HOMEMADE BIRDCAKE AND FEEDER

What do I need:

Bird seed, raisins, finely chopped apple, grated cheese, suet or lard, peanuts (use the nuts especially for birds only), large mixing bowl, wooden spoon, old yoghurt pot (with a small hole cut in the bottom) and string.

Making the bird feeder:

Make a small hole in the bottom of the yoghurt pot with something sharp (ask an adult to do this). Put the string through the hole and tie a knot in it. Leave enough string to tie to the bird table or branch of a tree.

Making the bird cake:

Soften the lard or suet by putting it in the microwave or leaving it at room temperature until soft enough to cut up into pieces. Put the raisins, apple, cheese, peanuts (Leave out if the child has a nut allergy) into the bowl with the pieces of lard or suet and mix well with the spoon or using your hands until the fat holds the mixture together. Put it into the yoghurt pot and put in the fridge to harden for about an hour. Then tip upside down and tie the string to the bird table or branch of a tree and sit back and watch the birds enjoy their special treat.

Extra Tips for looking after the birds in winter:

As well as putting your special bird feeder out, put out nuts, seeds and grease balls in feeders or on a bird table. Put water out in a container or in a bird bath and remember to break the ice so that the birds can still drink or bathe in the water.

Always put bird food and water away from cats or other animals that might catch birds.

If you have a nest box clean out the old nesting material and put some hay at the bottom as some small birds will use them for roosting during the winter.

December Nature Diary




Well it is the last month of the year and with Christmas around the corner, I thought you might like to know a little more about nature that is linked with the festive season.
The most well known bird seen on Christmas cards is the Robin. This beautiful bird with it's red breast is one of the few birds that sing at this time of year. Both the males and the females are defending their territories. The Robin is also can be very tame in winter but usually because you are digging up their favourite worms in the garden!! Something else that is also red and you see around Christmas is the red berries of the female Holly tree. This is a very important food for birds and small mammals. Of course you see Holly used in table decorations and in wreaths on front doors. Another popular plant that is also used for decorations is Ivy. This plant has two types of leaves, the highly lobed leaves and the larger simple leaves on the flowering stem.

Most Christmas trees are Norway Spruce, a conifer introduced by the Victorians to Britain.
Mistletoe is a plant with white berries that is found on fruit trees like apple and lime trees. This parasitic plant is associated with stealing a kiss from someone you love!! The white berries are loved by Mistle Thrushes. The birds also drops the seeds and helps this plant to spread.

When you are enjoying all the nice food at Christmas, don't forget the birds. In fact throughout winter it is very important to keep the feeders full of nuts, seed and fat balls. Why don't you try the home made recipe and home made feeder on this website. Don't forget as well to clean out your nest boxes as some small birds will roost in there over winter.
Other birds like goldfinches can be seen flocking to the teasels to eat the seeds. Tawny owls can be heard at night calling with the familiar 'tu-wit-tu-who'. Did you know that both the male and the female make this well known call?

Of course, while some birds migrate to warmer climates for winter, we have thrushes that come over from colder places to Britain because it is warmer! Look out for Redwing, the smallest thrush with red beneath their wings. Another winter visitor is the Fieldfare, smaller than our Mistle Thrush but larger than our Song Thrush and Redwing with a grey head and rump, chestnut back and almost black tail.

Most small mammals are not very active during extreme cold weather. Some will take extra food into their holes and eat that when the weather is freezing. Shrews eat insects, worms,spiders, slugs, frogs, voles and small mice but need to eat every two to three hours to stay alive. This means that a shrew may starve if it finds no food for as little as 5 hours. They do not hibernate in the winter months because their bodies are too small to hold sufficient fat reserves.

Look out for the article on hibernation that is coming soon on this website!

Happy Christmas and Happy New Year. See you in 2014!