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Same here Ann - very quiet - but they'll be back

Regards
Tec

Hi all~~~~~not been on here as nothing to report..literally. The garden seems to be really quiet, I am guessing it is because all the fledglings have now fledged ! Even the food is lasting twice as long. I have seen a blackbird having a dip in my pond, but that is as interesting as it gets..lol

Just a question though. I bought a pretty bird feeder a couple of weeks ago. It is a dish on chains with a blue tit on it , you may have seen them ??
I have tried everything to get the birds to feed from it, but no chance. Perhaps it is the false blue tit that is putting them off ? Shame, as it looks so nice ..lol

Maggie

Hi Maggie.........

Lovely to see you here again - I think it must be quiet in the garden for everyone............the weather doesn't help - but we don't get ducks here.

I'm sure the birds will find their way to that feeder in the colder weather - but I think you may be right about that blue tit attachment. Maybe it would be best to remove it if you can - I would.

Kind regards
Tec.

sometimes it takes months for birds to get used to new feeders. Not sure that the blue tit would put them off but I suppose it is a possibility. Our food doesn't last any longer because no matter what we do the wood pigeons find a way of getting onto the seed feeders.

Cooeee....more photo's on the blog fromJean. l would put more on but a few days ago l downloaded picasa and now l can't find me photo's nor work out how to put them on blog....grrrr

We are still getting loads of sparrows, sometimes 15 or so lined up on the fence or on the lawn. About 8 young c/doves, a few chaffinches are about again and a few greenfinches. A crow, the usual jackdaws and magpies, starlings, l think 3 female and male blackbirds, couple of robins and occasionally the dunnocks. There is always a bird or two bathing, or 2 pushing each other about to get ino the bath, so funny towatch:o))

Tec......our dunnocks are abit shy, the blackbirds are't though.

Sadly we had a female blackbird that flew into the patio doors the otherday, l put her into a box and covered it to keep her quiet, but she died a few hours later.

Maggie....l would say give the birds more time, sometimes they take to things quite quickly, but other times it can take months as Ann says. Maybe the bluetit puts them off, don't know really.....lol....remove it and see what happens.

l have a wild flower or weed that has self seeded probably fromthe birds seed, its yellow and quite pretty, when l can work it out l will put a pic on the blog, perhaps someone can tell me what it is. Also Jean can't remember the name of an 8ft tall grass she has, pic on blog:o))

Ok thats it.
Before l go....Tec, l am sorry to hear your wife is poorly, do hope she recovers soon!!

jude :o)

Oh my heart is still pounding... saw a bird on the fence, it caught my eye as it looked a little like a female blackbird only bigger, then I noticed a pale spot on its head. It swooped into the apple tree and took a sparrow ! We have a resident sparrowhawk which I recognise from its striped chest, but this one didn't have any markings that I could see. Any ideas what it could be?? Can't find anything in any of my books and I have 5 of them...I know it's nature but I hate it when this happens...need a lie down..lol

Maggie

Hello Maggie....have you found out what it was yet??

jude :o)

Me again

Take a look at the RSPB site:

http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/k/kestrel/index.asp

Look at the Merlin, Hobby and Kestrel.

Might help

jude :o)

Hello all, I haven't been on for ages because all our birds seem to have disappeared. We still have the Rooks and Jackdaws making a racket and the owls at night, but even the Collared Doves are few and far between.

Maggie it was interesting reading your post, I remember seeing my first Sparrowhawk in our garden, I was so upset and I know it's nature but not nice. I have looked in my books but not seen anything like you describe.

Caz xx

Jude, Picasa shouldn't make any difference. Your photos should still be in Pictures or my pictures in Documents. You can also upload photos from picasa to the web. Not actually sure what you mean by not being able to find your photos though.

Ann xx

Hi all, thanks for the link Jude, it is a great site.
OH seems to think it may have been a juvenile sparrowhawk that hasn't got all it's markings yet. I can't seem to find a photo of one, but it is a theory.
Same here Yorkshire Caz, our garden isn't as busy as it was, maybe a Yorkshire thing ??? lol

Maggie

I haven't seen our Robins for a while.I don't know why.We normally have 3 or 4 .Any ideas why?
Next door have a family of Coots or Moorhens.Mum Dad and 4 babies.
We seem to have very few birds at the moment ,and the Magpies thankfully seem to have disappeared.

Hi Folks,
Garden seems to be a little busier. Today the robin re-appeared, and we had a bluetit - just the one - lots of sparrows, some still being fed by their mothers. a few chaffinches, and two doves invaded the conservatory again, causing chaos.

Helen......Strange that your magpies have disappeared, so have the two families that were here - and as I don't like them, I hope they don't return, although I am still plaqued by hoardes of jackdaws that chase off the small birds.

Y/Caz........Lovely to see you here.....don't be a stranger.

Regards
Tec.

Where has Jude gone? maybe still looking for her photos!!!

Ann ...........Maybe she has gone on safari again with the animals?

Regards
Tec.

Hi all, has anyone got a buddlia in their garden ?? The butterflies have been amazing today, probably because we have sun at long last ! But I have never seen as many, at least 30 or 40, nearly all white, but the odd coloured one. They are beautiful to watch. My little robin has shown his face again today too...

Maggie

Maggie
I've noticed lots of butterflies this year. Sadly a lot seem to be cabbage whites and I still keep having to chase them away from my vegetables despite having them covered.
I live next to a school which has lots of large trees in the grounds and yesterday and today the parakeets seem to have moved in.
I do hope this is not a permanent arrangement as beautiful as they are they are so noisy.
It will be interesting to see how the Magpies react as they nested in one of the trees this year and the young ones are still around.
Von

Hello I'm new to this thread, just noticed it on the board.

We've got quite a bit of buddleia either side of our patio and when the sun's out but we're not the patio is filled with butterflies flittering back and forth. When we go out there of course they go all shy. Himself being a great looker up discovered that it's a bumper year for tortoiseshells, painted ladies and of course cabbage whites. My poor old brussels sprouts. Won't be many for Christmas at this rate. I know it's a bit early to be thinking about that but the summery weather lately hasn't exactly distracted us has it?

Von until last year I lived in an area of London which had a lot of parakeets.

Hi all and welcome to DizzieLizzie. Well I have something to report at last. I was in the laundry downstairs when I saw a bird land on the wall quite near by, it was a song thrush. We have heard them from our flat but never seen them, the laundry is on the bottom floor bordering the gardens. I might have to go and sit down there, there is a tree which someone has put some feeders on and a little coal tit arrived, then a blue tit. Quite an interesting hour and a half.
Still not much to be seen from our flat though.

When we had the house I planted a lot of different buddlia bushes and always had masses of butterflies, we have no garden now but I do miss mine.

Caz xx

My garden is full of butterflies.It is lovely to see them.We have a young woodpecker that was very close to the house yesterday morning.It was on the Patio and bounced so high it looked like it was on springs lol.
(Am not new to thread,have just changed name)