Today's suggestions for finding nature in your garden

Good morning,
Please do see the previous post where I have mentioned things that local folk found and the photographs that I received. All great to see.
It doesn't matter how much or how little knowledge you have of identifying creatures to be involved in this and I know so many children that love hunting for bugs, beetles, butterflies etc. If you do get a photo, I am very happy to receive it and make suggestions, if not, send me a description: size, colours, where it was. e.g. Beetle type insect larger than a ladybird that was on the soil, shiny black with ridges on its back. Although there are 2350 beetle species in Hertfordshire alone, just that little bit of info would inform me that it was probably a ground beetle and that it could be a Black clock beetle. Give it a go.

Today is about birds. We all know what a robin looks like, a wood pigeon and a crow or jackdaw. Some of you know the difference between a great tit and a blue tit. So what would be good today would be to get outside for half an hour at a time, perhaps morning and afternoon and just look around for birds. If you don't know what it is, a phone photo may help or just a description of colour, or, of course, just enjoy seeing them and counting different types. Almost all gardens, with some careful watching will give up at least 10 species and don't forget to look in the sky for birds of prey and other species flying over.
Here are a few you may find:

Goldfinch: note red/white/black face and bright gold/yellow on wing when it flies

Chaffinch: grey and pink head, white on wing when it flies

Collared dove: usually in pairs. Fawn colour with black ring on neck

Jackdaw: bright blue eye, all black and noisy. Usually in groups

Long tailed tit: pink/black white with long tail. Usually in pairs or more. Small

Red kite: large, reddy brown and look for the special forked tail. Maybe flying high over your garden, often in a circling pattern and being chased by crows

Goldcrest: Very small and often found in conifer trees and hedges. Usually in pairs at this time of the year

Great tit: yellow tummy with black stripe down the middle

Chiffchaff: small and green. Probably hear it rather than see it. Has a distinct call zip zap zip zap or chiff chaff chiff chaff repeated for a minute or so.

Wood pigeon. Large, grey and with white bar on the wings. Coo Coo call

Blue tit. yellow and blue, no black stripe on tummy

So now, you can be outside, counting birds and seeing if you can identify them, whilst also looking for bees, flies, ladybirds, and butterflies. Plenty to keep you outside on what is going to be another fantastic day. Finally, if you have any yogurt type pots, please keep them for several activities in the future, we'll be making beetle traps. Also, if you have an old piece of carpet, an old doormat or just a brick or stone, put it somewhere in your garden on soil or grass. Do remember, not on your prize lawn, it will kill the grass underneath very quickly. This we shall come back to on another day. 

Remember to send me notes and photos to jforgham"at"hotmail.com or just leave a comment underneath in the comments box. Have a wonderful day and looking forward to hearing about your discoveries. keep sharing these ideas. Take care, Jono.

Yesterday's results

Good Day to all,
Yesterday I was even busier, with 77 people looking at my suggestion, great stuff, keep sharing with folk on Facebook if you like and do remember to send me anything you find, even if it is not part of the daily idea.
I received several messages and photographs from people so thought I would share these first and then add today's suggestion in a separate post.
I received a photo of a comma butterfly from Renee that landed in her garden.

Comma butterfly in Bishop's Stortford

Fellow nature watcher and first class photographer Richard sent me loads from his garden. Here are just a few of his excellent captures using a macro lens for close up work.

7 spot ladybird

Dark edged bee-fly

Click on this Gwynne's mining bee to admire the detail captured here

Another Stortford resident, Graeme sent in a selection from his small garden. Here are a selection.

Green shieldbug

Red Kite over Thorley

A spider species yet to be identified. A job for later this morning

Another Dark edged bee-fly

I had other reports of butterflies, with a Brimstone seen in Bury Green, a flyby orange species, either Comma or Small tortoiseshell in Ware and a Small tortoiseshell over my garden at about 2pm
Thank you for sending these in. Please keep them coming and we will be able to build up a good back catalogue of regular creatures found in gardens so others can use the photos to help identify what they have found.
Me? I got a reasonable selection from my very small garden: 25 yards long 5 yards wide.

Goldfinch

Buff tailed bumble bee

First hoverfly of the year, Eristalis pertinax

March Moth

Thanks for sending these in.

Nature Activity Day 2

Good morning all,
Thank you for all the kind comments yesterday and glad to note that 44 people had a look at yesterday's activity suggestion. If you found any bees, well done. There were a few in my garden and I suspect more today with temperatures forecast to top 11C by early afternoon. Whilst the weather remains perfect for being outside I shall carry on with things to do in the garden. When it turns wet I have loads of indoor ideas, too.
I had an email and photo sent to me by Jen and her son. They found this creature and managed a great photo making identification easy.

Jen and her son found this Dark edged bee fly

These will be in many gardens today, look for the long, sharp proboscis which is just a glorified straw for drinking nectar. This fly lays its eggs by flicking them, whilst in flight near or into a bee nest, usually the nest of an Oak mining bee. The larvae hatch and crawl into the nest to feed upon the larvae of the bee. All clever stuff.
Here's a photo I got of one last year in our local Community Wood.

Today, I think, as well as searching for bee flies and other bees and flies it is possible that early butterflies will be flying. Sometime after noon will be best, up until 3.30pm when the temperature starts to drop.
So, today, how about getting into the garden and keeping an eye out for any butterflies. The 4 most likely species will be these.

Small tortoiseshell
Comma
Peacock
Brimstone.

Brimstone the only yellow or green butterfly you'll see

Comma, note the ragged edge to the wings

Peacock, note the large "eye spots" one on each wing

Small tortoiseshell, look for the blue markings on the edge of the hind wing

A good tip for getting a butterfly photo is to move slowly towards it as it sits on a leaf, flower or fence, usually in full sun. Make sure you do not cast a shadow over it as it will fly off immediately. Therefore, check where the sun is and where your shadow is before you stalk it. Not always easy but worth remembering

If no butterflies appear there is bound to be something and I will be very pleased to see your photos or, something for children and adults before it gets warm, a drawing, painting or felt tip picture of one of these butterflies. Just print off a photo and give it a go. Phone photo to jforgham"at"hotmail.com
Best of luck and share the link.
There is another nature suggestion in today's Bishop's Stortford Independent if you are shopping and see a copy. Out today and, no, I have not been paid to write that lol. I don't get paid for the article either!!

Activities for children in the garden: Day 1

Morning all,
Now that we are all at home and facing tough times indoors I thought I would start up a series of suggestions that folk may wish to become involved in doing outside in their garden. There is plenty about already as we are experiencing cold but beautifully sunny days. Consequently the insects are appearing. There are several bees that you may find. Look on any flowering plants for large buzzing bumble bee. This will be the buff tailed bumble bee queen who will be taking nectar and looking for a nest site.
Also at this time is the much smaller Gwynne's mining bee. You may find this on any flower but particularly primrose. Photos below. Look for its yellow hairy legs
Today's challenge.
In 45 minutes in your garden how many bees can you count? Can you see the different types. How many of each?
Try looking for flies as well. Maybe a blue one will be sitting on a leaf or a fence. This might be a Bluebottle. Wonder what else you may discover? spiders on wooden fences, perhaps. Get a photo
Why not try to get a photo on a phone if you don't have a camera? Post them to me at jforgham"at"hotmail.com I have written it this way to avoid web scrapers sending me piles of junk but I am sure you know what to do. I look forward to receiving them and send me any messages on here, too. Would be really happy to see your suggestions for other ideas. I'll try to get one out each day. Make the most of this beautiful day, forecast is for no rain for the rest of this week.
Good luck.

Bluebottle

Buff tailed bumble bee

Gwynne's Mining bee

A Day in North Norfolk

Leaving home around 6.30 meant, following an en route coffee break, I was at Lady Anne's drive in Holkham by 9 am. Plenty of brent geese, wigeon and lapwings along with Egyptian geese but no hoped for Rough Legged buzzard, just distant red kite and common buzzard to I headed off to Cley, checking waters around Wells and getting mallards, teal and little egrets.
I arrived at Cley beach and chatted to a birder I knew. He had been present since first light and had seen very little. This didn't inspire me to wander along the shingle to the North viewing screens so I just checked the sea; just gulls and cormorants. A quick scan over the Eye field revealed plenty of golden plover and more peewitting lapwings. Off to the NWT Centre to check for new books and another coffee before a short drive to Kelling Water meadows.
I wandered down a somewhat muddy path. Plenty of finches in the hedgerow, skylarks overhead and red legged partridge on the ploughed fields. On the water: gadwall, wigeon, Egyptian geese, black headed and herring gulls whilst a reed bunting popped up on some bush, but no hoped for stonechat. I walked as far as Muckleborough Hill before retracing my steps back to the village reading rooms where I had parked. A wren called and long tailed tits, blue tits and great tits got on to the day list.

Drake wigeon, Holkham

Female kestrel, Cley beach

Long tailed tit, Kelling Water Meadows

Red legged partridge, Kelling Water Meadows

Goldfinch, Kelling Water Meadows

From Kelling I drove to Salthouse beach but more of the same on the fields so I continued to Stiffkey and Warham Greens near High Sand Creel campsite. Out on the marsh were big numbers of brent geese, redshank, curlew and a pair of male Marsh harriers. Not too much so I decided against the walk to the Gibbert roundabout and headed off to buy some lunch. Once purchased, I ate it in the car at Brancaster harbour where more of the same was recorded with a black tailed godwit getting on to the list.

Marsh harrier, male, Warham Greens

same bird

From the harbour I thought a few hours at Titchwell would be good. The temp was pushing double figures and the sun was bright; good photography light. I checked the book of the days sightings. This confirmed that it was not a premium bird day for the area, as expected in early March but still worth a good walk to the beach and back and time in the hides. Following the rain, the FreshMarsh was full so no mud for waders, these were all on the Volunteer marsh. Numerous black headed gulls and in with them, several breeding plumaged Mediterranean gulls showing their jet black hood and bright blood red bill. Always good to see. I arrived at the beach and scanned the water with my telescope. One goldeneye flying into the Wash was my only reward but further along the beach plenty of waders at the surf's edge: sanderling, turnstone, knot, dunlin, black tailed godwit, oystercatcher and redshank. I then spent time in the Parrinder Hide but no sign of the reported water pipit before I, once again, trudged back to the car in rapidly fading light.

Distant Stonechat, male, Titchwell

Redshank, Titchwell

Oystercatcher, Titchwell

Drake teal, Titchwell

Redshank reflection, Titchwell

Little egret, Titchwell

2nd Little egret, Titchwell

Curlew, Titchwell

Black headed gull (with brown head!) and Mediterranean Gull, Titchwell

Avocets, Titchwell

Shelduck, Titchwell

Last stop was at Thornham Harbour. Upon arrival, usual waders in the creeks and a party of about a dozen twite flew over and settled in the sueda bushes, not to be seen again for a photo.
The weather had been a real change, probably the best day of the year, so far with sharp light, a very gentle breeze and temps up to 10C. Well worth the early start and really good to be back here. Like all birders, the next 8 weeks will offer plenty of opportunities in this area for some possible rare migrants coming off the North Sea, especially if the weather conditions are perfect for blowing birds to the shelter of the coast. I shall be returning once a fortnight over the next month or two and hopefully latch on to something a little more unusual than today's list

Curlew, Thornham Harbour

Species list

1. cormorant
2. little egret
3. grey heron
4. mute swan
5. greylag goose
6. pink footed goose
7. canada goose
8. brent goose
9. shelduck
10. egyptian goose
11. mallard
12. gadwall
13. shoveler
14. wigeon
15. teal
16. tufted duck
17. goldeneye
18. red kite
19. marsh harrier
20. common buzzard
21. kestrel
22. red legged partridge
23. pheasant
24. water rail (heard)
25.  moorhen
26. coot
27. oystercatcher
28. avocet
29. grey plover
30. golden plover
31. lapwing
32. knot
33. sanderling
34. turnstone
35. dunlin
36. redshank
37. black tailed godwit
38. curlew
39. black headed gull
40. Mediterranean gull
41. herring gull
42. lesser black backed gull
43. wood pigeon
44. collared dove
45. kingfisher
46. green woodpewcker
47. skylark
48. cetti's warbler
49. meadow pipit
50. pied wagtail
51. wren
52. dunnock
53. robin
54. stonechat
55. song thrush
56. mistle thrush
57. blackbird
58. goldcrest
59. great tit
60. blue tit
61. long tailed tit
62. bearded reedling (heard)
63. treecreeper
64. magpie
65. jackdaw
66. carrion crow
67. rook
68. starling
69. house sparrow
70. chaffinch
71. linnet
72. twite
73. goldfinch
74. greenfinch
75. yellowhammer
76. reed bunting