March coincides with the Church’s observance of Lent, a period of repentance and penitence. Jesus himself was the model for the Lent period. Following his baptism he was ‘led by the Spirit’ into the wilderness and emerged 40 days later ‘in the power of the Spirit’. The Church of England has produced a series of devotional readings and prayers using the Beatitudes from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. They offer timeless teaching of spiritual rebirth with the ultimate promise and hope of sharing in Jesus’ resurrection.
Access to the garden has been restricted in March for various reasons and so it has been a joy in recent days to get back to see what I have been missing, particularly now that the storms appear to have passed and temperatures are slowly increasing.
Spring has arrived and the number of daylight hours now exceed the hours of darkness. The bird population that has survived the winter will now begin the process of renewal and rebirth. Insects are reappearing. Blossom and green shoots are bursting into life.
Bee collecting pollen 
Honey bee
In the garden two themes are apparent: nesting activity and birdsong.
Nesting
A few years ago we put up a nest box in the garden. Its never been used. I saw a blue tit inspecting it the other morning, but it must have found a better site, as it has not returned. To be fair the location isn’t brilliant. Its close to a feeding station, but it lacks privacy and security from squirrels, cats and other threats.
Whilst I have yet to see any evidence of birds actually nesting in the garden, there have been plenty of birds collecting nesting material.
Birdsong
Blackbird “Billy” in song 
Dunnock perched prominently in song
The dawn chorus starts at 5.30 am. Robins, blackbirds, dunnocks and pigeons are clearly discernible. Throughout the day birdsong in the garden will rise and fall as the birds come and go.
Female sparrow 
Male sparrow
In recent days the sparrow population has been particularly vocal.
The starlings click, whistle and squawk at each other and then descend on the feeding station, hoovering up the meal worm as fast as it is put out.
New visitors
I have seen a wren on a number of occasions and actually managed to capture a few images this month.
Despite the wren being one of the UK’s most numerous birds (see UK population table below), my experience is that it is quite secretive and normally scuttles away into the undergrowth.
The siskin, male and female, has been a constant visitor, but difficult to spot as it usually ‘hides’ among a group or charm of other finches.
Goldfinches are regular visitors to neighbouring gardens, but despite putting out seed specifically for finches they seem very wary of hopping over the fence. Maybe they can sense the presence of our cat – not that he’s ever caught anything bigger than a fly.
A very distinctive bird, but quite restless, the coal tit is constantly on the move.
Slightly smaller and sleeker than a wood pigeon…
Population – UK
The table below lists a few of the birds observed in the garden, showing their UK population and an indication of the trend, i.e. increasing or decreasing.
| Siskin | 420,000 pairs | increasing |
| Goldfinch | 1,200,000 territories | Increasing considerably |
| Chaffinch | 6,200,000 pairs | Increasing slowly |
| Sparrow | 5,300,000 | Declined by 64% since 1969 |
| Great tit | 2,600,000 | Moderate increase over 40 years |
| Blue tit | 3,600,000 | Modest increase recently |
| Coal tit | 760,000 | No overall trend |
| Long tailed tit | 340,000 | Modest increase in recent years |
| Goldcrest | 610,000 | Long term trend is slight increase |
| Chiffchaff | 1,200,000 | Increasing in recent years |
| Blackcap | 1,200,000 | Increasing since late 1970s |
| Blackbird | 5,100,000 | 15% decline over 40 years |
| Wren | 8,600,000 territories | Stable population |
| Dunnock | 2,500,000 | Numbers fell (1975-1995), now partially recovered |
| Bullfinch | 220,000 pairs | 40% decline in 25 years |
Source: RSPB Handbook of British Birds (4th Edition) – 2014
Stephen's Wildlife 