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

That's interesting. You have deer too You are such a lucky so and so SS

A slightly itchy story but good nevertheless.

Websailor

Just heard a really loud squawking noise which I thought was just the Parakeets again, however bursting out the lopped Leyandi came three screaming Jays and several Magpies. Two jays had quite a nasty fluttering down claws and perhaps beak fight. I think it was quite the nastiest flutter down claws flying fight I have seen for ages, if ever, as so nasty, not long but really going for it. The Magpies were just bystanders really and it seemed to be about two males and one female. Difficult to know for sure of course, but it is the height of breeding season for spring breeding birds. They all flew of towards trees in a less vicious, but squabling, mass.
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The Blackbird caught in the middle of it all on the ground just looked bemused perhaps forgetting the noisey altercation he was part of the other day. Perhaps it looked and thought, nope, no black feathers and orange beaks, not my fight!

Sensible blackbird We are seeing a fair bit of fighting but only gentle by comparison.

Websailor

I went to the nearest and not too busy riverside town today in the lovely sunshine. I was really surprised to see some House Martins wheeling across the sky and as they kept going back and forth I got a really good view of white rump and shape as they were gliding with wings stretched on rising heat. They might have been feeding on the flying insects above the water, the insects might even have been hatched in todays heat!
House Martins really do remind me of summer and the countryside so to see them in a more urban area is odd but suspect not unusual due to changing patterns of wildlife and how they adapt or perish.

I look forward to the swifts arriving. Today would have been perfect for them, with lots of midges, but they only appear here in humid conditions and today was hot, but with a cool breeze.

Websailor

We used to get House martins nesting under eaves at a house I lived at as a child. We could watch them flying in and out from my parents bedroom window

The tic thing was indeed!

Yes the Tics were yuk, particulary as appeared so big on a comparatively small bird.
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I remember watching Swifts, I think, catching insects over a cricket field and posssibly even actually briefly touching ground as flew past and catching something in flight.

What an absolute joy!
I have just seen a Coal Tit go back into my new nest box, the first for around 2 weeks now and I had given up hope really of a return, and even thought I might have frightened them away by my watching the nestbox. It went in and importantly stayed in unlike a couple of weeks ago. I am really happy as shows the box is useful to them and it will hopefully mean a few more lovely Coal Tits, not a common bird here.
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I stopped in local park and was really pleased to see my first duckling of year, and I really mean first as only one there, the total sweety too with its little quacky noise. Perhaps the next brood I see will be the more normal 4-5.
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I was watching some strange splashing at side of long pond/short canal and realised it was large carp upto maybe even as large as 20lb and assumed they were after freshly hatched bugs at water's edge. Then I thought hang on they would be keen for bugs but they were really going for it with strong body wriggles in shallow water.
Then it dawned on me, lots of wriggling, shallow water warmed by sun and it is spring...they are breeding!
It seems, presumabley, the females are laying eggs and male carp fertilising them. There was certainly a bit of a frenzy going on and more than 2 fish there in each writhing mass so presumabley the males were keen to make sure they were the fertilising fish.
I am just glad it wasn't like, I think, Salmon where the fish die after laying of eggs. The smallish pond/short canal would be horrible after!
I sat in field across road last evening and one of the Great Spotted Woodpeckesr came over me in that bounding flight they do, straight back to nest which I thought was nice.

Glad your coal tit is back You sure get to see life in your area

Websailor

Okay, so I am casually looking out window and it was nice to see one of the rare small birds at water bowl, a Robin, and Mr Blackbird and his missus were looking for worms as usual, then I thought hang one that isn't his missus it is a Songthrush, or I think it is and wait for it to turn around to confirm as can't see its chest yet. It turns around and blow me down , that is no Songthrush. I notice its slightly fuzzy head and skinyness, along with generally messy paterning and it a young blackbird! The first young landbird this year for me!
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Last year there were around 5 but one is nice too. Its Dad is doing as last year looking after young 'un and following it around. It did it for a month or two last year.

A couple of days I had an unusual bird in the garden sort of creamy underneath with a sparrow like brown strip on top, but it was the eye strip like a Wren which intrigued me. It was clearly rare as don't remember seeing it in garden so frantically searched Collins Bird Guide. Then it dawned on me, it was a female House Sparrow and I had made the classic mistake of overcomlicating it. It was confirmed by book but most importantly by being with its male mate next day with its more distinctive Sparrow look. There was a second female today and they are collecting what I now now by checking other Collins British Wildlife book is catkins from Oak tree which are actually its flowers(acorns being its fruit). They were storing them in beak so suspect for youngsters in a nest.
There are many House Sparrows in street only 50 feet away but they rarely come into my backgarden but now have a reason too, as did the Starling today. The Squirells love the oak flowers too, as do assorted birds so must be sweet and nutricious.
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I have found a new Birdwatching place locally.
It ticks all the boxes~ local, has a wide range of birds(today Nuthatch, Wren, Blackcap, Chiffchaff), water and water reeds and best of all an enclosed sanctuary which is do free so can sit on grass in peace. the only negative is it is open to public without wardens but it is very local so another choice of somewhere to go and Birdwatch, it also has rare Watervoles apparantly but didn't see any today. tjhat is ok as did see one in a small urban stream locally a couple of years ago luckly.

I really do envy your location SS. You have so much scope for bird watching. There are places close to me, and some a journey away which of course takes time which I don't have. I keep hoping the weather will warm up a little so I can get out and be comfortable. At the moment it is so chilly and unsettled I don't feel inclined.

You know, I hardly ever see a sparrow. Dunnocks yes, but only the occasional couple of sparrows, usually a pair. They used to be so common it is a shame.

Websailor

Well this is a suburban area so a mix of parks, busy roads and housing. We are lucky with lots of reservoirs which helps a lot with waterbirds of course, but also a fair number of parks for landbirds.
The 2 female House Sparrows are back so perhaps working like groups of tits to find food as more pairs of eyes. I saw an advert for a nestbox for House Sparrow which showed a long wooden box with a lot of entrances as aparantly they like to nest in groups, perhaps hence hunting for food together. I thought they were from my street but seem to head off across the bungalow in opposite direction at a slight angle to presumabley a house loft somewhere which they seem to like sometimes.

Oh dear, I went out to fill up the bird bowl and found a dead Coal Tit near to my new(ish) bird box. It was an adult, which I buried, which I don't know if was one of the nesting pair but it had been dead sometime and I haven't seen any activity in birdbox for some time.
The best thing is for me to do nothing as if any young in birdbox it could be that the dead Coal Tit was nothing to do with nesting pair or even there is still one alive to feed young.
To be honest if there are young and they are alone then unlikely to still be alive. Best to do nothing really and see what happens, we are talking about a bird that looks like it died a while ago. Very sad either way as not many Coal Tits around here. I just saw one which could be one of the breeding pair.

That is sad. I hope it isn't part of the pair. I suppose you couldn't see a reason, such as cat attack or anything? Best not to touch it anyway. Did you bury it deep, because I buried a great tit that died after hitting our window, and something dug it up and ran off with it! Not sure what, but probably fox, as they like carrion.


If one parent is left the young might just survive if they have hatched. If eggs still I am not so sure as they can't really incubate eggs and feed themselves too.



Websailor

Doesnt sound great about the Coal tit

I saw a pair of blackbirds this evening around the tree overhanging our garden Not that spectacular maybe but most of our birdlife is gulls.

Blackbirds really are lovely birds, and on balance pretty much the best singing bird we have overall.
I love the way the go along lawns in spurts, stop, look ascance for worms and shoot off again. Like clockwork toys, lol.
I have a male Blackbird doing its annual guarding duty on a single young, which is less than the 4-5 of last year. However even one young is a joy to watch as it learns from its Dad. Even when first appearing they seem to have an inbuilt knowledge and quickly learn the ropes of turning head from side to side and wacking live food with beak to subdue and cut it in half if big like a worm.

Ah ha! I think there maybe a young Pecker in the nest in tree in my garden. I just saw 2 adult Great Spotted Woodpeckers go into nest and one had a beak full of large bug. This is great news if I am right as has been some time now with nest properly built. I hopefully will see the young Pecker using my bird waterbowl like last year when there were 2 youngsters, one male and one female of I remember correctly.
I am reminded of the time last year when a young Pecker was drinking at the waterbowl minding its own business and a young and not very wise Starling tried to drive the young Pecker away from waterbowl by pecking it. The young Pecker ignored it as long as it could and then retaliated by pecking the foolish young Starling with inevitable results from a Peckers, er pecker,lol!
......oh the foolish young!

That's lovely news SS. You are doing well with your wildlife. Our woodpeckers nest quite a way from us I think, and they haven't been for peanut cake(with insects) or the peanuts, so they must be getting plenty of fresh food

We saw youngsters last year and I am hopeful they will bring their young to us again this year.

Websailor

Just put my pushbike away again and am now convinced the chattering quietly sound is from the G S Woodpecker hole/nest! It would make sense as adults are going in with food. The male adult was on my waterbowl yesterday evening, the first visit I have seen for a while as haven't heard their pinking noise much, however that could be as they stopped it to avoid drawing attention to nest.
I was looking out window this morning and saw what I thought was a Robin but noticed ruddines of colour so asumed Wren but it had no sticky up tail and realised it was a young Robin, the first here this year! It has the usual spottyness but also the cutest big black eyes. I haven't seen an adult with it so if on its own it seems early, however it has found waterbowl and apart from just a touch of 'flappiness' in air it is okay so far on its own. Another joyfull sight.
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I just sat outside Sainsbury's and watched the female House Sparrow. I haven't watched them much in past but find the females fascinating as so resourceful. I saw it find a large lump of cake and fly it to a spot at side of wall and seemed to be flying the small chunks it removed to an unseen nest. The females are actually quite pretty birds, much more delicate than males and acomplished fliers, hovering if needed. The eye strip they have is nice too, a little Wren like in face I find.