Red mason bees

The red mason bees are nesting in the 'bee hotel' in our back garden for the forth year running.

These tiny little solitary bees will make mud cells and deposit an egg with food for next year. See below a link for one of last years posts.

http://urbanwildlifejottings.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/red-mason-bees-nesting.html

I received another bee hotel last year as a present but it was not used by any bees. So this year I have used my bee mapping process (that I usually work with schools) to chose the best location for the bee hotel based on the bees requirements and connectivity with bee activity in and outside of our garden.

To place it in the chosen location I had to put the box on a post.

That was about a month ago and this year mason bees have started to visit - in fact one tube has been filled with mud cells and already been capped off. 

So I have been really pleased, first to have another active bee hotel and secondly because the mapping process (that I encourage schools to use) indicated a good site.

Whitethroat

The whitethroat is a medium sized warbler about the size of a great tit. The whitethroat arrives in the UK from Africa about mid-April and returns in October.

 This is the first time I have seen a whitethroat in my garden. I was doing some gardening when I was attached by the movement in one of the bushes.

I think its a male as it does appear to have a tinge of grey but it could be a female.

The whitethroat actively searched for insects flicking and darting in usual warbler movements and even dropping from one branch onto a lower one.

At one point the warbler dropped to the ground and searched in the undergrowth beneath the bushes.


Lovely looking bird.

The whitethroat population crashed by about 70% between the 1968 and 1969 breeding season due to drought in the whitethroat's wintering grounds in Western Sahel (an area of Savannah south of the Sahara).

Since then their numbers have slowly been recovering, but this is worrying when you consider the changes in global climate. Species that migrate to the UK may be affected but climate changes while in their wintering grounds impacting on the number of birds that migrate to the UK to breed.

And of course they may also be affected by changes in climate and weather while they are in the UK.

Update

The tadpoles have continued to develop and are bigger and more active. Hairy footed bees (both male and female) are visiting the pulmonaria plants and the flowering currant.


There are several buff tailed queen bumble bees visiting the garden, especially the flowering currant.


There are also numerous honey bees especially on the flowering herbs.

More frogs and nuptial pad

Over 25 frogs in the pond today, possibly more beneath the surface.

I intercepted this frog on the way to the pond and placed it in a container for a few minutes to have a closer look

This is a male. You can see the nuptial pads on the toe of the front leg. The frog uses these pads to help grip the female while mating.

More frogs

More frogs and more spawn

Common frogs return to the pond.

First frog appeared in the pond overnight yesterday morning.

Today a few more heads in the pond. The first frogs to arrive are usually from my garden, but others come over the following days and I have seen them come into our front garden and make their way around to the back garden where the pond is.

Two clumps of spawn also appeared overnight. They had only recently been laid as they had yet to swell up to full size. The jelly around the eggs absorbs water and the spawn clump more than doubles in size.

Chiffchaff enjoys overgrown garden

A visiting chiffchaff, probably a garden warbler, demonstrates why its important to leave your garden a little untidy during the winter.

This chiffchaff is seeking insects and other natural food in the garden including old overgrown flower pots.