Wildlife in the garden - Indian summer?

[Focalplane]

Ah, the rat problem! When we lived in Houston, the 32 homes that constituted a gated community decided to have an owners meeting. Several homeowners complained about rats running along the telephone/cable wires that are above ground in the city. I suggested that there were at least as many rats in Houston as people (actually many more, but I didn't want to be too scary). The next topic to be raised was the number of fireworks being let off. Clearly our neighbours didn't know Houston, so I asked, did the fireworks go off in groups of six? (clue, Smith and Wesson).

Here in north Winchester we inherited a rat problem due to buying a neglected garden. Also, our neighbours had chickens. Enter the rat man. Now no rats. Meantime, we cleared out the garden and have had a change of birdlife. No goldfinches (dug up the lavender) but numerous tits, of the blue, great, coal and long tailed species. The letter have neatly replaced the goldfinches as our favourites but we hope to encourage the goldfinches to return later this year. We have collared doves in pairs, too many pigeons, a couple of marauding magpies, buzzards and rooks overhead, clashing with the helicopters (not really), and of course, the blackbirds, robins, dunnocks and blakbirds that are always present in a welcoming garden. Our only food at present is coconut filled with fat but plans are afoot for an anti-squirrel seed feeder.

 

[Dog Star]

One month after my last post here and there have been changes in the bird population to be seen in our garden. This is a non-scientific opinion on what is coming to the garden now compared to the period of the RSPB Garden Bird surveys in Jan. 2021 and Jan. 2022 - changes are underlined.

Goldfinch, ten in 2021, three Jan. 2022, up to eight at a time now;
Greenfinch, five in 2021, three in Jan. 2022, no change;
Chaffinch, two in 2021, same in Jan. 2022, up to five at a time now;
Bullfinch, one in 2021, two males / one female in 2022, no change in numbers, more visits per day;
Great Tit, five in 2021, two in Jan. 2022, no change;
Blue Tit, seven in 2021, five in Jan. 2022, no change;
Long Tail Tit, seven 2021, two in Jan. 2022, no change;
Starling, two in 2021, up to six in Jan. 2022, no change;
Blackbird, two in 2021, six males and two females in Jan. 2022, no change;
Dunnock, two 2021, none in Jan. 2022, two now;
Wren, one at survey date in 2021, none in Jan./Feb. 2022, one now;
Pigeon, three in 2021, eight in Jan. 2022, no change;
Dove, two in 2021, two in Jan. 2022, no change.

A couple of photos:-

Never mind what the RSPB says about Goldfinches preferring Niger seed, no one told the birds here so the food of choice is Sunflower hearts.


A female Bullfinch visits mosts days, often several times a day. Probably my favourite visitor because of the colouring and the hope of fledglings this year.



regards, Graham

 

[parky]

I like your photos Graham how do you get so close ? I did have CCTV cameras at the end of the garden when the feeders were down there, but the quality wasn't too good close up. We moved our feeder nearer the house to make it easier to refill over winter and keep thinking need to look at cameras again

It's not just me that thinks the Bullfinch is the prize visitor then. We had 4 pairs of them over winter, though we are down to 2 pairs this morning as territory is fought over now. Your tally is very similar to here if you ignore the obnoxious magpies that squabble all day
The Goldfinches are always a cheery sight throughout the day especially the way they go around in a gang all the time with only a few altercations. On some of the days over winter we have had 20-30 Goldfinches queuing up for food. They were stacked all around the garden looking like Christmas baubles on the trees and bushes

 

[Dog Star]

I like your photos Graham how do you get so close ?

There are two bird feeder posts, at ten and twenty feet from the house. I take the photographs, through windows, with a Canon Sureshot using the zoom feature of the camera.

 

[parky]

Impressive Graham, I was expecting your to say had some high end camera gear

 

[Purple-haze]

Just as an aside you may or may not know that a group of gold finches are known as a charm. How delightful is that.regards Rog

 

[richard carr]

Graham

That is a fantastic variety in your garden, I'm quite envious.
I think our problem is too many crows and magpies, it puts the other birds off.

Richard

 

[Dog Star]

And so we return to where this topic started... as here.

Daydreaming at the kitchen window today, there was a flurry of activity and a grey shape "rolled/bounced" along some fence posts on the ground - looking closer at the bundle of feathers I thought that this was a case of a pigeon making a bad landing. No, got that wrong. The bird got up and jumped into the branches of a Weigela, about two feet from the ground. What a surprise... a visit from a male Sparrowhawk and the first this year, about fourteen months since the last visit as recorded in my original post to this topic.


This photo shows the bird sitting in the Weigela...




This photo shows how close the bird is to the ground




No easy flight path out of the bush. The bird remained here for more than 20 minutes and then was gone in an instant.

regards, Graham

 

[Max M]

Whilst I stand to be corrected, isn't that a male? The females lack the rust colouring.

 

[Eastsidepilot]

Friday just gone across the field behind us Bett spotted a large bird landing in the trees, a distance, of approx. 300 yds, grabbing the bin's expecting to see a Buzzard I was surprised to identified it as an Osprey, bigger wingspan. Sadly no photo ( no telephoto lens) but the first time that either of us had seen one in the wild.
According to our book they migrate up from Africa ? about this time of year and usually settle in Northern parts of the British Isles. We are in mid- high Suffolk, so it's probably flown further on.

Col.

 

[Dog Star]

Whilst I stand to be corrected, isn't that a male? The females lack the rust colouring.

Just like last year, some of us WTers made the same mistake then!

 

[Max M]

...I was surprised to identified it as an Osprey, bigger wingspan.

Col, if you keep an eye on this web site you may be able to establish which bird it was.

 

[Eastsidepilot]

Col, if you keep an eye on this web site you may be able to establish which bird it was.

Judging by that site it could well of been the only one recorded as arriving so far on the 13th. March (Sunday), Loch of Lowes, male. Seeing that the one we spotted was on the 11th. I assume it's entirely possible for it to have got to Scotland in that time ?
This is worth a visit Osprey webcam – Scottish Wildlife Trust
Col.

 

[Dog Star]

An interesting day at the kitchen sink... starting early (say 8am) with one of my favourites:-





Actually, one of each! I was so busy taking the photo of Mrs. Bullfinch that I did not notice Mr. (on the far feeder) until preparing images for this post. So here he is feeding later in the day, just before our lunchtime.





Later in the day, at about 3pm, there was quite a rumpus (flapping of wings and warning calls) followed by a clanging sound which I knew, from previous occasions, is caused by something large bumping the feeders. These birds arrived for a dig in the coconut fat feeder, not as good a photo as the last time that a Rook came to the garden, see here. Apologies for the poor photo, the Rooks seem to be very nervous and take flight at the slightest movement - indeed the lack of focus results from the birds becoming airborne as I pressed the shutter button.



regards, Graham

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

They'll be members of the corvid group of birds (rooks, crows, jackdaws, magpies). Generally the noisiest are the jackdaws who also appear scruffy.

I suspect they are jackdaws as I've never seen rooks or crows on feeding tables.

 

[SimonT]

Deffo Rooks. Bulbous forehead and pale base to the beak. Jackdaws scruffy? I've lived with two families and they were always in sunday best. Always a funny morning when dad taught the chicks to hang out like a blue tit. I bought a two foot long pecker to make it easier. (Cue Kenneth Williams noises imitating an Eider Duck)

 

[oldravendale]

We have a nasty case of jackdaws - well, several. The bird feeders just get ransacked and it's now the time of year when they are throwing stuff down the chimney. Every morning I pull out all the sticks and set light to them using a damp log to create as much smoke as possible. That puts them off for the rest of the day but tomorrow it'll be a repeat performance. I've no doubt that they'll eventually get a stick to stick and they'll build up from there. Eventually the chimney will be blocked until we get the sweep round to clear it in the autumn. Last year he pulled out a huge bag of sticks.

We'll be having some work done on the house this year and will have a jackdaw proof cowell fitted.

Brian

 

[Focalplane]

Not far from us there is a rookery and recently one of the trees was cut down. Since then two nests have been constructed at the top of a large ash tree some 300m away. In time for nesting season, but do the rooks know about ash tieback, I wonder? The rooks only fly high over our garden, no doubt heading off for the fields of Hampshire.

 

[daifly]

When I was young, rookeries were largely to be found in elm trees until the elms were wiped out. Rooks etc. are intelligent and adaptable birds that will nest in a high tree whatever its species.
Dave

 

[Max M]

If you see a single Rook it's probably a Carrion Crow and if you see a group of Carrion Crows they are probably Rooks.
Jackdaws are smaller.