BIRDS IN THE GARDEN

Look who came for a bite today! I'm not sure what the english name is - here it's called a "gray thrush" ...... it's a fairly common winter visitor. I saw one last winter too - that was the first time I saw it .... couldn't believe my eyes! I think it's sooooo pretty - unlike all the other birds here :-)

Fieldfare in English, Turdus pilaris in Latin

Resin

Thanks Resin ;-)

That is a lovely photo Rannveig, was he on his own? We see large flocks of them in the countryside, but not usually on their own, and very rarely in gardens - where I live anyway. It still looks very wintry, how long has the snow been on the ground? It is very mild here, with lots of rain and very strong gales. At least It is pleasanter to go out if it is cold and fine.

Yes - Pat it was on its own. The one I saw last time was also a loner ...... I guess they come here "by mistake" so that's probably why there aren't more of them. They are a rare sight .... hope it comes back - I'll be feeding the birds very well the next few days. They need it, it was -8°C today. The snow is from Saturday and will stay on the ground at least until next week - so there will be a lot of hungry birds to feed.

You can see that it was a cold day by how "puffy" it looks .....

One more - up in a tree :-) It's such a treat to see something different, I took loads of photos .... ;-)

They are lovely birds, we don't usually see them close up. -8 degrees is a bit too cold for my liking, but I like cold clear days better than dark wet ones. The sun is just peeping through the clouds today so I feel more like getting out and doing something.

The hens are happier too. The new hens are getting quite adventurous - there were three of them sitting on a branch up the plum tree a few minutes ago. I'll try to get a photo.

Oh Pat please try to get a photo! I'd love to see them :-)

It's been very lively today - got some more snow last night, it's about -5°C so the birds are quite hungry. The fieldfare came back today although it was a bit late for the feast ..... this time there were TWO of them! I didn't notice the other one at first since it stayed way in the back .... sure hope they'll come back again. I think I'll need to get them some more apples - they seem to love those :-) I just love it when we get "visitors" they're such a treat :-)

ooh yes Resin - they do love raisins! :-) I've treated them to some when I'm feeling very generous ....... might give them some tomorrow ;-) What on earth are mealworms and where would I get those?

The two fieldfares have been fighting over which one's yard this is today .... lol - I think I need to put some food out in a different spot in the yard as well so both of them can get something to eat. I've heard that they can even drive the other birds away so they have all the goodies to themselves .... we'll see - that didn't happen last year. But they definately don't like others of the same kind around.

Hi Rannveig,

Mealworms are the larva of a beetle, used to feed birds, pet reptiles, etc. More details:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mealworm

Surprising that your two Fieldfares are fighting, usually they are more sociable than most other thrushes, readily forming large feeding flocks. Scattering the food widely should help.

Resin

It really is surprising to hear that they are so sociable "at home" they certainly aren't known for that here. About two years ago I attended a lecture about birds in the garden and a few of the most common "visitors" were discussed, amongst others the fieldfare. The lecturer said that if we'd be lucky enough to get a fieldfare in the garden - we'd better spread the food out or we might end up with that being the only bird in the garden. lol

Hi Rannveig,

Odd! The species that has that reputation here is Mistle Thrush (Mistilþröstur in Icelandic)

Resin

I'm still trying to get a photo of the hens - every time I went out with the camera they thought they were getting fed and flew down to greet me.

We used to have a very pugnacious Mistle Thrush in our garden every winter, who would see everything else off, but I've not seen one around here for ages.

wow- you are good! I'm not familiar with the mistle thrush doesn't come over here as far as I know. It was funny watching the fieldfare today .... yesterday it was a bit timid and the starlings chased it away a few times but today it was the other way around. Maybe they're more agressive when they're "traveling" .... lol I'm sure they'd rather be home than freezing their tails off here. Probably thinking "I shouldn't have made that right turn - big mistake!" Poor guys.

lol - Pat. That is so funny ...... hope you'll succeed eventually. Reminds me of my girls when they were little and I was trying to take their photo and they'd come running towards me :-)

Hi Rannveig,

I wouldn't worry about your Fieldfares, they are very hardy birds - some stay for the winter as far northeast as central Finland, and in Norway north to Tromsø (well north of the Arctic Circle!).

Checked up on Mistilþröstur in Iceland, it is a rare vagrant with 43 records:
http://www.hi.is/~yannk/status_turvis.html

Resin

Thanks for that - according to that site there's been one sighting here in the Reykjavik area ......

I've just been watching a female Black cap nibbling the yellow Mahonia media petals, and a Bullfinch in the next tree the Corylus avelana contorta. Lovely to see them. We rarely get the Black caps and only usually a single bird, I wonder if it is the same one that visited last winter.

The blackbirds are checking out all their favourite nesting sites. A male was rummaging about in the little lollipop shaped Bay tree for about half an hour yesterday and the female sat on top of the tree for a while and then lost interest. They try a nest in there every year, but have never raised any young in it. I wonder why they think it is so good a place.

There are some Collared doves nesting across the road in some tall conifers and two pairs of Dunnocks are busying themselves around the back garden inspecting the privet hedge. There is a very lively little wren searching the greenhouses for insects and going over all the fruit trees. I'm surprised there are any insects left with all the bird activity. I suppose it is the balance of nature. If there is plenty of food the birds do well and if they go short there are fewer birds until the food supply increases again.

Female Blackcap in my garden again on Saturday (13th).

Saw 6 Waxwings today in a housing estate in Ashington.

Resin

We've only ever had waxwings in the garden once about five years ago. There are reports of them in the area most winters. I heard they were a little late this year due to the mild weather, so if they are in Northumberland I had better start looking out for them.

We had waxwings visit here two years ago - the first time I saw them I (again) couldn't believe my eyes and thought to myself ....... "We haven't moved to a warmer country - how can this be?" Learned later that they live quite far north in Scandinavia and come over here once in a while. The most stunningly beautiful birds ever seen here I sure!

Pat - I'm amazed that the birds are starting to look for nesting places already over there! Isn't that unusually early? I'm sure they won't start thinking of that here for another 4 months.

The fieldfares have made themselves very much at home here ...... so much so that they are chasing all the other birds away. I put food out in a second spot so the "regulars" could feed there since the first fieldfare had totally claimed the original spot as his, but then the second fieldfare was very quick to claim the second feeding station so I had to put out food on the third side of the house as well! lol They're really making me work those two! Especially since it's been snowing quite a bit so instead of having to sweep snow off one feeding place - I had three.

Here's a photo of one of them in the second feeding spot - it's very close to a window so I got a very close up shot of it :-)

Oooooooh wow, Resin that one sure is a beauty! Didn't even know it excisted ..... it certainly is stunning. Do you know where the Varied Thrush lives? Is it found in the UK?

Thanks for the link - a link on that page led me to another icelandic site with updates of vagrant sightings. There is a Robin visiting somewhere in Hafnarfjordur and a few days ago there was a sighting of a blackcap and waxwing in Reykjavik. I didn't know what a blackcap was until I saw the icelandic name for it on that site - we had one of those visit here 2 years ago as well :-)

rannveig

Hi Rannveig,

Wow - he was really far from home! Thanks for the DG link - it's a truly beautiful bird. :-)

I've never seen a Varied Thrush either - it looks like a cross between a blackbird and a robin.

One of my favourite birds is the Bee Eater which I've only seen in Crete. Wasn't there a pair nesting in a quarry in Northumberland last year?

Hi Patbarr,

Wish there had been, but no. There was a pair nested at Bishop Middleham Quarry in Durham in 2002, I guess that's what you're thinking of? Earlier, there was also a flock of 10 Bee-eaters at Cleadon (also Durham) from 20-22 May 1999 (which I went to see), but there are very few records for Northumberland (I have yet to see one this side of the Tyne).

Resin

Hi Resin, Is it really so long ago - yes I know they were nesting in a quarry as there was a lot of news coverage and I thought it was a shame there would be so many people around the site.

I once saw a gang (can't think of an appropriate collective noun for twitchers) of twitchers pursuing a poor exhausted Bluethroat at Spurn until it died as it didn't get a chance to rest and find food.

Rannveig, the Fieldfare are getting so close, they will be in your kitchen next and you won't have to go outside to feed them! They are lovely birds. It is surprising when you look closely even at the drab looking ones like sparrows that they really have nice markings and much more colour than you notice when they are flying about.

LOL - Pat! They certainly are making themselves at home :-) Maybe they'll start knocking on the window if I forget to put out apples for them. I wish one of those Robins that have been hanging around here would drop in for a visit. I've never seen one except on photos. There was a photo of one in the paper yesterday. They're really cute little fellows :-)

The goldfinches having breakfast:

Some of the new hens getting adventurous:

Some of my favourites - the long tailed tits - taking their turn at the feeder.

Yesterday I went a long walk over the moors in the snow and glorious sunshine and saw a large flock of Long tailed tits and lots of Red Grouse. The reservoir was full to overflowing and the roads on the way back were extremely icy. I felt so much better for some sun, exercise, fresh air and lovely scenery.

Don't forget that it is the R.S.P.B.'s Big Bird Watch today and tomorrow. You can download the form to fill in from the R.S.P.B. website. You just have to record the largest number of each species you see in one hour either today or tomorrow in your garden or a local park etc.

There have been dozens of lovely birds in the garden today because of the snow. I put them a special treat out - some chopped peanuts, suet and raisins as well as their usual food. The song thrush which we rarely see even came to the bird table but was having a running battle with a rather belligerant blackbird.

My new hens have started laying - one egg yesterday and two today, one of them a double yolker. It announced its achievement by marching round making an extremely silly noise. Still it was its first attempt. I'm sure the voice will improve with practise!

Another good day for variety with the female Black cap again and a pair of Bullfinches and Song thrush which has been a regular visitor this week. There were fifteen different species on the feeders yesterday and most of them in quite large numbers. Lots of them have paired up and are collecting nesting material and the tits are checking out all the nest boxes. Two pairs of Blackbirds have nests in the conifers and another pair are building somewhere at the back of the house. The snow doesn't seem to have put them off at all, but it is really too early. Still if they get an early start they usually get two summer broods in as well.

Blackcap in my garden too today

Resin

Surprising to hear you actually have 3 pairs of Blackbirds, Pat!

I always thought that blackbirds are very territorial and don't allow any other one nest or even feed in their immediate neighbourhood.
Every year I only have one couple of blackbirds. Any other blackbird that comes by and explores the neighborhood is passionately chased out. Of cause, my place is really tiny, but the couple also chases other blackbirds out of neighbouring gardens.

There must be something attractive about Mahonia flowers as the Blackcap usually appears in my Mahonia x media Charity. Yours is hoping you haven't seen it by the look of the photo.

We have quite a large garden, but the blackbirds seem to get on quite well. They go around in quite large numbers over winter and have a few squabbles when they are pairing up. After that they just go about their business and don't seem to mind one another. There is just the one male which is determined to keep the Song thrush out of the garden. It pretends to fly away and then when the blackbird has hurtled off after it, it comes back from a different direction. They are quite funny to watch.