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

So many berries (1 Viewer)

If there's food, they'll stay. Migrating is a hazard, if they don't have to, they won't.

Not necessarily true in this part of the world - Fieldfare is overwhelmingly a summer visitor (widespread and common), relatively small numbers winter each year (odd ones here and there, small flocks). Overall, I can't say there seems to be appreciable differences in the numbers when there are good berry crops versus poor berry crops. This said, if you find berries in winter, it often concentrates the remaining Fieldfares, so will certainly provide you with overwintering birds, just don't think it actually affects overall total numbers wintering very much.

Even if good, the berry crop is unlikely to be sufficient to last all winter and when snow coats the ground and sub-zero freezes all, there is precious little other food source to support large numbers, so would seem prudent that most migrate beforehand anyhow.
 
Not necessarily true in this part of the world - Fieldfare is overwhelmingly a summer visitor (widespread and common), relatively small numbers winter each year (odd ones here and there, small flocks). Overall, I can't say there seems to be appreciable differences in the numbers when there are good berry crops versus poor berry crops. This said, if you find berries in winter, it often concentrates the remaining Fieldfares, so will certainly provide you with overwintering birds, just don't think it actually affects overall total numbers wintering very much.

Even if good, the berry crop is unlikely to be sufficient to last all winter and when snow coats the ground and sub-zero freezes all, there is precious little other food source to support large numbers, so would seem prudent that most migrate beforehand anyhow.

I've only ever seen winter Fieldfares once and it was a big berry year, a couple of flocks of c3o birds were around us. Compared to Lithuania (everywhere!), Russia is enormous so presumably far more trees = far more berries to support more birds?

In fact on one occasion when we had a photographer friend with us, I called Fieldfaes out and he corrected me saying Waxwings 'no Fiieldfares in winter' he told me but he's a City boy and we did see them again to his satisfaction and surprise.


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Compared to Lithuania (everywhere!), Russia is enormous so presumably far more trees = far more berries to support more birds?

Yep, but unlike Lithuania, you can't see all of it in one go 3:); the number of birds per area of land you can actually see is likely to be quite similar :t:
 
Yep, but unlike Lithuania, you can't see all of it in one go 3:); the number of birds per area of land you can actually see is likely to be quite similar :t:

Not neccessarily, much of our forest is Pine / Birch and swamp so just find a few Rowans and you're in.

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