Inside Hitchin Magazine - March 2021 - Magazine - Page 6
By Rebecca Gibson, volunteer at
Herts & Middlesex Wildlife Trust
Lesser Celandine © Philip Precey
After a dreary winter, pops of colour begin to appear in
parks and gardens up and down the county. Soon after,
the tentative sound of birdsong builds to a dramatic
symphony of voices that eventually peaks in May. Until
then, there are mates to win, nests to build and food to
gather now that spring is nearly here.
Great crested grebes © Andrew Parkinson
Leading the way into spring is the snowdrop, a pretty
white flower with three inner petals called tepals that
hang from its green stem. Its Latin name Galanthus nivalis
translates as “milk flower of the snow”. As snowdrops
are most active during a time when many pollinators are
still dormant, they speed along their own dispersal by
splitting their bulbs, which enable new flowers to grow
and multiply.
Another spring herald to look out for is the beautiful
lesser celandine, a member of the buttercup family.
Similar to daffodils, these bright yellow star-shaped
blooms emerge from February to late April and have
many colourful local names such as golden guineas, butter
and cheese and spring messenger. Lesser celandine open
and close their petals in response to slight changes in
temperature, enabling them to be open during the day and
closed at night. This mechanism, known as nyctinasity, is
thought to be a way of protecting the flowers from pollen
loss, weather damage and predation by slugs.
If you’re up for a stunning performance of “water ballet”,
make sure to visit a lake in early spring where you’ll
witness the extraordinary courtship display from great
crested grebes. During early morning and late evening,
pairs will perform elaborate movements that often begin
with sharp head turns from side to side before they stretch
their long necks back to preen their feathers. They will
duck underwater and reappear beak to beak with their
mate, rising up until they are almost out of the water while
rapidly ruffling their feathers. Sometimes they will offer
a pile of weeds to each other, which they shake left and
right as they tread water. It appears as if the two birds are
in a trance. This display is thought to strengthen the bond
between male and female in preparation for breeding.
for the queens to establish new colonies, which could
eventually reach numbers of up to 400 individuals. After
feeding, a queen searches for a suitable nest site for the
colony. When she has selected a good spot, the queen
constructs a mound made from pollen and secreted wax
from her body to build the nest for her first brood of eggs.
She also stores a small amount of nectar in the nest, so
she can continue to feed while incubating the eggs. After
several days, the eggs hatch into white larvae, which are
fed on pollen and nectar that the queen brings for them
until they eventually grow into adult worker bees.
When nature awakes in spring, it will give you many
Rising spring temperatures awaken queen bumblebees,
who waste no time in finding nectar to boost energy levels exciting spectacles to enjoy. Get started and join Herts and
Middlesex Wildlife Trust on a guided walk in your area.
after using all their reserves in hibernation. It is time
6
Find out more at hertswildlifetrust.org.uk/events
7
