h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Wel Starlings certainly seem to gossip when landed, there were around 5 perched on a lampost above bus road yesterday and could here their pink and pops as they chatted above loud road noises! Pillowcase, do you get Starlings in South Africa, particularly where you are?
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The Grey and Yellow Wagtails certainly love water here too as a lot of Wagtails do, although Pied Wagtails here seem to prefer roads and Supermarket carparks!
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Grey Wagtails although not too common are around here, there was one that regularly stayed around the marshy and watery areas in my nature reserve, I MAY have seen a Yellow Wagtail once in a wooded area with a pond, and it was looking for food around watery area, however that was in benning of my days of more interest in bird watching so may have mistaken a Yellow Wagtail for a grey, however the top of what I thought was a Yellow Wagtail was certainly greener in appearance than a Grey one so think I mIGHT have been right.
I am not certainn of whether I saw the Grey and Yellow Wagtails in winter or summer so can't say if the ones you see as summer visitors are from England or not, however as far as I am aware Pied Wagtails are here all year. There was a pied one at my supermarket a matter of days ago.

Strangely Strange, we have many different species of Starlings here! Just in the region where I live, there are:

1. Cape Glossy Starlings. Very beautiful with irridescent green and blue plumage, and bright orange eyes. They live in savannah and don't come into the town much.

Here's a picture of one:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Lamprotornis_nitens.jpg

2. Red-winged Starlings, bluish-black, with chestnut patches in the wings. They come into town, usually in pairs rather than larger flocks or groups. They often nest on ledges on tall buildings. In nature they nest on cliffs.

3. Wattled Starlings. These ones usually go about in large flocks. They are nomadic and only come into town in certain years, the rest of the time they're 'elsewhere'. When they breed, the males get huge and weird black and yellow wattles on their heads!

4. Indian Mynahs. These have been introduced to South Africa from India. They are a bit of a pest since they are aggressive and taking over the habitat and nesting sites of many of our indigenous birds. They have rapidly spread all over South Africa but are especially common near large towns.

Elsewhere in the country we have several more starling species! Eurasian starlings have been introduced but haven't spread to Pietersburg yet, being prevalent in more southerly towns like Cape Town and Johannesburg at the moment. Other native species include the large Burchell's Starling, other glossy starlings, the Pied Starling, and the lovely Plumcoloured Starling.

The grey and yellow wagtails we get here probably come from northern and eastern Europe, and perhaps northern Asia!

Starlings are certainly lively, noisy birds!

Have had 2 family encounters with Wrens this week. Firstly I saw one at work in the bushes alongside a male sparrow. Then today my daughter had to take one to the RSPCA centre after it flew into some patio doors!

Oh the poor Wren, they are such sweeties too!
I love to watch them by side of streams or water as they search for tit bits low down .
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I am sure I walked by a group of Starlings the other day and one made a really good impersonation of a human whistle. Apparantly they are good at copying things although I thought the recording of one copying a chicken was going too far,lol!
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I do hope the Wren was ok, although they are often only stunned after a window strike but fall about all over the place.

The RSPCA thought it was only a bit dazed and would be ok.

Not really wildlife, but we used to have a budgie who mimicked some little yappy terriers who passed by our flat

Hey Strangely Strange, I just now saw something I think you ought to appreciate! I posted this on Websailor's thread also, but anyways I'm posting it here for you as well: just now I went and glanced outside and saw a flash of blue ... I got my binoculars, and wouldn't you know it - it was a Kingfisher! And NOT the one I would expect, the brown-hooded ... which occurs in town ... but the one I've never seen in or around Pietersburg before, the Woodland Kingfisher! Here's a picture:

http://www.birdquest.net/afbid/birdspecies.php?func=view&slideno=5&af_bs_id=915

This is a beautiful bird! It sat quite a while in our large parsley bush. Like I said this is the first time I see this bird in Pietersburg! I see them usually in nature reserves, never before in town.

Just a few days ago I got myself an identification guide for all the kingfishers of the world (plus the bee-eaters and rollers as well)! The Woodland Kingfisher belongs to a family of kingfishers called the Dacelonidae, which also includes the Kookaburras of Australasia, and several species in Africa. They are not particularly specialised for fish-eating ... many species occur in woodland or forest and are primarily hunters of insects and other small animals.

Well done for seeing the Kingfisher!
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By coincidence there was a small part about Kingfishers in a programme last night about a UK river. I was surprised to see the very rare occurance of two female UK Kingfishers trying to drown each other to get the best male bird in area. They were both on the verge of death as holding each other under water and suddenly, totally unexpectedly, a Mink shot from the bank and grabbed and killed one Kingfisher!
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I am used to seeing Kingfishers only on their own and was pleased to see film of a family and was interested to discover that young Kinggfishers can drown while learning to dive in to water for fish or fail to master the art and starve to death.
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The programme was great as showed repeated dives and fish catching and even the hovering above water to watch and then dive for fish. They seem to get back into the air with what is a large fish compared to them by pushing against water surface!
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There is a veritable cascade of oak leaves in my garden like snow as so windy and oaks are shedding leaves non stop.

Well I never. I saw a bounding flight come over my roof and low across garden and thought that looks familier. I got binos and saw it was a Green Woodpecker looking carefully around. It looked splendid in green and red, well the back of its head was red, and and all black moustache(sp?) which without checking book means a female.
I heard a sharp clicky call earlier which I thought might be one but wasn't certain due to Green Parakeets being always around.
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I haven't been to my local nature reserve for around 3 weeks now but will hopefully in next few days. I was thinking about the cats there and the half eaten dead one I found. I suspect the reason cats there are wary there is tney have either gone feral or are big hunters which sometimes means they are very independant and not too friendly, even if owned.

Hello SS
I hope you don't mind me dropping into your journal. I have been following it for a while, but had nothing to contribute.
Do you get any Fieldfares round your way?
I've been watching the ones in my area for a month or so now. They like to forage in the orchard at the side of my garden, and gather in large numbers in the trees between my garden and the orchard. We also get Redwings, which always group with the Fieldfares. I've noticed that the Redwings tend to perch on the lower branches of the trees, while the Fieldfares gather at the top of the trees like lookouts. I'm thinking maybe the Redwings use the Fieldfares for protection against predators. It's all very interesting to watch.

Everyone is very welcome to post here!
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It is interesting that Fieldfare and Redwing flock together, there must be some sort of advantage there for both. Often such groupings aid the finding of food so perhaps that is why, more eyes to find food. I don't cross the field near me so much now but last year there was a mixed flock of around 50 this time of year.Often Mistlethrush would be there too and tower over the smaller birds.
I noticed in the trees near Small Sainsbury's carpark, Fieldfares and Redwing but didn't see how they were perched as looking generally for birds, I was surprised to see them so close to a carpark though.
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I really must go Birdwatching properly again soon . I fhaven't been to my local nature resrve for at least a month which is bad as means I haven't been getting as much fresh air and daylight.

Haven't added anything here recently due to not going to wildlife sanctuary, however I was pleasantly surprised to see the black and white flash across my lounge window wasn't, as much as I love them, a Magpie, but a female Great Spotted Woodpecker which stayed in oak tree to left of my window and close to where I was for 5 mins or so. I had heard but not seen them recently, inbfact I hadn't seen one for several months.
What I hadn't seen in my garden since last summer, although heard them around, was a Green Finch and was really pleased to see at least one today. I thought it was the Robin coming out of bush and into Oak tree but suddenly noticed the tell tale curved tail when folded and big mean looking beak!
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I was pleased to see a Coal Tit today, not common in my garden, and also just now, just after dark, to hear a Blackbird doing its familiar song. I had often heard its screach as it moved around but its beautiful song has been missing since last summer, so suspect it is another sign spring and marking territory is here(ish)!
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I had to come back through the local wooded park at night on Saturday and stopped cycling as thought I heard something familiar and lo and behold it was 2 Tawny Owls calling to each other with their occasional screach thrown in for good measure. A lovely sound!
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I happened to walk past my landing window(sort of) today and noticed a male Great Spotted Woodpecker on a lopped tree in my garden and then even better saw it was digging a 2 inch diameter hole! Who knows perhaps it will be a nest or just a test hole for suitability.
The beak has left a mark inside trunk similar to a drill bit being pulled in and out and left clear ridges in hole. Last year I had young often getting water from my waterbowl all summer and suspected a nest in that tree but couldn't see it. It was fantastic to see today's events!

How lovely. I do hope he makes a nest. I expect he will have to wait for his lady friend's approval It sounds a big hole to be just getting insects, grubs etc. Please keep an eye open and let us know if there is any progress.

We get owls here regularly, though I haven't heard one lately. The closed windows and double glazing rather dull the sounds at this time of year.

Take care,

Websailor

Good evening! I was glad to see that you welcome incomers! I wanted to ask someone where the goldfinches have been! We normally have a small horde of them on the Niger, but throughout the horrible weather (well, /I/ thought it was)they completely disappeared. I can't believe they were all struck down at once, but I wonder if they do a mini-migrate, as it were. They're beginning to return/be replaced(?) now, but in very small numbers. I've also noticed that they seem newly scrubbed, as usual in the Spring. Surely they can't have moulted in the cold, can they?

And why does the RSPB have its Birdwatch Day when they're all away at a meeting and all I see is blackbirds and collared doves......?

Dig

Hello, Webbie. Just seen your post!
Dig

Hi, Dig,

Goldfinches are very temperamental it seems to me, first you see them, then you don't! If there is plenty of natural food around they don't come.They will turn up for days, then are not seen for weeks. If yours are coming back you are lucky. I have only had the odd one or two for ages. As for the smart new outfits they are probably getting their breeding plumage now, as they start courting

You are not alone in asking the question about the RSPB count. It happens to very many of us. So many people have said the birds seem to know. Perhaps it is because so many of us put out positive feasts to bribe them to show up, and they decide to show their independence!

At the moment we are not getting nearly as many species, or birds as usual for the time of year. Even in the snow and bitter weather there weren't so many. Let's hope Spring brings some new arrivals.

Websailor

All are welcome here dig!
I haven't seen a Golfinch here since last summer, mind you they are quite rare here.

Well now, I watch Green Woodpeckers a lot as my favourite bird and fairly common around here, I have had at least one on my waterbowl in garden.
What is unusual though is two together as quite solitory birds. I saw two together on a small bare trunk of a tree in local wooded park. Next I saw them amoungst the ant hills and one raised its beak vertically and deliberately moved head in an upright arc movement making a noise I had never heard before, and not very loudly as I could only just about hear it fairly close up.
I suspect it was a mating ritual as early spring and other bird didn't act as if it was an aggressive act.
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I have been feeding birds with birdfeed since bad snow and decided to get a proper feeder as just putting feed on the board someone had nailed to tree meant pigeons and squirrels got most of the feed. As much as I love squirrels they can get all the food they need from communal bins and Monkeynuts I gave them and now buried.
At £25 I thought the RSPB feeder in Homebase was a little expensive but comes with a squirrel guard, practically essential here with around 5 ressident Nupkins here!
They have already been eyeing it up!
What was cheaper though was a massive(13 KG, I think) bird food seed mix pack for feeder which works out around 4 times cheaper than small packs.
It might be that with feeder complete with anti squirrel and big bird cage, the amount of feed used is less overal. It could also be that word could get around out there on the street and a thousand small birds turn up!

I am beginning to wonder, hope of all hope, that there may be a pair of Goldcrests nesting close by as one is now in garden every day and often for hours. I might have seen two flying together but they are too fast to tell if it is them or not. They love the bare oak and lopped Leyandi as forest like of course. I have noticed they can do a fluttering flight which I might have mistaken in past for a large butterfly.
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A female blackbird has been going into the small tree in my garden with nesting material and coming out with none. How lovely it would be to get the half dozen young 'uns going around my garden with their dad for weeks again like last year! I watched as they changed from weird looking, no offence meant, to black or brown from tail upwards. perhaps even the female or male were one of last years brood?
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No birds in my feeder yet, however a Robin briefly perched on it so suspect it will be one of first to feed, it is the same general seed feed I was putting out on flat board and they were eating off there.
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A lovely sunny day in garden and wind free, just perfect for seeing and hearing birds in my garden!

SS, you really do get a good selection of birds, and the nesting opportunities are good too. I am sure the feeder will be discovered soon and you will be seeing new arrivals.

Buying bulk, but good quality is a much better investment, and a feeder does mean less waste. Just watch the bottom of the feeder in the wet weather as it can go mouldy. The birds always eat the top food first! It is best to empty and refill frequently, there is less waste that way, and less risk of disease.

and do keep us posted with their antics. It is coming up to a very busy period so you should get some good sightings.

Websailor