Bird Haven

It’s a grey and wet Saturday morning and I have just sat down at my desk. Outside my study window there is a mature rowan tree with developing berries.

A movement in the tree caught my eye and I stopped to look. Once I concentrated I could make out many birds moving around in the canopy of leaves.

The first to offer itself for identification was Blue Tit, busily picking at something on the twigs. A Great Tit was doing much the same kind of thing only a few twigs to the right. A few moments later I spotted a Coal Tit not far away, also feeding.

Nothing rare or exotic but all only a few feet from where I was sitting in a comfortable chair, warm and dry. Suddenly its not quite so grey this morning.

Grey Wagtails

The last few weeks have provided plenty of opportunities for watching a pair of Grey Wagtails at fairly close quarters.

Together with a team of volunteers I have been involved with the restoration of an old watermill at Shelsley Walsh for the last year or so. We have had to suspend work on the waterwheel itself when we realised that the wagtail pair had built a nest in a corner of the opening that carries the main waterwheel shaft.

They must have sat tight on the nest while we worked around them because it was the feeding behaviour of the pair that alerted us to the nest. One or other of the pair would perch near the waterwheel with a beak full of insects making alarm calls. Once we got the message we left them alone. We could see chicks in the nest but were reluctant to get close enough to count how many there were.

We only work on the mill on Tuesdays and Thursdays. They were still feeding on the 7th June but the following Tuesday the nest was empty except for a single cold egg. We quite miss being scolded by these charming little birds.

A newcomer to the garden

Our garden is edged by several birch trees and in the last few days we have had a number of sightings of green woodpeckers, a bird I haven't seen in this area for years.

The first sighting brought back memories of the time we came home to find our neighbour's trying to entice their pet parrot down out of our birch trees after it had escaped via the cat-flap! The green flash of the woodpecker was just like that of the parrot.

We have had a number of sightings and on a number of other occasions we have heard the distinctive calling so maybe this woodpecker has taken up residence close by.

The noisiest bird in the garden.

Everything in the garden grew well while we were away so there is a fair amount of trimming and tidying to be done.

In amongst all the foliage it is very difficult to spot the birds but we can hear that they are still around. There is one bird in particular that likes to make his presence heard and that is our resident wren. It is hard to believe that such a tiny bird can make such a lot of noise and keep making it for such long periods.

Collins Field Guide says this: "Astonishingly powerful song (almost all year) long, breathless stream of strident but not unmusical notes and trills. Call loud, stony tit-tit-tit, becoming harsh churr... in alarm"

He might be the noisiest bird in the garden but we love to know he is still around.

What a vacation!

We have been to Spain and France for a break. Took the car on the ferry to Bilbao and wandered roughly north-east from there. The last time we where in Bilbao the sky was almost thick with vultures but we didn't see a single one, probably the difference in the season.

We spent quite a lot of time traveling and eating and not an awful lot of time birdwatching but one of the highlights was to come nose to beak with a thrush sitting tight on its nest in our son's orchard as we inspected the fruit. When I came back with a camera I couldn't remember which tree it was in and the light was failing so I didn't get a picture!

At the back of our hotel in Luchon we spotted a bird we had not seen before and we had to refer to the European bird guide to identify it. After a couple of false starts we decided that it was a Black Redstart. Once identified, there were lots of them and some appeared to take pleasure in teasing the local cat population.

We think we heard a Capercaillie in the woods at Gavarnie (check the photo) but we couldn't see it and the area it was calling from was inaccessible. As you can see the terrain is a bit precipitous.

One species we where disappointed by was the Gannet. Last September the ferry was escorted by these elegant birds for most of the trip but we didn't see a single one this time. Presumably they are still around the breeding grounds.

All gone

The Collared Doves have definitely abandoned the nest which is now falling apart. I have only had one sighting in the last week, so they have either moved to another area or fallen fowl of predators.

We leave on vacation tomorrow and I hope to bring back pictures from the Pyrenees of some of the larger birds that are found there. I have seen Booted Eagles and Griffon Vultures on past visits, but I will have to wait and see what we can find on this trip.

Categories: Birds, Birdwatching

The bird has flown

There has been no sign of the Collared Dove on her nest for a couple of days now and there is no sign of any eggs as far as I can tell. In fact I havn't seen any Collared Doves for some days, just Wood Pigeons and a Magpie, along with the the usual small garden birds.

I will give it a few more days before I get the aerial man in to reset the satellite dish though! As long as I can watch Bill Oddie.

Categories: Birds, Birdwatching