How many birds in your garden today?

[rustylady]

Sprinkle chilli powder on your nuts! That'll keep the squirrels off 'em! Trouble is would it stop the birds too?

Saw the first 'flock' of turdus - Sorry Manda, what are turdus?
Oh and there was a small flock of starlings doing the whizzy flying around thing!

Isn't that an amazing sight? Used to work down near the docks and they used to gather from all over the town around dusk - the aerobatics were fantastic. Thousands of birds.

[Myrmidon]

wos it like this one Myrmidon?

Greater spotted Woodpecker :: GSW.jpg :: Fotopic.Net

I am reliably informed by my other (better) half, who has a sharper eye than I, that this was indeed the one. Hopefully, we will soon get a digital SLR camera, and be able to post plenty piccies!

Beautiful birds, aren't they?

[Two_Sheds]

they used to gather from all over the town around dusk - the aerobatics were fantastic. Thousands of birds.

Remember this?
YouTube - Starlings flocking over Brighton's West Pier

[wellie]

Oh wow.... each day gets more and more interesting here.....

We've noticed that it's particularly the male Blackbirds that are scoffing the berries, and their activity is 'hotting up' considerably.

Spotty Woodpecker is on the nut-feeder every day now.
The Nuthatch probably twice a week.
The Robin(s) are becoming extremely tame now (as in I can 'call them' to give them food on demand, at a safe distance from cats!) and if I'm in any of the outbuildings at all, they come in to see just exactly what I'm up to!
Firecrest and Jenny Wrens in the garden still on occasions.
Chaffinches are much much more in evidence now than in the whole of last year.
House Sparrows on the nut feeders regularly.
Rare visitor on the nut feeder on Sunday lunchtime that we've NEVER seen before, and Trousers didn't locate it in our book, but it looked like a BlackCap, but with a WhiteCap (!) It fed nervously for a few minutes, then flew off. Special moment, as you can imagine!

With the expected 'cold snap' looming for the weekend, I've filled all four of the nut feeders, I'm putting black sunflower seeds and 'bog standard' birdseed out on the birdtable, as well as bits of bread/cheese/cake etc.(see Trousers fight the birds for the cheese children!!!) and I've got a cut-out from a magazine on how to make a fat ball, which is my 'If I Only Achieve One Thing Today' Project for Thursday!

[BrideXIII]

none in mine, thank goodness, i hate it when the cats get them.

but at my mums yesterday, the robins were in full swing, and the blackbirds scrummaging for currants and raisins under the shrubs on the patio, i love watching them.
mum has dozens of birdfeeders and fat balls, so her garden is alive with birds.

[kentvegplot]

The birds I've been enjoying over the last couple of weeks have been the redwings - we've got a large patch of grass and they come down in a big flock - a sure sign winter is here. The green woodpecker seems to have gone (do they migrate?) and the wood pigeons are filling themselves on the hawthorn.

[wellie]

You know what? That's what makes every Grapevine Member's contribution so very special when they post up on a lovely thread like this, because IF, and only IF they have written their 'Location' in their Users Profile Wotsit ( ) it makes it more enjoyable for the rest of us, knowing what part of the country they are reporting from!

[wellie]

Oh, and incidentally..... In one of my client's gardens, we have an owl that is partial to hooting during the day, as opposed to at night. Anyone got any thoughts on why?!

[wellie]

Three very special days.....
Three days ago, I spied one Goldfinch on our climbing rose outside the bedroom window.
Two days ago, a male Bulfinch, pecking at the 'redundant' blackberry fruits above our Potting Shed Door. And one day ago, a male Bulfinch, pecking at the 'redundant' blackberry fruits Ditto Ditto...Because last year, our neighbour, who knows not a jot about Living In The Country, just hacked down trees, and Buddleias, and everything.
Icing on the Cake for me is always the chirruppy sound, then sight of the Long Tailed Tits on the Nut Feeders. Two late afternoons in a row now that I've been home to witness, and I've been putting more black sunflower seeds out than usual.
I'm really enjoying my garden. No Picnic needed....
And my garden is still enjoying me!

[Newbie]

We moved to our house about a year & half ago, has 3/4 acre "garden" surrounded by large mixed tree boundarys on 2 sides, fence on one side & hedge/leylandii on the other and small stream on 2 sides - should be a wildlife haven. However, I put garden in inverted commas as it was 3/4 acre of just grass when we moved in and there was virtually no birds visiting it at all, can't understand it.

Slowly however they are coming back, Squirrels are a regular visiter (also regularly chased by the dog unfortunatley) Woodpecker visits the bird nuts every day, robins seem to like the leylandii, the odd tit visits the nuts, doves & wood pigeons sit on the fence every day, as do magpies. And when it rains there is a little sparrowhawk type thing guarunteed to be sitting on the light under the lip of the garage roof.

[smallblueplanet]

It sounds like there isn't much in your garden for them to visit Newbie? Are you going to add some shrubs and borders and such?

[nelliegemini]

5 goldfinches today, 2 on the nigella seeds, 2 on the regular feeder and one hopping about saying 'me next, me next'. The Robin owns the feeding station but does let the tit family feed, a mixed band of blue, long tailed, coal and great. If they spent a little more time feeding properly and a little less time hooliganning around the garden they would be far fatter!

A jay came down to the flat basket thingy where the robin food is - the Robin decided that was OK, but did run away. At the bottom of the garden I have installed one of those squirrel peanut feeders, the ones with the clear plastic so they can see where the food is and hopefully learn to lift the lid. My squirrels are stupid and so slow that by the time they come to investigate the feeder the Jays have cleared it. Now if I could just teach the squirrels to lift the lid and feed the Jays, I could sit in the warm and watch them for longer.

One of these days I will take a photo of the long tailed tits, if only the d@mn things would sit still for 30 seconds

[Newbie]

It sounds like there isn't much in your garden for them to visit Newbie? Are you going to add some shrubs and borders and such?

We dug one border just after we moved in and i'm just putting the finished touches to the planting in the next week or two as realised there is not much in it during winter! Dug a second a couple of months ago (worms have been kindly digging last years compost heap into it since for me!) and plan to dig it over this weekend & plant it up with the plants i have accidently bought on the internet today - oops! Also having a third dug on monday by a nice man who is also extending my veg plot for me at the same time. So hopefully by the time they are all done there will be a bit more to entice the birds in to visit. I already have nuts, fat balls & seeds out - so here's hoping!

[wellie]

Wherever I garden (for myself or for clients) I am a great believer in planting 'for the birds', and so plant lots of Pyracanthas and Cotoneasters, etc. for their colourful berries, which the blackbirds just adore.

Today again, male and female blackbirds, and (whoopee doo!) the Song Thrush for the second time this week.
All the Tits again, both Robins (tame as anything), a Greenfinch or two! Dunnocks.
Was my sightings today. X

[smallblueplanet]

A question Wellie, I've seen pyracantha with berries in towns but I've never seen birds eating the berries - is it just me? Do they really like them?

On the same note the once heavily laden hawthorn tree across the road has been stripped bare of all its berries by the roving flocks of redwings, fieldfare, thrushes (mistle & song), blackbirds, etc...