What is she feeding them??? plus night animal catch up.

Actually I know that she is feeding them caterpillars, bugs and mealworms.  The odd spider is being brought in as well.

The growth rate in the Blue Tit chicks is amazing.  Just to remind you the first born chick on 3rd May looked like this:

Just 14 days later :

All they want is food and mum and dad are doing a great job of feeding them. Despite there being 48 hours between the hatch of the first egg and the fourth the chicks are almost all the same size.  This shows me that they are all getting fed regularly.

Not only are they getting bigger but they are beginning to develop into Blue Tit's.  By 13th May you could hear them chirping in response to the parents. By 15th May their eyes are open:

Their feathers are also developing.  Instead of being just a bundle of pink skin, small feathers are appearing and their wing feathers are starting to show.  They don't look like feathers yet as they grow with a covering over them so they look like pins.  The chicks will then preen this cover off letting out the feathers.  This stage is known as "in pin".  In the video below you can see the pins when the chicks stretches it's wing out.

Sometimes it is difficult to see all 4 chicks. But this morning it was clear that they were all hungry.

Mum and dad are great at finding bugs and caterpillars to feed the chicks.  However I am giving them just a bit of help.  In the early morning and evening I am putting out some live mealworms in a cage feeder.  The Blue Tit's are taking advantage of this plus the local Great Tit's and House Sparrows.

Fairly certain that this is the same Great Tit as last year. Certainly very familiar with me and where the mealworms are likely to be. It's driving my local Magpie mad as he loves mealworms.  So I have put some extra out by the apple tree.

Mum and dad outside. Mum is on the left and dad on the right.  Mum is fluttering her wings at dad.  This is part of the pair bonding and a way to encourage dad to get food.

Lots of chicks are now appearing. The Jackdaws have been nesting in the chimney pot on the house next door. Their two chicks fledged on Saturday 14th May. They are gorgeous.

In addition to all the day time wildlife I have been keeping an eye on whats appearing at night.  The foxes and hedgehogs have been in as usual.  My visiting female hog was in Saturday night.  She had a few ticks on her that showed up on camera.  She decided to spend the day in the hog house so I took the opportunity to check her over, remove the ticks and weigh her.  She's a great weight (1125g) and curls up into a good round ball.  Hedgehogs that curl up into a tear drop shape are underweight, likely to be dehydrated and need help.  Hedgehogs out in daylight definitely need help and you should never see one sun bathing.  If you see a hog out in daylight speak to a local wildlife rescue centre immediately for advice.

A different use for the kitchen scales.

A lot of people are concerned about foxes harming hedgehogs.  However my night time visitors get on well.

Last night I managed to catch very unusual behaviour. Hedgehogs do something known as self-anointing.  They will suddenly stretch out licking themselves. No one has a clear idea of why they do this but it seems to be triggered by smells or taste.  I've read about it, seen pictures but last night I managed to catch this on video. Pity she wasn't a bit closer to the camera for a better view but you get the idea.

Here in the Southeast it has been really dry for the past 10 weeks.  Just putting out a dish of fresh water each morning and evening can make a massive difference to your local wildlife.

As there are a lot of baby birds appearing please do not assume that they have been abandoned.  You may see recently fledged birds on the floor. It is highly likely that the parents are nearby so do not interfere. If they are in a dangerous place then you can move them slightly so they are out of danger but other than that stay back and observe only. Almost always the parents will be back.  If you are unsure contact your local wildlife rescue centre BEFORE you act for advice.

Please please please be very careful when gardening especially if you use a strimmer. Hedgehogs love hiding in long grass and many die very painful deaths as a result of strimmer injuries.

And lastly (lecture over) it is illegal to disturb a birds nest or a bat roost. There are many reports of baby birds going to rescue centres as home owners have decide to do work to roofs/lofts/gardens etc.