Well I'm back to be able to record and report back at any rate...don't think the wildlife actually went away...they were just left to run amok for several months...I'm sure it's all fine...
In August I became a bit of a wildlife rehabilitator. A cat who belongs to one of our lovely neighbours has a fascination with wildlife and was most intrigued with an enormous catepillar which materialised in their garden. Unfortunately said cat was not content to leave the beastie alone, so I took it home and placed it in a cricket pen [the insect, not the sport]. The magnificent beast was none other than an elephant hawkmoth catepillar [below, left] and I confess that until I had the opportunity to observe 'Hawkeye' up close, I had no idea what the 'elephant' reference in their name was for. Basically they have a tiny, almost telescopic 'trunk'! I think they must only use it for foraging or eating as it is not always on show and you have to look quite closely. So despite ploying him with the finest rosebay willowherb leaves unfortunately Hawkeye did not live long. It's likely he was getting ready to pupate, as young hawkmoth catepillars are a beautiful bright green, turning brown with maturity, so he probably wasn't super hungry and was injured by said cat.
About a week or so later in the work garden we came across this absolutely incredible little number on an plum tree, [above, right]. This is a feathered thorn moth and mimics a tiny twig perfectly. Naturally by then, I had a name for myself as 'the catepillar whisperer' so 'Twiggy' came home with me in my lunch box. More success this time, after spending about a week munching through apple leaves [and producing the most interesting fecal output in the shape of tiny cubes], Twiggy has successfully graduated to pupa/chrysalis! I've no idea when he's going to hatch out so I've moved him to a cooler part of the house as I was concerned he'd emerge in the middle of winter! Can't wait to release him next year.
During this time I also got to move a hedgehog who had wandered out on a particularly hot day and was apparently sunbathing - not a good thing for hedgehogs. After much debate and food bribes to move it back into the shade of the undergrowth, I donned a pair of thick gardening gloves and gingerly scooped up the prickly bowling ball and deposited it under an overgrown bush. Much scuffling and snuffling ensued - hedgehog appeared untraumatised although annoyed.
Had some seasonal visitors to the front garden at the end of October...
Moving into winter, I've not had the time or the energy to move our little plastic 'greenhouse' back into the garage, so I've pretty much left everything insitu. When the first frosts were forecast I thought I'd better move the pot saucers so they didn't crack; unfortunately a small family of wood mice have taken up residence underneath them. I had no real interest in making them homeless, if nothing else it might encourage them back into the house or garage, so I left them to it. Apparently I forgot to inform the local cat population of this new housing arrangement and they have taken it upon themselves to monitor the situation as they see fit. I resent that other people's cats have a say in what happens in our garden.
The weather went weird in the autumn where it was absurdly hot one week and then hard frosts the next, unsurprisingly this confused the flowers no end. By November all the flowers below were either still out or had decided a second or third flush was worth the risk - made the garden colourful at least!
I've always been under the impression that for better flowers next year you should leave your hydrangea heads on until after the last frosts [generally around March/April]. Turns out the wildlife appreciate this too! Spotted this tiny little wren bopping about in and out of the flowerheads, picking up snacks. Even had the audacity to perch on the front windowledge as well!
M had an incredible sighting of one of the foxes one Saturday morning:
And the squirrels...continue to run rings around me. Sassy [mk 2, left] has a knocked-up finger and can't bend it properly, although this doesn't prevent any of her highjinks. The little guy on the right had some really beautiful markings in autumn, cleverly contrasting last season's fashion with the new winter wardrobe. Not sure precisely who he is, but his facial features are very similar to those of Half-tail. There's another cheeky rather nervous guy with super fluffy white tufts behind his ears. Squirrel defences are working...sort of...[centre].
And that's a wrap!
Wishing all my lovely readers a lovely Christmas and a fabulous Hogmanay when the time comes!Sláinte!
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