Reason for hope
This Spring has been very cool and rainy, clearly having an impact on the insect populations. I have been wondering how troublesome this has been for the m any bird species that change their diet from the winter diets of seeds and grains to one of calorie rich insects, fruit and, later in summer, berries. This is especially necessary when it comes to feeding their chicks whose digestive systems will be geared up to digest caterpillars and insects to fuel their extraordinary growth rates . Blue tit chicks ( poussin Mésange bleue ) have just three weeks to quadruple their size, grow the feathers and...