Do my eyes deceive me or is a magpie building a nest on the lamp standard outside my front garden? What will be the fate of the chicks in the event of a shower of rain or snow? Is there any danger of a power failure from these magpies?
Liam Deegan, Finglas, Dublin 11.
The chicks will be no more exposed than if the nest were in a tree. There is no danger of a power failure because the light fittings are well insulated but the corporation might like to know what the magpies are doing.
Every morning, thousands of herring gulls fly over our house on their way to the refuse dump at Ballyogan. They come from Lambay Island and Howth and return in the evening to these areas. Sometimes, several dozen remain flying around in circles in one area. I think that they may be enjoying the warm currents of air rising from the swimming pool in Glenalbyn.
Kevin Gormley, Stillorgan, Co Dublin.
While driving in the Gortahurk area of Donegal last November, I came upon a field largely covered with quite thick cobwebs (photograph enclosed). Could you explain this phenomenon and is there a common name for this occurrence?
Kevin Kiely, Gortlee, Letterkenny, Co Donegal.
These are the sheet webs of the tiny money spiders whose webs are vast in comparison to their own very small size. The webs are originally dome-shaped but when the dew settles on them they become concave and appear quite thick.
We have placed a bag of nuts on a tree outside the back window and recently, to our great surprise, we saw a house mouse scampering up the tree and eating them on several occasions, while the birds kept their distance.
Mary and Michael Carroll, Mount Merrion, Co Dublin.
