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Styles & Tips -
Garden Styles & Tips
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24.03.10
March in the garden: Wildlife Detective
So what’s our wildlife up to this month? Frogs and toads have appeared around our ponds and it’s important to give them shelter from predators, the heat and the cold. Let’s face it, so far, this month’s weather has been a little crazy so perhaps you could provide upturned pots near the pond so that they have somewhere to hide.
Seeing tadpoles yet?
Did you know that eggs are laid that hatch into small tadpoles? Tadpoles feed on algae and plants and they first grow hind limbs followed soon after by front limbs. The tail then disappears and lungs replace the gills. And voila! A frog is born! Check out this wonderful photograph from Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, thanks to Natalie Rogers!
Other wildlife to look out for
The dormice awake as soon as the temperature gets to 6 degrees. Emerging from hibernation, after this long winter, they will start looking for food and a mate.
Bumble bees are looking for new homes, so ensure you have some logs and leaves piles around to help them a bit.
If you are lucky enough to live near the sea, the Great Crested Grebes are performing mating dances at this time of year and the pikes are spawning in the rivers.
And finally the pheasants have reappeared, fighting it out for the love of one female! We found these two outside the office, prancing and showing off their plummage.
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