The Old Vicarage Works

 Toby removing a hanger from a Willow

 Removal of an Ash growing on the brook bank and unfortunately too close to the house and small bridge so had to be felled

 Several log piles were created around the site

 Excess material and arising were incinerated 

 The Old Vicarage recording areas 

The Old Vicarage in Summer

Spent today doing some tree work at the Old Vicarage. We felled an Ash, lifted the trees along the drive, removed some hangers and cleared a lot of brush piles and created some log piles.

Hopefully will return soon to open up the wild area and vegetable patch area by removing some conifer stumps and excess vegetation. Bryan and James are up for doing some landscaping which will be exciting- a stunning space with loads of potential for improvements and also creating some nice habitats.

I-record The Old Vicarage

Previous posts from Old Vicarage

The Old Vicarage 2021 Review

The last of these project quick annual reviews, our homebased wildlife gardening project at the Old Vicarage. This is basically the pilot to what we are working towards (our own eco-farm/nature reserve) so the one acre plot here gives us a good area to practise and experiment on. We've basically got our own eco-farm/nature reserve already here but the ambition is to scale this up one day and move the effort to the coast/migration flyway. In the meantime will keep practising and learning in this beautiful place.  

Here's a few photo highlights. A mini-moth report on the local moth blog HERE.

The first moth lifer of the year was this Yellow horned. 

In the first wave of spring planting the early potatoes went in, we've extended this area for next Spring and also grow a few tubs of potatoes too

A couple of good moths in the summer included this Fen Wainscot (above) and Olive (below) 

Summer at the mini-farm.   

Mere Wainscot- another summer moth highlight. We found this in the first of our summer Bioblitzes. See HERE

Italian Tubic 

Lilac Beauty 

Beautiful China Mark 

Dark Spruce Knot-horn 

Harvest time in early autumn

This female Gem was a very welcomed migrant

Feathered Gothic was our 1000th species for the garden HERE

Moth of the year has to be this Vagrant Piercer, a local mega migrant (less than 10 records for Bucks) 

After waiting for our first Clifden Nonpariel we had six this year  

Prepping, preserving and soup making - we managed to fill up the freezer with winter supplies 

Jacob ready for a garden bug hunt 

A large flock of mixed tits and warblers were present in the garden during the autumn containing a few Willow Warblers . Other garden birding highlights through the year including the summering Spotted Flycatchers, a flyover Hawfinch in late autumn and wintering Siskins. 

An autumn storm resulted in the loss of a few trees in the garden and a near miss for the campervan

The last big harvest was the pumpkins

The Old Vicarage after a snow fall in November 

This Buzzard was a garden resident for a few months

The mini-farm in late autumn. Isabella moved into the coach house recently. 

Meanwhile back in the house we renovated the loft into a new office for Little Oak Group/World of Twigg. We also started to build our pet army with a new aquarium to add to the hamster, pony and dogs and today we are off to buy a Leopard Gecko. This domesticated animal/ pet/ zoo biodiversity element to natural history is literally a bit of an elephant in the room. If we include all the domesticated and pet animals and plants species that humans bring with them into the built and garden environments and into parks and zoos/wildlife parks/collections, things actually start looking (with a slight perspective shift) a lot less bleak. Hopefully we will get chickens here soon too.   

The new bird feeders have taken off now and are often crowded . Interestingly no House Sparrows in our garden this time of year

This was a nice surprise in December, a retrospective identification by the CMR from 19th July- a lifer in the form of a Minor-shoulder Knot 

The big addition to the Old Vicarage this year was little Isaac, the seventh human member of the Old Vicarage community in addition to the pets and the 1020 wild and naturalised species that we have recorded on site. An ambition for next year is to pass the 500 moth species milestone (currently on 484)

Last few days in the Shire

A good few days up in the Shire with Holly- baby still not arrived yet. Sunday I carried on with Bioblitz at the Old Vicarage and did a bit more on the garden, Monday went to Otmoor and today on the way home had a great stop off at Staines Res.

Here's a few photo highlights: 

Grass Snakes at Otmoor- 30+ have been recorded recently basking in the sun along one of the ditches.

Common Lizard at Otmoor. I met up with Ellen (the non-bird recorder for Otmoor) and we had a look round the reserve and discussed some surveys that I'll be carrying out later on in the year including surveying for Black Hairstreak and also doing a Butterfly transect. 

Clouded Drabs, Common Quaker and Hebrew Character from the Old Vicarage moth trap. Also had Small Quakers on a different night. 

Plenty of territorial behaviour on the Old Vicarage grounds including Jackdaws at the Chimneys and also singing Stock Doves, Coal Tits and other common garden birds 

Goldcrests singing at the Old Vic 

Fritillaria sp (Imperialis?) No doubt planted but another addition to the bioblitz list- 185 species now (HERE) 

Did some night sound trawling at the Old Vic with a new addition to the Mobile obs- not much, was hoping to get the Tawny Owl but no luck. Also put out some camera traps but nothing. 

The mobile Obs doubling up as a hot dog van

Toiling around the Old Vic 

Great Diving Beetle- in the moth trap (above). Blackbirds at the Old Vicarage (below)

STAINES ON WAY HOME 

Pretty good stop off: 8 Little Gull, 1 Sandwich Tern, 1 Common Tern, 1 Redshank, 1 Water Pipit, 1 Red Kite 

 8 (6 adults and 2 first-winters)  Little Gulls on the Res (Adult top two shots and first-winters bottom two shots)

 Common Tern (I think- although can't say too much from this pic)

 Sandwich Tern on South Basin

Juvenile Wigeon trying to be a Wood Duck