Of birds and bees

One of the problems of owning a wood is having to tolerate the occasional unwelcome attention from visitors. Our shed was broken into last week. This is the fourth time over the 12 years of owning our wood that we have been bothered by break-ins and petty theft and I deliberately do not keep any chainsaws or other valuable equipment over there for this very reason - the risk is just too great. This time the padlocks were cut off with a bolt-cutter (someone meant business) and the contents of the various boxes and cupboards inside all rifled through.

A few things were taken - a metal petrol can, a nice old kindling chopper, a long arm pruner and very sadly the brand new and unused pruning saw that was part of my prize from Woodlands.co.uk for this very BLOG. It looks as though the visitor was after chainsaws and other valuables and was unlucky, but the total cost to me of replacing the missing items and putting on new padlocks will be around £120. Another shed in Old Park Wood was raided before Christmas and one of the main gates to the wood was cut open with a chainsaw. There is little that can be done about these incursions short of turning the wood into a version of Fort Knox, so I have to remain philosophical !

The aftermath......

On the plus side, the Marsh Tits are getting very used to me standing by the feeder and I can be quite close to them without causing alarm. They a great little birds and one of my favourites. As their name implies they like damp habitats and sadly as Kent dries out, they are becoming less common, so having a pair in Crow Wood is a real treat.

Marsh Tits are distinctive with their sooty black cap and bib and overall shades of brown, the only bird likely to cause confusion is the very similar Willow Tit, sadly this  not a species to be found in the South East any more.