IT’S been quite an honour to have these two birds grace the garden this week.
Dúlra has written about them many times – perhaps more than any other bird – because there’s something about the bullfinch that makes it truly special.
Not only is it exquisite, it’s a demure and confident bird, one that knows its place. And that place is the Irish hedgerow.
Dúlra doesn’t have a hedgerow worth talking about in his garden, but he does have a spindly tree that self-seeded a dozen years back and is starting to sprout tall in the rose bed. Dúlra never paid it much notice, its position in the rose bed meant that its future was limited to say the least. The tree will soon cast a shadow over those roses – and Mrs Dúlra couldn’t have that!
But then at the start of the week these two beautiful birds appeared on it. And so talk of the cherry tree's demise has been put on hold...
Bullfinches are no longer common, if they ever were. But each hedgerow used to boast a pair, until hedgerows got in the way of agriculture.
These birds pair for life and have a domain all to themselves – maybe 20 yards of hedges. There they will spend their whole lives, gobbling up the larder that the vast variety of plants and trees supply throughout the year.
As winter draws to a close, however, they are at their most vulnerable, as all but the toughest seeds have all been eaten. Then they’ll be forced to have a go at almost inedible fruit like rose hips and ash keys. It’s a bit like being forced to eat hard heels of bread!
But then, suddenly, the season turns once more, as it did on Sunday. It was like someone had flicked a switch, turning off winter and turning on spring. The sun appeared for the first time in what seemed like six months and it wasn’t just the wildlife that enjoyed it – the whole population of Belfast seemed to be reaching for their shorts and T-shirts once more.
Most trees are too wise to allow themselves to be tempted by a single day of heat, they’ve learned the hard way over millennia after the foolhardy ones paid the ultimate price. They have an internal timing mechanism that tells them when to start growing again, and for most Irish trees that’s probably still some weeks or even months away.
But the wee garden cherry tree burst into bloom as soon as the first rays of spring hit. Those white flowers appeared – but it wasn't them that attracted the bullfinches, but the tender green leaf buds.
And that's why bullfinches aren’t much liked by orchard owners – they’re not a very popular bird in Armagh because they can strip trees in a matter of days.
Dúlra watched the two birds in the garden – the bright red male and his duller but no less pretty mate – as they systematically went from branch to branch, happily munching on each new bud. For three whole days – and counting.
Mrs Dúlra has nothing to worry about – that tree won’t grow this year!
Bullfinches – corcán coille in Irish or Wee Scarlet One of the Woods – are truly endearing, no matter how much damage they do. They don’t cause a fuss, they don’t fight with other birds or screech or even twitter. They just sit in one place and eat and when that food is gone, they hop on to the next tree and repeat the process.
It means that, with vegetation still sparse, Dúlra was able to watch them from the window all week; usually you’d be lucky to see these shy birds even during a dander across the hills.
Bullfinches like thick hedges to nest in and Dúlra can only pray that now that they’re in his garden, they might look for a site there.
But the likelihood is that they’ll return to the slopes of the Belfast Hills in time to breed.
If they stay, Dúlra’s year will be complete. And of course you wouldn’t be able to do any gardening at all in case you disturbed them. Now that would certainly be a win-win.
• If you have seen or photographed anything interesting, or have any nature questions, you can text Dúlra on 07801 414804.
