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Country Matters 7th December 2002
There have been several notable wildlife reports from around the parish.Andrew Goodey reports Common Crossbills flying over his house on five occasions in August. These are probably part of the large irruption of Crossbills from the continent this year, which is usually caused by the failure of the pine cone seed crop on which they feed.
Andrew also reports two Speckled Wood butterflies in his garden. This butterfly has been rapidly increasing its range throughout the country and has become very common in most deciduous woods in the area. Like Andrew we have had visits from this butterfly in our garden and I imagine it is expanding from its normal habitat looking for fresh territories. The most amazing report is one from Alan Spooner of a Jack Snipe feeding under his garden hedge. For non birders I should explain that this is a bird to see, I have only seen it on a few occasions though I do know one site in the parish that has a regular visit most years. It breeds in bogs in Northern Europe and when seen in this country is on passage to its wintering grounds in Southern Europe. It is a skulking bird usually very difficult to find but usually found near water, not in gardens.
We have a Mistle Thrush in the garden that has taken control of most of our holly bushes. It drives all the other berry eating birds away. It has been shown that Mistle Thrushes that can control a food supply will breed earlier and will be much more successful in fledging young. At least it has ensured that we still had holly berries left for Christmas.
There have been many reports of the other Northern European thrushes the Fieldfares and Redwings flying over during November, certainly you will have heard them. For the second year running we have had a Green Sandpiper on the lagoon near the house.
Ray, the parish groundsman found a dead male slow worm that was missing its tail This was near the footpath from New Road across the Flitch Way to the Elms estate. On dissection its body was found to be 26.2cm (10.5ins) long. As the tail is always greater than the length of the body it must have been at least 52.4 cm (21ins) long when complete. It would have been a very large specimen when alive. I have not heard of any other records of slow worms in Rayne for a very long time though Ray reported what he thought were two grass snakes when he was mowing along New Road two years ago. He now considers these may have been slow worms.
Harold Giles reported seeing a fox and a badger together on the grass verge at Duckend Green one evening in November.
I was photographing a Sparrow Hawk in our garden recently and out of a nearby large Leylandii tree a Little Owl flew and physically knocked the Sparrow Hawk from its perch. It was not going to have any hawk sitting near its daytime roost, unfortunately I committed the ultimate sin for a photographer and had taken my finger off the remote release. That’s my excuse for missing what may have been an interesting picture. We do see the Little Owl most mornings at first light as it sits in the open before flying to roost. It also calls at night and during the day probably to attract a mate.
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