Where have all our garden birds gone?

[Gruffalo]

Our apple trees produce more fruit than we can eat or need to store so I leave some fruit on the trees and the ground in autumn. It seems to sustain our local populations of thrushes and blackbirds plus our visiting fieldfares. A few are swept up against the tree trunks and bugs then climb the trees to bury themselves but tree-creepers, nuthatches and woodpeckers all benefit.

I mowed the grass this morning before it turned wet and two robins, one thrush and four blackbirds all made swift work of any exposed insects.

[chaz]

... lesser and greater spotted woodpecker....

Dave         

 

You are very lucky to have lesser spotted woodpeckers in your garden. I am envious. They are getting hard to find and I haven't seen one for about five years. A favourite haunt of theirs was Fleet Pond in N E Hampshire but they no longer occur there.

 

Chaz

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

...I've filmed 36 of the 39 species visiting the garden Chaz but the one sighting of the lesser spotted woodpecker on the side of the bird table didn't give me the opportunity...I just savoured its visit. I've also seen one on the feeders at Lake Vyrnwy.

 

Dave  

[DDolfelin]

After the unfortunate suicide of the pheasant inside the Volvo's headlight cluster last year, others are vying for round two.

First in line was the Roe Deer hind which jumped a hedge in front of the car.

Next was a herd of Guinea Fowl running out into the lane.

Yesterday a Peacock and a Peahen were disputing the right of way - 200 yards from my house.

All this as well as the usual subjects: Pheasants, Red Legged Partridge, Sheep, Rabbits, etc.,.

 

I'm pleased to say we see the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker fairly often.

 

Pied Flycatcher has abandoned the Nest Box in the garden. Don't know why. The male is still local.

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

...reminds me of a coach outing when a female mallard carelessly led her brood of 8 or so ducklings across the road immediately in front of us. I couldn't avoid the inevitable and looked in the side mirror to see two gaps in the line where the less fortunate ducklings were.

 

As for pheasants....I can't believe that they're not extinct.

 

Well done with the lesser spotted btw.

 

Dave   

Edited May 14, 2013 by Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

...this mornings tally so far is: jackdaw, starling, chaffinch, goldfinch, dunnock, blackbird, blue tit, hedge sparrow, collared dove, wood pigeon, robin and greenfinch.

 

At any one time there are 20 or so birds in the garden...mixed randomly between the species.

 

Dave

Edited May 15, 2013 by Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71

[DDolfelin]

I'm pleased to report that the Pied Flycatchers have not abandoned the nesting box as I thought.

I'll get a picture eventually as the male comes to peer through the studio window.

 

In other news, the borer bees have found the 'Insect Box' (bamboo tubes).

[Mallard60022]

More Housemartins have appeared - almost a month 'late': however, there are far fewer than last year. There are also a couple of Swift now.

Think we may already have some House Sparrow fledglings unless one male is pre mating feeding three females?

Phil

[Ramblin Rich]

Sorry to join in late with this topic. I've been wondering why we had such a poor mix of birds here - we only seemed to get blackbirds, jackdaws, wood pigeons & occasional robins in the garden. I always put it down to local cat population.

BUT - very pleased this year to have seen lon-tailed tits in the trees around & Dunnock nesting in a small fir tree in the garden, although not sure how successfully as we found a dead one apparently having collided with a window & the nest seems to be abandoned with a single un-incubated egg. Now though we have blue tits nesting in the box on the shed, keeping them supplied with fat & seed balls, they seem very busy & un-fazed by our gardening & young children galavanting around Just hoping we get to see some fledglings...

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

Hi Rich,

 

...there is a considerable amount which you can do to influence the range of birds which visit your garden....from providing habitats to specific food types.

 

Dave

[Ramblin Rich]

Cheers, Dave - I took note of your post further up w.r.t. improving habitat, I am just pleasantly surprised that we've had 2 nests this years without really attempting to help. Made me happy anyway

Forgot to mention the dopey pheasants around here from the local landowners estate - they seem to flap into the garden, cr*p everywhere and take a lot of 'shoo'ing away - they just seem borderline depressed or suicidal! I got the shock of my life week one time when sitting at the front on top deck of double deck bus & one flew into the window - seemed to bounce off  rather then go 'splat' thankfully.... 

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

...pigeons have a tough time in our garden...only windfalls from other birds feeding are available to them and the local sparrowhawk regards them as a delicacy.

 

Dave

[darren01]

Hi 

I live in Devon and so far not many Swift so far this year and a few of the nest from last year have no birds in them,or they are very late arriving.

Bird numbers seem to be down this year,for even the sparrow's seem  to be  less of them this year as well.

Darren01

[DDolfelin]

Slightly off topic - has anyone else noticed a fall in the number of slugs?

Normally we are inundated with them but only ONE found this year.

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

....they don't like clambering over bark chippings so we don't have many to start with. Over the years I've learned what they like to eat...so a few slug pellets around a few plants/shrubs occasionally minimises their impact.

 

The last two mornings have been wet here and there is no shortage of them along the country lanes.

 

Dave

[melmerby]

Slightly off topic - has anyone else noticed a fall in the number of slugs?

Normally we are inundated with them but only ONE found this year.

Nope, no less than normal

Plenty around here. Some experts reckon there are more than normal because of a wet 2012.

 

Seen some swifts at last, not many just one or two, but at least some have made it back!

 

Keith

Edited May 22, 2013 by melmerby

[Xerces Fobe2]

Here are a couple of photos of a Red Kite circling over my garden this evening.

 

 

Nigel

[alfsboy]

I saw a blackcap in our garden today .The reason pheasants arent extinct is they bred for the shoot and all we see are the survivors .Nothing is left to chance to make sure some sad shooters get their death fill.We saw a buzzard a few months ago .My wife saw a Rail  at Fairhaven .

Martin ......from rural Norfolk

[Ramblin Rich]

We see buzzards a lot - often being mobbed by crows; one was circling over the playing field at Exminster this evening! Sadly, kestrels seem to have declined as the buzzard numbers have risen - don't know if it's competition or changing food sources....

[Downendian]

Interesting Rich on my evening walks I've spotted 2 dead Kestrels in the hedgerows - there's a pair of buzzards nesting in the woods opposite my cottage they seem to be incompatible. No idea what has got the kestrels, but seem to have been eaten?

 

Lots of summer visitors arrived in the last few weeks around the cottage, Blackcaps, Whitethroats and lesser Whitethroats (different song - to me look identical!), Yellowhammers also here in numbers, even reckon I spied a Cirl bunting.

 

Pheasant in the garden this eve and lots of local skylarks in the fields soaring. This part of South Devon is really a bird watchers paradise.

 

Neil

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

....I'm envious of the blackcaps...I've only seen one in our garden...the whitethroats that I've come across have usually been on the coast.

 

Dave

[Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71]

Mornin' all,

 

Here are a few clips of my attempts to provide various habitats for garden birds and hopefully attract a few more different species

 

 

The bark is swept off the slabs and paths each day but then continually thrown back by blackbirds and dunnocks looking for invertebrates amongst it.

 

Dave

Edited May 23, 2013 by Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71

[Xerces Fobe2]

Mornin' all,

 

Here are a few clips of my attempts to provide various habitats for garden birds and hopefully attract a few more different species

 

 

The bark is swept off the slabs and paths each day but then continually thrown back by blackbirds and dunnocks looking for invertebrates amongst it.

 

Dave

 

Nice garden and video, I assume the cat is a vegetarian and is not interested in the birds

XF

[DDolfelin]

Looks good to me, Dave.

The blackbirds will have fun re-distributing your bark.

 

In my experience the best way is to throw money at the feeders.

Sunflower seeds will be polished off from a largish feeder in half a day here.

[Horsetan]

The tits have disappeared.