Garden Archives - Page 2 of 3 - Alice Hunter Photography

Last year when we visited Yosemite National Park in California, my husband and I were astounded at the number of times we were a) told that we probably wouldn’t see any wildlife b) pushed past by other tourists in a hurry to get to the next sight on the map & c) interrupted from our quiet enjoyment of the area by those same tourists talking overly loudly at each other. Despite all of these though, we did see wildlife and in abundance too. Among others there were lots of song birds, three species of woodpecker, chipmunks, chickarees and ground squirrels, mule deer (less than 10 yards from the trail), even a coyote. It got me thinking that perhaps people were simply unaware of the wild wonders around them. They didn’t seem to be looking anywhere other than at where they were putting their feet, or listening to each other, let alone the birds. Moreover, they were marching from one information board to the next as though it was some sort of workout session. No wonder we were being told there was nothing to see; if they weren’t seeing it themselves, why would they believe there was anything more?!

Recently though, the notion that the world around us goes unnoticed by so many people has been brought to my attention again. I belong to a local photographic club. I really enjoy taking part in activities, helping others and being inspired by their work. Lately I’ve noticed a growing trend among other members, judges and visitors: when looking at wildlife images (not necessarily mine I might add!): They first say how beautiful they think it is and then that the photographer must have been so lucky to see that creature because they’ve never managed to see one let alone get close enough to photograph one.

This of course may be true for certain images; unusual or foreign species aren’t accessible to everyone yet we are seeing increasing numbers of this sort of image. Some subjects that I’ve heard this sort of comment about have surprised me though: Kingfisher, Green Woodpecker, Hare… to name just a few. Now don’t get me wrong, I know these species aren’t necessarily abundant in every corner of the country, and I personally still feel lucky to have spent time watching and photographing all three, but compared to say an Ocelot, Hummingbird or Giant Salamander they are far more easily observed by most people!

So why are these creatures apparently so elusive to so many people? My personal thought on the matter is that with the demands of modern life: jobs, family, pets etc. and the draw of technology like television, mobile phones or computer games as a method of relaxation, we have forgotten to connect with the world around us.

We hear this sort of statement with increasing frequency in referral to the next generation; that children need to learn to connect with nature. It is undoubtedly true, but it seems to have escaped notice that many people in older generations are just as disconnected. How many adults outside of environmental professions do you know who can name more than half a dozen wild plants in the hedgerow or identify birds in their garden without resorting to a book?

I am often told that I notice things which others don’t, be it an insect or flower that others might just walk past, the behaviour of birds in my garden indicating the presence of a predator, or the fact that there have been bluebells flowering in my local woodland for over a month already.

I used to travel by train a lot and loved watching the landscape rush past outside the window, trying to see what I could spot. I always wondered if others on the train had seen the same thing. Had they noticed the deer grazing on the embankment? The fox curled up in a sunny spot in the sidings? The kestrel hanging in the wind on the roadside by the level crossing?

Now I wonder whether the Green Woodpecker feeding on ants in my lawn as I write is really such an unusual sight, or whether we are all so engrossed in our own lives that the wildlife blends seamlessly with the background blur so that we no longer see it even if it’s there. Perhaps it’s time to take a leaf out of our own book and slow down to connect with nature on a daily basis.

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This week while the weather outside is less favourable I want to think about a particular plant, Common Ivy (Hedera helix), and why it is so important for wildlife. You might be wondering what the link is between the two factors but at this time of year there are few plants which are still flowering and Ivy is one of them. This is a slightly spontaneous post after a somewhat momentous wildlife encounter I had last week. You might have read about it on Twitter if you follow me (@AHunterPhotos). I found an Ivy Bee (Colletes hederae) and I was rather pleased to have done so.

I had not seen one of these beautiful insects before last Thursday. They are relatively recently discovered, only being described as a species in 1993, and making their first appearance in Britain in 2001, when they were discovered in Dorset. Since then their spread across the United Kingdom has been steady. The Ivy Bee is one of a number of ground nesting solitary bees in Britain but unlike others they are very late flying, typically emerging at the beginning of September when most other species are dwindling. That said, my sighting last week was particularly late, perhaps due to the mild weather we have been experiencing.

In terms of identification they are difficult to confuse for other species because of this late flying period but they do have a few diagnostic features too. For example, the banding on the abdomen is quite bright and almost wasp-like though a little more orange in colour, and they have a rather wonderful furry thorax which is a lovely ginger colour. As the name suggests, they feed exclusively on Ivy. Males and females can be distinguished by size with the males being much smaller than the females. Like many other ground nesting solitary bees, they dig burrows in loosely packed, usually sandy, soil with each pair having their own hole up to a foot or more deep. In this, they tend up to 18 brood chambers which are each lined and provisioned with pollen for the growing young. Their life span as an adult is only about 3-6 weeks but they will spend around 10 months as a larva in the brood chamber.

Unlike most other bees there are no specific parasites which target Ivy bees. This is unusual but can be said to prove that they are a recently evolved species, as more established species tend to have associated predators and parasites that have evolved with them. There are a few generalists such as spiders and birds which may take a few individuals, but there are few other threats to the Ivy bee and this may well play a part in the speed of their spread. The Ivy bee doesn’t tend to fly in temperatures below about 14 degrees centigrade and so global warming may be a contributing factor to their rapid distribution too. The speed with which they have colonised the UK to date has been astonishingly fast with latest records showing they have reached North Wales. The nice thing about the Ivy bee though, is that while an invasion like this in other species might be a little concerning, there is no evidence that they are anything but good – they don’t harm anything or fill any niche that might out compete other native species – they are a welcome addition to our British wildlife.

The Bees Wasps and Ants Recording Society are mapping their progress across the country and there are very few records on the map, so being able to contribute to the data they are collecting is quite exciting, particularly as I don’t tend to do much in the way of biological recording and really think I ought to do more – what better way to kick start my recording!?

This encounter got me thinking too though. The weather has been unseasonably warm so far this month and along with the glorious little Ivy Bee were a whole host of other invertebrates making the most of the late nectar source. Two species of butterfly (Red Admiral and Comma) were drinking in the sun as well as the nectar, while at least 3 species of hoverfly joined wasps and honey bees and even a lone bumblebee on the little green blooms. I found myself wondering how much scent plays a part in advertising the blossom to potential pollinators, as it was really quite strong and I knew it was flowering long before I reached the plant. One of the reasons it is so important as a source of nectar is that Ivy has a long flowering season of 2-3 months from September into November, with each umbel of flowers lasting longer by flowering from the outside inwards and providing a constant source of nectar.

It isn’t just the flowers that are vital for wildlife though, later on the berries become another food source for many hedgerow birds such as woodpigeon and thrushes including some of our winter visitors like Redwing and Fieldfare. The berries are less conspicuous than many being bluish-black in colour. Nevertheless they are highly nutritious, with the pith being particularly calorific, and by eating the berries the birds do the plant a favour too as the seeds will pass through unharmed and be spread elsewhere with a generous helping of fertiliser to boot. Indeed, as many as 70 species of insect have been recorded nectaring on the flowers and up to 16 species of bird use the berries as a food source, while deer are known to browse on the leaves in winter. The ivy plant becomes a vital source of shelter in winter too, both for a huge variety of insects including favourites like ladybirds and for birds, particularly if it is a thick covering as the overlapping leaves provide a barrier against the weather and help to trap warmer air pockets.

Many people believe that Ivy will strangle and kill a tree once it gets a grip. There is much debate over this, though the general consensus is that this is not the case. There is naturally competition between the tree and the ivy for nutrients, water and light, the latter of which may well be the reason that the ivy climbs the tree in the first place. In smaller trees the ivy can become so prolific as to topple them over, but there is little evidence to say that the Ivy will kill a healthy tree otherwise. And so to the gardeners out there, if you want to improve your garden for wildlife, Ivy must be a serious consideration. It is an attractive climbing plant which will cope with little intervention but it is also invaluable to a great number of species, the Ivy Bee included.

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Slow down & connect with nature

Ivy Bee bliss, an encounter that left me buzzing