country life
Island Life - April/May 2010
country life
a complete guide to
Baby Birds
At this time of year it’s common
before they are able to fly, they
to find young birds sitting on
will spend a day or two on the
the ground or hopping about
ground while their feathers finish
without any sign of their parents.
developing. If the young bird is
The chances are they are away
unfeathered or covered in fluffy
collecting food or are hidden from
down and has obviously fallen out
view nearby watching you! Unless,
of the nest by accident, it may be
in obvious danger, fledglings
possible to put it back.
should be left to the care of their
parents. The young of most
familiar garden birds leave the nest
when they are fully feathered, but
Bee
ware!
Oak before Ash
Oak before Ash,
in for a splash.
Ash before oak
in for a soak!
Sadly, there
doesn’t appear
At least seven colonies of bees were
killed in Newchurch alone last year
due to the use of ‘Bendiocarb’ (also
known as ‘Ficam’) and used as a
pesticide for the eradication of wasp,
chicken mites, cluster flies and feral
bee colonies. The problem arises
when the chemical is used on bees
and the honey is left, attracting other
bees in the area to the poisoned nest,
with devastating consequences. For
more information call Dave Cassell
on – 407674 Mobile 07919244080.
to be any truth
in this old saying! The Woodland Trust claim
it is down to temperature, with the oak being
more responsive than ash to warmer weather.
There are similar rhymes about oak and ash
in Germany and Norway, but strangely, they
suggest the opposite to