Mid-Summer notes...

Little nature journal...inspired by my childhood reading of Gilbert White's famous journal.
Mid- July 

Quite warm, will be hot later, shade keeps things cool at this time. First hot weather this year, more or less. Lots of bumblebees, liking all things purple and pink, sage flower, dahlias,  another purple one whose name escapes me…
Goldfinches, Tits, great, blue and the odd coal... lots of swifts, occasionally three or four of them come screaming down like jet fighters from Star Wars
No summer visitors in this garden this summer, -apart from a Blackcap back in the spring which came to the bird feeder until a female appeared then never saw either again, maybe Muswell Hill just not trendy enough or perhaps not enough native trees and shrubs for our picky summer birds

July 22^nd
Muggy and close last few days, though sun threatening to break through. Garden very quiet and still. Hear the odd goldfinch, there’s a wren floating about and the robin of course always at the seed feeder. Bumble bees numerous, honey bees less so, seem to see more when the sun is out….

Song thrush singing in Highgate wood this morning, extraordinary.

August 15^th
How times flies.
Been some decent weather since last post though no more hot weather usually pleasantly warm, last week was a little autumnal morning and evening though essentially very dry this last month or so…

Birds bit more active, the usual, still no summer visitors- except a warbler, a few times, probably a garden warbler due to its silver silhouette- apart from the the swifts up above though not so much recently. Lots of  bumble bees still, few honey bees, dragonfly couple of times emperor size though maybe a hawker-not being an expert is annoying at times-lots of wasps indicating their work is done or they're looking for food for their grubs…small common wasp, also see a wall mason wasp fairly regularly small and striking.

Beautiful day today, warm sun, clear blue skies, less wind than recently. Robin, goldfinches, dunnock, blackbirds, the woodpigeon which gets good pickings from underneath the seed dispensers so favoured the robin and dunnocks in particular...tits at feeders and long tailed tits (not actually tits in fact-but very endearing) came to feeder briefly. 

Remarked that haven’t seen chaffinches or greenfinches in the seven months since we moved here. Presumably due to the lack of native and mature trees.