Can blue tits save our conker trees?

Today is the day we've launched our third Conker Tree Science mission! It is the Mission: bird attack and is the perfect way to do some real science while enjoying the end of the summer. (Or rather dodging the showers?)

photo by Richard Broughton

Like the other missions (the alien moth survey and pest controller missions), this is real science and we're really interested in the data that will come in. All you'll need is a few minutes next to a conker tree and the mission instructions.

So, what's it all about?

In the past, the Conker Tree Scientists have looked to see whether tiny little parasitic wasps can act as natural pest controllers. Last year though people contacted us telling us about another possible pest controller: blue tits. Several people had seen tit flocks (mostly blue tits, but also great tits) feeding on the leaves of infested horse-chestnut trees.

Could blue tits act as pest controllers of this alien leaf-mining moth? We didn't know, and thought it would be good to find out.

What do you have to do?

A bird attack on a leaf mine caused by the alien moth

In brief, you need to:

1. Get hold of a copy of the detailed instructions.
2. Find a horse-chestnut trees that is infested with the leaf-mining moth.
3. Choose a leaf from the tree. Any leaf will do. Don't select one becaue it looks particularly unusual in any way.
4. Record how much damage has been caused by the leaf-mining moth.
5. Count the number of bird attacks on the leaf.
6. Choose 3 other leaves from the same tree and make the same records.
7. Let us know what you found!

We look forward to seeing how the results look as they come in.