Spring awakening: birds and mammals
Now we're in early summer, Alfie Lovett informs us with what our wildlife, in particular birds and hedgehogs, have been up to in the past couple of months.
Let’s look at the Spring habits of birds. There are many different species of birds which all have various ways of mating and passing on their genes to the next generation, but in this article, I will be focusing on garden birds. After they have mated in late winter, the female looks for a suitable nesting site: this could be a bird box, or a nest made from scratch in a tree, or a sheltered space on the ground, depending on the species. With some species, the male will stay and help rear the chicks until they have fledged, although there are many species where the male will leave the female to do this all by herself. |
There are also some cases, such as with the Robin, where the female will be left to build the nest by herself and incubate the chicks, as well as provide food for them, but the male will help provide the food, too. Birds try to get the time where their eggs have hatched and the time where the most food is available to coincide, which is why most birds breed in spring. Once the eggs the female lays have hatched, usually after a couple of weeks, the chicks will emerge and grow from the food brought to them by their parents, regurgitated into their beaks. In another couple of weeks, the chicks will fledge, and while the female will usually leave the nest, mate again and start her next brood of the spring, the male will continue feeding the chicks for up to three weeks.
Now to have a look at mammals. To cover them generally would be impossible, as they all mate and rear their young differently, so let’s look at one of the nation’s favourite mammals, but also one in desperate need of help, the hedgehog. Hedgehogs are nocturnal creatures which spend their nights snuffling around in search of food, but they spend most of the winter in hibernation, living off their own body fat to avoid being active during the colder months. In April, they will gradually emerge from hibernation and start the search for food, which could see them travelling up to two miles per night. Having satisfied their hunger, they will start to think about mating. The female will give birth to four or five hoglets in May or June, and they will be born precocial, which means they are fully developed and ready to face the world as soon as they are born.
Many garden birds become totally reliant on our bird feeders in the winter, and still use them as a valuable food source in the summer, so putting up some bird feeders can really help the birds, and you may be rewarded for your efforts by being able to watch little fledglings being fed by the parents from your feeders! Hedgehogs are in serious decline in the UK and they are ranked as vulnerable to extinction by conservation experts. You can build a hedgehog feeding station if you want to help the hogs, but there are some simpler things you can do: making a small hole in the bottom of your fence will allow the hedgehogs into your garden, and a small tray of water will quench their thirst, as hedgehogs can struggle to find water. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t see hedgehogs coming into your garden - they are becoming increasingly rare, and they’re nocturnal, so it’s harder to know if they have visited your garden.
Alfie Lovett, Y10
Now to have a look at mammals. To cover them generally would be impossible, as they all mate and rear their young differently, so let’s look at one of the nation’s favourite mammals, but also one in desperate need of help, the hedgehog. Hedgehogs are nocturnal creatures which spend their nights snuffling around in search of food, but they spend most of the winter in hibernation, living off their own body fat to avoid being active during the colder months. In April, they will gradually emerge from hibernation and start the search for food, which could see them travelling up to two miles per night. Having satisfied their hunger, they will start to think about mating. The female will give birth to four or five hoglets in May or June, and they will be born precocial, which means they are fully developed and ready to face the world as soon as they are born.
Many garden birds become totally reliant on our bird feeders in the winter, and still use them as a valuable food source in the summer, so putting up some bird feeders can really help the birds, and you may be rewarded for your efforts by being able to watch little fledglings being fed by the parents from your feeders! Hedgehogs are in serious decline in the UK and they are ranked as vulnerable to extinction by conservation experts. You can build a hedgehog feeding station if you want to help the hogs, but there are some simpler things you can do: making a small hole in the bottom of your fence will allow the hedgehogs into your garden, and a small tray of water will quench their thirst, as hedgehogs can struggle to find water. Don’t be disappointed if you don’t see hedgehogs coming into your garden - they are becoming increasingly rare, and they’re nocturnal, so it’s harder to know if they have visited your garden.
Alfie Lovett, Y10