Green Woodpecker Searching for Ants

We spotted this Green Woodpecker a few days ago - outside our house in Greenham on some communal land.

It was seen very early in the morning before the noise disturbance from passing cars became too much, and it reappeared briefly in the afternoon.

An ant-infested lawn is all you need to keep Green Woodpeckers coming back time and time again!

Blue Tit Fledgling

It's been a long time coming this year given the delayed nesting season, but our Blue Tits have all successfully fledged and have been seen back in the garden today being fed by the attentive adults.

The chick appears bigger than the adults, who both look rather bedraggled following the heavy showers earlier.

Here we see one of the adults feeding the chick sunflower hearts, whilst the other waits patiently to answer the chick's insatiable need for sustenance.

Blue Tits Gathering Food

The unseasonable weather has finally picked up and our Blue Tits now have young in the Greenham Birding nest box on the side of the house. This adult is very busy gathering caterpillars for the growing chicks. Feeding starts at dawn and extends to dusk, which must be exhausting work for such small birds!

Interestingly, the adults take in a mixture of food which includes various winged insects and caterpillars as well as small pieces of the fat balls and sunflower hearts from our selection of feeders.

Sophie made the nest box herself at RSPB Arne and  just a month after it was put up last year, it was occupied by Blue Tits who successfully raised young. This year the nesting season is much later due to the very cold spring (the coldest for 50 years). At least food appears to be readily available now that the trees are in full summer foliage. Fingers crossed that the chicks successfully fledge in a few weeks time!