Birds and Wildlife in your garden

[Rob the Imp]

I love toads! They're just ace.

True, interesting little creatures. I never understand people who freak out upon seeing frogs and toads - what do they think it is going to do to them?

 

[sedgleyimp]

True, interesting little creatures. I never understand people who freak out upon seeing frogs and toads - what do they think it is going to do to them?

It's because they are all cursed people. Species doesn't actually exist

 

[Rob the Imp]

It's because they are all cursed people. Species doesn't actually exist

You learn something new every day!

 

[Bazzzer]

This sparrow hawk was lying dead on our driveway this morning. It wasn't there when I went out. I guess it bumped into a window.

 

[Sigiriya]

Found the creature below in our back garden last weekend. I think I know what it is but can anyone give a definite ID?

 

[Bazzzer]

It looks like a female great crested newt.

 

[Red Wimp]

If it’s a great crested newt they’re protected species, normally have to report if there is a colony

 

[Sigiriya]

Thanks Bazzzer

It looks like a female great crested newt.

 

[Sigiriya]

If it’s a great crested newt they’re protected species, normally have to report if there is a colony

Thanks Red Wimp. I've made a contact at the Wildlife Trust aware.

 

[NottyImp]

An overlap with the gardening thread: our bee count has gone up significantly since we got a lavender plant in a pot. They love it!

 

[bristolimp]

Not in the garden but just round the corner we disturbed a deer out for a walk. We seem to see more and more on them these days

 

[Rob the Imp]

Found quite a striking spider the other day. It had a bulbous white body with two jagged red lines along its length - turns out to be a common candy-striped spider. So common I've never seen one or even heard of it before!

 

[Rob the Imp]

Also spotted two jumping spiders on our shed today, not a type I've seen before. Both were a dark brown and camouflaged almost perfectly on the shed door. Need to find out what species they are.

 

[Rob the Imp]

This sparrow hawk was lying dead on our driveway this morning. It wasn't there when I went out. I guess it bumped into a window.

View attachment 41282

That's a shame, must be one of the biggest birds I've heard of doing that (flying into a window).

 

[Rob the Imp]

That's a shame, must be one of the biggest birds I've heard of doing that (flying into a window).

Saying that, we had a bizarre incident like that a few months ago. The border to one side of us is made up by the neighbour's house - it extends back a long way from the road to partway along our garden. No windows anywhere on the side facing us. I was outside and a pigeon flew from the opposite side and smack into the middle of this 3-storey wall as if would normally fly through there unrestricted, and it seemed to be going full pelt. Needless to say it broke its neck and I was quite perplexed. It also landed right where we had just built our raised bed the day before and having dug up some bones and teeth (which we had to have checked by the police to ensure they weren't human), I was starting to think we had invoked a curse or something!

 

[Rob the Imp]

More on-topic, I recently was told about a free app called Seek which helps identify plants and animals. You either use an existing photo on your phone, or use the camera via the app to look at something in real time and it can usually identify what it is. Might be of some help if you have any unknown plants or beasties in your garden.

 

[NottyImp]

Saying that, we had a bizarre incident like that a few months ago. The border to one side of us is made up by the neighbour's house - it extends back a long way from the road to partway along our garden. No windows anywhere on the side facing us. I was outside and a pigeon flew from the opposite side and smack into the midde of this 3-storey wall as if would normally fly through there unrestricted, and it seemed to be going full pelt. Needless to say it broke its neck and I was quite perplexed. It also landed right where we had just built our raised bed the day before and having dug up some bones and teeth (which we had to have checked by the police to ensure they weren't human), I was starting to think we had invoked a curse or something!

You need to be careful building a house on those ancient Navajo burial grounds, you know.

 

[stokeimp]

We had a very small butterfly in the garden yesterday, but haven't been able to ID it. Not there long enough to fetch the camera

 

[Rob the Imp]

You need to be careful building a house on those ancient Navajo burial grounds, you know.

It was like something out of a Blade film when it started bleeding all over the freshly-built wall we had just finished! We've put all the headdresses back now and said sorry.

 

[Red Wimp]

More on-topic, I recently was told about a free app called Seek which helps identify plants and animals. You either use an existing photo on your phone, or use the camera via the app to look at something in real time and it can usually identify what it is. Might be of some help if you have any unknown plants or beasties in your garden.

I plugged this a few pages ago. I use it all the time, sometimes a bit odd as uses American names so told me a wasp was a yellowjacket. I'm up to 222 different species observed without really trying