Today a small group of members went to Attenborough Arboretum to check on the 22 SLB nest boxes and repair and or re-site as necessary. Before then though we undertook a check of the 2 SLB boxes in the churchyard at Blaby All Saints church. This revealed 2 great tit nests one successfully fledged another unsuccessful with several dead young inside.
At Attenborough Arboretum despite the lovely surroundings – this is an arboretum after all – the boxes showed little signs of use with only one, a tit box, confirmed as occupied. There is no shortage of cover and there was no evidence of disturbance to account for the dismal take up of the boxes. The trees are largely native and the boxes were sited on trees such as silver birch, lime, whitebeam, ash and oak.
In the hour we were there we saw and/or heard the following –
Robin, blue tit, great tit, nuthatch, treecreeper, blackbird, mistle thrush, magpie, goldfinch, goldcrest, wren, great spotted woodpecker, bullfinch, chaffinch, jackdaw, long tailed tit – so no shortage of bird life.
Here’s hoping for better results next year ………