circling over the house heading east over Absalom's.

[Alan Dagnall]

We've noticed that Greenfinches have been returning to our feeders in small numbers this year. About three years ago almost the entire local population was wiped out by the parasite Trichomoniasis - a really unpleased parasite that inhabits the hosts throat and crop to the point where birds can no longer feed. We often saw those afflicted on the feeders attempting to eat but then flicking the seeds away as they couldn't swallow them. I think that year we lost nearly thirty finches, mostly Greenfinches but also Goldfinches and Chaffinches. Cleaning your bird feeders on a regular basis seems to help stop the transmission of the disease and hopefully now we will see the Greenfinch population bouncing back.

[Juliet Simpson]

The cuckoo has now been heard by several people on several occasions SO Mr Payne they can't all be you unless you are hiding in a hedge and not going to work!
Also the turtle dove is frequently heard.

[MR ANDREW J MCFADYEN]

19th May - likely Peregrine sighted (flying over clearing at the top) on One Tree Hill , Cuckoo heard and also a lovely Garden Warbler.

[Alan Dagnall]

16.00 Red Kite flying north towards One Tree Hill.

[Alan Dagnall]

Hornets have appeared in the garden (and our bathroom!) as the weather warms up. Some years ago, an old wrens nest under the eaves of our porch was taken over by Hornets and it proceeded to grow to the size of a football until the Autumn. We found them incredibly docile and not at all aggressive like Wasps but be warned, they also fly at night unlike Wasps and Bees. We left the kitchen light on in the evening with the windows open and ended up with about twenty indoors that had to be gently encouraged to leave.

[Alan Dagnall]

Turtle Doves calling on Rooks Hill today and Barn Owl hunting across the road in the long grass opposite Forge View cottages this evening.

[Alan Dagnall]

Red Kite hunting over the freshly cut hay this afternoon. Watch out for more over the next few weeks.

[Alan Dagnall]

Four Ravens flying together over the fields between Underriver House and Great Budds this afternoon.