DAVID'S NATURE BLOG: September 2024

SEPTEMBER 2024 – IN OR FROM MY GARDEN

I’ve not been out locally very much due to some health issues, so I’ve concentrated my efforts on things seen in or from my garden (in Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire).

It’s been a rather mixed array of birds; insects; one mammal species; and amphibians, but a very disappointing period for butterflies generally (except for Small and Large Whites).

Like the butterflies, dragonflies have proved rather sparse over the summer, although things picked up a touch early this month when a female Southern Hawker flew round the pond twice in one day, and again once the following day. A pair of Common Darters visited the pond separately one morning earlier in the month, then later the same day, the pair was seen in tandem hovering over the pond, with the female depositing eggs. Only one photograph - of the male, away from the pond - was possible, however. A singleton Emperor and a couple of Migrant Hawkers were observed over the garden, but did not visit the pond.

Other highlights included watching a dog fox searching for food outside my front garden shortly before midnight one night. I was lucky enough to watch it for at least 15 minutes before it sauntered off into the night, but street lighting (which was due to go off at 1.00pm) allowed a much better view than otherwise might have been the case.

Another highlight was the discovery of at least four frogs in my wildlife pond when I cleared away some of the vegetation that had encroached during the summer. The odd thing about this was that at least three of the frogs (apart from varying sizes) had completely different colouration and markings – as is evidenced by one of the included photographs.

Another very welcome sighting/s included my first ever sizeable flock of House Martins moving through on the evening of 25th September – at least 10 birds involved – when I’ve only managed singletons previously. And at 08.30 hrs on 26th September, I had two (possibly even three) juvenile Chiffchaffs moving quickly through the back garden, and not associated with any movement of tits and other small passerines as one might expect at this time of year.