Habitats.

Part two the garden pond.

Garden ponds have become life savers for Britain's frogs,newts and toads in the past thirty years. This is because so many of farm and village ponds have been filled in or polluted. Garden ponds will also benefit gardeners because the amphibians they attract will eat slugs, snails and insects. Ponds will attract bathing birds like blackbirds, which in turn may feed on tadpoles. Grass snakes may also be seen in the pond. Foxes may also be seen drinking from our garden ponds. If a pond has smooth sides then hedgehogs may fall into them but can`t climb out, this may cause them to drown. But by putting a little bit of wire mesh, hanging in the water on one corner will enable them to escape. Whether the pond is made from an old bucket or sink it will soon colonised by insects such as pond skater or lesser water boatman. May, damsel and dragon flies will also be seen flying over the pond hoping to catch flies. A few jars of natural pond water tipped into the pond will add plankton, water snails and even water beetles. Frogs and toad will eventually come across the pond, toads generally prefer deeper water to toads, so depending on the size of the pond it will determine whether you will attract toads or frogs. The frogs or toads will leave the pond,  after about two or three years they will will return to the same pond to breed. Newts to will find their own way to the pond. Long grass by the ponds edge will provide cover for the froglets when they leave the pond in June or July. Tadpoles normally prefer to be in a shallow area of the pond where it will be warmer. The resident fish will eat the tadpoles, sometimes quite a few will be taken by fish.  A rockery is a good idea for frogs and toads to hide in during the day. If there is plenty of undergrowth bank voles or wood mice may move in.

The ranidae family.(frogs)

Part one the common frog.

A common frog.

Open woods,ponds,shady habitats and lush pastures are typical places where you might find common frogs. They don`t like to be to far from water. But they are now becoming more common in our gardens that have ponds. They are found throughout most of Britain. Frogs eat small insects and slugs and snails, they have got long sticky tongues that shoot out to enable them to catch their prey. Because of this they are a welcome visitor to anyone`s garden. They like to hunt at night when it is cooler, during the day they may be seen hiding in tall grass. The common frog lives in damp places on land for most of the year. They are well camouflaged so they normally blend in well. They have a dark patch behind their eye which is distinctive, But their body colour varies from dark-greenish to grey or even sometimes chestnut-yellow with  Their skin being moist. On rare occasions you may evan see an albino common frog. They have a rounded snout with large black pupils that are flecked with gold and brown, their nostrils and eyes are positioned on the top of their head . Their eyes have  transparent inner eye-lids to protect them when they are under water. The female is about three inches in length with the male being slightly smaller. Adult common frogs have long hind legs with shorter fore legs. Their hind legs have webbed toes whereas their fore legs don`t. They use their hind legs to enable them to leap or hop, they do not crawl like toads.  They hibernate from November through to early March depending on the climate, they hibernate in a hiberaculum in a sheltered place on land or at the bottom of ponds. Frogs have lungs so when on land they use these but when under water they breathe through their skin. After hibernation they emerge to migrate to their breeding ponds. Common frogs will head to the same breeding ponds every year, it`s usually the pond that they were born in. The males arrive first, then the females look for a mate to breed with. The males will hold their own territory and carry on croaking to try and attract a female. When they mate they the position they take is called the ampelexus position. This can last for several days, The male sits on the top of the females back and grasps around her middle section, This normally happens in the water but can occasionally be on land. The female then releases her eggs, upto two thousand eggs which are called spawn. The male fertilizes her eggs with a milky liquid substance. The eggs then form together with a gel coating that thickens in the water. This coating helps to protect the newly fertilized eggs, and warms them slightly to speed development. After spawning the adult frogs will stay in the water until the outside temperature warms up, this is normally in April. If there are to many tadpoles in the water they release a chemical called theroxin. This prevents some of the tadpoles from going through the metamorphosis process. The reason they do this is if there are to many tadpoles in the water there will not be enough food for all of them as tadpoles or froglets. Some of them will stay as tadpoles until there is enough food for them and then they will metamorphosis. This enables the tadpoles to develop at different rates and may leave the water as late as September. The first tadpoles hatch after about fourteen days, by about three months old they have developed four legs, ready for life on land. They emerge from the ponds in June or July and are called froglets, they still have a tadpole tail, but this soon disappears. The frogs reach maturity after about two years. The froglets are pre-dated by blackbirds, but as they become frogs they are pre-dated by a host of animals which include crows, herons, grass snakes, hedgehogs, rats, foxes, and cats. They can live for upto eight years in the wild.

                                                                     A common frog.

Things to look out for in september.

Our hedgerows come alive during September, Blackberries, Hawthorns, Damsons, Elderberries and sloes are just a few of the delights on show. When you are walking around a woodland or through a meadow look out for signs of woodmice. They will leave the remains of most of these berries in their nest as they leave the remains of the Autumn harvest. Seeds are wood mice's main food during the year but during Autumn and winter they will eat various fruits of the hedgerow. They will make their small burrows along the hedgerow. For yourself many a beautiful apple and blackberry crumble has been created during September. Swallows and house martins will start to gather on wires throughout Worcestershire as they slowly start the long migration back to South Africa. We will also say goodbye to chiffchaffs, whitethroats,willow warblers and sedge and reed warblers as they plan their migration south. Chaffinch`s are swallowed up by European migrants during September. Their numbers increase so this generates large flocks of chaffinch`s flying around Worcestershire. Muntjac deer are active during September around brambles and grasses feeding as they move through a woodland. Muntjac deer don`t rut so they don't have a fixed breeding seasons. The doe`s can conceive after a few days of fawning and may give birth every seven months. Sweet chestnuts and hazel nuts are plentiful as well during September. Make sure though you get to harvest them before the bank voles, wood mice or squirrel`s eat them all. Depending on the shape of the nut shell on the ground you can tell what animal has eaten the nut. Unlike common frogs and toads, Smooth newts tend to hibernate close to their ponds or streams where they have b red. They will start to leave the water during September. They will look for a log or stone in rough vegetation, They  will then spend the winter under the log or stone and emerge in spring. Oak bush crickets which is a small green cricket and dark bush crickets which are slightly larger and brown may be seen in your during September. Seven spotted lady birds can still be seen in high numbers during September. They are looking for the last of the aphids before the could weather kills them all.Cranefly and harvestmen can be seen in your gardens in high numbers. September just wouldn`t be the same without them flying around your back light at night. Dor beetles can be seen on paths or flying to lights on warm evenings. They are armoured waste disposal units and their skeletons and wing cases often turn up in badger and fox droppings, Making them appear to glitter like metallic-purple jewels. Finally if you grow honey suckle in your garden you may see the convolvulas hawk moth. They migrate here from southern Europe and northern Africa.

Common water plants suitable for small garden ponds.

Deeper water.

Hornwort, Water-crowfoot, Spiked water-milfoil, Curled pondweed, Willowmoss. Try to avoid plants that will quickly take over like Canadian pondweed, New zealand stonecrop and azolla.

Floating leaved plants.

Fringed, Yellow and white water Lily's, Water soldier, Potamogeton.

Shallow/ Ledge plants.

Water forget me-nots, Water mint, Yellow flag iris, Water plantain, Branched bur reed and arrowhead.

Marsh/sedge plants.

Meadowsweet, Purple loosestrife, Lady`s smock, Gipsywort, Ragged-robin, Marsh marigold, Brooklime and rushes and sedges.

After you have planted some of these plants then you should then start to attract, Mayflies, Dragonflies, Damselflies, Pond skaters, Lesser water boatmen, Great diving beetles, Whirligig beetles, Common frogs, Frog-spawn, smooth newts, Eggs from newts(Newts individually wrap their eggs in water plant leaves), Aquatic snails and maybe even grass snakes.

The tytonidae and the strigidae(owls) family.

Part one tawny and barn owls.

These two birds are fundamental to the British countryside,There's nothing more magical than seeing a barn owl hunting at early evening over a meadow on a summers night as the sun starts to set.Barn owls prey mainly on voles,rats and mice and this is what is fed to the chicks.A barn owls clutch varies from three to eleven eggs,depending on the food that's available.The male will feed the female during the 32 day incubation.But if food runs short due to supply or bad weather the eldest chicks will eat the smallest member of the group.Year after year many barn owls return to established roosts and breeding sites,these are normally at old barns ruined building or hollows in trees(unlike tawny owls, barn owls likes to have an elongated hollow in an old oak tree).The adult has white underparts,and golden-buff upper parts mottled with grey,And they have white faces.Both the sexes are alike,and about 34 Cm's in size.They breed from February to November and have a eerie,prolonged shriek that's often uttered in flight.Like the adult birds,Their young make a hissing noise,But if they get disturbed they will snap their bills together loudly.The young fly at about ten weeks old.Tawny owls are slightly bigger than barn owls,up to 38 Cm's in height,Their call is a 'hoo hoo hoo......hooooo' and not a 'too Whit too woo' as is more commonly thought.Their Young will call 'ke wick'.so you may sometime hear the adult bird calling to their young.Owls are silent in flight because of their soft plumage and the comb like leading edge to their wingtip,This allows the tawny owl to pounce from a perch,unheard by its prey.The tawny owl has really sensitive eyes and ears,This enable them to locate its prey in a really dim light.Their diet consists of small mammals,frogs,fish,insects and if the weather gets bad they will even eat worms from the floor.They nest in woodland,farmland and large gardens that have mature timbers.They nest in shallow scrapes at the bottom of tree holes,A single clutch is born in march of up to seven eggs,They are laid in intervals of up to a week,The incubation starts with the first egg and are white in colour,so once again like the barn owl there will be a big difference in the size of the chicks.Their young fly after about five weeks,after they have branched they will stay close to the parent birds.They have big black eyes to show they will hunt at dusk or at night,Both sexes are alike with their dark brown faces,and dark brown primary feathers that are creamy and brown underneath.Recently because of habitat loss for the tawny owl and loss of barns for the barn owl their numbers have started to decline .I want you to tell me of sightings of these two magnificent birds of prey,or if you have heard them calling let me know so i can start to find out how many of these birds there are around the Droitwich spa area,Because i have seen tawny and barn owl's that i have watched and studied move away from their old roosts because of a loss of a barn they were in and mature trees have been felled,Is this the story from other areas around the Droitwich spa area?

things to look out for in january

Hazel catkins during winter.

Now we are moving through winter,various animals and plants will slowly start to appear.Catkin's on hazel and alder trees start to appear,Hazel has a beautiful lemon yellow male catkins and red female flowers that will emerge from buds in the centre of the shoots.A breeze is all it takes for the pollen to start an amazing journey,a few will land on the female flowers,a few more make the nuts of autumn.Lesser celandine will carpet woodland floors and riverbanks during this month,they have a delightful yellow flower that tells you spring is on the way.Sparrowhawks may start building their nests now,depending on the amount of food that's around,For most of the time the sparrowhawk flies around unseen in dense cover throughout most of the year,but during winter because there are less leaves on the trees they become easier to spot.The sparrowhawk is an avian bird,this means they catch their quarry on the wing.There are around 32,000 sparrowhawks in Britain,this is our second most common bird of prey behind the kestrel.Lapwings feeding on a water logged field in the watery winter sun can be spotted during January.Starlings may be seen as well in large numbers looking for food and then coming down at night to roost,Wrens and tits may come into nest boxes to roost when it gets really cold,look out for them in your garden.Small mammals such as wood mice and bank and field voles may be seen as well,The wood mice will still be out looking for food so keep a look out for them,nibbling on shoots of grass are a give away,as their little bodies feel the squeeze of winter,they get bolder and more adventurous moving farther afield.Bank and field voles operate in runs as they move around looking for food,they will tolerate each other more during winter as they are searching for food,the runs are normally patrolled by one pair of voles.Small pellet-shaped droppings and fresh grass clippings are all giveaways that voles are in residence.Long tailed tits will come to your feeders in your garden during this month,but will most likely be seen off by the two great territory holders,the robin and the blackbird.Barn owls can be spotted,hunting low over fields looking voles and rats.Common frogs may not be spawning yet,the males will certainly be accumulating by their breeding grounds.Common frogs 'purr' and do not go 'rrribitt' as we have all been misled to believe.Damselfly,may and stone fly nymphs are stirring in our rivers waiting to emerge in spring and begin the cycle all over again.Fox's start mating during late December and January so its a good time to see the dog fox and his vixen together.Foxes are getting vociferous as the breeding season comes into full flow.The 'wow-wowing' bark and the blood-curdling scream,produced mainly by the vixen,are their way of getting the lowdown of who`s who and where.