What a Week

[elaine rowe]

Hello everybody havent visited for a while What a brilliant week.Been filming the birds for an old lady down our street. She cant get out but loves watching the birds on her table.While doing this a kestrel landed on the fence couldnt see much of him for the bushes so ended up just getting a flash of beautiful wings and tail,not much but it made my day.easily pleased.Nearly had my head took off by a sparrowhawk while hanging washing out,ive seen them lots of times but not so close didnt realise how big they are with their wings dtretched out,or how fast,brilliant.
All the birds know spring is on its way and are going crazy out there,busy busy busy.Yesterday i did a bit of gardening the robins and blackbirds just followed along,they must think i do it just for them to find a tasty morsel.The highlight though is the waxwings are back and not just two or three this time,loads of them,they must have told their friends about easy pickings,even the tiny wrens are getting more daring coming closer to the house.Ithink their a bit optomistic about the mild weather but the sparrows are nesting.It must be spring because the fish in my little pond are up and wanting feeding and this morning the frogs are croaking. What a wonderful time of year.Im glad i found this site i can say all this without one or another of my children or friends telling me im nuts.Ihope each and every one of you has had a week like mine.
A very happy relaxed Elaine.

[Reader]

What a nice easy post this is. Lovely to read and your relaxed state shines through. Don't leave it so long next time, let us know how each week progresses and, if there is a chance, let us have sight of some of these photo's you have taken.

[birdman]

Let me agree wholeheartedly with John J.

What a lovely read... and what a lovely thing you do for your friend.

[elaine rowe]

John J & birdman,im glad you found my little tale easy to read.i would love to show you some photos of my little friends but dont have the equipment and definately not the know how.The lady i make the videos for is 90yrs old and passes her days watching her birdtable in her front garden,she doesnt get a lot of birds mainly doves as the main road runs passed it (it has to be in the front as she cant make the back)im secretary for our community forum and we saw a photo of her in the local paper it was bonfire time and someone (probably kids)had stolen her birdtable,heartbreaking,so we got together and raised the money to buy her a new one,her daughter didnt tell her till it was delivered,it was wonder ful to see this frail little thing wanting to pay the man who very kindly cemented it in the ground for her.Im sure we got more out of the experience than she did bless her so every now and then ,weather permitting one of us makes her a little film outside so she can hear the birds as well as see them.a bit selfish really the feel good factor we get from it.ive taken enough space up and a my starving waif of a son has just walked in.he has no interest yet in the great outdoors unless hes performing with his breakdance crew(preferably in front of giggling teenage girls)dont tell him that though,being his mother he thinks im too old to notice these things bye for now
Elaine

[wandalf]

You sound like a very lovely lady. I look forward to more of your posts.

Your neighbor is very lucky to have you and the others to see she has her bird friends near by.

Spring is definitely in the air here in Texas also. Need to get the lint hung on the trees for their nest.

[Paul 42]

What a lovely story Elaine. Kinds of restores ones faith in human nature. It's true there's a lot of s**s about but it's nice to know there are even more (I hope) people like you and your community forum. Good on youse :t:

[elaine rowe]

Hello Wandalf,thanks for the compliment,im sure there are people who would disagree with you i can really get nasty about things i care deeply about,especially anyone who dares do anything to my family and cruelty in any form. Texas a place id love to see but probably never will,ever since listening to a Cris Rea song "Im going to Texas"maybe you know it?"he sings theyve got big old moons out there"it put a picture in my mind of a massive orange ball in the sky,lovely picture is it true?

[elaine rowe]

hello paul 42 written this once dont know where it went?
ice to talk to you,France eh!lovely, never wanted to go away from England but got talked into it went to the south of France saw the beautiful beaches clear blue sea and was hooked,any chance to get on a plane and im off havent made it farther than Europe though, one day when i win the lottery ill see all the gorgeous places ive heard about in this site
Elaine

[Beverlybaynes]

Elaine, what a lovely thing you're doing for that old lady! I wonder if she wouldn't enjoy one of those microphone things that can be wired up to the feeder. The sound is then piped in to a speaker in the house. She could hear the birds all the time!

Having contact with the elderly can be such a wonderful thing for all concerned. I work one night a week for an 86-year-old retired professor who is still working, doing translations. He's perfectly delightful and tells the best stories! We have a wonderful time on our Tuesday nights!

[wandalf]

Elaine: Moon can be amazingly orange, I mean take your breathe away, died and gone to heaven beautiful. We do see those quite often.

[LuBird]

Hi Elaine. What a fuzzy,warm feeling your posts have given me and it is soooooo cold in Pennsylvania,USA tonight You surely posted at a good moment for me. I have worked with Elderly Housing for 26 years and there is not one place I would rather see tax money spent than on Senior Citzs. Programs,but it still takes folks like you to do that individual nurturing which is the key for longevity with quality to life. Here is hoping you win the Lottery soon so you can go atraveling:bounce:

[elaine rowe]

Beverley,your right about the stories cant post none of them though.i dont know about where you live but here the elderley tend to be pushed into the background a bit which is ridiculous they have so much knowledge it should be used.also teenagers get a lot of bad press,i meet a lot of young people and their fine.if people in the middle actually listened wed be a lot better off.
by the way had a ground frost last night freezing here too.say hello to your pfoffessor.bye for now

[elaine rowe]

Sorry got my messages mixed up the last bit was meant for Lubird.

[elaine rowe]

waldalf so pleased about the moon,Cris Rea was right then.
made my day thanks

[Reader]

Elaine

Not meaning anything against any other forum member but you are like a breath of fresh air. You seemed to have touched a lot of people on this forum already. Keep up that magnificent work and don't knock yourself about the feel good factor. Getting it shows that it means so much to you for that old lady to respond the way she does.

It is a shame that old people seem to be ignored. I know that this is a bird forum but there are times when threads come up that demand peoples feelings to be shown in print. This is possibly one of them. It is about time that this government realised that the senior generation have paid their way in life and deserve far more respect and attention than they are getting.

Right. That's my soapbox response over. Phew!! I needed that!!

Any way, back to Elaine. Keep those posts rolling. I for one will look forward to them.

[elaine rowe]

John j thank you so much its much appreciated but theres not just me involved though i admit i didnt realise being secretary meant general dogsbody i didnt even volunteer apparrantly im the"gobby one "thats why.dont know what they mean.ill just share this then back to the birds.our little group started 5yrs ago to build a park on our estate something for everyone whatever age weve had to raise the money ourselves and its been hard but weve got a lease and all the other red tape stuff that goes with it 68 grand later weve got the tarmac,safety fencing and what the kids really wanted ,last year erected the skateboard equipment ,very popular.a full year ago i started liasing with the countryside agency for a lot of money for landscaping ,native tree and bush planting to make a natural screen ,picnic area and meadow area.they have strict rules and wanted the lease changing E.R.C.refused.i really saw red how dare they say id worked a full year for nothing anyway letters and calls to anyone i thought would listen councillors our M.P.newspapers etc.i am ecstatic and well on my way to being drunk ive heard today their changing the lease.the countryside agency has given us the thumbs up for May(im so happy youd think the money was mine)
didnt think i could get any higher when i got a call from WREN landfill who have awarded us £38000 to buy play equipment.YEEHAH the kids will get five a side basketball tots area whatver they choose.good eh!
as you said its supposed to be for birds not for me to get things off my chest so ill shut up (unless asked)and celebrate CHEERS EVERYONE.birds ive just about managed to film all the birds who visit my little garden except the wrens their so quick do i have to catch them and glue them to the fence or what?and how many species of tits do we have in Britain?

[Gaye Horn]

Elaine I have followed this thread with great interest and I will congratulate you for your tenacity and your true desire to not just talk about the things to do; but the things you do! It is people like yourself that renews faith in all humans when we need that most.
I am thrilled for you (and all the others in your group)and what you have worked for to have changed the land lease and to have won that money for any improvement to your life space.
The little lady you film birds for is one very lucky person with you in her life. It is said that you get back what you give... you have bounty beyond belief, I am sure.

[birdman]

Hey elaine...

These are the Tits you can expect to see in the UK, although you need to go looking for a couple of them.

I'm sure if I've missed any, someone else will let you know.

Blue
Great
Coal
Marsh
Willow
Crested
Long tailed

There's also

Bearded

although that isn't strictly speaking an actual Tit.

And someone else will definitely have to help you out with

Penduline

which I'm not sure is seen much in the UK, or a proper Tit.

[elaine rowe]

thanks birdman looks like ive got a way to go then so far ive had blue,great,coal and long-tailed so i presume their the common ones.green finches and gold finches sometimes but lately ive been seeing a flash of orangy red the birds larger than a bluetit but still smaller than most birds in my garden any ideas?

[birdman]

Hi again, elaine,

Marsh and Willow tits are difficult to distinguish between simply by sight - certainly for me, and as far as I know, they are much less likely to appear in your garden than the one's you have seen. They are obviously tits, but have an overall drab appearance. Coal tits, for example are markedly black and white.

If you see something that you think could be either, then I'm not sure which it would be. There seems to be a bit of a north-south divide between populations (I can't remember which way round!) - but I think we Yorkshire folk have a good chance of coming across both.

If you see a smartly turned out bird, then it's probably a Marsh, if it looks a bit grubby, then it's perhaps a Willow.

To see Crested in the UK, we have to go to Scotland (Rothiemurchas near Aviemore is where I saw my one) - while the Bearded Tit (which now seems to be known as a Bearded Reedling) can be found in certain Reedbed locations. I saw mine at Blacktoft Sands three or four years ago when they held a special day for the purpose.

As for your flash of orangy red, would you say the bird appeared smaller than your finches? If so, perhaps it was a nuthatch - if not, then maybe a bullfinch. They would be my two first guesses.

[birdman]

By the way, elaine...

I'd love to get some finches in my garden. Upto now, mostly Starlings!

[elaine rowe]

thanks again birdman nuthatch or bullfinch whichever it is is more than welcome ill have to find time to sit and watch with my book.its just nice to see something new i hope its a good sign for the summer months well be getting even more visitors.i never thought id get into anything like bird watching but i have and find it quite exiting when something different appears.the only thing is once i sit down and start watching the time goes so quickly i get behind with every thing else,never mind i can wash up in the dark.

[birdman]

Been looking in a couple of guides while I have been off, and I thinkl my "North-South" divide comment is inaccurate... BUT... I still think we Yorkies could see both Marsh and Willow.

[elaine rowe]

good ,loads of action out there though isnt there?dont know about where you are but its a bit hectic here thinking about moving all my feeders back to the end of the garden i might get a lie in thenthe birds have been really noisy espcially on the pampas grass,getting pulled to bits i presume to make nests.
everythings lovely in the garden though buds everywhere ,the bluetits are bluer,greenfinches greener,beautiful.having a bit of trouble with a neighbour though he wants me to cut my trees down so he can see his pigeons coming home,surely they know their way home past a few trees.

[T0ny]

Tell him if you cut down the trees the pigeons won't recognise the place and they'll get lost :) it might be worth a try.

Tony

[LezH]

Elaine.

Could your orangey/red flasher be a young male chaffinch, I wonder. I saw a very gaudy young fella last weekend (West Sussex) like he'd just been painted; how could any female chaffinch resist?!

As for nuthatch Birdman, aren't they a little more on the blue and beige side - or do they flush-up as the breeding season approaches?

Nice friendly posts everyone, thanks.

Lez

[jayhunter]

Elaine, Just like to thank you like the rest for a lovely tale well told. Good to hear you are thinking of planting indiginous trees and bushes as shelter for your amenity area. Hope they will be berry producers for our feathered friends could maybe induce some waxwings over your way, I still haven't been fortunate to see one yet!!

[elaine rowe]

lezh,totally confused now,new to this and rely on what im told on here.Chaffinch great new addition to my garden and very welcome must be doing something right.Nuthatch bluey beige ?theres so much blue and beige out there just now and all moving at the speed of sound dont think i could tell a nuthatch from a bluetit from a budgie.im going to have to treat myself to a proper book.
Jayhunter the waxwings have been coming for the last three years and as ive said before i didnt know what they were till i was told by a neighbour,this year theyve arrived in large numbers,a few weeks ago i was told about 24 arrived but i didnt see this ive still only seen 3 or 4 sat in the willow trees,but 2 weeks ago i asked if anyone from this site had been here because there were birdwatchers at the allotments at the end of my street looking for waxwings i wasnt here but was told all had managed to see them.Last weekend the docks had birders also looking for waxwings,i dont know if they saw them or not but a friend of mine who knows even less than me who id described them to was quite excited because he had.I can assure you if i have my way all the trees and bushes planted will be british natives hawthorn,blackthorn,dobrose etc.
talk to you soon
Elaine

[jayhunter]

Thanks for that Elaine, Scarborough, Robin Hood's Bay. and Whitby are among my regular weekend away venues, saw my first English wild otter in Whitby last year. Spent ages watching the Cormorants last month in Whitby harbour seemed to do well for small flatfish. I shall have to be more observant around allotments in future, always keep a weather eye open around Rowan trees.

[elaine rowe]

in all the years ive been visiting Whitby i have never seen a wild otter in fact in all the years ive been on this planet i havent seen a wild otter,it must be a glorious sight.
Ive been going to Whitby since my daughters were small,its one of those places that just draws you in.When we first went and climbed all those steps to the little church on the hill we spent ages looking at the gravestones especially the one for Lucy the first victim of Dracula in England,we went to see this on several occasions then went back and it was gone,after an argument with a lady curator who insisted the gravestone never existed we came away followed by a man curator who told us it had been removed because people had been complaining for years that she had been buried on consecrated ground.what a load of crap surely a croud drawer like that must be good for the church.Ive been back since but not to the church it took a lot out of it for me.Their quite happy to let you see stone childrens coffins left open in the vault but not a gravestone,ill concentrate on looking at birds and maybe otters next time i visit.