Originally posted by Padraig
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In my youth, they were a common sight in spring on my bus journey to school from Bracknell to Windsor. I was lucky enough to see one at the Windsor Farm Shop about a decade ago, and back in 1993, while I was studying in Bolton, there was the joy of watching their courtship displays in some fields on the northwest edge of the town. -
If we're talking lapwings (or peewits as we used to call them) they were common in the Midlands where I was brough up as a kid. I gather they are not widely seen there now, but correct me if I am wrong. We have lots of them here in the Southwest though they tend to be localised, one notable location being the Seaton wetlands.
I don't know who invented the collective nouns for bird species (eg an exultation of larks, a charm of goldfinches) and was surprised to see it's a deceit of lapwings. Can't think why. I envisage some bored Oxbridge academic
inventing such terms to pass the time.
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Don't they run away from their nest and/or feign injury - broken wing - to draw predators away from chicks in the nest?Originally posted by ardcarp View PostIf we're talking lapwings (or peewits as we used to call them) they were common in the Midlands where I was brough up as a kid. I gather they are not widely seen there now, but correct me if I am wrong. We have lots of them here in the Southwest though they tend to be localised, one notable location being the Seaton wetlands.
I don't know who invented the collective nouns for bird species (eg an exultation of larks, a charm of goldfinches) and was surprised to see it's a deceit of lapwings. Can't think why. I envisage some bored Oxbridge academic inventing such terms to pass the time.Comment
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Entirely possible, as we have plenty of lapwings, plus ringed plovers and curlew overwintering here at RSPB Otmoor, a stone's throw from the hallowed portals of academia, dreaming spires, crusty and/or unworldly dons, real-life crusties, etc...?Originally posted by ardcarp View PostI don't know who invented the collective nouns for bird species (eg an exultation of larks, a charm of goldfinches) and was surprised to see it's a deceit of lapwings. Can't think why. I envisage some bored Oxbridge academic inventing such terms to pass the time.
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The jackdaw would have to be friendly ... I wouldn't want that bird poking at food on my hand and missing - could get quite a nip I expect!Originally posted by Joseph K View PostComment
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Sitting at the kitchen table this morning, something caught my eye, I looked up and just outside the door a buzzard landed and perched on the handle of a sack barrow, he sat there for about a minute - long enough to get a picture - and then flew off. About an hour later sitting in a friends conservatory we both jumped as a female Sparrowhawk flew into the window and bounced through the open door, looking momentarily dazed before taking off again. Within 10 seconds a starling did exactly the same thing. We wondered if the hawk had mistaken a reflection for a prey bird but cant think why the starling followed suit.Comment
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Sometimes window collisions are territorial or related to other such behaviours, but I suspect both birds made the same "mistake" in this instance. They perceive a clear space to fly through, which of course it would be if the glass wasn't there. Net curtains are good at preventing such accidents... Otherwise there are various suggestions to break up the clear span - stickers on the glass, tall plants/objects on the windowsill, reducing the reflectivity of the glass so it doesn't look like sky from the outside, etc.
In a previous house the living room window was a fairly frequent recipient of wood pigeon strikes - they would launch from nearby trees when alarmed and the young ones in particular weren't always good at getting height before they reached the back of my house, which was slightly uphill from the trees. There was only ever one fatality but the windows frequently looked as if Caspar the ghost was there, with the imprint their dusty plumage leaves, and the noise was alarming - they are hefty birds. The bedroom window above was less affected as I usually had net curtains across, but the living room needed the light as it was a long narrow room with the window at one end only,so a bit more difficult to block the glass.
Other bird strikes were, fortunately, very rare and I didn't see any fatalities - which isn't to say they didn't occur of course. It was usually a case of a rather confused bird sitting on the paving until its head had cleared sufficiently to take off again.Comment
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An excitingly rare sight at our birdbath slaking its thirst just now - a Goldfinch.
Well, it makes a change from House Sparrows and the odd blackbird or Wood Pigeon...Comment
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I've given up feeding birds now, but goldfinches can perhaps be encouraged by hanging up a feeder with nyjer seeds. The feeder has to be made with very narrow slits - just big enough for the birds to pull the seeds out. Might also work by mixing those seeds with other seeds in a more standard feeder. I did have success with that approach in the past, having discovered from a friend or neighbour that there were actually quite a number in the area - but they didn't find our garden at a time when we were looking until I put out the nyjer seeds.Originally posted by Joseph K View PostAn excitingly rare sight at our birdbath slaking its thirst just now - a Goldfinch.
Well, it makes a change from House Sparrows and the odd blackbird or Wood Pigeon...
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A friend has several very successful feeders that attract Blue Tits, Starlings, Gold Finches, Sparrows and a Sparrowhawk who periodically swoops in for his lunch, possibly the same one that I wrote about in 2947 above.Comment
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Joseph K, it's good you were excited to see a goldfinch (post 7551 above). They are lovely birds, not only for their brilliant colours but also for the twittering they make when they're around: https://xeno-canto.org/34678 According to the RSPB, they are one of the few bird species that are on the increase in the UK... I guess it's because of their knack with garden feeders.Comment
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Sadly, apart from ubiquitous wood pigeons who rule the garden, hardly any birds lately, no dunnock/sparrows, only glimpses blackbird late spring, starlings have disappeared, (could’ve been visitors), definitely dearth of birds; friends saw lots of washed-up gulls wings on recent walks along Calshot shores – presumably victims of avian flu.
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Not something I have seen obviously, but thought it might be of interest
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Yes.
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