RMweb Premium Tim Dubya Posted December 20, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 20, 2017 Not in the garden but on my way into town, spent an age just watching a pair of Goldcrests going about their business in the hedge. I'd been having a play with the Bird Up app I have on my phone, it's not too bad at all at identifying species. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium dhjgreen Posted December 24, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 24, 2017 Sparrowhawk just now, unsuccessful hunt though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mallard60022 Posted December 24, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 24, 2017 Definitely not a blackbird. Thrush? Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Tim Dubya Posted December 24, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 24, 2017 In my living room... This is Kiwi, our house guest over Christmas. I fink he's a parott... 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeysarefun Posted December 25, 2017 Share Posted December 25, 2017 In my living room... IMG_20171223_111614985.jpg IMG_20171223_125349394.jpg This is Kiwi, our house guest over Christmas. I fink he's a parott... I've got one of those, but in green... 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Phil Bullock Posted December 25, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 25, 2017 In my living room... IMG_20171223_111614985.jpg IMG_20171223_125349394.jpg This is Kiwi, our house guest over Christmas. I fink he's a parott... Looks like a Norwegian blue to me.... Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold chris p bacon Posted December 25, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 25, 2017 Plenty of Starlings about and the feeders are all seeing some action. As a pressie to our neighbour across the road we got her 2 feeders (seed & fat balls) and put them next to bushes outside her window to encourage more birds in her front garden, She's thrilled. 4 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeysarefun Posted December 25, 2017 Share Posted December 25, 2017 (edited) Looks like a Norwegian blue to me.... Phil Yes, well picked! They are a Norwegian Blue, I got a faulty one which was green so he was cheep.. Actually they are Quakers, the only parrot that builds a nest with sticks rather than use a hollowed out log etc like other parrots. To Tim - You can try this yourself - put a bunch of sticks in his/her cage and watch them spend hours decorating it with them. Mine grabs anything he can see that is sticklike and claims as decoration for his cage. I used to clean my teeth with him on my shoulder but he grabbed too many toothbrushes which he won't give back. Fun Quaker tip 2 - they LOVE capsicum and chilli seeds - chilli doesn't affect parrots like they do us, in fact to them its apparently a mild sedative. Gary gets 4 hot chillies a day sliced in half which he hollows out. The bad bit is when he comes out for walkies and sticks his beak into my mouth and I get the full on chilli consequences.... Edited December 25, 2017 by monkeysarefun 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetmorgan Posted December 25, 2017 Share Posted December 25, 2017 Been trying to get a shot of this fella for ages, my camera although very good takes a short time to focus through the window and they keep flying off! DSC00726.JPG and on the other shell through a window that picks up a reflection DSC00727.JPG at one time there were 6 in the garden but I was up to my neck in "muck & bullets" making a meatloaf! I have the same problem with the Coal Tits...they are in an out before you can move to grab the camera. The Long Tail's are fine though and they hang about for ages, quite tame some of them and quite happy for me to watch them through the open window. And I know what you mean...I had 7 of them sat on the table and feeders but I was in the middle of making Mary Berry's chocolate orange cake and having to make 4 trips to Waitrose to do it!!! 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinZaPint Posted December 26, 2017 Share Posted December 26, 2017 This mornings visitor has been around several times, we used to have a big holly tree and they arrived in numbers for the berries 9 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Ramblin Rich Posted December 26, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 26, 2017 I saw a flurry of white feathers coming down in the back garden, then this landed on the fence: A Goshawk I believe! Looked slightly stunned, possibly took on a seagull and didn't come off well? It stayed for a few minutes then flapped away. We've now got blue tits, robins, blackbirds on the feeders, but this guy is making a move too... 10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mallard60022 Posted December 27, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 27, 2017 Anyone missing their House Sparrows? We are back to 40+ today, all feeding like they know the weather forecast. Phil 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Tim Dubya Posted December 27, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 27, 2017 (edited) Have you had snow Philph? Or is your mansion creating a thermal? Still have parott, who now takes a run up when he wants to bite me. The Mrs however, is now the bird goddess. Nola had a bath with him other day, as he doesn't like being without her. As I said before, birds shouldn't be in cages but Kiwi is a sort of rescue so I can forgive sister-outta-law for taking him in. He is a very sweet and as far as I can gather, happy boy. He's talking a lot more too. Little b@stard! Edited December 27, 2017 by Tim Dubya 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortliner Posted December 27, 2017 Share Posted December 27, 2017 (edited) I saw a flurry of white feathers coming down in the back garden, then this landed on the fence: IMG_9552.JPG A Goshawk I believe! Looked slightly stunned, possibly took on a seagull and didn't come off well? It stayed for a few minutes then flapped away. Rich - actually almost certaimly a female Sparrowhawk - unless you live in a very wooded area - which goshawks favour Edited December 27, 2017 by shortliner Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Ramblin Rich Posted December 27, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 27, 2017 Rich - actually almost certaimly a female Sparrowhawk - unless you live in a very wooded area - which goshawks favour Thanks for clarifying, we thought it might be a Sparrowhawk but the colours seemed off compared to book pictures. I can believe a Sparrowhawk more, especially as the feathers suggested it had just attacked... 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightengine Posted December 28, 2017 Share Posted December 28, 2017 This mornings visitorDSC00732.JPGhas been around several times, we used to have a big holly tree and they arrived in numbers for the berries We had one in our garden Xmas tree yesterday, straying from next doors holly Bush. Last week we had Blackcaps in it. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
monkeysarefun Posted December 28, 2017 Share Posted December 28, 2017 (edited) Still have parott, who now takes a run up when he wants to bite me. The Mrs however, is now the bird goddess. Nola had a bath with him other day, as he doesn't like being without her. Parrots will often attach themselves to one person, usually the opposite sex to them - and will attack anyone else. Interesting parrot fact number 3 or something, you can't discipline them like you can dogs and cats and goldfish - a loud rebuke is just competition to them to see how loud they can go themselves, and any kind of hitting or smacking is definitely out, even if you don't critically harm the bird they will remember it for ever and not let you any where near them. Whenever my Quaker attacked me I tried the 'Uh Uh Uh!!" noise to try to deter him. It didnt stop him from attacking me but at least now before he does it he goes "Uh Uh Uh!!" to give me some warning. They live such a long time - I have parrots in my aviary that are well over 20 years old and they are just standard cockatiels and Princess parrots. There are many stories over here of cockatoos and galahs getting handed down through 3 generations . I remember in the early 70's a mature aged couple moved in across the road from my parents, they had a galah called Jack, and they also had a framed photo of the ladies father on return from WW1, it was a family portrait with him in his uniform and the relatives all looking relieved because he didn't die on the Somme and so on , and on his shoulder was a young Jack. Edited December 28, 2017 by monkeysarefun 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinZaPint Posted December 28, 2017 Share Posted December 28, 2017 A better shot of a previous visitor 11 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mallard60022 Posted December 28, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 28, 2017 Still huge numbers of H Sparras but no, we had no snow here at Duck Towers; it all crapped upon Luton and Stanstead from what I hear. Had a brief visit from a healthy Greenfinch this morning. Quick feed and a tentative return to look but did not feed again. Probably intimidated by the Sparra hordes. I hear there are Bramblings nearby. Maybe they will hear the racket the Sparras produce each day about 14.30 and come to investigate? Most bumbling Blackbirds have dispersed now, leaving us with half a dozen or so. Philth A better shot of a previous visitorDSC00760.JPG Yo, Yaffle. Lovely birds. P 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium dhjgreen Posted December 28, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 28, 2017 Brambling mmmm. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium PhilJ W Posted December 28, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 28, 2017 When I went out to my car lunchtime it was still thickly coated with frost. The frost on the roof showed evidence of quite a scuffle obviously a couple of birds fighting. Fortunately there were no marks on the paintwork where the scuffle had taken place only the remains of what looked like breadcrumbs. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jetmorgan Posted December 29, 2017 Share Posted December 29, 2017 Does anyone use shortbread biscuits as a food for birds? I've been given a big double pack of shortbread biscuits as a Christmas present and to be honest they really aren't my cuppa tea as a biscuit. Has anyone used them to mix in with bird food??? I can't think of many other uses for them. There isn't any chocolate in them they are just plain shortbread biscuits....I even asked my neighbours of they wanted some and the answer was a rather emphatic no. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium dhjgreen Posted December 29, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 29, 2017 Flour sugar and butter, I imagine birds would love it, can't see anything harmful. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mallard60022 Posted December 29, 2017 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 29, 2017 Does anyone use shortbread biscuits as a food for birds? I've been given a big double pack of shortbread biscuits as a Christmas present and to be honest they really aren't my cuppa tea as a biscuit. Has anyone used them to mix in with bird food??? I can't think of many other uses for them. There isn't any chocolate in them they are just plain shortbread biscuits....I even asked my neighbours of they wanted some and the answer was a rather emphatic no. Take them to the Food Bank or give them to the Postperson or local Station Staff. Processed food such as this is not really very good for birds however much some of us like them, especially dunked in a decent Coffee. Phil Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Ramblin Rich Posted December 29, 2017 RMweb Gold Share Posted December 29, 2017 We were putting out old raisins on the floor for the blackbirds, which they like, but realised a few days ago that there's a rat taking most of it away. So we stopped that... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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