The beginning of December saw a change in the weather in South Shropshire with cool, damp and very misty conditions here at the start of the month. The mist at one point was so dense that I could not see the bottom of my garden – not ideal for wildlife watching!  The foggy conditions prevailed but it was pleasantly mild for the time of year and as we moved through the first week of December the numbers of birds in the garden increased even more.  Many different species were using the feeders and some were feeding on the dropped seeds on the ground.  Chaffinches here were in abu ..read more

The first week of September started with warm sunshine and there were still lots of large dragonflies around the wildlife pond.  The garden birds however, were now quieter now apart from the house martins which were feeding young in the nest cup outside the kitchen. Large numbers of house martins and swallows were feeding over the garden on the second of the month due to the large numbers of invertebrates that emerge from the meadow grass there.  The most common butterfly around the garden was still the green-veined white, but both comma and red admiral were also noted from time to ..read more

The Long Mynd, Shropshire August began with some very cool weather but the house martins, which are now using the garden regularly, were in and out of the nest cups on the wall and seemed to be investigating the possibility of using them, although it is rather late in the season.  Several swallows were also feeding around and over the garden, presumably the family from the nest in the front porch which was really successful this year with two good broods of six each time.  There were still very few butterflies around the garden with only the occasional green-veined white or red admir ..read more

Spotted Flycatcher with Small White Butterfly July is always a lovely month in my wildlife garden and this year was no different with spotted flycatchers nesting here this summer. I was able to watch these wonderful, charismatic little birds around the garden every day with one permanently on the nest and the second of the pair feeding, although I never witnessed a changeover.  All around the garden lots of wildflower species were in flower but meadow cranesbill in particular was still much in evidence, creating a huge swathe of blue in one area of the garden right outside my office windo ..read more

June began with the moorhens eggs hatching and the small black spidery legged youngsters on the pond banks and in the water. Sadly a heron was seen to take at least one of them but the rest were soon at home and finding plenty of food.  The weather was generally cooler than it had been – overcast with light rain most days.  Lots of young birds were now fledging around the garden including the siskins but young blue tits and great tits were seen in abundance. A single bank vole continued to feed under the feeder outside my office window. Around the garden there was little in flower b ..read more

The weather was rather dull and overcast at the start of the first week of the May here in South Shropshire, but thankfully some brighter sunny weather came along. However it was all change again on the 9th – overcast, cool and windy with some rain forecast although this will be welcome as the garden is very dry indeed. Siskins were still with us and blackcap and chiffchaff were both singing well around the garden and from the woodland next door, plus a whitethroat sang daily from the field maple at the end of the garden. A song thrush too was singing every day and a distant mistle thrush was ..read more

The First Swallow The first week of April was wonderfully bright and sunny but very cold here in South Shropshire. Overnight the snow that was covering the Long Mynd, the Shropshire Hill that I can see from my office window, had melted, and everything felt more spring-like with primroses beautifully in flower in the garden, and cowslips well on the way in spite of the cool temperatures. Amongst other birds a single long-tailed tit was seen in the garden – the first of these sweet little characters for many weeks – but there was still no chiffchaff singing. However a variety of finches were usi ..read more

Singing Siskin March began with calmer, warmer weather than we had recently experienced, which was very welcome after the fierce storms of previous month and the weather was quite spring like on a few days at the beginning of the month!  The flowering currant bush in the garden at the back of the house was well in covered with scented pink flowers but initially there were no bumblebees visiting.  Several siskins were now feeding around the garden with two bright yellow males singing beautifully. There was still no sign of any frogspawn hatching in the small pond in spite of the sprin ..read more

More Snow on the Mynd At the start of the month the early catkins were still in flower all around us – we are fortunate to have formerly coppiced hazel woodland all around the garden and at this time of year the garden is full of these lovely ‘lambs tails’ as my country born and bred mother called them!  On the 2nd of the month there were two wild mallard on the Big Pond but they didn’t hang around.  Having them breeding with us creates huge challenges for us as they completely dominate the garden and there is no way for the ducklings to get out except onto the adjacent road.  T ..read more

Misty Shropshire Weather As is always the case at the beginning of a new year, the weather here in Shropshire during January was initially very cold!  However it was also very clear and dry and there was no sign of snow, except a little on the Long Mynd. Temperatures dropped even more overnight of the 3rd/4th and the following morning saw large numbers of tits and chaffinches feeding in the garden, but there was no sign of any bramblings, even though elsewhere in the county large flocks of these beautiful finches were being reported. A lone fieldfare was still with us in the apple orchard ..read more