Tuesday 29 January 2013

VIDEO: BLACKCAP ON FEEDERS

Here is a Blackcap in my garden on my bird feeders that has chased away all similar size birds lol.



Monday 28 January 2013

BIRDS: NEW TO SCIENCE THE HASWELL'S SNOWY WADER

Waderi haswellii

Very first time pictured the Haswell's Snowy Wader, but get up there quick ... will be gone after the thaw!! LMAO!


BIRDS: SHOVELLERS

Very few Shovellers about this year too?! Last year must have been at least a dozen pairs up there.




BIRDS: TUFTED DUCK

Tufted Ducks have such a presence.





BIRDS: POCHARD

Oops missed this Pochard's head, BAD MARTIN! lol.


Did not miss theirs though!

BIRDS: CHAFFINCH WITH THE REDWINGS

Annoying lot these particular Chaffinches, love them as I do?!

The cock bird sat in a tree above me and I thought it was a Brambling and tried to remember of the latter were summer or winter visitors. Bramblings have been seen by myself and one brother up there, he spotted them. Ten minutes later another bird watcher was up there and I said that a pair of Bramblings were hanging around the car park with the Redwings and the man turned into a Gazelle and was off!!

Sorry mate but those Bramblings turned out to be THESE Chaffinches!! LMAO!




BIRDS: REDWINGS RUMMAGING!

In a wood I visit a bunch of winter visiting Redwings all turn up mob handed and throw leaf litter all over the place looking for emerging worms.

You will get many others join in the slippery fun too!





BIRDS: GREAT CRESTED GREBE AND DABCHICK ... or just CHICK?!

Was not sure about the small bird, there were a group of several on their own. Behaved very shy and submerged and re-appeared many feet away and very Dabchick like?! But then from round a bend the adult Great crested Grebe appeared and I wondered of there were chicks, despite the time of year!!



BIRDS: GOOSANDERS

Not as many about as there was last year, like the Gadwalls, but at least there were several pairs. These are just sooo shy, try to get a picture and they completely submerge!! Better camera needed I am afraid , lol.






BIRDS: GADWALLS

Only pair of Gadwalls i saw this winter, 2012-13. Last year were many pairs of these about! I like Gadwalls.


Female Mallards can very I presume?!



BIRDS: DUCKTER STRANGE Part THREE

One more oddball in the series of Duckter Strange?!
Sorry little Marvel Comic joke their!!



BIRDS: DUCKTER STRANGE Part TWO

Another oddball Duck!



BIRDS: DUCKTER STRANGE Part ONE


Out in the freezing cold I got some photos of a few things, here is an odd Duck I have seen every year for 3 years now!

Two years ago a couple of bird watchers in their sixties asked me what it was... I apologised and said I am not that up on water foul but would hazard a guess it was a mutant Mallard.



Saturday 26 January 2013

BIRDS: REDWING IN MY GARDEN WITH FIELDFARES

I spotted this bird sitting back while the Fieldfares were having there ... fill. At first glance I thought it a young Fieldfare before I realised it was a lone Redwing and kind of a great feeling it was in my garden as I had never spotted one beforehand.

Some more Redwings will follow this loner in another post that are NOT in my garden.


BIRDS: GARDEN FIELD WITH FARES FIELDFARES

The Fieldfare has been a surprise winter visitor to my garden for a number of years now and I have long wanted to get photos of them...

This year I succeeded and along with some Redwings I will post about in the next day or two!

Though UK residents think nothing of the commonest member of the Thrush family, many without realising it and it is the Blackbird, many Thrushes are extremely wary and skittish animals.Indeed these guys are always on the lookout for movement and though they come for the abundance of bright red berries they can often ALL sit there motionless for 5 minutes like they are listening out for danger. They also never make a sound while visiting despite the group numbering near a dozen or more.

Then out of the blue a sudden flurry of feeding while they all scoff down a number of berries before all going motionless again and into sensory alert mode.

Following this post I thought I might SHOW YOU VISITORS this behaviour instead of just telling you so I am uploading a few videos!!

Also immediately following THIS POST was a stray oddball that was tagging along with these Fieldfares. Though known to do this I had to ask myself that as this odd member was alone that maybe he was short sited and thought the Fielfares were the same species?! I then realised that normally when I DO spot this species alone it is normally among Fieldfares and that despite the books stating they eat the same things this stray never ONCE consumed a single solitary BERRY?! Though when I do see them in groups they are routing around tossing leaves about looking for grubs and worms.

Here are some pictures...