Worcestershire Garden Watch (1 Viewer)

[Sy V]

I thought there would be room for this thread. We get the odd interesting visitor in our garden (near Jct 4 of the M5) and I know JB is very actively encouraging birds into his garden in Redditch.
The day before yesterday we had good sunlight, but alas no particularly interesting visitors - the least common being a Coal Tit.
But here are a few shots anyway...

 

[upstarts1979]

Hi Sy
I went on to the national thread for garden birding I can't relate to gardens in hampshire etc.
So I will put my stuff on your site (here).

Over the last few days I have had an amazing number of Blackbirds 27!!
and still getting 15 since the snow has gone. Mostly feeding on apples and cheap sultanas and raisins

Today 8 Goldfinch, 6 chaffinch 35 House sparrow 2 Robins and 4 dunnocks, 13 Wood pigeons yesterday and a wren.
Earlier in week Blackcap and coal tit Fieldfare and 5 redwing BUT NO greenfinch.
I will post pics later. Off to upton now

cheers john

 

[wheatearlp]

Hi Guys,

Think all John's Greenfinches are in my garden - have had up to 7 over the last few days. Also quite a few Blackbirds, but nowhere near John's total. Otherwise very quiet.

Cheers
Mike

 

[Sy V]

Excellent, I didn't know how this thread would be welcomed, so I'm glad we've got some early input.
I know what you mean about the anonymity of the national thread John, that's what prompted me to start this one.
The weather's been gloomy here all day (so I didn't venture out with the camera), but 2 Blackbird, 4 Goldfinch, 2 Dunnock, 3 Robin, 2 Magpie, 2 Wood Pigeon, 2 LT Tit, 1 Great Tit, 1 Blue Tit, 2 Chaffinch (1M, 1F) and 3 Bullfinch (2M, 1F) have been seen thus far.

 

[upstarts1979]

Hi Sy/Mike
Yes mike can I have em back.
Sy will you be including breeding Lapwing in your extended garden

cheers John

maybe as the thread progress's we could include other wildlife and gardening hints, plants for birds habitat etc

 

[Sy V]

Oh man!
I hope they come back...
For those of you who don't know what John's alluding to: I have an 8 acre small holding. I grew up on these fields, which, until the third lane was added to the M5, were a disused sand quarry.
My dad filled said quarry with the spoil from the M5 works in the early 70s. Earlier this year, we were lucky enough to have Lapwing nest, breed and raise 2 chicks. This was the first time I'd ever had lapwings nest and they managed to raise the young amongst 8 horses that were continually plodding around the nest site.
I've attached a few shots from earlier this year showing the pair of chicks; their proximity to the nags and the parents diligence in protecting them from the resident corvids (the crows had the third chick very soon after hatching).

 

[Sy V]

Managed another couple of hours in the Garden again today. I was prompted by a visiting Great Spotted Woodpecker earlier in the morning. Needless to say it failed to reappear when I was armed with the camera!
Noticeable absentees today were the Chaffinches - not a sign of 'em. However, we did manage 4 Goldfinch (late on when the light was going), 4 Bullfinch (3F & 1M) plus the usual garden breeds.
Here are a couple of pictures:

 

[wheatearlp]

Hi Sy,

Which old quarry would that be?

I can see you may have a distinct advantage over the rest of us if you have Lapwing on your garden list! I did manage Waxwing last year, but that was about the best.

Cheers
Mike

 

[Sy V]

Mike

Despite John's best-cast aspersions, I don't count species I see on the fields as my garden birds.
Do you know the area then?
The quarry was used for extraction of sand up until the 50s when the owners (the Griffiths family) were forced to stop blasting because the edge of the hole encroached to within 25 yards of the garden belonging to the house in which I was brought up (we have since moved to a house on the roadside of the Birmingham Rd (known locally as Learners' Mile).
The quarry was centred on Grid Ref SO 972747.
I've attached a map showing the area of the fields. The word 'Bellevue' runs immediately under the southern perimeter. The fields are bounded by the back gardens of houses along Birmingham Road in the west. and a hedgerow (with footpath beyond it) in the east. The northern boundary is formed by the trackway leading to the houses in the north-eastern corner (in fact the outline of the old quarry is still shown on the map as a faint dotted black squiggle).
The recent Google Earth image shows things as they are today, So they're an inverted U shape around the house with the large garden and trees (where I used to live as a child). The disturbed earth either side of the hedgerow in the bottom right hand corner are the lodgings of uninvited guests the 'Brock' family!
I've just remembered that we had a few archive shots in one of the filing cabinets. So, Ive just scanned a couple more images: the black and white shot was taken by a Jaguar of 41(F) Sqn, RAF Coltishall in 1979...not bad for 250ft @ 480 knots is it? This shows the expanse of the old quarry and the filling in operation underway. The colour image must have been arranged by my dad a few years after we bought the house, I'm guessing at C1960. Look at those vehicles! You can just make out the nearest cliff of the quarry behind the furthermost tree in the house's garden. If this shot had been taken looking south west as opposed to north east you'd have seen that the cliff was at least 80ft high! Anyway, enough self-indulgence I'll STFU now!

 

[johnnybegood]

Hi all,
i have placed some feeders in my garden but i cant seem to attract any birds what so ever except a couple of wood pidgeon,we only have a small garden its very quiet and has plenty of tree cover,
i think the reason may be the cats,we have one cat,my neighbour has two cats,my other neighbour has a cat,and the last house in our road has two cats,all of which use our wooden fence as a route too and from their homes,is there anything i can do to encourage more birds to feed in our garden,
regards john.

 

[wheatearlp]

Hi all,
i have placed some feeders in my garden but i cant seem to attract any birds what so ever except a couple of wood pidgeon,we only have a small garden its very quiet and has plenty of tree cover,
i think the reason may be the cats,we have one cat,my neighbour has two cats,my other neighbour has a cat,and the last house in our road has two cats,all of which use our wooden fence as a route too and from their homes,is there anything i can do to encourage more birds to feed in our garden,
regards john.

It takes a while for birds to find a 'new' food source and the cats won't help. We have two cats, and there are several more in the vicinity, so I don't get as many birds as I would expect. However I do get regular Greenfinch, Goldfinch and Chaffinch to go with the usual Blue and Great Tits, Blackbirds, Wood Pigeons and Collared Doves. I also get a regular pair of Bullfinches and used to get Coal Tit, but I've not seen one this winter. So give things a little more time and I'm sure you will get stuff, especially if you site the feeders in the quietest part of the garden from a cat point of view. Alternatively you could always take out a contract on all the cats ...

 

[midlands birder]

hi all
back from my dads now, so can put my first post on here.
my dads garden(the most birdfriendly) has a list total of 67 species,including red kite(x2),multiple hobby, a pair of mealy redpoll,mute swan(actually in the garden),mallard(layed an egg in the garden although we dont have a pond) a marsh tit is the most recent addition to the list, and we have a regular siskin(up to 40 at one time),goldfinch(up to 10),greenfinch(a few) and chaffinch(up to 10),
the garden is relativly small so the diversity of the birds is amazing
this mourning i had a 1st winter male blackcap in the garden but it quickly left. a lesser redpoll spent a few days visiting the feeders(we hope to attract more with our new niger seed feeder)
in winter a flock of about 40 lapwings fly over every mouning(if i get up early enough) and we get regular coal tit,dunnock,nuthatch and the occasional treecreeper
not bad for a small garden eay
MB

 

[wheatearlp]

Hi Sy,

Had a look at the map and photos; looks a nice area. I'm familiar wth the general area, but not your specific bit, as I lived in Barnt Green until 1988, went to 'middle' school in Catshill and have relatives who live just down the road from you.

Cheers
Mike

 

[upstarts1979]

Bit of activity today after I made a few snow free patches
including :- 3 Fieldfare chasing all the blackbirds and each other at times each one holding a small territory protecting its apples.
Also
21 Blackbirds
13 Wood Pigeons
5 Collared Doves
45 House Sparrow
8 Chaffinch
3 Jackdaw
5 Long Tailed Tits
2 Robin
4 Dunnocks
8 Goldfinch also Starlings, Great and Blue Tits, Magpie and still No Greenfinch (although I did have 3 31st Dec)

cheers John

 

[upstarts1979]

Pictures from today
1. Flock of woodies before the snow came
2. Fieldfare
3. stand-off blackbirds against Fieldfare
4. Mixed flock

 

[upstarts1979]

Birds in my garden over the last two days 6th and 7th Jan
The Fieldfare have increased to 5 only feeding on apples
Redwing 1
Blackbird 16
House Sparrow 55
greenfinch 1 female
6 Jackdaw
5 Long Tailed Tits
15 Starling
plus common species

putting out treble the amount of food I would normally and 6 apples a day
but its worth it

 

[Sy V]

Still no migrant Thrushes in the garden. They're on the fields but just can't entice them in despite copious amounts of sultanas, raisins and apples.

 

[upstarts1979]

Birds in garden 8th and 9th Jan
Redwing 3,
Siskin male
plus previously mention species

 

[wheatearlp]

My two pennorth would be male and female Blackcap yesterday. Otherwise not too much happening here.

 

[simbird]

Hi I'm new to *Bird forum* and I like this thread... The garden is where I started my Birding... with no bird visitors to start with!... being a new house 20 years ago :

But with feeding over the years and especially in this freezing weather I've got a nice variety of birds and I've counted today in my Kidderminster garden ~ Next to Wilden Marsh owned by Worcestershire Wildlife Trust :

1 Songthrush... very shy
1 Fieldfare fighting all the Blackbirds off its Apple !
1 Dunnock
1 Magpie
5 Blackbirds
5 Starlings
2 Woodpigeons
2 Greenfinch
4 Goldfinch
2 Long Tailed Tits
1 Coal Tit
many Blue Tits?
many Great Tits?

I counted these over a couple of hours... so not sure what the totals might be for the day ?

Feeding twice a day instead of once and changing icy water twice too !

Simon