Phil and Andy the village groundsmen found a dead ringed male swallow in the barn where their equipment was stored on the 29th May.  The BTO report showed it had been rung on 24th June 2007 at Littley Green and was one of three in the brood.  It is sad that having successfully survived the long migration flight to South Africa and back it should have died 8km from where it fledged without apparently producing any offspring.
Andy Goodey reported a large number of plants of Ragged Robin which were flowering in Oak Meadow that the Parish Council recently tried to purchase for the village.  This is an uncommon plant in Essex and I know of only one other site in the Parish.
Ken Turner found the badgers have excavated a large hole by a 12ins drain near Pods Brook.  In the past they have used the drain as a sett but the recent wet weather has probably forced them to do some digging themselves to get a drier home.

Jim Gepp found a Honey Bee's nest in the meadow opposite the Cock pub.  Both wild and farmed Honey Bees have suffered a dramatic decline due to various viruses, Varroa Mite and a new problem called Colony Collapse Disorder.  This has lead to one third of farmed bee colonies dying and though there are no figures the wild population has also suffered.  The problems also appear to be worldwide and threaten the pollination of a very wide range of plants.
Pauline Turner found Ladies Bedstraw flowing in the hay meadow to the north of Shalford Road.
Sheila Buxton, Philips Close has a female Great Spotted Woodpecker on her peanut feeder. This species and the Green Woodpecker have become common visitors to many gardens in the Parish. Both were uncommon when I was a youngster.
Sheila Marsden saw a fox one morning hunting a freshly cut field.  At this time of the year there are many sightings of foxes, they are usually juveniles still learning their hunting skills and having to hunt during the day to find enough food.

Richard Eley, Leyside has had several sightings of Buzzards and often pairs in the north of the Parish this summer.  Richard reports that they were often noisy and suspects they may have nested in the area.  He also had one sighting of a Red Kite in the same area.  Less good news he also had good views of a North American Mink sunning itself by the River Pant at Shalford.  Like many people in Rayne he regrets not having had a sighting of one of our many badgers.  As there are probably well over 100 adult badgers in the Parish and only 2,300 residents one would expect to meet them regularly.  When you do see them you realise how well camouflaged they are, their distinctive face markings are usually hidden as they sniff along the ground for worms and other tasty morsels.  They have certainly cleared up the fallen plums in our orchard.

Sue Dawson with her daughter saw what she thought was an Adder by Pods Brook.  The County Recorder has no records of Adders in this part of the county though I have had a report of one on the rifle range at Great Saling.
Amanda Chittock found a Death's Head Hawk-moth caterpillar on a clematis at Pound Cottage, Shalford Road.  This caterpillar was 10cm long, the largest I have seen in the wild in this country.  The adult moth is a migrant that flies from the continent in small numbers each year.  It is the largest moth found in the UK with a wingspan of 12 to 13cm and has a very realistic image of a skull on its thorax.  Unfortunately the caterpillar pupates for only 4 to 6 weeks so the emerging moth cannot survive the winter.  Paul Dawson Amanda's brother is going to try and keep the caterpillar till it pupates and hatches into the spectacular moth.  The moth can raid honey bee nests for nutrient and gives out an audible squeak which is said to discourage the bees from stinging it.  This is the first recorded specimen of this moth found in the parish.

I have had several reports this year of sightings of Red Squirrels.  I apologise for being sceptical as there have been no wild Reds in Essex for many years.  Grey Squirrels can have considerable red/brown colourations to their coat but the true Red is much smaller, has a complete red/brown colouration and in winter has the distinctive ear tufts.  It is always possible that there has been an escape so if you see a suspected Red please let me know.  We have just returned from the Scottish Highlands and were told the sad tale of a misguided person who hand reared a baby Grey Squirrel that had fallen from a dray in England and had then released it near her home in the Highlands.  The first signs of problems were when dead Red Squirrels were found in the area probably having died from the pox virus carried by the Grey.  The story shows how precarious the future survival of the Red is in the UK.  We also stopped at a site in Northumbria which used to feed their Red Squirrels.  Unfortunately the Greys have now arrived and they have found 4 dead Reds.  They were keen for any reports of Red sightings which indicates it is probably already too late to save their Reds.

I have left to last one piece of good news.  I built into one of our barns a large Barn Owl nesting box about 15 years ago.  This has had no visitors till this year when a Kestrel was seen sitting in the entrance.  As I have already reported a pair of Barn Owls then laid two eggs one of which hatched.  I looked again recently and there was a baby owl probably only days from fledging.  An owl has recently been seen sitting on a pole near the box.  I just hope that the youngster will be able to find enough food to survive the winter.

Roger Jiggins Tel. 01376 324 311, email mailto:r.jiggins@btconnect.com  (please put Wildlife as the subject)