Very busy at the bird feeder today! (1 Viewer)

[Disneynut1973]

I can relate to that Pam

Fun isn't it :eek!::eek!:

Looks like everyone is still having some good garden sightings. I think my washing is scaring the birds off today, it's been very quiet, even the Sparrows that are usually a constant flow at the neighbours feeder have disappeared.

 

[louise henderson]

I live in Glasgow ,my garden gets long tailed tits,they seem to be in soft focus colourwise, my daughter lives in Harmondsworth ,London ,I see birds there which look like LTTs onley they seem to be in very hard focus very definitively darker coloured is this the same species?

 

[Bananafishbones]

I live in Glasgow ,my garden gets long tailed tits,they seem to be in soft focus colourwise, my daughter lives in Harmondsworth ,London ,I see birds there which look like LTTs onley they seem to be in very hard focus very definitively darker coloured is this the same species?

I think European LTTs have a whiter head but your variances should be down to wear and tear of the plumage, you may have seen birds with more recent clean feathers as well as birds with worn and damaged feathers that are due a moult. Could just be time of year or even duller or brighter lighting.
Dave

PS Welcome to the thread :t:

 

[Bananafishbones]

Not much veiwing in my garden today, spent alot of time on the moors watching the Grouse / Wheatear etc! (image attached) and saw my first ever Stoat in winter coat that has just started to moult into a summer one

Did manage to see one of the Goldcrests this morning and this evening a male Bullfinch in the trees and 2 Canada geese over.

Jeff, Lovely Goldfinch image

Hectorz good luck with the yellowhammer, if you see them will you PM me with there location.... another excuse to drive to my parents....

Pam dont do any washing on bird watching days... or put it all in the drier

daveofficer nice count of Siskins.... very hard to come by round here this year.

 

[earleybird]

We were away watching alligators yesterday, so not much time to gardenwatch.

Since squirrels broke yet another feeder (and its squirrel-baffle) last week, I put up a new squirrel-be-gone feeder. It seems to be working.

I felt bad yesterday, though, when I saw a squirrel looking over our fence and wistfully watching the House Finches eating from the new feeder.

Jeff
www.jeffincypress.blogspot.com

you're a hard man Jeff :-O

We put down so much food a day that all the local wildlife eat together. It seems to work very well.
We have had 4x squirrels at one time feeding inches from the birds and it seems quite natural. I guess we think that all life has an equal right to live, even squirrels.

They can be a pest when they nest in your roof. The noise in our loft some nights sounds like a load of wild boar running around

 

[Dan123]

All interesting stuff and pictures here, great!

Again another interesting day of Bird observation from the Garden today. The Jay's I haven't seen in since Friday but I did see them fly over and perch on a couple of Tree's this afternoon, before heading over to the Green we have. But another surprise I had was when I glanced up and saw a Rook, on one of the Gardman Bird stations, balance on the mesh tray, pecking for some Suet Pellts on one of the open feeders we have. I know we have Magpie's and Jay's in for Suet, but I never expected a Rook or Crow at that size! Flipping massive bird compared to what I am customed to seeing in their lol! He managed to get a few bits too! There is a Roockery in some of the tall trees in my old school which is only accross the road and you can see their nests from the window, so I am assuming he is local. He did pop back again and tried to do the same thing, but only half attempted, then flew off!

So would be interesting to see what else these birds will surprise me with. Again a great thrill to have him in, but as I said, I'm just always a little caustious if they will attack the smaller birds. But mind you, we have Magpie's in everyday and they don't bother with the other birds, I guess there is so much more easy food here they can get instead eh? lol

But the Garden List for today was:

Long Tailed Tits, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Chaffinches, Goldfinches, Dunnocks, Blackbirds, Doves, Woodies, Magpies and Rook. No Robin again today, after his brief reappearence yesterday. Didn't even hear him singing so would be nice if he comes back tomorrow.

 

[Bird spotter]

This is my current list of birds that have either fed from the feeders or landed in the garden feeding from the ground.
Will be very interesting to see what other birds will be drawn to the garden throughout the year and to see how high the list will go.
I have to say that bird watching is a highly addictive and facinistaing pastime.
Now waiting for a new bird to arrive.

1.Collard Dove
2.Magpie
3.Wood Pigeon
4.Jackdraw
5.Crow
6.Black Bird
7.Starling
8.Blue Tit
9.Great Tit
10.Hedge Sparrow
11.Dunnock
12.Siskin
13.Chaffinches
14.Greenfinch
15.Goldfinch
16.Redwing
17.Thrush
18.Blackcap
19.Robin
20.Grey Wagtail
21.Wren
22.Greater Spotted Woodpecker
23.Long-Tailed Tit

 

[Cheshire Birder]

45 not out!! Another garden yeartick this morning and long overdue. A Collared Dove did a flyby past the lounge window. Only need five more to do my first list target for the year. My patch and county lists will hopefully get a boost this month with all the spring migrants.

CB

 

[daveofficer]

i hate to stoke the siskin envy any further but i just counted 15 in my garden while i was making a sandwich! pretty chuffed with that.

i'm going to setup my popup tent/makeshift hide after lunch and see if i can get some photos of them.

nothing much else going on in the garden, the odd chaffinch, house sparrow and a female blackbird. couple of starlings popping in and out but not in any great numbers.

 

[JeffMoh]

you're a hard man Jeff :-O

I know! Our poor squirrels have been reduced to rummaging in our flower beds for acorns. They can probably hardly remember how to look for natural food anymore.

Disappointing for new birds here so far this spring: Southerly winds have meant migrants have been passing over our area without landing. However, saw my first Purple Martin of the year when I arrived at work this morning. Species #147. Nice start to the day.

Now I'm hoping all the construction work on the campus won't prevent the Western Kingbirds from returning to nest for the 5th year. Watching them raising their chicks was one of the highlights of last year.

Jeff
www.jeffincypress.blogspot.com

 

[earleybird]

I know! Our poor squirrels have been reduced to rummaging in our flower beds for acorns. They can probably hardly remember how to look for natural food anymore.


Jeff
www.jeffincypress.blogspot.com

Do you think we may be offering ours too much food ?
I think there were 4x there somewhere

 

[Disneynut1973]

After a pretty quiet weekend in the garden we've just had a bit of excitement with a Sparrowhawk flying over the gardens and landing in next door. It had a bit of a face off with a Magpie and then a bad attempt at going for a Blue Tit. It hung around quite a while before flying straight towards the window we were watching from and then veering off over the house. Hubby managed a couple of photos and I think from the colouring it's a female?

Edit - after checking out one of my guides I think the hawk is actually a juvenile, am I right?

 

[JeffMoh]

After a pretty quiet weekend in the garden we've just had a bit of excitement with a Sparrowhawk flying over the gardens and landing in next door.

I'm so jealous of you, Pam, and of everyone else who gets hawks in their gardens. The closest we've gotten lately is hearing a Red-shouldered Hawk overhead. And even that's tricky because our Blue Jays can do a pretty good imitation of a Red-shouldered's call.

Jeff
www.jeffincypress.blogspot.com

 

[Cheshire Birder]

Do you think we may be offering ours too much food ?
I think there were 4x there somewhere

You can never have too many feeders.

After a pretty quiet weekend in the garden we've just had a bit of excitement with a Sparrowhawk flying over the gardens and landing in next door. It had a bit of a face off with a Magpie and then a bad attempt at going for a Blue Tit. It hung around quite a while before flying straight towards the window we were watching from and then veering off over the house. Hubby managed a couple of photos and I think from the colouring it's a female?

Edit - after checking out one of my guides I think the hawk is actually a juvenile, am I right?

Your first instinct was right. Its a female.

CB

 

[michael23]

Hi everyone, not been getting much chance to do a decent watch on my feeders, getting decorating stuff and trying to sort things out ready,

Over the last few days willow tit has reappeared, the now regular chaffinch numbers of 10-15 still come and go, my long tailed tits still entertaining too, had a garden area first today being a pheasant! need to check my list to see where im at.... anyway a nice bonus after a bit of painting and then having to empty my shed to catch 3 long tailed field mice (which were then released in a nearby field) i spoke to a neighbiur whislt doing a bit of garden work, i was asked if i could use another bird house, and i now have one of these
http://www.thenaturetrail.co.uk/acatalog/Wildlife_Gifts_Bird_Tables_116.html

Im still waiting for my hirundines though, maybe tomorrow....
As an aside, went to bempton cliffs yesterday, had a superb year tick and a life tick in the form of CORN BUNTING! see pic.

 

[Azzy]

I added a perching branch next to the bird bath two days ago, and yesterday it was already being used which made me happy.

Haven't had much time for garden birding lately, but the house sparrows are still trying to nest under our verandah, 5 yellow-rumped thornbills were browsing the weeds on the driveway again until a new holland honeyeater chased them all off. New hollands have been drinking from the bath still, using the perch. I think the value of the bath though has just decreased dramatically... it's been raining continuously and quite heavily for the past hour and a half

 

[Disneynut1973]

Thanks Jeff, I really love getting to see them so close but wouldn't be so keen if I saw one get one of 'my' birds!

Thanks CB I was a bit confused after looking at two different guides!

Azzy you do get some wonderful sounding birds in your garden - i'm off to google them know :t:

 

[Cheshire Birder]

As an aside, went to bempton cliffs yesterday, had a superb year tick and a life tick in the form of CORN BUNTING! see pic.

This is a favoured site for this species. I've had them there in previous years.

Thanks CB I was a bit confused after looking at two different guides!

Never a good thing having two field gudides that contradict each other.

CB

 

[Bananafishbones]

2 long tail tits and 3 Blue tits giving each other the run around this evening. Great tits very active and noisy also.

Mating couples:
Collared doves
Dunnocks

Evening suprise:
Mallard flying through the garden and out again under the Oak tree... very very low.

 

[AlanCh]

I'm a bit envious - its been pretty quiet in my garden for the past couple of weeks. All my usual residents, but nothing like the numbers I had over the winter - as I would expect. Still no sign of any Wrens after the cold, but Coal Tits are still around.

I've been seeing a single male Great Spotted Woodpecker for weeks now, and surprisingly he's mostly going for a mixed seed feeder, rather than the peanuts or sunflower hearts. Today I watched him going backwards and forwards from the feeder to an elder tree, and each time he'd poke some seeds into a crevice in the bark - I've never twigged that this is what he was doing before.