🐦⬛ Garden nature diary
March concluded with 34 bird species for the year seen in and from the garden. Hopefully, I’ll be able to add a few more this month, but I’m looking forward especially to spotting butterflies, as the weather forecast looks good.
April 1. Several small whites in the garden. Three common buzzards soaring low over the lane.
April 2. Mallard in flight, seen from the drive.
April 3. Comma, large white on the patio. Male chaffinch and greenfinch on the sunflower feeder.
April 4. Greenfinch on sunflower feeder.
April 5. Three common buzzards soaring low overhanging branches the garden. Goldfinch on the feeder.
April 6. Pheasant heard from the drive. Single greenfinch and goldfinch on the sunflower hearts feeder at the same time. Swallow in low flight east to west over Wordsworth. The 35th species of the year.
April 7. Pair of long-tailed tits on the feeding station. Single common buzzard soaring low in the immediate garden area.
April 8. Stock dove on the ground below the feeding station. Pair of goldfinches on the sunflower feeder.
April 9. Stock dove below the feeding station.
April 10. Although not seen, a vocal tawny owl in the immediate area (woodland beyond the road) this morning. Stock dove below the feeding station. Pair of long-tailed tits on the fat balls. Common frog in patio corner water feature.
April 11. First smooth newt of the year, in the main pond, also two common frogs. Single common frog in patio corner water feature. Stock dove on the lawn. Small tortoiseshell.
April 12. Smooth newt in main pond. Holly blue in the garden.
April 13. Five noisy jays in flight heading into the woodland beyond the land, with seven returning a few minutes later. Large white in garden.
April 14. Single stock dove beneath the feeding station.
April 15. We get a male blackbird in the garden most days, nice to see a female today.
April 16. Feathers on the lawn indicate a goldfinch killed by a sparrowhawk. Male house sparrow and coal tit on the feeding station.
April 17. Robin gathering food for young. The nest is in the neighbouring garden to the left. Pair of stock doves landed on the roof while I was in the garden, looking to land on the lawn. However, they saw me and flew away. Greenfinch and goldfinch on the sunflower hearts feeder at the same time.
April 18. Pair of goldfinches on the sunflower feeder. Stock dove feeding below the feeder and on the patio.
April 19. Pair of goldfinches on the seed feeder, regular visitors. Stock dove on the lawn.
April 20. Soaring raven over the garden, very high. First green woodpecker and starling of the year, both seen from the drive. That’s 37 species.
April 21. Stock dove in the garden.
April 22. Starling seen from the drive. Speckled wood in the garden. Pond skater on the main pond.
April 23. Doing my daily scoop of the main pond, had a juvenile smooth newt in the net. Stock dove in the garden. Coal tit on feeding station.
April 24. Chaffinch, goldfinch and greenfinch all on feeding station. Blackbird still singing on bungalow roof below ours at 8.54 p.m. before moving on to roost.
April 25. First hedgehog of the year, seen at dusk and alerted by my dog barking. Stock dove on lawn in the morning and the evening and a pair in the afternoon.
April 26. Stock dove on the lawn.
April 27. Several speckled wood and small whites in the garden. Four calling Canada geese over our home in very late dusk flight, heading east.
April 28. Two common frogs in the main pond. Pair of stock doves below the feeding station. Hedgehog in the garden.
April 30. Two song thrushes in flight low over garden below ours. 38th species of the year. Common frog and smooth newt in the main pond.