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Latest blogs
Blackbirds fighting to the death
Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:35 GMT
Knowing that birds fight over resources in winter, what I found yesterday wasn’t entirely a surprise. Going through the side gate of the garden I was visiting, I noticed clumps of black feathers scattered about and then came upon a rather grisly sight – two dead blackbirds ( Turdus merula ) laid side by side and they had obviously died fighting. They were lying close enough to be touching each other, both were bloodied and one had feathers in its beak and claws. One was certainly an adult male, shown by the black feathers and yellow beak, whilst the other may have been a female or a younger male that had not yet developed a yellow beak. It wasn’t very easy to tell as both birds were frozen solid and covered in frost. I tried to imagine what might have happened for both birds to end up dead and yet be lying side by side. Except for on their bodies, there was no blood to be seen. Did they die of exhaustion, did they both die of their injuries at the same time, or could they have somehow knocked each other unconscious and then died of cold? Without thawing them out and investigating more closely, which I was not inclined to do, there was no way to tell.
Read the rest of this blogFinding earthworm middens in the courtyard
Tue, 24 Jan 2012 12:39 GMT
It seemed that as soon as I mentioned the mild winter weather being good for watching the activities of worms, half the country turned white with frost, sending the worms deeper into the soil. Thankfully, it’s warmed up and the worms are active again. After reading some more about earthworm middens, I’ve been out looking for them. Not hard, as I spend much of my day outside, so there isn’t far to go. Sure enough, once you actually start looking, you can see that there are a great many leaves standing upright and half way into the soil, all pulled in by worms. This led me down to the end of the courtyard at home, where there is still a layer of fallen leaves that haven’t been cleared away. I got a rake out and started raking gently to see what was under the leaves. Sure enough, while most the leaves were easy to rake up, small mounds were left that didn’t want to shift. These mounds of old leaves were 6-10cm across, pretty much circular and fairly evenly spaced. Pulling at the bits of leaf, I found resistance, as they were partly embedded in the soil under the layer of gravel. Was it a worm midden? I carefully pulled away the top layer to see what was underneath. When the ‘cap’ came away, you could see the worm’s tunnel in the middle of it and see where the entrance was blocked up with partially composted leaves.
Read the rest of this blogWhat are the worms up to?
Fri, 13 Jan 2012 14:48 GMT
This mild winter is a good time for looking at the activity of earthworms . The soil is moist and our lawns are a mass of worm casts, a mix of worm excrement and soil. The number of small coiled piles of worm casts tell us that there is indeed a great deal going on under the surface and it’s interesting to think about just what is happening under there. What are they doing?
Read the rest of this blogWhat kind of mouse built this nest?
Tue, 30 Aug 2011 11:40 GMT
The garage was given a tidy up the other day. In a corner, tucked away against one wall, on top of a box was a neat, spherical mouse’s nest made of straw. The straw had come from a big bag of it standing in one corner, so wasn't brought in from outside. Whole nest with a lime for comparison.
Read the rest of this blogAn unusual pigeon
Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:27 GMT
Visiting a lady at her garden last week, she told me about an unusual pigeon that had been coming in to take advantage of the moistened dog food biscuits that she puts out and which attract many birds throughout the year. As it happened, the bird turned up while I was there - it even turned around to show me all its plumage, so I took some pictures. This handsome bird is a feral pigeon ( Columba livia ), showing partial albinism or leucism. I wonder where this bird came from? There are pigeons in the town centre, but this one was a distance from there. It was suggested that it might have been a racing pigeon that had become lost, but it has no rings on its legs. Maybe it had escaped from an aviary?
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