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

Garden / Yard List 2017 (2 Viewers)

A few more visitors this afternoon.

11. Bronze Mannikin
12. Village Indigobird
13. Black-faced Waxbill
14. Village Weaver
15. Holub's Golden-Weaver
16. Northern Gray-headed Sparrow
17. Rüppell's Starling
18. African Thrush
19. Pale Flycatcher
 

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Still not a lot of new stuff here ...fortunatley only a month before the spring stuff starts arriving. Only new addition in the last week was Common Buzzard

21. Common Buzzard


Mid-winter counts at the feeders quite good though, Blue Tits in record numbers, Great Tits considerably up on last winter. Totals:

Sparrowhawk - 2

White-backed Woodpecker - 2
Great Spotted Woodpecker - 6
Middle Spotted Woodpecker - 4
Grey-headed Woodpecker - 2 (3)
Black Woodpecker - 2

Great Grey Shrike -1

Great Tit - 175
Blue Tit - 65
Marsh Tit - 12
Willow Tit - 7
Long-tailed Tit - 12
Nuthatch - 7
Treecreeper - 1

Jay - 8

Bullfinch - 2
Siskin - c. 40
 
A few additions

20. Northern Fiscal
21. Green-winged Pytilia
22. Hadada Ibis
23. Marabou Stork
24. Black-headed Heron
25. Little Bee-eater
26. Meyer's Parrot
 

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Oh my, those Ugandan birds are really brightening things up around here!

I had a brief but lovely visit from 14. Ruffed Grouse yesterday. Makes the list every year at some point, but nice to be able to add something, anything! Did see some robins flying around the area over the weekend too, so will be outside when it is warm enough to see if I can add a flyover. We have a lot of trees, but not many berries, so they are unlikely to stop here til the thaw.
 
You wouldn't want to argue with that stork would you! It makes the White Stork look a gentle creature, I was lucky enough to see a flock of 12 (White, not Marabou ;) ) migrating high north near Geneva yesterday, so with Woodlarks singing in the vineyards down there the signs of Spring are on the increase (even though we've snow on the way here on Friday :eek!:).
Goldfinch reached record numbers at the feeders this morning, 36 at least, so I wonder if there are some migrating birds adding to the regular winterers now?
 
Oh my, those Ugandan birds are really brightening things up around here!
jasperpatch - My hobby was photography before I started birding so I have a few bird pics. I hope everyone enjoys them;)

You wouldn't want to argue with that stork would you!
Richard Prior - The closer you get to them the uglier they get.
 

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Sorry, Jos, I just have to point out you made some ridiculous typos in your post here. That cannot possibly be correct!!!!!
I'd presume he's ringing them, and knows exactly how many he's ringed. People who do so always get far higher totals (ten-fold higher or more) than the numbers seen at any one time :t:
 
I'd presume he's ringing them, and knows exactly how many he's ringed. People who do so always get far higher totals (ten-fold higher or more) than the numbers seen at any one time :t:

I have ringed them and know the number that visit on a daily basis, but there certainly is not a difference anywhere near tenfold between the ringed number and observed number. In periods when it is minus 10 or minus 20 (ie most of the winter in many years), 50-60 or more Great Tits can be present across the feeders, with frequently more waiting in trees adjacent waiting. So, adding those on the feeders and those in the adjacent trees waiting, there is generally a two- or three-fold difference.

Likewise the woodpeckers - not so much this winter, but sometimes get as many as five species feeding on adjacent feeders at the same time. And quite often multiples of single species.
 
... how many kilos of seed do your feeder visitors get through each winter Jos?

Very high number ;)

Actually have three feeding stations these days:

- one that I mention on this thread (multiple feeders, plus grain box). Grain box is a nightmare - Wild Boar and Roe Deer empty it in a week, 25-50 kg at a time.
- another at my house nearer the city (multiple feeders which generally attracts even more Great Tits than first site and also has oodles of Tree Sparrows, so drains the wallet yet more).
- one in city centre by flat (just a single feeder here, so not that bad)
 
A few additions to the list




27. Little Sparrowhawk
28. Green-headed Sunbird
29. Brimstone Canary
30. Western Citril
31. Yellow-fronted Canary
32. Golden-breasted Bunting
33. Yellow-throated Longclaw
34. African Harrier-Hawk
35. Wahlberg's Eagle
36. Ring-necked Dove
37. European Bee-eater
38. Fork-tailed Drongo
39. Pied Crow
40. Trilling Cisticola
41. African Yellow White-eye
42. Arrow-marked Babbler
43. Brown-backed Scrub-Robin
 

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Why can't it be correct?

Maybe I should've added a winking emoji to my post....

I don't really doubt you, I just did a double take when I read it! I just cannot imagine the sight of 175 great tits. I get excited if there are more than 2 in my garden!! (In fact, I wonder if I have seen 175 different great tits in my whole life......:-O)

And while I'm here...

26. Siskin

EDIT:

And...

27. Mallard
 
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Pop over one winter, I'll treat you to as many dozen as you fancy :t:

And I thought Jos was vegetarian ;)
Stroke of luck early this afternoon, I was watching two distant skiers through the telescope when a slender raptor passed just over their heads, the very warm wind from the south has presumably set some species off on their journey north a little early:

44 Marsh Harrier

At our old place we overlooked the plain around Geneva and the start of the Rhone corridor, so Marsh H was just about annual from the garden, I didn't expect to get them where we now live as I assume they prefer to migrate at low altitudes when they can, but this one was at 2500m altitude!!
I'm afraid I don't know what happened to the skiers though :eek!:
 
And I thought Jos was vegetarian ;)
Stroke of luck early this afternoon, I was watching two distant skiers through the telescope when a slender raptor passed just over their heads, the very warm wind from the south has presumably set some species off on their journey north a little early:

44 Marsh Harrier
[
I'm afraid I don't know what happened to the skiers though :eek!:


I expect they were a trifle "piste off" with that Circus going on...over their heads. :-O
 
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