What birds (are you/have you been) watching? What birds have been watching you?

[Dave2002]

As I was tottering home this afternoon around 16:00, the sky was still pale blue and I was listeing to the bird-song that has become more prevalent of late, mostly robins and tits. And then suddenly a squadron of five green long-tailed parakeets flew rapidly overhead making quite a racket - in fact I heard them before i saw them - and headed off in a South-easterly direction.

All very cheering as we enter the longest part of the Winter, I always feel.

So - you've stolen our parakeets then! Haven't seen any for a week or two now. There were 8 here one day not too long ago.

I wonder how big their territory is.

[Globaltruth]

Earlier this week, for the first time ever, that rarest of native birds was spotted on the feeders.

A lone male cock sparrow.
One sighting only so far.
There is a healthy colony on a wild-life site, actively nurtured by the warden, about 8 miles away....fingers crossed that they're starting to spread.

[amateur51]

Today, for the first time ever, five starlings on the fat-balls in my tiny patio-garden - this could prove both expensive for me and ruinous for smaller/more timid birds

After the high post-Christmas winds blew down my bird feeding station three times, I discovered that my sparrer squadron (up to 20 birds at one time) have abandoned my garden

Change is ever-present, it seems

[Padraig]

Wren?

See Celtic Connections 2014, message no 17, the link to the Guardian.

Worth a read.

[jayne lee wilson]

Are you all doing the Big RSPB garden Birdwatch? Had a good day today - 10 Greenfinches, 8 Chaffinches and 6 Goldfinches, 7 Long-Tailed Tits (all clustered on one suetbits feeder together!) 20 Ferals and 7 Wood Pigeons.... but Nuthatch and GS Woodpecker missing... will repeat tomorrow and use the best! Lovely, exhilarating windy day!

[Dave2002]

Small birds seem largely to have deserted us this year, whereas last year they were all over the place. Just spotted some small ones in a tree, but last year the tits were queueing up to get at the nearby bird feeder close to our bushes. There's still a robin somewhere about.

Large birds seem to be prevalent this year - jackdaws, magpies, crows, occasional jays, and for the last two days a great spotted woodpecker - http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/bird...ker/index.aspx The jackdaws seem to like fatballs - so they're being rationed.
Almost all of them like peanuts, including the furry ones.

No sign of parakeets for a while though - they were my favourites, and I've not seen a green woodpecker for ages. Pigeons we have in abundance.

[amateur51]

Small birds seem largely to have deserted us this year, whereas last year they were all over the place. Just spotted some small ones in a tree, but last year the tits were queueing up to get at the nearby bird feeder close to our bushes. There's still a robin somewhere about.

Large birds seem to be prevalent this year - jackdaws, magpies, crows, occasional jays, and for the last two days a great spotted woodpecker - http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/bird...ker/index.aspx The jackdaws seem to like fatballs - so they're being rationed.
Almost all of them like peanuts, including the furry ones.

No sign of parakeets for a while though - they were my favourites, and I've not seen a green woodpecker for ages. Pigeons we have in abundance.

Apologies for this if you've read it elsewhere already, but I saw the first ever goldfinch on the fat balls & seed feeder the other day - I'm in a very urban setting which is why I'm rather thrilled. I saw a very vigorous jay on the walk back from my GP this morning.

Sadly almost all my sparrer squadron of twelve have disappeared - I think they found the high winds of last Winter difficult.

[ahinton]

Apologies for this if you've read it elsewhere already, but I saw the first ever goldfinch on the fat balls & seed feeder the other day - I'm in a very urban setting which is why I'm rather thrilled. I saw a very vigorous jay on the walk back from my GP this morning.

Sadly almost all my sparrer squadron of twelve have disappeared - I think they found the high winds of last Winter difficult.

I did see a lesser-spotted thropplenoggin in another thread a while ago but it's apparently flown off for an ornithological sabbatical.

What I want to know, though, is what's happened to the swallows, of which I've seen only three so far this year.

[Dave2002]

Apologies for this if you've read it elsewhere already, but I saw the first ever goldfinch on the fat balls & seed feeder the other day - I'm in a very urban setting which is why I'm rather thrilled. I saw a very vigorous jay on the walk back from my GP this morning.

Sadly almost all my sparrer squadron of twelve have disappeared - I think they found the high winds of last Winter difficult.

Lucky you.
Some birds definitely prefer feeding on the ground. I wonder if that applies to sparrows, which could explain why you don't see many - neither do I.
Makes them more of a target for cats though.

[amateur51]

Lucky you.
Some birds definitely prefer feeding on the ground. I wonder if that applies to sparrows, which could explain why you don't see many - neither do I.
Makes them more of a target for cats though.

Sparrows have become pretty rare in inner London, which is why I was so proud to see my fat balls and seed feeders often festooned with the little dodgers.

I have a running battle with local cats - fortunately my incompetence in deterring them is matched only by their incompetence at pouncing at the right moment

But I did see one stalking off with a blue tit earlier this year

[Bryn]

Red Kites in their display flights around the area of Southmede Farm and Windsor Farm Shop.

[vinteuil]

... enormous numbers of screaming swifts in the skies above this cheap hotel in Bologna

[amateur51]

... enormous numbers of screaming swifts in the skies above this cheap hotel in Bologna

How wonderful vints, a city I mean to visit some day.

Club Gascon in Smithfield used to play a tape of screaming swifts in their shop - I'd sometimes pop in there on a grey Winter's day just to get my spirits raised

[HighlandDougie]

what's happened to the swallows

Yesterday was accursed as one of the swallows which had seemed to be about to rebuild a nest which they last inhabited about 10 years ago flew into a window and broke its neck. Duly buried in the garden which has otherwise seen the return of willow warblers, garden warblers and blackcaps, all singing their heads off. The osprey which normally visits the pond on the neighbouring farm up to three times a day (stocked with trout and carp - or, at least, it was) not in evidence this year, alas.

[Serial_Apologist]

Blue tits have made a nest in a hole in the wall of the "south wing" of this block of flats where I live; the human occupants of the flat within were astonished when I brought this to their attention! A pair of song thrushes have been joining the two robins hopping around the rear driveway. Other than that, the usual collection of wood pigeons, very slim blackbirds, magpies, a jay, and of the other crow family carions are more common hereabouts than either rooks or jackdaws. A green woodpecker makes an occasional appearance on the lawn, but we never see sparrows or starlings in the immediate vicinity. Starlings used to proliferate in the Sainsburys car park at Bell Green, but not since following complaints (!) the store installed a wounded starling alarm call.