• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Garden / Yard List 2017 (1 Viewer)

#55. Common Crossbill - for the very first time I saw these little fellows in my garden trees last weekend. I was too slowly then and I didn't get any pics, but yeasterday I saw couple Crossbills again and this time I just manage to get my camera. The best result is below. I think it's a Common, but I´m not 100% sure. For that angle, maybe nobody can't be... or what you think?

Yep, looks Common to me, it doesn't have the stocky head of a Parrot :t:
 
A flock of c 30+ hirundines going South at 5pm, mostly House Martins a few Swallows, and a single Sand Martin no. 75.
 
Great news on the crossbills Warixenjalka, that makes at least two of us who have added them to our garden lists this year!

75 Osprey I'd pretty much given up on adding one this year, seen close to but just not from home until this afternoon, soaring on a thermal. Lovely.
 
Four :t:

Though last winter was very poor, only ones and twos around our place and none since mid-March.Hopefully Jos and Wari will send more our way this winter!

Gee, a half dozen garden-birders crawling out of the woodwork with Crossbills now :)

Need a more exclusive club ... hey Richard, how about Nutcrackers? Reckon we might have that one sewed up :t:
 
Gee, a half dozen garden-birders crawling out of the woodwork with Crossbills now :)

Need a more exclusive club ... hey Richard, how about Nutcrackers? Reckon we might have that one sewed up :t:

Good idea Mr Co-President! No hazelnuts left on the trees now after the Nutcracker (and Red Squirrel) raiding parties.
 
Good idea Mr Co-President! No hazelnuts left on the trees now after the Nutcracker (and Red Squirrel) raiding parties.

I had very few hazelnuts this year, partly a poor crop I think, but more due to beavers chomping all the hazel trees last year and the regrowths being still too small. Consequently, had very few Nutcrackers this season, probably my worst year for a while.
 
Vis mig this morning included a Skylark and a Redpoll.
Nowt new though.

Aha, well I have!
There's a plant outside our west-facing door that produces berries each autumn, the Blackcaps love it, this morning there were two feeding there, plus two Great Tits and three Black Redstarts. One of the latter had a brief skirmish with the newcomer:

80 Common Whitethroat

To cap it all, a cheeky Stoat came ambling past just afterwards.
I attach a photo of the plant, it reminds me of Elder a little, but is clearly something else. Any ideas Garden listers?
 
Hmm...well crossbill still feels special, even if it turns out we all have them ;)
Does make me wonder which bird turns up on the most of our collective garden lists? I don't have any of the three likely candidates (House Sparrow, European Starling or Feral pigeon). Mallard? Canada Goose?
 
Hmm...well crossbill still feels special, even if it turns out we all have them ;)
Does make me wonder which bird turns up on the most of our collective garden lists? I don't have any of the three likely candidates (House Sparrow, European Starling or Feral pigeon). Mallard? Canada Goose?

I have all those except Canada Goose. But that is possible also. Especially now when it's a geese migration time.
Which reminds me: a couple of evenings ago I thought hearding Grey Heron, but while looking at the sky, there was a maybe 15 - 20 geese (in that arrow form. Do you say PLOUGH?) and they make that Heron-sound infrequently. I have never before heard that geese can "honking" like that. So deffenetly not Barnacles (only goose on my garden list at the moment).

One sure garden tick from a weekend:
#56. Eurasian Jay - 2 birds flew over.

Small party of Common Crossbills are still here. Usually at the neightbours firs (or something like that).
 
I got an idea for small "competition". Next weekend is Eurobirdwatch (ofcourse you can participate for anywhere on this globe, not just Europe) and I thought that every one of us could watch birds on their garden for one hour (or 2 or 3 if it sounds better). It does not matter what time of day. Watching can be done on a Saturday or Sunday at the time you want and suite you the best. Maybe we also have to agree that observation must be made, for example, in a 25m x 25m (27,34yd x 27,34yd) area. Or what about Jos? |;|

What you think about? Do you have a time and interest for this?
 
Warning! This thread is more than 6 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top