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Yep, prob a stag beetle as others have said - I've got them flying around at dusk, since Friday.

They only last a few weeks, are rare (apart from south east), harmless and a fabulous sight. I had a friend over on Friday who lives in north London and he said he'd never seen one before.

Something is making holes in my garden and I can't work out what it is. The holes are about 2-3 inches across, maybe 5-6 inches deep, with veritcal sides and no earth displaced as far as I can see.


Is it foxes digging for worms? Or is one of my neighbours practising with a pogo stick?

I?m pretty certain I saw a pair of blackcaps in the garden yesterday. There was definitely some crazy birdsong. Has anyone else seen blackcaps in ED? It was a pale grey with a black head, the other I couldn?t see clearly and had a sort of uppy-downy song. They were in a tree flitting around and then both flew off. If not blackcaps any suggestions.

Paulo Wrote:

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> Blimey, a juvenile sparrowhawk just swooped down

> onto our garden fence and took out one of the

> local gang of noisy sparrows - they've gone very

> quiet just now.....



This may well explain why a few days ago my garden was full of extremely agitated sparrows flying round and round.


I did think it was rather strange.


I saw a bird of prey recently on the allotments next to Camber Tennis Club on the South Circular - maybe the same one?


I used to get loads of starlings in my garden, and some years back a raptor took one of them off. I've never seen a starling in my garden since :(

Sue Wrote:

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> I used to get loads of starlings in my garden, and

> some years back a raptor took one of them off.

> I've never seen a starling in my garden since :(


It's more likely that this is a reflection of the steep decrease in starling numbers in the southeast over the last twenty years or so. The cause isn't clear.

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