Here are two familiar birds: Mallard and Magpie. A duck might seem incongruent in a village like ours, but there are plenty of ponds around Bredfield that will serve as suitable breeding locations for Mallards. It’s a heart-warming and a not too usual sight to see a mother with her seven-or-eight ducklings parading around the village. […]
A cold winter’s day and the prospect of trudging through Suffolk’s claggy clay doesn’t appeal. Don’t fear, we can still engage with nature through reading one of the many nature books that are available.. Nature writing has never been more poplar and there is a wealth of excellent nature books in print. Allow me to […]
In this feature article we’re going to look at thorns: their religious interpretation; their dangers; their use; their place in nature; and their biology. I should warn you; thorns are a ‘thorny’ subject! If you’ve been outdoors recently – trimming Rose bushes, or walking too close to a Blackthorn bush – you may have been scratched or […]
Bredfield lacks woodland, but it doesn’t lack trees. We have woodland on the margins of the parish – Ufford Thicks and Dallinghoo Wood – but none wholly within the parish boundary. Our trees grow along the side of roads, by ditches, in isolated copses and in gardens. In this article, we are going to take […]
The Starling is a familiar bird, full of character. Prior to 2000, the Starling was always amongst the top birds listed in the annual RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch. Since that date, it has slipped down the list each successive year. On agricultural land, the Starling has declined even more and it is now a red-listed, […]
Here’s a rhetorical question. Bredfield Jubilee Meadow and Orchard is a County Wildlife Site, so why isn’t it just left to grow wild? What’s with all this mowing, strimming and hedge-trimming that is happening? To answer this question fully, we have to begin a long, long time ago. There is a myth that Britain was once fully […]
Leaf-cutter Bees belong to the Megachile family of bees and there are eight species in Britain. The three Leaf-cutter Bees that you might see in Bredfield are: Patchwork (Megachile centuncularis), Brown-footed (Megachile versicolor) and Willughby’s (Megachile willughbiella). Leaf-cutter bees do not have pollen sacs on their hind legs, as many other bees do. Rather, they […]
I remember as a child, and perhaps you remember too, holding a buttercup under another child’s chin and asking “do you like butter?” If a yellow glow appeared there, they did like butter. I recall that on sunny days everyone liked butter! Buttercup’s yellow petals have a waxy, reflective surface, designed not for children’s games, but to attract […]
It is usually considered that there are three species of deer native to Britain: Red, Fallow and Roe. It is true that prehistoric fossil remains of all three of these deer species have been found in Britain. However, all three species became largely or wholly extinct in these isles, at various times. Their numbers have been […]
During the winter, creatures have been sleeping in your garden, unseen. They will soon awaken. Don’t worry, they are friends! They are Ladybirds. Ladybirds are a family (Coccinellidae) of beetles. During the colder months, ladybirds are dormant. They hide away in places like leaf-litter, the hollow stems of plants, crevices in tree bark, the soil, […]
