Adapting to the Cold

The Fieldfare that hung around in the garden during the recent snowfall appears to finally have parted ways, allowing other birds, such as this female Blackcap, to get their share of the apples...

 

In recent winters, both male and female Blackcap have turned up in the garden on odd occasions, mainly during very cold weather. Blackcaps are one of the few warblers- along with the Chiffchaff- to be able to hold a sustainable wintering population in Britain, partly owing to their ability to widen their diet during hard times- when insects may not be so easy to find. Whilst the apples have provided the main attraction in the past few weeks, this female Blackcap has also become a pro at cracking open sunflower seeds from the seed feeder, and even hanging acrobatically from the fatballs!