I once spent an amusing hour phishing for birds around Baltimore gardens with Harry - Harry apparently completely unaware of the effect his phishing was having on the local residents ("hey ma, whats that man doing in the garden?" "i dont know luv but get into the house quick while i ring the guards")...as i recall we didn't find anything...
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Why no Woodpeckers in Ireland (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter The Raptor
- Start date
Be fair, the guards have enough to do without charging someone for making odd squeaking noises! As for the presence of local residents, I shall have to take your word for that, as I was too engrossed in looking for birds to take much notice of people...
That's the beauty of working 'typical' spots (in my case, the Old Head and Knockadoon), or well-worked traditional areas like Cape Clear, as the locals know that one's pishing and wandering around are harmless! I suppose I was still in 'Cape mode' when I was pishing in Baltimore.
Jan-Paul Charteris
Sussex birder and budding moth enthusiast
This little feller was in a neighbour´s garden today. Sorry the photos are so bad, all I had was a pair of bins and a mobile phone. It doesn´t prove breeding....but it´s the one I´ve been waiting for!
That would appear to put a different spin on things
lolJan
All I have to do now is find his parents and check his Birth Certificate......That would appear to put a different spin on things
Jan
pianoman
duck and diver, bobolink and weaver
Why do they say no woodpeckers in Ireland?
Absolutely fantastic Sancho:clap:
Replied to your PM separately; you led me to believe that the pictures were bad!
This is getting exciting; I think it's time to rename this thread!!!
This little feller was in a neighbour´s garden today. Sorry the photos are so bad, all I had was a pair of bins and a mobile phone. It doesn´t prove breeding....but it´s the one I´ve been waiting for!
Absolutely fantastic Sancho:clap:
Replied to your PM separately; you led me to believe that the pictures were bad!
This is getting exciting; I think it's time to rename this thread!!!
Thanks Pianoman....it´s an absolute Hiberno-Woodpecker-Fest Out There!:t:
Well, there´s a woodpecker in Ireland, that´s for sure. But I reserve judgement on its provenance...whether Native Irish or British Immigrant, I´ve no idea. I enjoyed watching it immensely, but I´ll be out in the woods hereabouts next Spring (Sans tape-lure
), listening for drumming and looking for its Mommy and Daddy.....
KnockerNorton
Well-known member
but I´ll be out in the woods hereabouts next Spring (Sans tape-lure
you'd be better off using playback, mate! A lone pair of GSW wont drum much, as they have no neighborus to ward off. It's skirmishes and aggro which makes the noise. A little judicious use of playback will (near as) confirm either way if there is anything there, and will do no harm to the birds at all. March would be an ideal time.
One of the great problems in irish birding is that there are so few birders. As a consequence, once a bird is seen and reported at a given location, and everyone interested has ticked it, it may hang around for weeks without anybody checking or reporting. This is a real problem when visiting Cork (say) in the Autumn with only a weekend to play with...the Cork boys do their best but there are so many great sites and so few birders...
I notice that the NIBA monthly report states "the pair of Great Spotted Woodpeckers in Co. Down is reported to have bred again possibly for the third year in row." And apprently the Birdwatch Ireland organ (Wings) has identified GSW as "Irelands newest breeding species" - though i haven't seen the item myself yet...
KnockerNorton
Well-known member
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pianoman
duck and diver, bobolink and weaver
I was thinking more of a conversation along the lines of:
Guard, on phone: "Sarge, he's saying something about seducing girls and recording their telephone calls"
Harry: "No, luring birds by taping their calls"...
Sancho said:
Go ahead, Sancho as long as we don't have to pay for them
Helsinki Birder
Stealth Birder
Early days yet vogeljung.
Spotted sandpiper is one of just a few american waders to have bred in europe....but they havent established a population!
No gurantee the woodpeckers will establish themselves.
Owen
Spotted sandpiper is one of just a few american waders to have bred in europe....but they havent established a population!
No gurantee the woodpeckers will establish themselves.
Owen
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That´s the million-dollar question. The male of our local pair disappeared in early April, the young was raised by a lone female. I assume a sparrowhawk did for the Dad (I´ve no direct evidence, but they are active in the area and one has been hanging about the nest-hole, on adjacent branches and such-like). New blood from Britain in the form of an annual influx would be good, I suppose, and presumably healthy for the tiny established population.
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