Very busy at the bird feeder today! (43 Viewers)

[Bananafishbones]

crisis in the garden !

A few weeks ago in the cold weather we had a few Blackcaps turn up in the garden. Great we thought , a lovely bird and good photo study opportunity as well.

Roll on 2x weeks and we now haven't had a single passerine feed off the feeders in our garden due to the incredibly aggressive behaviour of one of the Male Blackcaps.

For the past 2x days he has driven off every other bird from the feeders. We haven't had to top up anything!

To give you an idea of the scale of the problem we normally have 8-12 LT Tits 4+ BlueTits 2x Great Tits , 12x+ Goldfinches , 2-3 Robins , 2x Chaffinches (pair) 10-15 assorted House Sparrows 2x Dunnock 2x Wrens 1x CoalTit and 4x Siskins (2x pair)

None of these birds have been able to feed for days now as the male Blackcap chases them all off both our huge feeding stations. He is dominating the garden and sits for hours in the trees outside the conservatory ,patrolling his patch .Not even the Great Tits have managed to feed and the blackcap soon put down their miserable challenge.

If he keeps this no-fly-zone up much longer all our resident small birds are going to move on and feed and nest elswhere this year and many years of feeding and caring are going to go down the pan , not to mention my photographic opportunities with my new camera.:-C:-C:-C

Heres Mr mean and nasty himself

Send him up my way :t:

He will move on eventually and after a while you will actually miss him

 

[earleybird]

Send him up my way :t:

He will move on eventually and after a while you will actually miss him

cheers bfb :t:....He's in the post tomorrow next day delivery :-O

 

[Bananafishbones]

scarce visitors to my garden yesterday were a pair of Bullfinch. Still got a few Siskin hanging around.

 

[earleybird]

Still got a few Siskin hanging around.

:-C:-C we did have 2x pair of Siskins until Mr mean & nasty came along. i'm looking at a completely empty garden today and we haven't filled any feeder for 3x days. !:-C:-C

Have you still got snow up your way ? its finally turned milder today down South

 

[JeffMoh]

It's an extraordinary year here. It's the end of the first week of April yet our yards still have a Pine Siskin, American Goldfinches, Chipping Sparrows, and both Red-breasted and Brown-headed Nuthatches.
Jeff

 

[Socar MYLES]

I've had a horrible bully bird on my balcony, too, over the last few days, only mine's an extremely aggressive female house sparrow. So far, she has attacked a pigeon, a house finch, two chickadees, and MANY other sparrows, all males. She left a small cut on the finch's face (I was quite concerned about the poor finch, but she seems all right), and grabbed one of the male sparrows by the face with her beak, and wouldn't let him go. I'm not sure if this is some sort of angry-birds-style mate selection process, or what, but it's quite disturbing! Fortunately, the birds she's attacking don't seem bothered to the point of deserting the balcony.

 

[earleybird]

I've had a horrible bully bird on my balcony, too, over the last few days, only mine's an extremely aggressive female house sparrow. So far, she has attacked a pigeon, a house finch, two chickadees, and MANY other sparrows, all males. She left a small cut on the finch's face (I was quite concerned about the poor finch, but she seems all right), and grabbed one of the male sparrows by the face with her beak, and wouldn't let him go. I'm not sure if this is some sort of angry-birds-style mate selection process, or what, but it's quite disturbing! Fortunately, the birds she's attacking don't seem bothered to the point of deserting the balcony.

wow that is aggressive isn't it !:eek!:

Sparrows are quite brutal birds at certain times of the year.
I once rushed out of the house to see what a terrifc noise was to find 7-8 Sparrows of both sexes attacking a lone sparrow. They had pinned it up against a wall and definitely were aiming to peck the poor bird to death so after a few minutes of this one sided battle I intervened and they all flew off screaming after the lone bird who had hopefully made his escape.

I don't agree with this modern ' mustn't intervene in nature' philosophy myself. Its one thing a Sparrowhawk taking a passerine for food but quite another when animals and birds gang up on another to bully or kill it.
We wouldn't stand by and watch a pack of wild dogs tear our pet to pieces

I'll never forget the camera crew that followed a Polar Bear a couple of years ago and film starving to death. It was filmed over many months as the crew and camera crew all stood and watched this poor animal get thinner and thinner until her pelvis and her ribs were showing and she eventually starved to death right in front of them for TV entertainment. I kept thinking 'for crissakes just throw a bit of beef over the side of the bluddy boat someone.':C:C:C

sorry for the rant grrrrrr

 

[ADRIANS PHOTOGRAPHY]

At the feeder again this morning a yellowhammer.this was taken though a very badly marked double glazed window.

 

[earleybird]

wow what a lucky capture .:t: i've never seen one in the wild .

drop what you're doing and get out there and clean those windows immediately

 

[bongofury]

6 Siskins, a Redpoll and a pair of Bullfinches before work. A Sparrowhawk after work kept most birds away so far.

No sign of the Goldcrests today - have they moved on?

 

[Cheshire Birder]

No sign of the Goldcrests today - have they moved on?

Possibly moved locally to find a nesting site now its a bit warmer

CB

 

[Cheshire Birder]

At the feeder again this morning a yellowhammer.this was taken though a very badly marked double glazed window.

Lovely garden record.

CB

 

[Cheshire Birder]

Garden MEGA yesterday seen just after dawn - BARN OWL !!! My third new garden species in the last few weeks, following on from Waxwing and Merlin.

CB

 

[Bananafishbones]

Garden MEGA yesterday seen just after dawn - BARN OWL !!! My third new garden species in the last few weeks, following on from Waxwing and Merlin.

CB

outstanding CB

 

[earleybird]

Garden MEGA yesterday seen just after dawn - BARN OWL !!! My third new garden species in the last few weeks, following on from Waxwing and Merlin.

CB

Amazing !:eek!:

If you had said a Tawny I'd think nothing of it but a Barn owl in a garden!

I once saw an Adult Little Owl on my roof a few years back with 4x sprogs in the afternoon.

 

[hollis_f]

Amazing !:eek!:

If you had said a Tawny I'd think nothing of it but a Barn owl in a garden!

It all depends on your garden. Barn Owl is a near-daily sighting from/in ours.

 

[earleybird]

It all depends on your garden. Barn Owl is a near-daily sighting from/in ours.

sure .. on a good day I can see 30 miles from my garden too:-O

 

[dewsbury.uk]

Currently got 3 Goldfinch on the nyjer and 2 siskins waiting their turn...

Also the usual few chaffinch,blue tits,coal tits,great tits,3 robins,2 doves,male and female black caps and a few sparrows and starlings....2 thrush have been twice earlier for the suet pellets....also about 5 long tailed tits come about 5 times a day...

Got a bullfinch for the first time yesterday and about 20 waxwings landed in our big tree for 5 mins earlier

 

[bongofury]

Garden MEGA yesterday seen just after dawn - BARN OWL !!! My third new garden species in the last few weeks, following on from Waxwing and Merlin.

CB

Fantastic garden bird:t: They say things come in 3s!

Got a bullfinch for the first time yesterday and about 20 waxwings landed in our big tree for 5 mins earlier

Welcome to the thread and congrats on the Waxwings:t:

Possibly moved locally to find a nesting site now its a bit warmer

CB

I hope so...and bring their offspring for Bongo's homemade peanut cake in a few weeks too!

 

[hollis_f]

For the last week or so I've been thinking that its about time I heard a Chiffchaff. It's evening, as I was closing the curtains, what came onto the feeder, not 4 foot away, a Chiffchaff! Still haven't heard one though.