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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

County Louth (formerly Dundalk Bay) local patch. (4 Viewers)

Hi,

That is a female house sparrow alright...

Well he will surely return for my good food and I will get a better look at my pink Sparrow ...........I deleted three other photos taken at same time and wish I hadnt to look at them again at least.
Today I came upon five or six adult gorgeous Long tailed Tits (pink, black and white) and four tiny juveniles in a tree roughly in front of the old Nurses home. I saw the tiny birds first and hadnt a clue what they might be as so tiny and such short tails but then saw the adults. They are such exquisite coloured birds and I couldnt believe how close they allowed me to get to them but of course I had no camera with me. Then they all flitted quite low one by one to the next tree not bothered that I was so close and then again to next tree until near ambulance station and then all flew off across towards Camlough road and possibly across it into park fields there.
I sat down the garden frozen solid almost (to spray pink on the first Sparrow I saw ......|;||;|) no actually to see my beautiful little Wrens sneak out of the Ivy and as the light was fading about five adult Long Tailed Tits appeared and started flitting between my trees and nextdoors. They certainly create a beautiful display. Did I see one of those and then photograph the wrong bird, now that would be a million dollar question, who knows ............ I set Cotoneaster for the Wrens last Spring as I read somewhere that it is a favourite bush of theirs. I also notice quite a few Pied Wagtails around the nurses home in the mornings, probably the ones the council left treeless in the summer.
 
A small flock of redwing and fieldfare in the fields along the shore road in dundalk on sunday - still no sign of the twite amongst the large flock of linnets along the shore - the site at soldiers point was bulldozed despite planning permission being refused! Apparently the county council is planning to put out some seed in this area...
 
Out looking for the geminid meteors, what i presume was an owl flew over my head - probably a long eared owl...othe than that just got wet...apparently a great show last night!
 
We had a little snow and I noticed on split loads of Sparrows etc ground feeding on tray of mixed seeds and then I noticed a small lovely bird on the Niger feeder not that far from glass doors. It had short pink legs and the daintiest bunched up little pink feet with lots of toes as I had a clear side view of bird and it made me aware that I had birds with different feet.
Not that long afterwards I saw several very pretty rounded birds on plum tree and I thought it doesnt matter how pretty they are they are Sparrows. But then some really nice smallish birds landed down on pebble stones which appeared to have NO legs at all and really caught my attention. These birds were the roundest shaped birds I have ever seen in my life almost like a ball and bobbed back and forth on the stones as legs so short looking for creepers. They seemed to have no neck at all, nicely coloured not very unlike Sparrows just nicer and straightish pale beak. They did not walk properly at all and they just reminded me of a wind up toy and they also had dainty pinkish small feet curled around stones and some had very dimpled chests. Their fat round body was actually touching ground whilst moving.
Obviously hunger and the very cold weather brought them into garden so close to me but I know I have seen them in the trees before. I saw birds with speckled black chests in a v shape and a lovely very definite design on the side of birds, blackish too but hard to be sure which birds had what as quite a few birds about today.
What can these unusual birds bobbing along instead of walking be ? One could never ever forget them.
 
A beautiful Redwing bird just sitting on the grassy verge beside my house today. I imagine it is one of the same ones I had last year. My several lovely colourful small rounded birds made a couple of appearances near the seeds tray and on the Willow tree. I didnt actually see them feeding at tray just on the stones nearby and also under Willow tree but some of the Niger seed keeps blowing around the stones anyway. They didnt arrive with Sparrows but just exclusively on their own in a small group. They seem very quiet tranquil birds compared to Sparrows. I can see clawed bunting type of feet on all of them curled around the Willow tree now leafless. They have like pale pink or fleshy coloured feet. I think they are the same as three small fat birds I had high in tree in summer which kept themselves hidden quite a lot and to themselves and this is the first time they came near the house.
 
I walked home on split to see him in front garden and then got these pictures on grassy verge up on the roadside closeby. I wonder would he like a new home for all year round ......I think he is so beautiful. If only it were as easy to photograph all birds.
 

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Hi I posted on the main forum looking for info on birdwatching in the boyne valley area eg best spots where to get equipment etc. and I was directed to the local patch ,as louth is in my area anybody got info on the above thanks, ps I didnt know whether to start a new thread or just post on this one
 
I walked home on split to see him in front garden and then got these pictures on grassy verge up on the roadside closeby. I wonder would he like a new home for all year round ......I think he is so beautiful. If only it were as easy to photograph all birds.

Great shots Dolce (you may well be the first human being the bird has ever seen!) - there are dozens around here this morning, along with song thrushes and skylarks, all coming in from Scotland/Scandanavia with the cold.
 
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Hi I posted on the main forum looking for info on birdwatching in the boyne valley area eg best spots where to get equipment etc. and I was directed to the local patch ,as louth is in my area anybody got info on the above thanks, ps I didnt know whether to start a new thread or just post on this one

HI Squidge, Here is the place to post alright. The Louth birds website is here: birdslouth.blogspot.com and attached is a pdg about where to watch birds in Louth. For equipment might be best ordering by phone from www.birdwatchireland.ie - i don't know optics shops in drogheda but the three or four shops in Dundalk are all selling over-priced crappy optics, sales people know nothing etc.
 

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Hundreds of fieldfares, redwings, song thrushes, starlings in the fields this morning - there were seven male balckbirds in my garden - to the consternation of the resident one...
 

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Hundreds of fieldfares, redwings, song thrushes, starlings in the fields this morning - there were seven male balckbirds in my garden - to the consternation of the resident one...

I must look out tomorrow to see if my Redwing is still about and the gorgeous small bobbing birds too. I saw my Robin twice managing to get on the peanut feeder close to door (one with guard around it for small birds only) although he did not stay long on it. I got a new seed feeder in B&Q with a wide circle at bottom and the Robin I noticed is happy feeding away on it. I did not realise it was 9 pound almost or he might not have got it but probably dearer than usual as adapted. The guy there told me they have a Robin waiting for them to open garden centre doors every single morning to get in and eat spilled bird seeds and he sits on one of the workers arm now.
Indeed I counted five blackbirds at one time in my garden and was surprised too to see so many. About three Greenfinches most I have seen at one time and one lovely little Coal Tit. I watched a female Chaffinch attack a very small bird (looked like Redpoll) to chase him from the seed tray and was surprised to see it so vicious. I also have one Magpie that is going in the small bird house daily and was at the back door for seeds once even. My birds seem to be more than fond of the mixed bag of seeds that Barneys pet shop near the Mall sell. I was thinking about the lovely Bullfinches near here in the snow and threw in some seeds for them too. I see quite a few Robins in houses closer to the town and lovely song Thrushes around the ambulance station. I heard all the Long Tailed Tits before I saw them in the trees at back of Nurses home and yes as I guessed flitting across the Camlough road to the copse of trees there.
I see a lot of small darkish birds about that fly low and almost lifeless sort of and then propel their wings rapidly and keep repeating this pattern. Just curious what bird flies like this ?
 
Two new types of bird in my back garden today, As I'm new to this I put their pics up on the bird id forum, they were confirmed as a Linnet and a meadow pipit. Also on the green behind my back garden there were two oyster catchers. A good day overall.
 

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Interesting year - for me the highlights were the corncrake(s) and the red-necked grebe + the pelagic. No little stint (was there a white rumped sandpiper?), black-throated diver, marsh tern, ring necked duck etc. The shortstaying pec on the docks was good! Also i can only recall seeing a single storm petrel this year, whereas there were hundreds last year.

I guess the bird of the year would have to go to Oscar's Caspian Tern, a 9th Irish record and presumably a first for Louth. Other notables were the disappearance of the woodpecker from the 4th April, tha apparent non-return of the dowitcher and the extremely fleeting appearance of the forsters tern....
 
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