Monthly highlights

April 09 notes

04/04/09 20:36

We (Adam and I) lately arrived back from a week away (in warmer climes) on a second year field course. When we left the UK there were only a few plants flowering now there are many more. Daisies are in flower everywhere on the playing fields and verges by the paths. Butterbur is flowering in profusion by the river in large colonies of pyramidal spires poking out of the soil; in places accompanied by large, matt, rhubarb-like leaves. But the real treat is the mats of soft pink-whites and pure whites of Wood Anemones in our woodlands. What a terrific sight they are in the dappled shade of the woodland floor. These plants are meant to be a sign of ancient woodlands and are in Peterken’s list of ‘ancient woodland taxa’. But there are common enough in mature well-managed woodland anywhere in the region.

There is also a run of other new arrivals; Field Speedwell is up on the verges of the playing fields and Early Violets are flowering in the dappled shade of woodland glades and paths.

Not to be out done several species of trees are also flowering. Blackthorn and Wild and Bird Cherries are covered branch to tip with paper-thin white and pinkish white flowers. Cherry trees are the source of plumes of beautiful fragrance wafting along the edge of hedgerows and verges, especially in mornings and evenings. Very nice indeed. Goat Willow and Hazel have almost finished flowering and are coming into leaf. White Willow and Hawthorn are or soon will be flowering, providing much needed food resource for our early bees, hoverflies and the like.

We have saved the last bit of this blog for one of our favourite organisms - bees. The sky and flowers are full of Bumble Bees and Honey Bees at the moment seeking nectar and pollen from the early flowers. But my favourite bee of the moment is Anthophora plumipes or using its very appropriate common name the Hairy-footed Flower Bee. This is another of our solitary bees and it is widespread across the south of the UK, becoming much less common in the north (see map here). It is an early flier active early in spring to mid summer (Feb -June) and it uses its long proboscis to feed in long thin flowers such as Lungwort (and other flowers with a similar structure).

The species is one of the Mason Bees and it lives in holes in masonry (walls) and banks of bare soil where it creates a run of small chambers each carefully constructed foindividual eggs. It is a terrific little insect and its name doesn’t really do it justice. It should be called metallic ginger hairy footed flower bee. It is an easy bee to identify although initially you’ll think it is two species as it is very sexually dimorphic. The females are black and look like small melanistic Bumble Bees, but they have bright orange/ginger hairs on their back legs. The males look completely different and are reminiscent of small ginger Bumble Bees but they have noticeable white faces. What really distinguishes them is their jizz (a word used by birders to describe the overall way a bird looks and feels when you see it; in short a gut feeling as to what species it is in relation to how it looks and what it is doing). They just look different in flight and they fly like hoverflies, zipping about from stationary hovering to high speed movement with ease. They also have fantastic eyesight and are quick to move when you enter their line of vision. In fact you can often see them hovering directly in front of you checking you out! Keep an eye out for these little pleasers in April and May.

Tags: spring, spring flowers

March 09 notes

15/03/09 20:13

The last few days of warmth seem to have done the trick. Life is abundant in my local patch. I went off for a walk today with one purpose, to photograph an early flowering and interesting riparian plant. You’ll all know it, certainly in late summer when its large rhubarb-like leaves coat the banks of the local rivers. The plant in question is Butterbur. It is an early flowering species, sometimes as early as February (like last year) and it flowers before producing those huge leaves.

The banks of rivers are now dotted with small yellow flowers belonging to Lesser Celandine and Coltsfoot. The former has been flowering for a few weeks. I saw my first solitary flower on March 2nd, but it is much more evident now. I didn’t see any Coltsfoot last time we were out (Mar 13th) so it has arrived in the last few days. Both of these flowers are sun lovers and Lesser Celandine even tracks the sun and closes its leaves when the sky darkens.

The other good news is that the migrant warblers are returning from Africa. I have heard Chiffchaffs singing the last few weeks. We are now waiting for the others, Wilow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat and the like. In some areas in the West Midlands Chiffchaffs (and some other warblers) overwinter but not deep in the city.

The ponds of your local patches should be home to mating amphibians and many full of spawn from frogs, toads and newts. They will develop quickly into tadpoles as the weather warms. Amphibians have been in the news lately because of the collapse in their numbers. Ponds and lake in cities, towns and gardens are important habitats as rural dew ponds are being removed at alarming rates.

Tags: spring, Blog, flowers, spring flowers, Bees

February 09 notes

17/02/09 20:53

After the protracted cold spell that closed schools locally and brought a smile to the faces of 1000s of school children who had the opportunity for some term time sledging, spring appears to be on the way. Temperatures are on the up and wildlife is starting to become active and move around. The birds are singing; we heard our first Song Thrush singing two weeks ago in central-south Birmingham. Robins, Tits, Finches, Sparrows and Starlings are all making their voices heard, just ahead of breeding season. Keep an eye out for the flocks of Long-tailed Tits (see photograph), the local acrobats, jumping around the branches in your local trees, chattering excitedly. Queen bumblebees have been active throughout the month, seeking out food on early flowering bulbs (Crocus, Daffodils and Snowdrops) ahead of gorging themselves on Goat Willow catkins towards the end of the month, and looking for suitable nest sites to raise their broods for the coming year.

As nature becomes more and more active there are a number of things to look out for as we approach March. Keep an eye out for the clumps of flowering Snowdrops, early Daffodils and the slender yellow petals of Lesser Celandine (see photograph to the left), on of our early flowering native wild plants. Some of our overwintering birds are still flocking in local areas, such as Redwings, Fieldfares and there are some notable rarer species around, notably Black Redstarts, which are Amber listed birds and beautiful and ornate Firecrests, resplendent with their white eye stripes. Elsewhere on local Midland nature reserves such as Brandon Marsh you might catch a glimpse, or more likely hear, a Bittern before they leave to breed elsewhere - but move quickly they’ll be gone by early March.

Things will really start to hot up in March - keep an eye on these pages for updates of what to look out for. If you get the bug for recording what you see then post your records to us using the contact form. Another fantastic resource that site to keep an eye on is the Woodland Trust ‘Nature’s Calender’ site. Well worth a look.

Tags: spring, Birds, Bird song, flowers, catkins, Blog

January 09 notes

31/01/09 22:19

Surprisingly, even though it is the middle of winter, it is worth keeping an eye out for winter active bumblebees! Bumblebees have the remarkable ability to uncouple their wings and pump their flight muscles without moving their wings to warm up. This is a little like you or I shivering to keep warm, and means that Bumblebees can fly at times of the year when other species of bee are simply too cold. As a result they are particularly important pollinators in cold periods of the year when other species are not active.

In recent years in the UK, there have been an increasing number of reports of winter active Bumblebees, especially in warmer areas, such as on the coast, in the south of England, and in towns and cities where it is often warmer than the surrounding countryside due to the urban heat island effect. This increase in the numbers of winter active Bumblebees could be due to milder winters, or an increasing occurrence of planted winter flowering plants such as the Lily of the Valley Bush (Mahonia x media) that can supply nectar for the bees to feed on through winter. Scientists are interested in finding out more about this phenomenon and need your observations to do this. To find out more about how you can help, visit the Bees, Wasps & Ants Recording Society (BWARS) Winter Bumblebee survey web page.

You are most likely to see one of two species flying in the winter: the Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) (see adjacent picture by Karen Nichols BWARS) and the Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum). Details of how to identify these and other species of Bumblebee can be found here. To find out more about British Bumblebees and their conservation visit the Bumblebee Conservation Trust’s webpage.

Tags: Bees, Winter, queens, overwintering, Blog

December 08 notes

16/12/08 23:34

Keep an eye out for our visiting winter migrant birds. Although the summer migrants have left we have a few winter visitors that arrive every year from the continent and further north to overwinter in our milder oceanic climate. We have a large number of migrants that are either new arrivals or supplement our local populations during the winter. We also receive a good few species that are blown in on winter storms, stimulating discussion on web fora such as the Bird Forum and causing interest in local nature reserves in the region. We will identify

these visitors as and when they arrive. Two years ago we had flocks of Waxwings (Bombycilla garrulus) moving through the suburbs in southern Birmingham and Bromsgrove and they are now back in the north of the city at an Asda petrol station in Minsworth moving between there and Sutton Park (Dec 17 onwards). The birds are still around now (Jan 7th 09) and the picture to the left was captured by Neil Martin (copyrighted) at Garretts Green Road in Birmingham. A couple of weeks ago one of us (Emma) spotted a Lesser Redpoll (Carduelis cabaret) in Cannon Hill Park, only a couple of miles away from New Street Station in the city centre. It is surprising what can turn up - keep your eyes open.

If you are close to water bodies you will have seen the influx of water fowl such Tufted ducks (Aythya fuligula), Wigeon (Anas penelope), and Shovelers (Anas clypeata) to name only a few. If you live deep in the city keep an eye out for other species. You know winter is here when you see the influx of finches into the local parks and open spaces from the rural areas; listen out of the soft pan-pipe calls of Bullfinches (Pyrrhula pyrrhula) and the whispering flight chattering of Goldfinches (Carduelis carduelis). Perhaps our most celebrated winter visitors are the flocks of Redwings (Turdus iliacus) and Fieldfares (Turdus pilaris) that move around often in mixed flocks deep in the region’s urban areas. We love them!

Tags: Birds, Migrants, Blog