Wildlife

[wpj]

That sounds rough. Sleeplessness and insomnia are hard to describe to other people if they haven’t experienced it them self.

That sounds good with the robin though and hopeful for the fox reappearing, albeit it will cause havoc if it gets its own way :greengrin

Better not eat my robin, they need to coexist to keep me happy 😂

[Mibbes Aye]

Better not eat my robin, they need to coexist to keep me happy 😂

Balance is crucial :greengrin

[wpj]

Still got my squirrels

[WoreTheGreen]

I was running up the Innocent Railway Path earlier. Just before the long tunnel there were 2 deers on the left of the path. They both just stood and looked at me for a minute then disappeared back into the wooded area.

I've heard before there are deer that live in or around Holyrood Park but it's the 2st time I have ever seen one.
On my daily walk I have seen three dears in last couple of days on the embankment where the Braidburn Inn used to be

[goosano]

On my daily walk I have seen three dears in last couple of days on the embankment where the Braidburn Inn used to be

I think they live on Craigmillar Park Golf course, I've seen them regularly on the course and they use the wooded areas to shelter.
They breed on the Bawsinch reserve so they may be the ones Pretty Boy saw.
There are also 5 on Duddingston golf course. Theybtend to hide in 2 areas of dense undergrowth but have had a real hard time these last few weeks with the large increase in dogs on the course. Not the dogs fault of course but I've seen them fleeing a couple of times with a dog in hot pursuit

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

This is a strangely cathartic thread.

[Bishop Hibee]

I identified a Peacock butterfly on one of my walks through the Figgate Park. Always nice to see the heron on the island in the middle of the pond. The otters keep well out of the way during the day I imagine.

[Moulin Yarns]

This was the only way I could get the video of my nocturnal visitors to you.

https://www.facebook.com/david.williamson.520357/videos/3047477678651504/

[Hibrandenburg]

Apparently ants taste good or at least my dog seems to think so. Win, win, lose.

[Moulin Yarns]

Apparently ants taste good or at least my dog seems to think so. Win, win, lose.

Ants farm aphids for sugar secretions. Your dog has a sweet tooth.

[goosano]

This was the only way I could get the video of my nocturnal visitors to you.

https://www.facebook.com/david.williamson.520357/videos/3047477678651504/

Wow, green with envy. Very nice

[Peevemor]

This was the only way I could get the video of my nocturnal visitors to you.

https://www.facebook.com/david.williamson.520357/videos/3047477678651504/Make a great sporran!

[Scouse Hibee]

This was the only way I could get the video of my nocturnal visitors to you.

https://www.facebook.com/david.williamson.520357/videos/3047477678651504/

That’s great, we had a similar sized regular visitor last year, it disappeared for a while and I wondered why, then found a similar size body on Kaimes Road, probably struck by a car. I have a video somewhere of a fox and badger both feeding from the debris of a knocked over food bin only yards apart in my road.

[Mibbes Aye]

This was the only way I could get the video of my nocturnal visitors to you.

https://www.facebook.com/david.williamson.520357/videos/3047477678651504/

Very good :aok:

[Mibbes Aye]

The remounted birdfeeders got taken down again, I am assuming this morning. It is quite a feat because of the hooks and loops, which is why I think the rooks did it, because they are such clever birds.

Anyway, feed all over the grass beneath the stand. The rooks disappeared as is their want and the wood pigeons moved in to take their share of the spoils. They are bordering on obesity as it is, so we may not remount for a while - maybe even leave it to autumn.

I really don't mind the fact that they dismantled the feeders, I just wish I could have seen it!

[JeMeSouviens]

This was the only way I could get the video of my nocturnal visitors to you.

https://www.facebook.com/david.williamson.520357/videos/3047477678651504/

Brilliant!

[danhibees1875]

Apparently ants taste good or at least my dog seems to think so. Win, win, lose.

Someone used ants on the great british menu last week, apparently they have a citrus taste.

[wpj]

Brilliant!

That is beautiful

[RyeSloan]

The remounted birdfeeders got taken down again, I am assuming this morning. It is quite a feat because of the hooks and loops, which is why I think the rooks did it, because they are such clever birds.

Anyway, feed all over the grass beneath the stand. The rooks disappeared as is their want and the wood pigeons moved in to take their share of the spoils. They are bordering on obesity as it is, so we may not remount for a while - maybe even leave it to autumn.

I really don't mind the fact that they dismantled the feeders, I just wish I could have seen it!

I have a couple of wood pigeons that have become regulars now from the spare seed that drops from my wee feeder...I recognise your comment about them being almost obese!!

I’ve no idea if that’s their natural size but jeez these two are big mutha’s that’s for sure. The fact they can still fly seems to be a near miracle!

I’m still in awe a bit every day about how much activity one small feeder has created! There was always birds in the garden but boy has this increased the traffic enormously. Even more so that the male sparrows have found the thing...I reckon they might start to eat me out of house and home soon!!

[Mibbes Aye]

I have a couple of wood pigeons that have become regulars now from the spare seed that drops from my wee feeder...I recognise your comment about them being almost obese!!

I’ve no idea if that’s their natural size but jeez these two are big mutha’s that’s for sure. The fact they can still fly seems to be a near miracle!

I’m still in awe a bit every day about how much activity one small feeder has created! There was always birds in the garden but boy has this increased the traffic enormously. Even more so that the male sparrows have found the thing...I reckon they might start to eat me out of house and home soon!!

Yeah, little things - it is classic Bull Durham - build it and they will come. Some sort of bath is possibly even better, there is joy to be found in watching them feed and bathe.

I think I posted earlier on the thread that buying a proper bath is a guaranteed hit, but even sinking a plastic, lined tub into the soil will attract all sorts.

And yes, wood pigeons tend to be fat bassas at the best of times. As someone else posted, they are smart and they were in the frame for dismantling my feeder. The fact that a rook had already recoinnetred it and because of the complexity involved, led me to presume it was him/her/ a pair.

[RyeSloan]

Yeah, little things - it is classic Bull Durham - build it and they will come. Some sort of bath is possibly even better, there is joy to be found in watching them feed and bathe.

I think I posted earlier on the thread that buying a proper bath is a guaranteed hit, but even sinking a plastic, lined tub into the soil will attract all sorts.

And yes, wood pigeons tend to be fat bassas at the best of times. As someone else posted, they are smart and they were in the frame for dismantling my feeder. The fact that a rook had already recoinnetred it and because of the complexity involved, led me to presume it was him/her/ a pair.

I do fancy getting a bird bath but so far have not been able to ascertain the correct spot for it in the garden....

Then I’m thinking should it be on the east or west side of the garden, how far from the house, do I want a modern looking one or a traditional stone effort and then it gets all too much and I park the idea [emoji23][emoji23]

The Woodpigeons did have a gander at my feeder the first few times they came...they sat right above it on the branch a few times but eventually seem to have given up on the idea of trying to get to it. I actually thought they were going to start jumping up and down to see if they could make it fall down the way they were acting!! [emoji2957]

[Mibbes Aye]

I do fancy getting a bird bath but so far have not been able to ascertain the correct spot for it in the garden....

Then I’m thinking should it be on the east or west side of the garden, how far from the house, do I want a modern looking one or a traditional stone effort and then it gets all too much and I park the idea [emoji23][emoji23]

The Woodpigeons did have a gander at my feeder the first few times they came...they sat right above it on the branch a few times but eventually seem to have given up on the idea of trying to get to it. I actually thought they were going to start jumping up and down to see if they could make it fall down the way they were acting!! [emoji2957]

You can tie yourself in mental knots with where to position garden stuff. The best place for my feeder is at the end of the garden but that would mean not seeing the birds feeding from it. That is a moot point now anyway since the rooks and the wood pigeons trashed it :greengrin

For a bath I think you want it somewhere you will naturally see it, but not so close that the birds will be feared to use it because of your presence. Tricky balance.

As an aside, some of the wood pigeons have a different call now. In musical notation it would be 2/4 time, silent quaver, acciacutura, crotchet, quaver.

I think that’s right but for those who don’t have a clue what that last paragraph meant it is essentially da-daaaah-dah repeated.

I am am not sure if these are younger wood pigeons. There is every likelihood they are the usual ones and having stuffed themselves on my feed they can’t be bothered doing the normal longer call.......

[beensaidbefore]

I do fancy getting a bird bath but so far have not been able to ascertain the correct spot for it in the garden....

Then I’m thinking should it be on the east or west side of the garden, how far from the house, do I want a modern looking one or a traditional stone effort and then it gets all too much and I park the idea [emoji23][emoji23]

The Woodpigeons did have a gander at my feeder the first few times they came...they sat right above it on the branch a few times but eventually seem to have given up on the idea of trying to get to it. I actually thought they were going to start jumping up and down to see if they could make it fall down the way they were acting!! [emoji2957]


I have 3 'bird baths' or at least water sources, 2 in the back, one in the front. Out the back simple plastic bucket sunk in the ground so all you see is the very top. I actually have this in a barrel planter to disguise the last bit of the bucket. This is in the shade around 1 meter from my neighbours house wall. Birds, especially sparrows love that one. Further up there is glass dish about 3 inch deep with a stone in the middle for the birds to stand on. Gets a lot of traffic, but not very large so needs constant cleaning and filling. Out the front I have a more tradition stone birdbath. Quite shallow, and just laid on the grass around 1.5 meters from the hedge, although this one gets moved around for cutting the grass etc, and regardless of where, the birds drink and bathe in it.

I have no experience other than trial and error. I would say your best bet is to leave it for a few days and see how it goes. If no activity, move it around, until you find the ideal spot.

[speedy_gonzales]

In addition to bird baths, dust baths.
Many small birds like sparrows & starlings love a dust bath.
Fill a shallow container with completely dried out soil or even fine sand.
It's quite comical watching a bird thrash about in a dust bath, almost like it's having a fit, but it's very good for the feathers.

[JeMeSouviens]

Inspired by this thread, I have started a bird species list. Seen 21 so far in the garden or out with the dog.

But also about 5 unspecified "small brown things". How the hell does anyone ever identify all these warblers and the like? Without a shotgun anyway. :wink:

[goosano]

Enjoying all the comments here. One thing that has not been touched on is to place feeders and birdbaths in sites where birds feel safe. That is, close to cover such as trees or bushes. You'll get poor results if you plonk them in the middle of a lawn. Paradoxically my feeders that are about 3 foot from trees and shrubs is the perfect hunting ground for the local sparrowhawk as it comes screaming down the 3m gap between my house and the neighbours to the feeders

[Mibbes Aye]

Enjoying all the comments here. One thing that has not been touched on is to place feeders and birdbaths in sites where birds feel safe. That is, close to cover such as trees or bushes. You'll get poor results if you plonk them in the middle of a lawn. Paradoxically my feeders that are about 3 foot from trees and shrubs is the perfect hunting ground for the local sparrowhawk as it comes screaming down the 3m gap between my house and the neighbours to the feeders

Good comment. Our feeder isn’t far from a few safe sites, but it didn’t stop the bigger birds taking liberties, it was maybe just too exposed, which meant the smaller birds felt too vulnerable.

There is a fine balance, as I have said before, our garden is a transit route for several cats and they will be happy to lurk before pouncing on some poor fledgling.

[Mibbes Aye]

Inspired by this thread, I have started a bird species list. Seen 21 so far in the garden or out with the dog.

But also about 5 unspecified "small brown things". How the hell does anyone ever identify all these warblers and the like? Without a shotgun anyway. :wink:

Good work. For me, it is a bit like Panini stickers, you recognise the obvious ones but the joy is in identifying the obscure ones :greengrin

[Mibbes Aye]

In addition to bird baths, dust baths.
Many small birds like sparrows & starlings love a dust bath.
Fill a shallow container with completely dried out soil or even fine sand.
It's quite comical watching a bird thrash about in a dust bath, almost like it's having a fit, but it's very good for the feathers.

Didn’t know about that, nice one :aok:

I assume you don’t bury the container to ground level?

[Ozyhibby]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200511/530092987be2e325f0382b182a2aadb0.jpg
Water of Leith has improved since lockdown.[emoji6]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[JimBHibees]

As a general rule should you feed birds in your garden like leaving bits of bread. Nect door neighbours put some out yesterday and all sorts of birds were fighting over it from crows to seagulls to magpies and a thrush was quite a squabble to witness.

[Mibbes Aye]

As a general rule should you feed birds in your garden like leaving bits of bread. Nect door neighbours put some out yesterday and all sorts of birds were fighting over it from crows to seagulls to magpies and a thrush was quite a squabble to witness.

It will definitely attract them but doesn’t really offer anything in the way of protein or fat, which are really helpful in winter. It is really just a carb and a filler, nothing nutritional for them at all.

I would suggest moistening or soaking it first, if you are minded to put it out. Younger birds will struggle with it otherwise.

The RSPB site is helpful in terms of what to put out and when to put it out.

[Mibbes Aye]

As a general rule should you feed birds in your garden like leaving bits of bread. Nect door neighbours put some out yesterday and all sorts of birds were fighting over it from crows to seagulls to magpies and a thrush was quite a squabble to witness.

Sorry, should have been simpler in my reply. It is tempting to put out bread but it doesn’t do them any favours.

[CropleyWasGod]

Yeah, little things - it is classic Bull Durham - build it and they will come. Some sort of bath is possibly even better, there is joy to be found in watching them feed and bathe.

I think I posted earlier on the thread that buying a proper bath is a guaranteed hit, but even sinking a plastic, lined tub into the soil will attract all sorts.

And yes, wood pigeons tend to be fat bassas at the best of times. As someone else posted, they are smart and they were in the frame for dismantling my feeder. The fact that a rook had already recoinnetred it and because of the complexity involved, led me to presume it was him/her/ a pair.

Loving this thread, and loving watching the activity of the birds every day. I'm convinced one of the cheekier magpies is my late auld man taking the P out of my crappy garden. :greengrin

I'm now of a mind to buy some sort of feeding table or station. Any clues for a novice as to what to look for?

Oh, and it wasn't Bull Durham that talked about "build it and they will come". It was that other Costner baseball film, Field of Dreams. I get them mixed up too :aok:

[Mibbes Aye]

Loving this thread, and loving watching the activity of the birds every day. I'm convinced one of the cheekier magpies is my late auld man taking the P out of the world. :greengrin

I'm now of a mind to buy some sort of feeding table or station. Any clues for a novice as to what to look for?

Oh, and it wasn't Bull Durham that talked about "build it and they will come". It was that other Costner baseball film, Field of Dreams. I get them mixed up too :aok:

Aah, cheers, I have never seen either but the quote is famous!

As for feeders, it depends on what you want to attract, which informs what kind of food and device you buy. And then a bunch of rooks and wood pigeons come and wreck it :greengrin

Because birds aren’t neat eaters they do spread a fair bit of detritus around the feeder. That in turn attracts rodents, so you might want it not too near the back door or whatever.

[Mibbes Aye]

Loving this thread, and loving watching the activity of the birds every day. I'm convinced one of the cheekier magpies is my late auld man taking the P out of my crappy garden. :greengrin

I'm now of a mind to buy some sort of feeding table or station. Any clues for a novice as to what to look for?

Oh, and it wasn't Bull Durham that talked about "build it and they will come". It was that other Costner baseball film, Field of Dreams. I get them mixed up too :aok:

Slight aside, but the corvid family - ravens, crows, rooks etc are seen as having some spiritual nature in many cultures. It adds up when you consider how intelligent they are.

[CropleyWasGod]

Aah, cheers, I have never seen either but the quote is famous!

As for feeders, it depends on what you want to attract, which informs what kind of food and device you buy. And then a bunch of rooks and wood pigeons come and wreck it :greengrin

Because birds aren’t neat eaters they do spread a fair bit of detritus around the feeder. That in turn attracts rodents, so you might want it not too near the back door or whatever.

Cheers for that. I've now got the local bird squad sitting on my shoulder telling me what to get. :greengrin

[speedy_gonzales]

Didn’t know about that, nice one :aok:

I assume you don’t bury the container to ground level?

I just use the bottom of planter (approx ½ inch deep, 14 inches across) and lay it on the ground. I have dried out soil mixed with some sand. Strangely enough, the drier/hotter the weather is, the more it gets used, even though I have a similar container with water.
Apparently it's good for conditioning the feathers.
Regardless of the reasons, if you put out something that's attractive for the birds, they're going to flock down, makes for interesting viewing and breaking up the day to day monotony that done of us are experiencing.

[JimBHibees]

Sorry, should have been simpler in my reply. It is tempting to put out bread but it doesn’t do them any favours.

Thanks was coming more from the viewpoint of what if any benefit there was and would it attract things like rats.

[G B Young]

The remounted birdfeeders got taken down again, I am assuming this morning. It is quite a feat because of the hooks and loops, which is why I think the rooks did it, because they are such clever birds.

Anyway, feed all over the grass beneath the stand. The rooks disappeared as is their want and the wood pigeons moved in to take their share of the spoils. They are bordering on obesity as it is, so we may not remount for a while - maybe even leave it to autumn.

I really don't mind the fact that they dismantled the feeders, I just wish I could have seen it!

Could it have been squirrels? We used to back on to woodland and there were as many squirrels using our neighbour's feeders as birds. They are extraordinarily agile, can leap remarkable distances and can contort themselves around bird feeders using their tails for balance.

[Mibbes Aye]

Could it have been squirrels? We used to back on to woodland and there were as many squirrels using our neighbour's feeders as birds. They are extraordinarily agile, can leap remarkable distances and can contort themselves around bird feeders using their tails for balance.

Potentially, but I have never seen squirrels thus far. That plus the fact the rook was obviously scoping it the other day led me to presume it was birds.

I have said before that our garden is a bit of a transit route for local cats. My neighbour’s daughter also runs a dog walking, grooming, day care business out of their house and up until lockdown dogs in their garden wasn’t uncommon. I am not sure if the presence of the cats and dogs would deter squirrels?

[Hibrandenburg]

One of the wolves I was hoping to see has ended as roadkill about 3 miles from my house near the town of Ludwigsfelde. Apparently 29 have died in road accidents since 2018.

[Mibbes Aye]

Dawn chorus belting out here, and the rooks are up too. Maybe a slight shift in light and temperature has got them up earlier.

I am sorely convinced, if and when we emerge from all this, to change my sleeping habits, at least in spring and summer, and go to bed a lot earlier so I can get up at four or half four to appreciate all this. There is so much joy and vibrancy in the birdsong. I hope we don’t ruin it when we ease restrictions.

[Mibbes Aye]

One of the wolves I was hoping to see has ended as roadkill about 3 miles from my house near the town of Ludwigsfelde. Apparently 29 have died in road accidents since 2018.

I am sorry about that. I am not sure if it is similar to Scotland but the reduced road traffic here seems to be lulling creatures into a false sense of safety re roads.

[wpj]

Dawn chorus belting out here, and the rooks are up too. Maybe a slight shift in light and temperature has got them up earlier.

I am sorely convinced, if and when we emerge from all this, to change my sleeping habits, at least in spring and summer, and go to bed a lot earlier so I can get up at four or half four to appreciate all this. There is so much joy and vibrancy in the birdsong. I hope we don’t ruin it when we ease restrictions.

You really are an insomniac. I have my pot of coffee ready and am heading out to the garden, colder than last week but that's what hoodies are for. I suspect my fox was on my roof last night, either that or a burglar, way too heavy to be a squirrel or a cat. I have food for the fox but he/she is very elusive, I have the wood pigeons at full song, I could have sworn they dont get up this early normally

[Mibbes Aye]

You really are an insomniac. I have my pot of coffee ready and am heading out to the garden, colder than last week but that's what hoodies are for. I suspect my fox was on my roof last night, either that or a burglar, way too heavy to be a squirrel or a cat. I have food for the fox but he/she is very elusive, I have the wood pigeons at full song, I could have sworn they dont get up this early normally

Think we are in similar boats. I can sleep heavily but if I am awake, I am awake.

It does sound a bit early for wood pigeons but I guess they are adapting to a different world, and literally as I am typing, one of mine is starting up.

Out of interest, what do you put out for the fox?

[wpj]

Think we are in similar boats. I can sleep heavily but if I am awake, I am awake.

It does sound a bit early for wood pigeons but I guess they are adapting to a different world, and literally as I am typing, one of mine is starting up.

Out of interest, what do you put out for the fox?

Whatever is getting out of date to be honest, I haven't read up on it so maybe I am doing the wrong thing with feeding. I think they are scavengers by nature but I don't feed her/him anything spicy.

[Mibbes Aye]

Whatever is getting out of date to be honest, I haven't read up on it so maybe I am doing the wrong thing with feeding. I think they are scavengers by nature but I don't feed her/him anything spicy.

Yeah, I think I read it was mostly scavenging. I also read that they like fresh water so my pond ideas will probably draw them in during the night :greengrin.

Also read that they like to burrow in or around sheds and the like. I have two sheds at the top of the garden which I don’t really use - most of the gardening stuff is stored in the garage. It is probably a homestead for them up there!

On the plus side, if I have them or can tempt them in, then it will be good for rat control. Not so good for the little birds, but then nature is a cruel mistress.

[wpj]

Yeah, I think I read it was mostly scavenging. I also read that they like fresh water so my pond ideas will probably draw them in during the night :greengrin.

Also read that they like to burrow in or around sheds and the like. I have two sheds at the top of the garden which I don’t really use - most of the gardening stuff is stored in the garage. It is probably a homestead for them up there!

On the plus side, if I have them or can tempt them in, then it will be good for rat control. Not so good for the little birds, but then nature is a cruel mistress.

I'm sure they will love it there. I left fruit out for them and it has disappeared so I guess they were here last night so what I heard was definitely foxes. Not sure what my landlord and landlady would say but I love the fact they feel safe here.its not like they see me in the garden due to my chronic sleep pattern, I will keep leaving food out for them

[Mibbes Aye]

I'm sure they will love it there. I left fruit out for them and it has disappeared so I guess they were here last night so what I heard was definitely foxes. Not sure what my landlord and landlady would say but I love the fact they feel safe here.its not like they see me in the garden due to my chronic sleep pattern, I will keep leaving food out for them

That’s interesting, I only moved into my house in the late end of last summer and I have three plum or damson trees that were dropping fruit like mad. Due to moving in, work pressures etc, I never really paid much attention to it. The fallen fruit disappeared though. I assumed it was birds, but potentially could have been foxes. Or my badger, but I don’t know if they eat plums :greengrin.

They will be in for a disappointment this summer when I take the plums to make jams and conserves. And then feel guilty about disturbing the natural ecosystem in my garden :greengrin

[wpj]

That’s interesting, I only moved into my house in the late end of last summer and I have three plum or damson trees that were dropping fruit like mad. Due to moving in, work pressures etc, I never really paid much attention to it. The fallen fruit disappeared though. I assumed it was birds, but potentially could have been foxes. Or my badger, but I don’t know if they eat plums :greengrin.

They will be in for a disappointment this summer when I take the plums to make jams and conserves. And then feel guilty about disturbing the natural ecosystem in my garden :greengrin

No badgers here that I am aware of, do they climb? Maybe that's what has been running over my roof but I seriously doubt it haha

[Mibbes Aye]

No badgers here that I am aware of, do they climb? Maybe that's what has been running over my roof but I seriously doubt it haha

I think there is the emergence of a running joke, underpinning this thread, that involves badgers infiltrating lofts or scaling roofscapes. It is probably our own fault. If they have access to the internet then they will have seen threads like these and taken them as encouragement.

I am no Quisling but I for one welcome our new badger overlords.

[wpj]

I think there is the emergence of a running joke, underpinning this thread, that involves badgers infiltrating lofts or scaling roofscapes. It is probably our own fault. If they have access to the internet then they will have seen threads like these and taken them as encouragement.

I am no Quisling but I for one welcome our new badger overlords.

Probably more effective than boris

[Mibbes Aye]

Probably more effective than boris

:greengrin

[Moulin Yarns]

One of the wolves I was hoping to see has ended as roadkill about 3 miles from my house near the town of Ludwigsfelde. Apparently 29 have died in road accidents since 2018.

I have just finished a book entitled The Missing Lynx that examines what happened to indigenous species in Britain, including wolves. It mentions the populations that exist in Europe including Germany. Are you aware of any issues with people or farmers in Germany?

[Hibrandenburg]

I have just finished a book entitled The Missing Lynx that examines what happened to indigenous species in Britain, including wolves. It mentions the populations that exist in Europe including Germany. Are you aware of any issues with people or farmers in Germany?

There was an incident that made headlines last year, where a hunter killed a wolf that had attacked his dogs. I seem to recall that the prosecution wanted to force the case through court to try and clarify the somewhat wishy washy laws on wolf protection laws. Can't remember if there was a clear outcome, I'll have a dig later and see if I can find out.

Edit:

Seems it's still to go to court. The Dutch hunter in question rejected a €5000 deal to have the case dropped in favour of taking his chances in front of a judge. Hunting representatives are expressing concern at the laws protecting the wolves that may put their dogs and farm animals in danger. So basically the age old bad wolf story.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.moz.de/amp/nachrichten/brandenburg/artikel-ansicht/dg/0/1/1779714/

[wpj]

The pesky elusive fox has eaten the fruit I left out but no sign of them. Coffee in the garden listening to the dawn chorus kicking off

[Mibbes Aye]

The pesky elusive fox has eaten the fruit I left out but no sign of them. Coffee in the garden listening to the dawn chorus kicking off

Just a little bit chilly here so have opened the windows to hear the full splendour, rather than go outside. I love the way it builds up with one starting and gradually more and more joining in. Then the rooks chip in - because of the way they caw, I like to think they are telling the smaller birds to shut up and give them another hour in bed :greengrin That’s the wood pigeons just kicking in, no hope of sleep from here on in.......

[wpj]

Just a little bit chilly here so have opened the windows to hear the full splendour, rather than go outside. I love the way it builds up with one starting and gradually more and more joining in. Then the rooks chip in - because of the way they caw, I like to think they are telling the smaller birds to shut up and give them another hour in bed :greengrin That’s the wood pigeons just kicking in, no hope of sleep from here on in.......

Aye it's getting loud here too. Got my window open as well but back hiding under the duvet

[Mibbes Aye]

Aye it's getting loud here too. Got my window open as well but back hiding under the duvet

As per Goosano’s posts I am starting to distinguish the different trills and calls and will look them up, or more accurately, hear them up on the websites so I can start to tell exactly what I am listening to.

The bird feeder will be going back up today. It’s risky because of the potential for the rooks and wood pigeons to form some dark alliance and bring it crashing down again. But we didn’t get through two world wars and hopefully this virus without displaying some pluck and spirit. It might get knocked down, but it will get up again :greengrin

[wpj]

I don't really know what the bird songs are, I only recognise the robin and wood pigeons, anymore lock down I will start to learn more 🙂

[Mibbes Aye]

I don't really know what the bird songs are, I only recognise the robin and wood pigeons, anymore lock down I will start to learn more 🙂

Ive got three or four that I now know and could possibly roughly transcribe into musical notation, though that would be a mess, given my lack of practice for years now. I just need to listen to recordings to match them up. Definitely blackbirds is one but I can’t pretend to be sure of their trill.

The wood pigeons and the corvids are fine, I know what jackdaws and rooks sound like. I have a sneaking suspicion that the lockdown may encourage ravens into where I stay. They aren’t keen on semi-urban or urban environments but the lack of people and traffic, plus some very obvious nesting spots might attract them. I would be thrilled. As I have said, I love rooks but ravens are splendid birds and it would be a delight to see them - though a lot of smaller wildlife would probably disagree :greengrin

[wpj]

The birds in my garden and neighbourhood are scooping down very close. Scared the hell out of me yesterday on my walk. Not sure what they were, blackbirds, Jay's, rooks or what

[Mibbes Aye]

The birds in my garden and neighbourhood are scooping down very close. Scared the hell out of me yesterday on my walk. Not sure what they were, blackbirds, Jay's, rooks or what

Big enough to cup in your hand or big that they would need to sit on your hand (not that they would, in fairness!)?

[wpj]

Big enough to cup in your hand or big that they would need to sit on your hand (not that they would, in fairness!)?

Very big. I must get a birdwatching book

[Mibbes Aye]

Very big. I must get a birdwatching book

If they were black with a black beak then they sound like crows.

If they were black with a slate grey beak then they were rooks.

If they were black with a grey forehead then they were jackdaws, but they aren’t as big.

If they were ravens I am envious and want to move down to your neighbourhood :greengrin

If they weren’t black, then all sorts of options. Did you hear the sounds they made?

[wpj]

Very black, I know jackdaws, they have yellow breaks? I used to read What the Jackdaw Saw to my daughter 🙂

[Mibbes Aye]

Very black, I know jackdaws, they have yellow breaks? I used to read What the Jackdaw Saw to my daughter ��

Jackdaws have black, occasionally greyish beaks and the grey forehead. Blackbirds have yellow beaks and a yellow ring around the eye. The males are darker than the females and at this time of year will be more assertive I suspect. They are also a fair bit bigger than your finches, tits etc. The corvids are the next size up from the blackbirds, roughly speaking. Certainly here, the male blackbirds are much more assertive.

[wpj]

Jackdaws have black beaks. Blackbirds have yellow beaks and a yellow ring around the eye. The males are darker than the females and at this time of year will be more assertive I suspect. They are also a fair bit bigger than your finches, tits etc. The corvids are the next size up from the blackbirds, roughly speaking. Certainly here, the male blackbirds are much more assertive.

I definately need a book to help me identify the wildlife in the neighbourhood

[Mibbes Aye]

I definately need a book to help me identify the wildlife in the neighbourhood

I have a few and I don’t read them enough. I know what I know but that covers a fraction of what is going on out there. Good apps would help but they all seem to be pay-for, which I don’t resent necessarily, but it is just another expense.

My task over the next few days will be nailing down the sounds of the species of smaller birds in my garden

[wpj]

I have a few and I don’t read them enough. I know what I know but that covers a fraction of what is going on out there. Good apps would help but they all seem to be pay-for, which I don’t resent necessarily, but it is just another expense.

My task over the next few days will be nailing down the sounds of the species of smaller birds in my garden

My wee girl is here tomorrow so I will pretend I know what I'm talking about 😁 will use google to aid my knowledge.

[Mibbes Aye]

My wee girl is here tomorrow so I will pretend I know what I'm talking about 😁 will use google to aid my knowledge.

Hope you have good weather and can enjoy the outdoors together.

[Mibbes Aye]

I definately need a book to help me identify the wildlife in the neighbourhood

If it is a book rather than app you want, the RSPB do good material, as so the educational publishers like Dorling-Kindersley. Some of the stuff aimed towards children actually works well for us adults because it is very accessible.

Garden centres like Dobbie’s were great for cheap books, but one can’t be sure when they will be open again.

[wpj]

Hope you have good weather and can enjoy the outdoors together.

Thanks, long walks to tire her out, we have a country park within walking distance, it's a lovely place. They have one of those notice boards with all the wildlife. Socially distanced of course.

[Hibrandenburg]

Very big. I must get a birdwatching book

Try downloading an app. I've got a German one that divides the birds down into the subcategories of size, shape, colour and habitat. It works really well. You click on the size/weight from a menu, the app then shows you various shapes, after clicking on the colour then the type of habitat you saw it in, the app then narrows it down to a few possibilities with information on them.

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

I've been down to the waterfall between Bonnington and St Mark's Park twice in the last couple of weeks, such a tranquil spot in the midst of the city to watch and listen to what nature has to offer, never been before.

[goosano]

Two long eared owl chicks in a nest this morning, not far from the house, definitely the highlight of the spring so far

[goosano]

When I started to learn how to identify garden birds by sight and there song I bought the book Garden Bird Songs and Calla by Geoff Sample. The explanations are very clear, not too many species and he makes good comparisons. Some copies on Amazon for £3.30

[Mon Dieu4]

I've been down to the waterfall between Bonnington and St Mark's Park twice in the last couple of weeks, such a tranquil spot in the midst of the city to watch and listen to what nature has to offer, never been before.

Used to play down there all the time as a kid, tarzans underneath the bridge or taking a shortcut between Redbraes Park and St Marks by walking over the outside girders of the bridge, some wonder I'm even still alive

[wpj]

When I started to learn how to identify garden birds by sight and there song I bought the book Garden Bird Songs and Calla by Geoff Sample. The explanations are very clear, not too many species and he makes good comparisons. Some copies on Amazon for £3.30

Thanks for the tip, ordered the book this afternoon. Thanks to all for the app recommendations, been looking at them today.

[wpj]

Here comes the dawn chorus, coffee time again

[Moulin Yarns]

Last night my regular badger brought a youngsters along with him. I got a couple of clips of two badgers feeding.

[wpj]

The birdsongs here today are louder than ever, I love it

[beensaidbefore]

I have been watching a pair of starlings who are nesting in the tumble dryer outlet of a neighbouring flat, and seen them twice in the last couple of days wiping slugs on the grass for up to a minute. I presume they are trying to wipe the slime off before taking them back to the nest, but I have never see this before.

Any of the bird lovers able to confirm if other birds do this too?

[WeeRussell]

I guess I’m quite privileged during these times that I can see pheasants, robins, crows, (and multiple other birds) lambs, sheep, deer, horses, cows and dogs all in one 25 minute exercise slot.

Still no had a pint or my hole in months though :)

[RyeSloan]

I guess I’m quite privileged during these times that I can see pheasants, robins, crows, (and multiple other birds) lambs, sheep, deer, horses, cows and dogs all in one 25 minute exercise slot.

Still no had a pint or my hole in months though :)

[emoji23][emoji23]

Plenty of folk stuck at home with their Mrs are probably saying the same as well....they say distance makes the heart grow fonder and I’d suggest that old proverb is probably pretty accurate [emoji2957]

[wpj]

Just been out in the garden, once again the fruit I left out has disappeared, it must be the fox, shirley nothing else could eat that? It's a garden with high walls so it cant be anything else but a fox as they have incredible jumping skills

[Mibbes Aye]

Just been out in the garden, once again the fruit I left out has disappeared, it must be the fox, shirley nothing else could eat that? It's a garden with high walls so it cant be anything else but a fox as they have incredible jumping skills

I guess it must be, they will eat it and are exceptionally mobile.

The chorus here has been kicking in for the last ten minutes so I am not expecting sleep again. We have had light frost the last few nights but expected to move into warm weather from now, so I can see myself sitting with the dawn patrol in the garden!

[wpj]

I guess it must be, they will eat it and are exceptionally mobile.

The chorus here has been kicking in for the last ten minutes so I am not expecting sleep again. We have had light frost the last few nights but expected to move into warm weather from now, so I can see myself sitting with the dawn patrol in the garden!

Aye, it's been really cold here as well. Wrapping up warm for my looooong walk with my girl later. She is desperate to see the frog in my garden (that probably doesnt even exist)she brought me a toy squirrel as she knows I have them in my garden. She also brought me a girrafe which dont tend appear in Cambridge

[Mibbes Aye]

Aye, it's been really cold here as well. Wrapping up warm for my looooong walk with my girl later. She is desperate to see the frog in my garden (that probably doesnt even exist)she brought me a toy squirrel as she knows I have them in my garden. She also brought me a girrafe which dont tend appear in Cambridge

I used to have relatives in Great Shelford and we always went to see the parrots and macaws at the garden centre at Scottsdale. They didn’t stock giraffes as I recall.

Up here the chaffinches are the noisiest I think just now. But I have made progress in that I now know that it is collared doves who are the ones who sound like the wood pigeons but have a three-note call rather than the Leveinesque 4-5-1. That explains the different rhythmns.

I still have a lot of work to do with the smaller ones. Getting outside when it is slightly warmer will help because you can match up a visual to the sound.

Hope you see your frogs.

[wpj]

I have a book in the post for birdcalls, as recommended earlier in this thread.
Scotsdales is a fantastic place, hopefully the staff are able to get by. My daughter loves it there especially at Christmas when she meets santa. The fish are a particular attraction. We also have Shepreth park near us but I hate seeing the tiger (one had died) it was so wrong to see them in captivity The kangaroos however were a thrill my girl loved them. However, no giraffe to be seen

[Mibbes Aye]

I have a book in the post for birdcalls, as recommended earlier in this thread.
Scotsdales is a fantastic place, hopefully the staff are able to get by. My daughter loves it there especially at Christmas when she meets santa. The fish are a particular attraction. We also have Shepreth park near us but I hate seeing the tiger (one had died) it was so wrong to see them in captivity The kangaroos however were a thrill my girl loved them. However, no giraffe to be seen

Definite lack of giraffes down that way :greengrin

Probably more of a boys thing but the Duxford branch of the Imperial War Museum was great as well. All sorts of planes, civil and military, including Concorde if I remember correctly. Plus it made for a good long day out. East Lothian has something similar, albeit on a smaller scale, but I would imagine they are all shut down for the next while.

[wpj]

Definite lack of giraffes down that way :greengrin

Probably more of a boys thing but the Duxford branch of the Imperial War Museum was great as well. All sorts of planes, civil and military, including Concorde if I remember correctly. Plus it made for a good long day out. East Lothian has something similar, albeit on a smaller scale, but I would imagine they are all shut down for the next while.

Went to a work function at Duxford great to walk about the massive hanger. They often fly planes from there, spitfires and hurricanes. I saw a bomber yesterday but not not able to to say what it was except loud.
Back to nature on my morning walk there was a bird making a call that I can best describe as a rasping noise, it was black just wondering what it was. Still waiting for my book and CD to arrive to help me

[Mibbes Aye]

Went to a work function at Duxford great to walk about the massive hanger. They often fly planes from there, spitfires and hurricanes. I saw a bomber yesterday but not not able to to say what it was except loud.
Back to nature on my morning walk there was a bird making a call that I can best describe as a rasping noise, it was black just wondering what it was. Still waiting for my book and CD to arrive to help me

Interesting. Because of geography it is hard to say. For a number of years I used to have an annual holiday in Cornwall and there were birds and bird sounds that you just didn’t see or hear in south east Scotland.

If it was a real raspy sound then my best guess is it is a member of the corvid family, but maybe a small species or young.

[wpj]

Interesting. Because of geography it is hard to say. For a number of years I used to have an annual holiday in Cornwall and there were birds and bird sounds that you just didn’t see or hear in south east Scotland.

If it was a real raspy sound then my best guess is it is a member of the corvid family, but maybe a small species or young.

It was wee and black but I am not sure it was where the sound came from, seen from a distance so not at all sure

[Mibbes Aye]

It was wee and black but I am not sure it was where the sound came from, seen from a distance so not at all sure

Tricky one. Corvids are generally black and have the sound you describe, though there are other birds that are blackish, blackbirds being the obvious ones. If it was small then it must have been a young corvid as they are bigger than the garden birds. Did you see what colour of beak?

[wpj]

Tricky one. Corvids are generally black and have the sound you describe, though there are other birds that are blackish, blackbirds being the obvious ones. If it was small then it must have been a young corvid as they are bigger than the garden birds. Did you see what colour of beak?

Too far away, possibly yellow but I never had my glasses on or lenses in. Vanity while out for a walk is pretty sad

[Mibbes Aye]

Too far away, possibly yellow but I never had my glasses on or lenses in. Vanity while out for a walk is pretty sad

I thought of choughs, which are small for corvids and have yellowish, orangish and reddish beaks. And the sound would be right. But they are very much a coastal bird and very much on the western side of the U.K. Used to see scores of them in Cornwall. There is the potential that they have shifted because of the strange circumstances - certainly all sorts of species are adapting to that cliched phrase, the ‘new normal’, so breeding and settling patterns are changing.

In all likelihood it was probably a blackbird with a sore throat :greengrin

[wpj]

I thought of choughs, which are small for corvids and have yellowish, orangish and reddish beaks. And the sound would be right. But they are very much a coastal bird and very much on the western side of the U.K. Used to see scores of them in Cornwall. There is the potential that they have shifted because of the strange circumstances - certainly all sorts of species are adapting to that cliched phrase, the ‘new normal’, so breeding and settling patterns are changing.

In all likelihood it was probably a blackbird with a sore throat :greengrin

Oh no, they have the virus, waiting for the dry coughing

[Mibbes Aye]

Major face-off going on here between the chaffinches and the wood pigeons as to who can outshout the other. Because the chaffinches have the higher pitch they sound like they are winning, but the wood pigeons have got stamina and will more likely be able to see out fifteen rounds.

The rooks are chipping in occasionally. In my warped lockdown mind I like to think of them as commentators :greengrin

[Mibbes Aye]

Oh no, they have the virus, waiting for the dry coughing

Stay safe. Stay in your nest etc

[Mibbes Aye]

I have been watching a pair of starlings who are nesting in the tumble dryer outlet of a neighbouring flat, and seen them twice in the last couple of days wiping slugs on the grass for up to a minute. I presume they are trying to wipe the slime off before taking them back to the nest, but I have never see this before.

Any of the bird lovers able to confirm if other birds do this too?

Just saw this. Blackbirds definitely do it, especially adults who are picking up earthworms for their young. I would imagine it is commonplace.

[wpj]

Stay safe. Stay in your nest etc

Sound government advice, apparently, who knows any more. Very cold today, extra pigeons on my morning walk but heading out again soon for supplies, sun is shining.
Wood pidgeons are mad here and getting much more gallus than before, cool with me but when they do their fly past in the morning they totally scare the you know what out of me

[Mibbes Aye]

Sound government advice, apparently, who knows any more. Very cold today, extra pigeons on my morning walk but heading out again soon for supplies, sun is shining.
Wood pidgeons are mad here and getting much more gallus than before, cool with me but when they do their fly past in the morning they totally scare the you know what out of me

It is amazing how much more confidence the birds have, wood pigeons, rooks, crows and jackdaws especially, not that jackdaws were ever shy!

Even the smaller ones, blackbirds and robins, seem to be more gallus.

It is nice. I hope we can retain it when things go back.

I am trying to pluck up the courage to venture out to the back of the garden and see whether the seeds we sowed have been dug up and eaten!

[wpj]

Walk 2 for today, im starting to think I'm going to get beaten up by wood pigeons! They are getting closer and closer

[CropleyWasGod]

The feeder is up..... And Chez Cropley is open for business.

Where's ra burdz?

[Mibbes Aye]

Walk 2 for today, im starting to think I'm going to get beaten up by wood pigeons! They are getting closer and closer

I, for one, welcome our new wood pigeon overlords!

Being serious, they must be loving this - less human impact on their environment and probably more scope to forage, especially because people are doing more gardening and seed-sowing.

This shady evil alliance with the rooks seems to be to their benefit as well. Get the rooks to knock over the feeders and then pick up the second spoils.

[wpj]

I, for one, welcome our new wood pigeon overlords!

Being serious, they must be loving this - less human impact on their environment and probably more scope to forage, especially because people are doing more gardening and seed-sowing.

This shady evil alliance with the rooks seems to be to their benefit as well. Get the rooks to knock over the feeders and then pick up the second spoils.

Alfred Hitchcock saw the future except its wood pigeons not seagulls, dont have them in Cambridge much but causing havoc by the coast I hear

[Moulin Yarns]

Hi folks, just watching on YouTube a thing called Bird Brains, very interesting, episode 4 about migration. I known that you will find it useful.

[wpj]

Just been for my early morning coffee in the garden and my first walk. A squirrel was eating the bird feed and didn't realise I was sitting there, so funny watching him/her totally gymnastic. Once they realised I was there they legged it, at least I know who has been running across my roof at all hours

[Scouse Hibee]

Friends sent me a picture of a nest complete with two eggs that a Robin had constructed in their shed. Eggs have now hatched and they’ve left for the big bad world.

[Mibbes Aye]

Friends sent me a picture of a nest complete with two eggs that a Robin had constructed in their shed. Eggs have now hatched and they’ve left for the big bad world.

Good stuff. Mrs Mibbes is keen to put up various boxes on the outside walls but we will have to check our timings for breeding etc as to whether they will attract.

One of my visitor cats, all white, came into the back garden this morning. I was still in bed, sitting up reading. It saw me through the bedroom window and stopped for a good five minutes staring at me. It then took a fast run up the steps and disappeared into some bushes.

There wasnt anything making a noise outside - the wood pigeons yes, but they are big and too high up. Chaffinches certainly were making a racket but they tend to be at the front of the house, though it is hard to always tell - and they do move about!

Despite the garden being a popular route for cats we don’t find much kill. I suspect they are either inefficient or are taking them back to their respective homes.

[JeMeSouviens]

Loads of swallows about today. Of course, they could have been back for weeks and I've not been paying attention due to looking down for badger sites.*




* and obv missing all the attic based ones.

[Mibbes Aye]

Loads of swallows about today. Of course, they could have been back for weeks and I've not been paying attention due to looking down for badger sites.*




* and obv missing all the attic based ones.

You don’t want them to have the height advantage. Stay safe.

[beensaidbefore]

Just saw this. Blackbirds definitely do it, especially adults who are picking up earthworms for their young. I would imagine it is commonplace.

Interesting. You learn something new every day! I'll need to keep an eye out for others doing it now.

[Jim44]

I looked out the window early this morning just in time to see a bird of prey, sitting on an old sun dial eating it’s breakfast - a small garden bird. I rushed to get my phone but scared it off when I opened the back door. I can’t identify birds very well, but it was about a foot or slightly more in size. Kestrel or sparrow hawk?

[Mibbes Aye]

I looked out the window early this morning just in time to see a bird of prey, sitting on an old sun dial eating it’s breakfast - a small garden bird. I rushed to get my phone but scared it off when I opened the back door. I can’t identify birds very well, but it was about a foot or slightly more in size. Kestrel or sparrow hawk?

It is probably unfair to ask where you live, plus a lot of species are moving and birds of prey always will adapt.

Did you get a sense of the colour of the plumage and the beak?

[JeMeSouviens]

I looked out the window early this morning just in time to see a bird of prey, sitting on an old sun dial eating it’s breakfast - a small garden bird. I rushed to get my phone but scared it off when I opened the back door. I can’t identify birds very well, but it was about a foot or slightly more in size. Kestrel or sparrow hawk?

More likely a sparrowhawk I think, they're regular garden visitors whereas kestrels are mainly seen hovering over fields picking on mice and voles. But they're about the same size. Did you see it fly at all?

[Scouse Hibee]

Friends sent me a picture of a nest complete with two eggs that a Robin had constructed in their shed. Eggs have now hatched and they’ve left for the big bad world.

Update on this the chicks haven’t actually left the shed, they are safely living in there for now.

[Jim44]

It is probably unfair to ask where you live, plus a lot of species are moving and birds of prey always will adapt.

Did you get a sense of the colour of the plumage and the beak?


More likely a sparrowhawk I think, they're regular garden visitors whereas kestrels are mainly seen hovering over fields picking on mice and voles. But they're about the same size. Did you see it fly at all?

Rural town in the Borders. Fawn/grey mottled colouring. Looked thinnish as opposed to plump/ roundish, if that makes sense. Didn’t get beak details or flight. - but I’ll know what to look for next time. :greengrin Nice to see tho’. Probably and unbelievably only the second time in 40 years I’ve actually seen a bird of prey spend any time in the garden.

[Mibbes Aye]

Rural town in the Borders. Fawn/grey mottled colouring. Looked thinnish as opposed to plump/ roundish, if that makes sense. Didn’t get beak details or flight. - but I’ll know what to look for next time. :greengrin Nice to see tho’. Probably and unbelievably only the second time in 40 years I’ve actually seen a bird of prey spend any time in the garden.

We might be near-neighbours :greengrin

I think JMS is right and it sounds like a sparrow hawk. Things like colouring, the nature of the beak and flight patterns are all good indicators, but it can be tricky to identify.

[Mibbes Aye]

We do get buzzards down this way as well and I find it difficult to distinguish between them and the sparrowhawks unless I can get a good look.

Buzzards have this appearance of being able to hover. And they are bigger but that doesn’t help necessarily :greengrin. Different tails as well, but again, unless you get a good look it can be a struggle.

[JeMeSouviens]

We do get buzzards down this way as well and I find it difficult to distinguish between them and the sparrowhawks unless I can get a good look.

Buzzards have this appearance of being able to hover. And they are bigger but that doesn’t help necessarily :greengrin. Different tails as well, but again, unless you get a good look it can be a struggle.

Buzzards are good bit bigger and tend to circle, whereas kestrels hover on the spot with rapid wing movements or by facing into the wind. They can stay hovering for a long time with little adjustments here and there before diving down to sieze whatever rodent moves. Buzzards make a miaow noise and are often involved in altercations with crows. I think they tend to go for the same food, roadkill and so on.

If a sparrowhawk arrives hunting it'll come screaming in at high speed and if it gets anything, feathers everywhere. They're the high speed ground hugging fighter jets of the bird world.

[JeMeSouviens]

Here's a good vid of a sparrowhawk in action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra6I6svXQPg

[Jim44]

I would probably settle for sparrow hawk. Definitely not a buzzard - there are quite a few up in the local golf course - and they always strike me as being biggish birds ( certainly bigger than the one in the garden.

[RyeSloan]

Here's a good vid of a sparrowhawk in action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ra6I6svXQPg

That’s actually quite something!!!

The shots of it going through the gate and it’s rapid turns are phenomenal...I see the low flying fighter jet analogy. Wow.

[Mibbes Aye]

I’m stumped. Sitting in the garden, enjoying the glorious sunshine. There is a little fellow of a bird skipping about, happy to come within four or five feet and investigate the cracks in the paving stones.

He looks like a starling, in terms of size and mottling, but he has a brown beak. I know starling beaks can change colour but I thought it was later in the year i.e. the males have brighter beaks in mating season, to make them more attractive. So, is he a starling or can anyone offer an alternative suggestion?

More importantly, there is no way a bird that size would be within a few feet of me previously. It is fantastic.

[Mibbes Aye]

I am going to answer my own question but happy to stand corrected if anyone knows better. I now think it was a young male starling.

I think I had a stereotype in my head that starlings went around mob-handed, but I may have got that wrong. Plus, because of the situation, all bets are off in terms of behaviour of any species :greengrin

[Jim44]

I am going to answer my own question but happy to stand corrected if anyone knows better. I now think it was a young male starling.

I think I had a stereotype in my head that starlings went around mob-handed, but I may have got that wrong. Plus, because of the situation, all bets are off in terms of behaviour of any species :greengrin

I think you’re right. As I’ve said before, I’ve found a greater variety of birds in my garden and individual behaviour is quite surprising. I’ve got a couple of male blackbirds just now, and despite their normal bravery and bravado, one of them is so familiar that he is almost taking food from my hand.

[Mibbes Aye]

I think you’re right. As I’ve said before, I’ve found a greater variety of birds in my garden and individual behaviour is quite surprising. I’ve got a couple of male blackbirds just now, and despite their normal bravery and bravado, one of them is so familiar that he is almost taking food from my hand.

That’s brilliant. Some slight and some big changes in human behaviour and then nature changes for the positive.

Have to confess that our chaffinches have gotten so noisy over the last few days that I may be putting in an ASBO request to the local authority :greengrin

Still sitting out in the garden, a car goes down the street once every fifteen minutes, a dog walker about the same frequency, and everything else is just the rattle of at least half a dozen bird species trilling their hearts out.

[Jim44]

23394

My daughter found this nest with chicks in her wood shed the other day. Are they starlings!

[G B Young]

Phenomenal number of black hover-fly type insects in the woodland where I walk the dog these days. Don't recall seeing this sort of thing on such a scale before.

[marinello59]

Phenomenal number of black hover-fly type insects in the woodland where I walk the dog these days. Don't recall seeing this sort of thing on such a scale before.

Hawthorn flies maybe? There’s loads of them about just now.

[JeMeSouviens]

Hawthorn flies maybe? There’s loads of them about just now.

Thanks, it's been bugging me (no pun ...) what they were too. Tons of them this year, maybe the good weather has helped? It's been great weather for suppressing midgies. Hopefully means a low-midgie summer.

https://alwoodleyallotments.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/bibiomarcii.jpg?w=840

[Mibbes Aye]

Thanks, it's been bugging me (no pun ...) what they were too. Tons of them this year, maybe the good weather has helped? It's been great weather for suppressing midgies. Hopefully means a low-midgie summer.

https://alwoodleyallotments.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/bibiomarcii.jpg?w=840

The weather is an interesting one because it has been a mild to warm April - it’s not unusual for Scotland to get snow in April. This month we had a couple of frosty nights but I think we have pushed beyond that now.

I posted on the hay fever thread that it seemed more acute this year, perhaps because car pollution is ironically not dampening the pollen down. Either way, it feels like the change in human activity, maybe combined with a mild spring, has led to all sorts of changes to the natural habitat.

[Mibbes Aye]

Didn’t have time to clock it, as it swept by my head, and spun on the metaphorical sixpence and disappeared. Bird of prey, full wing span was half a metre but no more, probably less. Brownish in colour but only saw the back of it. Didn’t have time to see the shape of the tail, beak colour etc.

Rooks and wood pigeons, and even the smaller birds are still calling away, so I don’t think it has put them off. Still an absolute volume riot here. As daylight extends it will no doubt become more so..

[RyeSloan]

Taking inspiration from this thread I was keeping an eye out for anything nocturnal last night when our walking the dog. And apart from the usual foxes being annoyingly familiar (they have a real habit of following us up the road, with the dog therefore constantly stopping and trying to tear my arm off when bolting against the lead!) was rewarded when I managed to spot a couple of bats. They were flying quite low and seemed to be doing a few laps of the same spot....man those things can shift!!

Not easy trying to photo a fox while the dog wants to kill it but you can see how close the cheeky scamps get!

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200521/10b6ab9d8257dabf4cc3d09ca4199445.plist
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200521/7f8621fc401a72f22d2092e4d028bcb6.plist

[Hibby70]

Loads of noise and activity in my garden today. At first I thought all the starlings had been startled by something but it seemed like they had young ones out of the nest for the first time.

They were constantly feeding them on the wall then they'd fly up to the tree followed by the young ones.

Did absolutely heehaw work for about an hour whilst I watched them.

[Mibbes Aye]

Loads of noise and activity in my garden today. At first I thought all the starlings had been startled by something but it seemed like they had young ones out of the nest for the first time.

They were constantly feeding them on the wall then they'd fly up to the tree followed by the young ones.

Did absolutely heehaw work for about an hour whilst I watched them.

I can find myself lost for ages just watching and listening. It is the best time of year admittedly.

[Mibbes Aye]

For some reason I can’t reply to ryesloan’s fox photos but they are brilliant :aok:

And on a side note, when I typed your username the autocorrect changed it to toryslogan. Can’t promise I didn’t chuckle :greengrin

[RyeSloan]

For some reason I can’t reply to ryesloan’s fox photos but they are brilliant :aok:

And on a side note, when I typed your username the autocorrect changed it to toryslogan. Can’t promise I didn’t chuckle :greengrin

Ahh well I’ve been called worse (maybe!) [emoji23]

[Mibbes Aye]

There were a couple of crows in the garden earlier. I have been here nearly a year but never seen one before. Rooks in abundance though. In my previous house I had crows all the time but no rooks.

Different flowers and plants emerging from the beds as well. I am struggling to identify them all. My neighbour is retired and an avid gardener and I would love to get an hour with him to walk round the garden and get his expertise and advice about all that is emerging, but the current circumstances make that impossible.

Going to do a little bit more seed sowing today if it stays dry. Overcast just now but meant to brighten up by five.

[Mibbes Aye]

Out in the garden, won’t be for much longer as there is a bit of breeze!

I have the usual suspects, the smaller birds like the chaffinches racketing away. Lots of other trilling. Rooks going past occasionally. The collared doves and wood pigeons with their distinctive calls.

I will look it up, but if anyone knows - what would be a bird, probably small to medium that flys past making what I can best describe as a ‘yelp-yelp’ noise? No trill, just that noise. It isn’t as raucous as a jackdaw, definitely not as big as a rook or a crow. It is confusing because I have jackdaws nearby and they are ‘yelping’ as is their style but it is definitely different.

Not got a visual, otherwise would look in my books or online.

[G B Young]

Thanks, it's been bugging me (no pun ...) what they were too. Tons of them this year, maybe the good weather has helped? It's been great weather for suppressing midgies. Hopefully means a low-midgie summer.

https://alwoodleyallotments.files.wordpress.com/2019/05/bibiomarcii.jpg?w=840

Yep, that's them!

[grunt]

For anyone that's near Holyrood Park, the swans at Dunsapie have (finally) had their babies.
Currently 6 dear little fluffy cygnets.

[Mibbes Aye]

Been out in the garden this evening. The rooks are picking up the detritus from the bird feeders set up for the smaller birds. Very much more confident, even a wee bit insolent or angry that I walked past them to my garden chair. This will undoubtedly increase.

I am calling it early but I for one welcome my new rook overlords

[Scouse Hibee]

After several nights watching I now realise my garden is a regular route for the fox, comes down from the back gardens of the street above, jumps down behind my shed, appears down the side of it then trots round the side of the house down my front garden steps and turns right along our street every time.

[G B Young]

After several nights watching I know realise my garden is a regular route for the fox, comes down from the back gardens of the street above, jumps down behind my shed, appears down the side of it then trots round the side of the house down my front garden steps and turns right along our street every time.

Our local fox/foxes are pretty nifty at getting into the food recycling bins. I once got woken by one which had the handle in its mouth and was bouncing the bin around trying to force it to spring open. Quite the mess on the street when they've had a successful night.

[Scouse Hibee]

Our local fox/foxes are pretty nifty at getting into the food recycling bins. I once got woken by one which had the handle in its mouth and was bouncing the bin around trying to force it to spring open. Quite the mess on the street when they've had a successful night.

My son took a picture last year in our street of a fox and a badger both dining on the contents of an overturned food bin, they were at least 2m apart too so perhaps they knew before us!

[G B Young]

My son took a picture last year in our street of a fox and a badger both dining on the contents of an overturned food bin, they were at least 2m apart too so perhaps they knew before us!

:greengrin

More evidence here of a spirit of co-operation between species:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RC_6teBS6o

[Mibbes Aye]

My son took a picture last year in our street of a fox and a badger both dining on the contents of an overturned food bin, they were at least 2m apart too so perhaps they knew before us!

Forget 5G, the virus, the Chinese, Putin or the Iranians acquiring nuclear capability.

Once the foxes and badgers unite in some unholy alliance, there can be only one outcome.

I for one welcome our new scavenging/foraging overlords :agree:

In one of the occasional updates from MA’s garden, I ventured out earlier to sit in the sunshine. I have a really steep garden, it slopes all the way up and is stepped. There was a blackbird feeding where the grass starts, I think detritus from the feeders, though he was doing a bit of digging so may have been after worms. He clocked me but didn’t fly away, just hopped about a metre up the slope and had a look at me. I kept walking up so he hopped another metre and looked at me. This went on for another few metres until I got to my seat. He was then happy to skip about in close proximity, while investigating the soil for something tasty.

It is incredible to think how much nature has changed in recent months. The blackbird would have been off like a shot in times gone by. I hope we don’t lose that.

[Mibbes Aye]

I will do my own research online but happy to hear the views of our experienced minds.

Bird boxes.

I am fairly confident that we have chaffinches in large numbers, wrens too I think, but finding it difficult to distinguish their sound from the chaffinches, and then robins, blackbirds and blue tits, going by the sounds and the odd visual. Also a couple of others that I have yet to quite identify.

Any tips about mounting and maintaining bird boxes are more than welcome. In a previous house I had one that blue tits used but I didn’t install, i inherited it and it just seemed to self-maintain.

[Mibbes Aye]

It is quite the riot here again tonight, with the smaller birds kicking up a storm. Perhaps the best bit is the rook on the apex of the house that is higher up from me, just cawing away. I know some people don’t like rooks and crows, or indeed the sound they make, but for me they are gorgeous and the cawing is a lovely sound.

We put additional feeders up, now have three. The rooks and/or the wood pigeons haven’t dismantled them but are enjoying the detritus, while the chaffinches and the like are enjoying themselves when the big birds aren’t present. Unfortunately I left Mrs Mibbes in charge of ordering the sunflower hearts, peanuts etc and we ended up with an industrial-sized order!

The birds will get through it but we have had to transfer most of it into airtight containers, off the ground, to preserve and make safe from rodents!

[HUTCHYHIBBY]

For anyone that's near Holyrood Park, the swans at Dunsapie have (finally) had their babies.
Currently 6 dear little fluffy cygnets.

There are 2 swans with 7 cygnets down at The Shore.

[Mibbes Aye]

Dawn chorus rattling it out. I don’t know how I slept through this before. And it is only going to get more raucous when the wood pigeons stur from their slumber and the rooks decide they are up for kicking in.

It is funny but one of the knock-on effects of all this may well be a a change in my sleeping habits and times, certainly in spring and summer. I can see myself going to bed earlier and getting up earlier, if only to enjoy the birdsong when they all wake up. The chirpiness and joyousness is something absolutely free and absolutely enthralling, entertaining and exhilarating.

[Mibbes Aye]

The wood pigeons are giving it laldy now. Rooks just seem to be waking up. Last evening we sat up in the garden and witnessed a prolonged face-off between what I suspect must have been two male wood pigeons. It was the epitome of ‘pavement dancing’ for around twenty minutes. When it started to get more vicious I intervened, clicking my fingers and clapping my hands, and that separated them off. I suspect we are in store for round two today.

[goosano]

2342923430

3 long eared owl chicks, glad to see they survived the gales of the weekend and didn't get blown off the tree. Also a deer from yesterday in the field by Duddingston Loch

[Mibbes Aye]

2342923430

3 long eared owl chicks, glad to see they survived the gales of the weekend and didn't get blown off the tree. Also a deer from yesterday in the field by Duddingston Loch

Nice.

[Billy Whizz]

2nd episode of Springwatch on tonight, for anyone who’s enjoyed this thread, should tune in

Webcams up all night

[stu in nottingham]

A big red fox, bold as brass, trotting around my lawn this afternoon. I've seen more that normal in recent weeks. My wee stray tabby cat gave him a good chasing off his territory! 'D'ya want some - I'll give you some?'

[Mibbes Aye]

A big red fox, bold as brass, trotting around my lawn this afternoon. I've seen more that normal in recent weeks. My wee stray tabby cat gave him a good chasing off his territory! 'D'ya want some - I'll give you some?'

:greengrin

I have definitely had a fox around, and identified badger setts at the top of the garden. Limited visibility so far. As with another poster on this thread, I struggle with insomnia and I am convinced I can hear an owl in the middle of the night, but am conscious this isn’t when they are noisiest.

[lord bunberry]

For anyone that's near Holyrood Park, the swans at Dunsapie have (finally) had their babies.
Currently 6 dear little fluffy cygnets.
23443 23444 23445
these are the swans from Figgate Park, I took the pictures yesterday.

[stu in nottingham]

:greengrin

I have definitely had a fox around, and identified badger setts at the top of the garden. Limited visibility so far. As with another poster on this thread, I struggle with insomnia and I am convinced I can hear an owl in the middle of the night, but am conscious this isn’t when they are noisiest.

Interesting about the badgers. Like many people, the only ones I've ever seen have been been stricken in accidents etc.

I hear owls on a regular basis (not in my head!). Think they've been more apparent recently because of the relative lockdown peace and quiet. Certainly hear them after midnight though I find the busy 'shift' as at dusk. There are quite a lot of very large trees where I live and I think that's what attracts them. Magic creatures, love 'em.

[JeMeSouviens]

:greengrin

I have definitely had a fox around, and identified badger setts at the top of the garden. Limited visibility so far. As with another poster on this thread, I struggle with insomnia and I am convinced I can hear an owl in the middle of the night, but am conscious this isn’t when they are noisiest.

We have tawny owls round and about. Often hear them just as its getting dark. Interesting factoid - the "too-wit too-woo" sound we all use to impersonate owls is actually 2 tawny owls. The "too-wit" is the female and the "too-woo" is a male territorial call. You can hear either on their own but sometimes they both chime in as a call and response thing.

[grunt]

23443 23444 23445
these are the swans from Figgate Park, I took the pictures yesterday.Thanks for posting. There's something life affirming about seeing young wildlife. Hope they all survive, lots of foxes around.

[goosano]

We have tawny owls round and about. Often hear them just as its getting dark. Interesting factoid - the "too-wit too-woo" sound we all use to impersonate owls is actually 2 tawny owls. The "too-wit" is the female and the "too-woo" is a male territorial call. You can hear either on their own but sometimes they both chime in as a call and response thing.

I can hear a pair calling now. They are noisier at night and will probably have young at present

[lord bunberry]

Thanks for posting. There's something life affirming about seeing young wildlife. Hope they all survive, lots of foxes around.
They were beautiful mate. I just wish I could’ve posted the proper photos I took, but I had to lower the quality to post them on this forum. They actually came right round a bunch of weeds to get away from all the seagulls to get the food we were giving them. They were literally right underneath us, and we had loads of food for them, the mother seemed particularly hungry. I had a check on the Internet before we left to see what was best to feed them and it turned out we had loads of that stuff in the fridge and freezer. It saved me buying brown bread.

[Mibbes Aye]

I may retitle this thread to ‘Wildlife and insomnia’. :greengrin

The smaller birds are up and at it, I guess some combination of fledglings just excited at being alive and their parents rejoicing at the lack of humans causing them bother.

They are making such a racket that they will wake up the rooks and the wood pigeons and then it will be deafening.

It does become a bit like an orchestra. I can’t decide whether the little ones like the chaffinches are strings or woodwind. The wood pigeons would be brass, or maybe the cellos and double basses. The rooks would have to be brass I guess, trumpets or French horns. I am sleep deprived :greengrin

[Mibbes Aye]

And the first rook has awoken, and as I type a wood pigeon is kicking in. I wouldn’t change it for the world, but it is bloody noisy!

[wpj]

Been in hospital for 9 days, this morning I have had my morning coffee in the garden for the first time since before then, loving the birdsong and watching them at the feeder, have filled the bowls with water watching them drink and bathe paying no attention to me at all.

[Mibbes Aye]

Couple of crows, not rooks, literally sunbathing on the slope of the garden. They are usually too savvy to sit in any one position for long but this pair were not bothered. Unfortunately we are going to start up the barbecue so they will have to move. Curiously, the blackbirds and chaffinches weren’t put off by the presence of the crows and were happy to buzz around them. And the crows weren’t interested in the feeders, not that they are designed for them but they have the intelligence to dismantle them easily. Instead, inbetween basking in the sun they used the birdbath and had a dig around for earthworms. It will be interesting to see who is confident enough to come close once we start making a racket and barbecuing.

[Mibbes Aye]

Been in hospital for 9 days, this morning I have had my morning coffee in the garden for the first time since before then, loving the birdsong and watching them at the feeder, have filled the bowls with water watching them drink and bathe paying no attention to me at all.

Must be good to be back in the garden :aok:

[goosano]

Best moment today was when playing golf on Craigmillar Park golf course.I was waiting on a tee when a bird flew low past and over the hedge in to Kings building. It took a second to register but was a GS woodpecker. Always nice to see but a minute later it flew back 10m metres in front of me and landed on a tree before disappearing into a nest hole.barely 3m of the ground. An hour later I returned on another hole nearer the tree and stopped to watch the male bird carrying food every couple of minutes to nest. Later in Holyrood Park saw a blue tit nesting in a bordering wall and a well hidden blackbird nest.
If you watch carefully at this time of year you'll see birds with beakfuls of food. If they don't eat it they are carrying it back to a nest. Watch where they fly to and with careful observation of a few flights you'll see where they have their young.

[wpj]

Must be good to be back in the garden :aok:

It certainly is. Tomorrow I am being taken to a country park, normally a half hour walk away so I can sit by the lake for an hour or so, loads of wildlife there to watch.

[Mibbes Aye]

It certainly is. Tomorrow I am being taken to a country park, normally a half hour walk away so I can sit by the lake for an hour or so, loads of wildlife there to watch.
That sounds top- notch, enjoy.

[hibsbollah]

I had never realised frogs squeal, kind of like the mewl of a kitten, as an alarm. We heard this noise earlier and went to investigate, thinking it was the cat in trouble with a fox or a crow, only to discover a frog making this weird noise right into the cats face.

I do like frogs, so I managed to assist its escape from cat who was intent on murder(I turned the hose on her) and found mr frog a shady damp corner with a rock to hide under. Also a good reminder for me to encourage frogs/hedgehogs/nesting birds...it’s good to have at least a part of your garden wild and neglected.

[ballengeich]

I've regularly heard a cuckoo in forestry commission land where I've been going to walk during the virus outbreak. Yesterday I finally saw the bird. I was walking down a farm track above the woodland when it flew across the path about thirty metres in front of me calling loudly.

[goosano]

I was out for a walk in local woodland and caught a glimpse of a large brown bird flying. I thought it was probably a bird of prey and crept up. to look further. To my surprise I saw a young tawny owl on a branch and further away a second. I only had my phone so the picture is pretty rubbish. A nice surprise

23461

[hibsbollah]

I was out for a walk in local woodland and caught a glimpse of a large brown bird flying. I thought it was probably a bird of prey and crept up. to look further. To my surprise I saw a young tawny owl on a branch and further away a second. I only had my phone so the picture is pretty rubbish. A nice surprise

23461

I saw one last week flying across Blackford rd in the middle of the afternoon. Usually it’s only short eared owls you see through the day. Must be a reduced human activity thing.

[Mibbes Aye]

I was out for a walk in local woodland and caught a glimpse of a large brown bird flying. I thought it was probably a bird of prey and crept up. to look further. To my surprise I saw a young tawny owl on a branch and further away a second. I only had my phone so the picture is pretty rubbish. A nice surprise

23461

Great photo regardless.

I think I now have woodpeckers in my garden or in the neighbours. They have a distinctive sound for sure, but not been able to sight one yet. The mature trees in my garden sit behind where I sit and the neighbours have far more mature trees than me, so it might be in theirs.

[Moulin Yarns]

I've regularly heard a cuckoo in forestry commission land where I've been going to walk during the virus outbreak. Yesterday I finally saw the bird. I was walking down a farm track above the woodland when it flew across the path about thirty metres in front of me calling loudly.

I hear them near my garden.

I also had red damselflies mating and laying eggs in my pond.

[goosano]

Great photo regardless.

I think I now have woodpeckers in my garden or in the neighbours. They have a distinctive sound for sure, but not been able to sight one yet. The mature trees in my garden sit behind where I sit and the neighbours have far more mature trees than me, so it might be in theirs.

At this time of year they don't do their typical drumming sound unless they are trying to get insects under the bark of a tree. If you approach a nest or if they have young and are communicating with their partner or if they sense predators then you will hear the pic pic pic noise in the attachment. It is by far the easiest way of locating them at this time of year

https://youtu.be/MK35p2gRrUs

[Mibbes Aye]

At this time of year they don't do their typical drumming sound unless they are trying to get insects under the bark of a tree. If you approach a nest or if they have young and are communicating with their partner or if they sense predators then you will hear the pic pic pic noise in the attachment. It is by far the easiest way of locating them at this time of year

https://youtu.be/MK35p2gRrUs

Thanks for that. It sounds like them, and they are likely to have young. I would have originally said it was more of a cheep-cheep-cheep but when I listened to the clip it sounded like them. Semantics I guess :greengrin

On another note, Mrs Mibbes bought a dozen small solar lights to line either side of the first pathway up the garden. We have already dealt with one being broken, but looking out the window just now I think we have lost another four. I will check in the morning but not sure whether it is the nocturnal animals not liking them, in which case I will remove them, or just being curious and having a ravage, which probably again means removing them. Any experience is welcome.

Something has kicked off because a small bird is chirping away at the back of the garden and it should be in its bed hours ago. The bedroom light is on and if I open the curtain the noise stops, but as soon as I put it back the noise starts up again. And in two hours the whole lot of them will kick off.

I genuinely never expected to start and be posting on this sort of thread. How did it come to this? :greengrin

[Mibbes Aye]

Been on to my solicitor and signed the back garden over to the wood pigeons, the rooks and the blackbirds. There is no point contesting it.

They genuinely don't care if we are out there or not, they will just strut or hop about regardless. I am possibly reading too much into it but I detect a look of contempt, or maybe pity, in their eyes, when they look at me.

Good chance the badger will challenge in court, but a reasonable judge will rule for shared access, with the badger having visiting rights during the hours of darkness.

[SideBurns]

Been on to my solicitor and signed the back garden over to the wood pigeons, the rooks and the blackbirds. There is no point contesting it.

They genuinely don't care if we are out there or not, they will just strut or hop about regardless. I am possibly reading too much into it but I detect a look of contempt, or maybe pity, in their eyes, when they look at me.

Good chance the badger will challenge in court, but a reasonable judge will rule for shared access, with the badger having visiting rights during the hours of darkness.

It's Orwell's 'Animal Farm' starting to come true. Let's hope they dinnae turn out like the worst of us, though!

[stu in nottingham]

Been on to my solicitor and signed the back garden over to the wood pigeons, the rooks and the blackbirds. There is no point contesting it.

They genuinely don't care if we are out there or not, they will just strut or hop about regardless. I am possibly reading too much into it but I detect a look of contempt, or maybe pity, in their eyes, when they look at me.

Good chance the badger will challenge in court, but a reasonable judge will rule for shared access, with the badger having visiting rights during the hours of darkness.

I have just the lad who would sort these problems out for you in no time for the price of a bit of thinly sliced ham.

https://scontent-lhr8-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/101685712_10163899847275045_1541329454612086784_n. jpg?_nc_cat=110&_nc_sid=8024bb&_nc_ohc=i93OGxv_Gv0AX-AtHv2&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr8-1.xx&oh=244e31627ca16ec10886bc7be15f026f&oe=5EF7B2D2

[Mibbes Aye]

I have just the lad who would sort these problems out for you in no time for the price of a bit of thinly sliced ham.

https://scontent-lhr8-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/101685712_10163899847275045_1541329454612086784_n. jpg?_nc_cat=110&_nc_sid=8024bb&_nc_ohc=i93OGxv_Gv0AX-AtHv2&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr8-1.xx&oh=244e31627ca16ec10886bc7be15f026f&oe=5EF7B2D2

:greengrin

Funny thing is I could describe at least four cats that take a regular aunter through the garden but I've not seen any for days. Given the warm weather they are probably just basking on the windowsill in their respective houses.

[Mibbes Aye]

It's Orwell's 'Animal Farm' starting to come true. Let's hope they dinnae turn out like the worst of us, though!

:greengrin

All species are equal but some are more equal than others. I know my place.

(I'm maybe conflating Orwell here with the Frost Report!)

[WoreTheGreen]

Best moment today was when playing golf on Craigmillar Park golf course.I was waiting on a tee when a bird flew low past and over the hedge in to Kings building. It took a second to register but was a GS woodpecker. Always nice to see but a minute later it flew back 10m metres in front of me and landed on a tree before disappearing into a nest hole.barely 3m of the ground. An hour later I returned on another hole nearer the tree and stopped to watch the male bird carrying food every couple of minutes to nest. Later in Holyrood Park saw a blue tit nesting in a bordering wall and a well hidden blackbird nest.
If you watch carefully at this time of year you'll see birds with beakfuls of food. If they don't eat it they are carrying it back to a nest. Watch where they fly to and with careful observation of a few flights you'll see where they have their young.
Been doing lots of walking in the Braids and was told Mortonhall was open to walkers and have been walking it almost everyday for weeks it is simply spectacular . I don’t play golf but met a pal who has played golf all over the world and he said its the best course he has ever played

[Moulin Yarns]

:greengrin

Funny thing is I could describe at least four cats that take a regular aunter through the garden but I've not seen any for days. Given the warm weather they are probably just basking on the windowsill in their respective houses.

There are a few semi feral cats round here, and I have spent the last few days building my log cabin overlooking the pond.

Literally 5 minutes ago one of the cats glared at me because I'm sitting with a glass of rose in the cabin enjoying the sun going down. He obviously wants to explore this new shelter in his territory.

[SideBurns]

:greengrin

All species are equal but some are more equal than others. I know my place.

(I'm maybe conflating Orwell here with the Frost Report!)

You certainly are, but I'm sure Dode Orwell (and, indeed, Messrs Cleese, Barker, and Corbett) would let you off.

Ironically, the one who (allegedly) supported the 'Big Team' was the wee gadgy who really "knew his place"...

Anyway, back to the real wildlife - I'm away oot the back green with a glass of beer!

[Mibbes Aye]

There are a few semi feral cats round here, and I have spent the last few days building my log cabin overlooking the pond.

Literally 5 minutes ago one of the cats glared at me because I'm sitting with a glass of rose in the cabin enjoying the sun going down. He obviously wants to explore this new shelter in his territory.

Yes, I have had cats in the past and have my visitors in this garden and despitr not being able to verbalise, they make it pretty clear what they think the natural order is :greengrin

[wpj]

Loving being back in the garden after a week away, I filled all the wee bird baths with water and topped up the feeder only to watch two squirrels using them and completely ignoring me. Once they left the birds arrived and also completely ignored me, lovely to watch them eat drink and splash about. I have left a cooked pork chop in the garden hoping "my" fox calls in, he'll probably knock on the door for some mustard!

[Mibbes Aye]

Loving being back in the garden after a week away, I filled all the wee bird baths with water and topped up the feeder only to watch two squirrels using them and completely ignoring me. Once they left the birds arrived and also completely ignored me, lovely to watch them eat drink and splash about. I have left a cooked pork chop in the garden hoping "my" fox calls in, he'll probably knock on the door for some mustard!

We have had a bird bath, albeit in different houses for a few years and I have never seen it be emptied as quickly as over the last few days. The heat is undoubtedly a factor, but I also wonder whether the increased confidence of the birds and even the impact of the reduced air pollution affects the usage/consumption.

Certainly in my last house the little birds were the ones who delighted in the bath but here, the rooks and crows are having a good dabble. It is interesting because there was no shortage of rooks at my last house but they simply weren't interested. Saying that, the bath at the last house was very close to the house and quite enclosed, whereas here it is far more in the open. Corvids are canny and very risk-aware and I wonder whether they just feel safer with a bath where they have good visibility, 360 degrees.

[stu in nottingham]

:greengrin

Funny thing is I could describe at least four cats that take a regular aunter through the garden but I've not seen any for days. Given the warm weather they are probably just basking on the windowsill in their respective houses.

Probably basking on the windowsill of someone else's house. :greengrin

They do sleep a lot. mine does a regular daytime nine-hour shift on the settee in this weather. I love that thing they do when they assume the 'breadloaf' position and sleep with one eye open still looking at you.


It's true what they say, dogs have owners and cats have staff.

[Mibbes Aye]

Probably basking on the windowsill of someone else's house. :greengrin

They do sleep a lot. mine does a regular daytime nine-hour shift on the settee in this weather. I love that thing they do when they assume the 'breadloaf' position and sleep with one eye open still looking at you.


It's true what they say, dogs have owners and cats have staff.

For sure.

Getting back to the birds, I have detected a lot of different trills maybe over the last week, four or five at least. I will need to get to work trying to suss out what they are. Having been here less than a year I don’t know if they are regulars or whether the changed environment has brought new birds in.

[Mibbes Aye]

Question.

I now have some new burrow holes in the garden, closer to the house. My initial concern was they might be rat holes but they seem far too big, plus they are out in the open and rats tend to burrow in more sheltered spots and we have plenty of those. They are also rougher than rat holes. Plus we are nowhere near water and (until recently) have cats frequently wandering through the garden, plus the badger, and lots of dogs next door!

The only other clue I have is that in at least two holes, it looks like there has been an attempt to disguise the entrance with twigs and leaves and the like.

I will look online but any suggestions will be gratefully received.

[Moulin Yarns]

Question.

I now have some new burrow holes in the garden, closer to the house. My initial concern was they might be rat holes but they seem far too big, plus they are out in the open and rats tend to burrow in more sheltered spots and we have plenty of those. They are also rougher than rat holes. Plus we are nowhere near water and (until recently) have cats frequently wandering through the garden, plus the badger, and lots of dogs next door!

The only other clue I have is that in at least two holes, it looks like there has been an attempt to disguise the entrance with twigs and leaves and the like.

I will look online but any suggestions will be gratefully received.

Fairies.

[JimBHibees]

Question.

I now have some new burrow holes in the garden, closer to the house. My initial concern was they might be rat holes but they seem far too big, plus they are out in the open and rats tend to burrow in more sheltered spots and we have plenty of those. They are also rougher than rat holes. Plus we are nowhere near water and (until recently) have cats frequently wandering through the garden, plus the badger, and lots of dogs next door!

The only other clue I have is that in at least two holes, it looks like there has been an attempt to disguise the entrance with twigs and leaves and the like.

I will look online but any suggestions will be gratefully received.

Foxes? Had foxes under our shed in previous house years ago. Would assume they wouldn't be out in the open and more sheltered

[Mibbes Aye]

Foxes? Had foxes under our shed in previous house years ago. Would assume they wouldn't be out in the open and more sheltered

Yes, that’s what I thought might be an option but I don’t think the holes are quite big enough. Bigger than a rabbit hole, smaller than a badger sett. Otters maybe........

[Mibbes Aye]

Fairies.

I live in the depths of the Borders. People live for the rugby sevens and the Common Ridings. If there are any fairies down here they will drink loads, steal sheep and look for a rammy. No evidence of that so far, but they might not have realised lockdown is easing.

[Mibbes Aye]

Currently in the garden enjoying a comic-tragedy worthy of the best of the ancient Greeks. The least shy blackbird is determined to get into the feeders but he is just a bit too big to balance, and I also think he has an injured foot. So he has to keep flying up, knocking out what he can and then jumping down to eat it.

I think he has it sussed that the chaffinches etc will be in and scatter enough ground mess for him but obviously was a bit hungrier. We have taken to putting some sunflower hearts in an egg tray while we are sitting out in the garden, so we can see if it is only birds rather than rodents picking at it. It has been birds only, mostly the blackbirds. The wood pigeons seem to delve in. Our crows are more interested in looking for worms.

[Moulin Yarns]

Yes, that’s what I thought might be an option but I don’t think the holes are quite big enough. Bigger than a rabbit hole, smaller than a badger sett. Otters maybe........

How close are they to a river?

[wpj]

This morning I searched for the pork chop I left for "my" fox totally disappeared, I can't imagine any other animal wanting to eat it but who knows. I have a coffee each morning at between 5-6 in the garden and really want to see the fox, we only met once and tbh we scared the sh,,,,,out of each other. He/she was a real characterture of a fox if that makes sense. We stared for a while then he/she disappeared. I'm cooking chicken schnitzel tonight and will fry up a piece of chicken for foxy, no breadcrumbs though, that would be quite indulgent

[Mibbes Aye]

How close are they to a river?

To be honest I was being facetious. I think it is a decent kilometre to the river, and all gardens, roads etc on the way and on a steep so it would be uphill work for them. My last house ran onto the burn and I never saw any signs of otters there so I would be astonished to find any here :greengrin

Hares maybe? But no sign of them either, or droppings. Would badger cubs create their own setts away from the parents? Alternatively, would badgers start to dig new setts? The site of the holes has a touch more shade throughout the day and it has been very hot recently.

[Mibbes Aye]

This morning I searched for the pork chop I left for "my" fox totally disappeared, I can't imagine any other animal wanting to eat it but who knows. I have a coffee each morning at between 5-6 in the garden and really want to see the fox, we only met once and tbh we scared the sh,,,,,out of each other. He/she was a real characterture of a fox if that makes sense. We stared for a while then he/she disappeared. I'm cooking chicken schnitzel tonight and will fry up a piece of chicken for foxy, no breadcrumbs though, that would be quite indulgent

It is quite the Central European diet you are putting out. Veal escalopes and dumplings tomorrow, duck breast in a plum reduction on Wednesday? :greengrin

[wpj]

It is quite the Central European diet you are putting out. Veal escalopes and dumplings tomorrow, duck breast in a plum reduction on Wednesday? :greengrin

I do have duck in my freezer, if the chicken gets eaten tonight I may have to cook a duck leg, plum reduction may be spoiling him/her. I do have German dumplings from my last visit before lockdown but sorry fox, they are mine along with the red cabbage.
Cant spoil the fox too much

[Mibbes Aye]

I do have duck in my freezer, if the chicken gets eaten tonight I may have to cook a duck leg, plum reduction may be spoiling him/her. I do have German dumplings from my last visit before lockdown but sorry fox, they are mine along with the red cabbage.
Cant spoil the fox too much

Funnily enough, bit of cross-fertilisation with the cooking tips thread. I get Laithwaites wine and constantly get offers for Donald Russell. Finally succumbed and as part of the deal got a trolley load of duck legs in the introductory offer. They are in the freezer waiting for me to figure out what to do with them!

The fox should love the pickings on offer. Hope you get the chance to see him/her enjoying the menu at chez wpj.

[wpj]

Get some Chinese 5 spice for the duck legs, a fantastic combo I also have thai 7 spice not sure what the extra 2 spices are, must read the ingredients one day
I Ventured to my local coop and have mushrooms with blue cheese and breadcrumbs cooking now and will eat in the garden didn't make the schnitzel but have cooked some chicken for foxy

[JeMeSouviens]

To be honest I was being facetious. I think it is a decent kilometre to the river, and all gardens, roads etc on the way and on a steep so it would be uphill work for them. My last house ran onto the burn and I never saw any signs of otters there so I would be astonished to find any here :greengrin

Hares maybe? But no sign of them either, or droppings. Would badger cubs create their own setts away from the parents? Alternatively, would badgers start to dig new setts? The site of the holes has a touch more shade throughout the day and it has been very hot recently.

Hares don’t burrow.

[Mibbes Aye]

Hares don’t burrow.

That rules something out. Time to invest in night vision goggles I think. I think the thing that caught attention was what seemed to be this deliberate attempt to camouflage the burrow. That takes some skill. Not sure if I might just have been reading too much into it but it looked deliberate.

[Mibbes Aye]

Get some Chinese 5 spice for the duck legs, a fantastic combo I also have thai 7 spice not sure what the extra 2 spices are, must read the ingredients one day
I Ventured to my local coop and have mushrooms with blue cheese and breadcrumbs cooking now and will eat in the garden didn't make the schnitzel but have cooked some chicken for foxy

Good shout. I know of five spice but have never actually used it, as far as I can recall.

[wpj]

Good shout. I know of five spice but have never actually used it, as far as I can recall.

You can get a good amount of 5 spice and other herbs and spices on Ebay much cheaper than the supermarkets just make sure you keep them in a airtight container, they last for ages

Edit: the chicken has gone from my garden. I deliberately bone the meat incase its cats that eat it and they cant handle bones.

[Caversham Green]

Good shout. I know of five spice but have never actually used it, as far as I can recall.

Are the duck legs you got from Donald Russell confit or uncooked? Their confit duck legs are really good and have a definite five spicey taste to them. You also get a lot of fat that you can use for roast tatties etc.

Back on topic, I often see and hear ducks flying over to someplace close by. Puts me right off my confit duck legs.

[SideBurns]

Are the duck legs you got from Donald Russell confit or uncooked? Their confit duck legs are really good and have a definite five spicey taste to them. You also get a lot of fat that you can use for roast tatties etc.

Back on topic, I often see and hear ducks flying over to someplace close by. Puts me right off my confit duck legs.

Re the duck fat; I roasted a duck about 6 weeks ago, and froze the fat which came off it. I've been using it every Sunday since for roasting tatties and they're the best roasters I've ever done. Still got plenty left, reckon I'll get another 2 or 3 Sundays out of it.

Edit: sorry, just realised this is the wildlife thread so will let it get back on topic!!

[JeMeSouviens]

That rules something out. Time to invest in night vision goggles I think. I think the thing that caught attention was what seemed to be this deliberate attempt to camouflage the burrow. That takes some skill. Not sure if I might just have been reading too much into it but it looked deliberate.

The badger site BarcaHibs pointed out is here. It's got some photos to go with all the info Barca gave in the excellent post further back up the thread.

https://www.scottishbadgers.org.uk/badger-surveying.asp

[JeMeSouviens]

Re the duck fat; I roasted a duck about 6 weeks ago, and froze the fat which came off it. I've been using it every Sunday since for roasting tatties and they're the best roasters I've ever done. Still got plenty left, reckon I'll get another 2 or 3 Sundays out of it.

Edit: sorry, just realised this is the wildlife thread so will let it get back on topic!!

:greengrin

Was it a wild duck?

[SideBurns]

:greengrin

Was it a wild duck?

😁it didn't give me too much trouble.

[Mibbes Aye]

You can get a good amount of 5 spice and other herbs and spices on Ebay much cheaper than the supermarkets just make sure you keep them in a airtight container, they last for ages

Edit: the chicken has gone from my garden. I deliberately bone the meat incase its cats that eat it and they cant handle bones.

:aok:

[Mibbes Aye]

Are the duck legs you got from Donald Russell confit or uncooked? Their confit duck legs are really good and have a definite five spicey taste to them. You also get a lot of fat that you can use for roast tatties etc.

Back on topic, I often see and hear ducks flying over to someplace close by. Puts me right off my confit duck legs.

Confit. It was like some bonus add-on when I ordered other stuff and they sent loads. That is a helpful tip about saving the fat though, cheers.

[Mibbes Aye]

Re the duck fat; I roasted a duck about 6 weeks ago, and froze the fat which came off it. I've been using it every Sunday since for roasting tatties and they're the best roasters I've ever done. Still got plenty left, reckon I'll get another 2 or 3 Sundays out of it.

Edit: sorry, just realised this is the wildlife thread so will let it get back on topic!!

You are right, we need to get back on topic :greengrin but in the style of Colombo, just one last question.

How are you defrosting the fat when you use it?

[Mibbes Aye]

The badger site BarcaHibs pointed out is here. It's got some photos to go with all the info Barca gave in the excellent post further back up the thread.

https://www.scottishbadgers.org.uk/badger-surveying.asp

Thanks for that. I had a look earlier. I pretty much think the holes have been created by a badger but I am very curious whether it is the same one who has a sett away up at the top of the garden.

At least it keeps them out of the attic :greengrin

[JeMeSouviens]

Thanks for that. I had a look earlier. I pretty much think the holes have been created by a badger but I am very curious whether it is the same one who has a sett away up at the top of the garden.

At least it keeps them out of the attic :greengrin

Somewhere on that site it says a badger clan can have a territory of a couple of hundred acres and more than one sett to move between from time to time.

[Mibbes Aye]

Somewhere on that site it says a badger clan can have a territory of a couple of hundred acres and more than one sett to move between from time to time.

That’s a lot bigger than my garden. With that many setts I am now wondering whether it is Ozyhibby burrowing in my garden :greengrin

[JeMeSouviens]

That’s a lot bigger than my garden. With that many setts I am now wondering whether it is Ozyhibby burrowing in my garden :greengrin

Lolz. Maybe you could suggest a tenants' association to the badgers? :protest:

[SideBurns]

You are right, we need to get back on topic :greengrin but in the style of Colombo, just one last question.

How are you defrosting the fat when you use it?

I'm not defrosting it - just break off however much I need then melt it in the tray before adding the tatties. Pretty sure I read you don't need to defrost it; hasn't killed any of us yet anyway!

[Mibbes Aye]

I'm not defrosting it - just break off however much I need then melt it in the tray before adding the tatties. Pretty sure I read you don't need to defrost it; hasn't killed any of us yet anyway!

Excellent, thank you :aok:

[Mibbes Aye]

Lolz. Maybe you could suggest a tenants' association to the badgers? :protest:

Sounds good in principle but to be sure I would be expected to be doing the teas and coffees, and putting out plates of biscuits every time they had a meeting. Plus you just know there will be one who dominates the meetings and keeps it going way beyond when it was meant to finish.

[wpj]

Love it when the cooking tips thread and the wildlife thread get entwined.
I have just received a foam sofa cushion so I can lay on my couch with out pain, nature, food and comfort all in one go, love it

[Mibbes Aye]

Love it when the cooking tips thread and the wildlife thread get entwined.
I have just received a foam sofa cushion so I can lay on my couch with out pain, nature, food and comfort all in one go, love it

Breaking down barriers :greengrin

This could end up in one huge wellbeing super thread :greengrin

[Mibbes Aye]

I think this is here rather than the gardening thread, but only just!

When we moved in there was a rough wood pile of branches, about a metre and a half each side and maybe just shy of a metre tall. It sits beside a big patch of ground that had been turned to soil, obviously with the intention of growing veg and stuff. We have sowed some stuff already.

My understanding is the woodpile will attract wildlife that will help with the patch, as it should be a natural habitat for a number of creatures. They will eat the smaller creatures that could blight my potential crops.

Any tips re the wood pile? I am not going to disturb it but should it have a water source nearby? Something above it to deter the really big birds who might predate the predators, as it were?

[wpj]

Means I can can go to the sofa and get my ass out of bed for the first time in a week. Little things that make a big difference to my day to day life. I love Ebay

[Mibbes Aye]

Means I can can go to the sofa and get my ass out of bed for the first time in a week. Little things that make a big difference to my day to day life. I love Ebay

Hopefully you can see or hear the birdsong from the sofa. I never appreciated it enough until this year.

[wpj]

Hopefully you can see or hear the birdsong from the sofa. I never appreciated it enough until this year.

I can sit in the garden for an hour or so but then the pain kicks in. Now I can lie on the couch then go to bed. An absolutely wonderful life. My time in the garden is the best though, I have cooked a pork chop to leave out tonight, never know who takes it but I hope they enjoy. No 5 spice though that's for me haha

[Mibbes Aye]

I can sit in the garden for an hour or so but then the pain kicks in. Now I can lie on the couch then go to bed. An absolutely wonderful life. My time in the garden is the best though, I have cooked a pork chop to leave out tonight, never know who takes it but I hope they enjoy. No 5 spice though that's for me haha

:greengrin

I am on enforced ‘work from home’ and it is amazing just how much more one takes in. There was silence for about an hour, then all of a sudden all the birds started kicking in, not in a panicked way, just belting it out. The forecast here is for rain for the next few days so the garden may be out of play for us, unfortunately, but then the grass, plants and shrubs need it, plus it will provide rainwater for the birdbath.

[Mibbes Aye]

Ten rooks gathered around the feeder, one on top of it. The cawing was deafening. A gorgeous sight and sound. I was just waiting for them to dismantle it, quite happy to watch and maybe film, and then something startled them -I think gardening next door, and they flew away.

They will be back, just hope I get to see them. They haven’t gone far, as they are flying back and forth and cawing away.

[goosano]

I think this is here rather than the gardening thread, but only just!

When we moved in there was a rough wood pile of branches, about a metre and a half each side and maybe just shy of a metre tall. It sits beside a big patch of ground that had been turned to soil, obviously with the intention of growing veg and stuff. We have sowed some stuff already.

My understanding is the woodpile will attract wildlife that will help with the patch, as it should be a natural habitat for a number of creatures. They will eat the smaller creatures that could blight my potential crops.

Any tips re the wood pile? I am not going to disturb it but should it have a water source nearby? Something above it to deter the really big birds who might predate the predators, as it were?

That is quite a wood pile! Generally it is best if it is in contact with the ground and not in direct sunlight so it stays cool and damp. If it gets hot it will support less insects. Normally there is no need to water the pile though with the dry weather of the last 8 weeks it has maybe been necessary. The pile is good for birds and I would not discourage them. They will find insects under the rotting bark. The pile is generally good for all wildlife

[stoneyburn hibs]

Birdnet

It's an app that lets you record and identify birds, currently free on Google play.

Thought it be handy for you guys.

[Mibbes Aye]

That is quite a wood pile! Generally it is best if it is in contact with the ground and not in direct sunlight so it stays cool and damp. If it gets hot it will support less insects. Normally there is no need to water the pile though with the dry weather of the last 8 weeks it has maybe been necessary. The pile is good for birds and I would not discourage them. They will find insects under the rotting bark. The pile is generally good for all wildlife

Cheers, that’s roughly what I thought. It has a bit of shade because it is by the hedge, but the people who built the house did it to maximise the sun in the garden at all times of day. There are some mature shrubs and plum trees so I may start a different wood pile by them. After I have built the pond :greengrin

[Mibbes Aye]

Birdnet

It's an app that lets you record and identify birds, currently free on Google play.

Thought it be handy for you guys.

Will check it out, cheers :aok:

[CropleyWasGod]

For all the bird feeders, a wee parable from Peter Mullan.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SVshgRKo3tQ

[Mibbes Aye]

First rain in days down here and the birds are wild, they are loving it, tweeting away, it is lovely. It is going to do the greenery a world of good as well. Good to collect the rainwater for the butts as well.

[wpj]

First rain in days down here and the birds are wild, they are loving it, tweeting away, it is lovely. It is going to do the greenery a world of good as well. Good to collect the rainwater for the butts as well.

Where are you? I'm in Cambridge and expecting rain. Typical I ordered a fan now it's cold and rain has been expected all day. At least I can put on a hoodie and have a cuppa in the garden.

[Mibbes Aye]

Where are you? I'm in Cambridge and expecting rain. Typical I ordered a fan now it's cold and rain has been expected all day. At least I can put on a hoodie and have a cuppa in the garden.

Jedburgh. So ten minutes or ten miles from the English border, half an hour to Hawick or Gala, slightly quicker to Kelso, an hour to the distribution points that sit around Edinburgh.

We moved here deliberately. I grew up in Edinburgh and have progressively moved south because I have got a bigger garden and house every time I moved!

Plus Jedburgh is lovely. It has a twelfth century Cistercian abbey, a proper castle, and a house where Mary, Queen-of Scots stayed, but it seems like she she stayed everywhere :greengrin

And when you live here you get silly sized gardens but then have to manage the plants and the birds.

[wpj]

Jedburgh. So ten minutes or ten miles from the English border, half an hour to Hawick or Gala, slightly quicker to Kelso, an hour to the distribution points that sit around Edinburgh.

We moved here deliberately. I grew up in Edinburgh and have progressively moved south because I have got a bigger garden and house every time I moved!

Plus Jedburgh is lovely. It has a twelfth century Cistercian abbey, a proper castle, and a house where Mary, Queen-of Scots stayed, but it seems like she she stayed everywhere :greengrin

And when you live here to get silly sized gardens then have to manage the plants and the birds.

Cool, still no rain here gonna head back to bed I'm post stroke. Maybe mentioned it before, memory loss is a problem to put it mildly

[goosano]

Out on a regular walk that I must have done a dozen times during the pandemic and saw movement out of the corner of my eye. It was a peregrine falcon landing on its nest-in a very public site. Never seen one there before.
There have been sparrows nesting in my neighbours house in the gap between the gutter and roof. They have just recently fledged and I spent A while watching the youngsters sitting on the top of a feeder, 'wing shivering' and begging for the parents to feed them.

[JeMeSouviens]

Ok, bird fans, what about this?

https://i.ibb.co/nnsj7jx/ltt.jpg

Sorry, it's a crappy phone pic and it's come out more or less in silhouette. I'd say it was kind of buff coloured in the chest, darker wings and head. About the size of a blue tit. I'm thinking long tailed tit?

[Mibbes Aye]

Ok, bird fans, what about this?

https://i.ibb.co/nnsj7jx/ltt.jpg

Sorry, it's a crappy phone pic and it's come out more or less in silhouette. I'd say it was kind of buff coloured in the chest, darker wings and head. About the size of a blue tit. I'm thinking long tailed tit?

Really hard to tell, as you have acknowledged. The tail looks right but I would have expected the plumage to be more lightly coloured that what you described. Difficult to offer alternatives though. Did you hear its call?

Incidentally, I don’t have any great expertise or knowledge, but trying to build it up!

[JeMeSouviens]

Really hard to tell, as you have acknowledged. The tail looks right but I would have expected the plumage to be more lightly coloured that what you described. Difficult to offer alternatives though. Did you hear its call?

Incidentally, I don’t have any great expertise or knowledge, but trying to build it up!

It's body was pretty light coloured, I'd say a light creamy brown. Pictures of them online look almost pink underneath. It might have been, difficult to tell against the bright sky. It was chirping away quite the thing but I'm afraid that's about all I can describe.

I think I'm going to have to start carrying a real camera.

Alternatives wise, it definitely wasn't a pied wagtail, not sure what other wee birds have a long tail?

[Mibbes Aye]

It's body was pretty light coloured, I'd say a light creamy brown. Pictures of them online look almost pink underneath. It might have been, difficult to tell against the bright sky. It was chirping away quite the thing but I'm afraid that's about all I can describe.

I think I'm going to have to start carrying a real camera.

Alternatives wise, it definitely wasn't a pied wagtail, not sure what other wee birds have a long tail?

Think you called it right. Long-tailed tits have a tinge of pink to them but you would struggle to see it from a distance. I would describe their plumage as cream or off-white but that is probably just semantics :greengrin

They have a few calls, but all rather lively. There are various birds with long tails, but a long-tailed tit would be far more common.