Nature Notes May

It was dry, warm and sunny by day for the majority of May but turned wet and stormy toward the end of the month.

SIGHTINGS
Birds:   Carrion Crows, Jackdaws, Magpies, Buzzards, Common Gulls, Black-headed Gulls, Heron, Tawny Owls, Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, Green/Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Wood Pigeons, Stock Doves, Collared Doves, Pheasant, Stonechats, Siskins, Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, Willow Warblers, Grey Wagtails, Goldcrests, Nuthatches, Treecreepers, Song Thrushes, Blackbirds, Robins, Wrens, Dunnocks, Coal/Blue/Great/Long-tailed Tits, Chaffinches, Bullfinches, Greenfinches.
Plants in flower:   Gorse, Flowering Currant, Primrose, Foxglove, Cut-leaved Geranium, Cotton Grass, Bog Asphodel.
Fungi:   Mitula Paludosa (Bog Beacon).
Mammals:   Grey Squirrels, Fox, Roe Deer, Pipistrelle Bats.
Butterflies/Moths:   Holly Blue, Orange Tip. Speckled Wood, Brimstone, Large White, Red Admiral, Peacock, Species of day flying Moths.
Insects:   Buff-tailed Bees, Bumble Bees, Wasps, Midges, Flies, Hover Flies, Ants, Leaf Cutters, Miner Bees.
Pond Life:   Pond Skaters, Common Newts, Whirlygig Beetles, Backswimmers.
Reptiles:   Common Lizards, Slow Worms.

Many young birds fledged during May, with Blue Tits, Great Tits  Long-tailed Tits, Blackbirds, Robins, Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Treecreepers, Nuthatches, Bullfinches all being seen.  Monitoring of nests has shown that the breeding rate has been very low this year, with only one or two young being successfully raised.  Siskins have been the species noted for producing a good brood, having been seen in family groups.
Pipistrelle Bats were recorded on most warm dry evenings.

SITE  MANAGEMENT
New rails were fitted to the fence posts along the southern edge of the dry heathland which completes this project.  Work was carried out to improve the path surface bordering this area.  The next work party is scheduled for Tuesday 27 June at 10am.  Details will be posted on this blog page nearer the time.

Nature Fact

It is easy to identify the sex of the Great Spotted Woodpecker.  The female has a black topped head whilst the adult male has a bright scarlet block of colour at the nape of his neck.  Young males can be identified by noting the scarlet colour, which begins on the very front of the head and works its way down to the nape over a period of time as they mature.  The female is larger than the male.