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

[Richard Tarleton]

I haven't heard a cuckoo in years, but today my wife heard one in Lisfannon near Inch Island. Some of her golf companions heard it too, and one of them who lives on Inch reported hearing a corncrake recently as well. Richard, are they pulling my leg?

Padraig, that's exactly the right area for hearing corncrakes. I heard (and saw) my first near Magilligan, thanks to a kind friend, heard them on Rathlin, and heard them a few times while crossing the yard en route to the gents in country pubs in Fermanagh. Crex crex!

[Bryn]

First Blackbird of the day, this morning, at 04:25. Other birds slow to join in.

[jayne lee wilson]

First Blackbird of the day, this morning, at 04:25. Other birds slow to join in.

Don't your Robins beat them to it? Or do they carry on all night like mine? Wood Pigeons sing occasionally TTN as well. There's a fair club of all-nighters...
Often the first birds I hear toward first light, dear Robins apart, are Magpies or Crows...

Jackdaws are swirling down onto the lawn now for their bread and seed, and a Blackcap has begun its chortling .... as The Swan of Tuonela glides quietly by...

[Bryn]

Don't your Robins beat them to it? Or do they carry on all night like mine? Wood Pigeons sing occasionally TTN as well. There's a fair club of all-nighters...
Often the first birds I hear toward first light, dear Robins apart, are Magpies or Crows...

Jackdaws are swirling down onto the lawn now for their seed, and a Blackcap has begun its chortling .... as The Swan of Tuonela glides quietly by...

Last year, the local sodium street lighting was replaced with lower dispersion LED installations. Since then, the Robins have been able to get a better night’s sleep. Oh, a Collared Dove has just started up.

https://ww2.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/bird-and-wildlife-guides/ask-an-expert/previous/streetlighting.aspx

[Richard Tarleton]

An early morning breeding bird survey (mapping bird song in the study area) enlivened by no fewer than three spotted flycatchers this morning. The BTO says:

Breeding Bird Survey data show a decline in the breeding population of 39% between 1995 and 2016, part of a staggering longer term decline of 87% since 1970.

The results of our initial research indicate that more Spotted Flycatchers are dying during the first year of their lives and that this increased mortality is likely to be behind the population decline.

They have progressively disappeared from our garden, and the village.....

[Vox Humana]

Not about watching birds, but I was absolutely appalled to read this. I had no idea. Think about it next time you buy olives or olive oil.

https://www.birdguides.com/news/millions-of-birds-vacuumed-to-death-annually-in-mediterranean/

[HighlandDougie]

An early morning breeding bird survey (mapping bird song in the study area) enlivened by no fewer than three spotted flycatchers this morning. The BTO says:

Breeding Bird Survey data show a decline in the breeding population of 39% between 1995 and 2016, part of a staggering longer term decline of 87% since 1970.

The results of our initial research indicate that more Spotted Flycatchers are dying during the first year of their lives and that this increased mortality is likely to be behind the population decline.

They have progressively disappeared from our garden, and the village.....

Great that three were "mapped" but the story of their decline is depressing. I usually have a pair nesting in my garden in Scotland (and take great delight in seeing the young at the fledgling stage perched on the washing line and getting lessons in, well, fly-catching), along with the garden warblers (which seem to have become more numerous in recent times in Highland Perthshire), willow warblers, chiff-chaffs etc. No garden warblers in the French garden which I now understand from Richard's earlier post might be due to the presence of the resident blackcaps seeing them off, as it were.

[Richard Tarleton]

Not about watching birds, but I was absolutely appalled to read this. I had no idea. Think about it next time you buy olives or olive oil.
https://www.birdguides.com/news/mill...mediterranean/

Appalling indeed. Me neither.

I read today that there are 700 km of mist nets along the N African coast to trap migrants.

[Vox Humana]

Appalling indeed. Me neither.

I read today that there are 700 km of mist nets along the N African coast to trap migrants.

Could you give me a link for that, please, Richard? My goodness, with all this going on - and all that Mediterranean shooting to boot - it's no wonder our birds are declining. And then the birds that do reach us have to contend with our intensive farming and other habitat destruction. It's all very depressing.

[Richard Tarleton]

Could you give me a link for that, please, Richard? My goodness, with all this going on - and all that Mediterranean shooting to boot - it's no wonder our birds are declining. And then the birds that do reach us have to contend with our intensive farming and other habitat destruction. It's all very depressing.

It's in a letter from Robin Page on the Letters page, https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/c...obia-rvhtxtlxm - I often don't agree with Mr Page on matters of opinion, but he presents this as a fact and I've come across similar before.

[Vox Humana]

[ardcarp]

Just returned from a sailing trip in the Med and Adriatic. There was nothing like the abundance or variety of seabirds we have on the UK and Brittany coast. Out at sea there were a few shearwateres skimming the waves in charactersiric fashion, but not much else. Happily we saw dolphins and porpoises on many occasions, so there must be some life in the oceans. However off the north coast of Sicily there were several mile-long gill nets which fishermen set at night. Apart from being a hazard to boats, it seems a most unpleasant way of catching tuna...which I understand they were after.

[kernelbogey]

0400... and 'my' blackbird singing his heart out to the moon, rising low in the south-east.

[Richard Tarleton]

Just returned from a sailing trip in the Med and Adriatic. There was nothing like the abundance or variety of seabirds we have on the UK and Brittany coast. Out at sea there were a few shearwateres skimming the waves in charactersiric fashion, but not much else. Happily we saw dolphins and porpoises on many occasions, so there must be some life in the oceans. However off the north coast of Sicily there were several mile-long gill nets which fishermen set at night. Apart from being a hazard to boats, it seems a most unpleasant way of catching tuna...which I understand they were after.

Basically three species of shearwater to be seen in the Med - the experts are constantly re-classifying, re-naming and "splitting" them into ever more species - which is good, in that your life list can grow (as a result of birds you've already seen) without your having to leave your armchair, but bad in that it's baffling . So we have the Yelkouan shearwater Puffinus yelkouan - this is basically the Mediterranean version of our very own Manx shearwater. We also have the Balearic shearwater Puffinus mauretanicus, formerly known as the Mediterranean shearwater - watching them from above from the Barbary Watchtower on Cape Formentor (Mallorca) with the local GOB experts I learnt how to tell them apart from Yelkouan by the browner (not black) upperparts and "dirtier" underparts. Then we have the magnificent and much larger Cory's shearwater, which performs long glides on deeply bowed wings. But they've now split this into Scopoli's shearwater (Calonectris diomedea diomedea, the Mediterranean), and Cory's (Calonectris diomedea borealis, everywhere else) - which when I saw my first in autumn off the Co.Down coast in autumn nearly 40 years ago we all thought was C.d.diomedea

I hope I've got that right, Vox will correct me if not.

This splitting business has got out of hand - basically what were once considered subspecies or races being reclassified as separate species. Thus the Subalpine warblers I've seen over the years in Mallorca are now Moltoni's warbler (fortunately I've seen them elsewhere, so that's a tick) - whereas the Marmora's warblers I've seen there are now Balearic warblers, which may or may not be a separate species - I'd have to go to Corsica and Sardinia to see Marmora's.

I believe it's all down to DNA studies. Once upon a time ornithologists just did drawings of things, dissected them and compared skins.

[DracoM]

Astonishing goldcrest. My first sight of live bird.