Things to look out for in the garden - January

The one thing you don't want to see in, or around, your garden in January is the Sika deer. Sika deer have a reddish brown coat, with white spots in summer, a short white tail and a white rump. The male has four-pointed antlers, which are shed in April or May. These Japanese imports have begun to establish colonies in the New Forest, Scotland and Dorset. Although Sika generally feed at night, they can occasionally be seen feeding in undisturbed areas at almost any time of the day. As a rule one would expect to see these twilight-preferring animals in the last two hours of daylight or during the first hour after dawn, on their way to and from their feeding grounds. In Japan they are sacred but here they are becoming an increasing nuisance if they cross gardens on their way to feeding sites, as they are capable of stripping trees and plants of all growth in a very few minutes. Fortunately they prefer isolated areas and unless you are very unlucky, you are only likely to catch a glimpse of them as they pass your garden at dusk.

Greenfinches are more welcome visitors to our gardens and the RSPB birdwatch has found that greenfinch sightings in January have increased, suggesting a population increase of around 60% in the past thirty years. This may be because more of us are putting out the kind of food that really appeals to them, sunflower seeds in particular. Alongside the greenfinch with its green plumage and bright yellow stripe along the wing, you may see the long tailed tit, a pretty bird with a rounded mouse-like shape balanced with a long tail. The colour is generally a dusty or pinkish white, with a black head and central line to the back and a long black tail. Blue-tits also spend more time in the garden now, and they are unmistakable, with their blue backs, black eye stripes and yellow under-parts.

Garden January bluetit photograph by plumbum, used under a creative commons attribution licence.

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