Re: wildlife

Maybe that's why we have lots of bird varieties. I've never seen any predatory birds around here. I think they stick to the motorway verges and woodland areas just outside London and all the way down to the West Country.

Re: wildlife

The one thing we do get in the garden are Crows.... hundreds of them which makes it a bit difficult for the smaller birds to feed. We had quite a few bees last year and plenty of white butterflies and Red Admirals, what we do lack though are frogs (considering we have had a pond for three years)and hedgehogs (haven't seen one here so far).

There were bats flying around three years ago but they have disappeared.

Re: wildlife

Not a very good picture this was a woodpecker at the front of the house yesterday...




And a picture from my bedroom window of two foxes 2 years ago .They have a set in the woodland on the right of the picure and I saw them with cubs last year

Re: wildlife

Fantastic Meg. I don't think I have ever seen a Woodpecker, just heard them in the distance.

Re: wildlife

Forgot to add that I sometimes here a Screech Owl at night.

Re: wildlife

LD I see lots of Green Woodpecker sometimes two at a time on my lawn and occasionally a Spotted woodpecker .

The Greens call is wet-wet-wet and the country folk around here say 'they are calling down the rain'

Re: wildlife

I would love to see those Meg. As I said in my previous post, I think the Crows keep a lot of the other birds away.

Re: wildlife

What can be expected while the agriculture businesses are soaking OUR environment with poisons

Insecticides are destroying the source layer of the food chain. As a result creatures throughout the food chain are having their food taken away. Not just that but so many insecticides and herbicides are causing damage to creatures that encounter the poisons in their food causing genetic damage and in the case of some poisons very thin shells to wild birds eggs.

What is not so obvious is the effect on invertebrates in our water courses, rivers, and lakes not to mention directly harming fish both of which have their place in the food chain.

But the real nightmare is genetically modified crops.

Not so much a risk to people who eat the Frankenfood which is probably very low, but the terrible environment damage that the cultivation of many of the GMO crops causes.

Re: wildlife

Song birds have declined around here. There used to be lots of White-throat pairs & Yellow Hammers. Siskins & Bullfinches & Greenfinches, came to the garden every day, all year round, now it's rare if I see one. Still have Tits, but even those not in as many numbers. I'm talking 20 or so years here, the decline was gradual.

Re: wildlife

Meg, thank you for posting those photo's, looks like you live in paradise. What a lovely story about the blackbird, any chance you could send us a photo?