Nature Fact

The voice of a Tawny Owl is a familiar hoot ‘hooo-hooo-hooo’ of the male that proclaims his territory and is used during courtship, September through to November, following on to nesting and producing young from as early as February.  The female also has a hoarse version of the hoot. Another commonly heard call is a sharp ‘kee-wick’ made by both male and female.  Occasionally calls can be heard during daylight.

Nature Notes August

August delivered weather similar to July, with periods of heavy rain, wind and occasional bright sunny days.

SIGHTINGS 
Birds: Carrion Crows, Jackdaws, Jays, Magpies, Buzzards, Sparrowhawk, Tawny Owl, Green/Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Stonechats, Wood/Feral Pigeons, Collared Doves, Nuthatches, Mistle/Song Thrushes, Robons, Blackbirds, Dunnocks, Wrens, Chaffinches, Goldfinches, Greenfinches, Bullfinches, Siskins, Willow Warbler, Coal/Blue/Great/Long-tailed Tits.
Mammals:   Grey Squirrels, Roe Deer.
Butterflies/Moths:   Peacock, Holly Blue, Large/Small White, Speckled Wood, Comma, Silver-studded Blue, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Ringlet. Species of day flying Moths.
Pond Life:   Pond Skaters, Whirlygig Beetles.
Insects:  Crane Flies, Species of Bees, Sheet Web/Wolf Spiders.
Reptiles:   Common Lizard.
Dragonfly/Damselfly:   Broad Bodied Chaser, Small Red.
Plants in Flower:   Bell Heather, Cross-leaved Heath, Cotton Grass, Common Sundew, Large White Pond Lilies, Rowan /Holly Trees in berry.
Fungi:   Birch Polypore, Common Yellow Russule.

Birds were seen feeding on natures bounty of seeds and berries.
A Sparrowhawk was frequently seen hunting for prey along the Hazel Drive boundary.
The wet warm weather encouraged Fungi to form towards the end of the month.

Nature Fact

Craneflies are members of the insect order of Diptera and are true flies with one pair of functional wings.  As in all Diptera, the hindwings are much reduced in size to form small knobbled projections, called halteres, which are sense organs that act like gyroscopes and enable the fly to keep its balance. Craneflies belong to a distinct family, the Tepulidae, and have long, thin, soft bodies, narrow wings and long spindly legs and are commonly known by the name ‘daddy long legs’.

Nature Notes July

July delivered a mixture of weather, with strong winds, heavy rainfall, thunder and lightning, cloud and sunshine.

SIGHTINGS 
Birds:   Carrion Crow, Magpies, Jays, Jackdaws, Buzzards, Black-headed Gulls, Herring Gulls, Tawny Owls, Sparrowhawk, Green/Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Wood Pigeons, Feral Pigeons, Collared Doves Heron, Chiff Chaff, Tree Creeper, Nuthatches, Robins, Blackbirds, Song Thrushes, Wrens, Dunnocks, Stonechats, Siskins, Greenfinches, Goldfinches, Chaffinches, Bullfinches, Coal/Blue/Great/Long-tailed Tits.
Mammals:   Pipistrelle Bats, Fox, Grey Squirrels.
Butterflies/Moths:  Holly Blue, Brimstone, Small/Large White, Peacocks, Red Admiral, Speckled Wood, Silver-studded Blue, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Ringlet, Large Skipper. Species of Day flying Moths.
Pond Life:   Pond Skaters, Back Swimmers, Whirligig Beetles, Stickleback.
Insects:   Bees, Hoverflies, Wasps, Velvet Ant, Sheet web Spider, Grasshoppers, Mining Bees.
Dragonfly/Damselfly:   Southern Hawker, Broad Bodied Chaser,   Beautiful Demoiselle, Small Red.
Reptiles:   Slow Worm, Common Lizard.
Plants in flower:   Bell Heather, Cross-leaved Heath, Cotton Grass, Bog Asphodel, Common Sundews, Rowan Tree berries, Holly berries.

Flocks of Siskins and Finches, after the breeding season, were seen on site.
Two Tawny Owls were heard communicating at dusk.

Nature Fact

The Siskin is one of our smallest finches and like most other members of that family, the male is brightly coloured, whereas the female is dull with a flecked breast.  Most finches are primarily seed eaters and the Siskin is no exception, with its staple diet being conifer seeds.  They also feed on Silver Birch seeds and on gardens feeders offering sunflower hearts, niger seeds and peanuts.  During the breeding season, Siskins are much more secretive and hides away high up in conifer trees.  Birds that start the season early in prime condition are likely to rear more youngsters than birds in less than peak condition.