Hello Acorn Club Members!
Spring is finally here! It is getting warmer. As I walk around Kelling Heath everything seems to be greening up, plants on the woodland floor have suddenly grown and the trees are coming into leaf. I have seen a few bluebells out, I should think that by the May Day weekend there should be lots of them down at the bottom of the slope near the railway.
The birds seem to be busy, singing lots, quite a few will have begun to build nests. Quite a tricky task weaving twigs, grass, moss and many other things to make a good strong nest - all with just a beak! It is very important the nests are built well, they have to keep the eggs, and later the chicks, safe and warm and away from predators. Different birds use diffferent methods to make their nests.
- Long tailed tits use spiders webs to stick lichen and mosses together to make a very soft and stretchy nest!
- Swallows just use mud to build theirs under the eaves of houses, adding a beak full of mud at a time.
- Kingfishers dig tunnels into high river banks and cliffs.
- Blue tits and Great tits make their nests in holes in old trees, though they love bird boxes too!
- Tree creepers make their nests under tree bark that has lifted on old trees.
- Cuckoos don't build nests at all, they lay their eggs in other birds nests, these birds then feed and look after the chicks when they hatch!
We hope you enjoy this spring. Keep an eye out for birds carrying nesting material around. In a few weeks you will probably see them carrying beaks full of food to feed their chicks!
We look forward to seeing you in the summer for more pond dippping, bug hunts, fun and games.
Don't forget to enter our competition!
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