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

[Richard Tarleton]

... I understand Poldark is set in the 1780s.

Perhaps the distribution / migrations of Whooper Swans might have been different then, with greater frequency in Cornwall?

https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/whooper-swan/

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Nay....seasonality, habitat - I don't think that scene was supposed to be in winter was it? And Cornwall just not a whooper place (see BTO Atlas), never was. I guess an intern was probably sent to the nearest WWT reserve to get footage of 4 swans to photoshop into the scene (they were not physically present with the actors) and filmed the first 4 (pinioned) swans he saw, probably unaware there was more than one sort. Wild whoopers are...wild, they would not have been swimming tamely past a bunch of actors and film crew.....Think Sibelius

Apparently the Winston Graham novel in question is called "The Four Swans", these representing the 4 women in Ross's life at the time (so I'm told).

This sort of thing happens. When Ridley Scott was filming his Robin Hood on my patch in 2008, the Brittany coast scene called for peasants to be collecting oysters on the shore. A props person tipped a load of shop-bought oysters into the rock pools for them. An alert Countryside Council for Wales person narrowly averted an ecological disaster by spotting that they were Pacific oysters, and made them gather them up again, sharpish.

I collect ornithological solecisms - the American Robin in Mary Poppins, the chaffinch in Full Metal Jacket, that "sea eagle" in Parade's End"....

[vinteuil]

I collect ornithological solecisms - the American Robin in Mary Poppins, the chaffinch in Full Metal Jacket, that "sea eagle" in Parade's End"....

... and "bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover"


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[Richard Tarleton]

... and "bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover"


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Precisely

[Vox Humana]

... and "bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover"

I think that would cause the twitch to end all twitches.

As for Whooper Swans, there is some evidence that they bred on Orkney but had become extinct there before 1800. Those seem to be the only ancient records. Nowadays there are a few breeding pairs in Scotland and two or three in Northern Ireland, but breeding records elsewhere tend to involve injured birds or escapes.

[gurnemanz]

No unusual or noteworthy birds seem to frequent our garden. This morning a large flock of young sparrows and two huge wood pigeons were devouring our redcurrants. Fair enough - they've left a few for us to have on our breakfast cereal in the morning.

[Padraig]

Brian and Boru.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-44532477

Some nice pics too. Interested gurnemanz?

[oddoneout]

The latest batch of magpies has evidently just left the nest and, as last year, were struggling to cope in the high winds. Their tails are indeed showy but a distinct disadvantage to novice flyers when a gust of wind gets underneath them - much crash landing in trees and squawks of displeasure.
The wrens have just emerged as well and very keen to scold me at close quarters while I'm gardening; they are very loud for such small creatures, especially at 6" from the ear!
Is it just me or do rooks sometimes seem to go a bit mad in windy conditions? The small group at work was being very noisy and active(repeated eruptions out of two big trees) for no obvious reason today, and when I was on my allotment I used to see the same behaviour among those in the copse nearby.

[gurnemanz]

Brian and Boru.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-44532477

Some nice pics too. Interested gurnemanz?

Thanks for pic. The last time I saw an eagle was a few weeks ago at a Crystal Palace home match.

[Richard Tarleton]

Good grief - was it meant to be there, or did it just turn up? Escapes from falconry displays not infrequent. This saker falcon flew away from a display on our nearby disused airfield when mobbed by the local crows, but was skilfully recaptured after an afternoon's pursuit.

[gurnemanz]

Good grief - was it meant to be there, or did it just turn up?

Palace are of course the Eagles and Kayla, the bald eagle and club mascot, flies from goalmouth to goalmouth at every home game. Details here.

[Richard Tarleton]

Palace are of course the Eagles and Kayla, the bald eagle and club mascot, flies from goalmouth to goalmouth at every home game. Details here.

Thanks - apologies for my total ignorance. I took the saker pic just after it had been recaptured close to where I live - the bird's expression one of what was all the fuss about. Its owners, relief.

[cloughie]

Palace are of course the Eagles and Kayla, the bald eagle and club mascot, flies from goalmouth to goalmouth at every home game. Details here.

Is that why the Seagulls don’t like Palace?

[gurnemanz]

Is that why the Seagulls don’t like Palace?

The feeling is generally mutual - all good clean fun, but I wouldn't fancy the seagull's chances in a straight fight with Kayla.

PS You can also sight many bald eagles sitting on the terraces.

[gradus]

Swifts put on a fabulous flying and occasional roof landing display in Orford today. The house martins were effectively shoved aside by their exuberant cousins.

[Serial_Apologist]

Here we get occasional visits from jays, which in the London context are always a delight to see. A pair now puts in a regular appearance, and today they were very interested in two spots on the walls of this block of flats. My guess would be insects: either bees or wasps' nests.