Swift Half update - 7th November 2010

• The lull before this week's storms (the first tomorrow morning, the second on thursday), with sunny, still skies today.


• Took the opportunity to sit in the garden hide and watch our jays, woodpeckers and robins.

Swift half news - 25th April 2010

• Went for a long drive at dawn this morning to give my little car's battery a boost and as soon as I turned her over, the heavens opened for the first time in about a month. We desperately need the rain - I have a feeling April 2010 may go down as the second dryest for a long time (I'm pretty sure April 2007 was the record-breaker - if I remember correctly, we didn't see a cloud for 4 weeks here in central England and the daytime temperature was always around 21c).


• Pear blossom almost over.


• Damson blossom over.


• 11 mason bees in my bee post (including two blue mason bees - male and female).


• Blackbird determined to nest in our honeysuckle, despite both Yala and Malu (our kittens) watching her every move - I'm afraid that nest is almost certainly doomed.


• Damson trees with good leaf growth now.


• I haven't mentioned it yet I don't think, but our robins abandoned their shed nest some time ago (the cats put them off I think) and also their front garden nest I think -sensible robins - they'll find somewhere safer to nest I'm sure.


• I will try to get the video from the swift space in the roof connected to the computer (rather than our portable tv) so any interested parties can watch our swifts 24 hours a day if they so wish. This may take a little time for this technophobe, but please watch this space and be patient!

Swift half news - 10th April 2010

• Damson blossom appears on our garden trees this week
• Marsh marigold blooms appear in pond
• Cuckoo bees find honeysuckle leaves this week
• Red Mason bees investigating shed and walls
• Tadpoles have hatched, but not very active
• Robins have deserted shed nest (thanks to cats probably) and now nesting in front garden
• Heron visiting most days to be mobbed by local crows
• Potatoes planted today in rear (rear) garden
• First mow of lawn today
• First bat of year seen today at 05:30am
• Cutlery finally lays an egg with a shell after two weeks of no-shelled eggs!
• After a week of warm, sunny weather, moth trap set up for first time this year, tonight.

Swift half news

• Robins still intent on nesting in shed, despite attention from our kittens.
• Two male woodpeckers and one female fighting in garden - interesting to note that the male woodpecker with the larger, brighter red flash on his nape always comes out on top in his fights with the male with the smaller, duller flash.
• Long-tailed tits nesting in neighbours garden.
• Palmate and Smooth newts active in pond.
• Frogspawn still frogspawn (no tadpoles yet).
• First pondskaters of year in pond.
• No activity in swift nesting space in roof, not even from sparrows / blue tits.
• Daffodils finally up -and visited by feather-footed flower bees.
• Kittens eating tawny mining bees and FFF bees in garden.
• No sign of local foxes presently.
• First butterfly (peacock) and tree buds appeared last week.