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

Garden / Yard List 2017 (2 Viewers)

I saw more swifts this visit then ever before. Tried hard for Alpine but couldnt clinch one.

I think I've said this before but my patch which includes my house reminds me a lot of Portland. I even have top fields and West cliffs (not very tall admittedly)

I have a lengthy patch list but lots of species have only been seen once or twice. Some days there is no viz mig other days literally thousands of birds passing. I'll go out some mornings and see no evidence of movement and then mid afternoon something will appear from the house and shortly afterwards move on and never be seen again.

I always carry binoculars as it is impossible to predict exactly what will appear when. One of my favourite sightings was mid afternoon one mid summer day I was off to the local shop for some bread when a persistent call managed to penetrate my non birding brain. It was a brick red male crossbill on top of a pine I imagine essentially stridently announcing to the world 'I don't know where I am, anyone else out there!'

The house overlooks a small bay off a big bay and I've seen Yelks before leaving the mouth of the big bay mid morning so I've been hoping for a sighting for some time. This year they were in the small bay itself following fish I guess.

The first Ellie gave me the biggest bird related rush I've had in a long time, by the end of the two weeks it became routine although still very neat.

The Rosie's followed the pattern of all the RCS I've seen from the house. I picked up a distant flock of Starlings heading south east, I saw enough to know they were RCS. I lost sight of them but knew they would get to the point were they see the bay in front of them and then turn north to avoid flying over water. This brings them across the front of my house. There are a number of big pine trees which make it difficult to track them. I was scanning hoping they would come close across me. Out of my peripheral vision I saw shadows on the roof next to me, I spun left to hear the sound of their wings and caught a split second view of their rear ends as they disappeared from view behind trees.

Overall it means that even on quiet days something interesting can appear, other quiet days nothing appears. It is like real life slow TV. Marvellous.
 
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Garden in Gwent would do OK as its pretty big, in a river valley and a suburban environment. I have seen Osprey and Hobbies from here. Had a Grey Heron stood on next doors roof this morning and singing Willow Warbler a couple of weeks ago. Best bird in the Garden so far a reed bunting although as a spectacle 5 species of Thrush together is always enjoyable.

I retire next year and expect to have enough time to spend some time sat in the Garden. My wife doesn't retire until four years after me so I won't be spending significant time in Turkey until then. One year I'll play the yard list game.
 
Nice late Osprey, Ken!

Yesterday about six miles away a Red Kite - a big deal here - so here's hoping.

Despite all day gardening today nothing new until just now when a

Great-spotted Woodpecker

flew past.
 
Nice one! Early morning gardening before the heat got too much for me reaped its reward:

65 Bonelli's Warbler
66 Common Swift

Do the Swifts scream there allready? I have heard short screams a couple of times now, but not yet that full-hearted long screams.

#47. Thrush Nightingale - Heard only. Peculiarly the singing comes totally different direction than other years. And not so close.

PS. Richard, How the trip went? Any lifers? Are you going to write trip report about it?
 
Nice late Osprey, Ken!

Yesterday about six miles away a Red Kite - a big deal here - so here's hoping.

Despite all day gardening today nothing new until just now when a

Great-spotted Woodpecker

flew past.

Better late than never H, seem to have cornered the market with late dates on this taxa. However...whilst hanging out of the window hunting for HM...still nowt, a stunning male and female Bullfinch (no.68), came out of a blue sky, flying at eye level and perfectly lit by an early am sun! Lighting, proximity and subject being all...gotta be my best! Twenty minutes later an immature Red Kite morphed into view.....and the days not over yet. :eek!:
 
Do the Swifts scream there allready? I have heard short screams a couple of times now, but not yet that full-hearted long screams.

#47. Thrush Nightingale - Heard only. Peculiarly the singing comes totally different direction than other years. And not so close.

PS. Richard, How the trip went? Any lifers? Are you going to write trip report about it?

No lifers as I expected (need to go further north for them!) but we really enjoyed our Finland ' mini break' (thanks to your advice on birds places not needing a car to get to)I'll write a short account soon, the Swifts around Porvoo were not screaming full volume and certainly not at rooftop level like we get in the French towns.They don't breed on our village so I won't be hearing that summer sound here.
However, an unexpected sound we did hear at 7 am this morning:

67 Cirl Bunting

A new bird for the garden, nearest breeders are 4kms away and 500 m lower in altitude so a nice surprise!
 
My new house is a few miles west of Barnsley, in rolling country at 500 feet altitude.
Silkstone Common is a small village surrounded by woods (some quite large) & arable and dairy farms.
The Pennines are less than ten miles west. There are no wetlands for miles, just a small stream within a mile.
Farmland birds include Yellowhammers, Skylarks, Lapwings and Red-legged Partridge.
As with my last place Wood Pigeons and Jackdaws are common - but here Blackbirds are abundant.
So far I don't appear to have a fly way as I did previously, so will have to see what comes by.
New bird feeders have attracted Blue & Coal Tits so far.
A modest garden with big hedges, and neighbouring trees. A good view out to a big wood from the front. Nearest wood just 100 mts away - with avenues of trees to just across the quiet road.

House Martins breed nearby - ten often visible. Starlings are common, House Sparrows not so. (But when I moved in to my last house this was the case - & four years of feeding brought their numbers up to 20+.)

So far today a

Yellow Wagtail

over - heard only - takes me to 45.
 
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Do the Swifts scream there allready? I have heard short screams a couple of times now, but not yet that full-hearted long screams.
Definitely screaming in England last week, not sure if they were up to full volume - like fireworks whizzing past at times though!


Back in Canada since Wednesday, trying to catch up with my locals that I've missed in the last couple of weeks:
53. Black and White Warbler
54. Ruby throated Hummingbird
55. Red-eyed Vireo
56. Ovenbird
57. Blackburnian Warbler
58. Rose-breasted Grosbeak
59. Eastern Wood Pewee
60. Northern Parula
61. Nashville Warbler
62. Swainson's Thrush
and 63. Scarlet Tanager - outside living room window, great views. Last year it was on the list, but heard then tracked down outside of the garden.
 
The pair of Lesser Spotted Eagles are looking very territorial, hanging out in the same clump of trees, hopefully will have nesting this year. Bitterns still booming.

Not spending a lot of time at present, too much time looking for butterflies elsewhere, but one addition:

106. Swift
 
I appreciate that this will not be thrilling for most people, but I've just had a low-flying mute swan heading westwards over my garden. I've never seen one in/over a garden in 23 years and nine addresses of London living so am quite chuffed.
 
I appreciate that this will not be thrilling for most people, but I've just had a low-flying mute swan heading westwards over my garden. I've never seen one in/over a garden in 23 years and nine addresses of London living so am quite chuffed.

wcb Hi, I live between 2 lakes c 1.5 miles apart (both with Mutes), and I may get a single flypast every other year or 2nd year, thus it's an "occasion". :t:
 
A sure sign that the summer is arriving:

68 Griffon Vulture

Ten circling over the Mont Charvin, the highest peak visible from the house. I'm right on your tail Ken:eek!:
 
A sure sign that the summer is arriving:

68 Griffon Vulture

Ten circling over the Mont Charvin, the highest peak visible from the house. I'm right on your tail Ken:eek!:

Let's make no bones about it Richard!....hope the Grippons don't hang on your tail....as that really would be getting "carried away". :-O
 
Ken, I'm a ´moving target' with all the garden/jungle I'm dealing with so hopefully won't end up as petit-déjeuner for the vultures - Jos, a Thrush Nightingale gave us one of our best moments near Helsinki 10 days ago, an apparently short-sighted individual sang away on a bare sapling just 3 metres ahead of us:t:
 
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