Very busy at the bird feeder today! (6 Viewers)

[Fozzybear]

Is that all! Probably not worth the effort if that's the only visitors...

blimey! sounds like you've got a pretty good spot there! I've yet to see 'a' Fieldfare, let alone have 26 of them in my garden!

I put out some apple pieces this morning and the blackbirds were really enjoying those. While out this morning bought a berry suet cake and a feeder to fit and hung that up in the tree - the smell was amazing so should be popular. I've seen a starling on it but am hoping to attract other birds too.

My young blackbird was seeing off the dunnock as usual - he really is a beligerent little thing, he sees off a male blackbird whenever he's in the garden too. He got payback this afternoon though, a collared dove was pecking away under the feeder pole and when the young blackie got close turned around and gave him what for! He shot up onto the fence and looked really shocked. :-O

Had a flyover by the local sparrowhawk this morning too I think. A magpie was sitting in my holly tree and suddenly went berserk, alarm calling like mad. All the birds in the garden shot off into the dense conifers and the magpie flew off. Didn't see the SH but the skies certainly cleared of birds!

 

[Bananafishbones]

Nice one Jabber & Fozzy

Have been out and about last 2 days so missed the garden a bit, but got to see my first Siskin flock about a half mile away on the middlewood way along with some fanatstic Nuthatches.... Spent a few minutes today tidying up the feeder corner and got a good view of 3 coal tits that were willing to risk being about on the feeders while a human was present. 3 nice Greenfinches looking down from the tree but not risking upsetting the Starlings that still take presidence over all others. The tits and finches taking slim pickings until the Starlings go to roost.

Too foggy for much watching or photos, heres to some sun in Cheshire!!

 

[mattsharps]

Here's todays list, have been having a good long rest!

12 x Greenfinch
3 x Collared Dove
1 x Woodpigeon
4 x Coal Tit
3 x Great Tit
1 x Robin
1 x Blue Tit
2 x Great Spotted Woodpecker
1 x Carrion Crow
7 x House Sparrow
4 x Dunnock

I even had time to count!

MattSharps

 

[Moraybirdlover]

I am also away at the moment so have been watching my mums garden in Yorkshire. The grass was almost covered in Starlings this morning ,a bird we very rarely see in the garden at home. Any one know how to attract fieldfares to the Garden?

 

[Fozzybear]

Something knocked my berry suet cake out of the elder tree and snaffled it - probably my local fox. I thought it would be attractive when I smelt it but didn't think it would be 'that' attractive. Ah well, I'll have to find a better spot to hang it!

 

[Moraybirdlover]

Fozzy,
Perhaps you should do some detective work as in "Moldy's Diary of a frustrated birder" in
my birding day!!

 

[Fozzybear]

Not sure it needs 'too' much investigating, the most likely culprit is a fox I think, we have foxes in the neighbourhood. There's not much evidence to go on - nothing left on the ground, no tracks.

Getting a lot of magpie activity nearby, a few seem to have taken up residence in the local area and I've had one sitting in the holly tree at the bottom of my garden and on my neighbour's garage. Really nice hearing their laughing call from the rooftops, I think they're great birds. Also this afternoon while putting out bird food saw a jackdaw fly off from my neighbour's aerial, calling as it flew down the road - superb!

 

[Tree Sparrow]

Well it's very quiet at my bird feeder today as OH insisted on filling up the feeders that I can't see from the house. I don't know where his sudden concern has come from as he's always complaining when I buy another sack of food. Maybe at last he's taking a bit of interest in the birds as he did ask if there were normally birds with red faces on the feeders. They were Goldfinches lol.

TS

 

[Moraybirdlover]

How lucky!! I haven't had a single goldfinch this year , mind you I am at work all day and it is dark morning and by the time I get home, so I could be missing them. I did see some in the hedge row a few weeks ago though.

 

[Tree Sparrow]

I'm sure you're probably just missing them. I haven't had a siskin since the summer.

TS

 

[Bananafishbones]

First Linnet in the garden today, Starlings reduced to around 8, Greenfinch 12+, Goldfinch 2, Coal tit 2, Great tit 2, Blue tit 6+, Song Thrush chased off by the Blackbirds plus the regular Dunnys, Robins, Rooks, Carrion Crows

Greenfinch seem to be bossing the Starlings at the moment I wonder if that is the reason for the smaller numbers, I had 60+ a few weeks ago

Oh forgot the Long Tails 6

 

[Tree Sparrow]

Was the linnet on it's own? The ones I get tend to be in a flock. They use my garden, ie the trees, but they've never come to or below the feeders. They feed in the field and then swoop up into the trees.

TS

 

[Bananafishbones]

Hi TS

Yes the Linnet was a single, but your right it didnt use the feeders but sat in the tree above the feeders only stayed around for 2 minutes max.

Earlier in the year also had a single Redpoll in with a flock of Goldfinch, again didnt use the feeder but stayed around long enough to ID.

My garden must attract the single birds!!
Dave

 

[barnstormer]

It's 9.15 am and i am watching
blackbirds-6
goldfinch-8
greenfinch-12
robins-2 chasing each other all over the place,they waste more energy on that than feeding
starling-1
no tits at the moment.

 

[Tree Sparrow]

Hi TS

Yes the Linnet was a single, but your right it didnt use the feeders but sat in the tree above the feeders only stayed around for 2 minutes max.

Earlier in the year also had a single Redpoll in with a flock of Goldfinch, again didnt use the feeder but stayed around long enough to ID.

My garden must attract the single birds!!
Dave

You're not the only one. For the last two years I have had a single Brambling in March, just for a few days and then off again.

I just had a lovely flypast by a flock of Fieldfare. I hoped they'd stop but they just kept on going lol.

TS

 

[Bananafishbones]

Funnily enough just got in from work and found yet another single, this time a .............................. Fieldfare.

Sat high in the tree above the feeder enjoying the last of the sunshine, attached a pic

2 coal tits, robin, Dunnock and a blue tit

 

[Fozzybear]

That's great - would love to just 'see' one of those, it's one I've yet to espy at all. My brother had a flock of them where he works, although where he is is very rural and he gets lots of things like Treecreepers, Goldcrests and Muntjac Deer there too! :t:

Nothing too unusual in my garden recently, not really been able to watch the birds much as it's dark when I'm home during the week (day off work today - wahoo!) but lots of starlings and sparrows are usually around, the starlings take up residence in my conifers and come down in groups of up to 10 or more. The sparrow flock is hard for me to count but I'd guess at least 20 birds, there are usually quite a lot in the garden and a lot more in the surrounding trees. A couple of Blue Tits on the peanut feeder this morning (have seen three or four at one time) and my ever-present Robin and young blackbird, plus my Dunnock, some collared doves and I seem to be attracting up to three woodpigeons now as well. The local magpies are taking an interest in my garden too, although I've yet to see one actually down in the garden I've seen them sitting on my neighbour's garage and perched in my holly tree.

 

[Moraybirdlover]

Not seeing much at the feeders myself as dark a.m and p.m but had a treat today. We often see a woodcock down the farm track but tonight when I came home from work at 4.45pm there were 2 of them. They hung around in the headlights for a quite a while and I had to edge the car forward before they finally flew off!

 

[Tree Sparrow]

Funnily enough just got in from work and found yet another single, this time a .............................. Fieldfare.

Sat high in the tree above the feeder enjoying the last of the sunshine, attached a pic

2 coal tits, robin, Dunnock and a blue tit

That is a bit of a coincidence lol. You've done better than me though as I still haven't managed a photo of one.....or had one in the garden!

TS

 

[Bananafishbones]

Another tick in the garden today:

Male Bullfinch stayed in the trees opposite the feeding station surveying the garden for a couple of minutes, no sign of its partner, but it knows where to come now!!

Back again 20 minutes later

Dave