An unexpected visitor (1 Viewer)

[Mis]

It's a while since I've been in here!
It seems to be the time of year for firsts. I'd never seen a brambling until this morning when this one decided to clean up the fallen sunflower hearts beneath the feeder. It stayed around for a couple of hours but has moved on now.
I think it is a female although the head seems more grey than the pictures in my books show.

The dunnock in the third picture seems to be perching using just the left foot. I don't know whether the right foot is damaged or whether the bird was just resting it!

 

[Mahsleb]

Lovely Brambling pics Mis :t:
I love the 2nd with it's head-on view!

The Dunnock might be just resting one leg (hopefully!?)

Cheers

 

[BazR]

Hi Mis.
May I say first of all, that they are beautiful pics. Whether or not the Dunnock's foot is injured or not, I wouldn't like to say, but there does not appear to be any deformity. The pic you have of it is a stunner. Very well done.
Any spare Bramblings? If so I'll send you my address, and a mini sat-nav for the bird.

Baz.

 

[Mabel]

Regardless of what the Dunnock is doing, they are wonderful pictures, Mis!

 

[palval147]

Super photo's Mis, we had no Bramblings in the garden, this year, but they were in the fields a few hundred yards away.:-C

 

[Kits]

Interesting, Mis. The brambling looks too bright to be a female but not bright enough to be a male, comparing them to the ones we are getting every day here. Nice pics.

 

[palval147]

I think they are males but still in eclipse plumage, not changed completely to Adult breeding.

 

[NIK III]

Hi Mis,

A nice visitor and nice pics. Big Garden Birdwatch has just reported that although they are one of the scarcer finches in our gardens they are becoming more common, moving from 57th place to 36. Not had one in mine yet.

 

[snowyowl]

Nice captures, Mis!

 

[JimMorris]

Nice photos Mis, I agree with Palval. Had 2 in the garden last year but none this year.

 

[Mis]

That brambling stayed around for most of Thursday and gave a few more photo opportunities (all through window glass, unfortunately), but hasn't showed up today. According to Time to Fly, bramblings migrate at night, so I suppose it would have been feeding and sleeping during the daytime before continuing on its way last night.