Nature Notes May

The weather during May was on the whole dry with strong winds. Less reported wildlife during this period compared with previous year.

SIGHTINGS
Birds: Jays, Magpies, Jackdaws, Carrion Crows, Black-headed Gulls, Buzzard, Kestrel, Green/Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Song/Mistle Thrushes, Blackbirds, Robins, Wrens, Nuthatches, Treecreeper, Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, Goldfinches, Greenfinches, Chaffinches, Bullfinches, Dunnocks, Siskins, Stonechats, Dartford Warblers, Tree Pipits, Cuckoo, Wood Pigeons, Long-tailed/Blue/ Coal/ Great Tits.
Plants in flower: Broom, Wild Geranium, Blackberries, Cotton Grass, Rhododendron.
Reptiles/Amphibians: Slow Worms, Common Lizards, Grass Snakes, Adder
Insects/Bugs/Spiders: Raft Spiders, Sawfly Caterpillars.
Dragonfly: Broad Bodied.
Damselfly: Small Red.
Mammals: Pipistrelle Bats, Grey Squirrels.
Butterflies: Speckled Wood, Small White.

A very quiet month with few noticeable insects, butterflies, dragonflies or damselflies.
The majority of birds have now produced young which have fledged, many seen flying and feeding together in family groups.
The Bog Myrtle bordering the boardwalk has produced a perfume from the leaves.
Sheets of webs covering bushes contain the Sawfly caterpillar, which is green with small yellow spots.
A Cuckoo was heard but not seen at the south east end of the boardwalk, within the woodland.

Nature Facts

During May, young Fox cubs started to learn through play and to eat solid foods. Female Bats looked for nursery sites, to produce young. Adult Frogs left the ponds. Early tadpoles began to metamorphose. The Spring litters of Grey Squirrels were weaned and left the litter drey to become independent. Female Roe Deer produce young during May/June.