Garden Photo Shoot

A Photographer's Yearbook of Garden Wildlife

This inspiring book shows that, with sympathetic management, wildlife can be enhanced and will thrive in any English suburban garden. If Thurlbourn has done nothing else, he surely reveals to us another world, one that many of us are hardly aware of. This book, with over 200 colour photos, will delight all those who wish to 'stand and stare' and explore such rich biodiversity.

Birds...  The Long-tailed Tits visit my garden in late November; they usually come in the early morning and about an hour before sunset. I get flocks of up to a dozen birds. They feed on the fat balls and their favourite peanut feeder; however, I have never seen them on the sunflower feeder. They stay until the end of April and then I don't see them again until late November...

Mammals  This little hedgehog has visited the garden nearly every night during September and October the year after I moved here. I would like to think it was the same one but I don't really know. It's surprising how quickly it moves as it searches for food all round the patio. You never know where it will turn up next. I leave it some dog food and water which it seems to enjoy...

Butterflies and Moths... Once the Buddleia is in bloom (July-August), the Small Tortoiseshell is a regular visitor. According to my field guide, the species is on the wing from March to October. I have not seen it in my garden before July. The caterpillars live on the nettles....  The Magpie moth flies from July to August. I have only seen this moth in my garden on one occasion. A common and widespread moth: it flies from July to August.

More insects and spiders... The Large Red Damselfly is the first damselfly seen around my pond. It appears in early May and flies to late August... Seven-spot Ladybird. I need a lot of these in my garden as I get a lot of greenfly. I found its larva on a rose; it's the first time I had ever seen one.... There are many species of bee in my garden. One is the White-tailed Bumble Bee (note the long tongue to probe for nectar)… The insect pictured is a female Common Earwig. The pincer-like cerci at the tail end are more curved in the male... The European Garden Spider is the most common spider in my garden. This orb web spider will wait at the centre of its web, facing down, for an insect to be trapped, then will bite and paralyse it. She will then wrap it in silk and inject it with enzymes to turn its body tissues into a liquid soup for drinking...

Frogs, Snakes, Slugs and Snails... In addition to frogs and the said snake, my garden also boasts a variety of beautiful slugs and snails.

My grandchildren love this book. As soon as they spot a small creature in my garden, they rush in to get it so they can find out what it is. -- Prof. R. Perry, Harpenden.

An excellent little book. Keep it handy in your garden. - P. Bailey