April 2025

Waking up in Uckfield recently, at soon after 06:00 h., my first sound has been the song thrush (Turdus merula) singing its variable sequences of repetitive notes high in a local mature tree. This snail-eating specialist became scarce in England in recent years, but currently, appears to be making a comeback. The garden includes several mature trees, various shrubs, climbers such as ivy (Hedra helix), honeysuckle (Lonicera spp.), wisteria (Wisteria floribunda), flower beds including roses (Rosa spp.), plus a garden pond, there is always something to observe or listen to. E.g., our woodpigeons (Columba livia) love ivy berries, and sometimes hang upside down when trying to pick them.

This morning, I saw a large red fox (Vulpes vulpes) hunting the many common frogs (Rana temporaria) that recently laid litres of spawn in our pond. Here we have a wonderful example of a food chain. Each frog was probably a tadpole in that pond several years ago. The tadpoles would have fed on algae and detritus in the pond, then, becoming frogs, spend years feeding on invertebrates in the garden, many of which could be undesirable (to a gardener) such as aphids (super-family Aphidoidea) that damage roses and other plants. The fox then feeds on the frogs and would be considered a top predator, as not many animals hunt and eat foxes. However, this fox was finding the frogs very difficult to catch. The foxes would also eat any brown rats (Rattus norvegicus) that they encounter and catch. In modern communities, we are told that we are always within a few metres of a brown rat. I like seeing our local foxes, badgers, and the deer that share our communities. I’m also a keen birdwatcher and listen to the spring dawn chorus and watch courtship behaviour at this time of the year. When the natural world is in balance it is a truly stable and beautiful place to be. When I was a budding ecologist, someone told me that “some have to die for others to live”. Almost everything we eat is part of, or was a complete living organism once. This may seem brutal, but without eating other organisms, nothing can live. I particularly enjoy a large plump lettuce (Lactuca sativa), chopped, and dressed with a vinaigrette made with 2 tablespoons of olive (Olea europaea) oil, a teaspoon of honey and one tablespoon of cider vinegar, plus a little sea salt and pepper (Piper nigrum). I also enjoy salmon (Salmo salar) and occasional red meat. Every animal will enjoy its food, and those organisms not eaten will survive to make more new copies of themselves. That’s life. Most animals will only take what they need. Lions often drink at the same waterhole as antelope, that they would at other times hunt. My fox soon gave up trying to catch the frogs, even though there were about 20 of them in the pond. Most organisms eaten tend to be the ones least able to defend themselves. This leads to the refined balance we see in nature. This includes sheep (Ovis aries). Sheep prefer the soft fine grass to eat, such as sheep’s fescue (Festuca ovina). They also hunt and eat snails! Including the hairy snail (Trochulus hispidus).