Big Garden Birdwatch - 2020

It appears that normal service has been resumed for the RSPB's Big Garden Birdwatch. The feeders are topped up, I've prepared my recording sheet, binoculars are to hand and the birds have vanished like snow in summer.  I can only suppose that the damp, mildish weather has allowed the birds to feed up in the countryside and they don't need to visit our gardens so much.

Female Blackbird with grapes.

Finally, I managed to entice our first visitor, a male Blackbird, with some grapes.  Naturally, he hid behind a garden ornament to eat them so here is a photo of the missus.  A little later, a Carrion Crow perched in our Oak.

Robin - one of a pair

I was charmed to see a pair of Robins dancing in and out of the twigs of our Acer and Buddleia trees. This pair have been around for a while now, and I hope they will nest somewhere nearby.

Blue Tit on Winter Sweet

My favourites were the three Blue Tits searching for insects amongst our yellow Winter Sweet and Witchhazel flowers.  A pair have already been checking out our old nest box - maybe they will decide it's still good enough to use.

Male House Sparrow on Crab Apple tree.

The RSPB results (at the time of writing - evening of 26 Jan) shows that the House Sparrow is the most widely spotted bird. I only got one male, which perched briefly in our wonky crab apple tree. My most common bird, with six individuals, was Woodpigeon.

We usually get about eight or nine Starlings fighting over the food on the bird table but only two appeared during my bird count, along with one rather nervous Magpie.

Here is my results list.

Results for 2020

This graph shows the ups and downs of my bird watches since 2011.  This year I got fewer birds (18 from 8 species) than last year (35 from 12).

This year's results were a little below average.

New Year Plant Hunt 2020 - Uckfield (2020)

This is my sixth year doing the Botanical Society of the British and Ireland's New Year Plant Hunt. After last year's high score, the number of wild or naturalised plants in flower has settled down to a more usual level. The scores for the last few years are:

• 2015 - 21 species of which 2 were naturalised garden plants that had 'jumped the fence'
• 2016 - 34 species of which 4 were naturalised
• 2017 - 23 species of which 2 were naturalised
• 2018 - 28 species of which 3 were naturalised
• 2019 - 45 species of which 4 were naturalised
• 2020 - 36 species of which 4 were naturalised

The first flowering plants I found were the simple weeds of grass and gardens: Petty Spurge, Daisies, Dandelions etc.

Winter Heliotrope - Just South of the Ringles

A few days previously, I had driven along the London Road and was really excited to find a strip filled with pinkish, fluffy flowers. It is Winter Heliotrope.

Sweet Violet

I visited the little courtyard in front of what used to be Parade Radio. I've often found Sweet Violets (Viola odorata) and several were blooming.  I made my way through the churchyard and along Belmont Lane. Towards the end of the lane, I found a hazel whose catkins had lengthened and could therefore be added to my list.

Gorse, Bellbrook Industrial Estate

In the Industrial Estate I found the ever reliable Gorse (Ulex europaeus) in bloom.

Common Chickweed, Bellbrook Industrial Estate

I was amused by a cheeky Common Chickweed (Stellaria media) growing in artificial turf. Nature always finds a way.

Wild carrot, Bellbrook Industrial Estate

There were some unexpected and rather nice wild flowers outside Barney's Play. I hope the visiting children enjoy seeing them. The "Nervous Botanist" kindly identified the first as Wild Carrot with pretty, lacy flowers. I have always associated Wild Carrot with the more alkali soils around Leatherhead so I was surprised to find it there.

Field Penny-cress, Bellbrook Industrial Estate

The other was a Field Penny-cress (Thlaspi arvense), with strange "penny" seed heads. When I held a piece up to the light, I could see four seeds inside each "penny". Joshua Styles kindly confirmed. Looking at the map in The Flora of Sussex, this appears to be a new species for our "Square".

A quick break in the Station pub!

After a quick break in the Station pub, I checked the Hawthorn hedge alongside the allotments. There was none blooming.

Scentless Mayweed, Manor Park

I made my way back home through Lime Tree Avenue and Manor Park.  The most unexpected find was a Scentless Mayweed (Tripleurospermum inodorum).  My last find was a Dog Violet (Viola riviniana) alongside our garden path.

The Science Bit

Location: Uckfield (North), East Sussex.  Start point: TQ478219

41 Wild Plants Flowering on 1 January 2020

Scientific name	Common name
Achillea millefolium	Yarrow
Bellis perennis	Daisy
Capsella bursa-pastoris	Shepherd's Purse
Cardamine hirsuta	Hairy Bittercress
Cerastium fontanum	Common Mouseear
Conyza sumatrensis	Guernsey fleabane
Corylus avellana	Hazel
Crepis capillaris	Smooth Hawk's-beard
Daucus carota	Wild Carrot
Erigeron canadensis	Canadian Fleabane
Euphorbia peplus	Petty Spurge
Fumaria bastardii	Tall Ramping Fumitory
Hedera helix	Ivy
Lamium album	White Dead-nettle
Lamium purpureum	Red Dead-nettle
Parietaria judaica	Pellitory-of-the-wall
Petasites pyrenaicus	Winter Heliotrope
Poa annua	Annual Meadow Grass
Polypogon viridis	Water Bent
Ranunculus acris	Meadow buttercup
Senecio jacobaea	Common Ragwort
Senecio vulgaris	Groundsel
Sonchus oleraceus	Smooth Sow-thistle
Stellaria media	Common Chickweed
Taraxacum officinale	Dandelion
Thlaspi arvense	Field Penny-cress
Tripleurospermum inodorum	Scentless Mayweed
Ulex europaeus	Gorse
Urtica dioica	Common nettle
Veronica persica	Common Field Speedwell
Viola odorata	Sweet Violet
Viola riviniana	Dog Violet

4 Naturalised Plants flowering on 1 January 2020

Scientific name	Common name
Bergenia cordifolia	Elephants ears
Campanula poscharskyana	Trailing Bellflower
Centranthus ruber	Red Valerian
Corydalis lutea	Yellow Corydalis