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I’ve been thinking of doing a blog for some time and can’t think of a better place to write one than on WAB.
So now for the introduction.
I am a volunteer at a local nature reserve called at Foxglove Covert at Catterick Garrison. (www.foxglovecovert.org.uk)
This is a Local Nature Reserve covering 94 acres. There is a wide variety of habitats and is, perhaps, the single most important aspect of the reserve. The reserve contains various woodlands, heath-land, flower-rich grassland, streams, ponds, and a lake with a hide. There is also smaller hides around the reserve.
Apart from going to foxglove most weekends, I now have permission to put some nest boxes up on some land that belongs to the company I work for.
I managed to get four boxes up today and will keep everyone informed on there progress as and when there is something to report. This land is a mixture of meadow land, a small wooded area and a river bank. It does have a right of way going through it and the meadow is not used for anything other than doggy walking so the grass is fairly long and tufted. I am hoping that in time I will get permission to do other things on this land to attract more wildlife. I have some pictures on the camera and as soon as I get them edited I will post some on here.
Over the coming months I will be writing about the progress of the boxes and also reporting on my experiences at Foxglove.
So now for the introduction.
I am a volunteer at a local nature reserve called at Foxglove Covert at Catterick Garrison. (www.foxglovecovert.org.uk)
This is a Local Nature Reserve covering 94 acres. There is a wide variety of habitats and is, perhaps, the single most important aspect of the reserve. The reserve contains various woodlands, heath-land, flower-rich grassland, streams, ponds, and a lake with a hide. There is also smaller hides around the reserve.
Apart from going to foxglove most weekends, I now have permission to put some nest boxes up on some land that belongs to the company I work for.
I managed to get four boxes up today and will keep everyone informed on there progress as and when there is something to report. This land is a mixture of meadow land, a small wooded area and a river bank. It does have a right of way going through it and the meadow is not used for anything other than doggy walking so the grass is fairly long and tufted. I am hoping that in time I will get permission to do other things on this land to attract more wildlife. I have some pictures on the camera and as soon as I get them edited I will post some on here.
Over the coming months I will be writing about the progress of the boxes and also reporting on my experiences at Foxglove.
My land
Posted 06-03-2009 at 04:23 PM by Dalesman
Had a visit to my land today. Well I'm calling it my land as I'm the one doing the conservation work on it, so from now on it will be known as my land in these blogs.
I have two seed feeders and one nut feeder in the wood and one seed feeder in the factory grounds.
Up to now the feeder in the factory grounds and one seed feeder and the nut feeder are being used but the large seed feeder is being ignored at the moment. The nest boxes are still quiet with no sign of interest at the moment and I must get down there sometime in the near future and do some litter picking as a lot of it gets thrown over the wall by passing motorists. Bird life is starting to pick up a little and there is plenty of singing from birds such as Blackbird, Blue and Great Tits and the Robins. Last week there was a couple of Mallards on the river but they were nowhere to be seen this morning when I was there.
Later on I paid a visit to Foxglove Covert and just walked around for a couple of hours. The main sightings were a pair of Mallards on one of the ponds, a Coot on the lake and a Grey Heron which took off from the wet meadow shouting a balling at me to get off his patch.
After getting home I chilled out with a can of lager while watching a couple of Goldfinches which have just found my niger seed feeder. It has taken them a while to find it as it has been in place since January. Two Chaffinches were hoovering up underneath the feeder and a large number of Sparrows were also feeding on the nut and fat-ball feeders. I set the camera up at the front door and tried using the new remote that I have just purchased. Though the remote did work from the comfort of the living room the pictures were a bit blurred but can only be put down to my lack of photographic experience and the fact that maybe the camera was mounted to a cheap tripod and the lens was on full zoom. (Well some of us can't afford to buy all the good gear in one go).
Here are a few photos of my land.
These small puff balls were found on the only tree stump in the middle of the meadow.
I have two seed feeders and one nut feeder in the wood and one seed feeder in the factory grounds.
Up to now the feeder in the factory grounds and one seed feeder and the nut feeder are being used but the large seed feeder is being ignored at the moment. The nest boxes are still quiet with no sign of interest at the moment and I must get down there sometime in the near future and do some litter picking as a lot of it gets thrown over the wall by passing motorists. Bird life is starting to pick up a little and there is plenty of singing from birds such as Blackbird, Blue and Great Tits and the Robins. Last week there was a couple of Mallards on the river but they were nowhere to be seen this morning when I was there.
Later on I paid a visit to Foxglove Covert and just walked around for a couple of hours. The main sightings were a pair of Mallards on one of the ponds, a Coot on the lake and a Grey Heron which took off from the wet meadow shouting a balling at me to get off his patch.
After getting home I chilled out with a can of lager while watching a couple of Goldfinches which have just found my niger seed feeder. It has taken them a while to find it as it has been in place since January. Two Chaffinches were hoovering up underneath the feeder and a large number of Sparrows were also feeding on the nut and fat-ball feeders. I set the camera up at the front door and tried using the new remote that I have just purchased. Though the remote did work from the comfort of the living room the pictures were a bit blurred but can only be put down to my lack of photographic experience and the fact that maybe the camera was mounted to a cheap tripod and the lens was on full zoom. (Well some of us can't afford to buy all the good gear in one go).
Here are a few photos of my land.
These small puff balls were found on the only tree stump in the middle of the meadow.
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Recent Blog Entries by Dalesman
- A great weekend (05-04-2009)
- My land (06-03-2009)
- Bird feeders (15-02-2009)
- Update (09-02-2009)
