Day 16 - The Ringed Ouzel - 30 Days Wild

Day 16: Star Species

Ringed Ouzel (Turdus torquatus)

An interesting day today. We ventured up to the Brecon Beacons National Park to a wonderful Nature Reserve called Craig Cerrig Gleisiad.

We knew Ring Ouzel have been sighted there, it even says on the information board at the entrance of the reserve, but we've never ever seen one here...until today. 

The start of the walk with a information sign...

...Ring Ouzels!

We made our way to the reserve and were dwarfed by the overpowering steep crags. This fascinating landscape is the result of the Ice Age 20,000 years ago and over time the ice carved the 150m cliffs we see today. 

Despite the reserve's tough, mountainous setting it has an array of wildlife. Over 500 plants can be found here and 80 different birds including; Peregrine Falcons, Kestrels, Red Gouse and of course the Ring Ouzels. In addition to the plants and birds, you will find many species of fungi, insects, amphibian and reptile species. 

The step crags of Craig Cerrig Gleisiad

Green Tiger Beetle

Red Tailed Bumblebee (I think)

We explored deeper into the reserve and noticed a large bird perched on a cliff in the distance, we couldn't really work out what it was, so we checked the pic on the camera's screen and noticed another bird on the right of the pic...we couldn't believe it, a Ring Ouzel! We saw with our own eyes the Ring Ouzel was join by another one and attacked the bird on the left until they eventually chased it off. 

Here is the pic, you can see the large bird on the left (which is in fact a buzzard) and to the right you can see a small black bird (the Ringed Ouzel) with the distinctive white collar

After all the excitement and no other sighting of  the Ouzels we decided to call it a day. Walking back to the car we spotted a fox and watched as  Pen Y Fan disappeared behind hill fog. 

Pen Y Fan behind the clouds

Red Fox

Want to see Craig Cerrig Gleisiad in the snow?

Then check out my previous blog from a few years ago...

Day 15 - The Kingfisher - 30 Days Wild

Day 15: Star Species

Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)

Without doubt, one of my favourite bird is the kingfisher. I haven't seen many in my life and it was only last year I saw my first one. A spectacular, colourful little bird that is so charming to see and I get so excited when I get a glimpse of one.

Recently on Facebook I noticed there had been a few spotted in a lovely little place called 'Forest Farm' in Whitechurch, Cardiff. A great place and a haven to wildlife with some really good bird hides. We got comfortable in one of the hides and waited; whilst waiting we meet a lot of lovely people all eager to to get a glimpse of this beautiful bird.

A few other birds made an appearance, including a grey heron, green woodpecker and moorhens:

Grey Heron

Adult moorhen

Juvenile Moorhen

It must have been well over an hour before we got our reward, my partner Dan spotted it in the back of the pond. It was quite hard to see at first, with the orange breast blending into the reeds. But as soon as he started flying, with that striking blue, there was no way you could miss him.

The beautiful kingfisher at Forest Farm

Unfortunately, he was only around for about a minute and never returned when we were there. We didn't mind, we saw him and that was enough to make us smile!

I will definitely make Forest Farm one of my 'go to' birding places, it's great! Here are some of the other treats we saw:

Closeup of a Magpie from one of the hides

Great Tit

Not far from the education building we discovered this little patch of wild flowers; isn't beautiful? I would much rather see flowers like this than a well mowed lawn :)

Red tailed bumble bee collecting pollen from a cornflower.

Interesting Facts about Kingfishers:

• Kingfishers nest in burrows in the river bank.
• The kingfisher's feathers are not actually that colourful; the brilliant blue of the kingfisher’s back feathers are not the result of pigment, but the result of light striking specially modified layers of feather cells.
• In Victorian times, many kingfishers were shot and stuffed to put in glass cases, while their feathers were widely used to adorn hats.

Day 11 - The Goldfinch - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 11: Star Species

Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)

Today I went searching for the bee orchid on the River Tawe, Swansea; I have seen it there, around this time, for the last few years. Unfortunately I couldn't find one this year but I was treated to a few goldfinches who were enjoying snacking on a dandelion. 

Such a beautiful bird, I was so inspired by it's colours I just had to paint it when I got home.

My watercolour painting of a goldfinch

More about them - The Goldfinch is without doubt one of the most beautiful finches in the UK. Quite small, with strikingly colours of red, white and black on the head, golden brown body and bright yellow wing bars.

Male and female birds are similar except that the male's red face extends slightly behind the eye. Juveniles are generally a dull brown with darker streaking on the body, and lack the red, black and white markings on the head.

A Juvenile goldfinch

Goldfinch eating the seeds of a dandelion

The goldfinch is primarily a vegetarian, feeding on seeds, thistles and teasels; but they will also take small insects such as aphids. In the winter, they are regular garden visitors and enjoy niger seeds. They group together to form flocks of up to about 40 birds, occasionally more and a flock of Goldfinches is called a charm.

Interesting Facts:

• In Victorian Britain goldfinches were trapped in large numbers to be used as a cage bird; this  caused the population to crash.

• The collective name for goldfinches is called a charm - 'A charm of goldfinches' .

• Many UK goldfinches migrate as far south as Spain. 

Day 10 - The Mute Swan - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 10: Star Species

Mute Swan (Cygnus olor)

Today we popped down to one of our local man-made lakes in Swansea - Fendrod. I had a bag of swan and duck feed in the car so thought I would see what waterfowl was there. There was quite a selection of breeds; mallard, coots, sparrows, swallows and a lot of mute swans.

What magnificent birds there are. Unfortunately, this time I couldn't see any cygnets. Last year there were quite a few little ones, including a few hitching a lift on mum's back...

Cygnets on the back of mum last year on Fendrod Lake

More about them - Mute swans are a familiar and impressive sight in Britain, often found on ponds and rivers in parks and other urban areas.

The mute swan is one of Britain's largest and heaviest waterbirds. Mostly white with a long S-shaped neck, and an orange bill. They have a wingspan of up to 2.4 metres, which can be intimidating when the males are threatened by intruders and protect their territory. They strike an aggressive pose with wings arched over they back, before charging at them and chasing them off.

The population in the UK has increased recently, perhaps due to better protection of this species. Locally there were a regular pair of swans that breed every year on the banks of the canal. Unfortunately, something happened this year and the pair vacated the nest whilst there were eggs there. No one really knew what had happened and it's sad we will not see cygnets on the canal this year. Below are some pictures of them from last year...

Interesting Facts:

• Throughout history, the Swan has been featured in many Russian ballets and fairy tales including Swan Lake and The Ugly Duckling.
• By tradition, all mute swans belong to the monarch; the Queen has a prerogative over all swans in England and Wales. 
• Aristotle and Socrates believed that swans singing was heightened as death approaches, giving rise to the idea of the swan song.

Day 9 - The Rabbit - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 9: Star Species

Wild Rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)

This evening it finally stopped raining so we decided to stop by my local SSSi reserve; Crymlyn Burrows. I absolutely love this place, which is situated next to a very busy A road. Once you are there, amongst an array of unusual plants, mammals and birds, the traffic seems like miles away.

In the short time we were there we spotted: fox, green woodpeckers, long tailed tit, chaffinches and lots of rabbits. 

More about them - The rabbit are one of the UK's most commonest and most widespread mammals. They live in burrows, otherwise know as a warren. It can be found in a number of different habitats: grassland, cultivated land, woodland, farm land and coastal cliffs - infact anywhere it can breed and find food.

Wild rabbits live in large colonies and up to 200 individuals can be in one warren. They only live for approximately 18 months in the wild but can breed throughout the year. They can produce around 7 young each time and one  pair of rabbits can produce up to 1000 rabbits within a year.

Rabbits have many predators; stoat, fox, birds of prey and of course man. Their long ears are adapted for detecting nearby predators.

Skomer Island - I have been to Skomer Island in Pembrokeshire many times and the rabbits on the island always interest me. In the 13th Century rabbits were brought to the island where it was used as warren knowing the rabbits could not escape. Today, the burrows are shared between rabbits, puffins and the manx shearwater.

A pair of rabbits on Skomer Island

Interesting Facts:

• Rabbits are not native to Britain; the Normans brought them here in the 12th century from Spain and South-West France. They were mainly used for fur and meat, but many escaped into the wild, eventually becoming one of our Nations' most common mammals. 
• Rabbits re-swallow up to 80% of their faeces to use their food more efficiently (yuk!)

Day 8 - The Shieldbug - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 8: Star Species

Green Shield Bug (Palomena prasina)

This time every year my garden is full of these lovely bugs; they spent most of the time mating in bushes throughout the garden. I love watching them (that sounds odd, sorry) and taking pics of them, they are also fascinating creatures. 

More about them - Coming soon...

Shieldbug eggs

Interesting Facts:

• It is often called the Green Stink Bug - it produces a foul smelling liquid when in danger and only has a few natural enemies.
• They mate by contacting their rears together .
• It's hard to tell the difference between the males and females
• In Mexico they are eaten both live and cooked - their pungent odour gives a dish an aromatic flavour. (yuk!)

Day 7 - My artwork - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 7: A Blue Tit painting

Today is my sister's birthday; so I decided to paint her a picture of a blue tit. It is inspired by the fledglings in the garden and also the ones on Springwatch.

My artwork - I love painting and frequently get inspired from what I have seen in the natural world. My preferred medium is watercolour and pen; I love the way the colours blend into each other and get excited when happy mistakes happen.

Below are a few of my other pieces: 

Check out my Facebook page:
Sandra Evans: Art & Nature for more of my artwork

Day 6 - The Blue Tit - 30 Days Wild 2017

 

Day 4: Star Species

Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)

The last few days I have had a few Blue Tits visiting the garden with their three fledglings. It was another horrible cold day today, but managed to get a few snaps of the fledglings in my neighbours tree.

More about them - The Blue Tit is a colourful little bird; made up of a mix of blue, yellow, white and green. It was one of the most regular garden birds with numbers increasing in the UK. 98% of British gardens have reported having a Blue Tit in them, especially in winter.

They usually breed the third week of April and can lay anything from 7 to 13 eggs. The chicks hatch naked and blind and as they grow the parents have the hard task to feed them. Their main diet at this age is caterpillars and each chick can eat up to 100 caterpillars each day; if there's 10 chicks that's 1000 caterpillars a day!

When they ready to fledge it becomes am extrememly dangerous time for them. They will stay with the parents for a few weeks and learn how to find food and avoid predators quickly. Unfortunately starvation kills many young birds after fledging and the domestic cat is a major cause of mortality.

Fledgling in the tree (notice how it's cheeks are yellow, not white like the adult)

Interesting Facts:

• An excited blue tit can be recognised by erect, short crest on the nape.
• Hawks, sparrows, magpies and cats are predators of adult birds, while squirrels also attack chicks.

Day 5- World Environment Day - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 5: World Environment Day

Unfortunately no 'Star Species' today; the rain hasn't stopped all day. it's really cold and very windy too. Is it June? You could have fooled me!

I was stressing what to do for today's #30DaysWild so I discovered it was 'World Environment Day'. I haven't picked up a pencil or paintbrush for the last few months, so I took the plunge and created a quick sketch.

World Environment Day is one of the biggest annual events for positive environmental action, it takes place on the 5th June every year.  The theme this year was 'connecting people to nature'; this is to encourage people to get outdoors and appreciate nature's beauty and importance (very similar to what #30DaysWild are doing).

Day 4 - The Small Magpie - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 4: Star Species

Small Magpie (Anania hortulata)

Dicovered a small moth in the garden today, did a bit of research and discovered it is called the 'small magpie' moth. 

More about them - There are 2 magpie moths in the UK. The one I spotted is the 'small magpie' which is classed as a micro moth. It's common in Southern England and Wales, although it is the first time I have spotted one in my garden. A day flying moth that spends a lot of it's time in nettles and mint plants.

Interesting Facts:

• The small magpie moth gets its name from the black and white markings on the wings.
• The caterpillars remain hidden from predators by feeding inside a rolled up leaf.

Day 3 -The Spoonbill - 30 Days Wild 2017

Day 3: Star Species

Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)

For the last few weeks there have been numerous sightings of Spoonbills in my local Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust in Llanelli. Infact at one point there were 4 - making it a centre record. The Spoonbill is very uncommon and I was lucky to spot a few on my Day 3 of 30 Days Wild: making it my Star Species of the day!

More about them - This species is almost unmistakable to identify. Almost as big as a heron, these tall white birds have long black legs and an impressive long spatulate bill. The adults have a black bill with a yellow tips, whilst the juvenile has more of a pink coloured bill.

They feed in an elegant way, sweeping their bills back and fro in the water for food. Their diet consists of mainly aquatic insects, newts, frogs, tadpoles, crustaceans and small fish. Check out the below video of a juvenile and adult spoonbill searching for food (check out the colour of their bills.)

The spoonbill is a regular but scarce bird in the UK. They were once hunted so heavily that they were virtually wiped out of Britain.  Numbers are increasing though, in 2005, there were under 20 of them but in 2016, their numbers have grown to over 60. 

This is a juvenile spoonbill with a few black headed gulls & lapwings

Amazing spoon-like bills!

Interesting Facts:

• The latin name: Platalea means 'broad' referring to the shape of the bill. Leukos 'white' and erodias 'heron' - Broad white heron.
• In October 2014 - A rare sighting of the largest flock of Spoonbills ever seen in Britain was recorded. 47 birds were sighted at Brownsea Island Lagoon in Dorset.