This wet and comparatively cold summer has caused problems with wildlife and particularly with birds and insects. The dearth of butterflies has been noticed by many people and it will be interesting see what the UK Butterfly Count in late July/Aug will reveal. The lack of butterflies is a reflection of the lack of insects in general and there is a direct link to this and the birds that feed on them. Unfortunately, it is not only these birds that have suffered but also many other birds, particularly the smaller ones that rely on a mixture of insects and seed. Many people have reported finding dead birds in their gardens such as siskins, that seem particularly badly hit this summer, and even goldfinches. Small birds are still flocking in almost unprecedented numbers to garden feeders whereas they should be getting food for the surrounding countryside.
The trouble with siskins is that they rely on the seed from cones on various conifers. If the weather is warm then the cones will open up and reveal the often copious seeds that the siskins readily take. This year the cones have remained tightly closed so the siskins have had to look elsewhere. A good substitute is the nyjer seeds now put out in garden feeders by many people. Even as I write there are two feeders hung from an ash tree one above the other with one filled with nyjer and the other with peanuts. The nyjer is preferred and on the one feeder, just three or four feet from where I write, there are ten siskins, males females and juveniles birds of the year. A welcome sight for me but very worrying for the birds. The rain has not helped as although the birds’ feathers make them waterproof they can only take so much. It is a good idea to put such feeders under some shelter from the rain although this is often overlooked, as I have done in the past.
The birds that have been suffering even more are those that feed almost entirely on insects and this includes those species that are very much tied these days to our houses and outhouses. One is the swallow and at one nest I looked at the adult birds were coming in with insects every minute or so. Admittedly the young birds in the nest were well feathered and peering over the top but it seemed to be a case of bringing in a few insects as fast as the parents could. With swallows both the adult male and female bring food to the young birds. The photograph is of swallows that already made it this year and the adult bird is a female that has much shorter tail streamers than the male. As for the birds still in the nest it looked as though they might fly shortly. However, if the birds are late and the poor weather continues the adults may even abandon the nest and young. This seems cruel but it means the adults can at least breed again when the weather is better although that now means next year. The other bird that now relies on houses is the house martin although it does seem that they have already managed to get one brood off this year. Their attempts at a second brood appear to be fated as any with young still in the nest are facing an uphill struggle to find enough food with the current poor weather.