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

I'm good mikey.

Apparently Cettis warblers are more common in London because the micro climate tends to be a bit warmer. And especially round here cos of all the gardens, the overgrown cemetry and big park. What a racket they make.

They did originally spread to the UK from Italy. They can't deal with cold winters.

mikey I had a fox fight outside my front door last night. I woke about 2am to the most incredible sound of yelping and squealing and banging against the front door. it went on and on, lie a banshee. I got up and looked out the front window. Two foxes were doing at it on the doorstep outside my front door. What ferocity, twisting and turning, biting each other, bashing up against the door over and over. Squealing. It was very scary, but quite exciting. Eventually they ran off.

Today there is a load of fox c**p smeared everywhere outside the front door. I'll have to clear it up.

Awesome, Effers, I love foxes

I just saw one on my way home 5 minutes ago!

mikey2

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Hi, I am just intruding to say ing envy! I've never ever seen a fox, truly, even on TV there's just Basil Brush (and I love him, I do, but it's not the same...)

Frogs, too... I have a frog calendar on my office wall. They are so beautiful, little jewel things.

I wish we had foxes here!


Vicky
(Oh, except for the fox cr*p, I can do without that...)

Yeah it puts a whole new meaning on the accidental mistaken subject title I gave this thread. I still haven't got round to it.

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Yes! That's funny!

(I have to make do with cats, there are a lot of them around here. Reminds me, I have to change the calendar, it still says April.. Green frog on a pink leaf. (It's a poison-dart frog, my favourite kind, because of their awesome colours.)

Just to mention, May's frogs are: two Brazilian eared frogs, climbing over one another - they're a pretty beige and bone white colour, in what looks like a tree, or a bush...

No foxes? Poor Vicky!

mikey you might find this link interesting about a project at Aberdeen University looking at people's relationship to birds in their environment; as much in a human way as any science stuff.

http://www.abdn.ac.uk/birdsong/about.php

If you click on 'Contribute' on the left, they are asking for contributions from people of their experiences. It's an interesting site to explore. On the homepage I think that is a Cetti's warbler.

( Vicky you might be interested too, as they want contributions from people anywhere in the world. It might be interesting to tell them how you see birds outside your window, which you've mentioned to me, and your relationship to them, in your way. They say you don't have to be an expert )

I've finally cleared up that fox stuff. Man I was retching, and it was so solidly stuck like glue. They mark the territories with it.

Interesting site Effers. I think the bird on the left was a wren; the cetti's warbler is quite a dark chestnut brown on its back with a rounded tail.

I was thinking about this little thread whilst at work today and it makes me feel like the three of us are in a pretty english garden on a beautiful summers day admiring the wildlife!!!

So why don't you two take a seat over there and I'll bring out some tea and scones

There ...now where were we?

More tea Vicky?

mikey. I love your idea of the garden.

Vicky I was thinking that those May frogs on your calendar would have been in French Guiana too, which is right next to Brazil. I'll post on that Lion thread at some point about frogs. But it'll be about the sounds they make...

No foxes, frogs, squirrels or herons (all of which my penfriend in Liverpool has visiting his garden...)

On t'other hand, we have takahes, and Pukekos, which stride around the streets and really weird me out, because they look so odd!

(There's a tertiary institution, Unitec, literally across the road from ours. They have a shifting population of Pukeko living in their grounds, and occasionally, the Pukeko walk along our street! )

http://pukeko.ws/bird.html

http://nzbirds.com/birds/pukeko.html

I'll have a look at that site, Effers..

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Lovely, thanks!

Vicky

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They're described as 'foam nesters'... and I wonder what size they are? (They look tiny...) I'll google their species name, Polypedates Otilophus...
First hit...
http://www.geckosunlimited.com/community/other-herps/21903-borneo-eared-frog-polypedates-otilophus.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polypedates_otilophus

Lovely!

Vicky

Those pukekos look colourful, Vicky.

They are similar shape to our moorhens, coots and water rails.

mikey

Hey mikey thanks for your friendly, suportive message on the bible verse thread. It was a very specific and unpleasant experience, with all kinds of complicating factors. Because it was traumatic for all of us concerned I find it difficult to discuss. But I in no way think of you or Vicky like that, or Christians in general like that. I've sensibly unsubbed from that thread.



Now lets get back to and

Vicky I'm looking at those NZ birds from your links and they even have some sound recordings. It's great. Thank you for that. And yes I love those pukekos. It must be excellent to see them walking along the street. And do you know why New Zealanders came to be called after the Kiwi?

I think from what I've read, they actually are a type of rail, Mikey...

They are marevllous, the way the walk insouciantly along the roadside, scoring worms to eat and ignoring traffic.



Vicky

My father used to say it's because the New Zealander like the Kiwi, "eats roots and leave"...

My ex used to say "I'm a K1W1"...

Vicky