nature notes

Not the best photo, but in the snowy conditions we had a Nuthatch visit our feeders for the first time. OH has heard one in the Oaks, yesterday it was busy taking sunflower hearts away and wedging them in the cracks in the trees, back today as well. Has had a brief peck at the nuts as well
 

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Beautiful. I've always loved nuthatches but despite having lots of big trees here, we don't get them. Maybe when the HPAI outbreak is over I'll have to clean out & refill the squirrel proof peanut feeder.

We do get tree creepers. They like our magnolia tree.
 
Tree creeper that is still on the garden wish list. It is just fascinating watching the Nuthatch take away the sunflower hearts and wedge in little cracks. was talking to a Dutch person yesterday and with the big freeze over there, they were stood on the coast just watching thousands of ducks, geese, swans leave heading towards UK plus Woodcocks and short eared Owls.
 
I would be thrilled to see nuthatches, treecreepers and water rails at this time of year. All we have are the house sparrows in the roof and the tree sparrows in the bushes. The goldfinches,siskins and tits all seem to be on holiday. There aren't even any Greylags in the fields opposite. Oh, forgot the starlings. They're still here.
 
Really good year down here for Siskin and Redpoll, we have big flocks moved this way for winter. Guess it wasn't a good Alder crop Northwards this year.
At least you get Phalaropes in spring though Hen-Gen. OH is hoping the bad weather will make some Waxwings move this way.
 
A few days ago my nature spot was a snail....in the tumble dryer! In my defence I hardly ever use it, and it lives in the adega (outhouse) which has a beaten earth floor and a spring under it so gets damp when it rains heavily. The drier is well up off the ground.

For the past month we have been finding dead salamanders, at the rate of 2-3 week. They are squashed on the road, and in other years we have blamed traffic although we only have a dozen vehicles a day. However, given we are in a severe lockdown we only get about 3 cars/tractors at the moment, I don't think it is that. We do have some raptors and owls, so perhaps they are the culprits, or there are cats on the roam, plus wild boar. But I thought the colouring/slime of a salamander was designed to put off furry predators. A vet friend suggested we scrape up the remains and send them to a research project which is investigating salamander deaths through a disease!

BYM - could nuthatch as a name be some sort of corruption of something to do with hiding nuts do you think? I don't think I have ever seen a nuthatch, but we do get treecreepers here, they seem partial to creeping up the apple tree.
 
Nuthatches eat in the main insects and seeds, but in autumn and winter will cache nuts and seeds as food. Assume the name came from people seeing them caching nuts in autumn.
That's a shame you are finding dead salamanders especially if it is due to a disease running riot amongst them.
 
On Saturday morning I saw a peregrine falcon above our garden, being chased off by crows. Why does nothing exciting appear during the RSPB birdwatch? Still great to see it though!
 
The crows round here seem to take it in turns to mob the raptors, they are so noisy they attract your attention, no matter what you are doing.

In amongst all the various glooms which surround us, I had my first taste of Spring today, patches of tiny wild crocus in bloom on our usual walk.
 
After weeks of relentless rain, we've had a couple of absolutely glorious Spring days here! Sun shining, everything bursting out (although some things that burst out have regretted their haste, as we had a heavy frost last night!). Today, I managed to get a first mowing done on part of the lawn. I only got a bit done though, because I somehow have injured my foot, and it's terribly painful. NO idea what happened to it, but it makes walking quite difficult.
Still though! Spring, and all that! :) Normally, I don't mind Winter, but this year, I have found it just misery. Not sure why. Maybe all the bad news and lockdown etc.
 
Having a great time with Duvel beer, listening to Tori Amos and reading about wool dogs. The second picture in this article is awesome! It seems wildly fanciful in places and then again quite credible. Lovely story.
https://www.hakaimagazine.com/features/the-dogs-that-grew-wool-and-the-people-who-love-them/?utm_source=pocket-newtab-global-en-GB
 
I forwarded the link to our daughter, who is doing an M.A. involving stories and myths around ancient cultures, and she has replied

‘ Amazing, I loved that. I have shared it with the other MA students, one of whom lives on Vancouver Island, is descended from some of those people and is making a traditional blanket as her final creative piece for the MA. I'll be very interested to hear what she has to say!”
 
Marigold said:
I forwarded the link to our daughter, who is doing an M.A. involving stories and myths around ancient cultures, and she has replied

‘ Amazing, I loved that. I have shared it with the other MA students, one of whom lives on Vancouver Island, is descended from some of those people and is making a traditional blanket as her final creative piece for the MA. I'll be very interested to hear what she has to say!”
Click to expand...

Wow! Very interested too!
 
I save Poppy’s hair when I brush her, and in Spring I stuff a fatball feeder cage with it and hang it up for the nesting birds. It always goes very fast, and it’s nice to think of all those little baby bluetits and house sparrows tucked up cosy in fleece from my own little ‘woolly dog!’
 
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