Weekend Wildlife Saturday 3rd July from the Meadow Hide

It’s the weekend again , and the only place to be and be seen in is the meadow hide . Today I’m joined by my wife Anne in the co-pilots seat. Aptly today is National Meadow day , time to reflect on the fact the U.K. has lost 70% of its wildflower meadow since the 1930’s. Anyway back to the wildlife.

It seems there is new life everywhere in the meadow . New flowers seem to appear every day. The warmer weather has also helped the insect populations explode which in turn provides food for our feathered friends. And they need all the food they can get with Blue tits , Great tits , Robins , Wrens and Chaffinch parents all struggling to keep up with their fledgling demands for food.

Speaking of the Chaffinch, we have witnessed just how adaptable wildlife can be. We have one female Chaffinch who we have called Peggy ( for obvious reasons). Peggy first came to my attention a few months ago. She had a badly infected leg . ( the leg actually looked rotten ) Things didn’t look to good for poor old Peggy and for a while she disappeared. However she’s back , and she now only has one leg. Not only has she survived, she looks in fab condition and it also looks like she has a family of her own , judging by the amount of insects she was catching.

Guest book

Mammals –, Brown Rat , Rabbit

Birds – Blue tit , Great tit , Chaffinch , Robin , Dunnock , Blackcap , Blackbird , Crow , Pigeon , Greater spotted woodpecker , Bullfinch , Jay , Wren , Pheasant , Chaffinch

Birds of prey – Buzzard , Red kite , Kestrel 

Others – Tree bumblebee , Speckled wood butterfly , , Peacock butterfly , Cloudy Yellow butterfly , Red-headed cardinal beetle , Heath Bumblebee