#30DaysWild Week 4

And so we come to the end of the sixth month of the year. Although ’30 Days Wild’ is now technically over, I fully intend to continue observing, recording, drawing and enjoying the wildlife around me 😊

Here’s what I got up to during the last 9 days of June…

Monday 22nd June – I had the day off work which was a huge bonus. On a local walk, my partner and I saw a green woodpecker hopping about in the grass. We’ve seen about 3 of these in the last few weeks in different places around the village (I suppose it could be the same one?)

Tuesday 23rd June – I went out into the garden and was very pleased to see that the pansies in the hanging basket are still on’t go (that’s Yorkshire for ‘still alive!’) I never know whether I’m watering them too little or too much. Neither is good!

Wednesday 24th June – I had fully intended to try and create something that some form of wildlife could make use of during ’30 Days Wild’. And this hoverfly lagoon in my magazine looked like a perfect candidate. My main concern, though – what about how windy it’s been? Surely the ‘hotel’ would just topple over? Maybe this can be a July project instead…

Thursday 25th June – It was so nice and warm that, as soon as I finished work I went outside to draw in the garden. We also had our tea outside and watched all of the birds scurrying around. The noisiest is definitely the wood pigeon – it gets spooked so easily that it’s always catapulting itself from fence to fence!!!

Friday 26th June – I reminisced about my time in Norfolk earlier in the year by drawing a bearded tit in a similar style to the green woodpecker. We got a fleeting glimpse of this beautiful bird at Hickling Broad pre-lockdown.

Saturday 27th June – We spent the entire day painting our bedroom and, to be honest, it was a good use of time because it was absolutely chucking it down all day. I’m not sure whether this really counts as an ‘act of random wildness’ but waking up in the middle of the night and listening to the awesome power of the rain was certainly memorable!

Sunday 28th June – I learnt a lot about a variety of animals today from another article in my magazine. Did you know, for example, that pigeons can be trained to distinguish between different types of art? Or that rats (rather cruelly) have been known to sacrifice food in order to spare a fellow rat from an electric shock?

Monday 29th June – I looked out of the window during a break and saw two collared doves perched together on the fence. We don’t see collared doves in our garden as often as starlings, blackbirds, sparrows and wood pigeons so this was quite a treat!

Tuesday 30th June – To bring ’30 Days Wild’ to an end, I spent a couple of hours after work making a very special card. I volunteer with a project called Big Brothers Big Sisters and I can’t see my ‘little sister’ at the moment. So, instead, I’ve been sending her cards and these have been themed around different awareness days. On 29th July, it’s International Tiger Day so that’s the theme of this one!

And that’s that – thank you so much for following my #30DaysWild throughout June! For ideas about what you can do to enjoy nature, I’d definitely encourage you to check out the Wildlife Trusts’ website! 😊