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Habitats, Insects And Spiders Plus A Wren

7/8/2012

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Last year we had a male Wren busying himself in our back garden for some time.

We kept seeing him going back and forth with nesting materials such as dry leaves etc. Many of these dwarfed the Wren making us wonder how he managed to fly carrying them in his mouth, but fly he did time and time again.

It seems the male builds the basic structure with more robust materials and if a female accepts the nest she then lines it with feathers and anything else that creates a warm, cosy interior. This is also signalling to the male she has accepted him as a mate.

Last year he had no takers but this year he's had more success with this nest.

We now have an occupied nest with both the female and male going back and forth with food for their brood.

We initially worked out that both parents are feeding the brood by how they entered the nest. The male has the habit or technique of landing on the birdbath, then the bamboo cladding, before entering the nest. We know this is the male because we watched him throughout his nest building period.

The female flies straight into the nest. She somehow curves her flight into the nest with an ease that is enjoyable to watch. She is so good at it that sometimes, while the male has reached his bamboo cladding stage she flies right past him straight into the nest and he then has to queue.

What surprised us is where he chose to build the nest.
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The nest is situated in the dead grass that hangs down. I have kept telling myself I should tidy it up a bit, but am glad I didn't now.

Quite by chance we provided the right habitat where a Wren likes to nest. Along with that our garden and the wooded area connected to the Industrial Units behind us is full of insects and spiders, the food they prefer.

Food, Water and Shelter are priorities to all wildlife. Habitats also play a big part in where they like to be and they can be very selective at times, but on saying that they are also opportunistic and if it ticks the boxes they often don't look a gift horse in the mouth. Obviously this was the case with the Wrens in our garden.

Here's a link to a picture of a Wren along with more information.

As is often the case while we were out the young have flown the roost, so we are keeping our eyes open hoping to catch sight of the fledglings.
 
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Bird Box? Bee House? Who Decides?

7/6/2012

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While visiting a friends home I found this scene in their back garden.
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As can be seen a Blue Tit has nested in the box its perched on. A very simple example from amongst the many types of bird nest boxes but perfectly acceptable to these Blue Tits.

But what about the box in the background?
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You have to look closely to see that White Tailed Bees have made this their nest box. A bird nest box it may have been in the past, but for now its a Bee House.

Clearly it is the wildlife occupying our gardens that make the final decision as to what type of nest box it will be used as. Regarding this situation I think this is a double treat to any wildlife gardener.
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A Bog Garden Will Attract A Variety Of Wildlife.

4/12/2012

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As with ponds a bog garden will be a natural magnet to a variety of wildlife.

Bog plants will complement whatever pond plants we have and in many ways will broaden the variety we can put to use in our garden as a whole.

We should not be daunted by the idea of a bog garden as it is a relatively simple procedure to creating this habitat which will add a new dimension to the garden.

If you have a pond then definitely consider a bog garden.
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Creating A Shade Garden

4/10/2012

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The decision to have a shade garden may be forced upon us because of the situation of our garden and surrounding cover, whether this be because of buildings, hedges or trees.

We can be successful with shade gardening simply by making sure we choose shade loving plants to plant out in our shade garden. Shade garden plants are generally plants that would be quite at home in a woodland garden. The diversity of these plants gives considerable scope for creating a colorful shade garden.


We may surprise our self with the array of plants we can make use of in a shaded area of our garden. A shade garden is another opportunity to provide needed habitat for local wildlife.
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Wildflower Gardens Attract Wildlife

3/20/2012

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Wildflower gardens and most definitely wildflower meadows make a real contribution in producing the all important nectar needed by native insects.

We can use a wildflower mix of seeds or wildflower plugs to help establish wildflowers in our garden. Many chose to use previously grown wildflower turf
that can be purchased from specialized suppliers.

Once down usually a good show of wildflowers can be enjoyed within the season and this then improves in the years that follow.

Wildflower gardens are a real step in the right direction when thinking about creating a wildlife friendly garden.
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Cottage Gardening And Wildlife Gardening

8/29/2011

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Cottage gardening can in many ways be viewed as the fast track method to establishing a wildlife friendly garden. Using simple but effective strategies can ensure we not only have a colourful and aesthetically pleasing garden, but also one that the local wildlife find attractive as well.

Here we have a style of gardening that allows for a more relaxed approach but still produces a stunning display in our own little or large patch. Cottage gardening complements wildlife gardening so easily that it is to a large extent the most natural route to take when thinking of creating a wildlife garden.
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Habitats That Wildlife Cannot Resist

7/18/2011

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A wildlife habitat can be defined as a physical environment that surrounds, influences and is utilized by a population species. Sounds out of our reach does'nt it?  But it's not.

Think of urban foxes. In many ways urban foxes live a healthier lifestyle than their rural relatives. Many urban foxes reside in gardens, feed themselves, raise their offspring and do all of this without any real hindrance to their human neighbours. They have utilized an ordinary garden setting and turned it into their own wildlife habitat, and with the busy lives people live nowadays foxes can reside in their garden without the owners even being aware of it.

Think what could be acheived if we purposely provided a garden habitat for wildlife and conservation.
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    Gardens can become wildlife havens with just a little thought when planning and working the garden. This site is here to encourage and help gardeners to consider and enjoy the wildlife in their garden.

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