However, slowly they started to arrive, with a couple of house sparrows and a pair of great tits being the next guests.  Then pandemonium – more house sparrows, only this time there were about 10 (I definitely counted this number, but it could have been more).  They were hurtling about the garden , making lots of noise, then they careened into next door’s conifer and then they were gone.

Most of the usual suspects were about; a couple of dunnocks and two robins as well as another couple of blue tits (all there at once which is unusual as they usually chase each other off).  But, no finches for quite some time until a couple of goldfinches turned up.  Then some more and finally I counted 8 at once. I love these, they are so bright and noisy, they enliven any garden.

So, total species count was only 7 this year.  I was not surprised by the lack of starlings as they don’t often come into the garden, they just make lots of noise in the roof, and the cage I have put round the bird feeder has deterred the wood pigeons and collared doves this winter.  The greenfinches didn’t arrive until late morning and I have no idea what happened to the chaffinches on Saturday.  However, the thing I am a little concerned about is that I only saw the one male blackbird, no others, male or female.  I haven’t seen more than one since either, so I am not sure what has happened to his mate as they were often in the garden together.

So, why is the Big Garden Birdwatch important? Each year it provides a snapshot of the status of the more common birds that we see every day (and some not so common birds) and, because so many people take part it gives a good average for the UK as a whole. Over the years it has highlighted the reduction in common birds such as house sparrows and starlings, which, although spotted by a large proportion of the public are not around in the same numbers as they used to be.
It also highlights when different bird species start visiting gardens in bigger numbers. One year may be an anomaly, several years establishes a trend. Recent increases have been seen from long-tailed tits, bullfinches and goldfinches, mainly due to the increase in bird food types offered by those feeding the birds.
A third reason that the birdwatch is important is that it has highlighted changes in migration patterns such as blackcaps which rarely overwintered a few years ago, but are now regularly spotted in gardens in Winter (in fact I have had one visiting my birdfeeders every year for three years).

The top five birds seen last year were House Sparrow, Starling, Blackbird, Blue Tit and Chaffinch, although there were some unusual sightings including ravens, buzzards and red kites. Not unexpectedly the top five were similar in Northamptonshire, but with Woodpigeons pipping the Chaffinches for fifth spot. What I find interesting about the results is that there are some birds such as robins and blackbirds which were spotted in high percentages of gardens, even if the average number per garden was not very high (also possibly hindered in some cases by an inability to tell the males and females apart).

So, how do you take part? Simple. Choose one hour this weekend (28th / 29th January), I find mornings are normally better for bird activity, write a list of the birds that you are likely to see (include a line for male and females if you can tell them apart) settle back and count the birds that come into your garden. Be careful not to count them twice, only count the maximum number that you can see at any one time. Then, submit your sightings online at www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatchresults . You can also find a useful guide to help you identify birds on their website.

So, happy birdwatching and thank you for taking part in a wildlife survey.

So, why am I so interested in these birds?  It is not just their weather-forecasting abilities that I like about them.  They really are stunning birds, particularly if they catch the Winter sun.   They are quite a large bird, not really looking like a duck.  They swim low in the water, being very pointy with a thin red bill, which gives their group its name – Sawbills.  The serrated inner edge allows them to grip slippery fish, which they search for by swimming with their head under water before diving down with a jump to get them.  (Amazing fact number one – they can dive for up to 45 seconds.)

The duck and drake look quite different.  Whilst the duck is grey with a chestnut coloured head with a shaggy crest, the drake is much sleeker.  He has a bottle green head which looks black unless it catches the sun, some black on his back, but the rest is mainly white (with a hint of pink!).

Whilst these are not the rarest of birds, in fact their numbers are increasing (there are about 2,600 breeding pairs, numbers tripling in Winter to about 16,100 birds) they do face a threat from the owners of fisheries due to their particular love of salmon and trout.  (Amazing fact number two – a young goosander eats 33kg of fish in order to reach adulthood.)

Whilst researching this article, I also discovered amazing fact number three (well, puzzling fact really) – after breeding most of the male goosanders from Europe migrate to the north of Norway to moult – I have no idea why they do that.  The females stay put – I am not sure if this is due to parental requirements.

So, next time you are in the country park in Winter (the goosanders tend to stick around into February) look out for some very white and black, long, sleek pointy birds.  They tend to sit around in groups, close to the dam, particularly from about halfway up.

To quote from Birds Britannica goosanders ‘spend long periods asleep or loafing on the water and, on a cold, bright Winter’s day there are few more lovely  visions than a group resting in a backwater, their smooth contours and patterns mirrored in the river’s surface.’

I have to admit, the drab and dreary weather (it started to rain whilst I was there) did not lessen the dull feel of the gardens, but, here or there were some hidden gems that made me think that underneath the mud and general brown tinge there was a whole host of life just waiting to get out.

There were quite a few hellebores there, but many did not look their best – not sure if it was the early morning frost or if they just needed some TLC – however, not far away were some bright points of blue – I think they are scilla – there were not enough to cover the ground, but they still grabbed my attention.

Whilst I didn’t see much in the way of edibles, the trees in the orchard were full of big, fat buds, and underneath they were planted with iris or daffodils.  The daffodils were just showing some colour, in a couple of weeks they will be amazing.

One thing that I did notice was the amount of bird life there.  They have put bird feeders in every garden.  I am not sure if they have always done this, but there are never any out in the Summer.  As a result, with every step, there was a flurry of activity as a chaffinch or blackbird or unidentifiable small bird zoomed off into the safety of the hedges.  The lack of visitors at this time of year, and the mist and drizzle lent an air of tranquility to the place.  The cacophony of bird song just added to this feeling.  One bird that I used to hear a lot more around Daventry, before they built even more houses, was the yellowhammer, so I was very surprised that to find it in the middle of the gardens.  I think it was just getting its voice back after the Winter, the song was almost there, but the characteristic wheeze at the end was much shortened.

I always like the sensory garden at Ryton – whatever the time of year they always have something flowering, and this weekend was no exception – look at the little cyclamen that I found.  I have planted corms several times in the garden, but whilst I seem to have one or two that will throw up some leaves, I never seem to get any flowers.  (However, my anenome blanda – all of which seem to be blue – have just started to come into flower.)

My biggest surprise of the day also came in the sensory garden – my first bumblebee of the year, foraging on some heather.  This will be a queen going out to gather food before the first of the brood start to hatch.  It just shows the importance of having some early flowering plants in the garden – mahonia and some early flowering honeysuckles are also good for the early bees.  Sorry for the poor quality picture though – I was taken a bit by surprise and she didn’t stay around for long!

So, why a blog post about these creatures?  It is inspired by an article in the excellent, if somewhat scholarly, British Wildlife Magazine.  What I didn’t realise was that there is a colony (or maybe more) of the creatures in Tring (Hertfordshire).  They are also known as the fat dormouse – both names arising from the fact that they were kept as food by the Romans and were even carried in jars by Roman soldiers when on marches.

So, how did they get here?  Well it certainly wasn’t under their own steam as studies on the Tring population have shown that they have really not extended their range very far at all.  As in most cases it was human intervention that has resulted in the UK colonies.  In this case, Lord Rothschild and an ‘accidental’ release at the beginning of the twentieth century.

So, the lowdown on edible dormice:

• They are quite a lot bigger than their native relatives and live for about seven years
• Whereas UK natives are brown, edible dormice are grey and about the size of a small squirrel
• They are nocturnal
• They hibernate underground from about the end of October to May
• They nest in holes in trees and are thought to form creches with the offspring of more than one female found in some nests
• The young aren’t born until July / August which gives them only two or three months to gain enough weight to hibernate
• Their favourite food is Beech mast – in years where it is likely that there will be a poor crop of Beech mast the dormice don’t breed
• It is thought that when there is a poor yield of Beech mast then the dormice are more likely to be found in nearby houses

So, why are they considered a pest?  They do apparently strip bark from trees, however, the main problem with them seems to be the fact that they are often found in houses where they chew through wires and eat food stores.  They are also doing rather well despite their limited range (mainly within 25 miles of Tring) – Natural England estimate that there are at least 10,000 of the animals in the UK.

They were recently listed as one of the top 10 problem invaders alongside mink and grey squirrels.  There are certain methods that can legally be used for ‘dealing’ with these large eyed furry creatures, but it is also an offence to release these animals into the wild now, which is exactly what is thought to be behind their appearance outside of Tring.  People had a problem with them, but couldn’t bring themselves to kill them, so took them far, far away and released them.

But, could you resist those big black eyes and grey coat – perhaps there are things that are too cute to kill?  Still, that argument has never worked for seal pups though, has it?

I thought about going to one of the woods in Northamptonshire that are showing off their carpets of snowdrops, but decided against getting in the car and stayed local instead.

The trees are starting to show signs of life; hints of green, fat buds and pussy willow starting to look furry.  Later on as the air warms these furry grey buds will be a riot of yellow as the male flowers open, providing much needed pollen for insects emerging from hibernation.  The bark of this willow (goat willow salix caprea) contains salicin, which is closely related to the active ingredients in aspirin.

At the country park I found that there were a lot of clumps of snowdrops, but they were only just starting to open and come into flower, and, other than the witch hazel planted near the entrance, most of the colour was provided by the ivy growing up many of the trees.  In my endeavours to try and take some pictures of the witch hazel and snowdrops I think I did annoy a pair of great tits that were checking out the nest box nearby.

The verges around Daventry are littered with crocus, but it is not just the non-natives that are flowering.  I found my first celandine of the year, flowering all alone in the grass on the way to the country park, as well as the occasional daisy and one very early dandelion.  I also came across some chickweed (pictured) and speedwell flowering.  I know that these are weeds and are found pretty much everywhere, but I was surprised to see so many things flowering just a couple of weeks into February.  However, I shouldn’t have been surprised.  A quick search of the internet resulted in the discovery that common chickweed has been known to flower under snow and that they can self pollinate – hence they are found everywhere, all year round and are considered a weed.  How can you fail to be impressed by such a hardy little flower?  They are also edible and contain lots of vitamins and minerals as well as supposedly having numerous medicinal properties.  But the most endearing feature I found when researching this plant is that at night the leaves fold over tender buds and new shoots.  (Information pointing out chickweed’s good points was taken from Alternative Nature Online Herbal, Garden Organic wasn’t such a big fan.)

I hadn’t planned to go to the country park, I figured that it would probably be fairly frozen and possibly filled with dogs – which if you are not a dog owner does not make for a relaxing stroll.  However, after wandering along the old railway track and deciding we didn’t want to go into town we headed left for the country park.

We were a little surprised to see that all of the small streams that run into the country park appeared to be ice free, even at the edges and debated as to the reason for this.

We walked through the woodland on the west of the reservoir for a change heading for the entrance.  There were a lot of small birds about, wrens, robins, blue tits etc, but nothing unusual.

We had just about made it to the entrance when I saw a water rail.  Although I realise it is probably a sad thing to admit to, I have to admit that I was very excited.  You see, I have seen reports of good sightings at Brandon Marsh, I have even been there on the days when the alleged sightings have been made, but I have never seen one.  Now, here I was, about a metre away and with a camera fitted with my best low light lens.  Such opportunities only come round once in a lifetime!  Whilst these are not uncommon birds, they are quite secretive and I would never have expected to see one so close to the busiest part of the country park.

The cold weather had obviously made it decide that it could stop being secretive or it could be dead and that wandering into the more populated parts of the country park would have to be done.  In fact it seemed so intent on looking for food that a bright pink small child wandering past noisily didn’t deter it from its wading.  It was only the barking of a dog that made it run away but not before I had taken some reasonable pictures.

What a fantastic day – a nice walk in the park, a new birding first and some good photos – perfect.  Bring on the waxwings!

It would appear that Costa Rica, which is rich in flora and fauna, has developed policies designed to safeguard these habitats recognising their importance as an ecosystem and for bringing in ecotourism revenue (a topic I am not overly comfortable with).  The part of the policy that particularly got my attention was that at a time when it is rumoured that the UK coalition ‘greenest’ government is contemplating selling large tracts of forest and national parks, the Costa Rican government is channeling revenue from fuel tax, energy fees and car stamp duty to pay for the management of nature reserves and environmental services.

The immediate question is, if Costa Rica, a so-called developing country, can take such a stance to protect its habitats, why, when we are so wealthy, can we not afford to do the same?  Why do we not value what we have, whilst pointing the finger at developing countries for destroying their habitat.

Fly agaric is the fairy tale red toadstool with white bits on the top and is to be avoided at all costs as it is pretty toxic.  Shaggy ink cap on the other hand is edible, but this is only recommended if picked when young and eaten almost straight away.  You have probably all noticed shaggy ink caps at some point, but just passed them by – when young they look a bit uninteresting, just white, cylindrical mushrooms covered with scales.  However, as they mature they start to change colour, and look much prettier.  Unfortunately for the fungus this is because as it degrades, which it can do in the space of a day, its gills start to change colour and secrete a blank ink as it autodigests itself.  Despite the cold weather there are still a few about, such as the one I took a picture of (which also left my fingers a little blackened as I moved some of the grass out of the way to get a better shot).

Pickers beware though, there is also a common ink cap which is more fawn in colour than white with which the shaggy ink cap could be confused – if eaten within a few hours of consuming alcohol then nausea and vomiting will occur.  Best be on the safe side and leave the foraging to the experts and fungi in the wild for photographers and nature spotters to enjoy.

As we head towards the end of September we begin to find contrasts.  The leaves are turning, and, in this wind and rain, dropping from some trees, but there are still butterflies to be found here and there (although my garden has hardly been full of them this Summer – only one Painted Lady and one Red Admiral, with some whites, peacocks and tortoiseshells dropping in).  I found quite a few at Ryton gardens  today like this Small Tortoishell enjoying the sedum.

The queen bumblebees are out foraging for food before they hibernate for the Winter – the queens are the only ones that are left for Winter, the rest die off, and the queen waits for Spring before laying eggs.  Please leave places for them to hibernate, a messy, undisturbed corner in the garden – after all, who will see it during the Winter?

At Brandon Marsh I also saw some dragonflies zipping about, chasing insects, and each other – very aggressive, but oh, so beautiful to watch.  But I am also seeing quite a lot of fungi about, something I usually associate with full-on autumn (probably incorrectly), like the pretty, but toxic, Fly Agaric that I found.