Reminder to leave out fresh water for garden wildlife in hot weather

[OneBusyFinch]

With more hot weather forecast, a bowl or two of water in the garden for wildlife could be a lifesaver.

Shallow dish for hedgehogs (they can’t manage deep water)

Add some stones for bees to climb out if they fall in

Too up morning and evening — it evaporates fast

Bit of shade keeps it cooler for longer

Takes two minutes, makes a massive difference.

Big thank you if you’re already leaving out fresh water!

Yep, I do. There's a shallow dish with stones in on a garden table at the far end of my garden and I put bowls on the ground too. There's also a small one attached to a fence post for bees. Not sure if they're getting used but I'd rather put them out anyway 😊

I am dutifully leaving a shallow saucer and one of the cats' metal bowls ( good size) out with fresh water every evening .

DH reports our male cat drinks from it when he does his morning constitution round the garden.
Cats have a bowl of water in the house and the doorstep , but no , he wants the one at the end of the garden .

night time bump. Thanks to everyone who is leaving out water - it is a life saver for wildlife in this terrible drought

Both ponds full again and the shallow dishes outside the front filled too. Been clearing the attic and found some old dog bowls, filled them with water.

Neighbours cat is most definitely drinking from ours.

afternoon bump

Still filling the bowl, and Dp is at 4.30 am when he gets up for work so it's constantly on the go (I'm home based).

Dad's heron count has been 4 in the last 2 days apparently. He's on the refilling, seems to have built it in into his schedule....

Wasps like a drink don't they. They're often sitting in the edge of a pebble in our water dish and having a sip.

Definitely filling two water bowls in the garden , changing water every day.

Please don't use METAL BOWLS !! unless you want poached hedgehog!

going to be 95° here tomo, awful for the wildlife much of which has died sadly

Thank you all you wonderful posters

I’ve just popped two bowls of water out. Hopefully thirsty wildlife will find them!

Afternoon bump

Evening bump

I don't think a hedgehog could get into my garden with the fences (ours and the neighbours) but in case they do , there's a saucer too .
The foxes are more likely to use the metal bowl .

I’ve got loads of water out. A large wildlife pond in my garden plus 3 dishes and trays that are used every day by birds and hedgehogs. I worry in this hot dry weather that wildlife is struggling.

Morning bump - it’s going to be a hot one!

Those foxes won't drink hot water

Our ‘fox water’ gets put out fresh and cold every evening at dusk by our front gate. It probably also gets used by roaming cats, of which there are many.

Big efforts in the garden include putting in extra late-season pollinator plants this year, and letting the fig tree host insects we’d normally dissuade - as insects such as moths = more food for bats 🦇

Plus we have the water sources for our frogs and the insects (bees, hover flies), and water by our spider log zone, and the bird bath. We do put some bird seed down when the wood pigeons come calling in the evening.

Just a small garden in a town.

I had a cat watching me fill the water bowls last night. Ponds I keep topping up for the birds and insects not that I've seen any for awhile.

Complete lack of birds round here too 🤔 think a lot haven't survived the heat, sad 😞

Keep up the good work !👏👌😊🦊🐿🦔🐛🐦‍⬛

To be fair, my DP's doing most of it and deserves a lot of credit. His reward has been a sighting of a hummingbird hawk-moth (Macroglossum stellatarum) a few days ago.

My job has been to research weird and wonderful things, like best recipes for tired bee food.

We are probably quite eccentric people.

Our male cat drinks it but he's paddlling in the very shallow end of a very shallow gene pool !

The water is in shade . My DD just checked it after our temps today reached mid 30s , she said it was fine .

Our local foxes will drink water trapped on a flat roof , they aren't fussy !

there’s definitely fewer birds than usual here - so sad

If love and care for nature means eccentric - then I’m eccentric too! Wish everyone was eccentric <glares at neighbours who have ripped out trees, shrubs and plants and put down paving and bloody awful artificial grass should be banned or people have a nature tax for having it>