#30DaysWild no 4. Not everyone finds it easy to get out and about. But that doesn’t stop you spotting wildlife from your window. Grandpa B’s window looks into the Wheatland Farm garden and he’s been making a ‘species list’ over breakfast. From the lodges you’ll have an even wider scope.
Barrie got to at least 26 species, just from his sitting position. That included a couple of voles scurrying about, buttercups, campions, ferns etc. We’ve moved a bird feeder up, and in the evening there was a real treat – a barn owl flew through the orchard, hunting out those voles amidst the long grass. Yesterday we had a sparrow hawk swooping on the birds outside the kitchen window. It was unsuccessful that time, but then everything has to eat… We deliberately cultivate a dense shrub on the patio, which gives the small birds some cover when they come to the feeders and slightly evens up the odds.
So even when you’re inside the eco lodges, do look out to the meadow! And tell us what you’re seeing so we can make a note. This year’s cold May has delayed lots of things, but any second now there should be big dragonflies, several more species of butterfly and of course the nesting birds will be getting ready to see their fledglings explore the wider world.
If you’ve got small children with you, why not borrow one of the nature packs the North Devon Biosphere Partnership gave us – complete with activity cards, a tiny set of working binoculars, and an id book. We have two to loan out to the lodges, and we keep them in the conservatory at the farmhouse. Just come and ask.
Previously on #30DaysWild
This time last year – the blue tits hatching in the Wheatland Farm gate post were getting bigger by the moment.
This time in 2019: Wheatland Farm was celebrating foxgloves in the rain
This time in 2018 We were picking lemon balm for an alternative tea
This time in 2017 We found a nest on Popehouse Moor