31st December 2020

Our garden is really buzzing with birds this cold, final day of 2020. As I’ve noted before, we may be lucky to have winter migrants like Redwing, Fieldfare and Brambling turning up, that aren’t native but come here from colder parts of Northern Europe and Scandinavia, to access food supplies. However many of our native species, like Tits and Blackbirds won’t be the same individuals that we see in Summer. Several common native species like Tits and Blackbirds move further south. Records show that Blackbirds that spend Summer in the south of England may already be over-wintering in Iberia or Italy, while ours from the north will replace them. In Sheffield our garden birds may well have moved in from further north or from higher ground, like the Peak District. You may, like us, have noticed more Blackbirds turning over leaves looking for insects or ground-feeding lately . Our native populations are boosted by birds from Northern Europe , arriving over the North Sea- the males arriving often lack the bright yellow bills of our native Blackbird males- the bills tend to be mottled, brown or black. and have a less bright yellow eye-ring. We have several of these winter migrants in the garden in this cold spell. Conditions: Clear blue skies, cold with some snow and ice hanging on. Temperature: Max 2 Min -1C.

26th December 2020

Boxing Day or the Feast of St Stephen’s has some old traditions associated with it, some worth keeping, others decidedly not. The first St Stephen (there were two) was a missionary in Sweden in the 800’s and loved all animals. He was especially fond of horses, and there is still a tradition in Germany where horses are ridden round inside churches in his honour. But St Stephen’s Day is most closely associated with charity and support for the poor. It was on this day that Church Alms boxes, contributed to by congregations through the year, were opened and the contents distributed to those in need. Wealthy landowners would also give to the poor o this day, usually food left over from their excessive Christmas feasting. A much more disturbing tradition on this day was ‘The Hunting of the Wren’, where boys would catch and kill a Wren, tie it to a pole, decorated with Holly sprigs and ribbons, and sing their way round the houses for donations and gifts. Fortunately abandoned, there is a village in Suffolk that still echoes this tradition, in a less brutal way, in the ceremony of The Cutty Wren. The Wren is also known as the King of Birds, which derives from an imagined competition between all the birds, to find the one that could fly highest. The canny, tiny Wren hitched a ride on the back of the mighty Eagle and, as the Eagle reached its highest point, the rested Wren flew up another few inches. A version of other stories such as David and Goliath. Conditions: A grey day following a beautiful dawn. Unlike the beautiful cold, blue-skied Christmas Day. Temperature: Max 8 Min 5C.

21st December 2020.

Winter Solstice– the point at which our nights are longest (9 hours longer than at the Summer Solstice) and the pagan origin of many of our Christmas traditions. Originating in Scandinavian and Germanic cultures, Yule was celebrated over 12 days, the root of things like our twelve days of Christmas, Yule log and Christmas Wreaths. In a very old myth, the Summer Solstice marked when the Oak, in its year-long battle with the Holly, was the victor. Holly was winner over the Oak at the Winter Solstice. It was also traditionally the point when most stock-animals were slaughtered to save on winter fodder and from Neolithic times was the time when the availability of fresh meat was celebrated. It is linked to the ‘famine months’ when conditions were hardest and the availability of fresh protein most valued. It also coincided with the fermentation and maturing of many wines and beers which became significant in the celebrations, as they still are for many! Winter Solstice in the Northern Hemisphere is when the sun is directly overhead on the Tropic of Capricon and the North Pole is facing its furthest away from the sun though in fact the earliest sunset was actually a few days ago, but the dawn has been getting later until now. Although the days will now be getting longer, at first this is imperceptible. It is symbolic in that we know the daylight is increasing from now, and spring will arrive, and this bodes well for us and our gardens, countryside and wildlife, but we are still in very dark days. This year this feels even more symbolic to me, with Covid spreading and the impact of Vaccines ahead but yet to make a noticeable impact. Conditions: A very wet, dark day. Temperature: Max 13 Min 5 C.

Holly

18th December 2020

Herons, whether you are able to watch one in your local pond or wetland, or their unique, lazy wingbeats as they fly overhead, they are a great sight. These extraordinary birds appear in the fossil records of 60 million years ago and they have a prehistoric look about them. With a six foot wingspan they are surprisingly light-weight and agile. In fact they were much valued prey for Falconers because of the way they can swoop and turn, giving Falcons great ‘sport’ in pursuit. They were roasted in medieval times, and the fat of one caught at full moon was once thought to be a cure for Rheumatism. How some of these old ‘cures’ came about is bewildering to us, but they do give insights into the conditions that people suffered without our modern medicines. Protected now of course, they are in fact in decline, like so many species. Their nest-sites or Heronries also defy logic– untidy mats of twigs and branches, nests crowded together, high in the trees. Sometimes the colonies are huge- In Brede, Sussex, in 1866 there was colony of 400 nests. If disturbed they have the unpleasant if effective habit of regurgitating their last meal- a messy and unpleasant deterrent. However, if you get the chance to watch them, in a local countryside wetland or pond, or the lake in a local park, they are fascinating- so still and silent until they pounce with the speed of light to catch a frog or fish– unless it’s from your garden pond, when it is a mixed blessing! Conditions: Mild and wet. Temperature: Max 14 Min 10C.

13th December 2020

Preparing for the cold: larger birds start building extra fat reserves from autumn but smaller birds ike Blue Tits have to find other ways to adapt and survive colder weather and shorter days. Darkness lasts about 16 hours in the South and 18 hours in Shetland at mid-winter. Not only do small birds need more food to survive when its cold (they weigh 5% less at dawn than at dusk) but insects (Blue Tits need around 300 a day) are in shorter supply and there are less daylight hours to forage. This is why bird-feeders can help so much at this time of year. Small birds also build resilience by increasing their downy feathers for vital extra insulation.- House Sparrows, for example, have been found to increase their downy layer by 70% after their autumn moult. By fluffing their feathers up and trapping air- much like we do with puffer-jackets and the like- they add considerably to their insulation and ability to survive. Some birds, like Wrens, roost in densely packed groups to help hem get through very cold nights. Conditions: A dank and wet day again. Temperature: Max 10 Min 8C..

9th December 2020

Black-headed Gulls- Even when they do have dark heads their heads are chocolate brown rather than black, and this is only during the breeding season and summer months.The rest of the year Black-headed Gulls have a dark mark behind their eye (see photos). Very common now, these birds scarcely bred in the UK in the 19th Century but their population grew exponentially in the 20th Century, and their habitat shifted increasingly to inland waters to breed and fields, waste-tips etc to feed. Highly social, these birds cane be see and heard, in small or large flocks, with their argumentative and raucous behaviour, almost anywhere now, with populations swelling in winter due to inward migration from Europe and even Russia. Up until the 1940’s their eggs were sold commercially. For example, Leavenhall Market in London was selling 300,000 Black-headed Gulls eggs a year during the 1930’s. All year round this medium sized gull has red legs, red bills, and grey wings with black tips. Conditions: Cool, cloudy, some bright spells. Temperature: Max 6 Min 3C.

4th December 2020

Overwintering Swallows– as we know, Swallows should be well on their way to either sub-Saharan Africa, Arabia or India by now. They average 200 miles a day with a maximum speed of 35mph, flying mostly at low altitudes via the West of France, over the Pyrenees, and crossing either the Sahara or the West coast of Africa., feeding on insects all the way. For many years an occasional Swallow has been seen down South staying on into Winter but the mild winters and changes in climate have seen an unprecedented number staying on now. It is extremely unlikely any will survive a whole winter, needing as they do to eat hundreds of flying insects a day all through until Spring- another sad by-product of climate change affecting an already depleted population of one of our favourite harbingers of Spring. Conditions: Sleet and rain. Temperature: Max 3 Min 1C.