Enjoying the birds

Good guy · Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2014 8:13 pm Post subject: Enjoying the birds

I've always enjoyed watching the birds in my garden and this year is no exception. The garden has loads of berries and different habitats and I'm not too tidy! A good variety of birds visit over the year and this year I've decided to take part in Birdwatch Ireland's Garden Bird Survey. It is really making me look a lot harder, especially at all the LBJs, in order to distinguish between them.

This last week or two the Long Tailed Tits have been much in evidence - ten of them on a feeder one day! They are such little beauties. I never saw them before last winter. Today there were two Siskins as well, the first this year.

Any other birdie news?

Sive · Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2014 9:45 pm Post subject:

We've been doing the survey for quite a few years now and it's amazing fun and easily the best way to learn about all the different birds that visit your garden and becomes quite addictive. We're always sad when it comes to an end in February.
I am seeing goldfinches for the first time this week, so I presume their sources of wild seed etc are no longer as plentiful and they are happy to top up at the feeders. We have no long-tailed tits...we used to have them in our last garden and they are almost comical in appearance with their long tails aren't they ?
I bought Jim Wilson's field guide recently and I think it's the best one to have as it gives lots of different photos of each bird to help with identification.

Greengage · Posted: Thu Jan 09, 2014 9:47 pm Post subject:

you will be surprised bet you end up with 30 species, if you have pic of any your not sure of post them here we would love a go at ID.

mcgrueser · Posted: Mon Jan 13, 2014 10:59 pm Post subject:

I spent a good while on the Birdwatch Ireland website last night looking these couple of visitors up. They seem to come in for a morning chomp around 9 o'clock...(the two mornings I happened to be home at that time last week).

The best I could hazard a guess at is that they are Starlings? I think the flecks on the feathers were leading me to think that... Am I right?

Sive · Posted: Tue Jan 14, 2014 8:20 am Post subject:

Yes, definitely starlings.......another species in decline, like house sparrows.
For one of nature's greatest sights take a look at this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vhE8ScWe7w

Greengage · Posted: Tue Jan 14, 2014 4:54 pm Post subject:

i dont think these are in decline have a look here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eakKfY5aHmY

Good guy · Posted: Mon Jan 27, 2014 9:29 pm Post subject:

They are regulars in my garden, too. But not in the numbers shown in the videos! There was a beautiful example of a 'murmuration' on RTE's Secrets of the Shannon, too.
I agree with you about the book, Sive. It is very good.

Sive · Posted: Tue Jan 28, 2014 10:58 am Post subject:

In the last three or four days we seem to have far fewer birds at our feeders than usual......has anyone else noticed this ?

Margo · Posted: Tue Jan 28, 2014 4:39 pm Post subject:

We always have loads of starlings and about 4pm they swopp and duck and dive just like the video, perhaps not so many. We also have the rooks and crows going to roost as well. Cor they do make a noise.
We have had a flock of whooper swans fly in last week and having great fun swimming on the floods