GARDEN WILDLIFE

The recent warm spell has seen a variety of wildlife using the Firs Chase garden in recent days. Two male blackcaps took it in turns to have a bath in the half-barrel water feature in the back garden on Wednesday 8th. Bird baths and drinking bowls have been getting regularly topped off for the birds to use.

The resident garden song thrush was having some time-out for a sunbathe. It seems to spend a lot of time in the garden being chased by the male blackbirds.

At least three male blackbirds are trying to get along together in the garden with occasional squabbles breaking out.
Other visitors to the garden feeders have included a regular pair of greenfinches, a brief visit by a pair of goldfinches, chaffinch pair, a couple of pairs of house sparrows, as well as blue tits, great tits, robins and dunnocks.
Several common buzzards have flown over the garden with one on 2nd,the 5th, two on the 6th, one on the 9th and two on the 10th. A goldcrest was singing in the garden on 7th, six mute swans flew over on 8th and a little egret flew over the garden on 10th. Mediterranean gulls can be heard calling most days towards the Hard, as can small flocks of migrating curlews heading north.

Amongst the regular red squirrel sightings in the Firs Chase garden was this one of the female snoozing in the middle of the day as it rested along a bough of the cedar tree on a hot Wednesday 8th. It had earlier been seen lying flat along the bough with its eyes half-closed.

The red squirrel scampering back up the tree after having a drink and a feed.

Four slow-worms had to be carefully moved from the garden compost pile before the pile got its annual turn. One of the slow-worms was seen back on top of the new pile within a couple of days.

The first orange-tip butterfly was seen in the garden on Tuesday 7th, here it blends in well with the daisies. The first speckled wood was also seen on Tuesday as were comma, small white and 3 peacocks. Two holly blues were seen in the garden on the Wednesday.

The recent clear night skies have not been very productive for moths in the Firs Chase garden with barely double figure counts on some nights. The most notable moth so far this spring was this dotted chestnut, the first garden record but not unexpected since its quick spread across Essex in recent years. The first Island record was in 2011 at Cudmore Grove.