Tag: wildlife

June 11th – On a post repair test ride, bad news.

The Watermead swan family are now down to five from the original six. The remaining cygnets looked healthy and well though.

Most likely the victim of a hungry fox, it’s normal to lose a cygnet or two to predators in every urban clutch – we’ve been lucky in recent years to be relatively unscathed, but one has to remember the prodigious clutch sizes of these birds and consider that maybe some population control is natural.

When the youngsters start ground roosting separately as opposed to in a protective huddle, they are easy prey to Reynard and hopeful, the loss has been a warning to the remaining five.

Sad, so very sad – but it’s nature, red in tooth and claw.

June 11th – A terrible end to a ride that started really well. I headed out in sunshine to visit a new coffee shop in Stowe by Chartley, run by a local lad. I headed up over Chasewater, up through Cannock and was just running down Abraham’s Valley on the Chase when a critical part of my drivetrain failed irreparably and I had to call for a lift home.

You can’t prepare for all eventualities, and some things can’t be fixed out on the road, but I felt cheated as I’d had a great ride, seen orchids and red deer, blue skies and The Chase was gorgeous.

It was sad to fail so unceremoniously and I felt irritated and cross at not spotting the issue in advance.

The bike was soon fixed at home and I cursed myself continually while effecting the repair.

Ah well, there will be other sunny days, and the Chase will still be there next week. Keep the coffee pot warm for me.

June 8th – Passing Catshill Junction on my way to Brownhills High Street on my return home, I noticed the Canada goose family was resting near to Chandlers Keep, on the unused side of the bridge.

Curiously, there’s still two broods there mixed together, with three young chicks than the main group, but they’re all growing now, but clearly not to large to form a cuddle puddle for warmth and safety.

I’m fascinated by their tiny, nascent wings. It’s never really occurred to me before, but it’s some months before waterfowl can fly – and I’ve never seen geese or swans learning to do so. That must be a thing worth watching…

June 2nd – The orchids are really prolific and pretty this year, I’m very glad to say. In many shades of blue and purple these small, dense blooms are springing up all along the canals, heaths and wetlands.

These were at the canal by the new pond in Clayhanger. Look at the markings on the petals – absolutely gorgeous.

They’re not with us for long, so get and see them while you can.

June 2nd – I just beat the rain on my way home, and speeding along the canal near Clayhanger, I stopped briefly to chat to this lone bandit, for no other reason than he came to say hello.

The lone swans without partners and clutches are often overlooked at this time of year, in favour of the antics of the many families that have sprung up along the canals – but the lone swans are still as wonderfully curious and nosey as ever.

Such truculent, difficult birds – but I do love them so.

May 28th – I set out on a sunny afternoon to pay a visit to Fazeley floating market, and on the way, hopped on the canal from Brownhills to Newtown to see if I could spot the Watermead swan family, just to see how they were doing.

I found them, unusually, near Anchor bridge; still six cygnets in umber and mum and dad still very, very attentive – but my, they’re growing – and they’ll soon be losing that characteristic fluffiness.

Nice to see the family prospering.

May 24th – Sorry for the surfeit of wildfowl chick photos, but the families are fascinating me more than usual this year, and they make a lovely distraction from some of the awful events in the human world.

The Canada goose family at Catshill Junction is thriving, with the goslings growing every time I see them. This week they have very nearly doubled in size, and as they grow larger, they’ll be out of prey range for most predators. This group have fared well, and still number 12 chicks.

I love to see this little guys dozing. You can’t not adore them.

May 20th – I popped out for a short run on shopping errands to Brownhills, in a gap in the rain. I caught up with the watered swan family on the ramp between the Canoe Centre and the basin on the corner – the youngsters, still numbering six, were lounging and taking naps under the watchful eye of mum and dad.

The adults weren’t at all aggressive with me, so they must be getting used to the human attention, but I was glad of the zoom to keep me out of pecking range.

It’s clearly very tiring work, being cute.

May 16th – I noted the cuddle puddle of goslings as I came back into Brownhills at Catshill Junction – the large brood of Canada goose chicks were all huddled together on the canal bank under the watchful eye of mum and dad having a communal nap break.

Couldn’t resist taking some pictures of this lovely group.

The parents weren’t aggressive today, either – which shows they must be getting used to me. Or are lulling me into a sense of false security.

May 15th – Sorry, waterfowl again, but these little guys are fascinating me. 

The Watermead swans seem to spend a lot of time up at Catshill Junction – I’m not sure why, The cygnets are gaining bulk fast which should protect them from rats, mustelids and herons, if not larger raptors and foxes. Mum and dad are very attentive, and at the same time, relaxed. This evening, they brought their brood over to me to beg for food, which they weren’t doing a few days ago.

The Catshill Canada geese still seem to have the additional chicks stopping over, but appear to have lost 2. This is obviously very sad but normal, otherwise such large broods year on year would mean we’d be knee deep in Canada geese by now, and clearly we’re only ankle deep, so there.