Category: Buzz

There’s a Great Spotted Woodpecker nesting in a dead tree near the Wheatland Farm stream.

This hedgehog accidentally got trapped in a box at Wheatland Farm – so we gave it a breakfast of mealworms and filmed it as it bumbled on its way.

Nuthatches are nearly ready to fledge outside Honeysuckle Lodge. This clip shows them being fed at the nest box entrance.

[Maggie] I just can’t resist sharing another Wheatland Farm dragonfly/damselfly sighting…

Oooh it’s dragonfly time again… This four spot chaser must have emerged from the wildlife pond near Balebarn Eco Lodge overnight. It wasn’t until we looked closely at the image that we spotted the shed larval ‘skin’ just to the left of the dragonfly – almost peeping around the grass.

It must be pretty much summer when the damselflies are back. The first to make an appearance are these large red damselflies. Fabulously colourful!

On a day that’s full of ecological doom and gloom in the news, here’s a ray of sunshine. This is the first dingy skipper we’ve seen at Wheatland Farm. They are one of Europe’s fastest declining butterflies, so it’s great to see one here. Dingy Skippers like birdsfoot trefoil in mid-height grassland, and our management regime offers lots of that.

We found this unusual bee, with it’s distinctive black and white markings, near Otter Cottage. It’s called a common mourning bee, though it’s not all that common. It is on the wing anytime between March and June.

We’ve been seeing common carder bees for a few days now, but they can be tricky to photograph. Here’s our best bet so far.

Seen it yet? It’s a streamer moth, Anticlea derivata. It took a few passes through the moth book to find it too.

This underwater clip shows the wildlife pond at Wheatland Farm’s eco lodges teaming with tadpoles. This is why we get the annual frog/toad exodus in June!

Lovely to see! This holly blue butterfly was spotted soaking up some sunshine on the ivy at Otter Cottage.

Nuthatches are nesting outside the lodges again – this pair can be watched from the window of Honeysuckle Lodge.

The blue skies have brought out more buttterflies around the eco lodges. Peacocks are already out of hibernation, we’ve seen a comma, and those heralds of Devon’s spring, the organge tip butterflies, are on the wing again.

Fantastic! The swallows are back around Wheatland Farm’s Devon eco lodges, so it’s time for the annual celebration cake – baked when the first swallow of summer is seen actually at the farm.

Easter has come early to Wheatland Farm. There are bunnies everywhere. One baby bunny spent a morning last week hanging around the farmhouse back door and ocassionally trying to jump through the glass. Today, we found a youngster in the turbine room – Wheatland Farm’s wet weather ‘garden/coffee room’. Here are a couple of clips. Spring has sprung!