Garden Wildlife

One of the wonderful things about having a garden (no matter how big or small) is that it never allows you to become bored. There is always so much to see and do and I find that our own little outside space is a place in which I could happily lose myself for hours, if I had the time! Occasionally, I like to just sit and watch the birds and insects getting on with their own busy lives and I find it always brings a sense of calm and wonder.

There seem to be lots of birds in the garden at the moment. This week, the usual suspects were joined by a lovely little wren and (what I think is) a juvenile.

The wren is a very "British" bird and a common visitor to our gardens. For such a small bird (typically 9-10 cm in length), it has an impressively loud singing voice which rivals the blackbird in its complexity and sweetness. It also has a rather grand Latin name - Troglodytes troglodytes - which means "cave dweller" and refers to the tendency of some species to nest and forage in crevices.

The wren also features prominently in history and folklore. It took pride of place on our old farthing coin and, according to legend, became the 'King of Birds' due to its cunning. Less favourably, in the Christian religion, the wren was believed to have betrayed the hiding place of Saint Stephen, leading to his subsequent martyrdom. As punishment, the poor bird was symbolically hunted and killed on the Saint's feast day (26th December - also known as "Wren Day").

In Pagan mythology, the wren (symbolising the old year) is often paired with the robin (which symbolises the new year), and this pairing is also seen in poetry and literature. For example, in the old nursery rhyme "Little Jenny Wren Fell Sick", the fickle wren rejects the robin's advances, whilst John Webster's play "The White Devil", which was published at the beginning of the seventeenth Century, describes how the robin and the wren work together to shield the bodies of the dead:

"Call for the robin-redbreast, and the wren,

Since o'er shady groves they hover,

And with leaves and flowers do cover

The friendless bodies of unburied men".

In addition to the wren, the starlings are still making their presence known as they busily fly between the river bank and the trees. The adults in the following images can be recognised by their darker colouring, with patches of iridescence, whilst the juveniles are a lighter brown colour.

Iridescent colouring is often seen in nature and may serve a number of communicatory and defensive functions. In large flocks of birds, for example, patches of iridescence may assist in co-ordinated flying, whilst an insect's shiny exterior may confuse a potential predator or effectively render it invisible.

I saw two lovely iridescent damselflies by the river bank this week which I later identified (from a quick internet search) as two beautiful demoiselles (Calopteryx virgo). Unfortunately, I didn't manage to get a picture, though the exterior of the beetle shown in the following images was equally impressive. Also shown are a furry little moth the children found and one of several ferocious looking young ladybirds, which are starting to appear on the willow.

We also had a surprise daytime visitor to the garden yesterday. I had been watching a group of young blue tits flying in and out of our Berberis, when the following little fellow emerged out of the undergrowth. He clearly smelt me, but didn't seem too bothered and remained in clear sight for a minute or so, thus enabling me to take the following pictures with my phone.

The peonies and foxgloves in the garden are still blooming and the Lavatera is starting to flower. This was started as a small cutting from my parents' garden a couple of years ago and is already over six feet tall. It is a vigorous grower and needs space, but produces many flowers over a long period and is popular amongst the bees and butterflies. Also shown below are a couple of self seeders - a variety of poppy which grows like a weed around our garden and the tall slender spikes of Linaria purpurea (Purple Toadflax).

This week's gardening jobs have consisted principally of weeding, as the pressures of lockdown and home schooling have taken precedence over my former (grander) garden plans! I did manage to take some cuttings from my succulents this week however and these have been set aside for a couple of days before replanting (to enable them to dry out).

Wren by Richard Price

A tidy wren, tiny apron on,

spot-checks the garden.

Not a speck -

she's gone.