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Tits like coconuts. The bird thread!
I'd suggest a puffin. Don't they mate for life? In any case they're unbearably cute. Your suggestion, BJ?
Nice one, Jim. A bit more sensitive, Kathy. I'll suggest the song thrush. All those speckles on the breast are heart-shaped.
Puffins are terribly aggressive little thugs, apparently!I'd suggest bower bird.
Or nice roast duck :)
By the by, I've just seen a male blackcap having a bath in the bowl put out as a birdbath. The first I've seen in our garden for a couple of years.
Jim wrote: "B J wrote: "Any suggestions for a bird for St Valentine's Day?"goose"
Yes - buy yours a Valentines Card and chocolates....... or go straight to the doghouse! ;-)
I've sprinkled the left over suet from making the Christmas pudding. There was an offer of a bogof so I took it for the birds. It's got to be love birds for valentines or dare I say it a cockatoo.
B J wrote: "Any suggestions for a bird for St Valentine's Day?"That curvy blonde bird down the petrol station would be nice.
B J wrote: "Cooked porridge, cooked rice, crumbled biscuits and (this never happens in our house) stale cake."My birds won't touch cooked rice!
They love pastry scraps though.
A Duck of course! We had one .............. with chili and lemon.
Valentine Bullfinch if you ask me, they look after each other so well and bring up their family together, sweet ! We've got thrushes singing all over the place, Greenies, Nuthatch this morning and LS woodpecker drumming, spring is on the way,
Yay !
Saw what looked to be a Rough-legged Buzzard in Tromsø, Norway. They are supposed to spend their summers there, but it's February. Global Warming anyone?
My birdies still haven't come back. (sad face)
What a bummer Flo. Have you tried a few bread crumbs?
We saw cormorants, oystercatchers and I heard a skylark this morning
I think the sound of the skylark is amazing. Not heard one for quite a while. It's about time I got up onto the gated road where I last saw them!
L.A. wrote: "What a bummer Flo. Have you tried a few bread crumbs?"Yep - I've tried cheese, breadcrumbs (from lovely wholemeal brown bread), rice and now I've restocked on fat balls - those too! I did see 1 magpie picking at the cheese - so I told him to go tell all his mates that I was restocked!
Magpies may be your problem, Flo. They are fierce predators, killing and eating small birds as well as clearing nests of eggs/nestlings in the breeding season. If there's a magpie around a feeder, small birds will keep away. You could try only feeding using cage feeders for a while. When the magpies learn they can no longer get at the food, they'll move on.
We also saw and heard a very large goose. I can't identify it. It was a whopper, very light coloured all over and all alone. I'm sure it was bigger than a Canada goose. Any thoughts?
A greylag is about the same size as a Canada. It has no black neck, and is mottled grey all over. Some are paler than others.
I think that's it. I read a local bird blog and the notes say that they are often singles but not often seen. There are 3 sighted on Skomer and we were at St. Brides
B J wrote: "Magpies may be your problem, Flo. They are fierce predators, killing and eating small birds as well as clearing nests of eggs/nestlings in the breeding season. If there's a magpie around a feeder, ..."I've always had Magpie's visiting BJ......... even when there were masses of small birds. They must be toughies around here as they don't seem the least perturbed by the presence of Maggies.
T4bsF (Call me Flo) wrote: "B J wrote: "Magpies may be your problem, Flo. They are fierce predators, killing and eating small birds as well as clearing nests of eggs/nestlings in the breeding season. If there's a magpie aroun..."They're certainly toughies. Taking on a 'we bet we can breed faster than you can eat us or we'll die trying' challenge.
Lynne (Tigger's Mum) wrote: "http://cdn.images.dailystar.co.uk/dyn...This made me laugh. Is it one if yours Flo?"
What a great shot! It really captures the streetfighter image of the magpie.
Yes he look a real spiv.
Lynne (Tigger's Mum) wrote: "http://cdn.images.dailystar.co.uk/dyn...This made me laugh. Is it one if yours Flo?"
Definitely not - mine are well on the way to giving up and are on the e-cigs now! ;-)
Lovely photo Lynne, he looks very tough ! Lovely Yellowhammer and Brambling on feeders at Old Moor, I do love their beautiful colours !
Some intrepid birders had a treat yesterday. They had gone to Slapton Ley (a freshwater lake separated from the sea by a narrow strip of shingle) to see if Doris had driven any unusual birds to seek shelter on the calm lake water. They spotted a large number of gannets feeding in the sea close to the shore. A couple of anglers braving the waves and wind were catching half-a-dozen mackerel/herring with every cast. What was clearly a huge shoal of fish had attracted a lot of predators, including dolphins and porpoises. Then a humpback whale appeared. It cruised along Start Bay very close to the shore with a large mixed flock of seabirds in close attendance.
B J wrote: "Some intrepid birders had a treat yesterday. They had gone to Slapton Ley (a freshwater lake separated from the sea by a narrow strip of shingle) to see if Doris had driven any unusual birds to see..."Wow, what a treat!
That must have been a real treat to see that. OH took the dog along to Martin's Haven but all he saw was enormous waves. It blew so hard they couldn't get up the hill and the spaniel turned round and went back to the car.
B J wrote: "Some intrepid birders had a treat yesterday. They had gone to Slapton Ley (a freshwater lake separated from the sea by a narrow strip of shingle) to see if Doris had driven any unusual birds to see..."How wonderful, lucky people ! Evie is going on a dolphin spotting trip today, it's a glass bottomed boat so she will really enjoy seeing under the boat as much as the dolphins I think, mind you not many things top seeing a dolphin do they.
I'm like a big kid who's been given a load of sweeties this morning.......... my birdies are back!!!! It's lovely to see them again, although not in full force yet - I'm sure the word will soon get around!!
That's great, Flo. Sure they'll pass the word on.What a brilliant sight for the birders, BJ. I've never seen anything out of the ordinary in Start Bay - but timing is everything!
As of yesterday, Kathy, the whale was still being seen in Start Bay with sightseers in boats urged to keep well clear.
Thanks BJ. I'd love to see him and may go down. Though it's getting very stormy here now.
Yes, Ewan appears to be pursuing Doris with serious intent.Update: at 11 a.m. this morning the whale was again seen close inshore level with the memorial car park.
If there's anyone that hasn't seen a peacock in flight...............https://www.facebook.com/738515392977...
They are amazing aren't they, noisy but wonderful. In India I was always surprised to see how high up in a tree they roost.Locally my friend and i had a big surprise in a garden centre when one came flying out of a greenhouse building as we were going in. It did give us a scare.
T4bsF (Call me Flo) wrote: "If there's anyone that hasn't seen a peacock in flight...............https://www.facebook.com/738515392977..."
That's wonderful footage. Seeing its feet coming in to land reminded me of watching swans trying to take off: huge slapping steps over the water. Always fascinates me.
Enjoying watching a group of long-tailed tits on the feeders this afternoon. They don't come that often but when they do there's always a number of them. Must be very sociable birds.
Lynne (Tigger's Mum) wrote: "They are amazing aren't they, noisy but wonderful. In India I was always surprised to see how high up in a tree they roost.Locally my friend and i had a big surprise in a garden centre when one c..."
I wasn't surprised by peacock antics when we spent time in India as there were loads in the park I spent lots of time in back home. I loved watching Dave's reactions to them.
I miss India. I wanna go back.
Or Africa.
Or anywhere that's not pavement and concrete, really.
We went to Slapton today hoping to catch sight of the humpback whale that has been feeding in Start Bay for the last week or so. We struck lucky. The whale crossed the Bay heading towards Dartmouth. Although it was at least 400m out we could see it clearly. It then appeared to be heading out to sea, but it suddenly sounded about 100m from shore, directly in front of us. Then it surfaced again no more than 25m out (it's a steeply shelving beach). It was an astonishing sight. Apart from that, it was an excellent day for birding.
You lucky thing! We get pods of dolphins and orca here, but to me they are the same as the northern lights - I hear about them afterwards and always miss them. One day...
B J wrote: "We went to Slapton today hoping to catch sight of the humpback whale that has been feeding in Start Bay for the last week or so. We struck lucky. The whale crossed the Bay heading towards Dartmouth..."Did you get a photo, BJ?
Yes, Rosie, that was exactly what was happening to me over the past week. I kept being drawn back to Slapton by reports of the whale being seen, but every time I missed it. Yesterday I spent the whole day there, which is no chore as there is so much birdlife to see on the sea and on the freshwater Ley. The whale appeared in the bay at about 4 o'clock and came really close to the beach as the light was failing about 6. Kathy, that made it three days in a row that the whale had done the same thing at the same time. It could be worth you seeing if it makes it four in a row.
Thank you, BJ. Yesss, saw him!! (Her?) And the gannets - such impressive birds. We were out visiting friends near Exeter and, thanks to your advice, made a detour on the way home. Arrived at Slapton around 5.40 and there was the whale, surprisingly close to shore. A large number of people were still there to watch, despite the biting wind. It capped a good day for me.
That's great, Kathy. Odd isn't it that the whale is choosing to regularly visit the same spot, at the same time, and that spot just happens to be close to the car park where people can gather to watch.
goose