Getting close to wildlife - literally

[tigerburnie]

Finally got a shot, through the window, so not the best quality, Long Tailed Tits or "lollipops" as they are often called.

 

[pH]

Not actual wildlife, but signs of it. We have snow on the ground, and there were tracks in it in the back yard this morning:

 

 

These are raccoon tracks, which is a bit of a surprise. Raccoons used to be very common around here, but it's many months since I've seen one, and it had been even longer than that since the sighting before that. (The disappearance of raccoons coincided with the appearance of coyotes in the neighbourhood!)

[JZ]

Not the greatest of photo's, but these are humming birds at Kiser Creek Cabins near Cedaredge, CO.

[Phil Bullock]

Our hog was out on the permafrost Friday night! Has been active all winter 

[russ p]

45 minutes ago, Phil Bullock said:

Our hog was out on the permafrost Friday night! Has been active all winter 

 

Really,  is he ok phil and getting food?

[Phil Bullock]

As far as we can tell Russ. Round here they dodge between a few gardens and lodgings ... I have put hedgehog tunnels in our gravel boards. One neighbour clicks them out and about and feeding most nights regardless of weather. They and I both put food and water out

[russ p]

41 minutes ago, Phil Bullock said:

As far as we can tell Russ. Round here they dodge between a few gardens and lodgings ... I have put hedgehog tunnels in our gravel boards. One neighbour clicks them out and about and feeding most nights regardless of weather. They and I both put food and water out

 

Nice one Phil if he's getting plenty of food he should be fine. Very unusual for one to be about in such cold conditions. 

Our rescue ones have been looking out of the  French doors at the snow with confused looks 

[jbqfc]

out on my daily walk today in the park the where some Egyptian geese they where a pair doing a bit of courtship when another male butted in a bit of a fight broke out with the invading male taking flight in the process nearly taking my head off 

 

John  

Edited February 21, 2021 by jbqfc
spelling

[Killybegs]

Our little friend was back today. Hasn't been around for a while probably lured out by the warmer weather.

 

 

Apologies for quality, taken through the window with my phone.

[LimboBrit]

 

It looks as though a blue tit may be moving in

 

[PhilJ W]

The sparrows started building their nests in the shrubbery next to my house last week. Yesterday the council came along and pruned the shrubs. Fortunately the nests weren't completed yet and were deeper into the shrubs so most remained untouched. They've virtually shredded a piece of old carpet for nest material.

[Claude_Dreyfus]

I was out for a very pleasant stroll earlier today along part of the old railway line from Pulborough to Fittleworth, when I saw this bird. It was quite a distance away, and needed full zoom; hence the picture being blurred. I am not sure what it is. My initial thought was a cormorant, but the back of the head and front of the neck is white, and the bird has some sort of crest by the looks of things. Its neck isn't as slender as a cormorant either, and its bill seems shorter as well.

 

 

Any thoughts?

[Welly]

Woodpecker?

[Claude_Dreyfus]

Not a woodpecker. This bird is much larger.

[eastwestdivide]

Cormorant or shаg I've have said.

Shаg doesn't usually have the white. 

Cormorant doesn't usually have the tuft on the head.

 

Edited for nonsense censoring of the word shаg, now using a Cyrillic 'a' to fool it.

Edited March 7, 2021 by eastwestdivide
Context-unaware censoring

[Claude_Dreyfus]

I did think it was a cormorant...but the markings didn't quite match up with the pictures I have seen. It could be that this one has slightly different colours. I don't think it's a sh@g*...too much white.

 

*I don't have the Cyrillic 'a' on my phone...

[03060]

Quote from Hamlyn Guide - Birds of Britain and Europe :-

 

Cormorant - "In spring has white on chin and cheeks, a white patch on thigh and (for a short period) a varying amount of whitish hair-like plumes interspersed on hind parts of head. In 'sinesnsis' these plumes are abundant and large, much of head and upper neck looking white in early spring."

 

 

Great spot and photo of my favourite seabird, thanks for sharing, although we do get them fairly regularly visiting that well known coastal resort of Leeds !

I saw one a couple of weeks ago at my local Tarn but it took flight just after I'd decided to go back around and take a phone photo. 

 

Have never seen one with so much white as yours has, so have learnt something from your photo, thanks.

 

Regards,

Ian.

Edited March 8, 2021 by 03060
Correction.

[sb67]

 

That's a picture of a young Cormorant taking over my local park. We're miles from any sea and I've seen 3 this year staying around a lake, much to the annoyance of the fishing baliff! 

[sb67]

 

 

Can anybody identify these birds for me? Both taken in our local park at the weekend. The bird in the second picture was tiny and constantly fluttering about making it hard to get a good photo.

[Grizz]

On 16/01/2021 at 12:34, tigerburnie said:

Finally got a shot, through the window, so not the best quality, Long Tailed Tits or "lollipops" as they are often called.

 

Ooooooo finally I can use some info that a very knowledgeable bird watcher friend of mine told me recently. See the bird in the middle of the photo with the bent tail? That is a female long Tailed Tit. And the reason that her tail is bent is that she has just finished sitting on her eggs in a small space. So small that her tail can’t fit straight, so it ends up bent out of shape for a while, then it gradually it straightens out. Every day is a school day ...although that is about the limit of my ornithological knowledge.....oh no wait.......apart from this might be a Canary???

 

[Phil Bullock]

1 hour ago, Grizz said:

Ooooooo finally I can use some info that a very knowledgeable bird watcher friend of mine told me recently. See the bird in the middle of the photo with the bent tail? That is a female long Tailed Tit. And the reason that her tail is bent is that she has just finished sitting on her eggs in a small space. So small that her tail can’t fit straight, so it ends up bent out of shape for a while, then it gradually it straightens out. Every day is a school day ...although that is about the limit of my ornithological knowledge.....oh no wait.......apart from this might be a Canary???

 

Oh really? 
 

 

[PhilJ W]

2 hours ago, sb67 said:

 

 

Can anybody identify these birds for me? Both taken in our local park at the weekend. The bird in the second picture was tiny and constantly fluttering about making it hard to get a good photo.

The first one is a goldfinch.

[jbqfc]

2 hours ago, sb67 said:

 

 

Can anybody identify these birds for me? Both taken in our local park at the weekend. The bird in the second picture was tiny and constantly fluttering about making it hard to get a good photo.

 

the first one is a chaffinch not sure of the second but could also be a chaffinch  

Edited March 9, 2021 by jbqfc
spelling

[PhilJ W]

3 hours ago, PhilJ W said:

The first one is a goldfinch.

 

2 hours ago, jbqfc said:

 

the first one is a chaffinch not sure of the second but could also be a chaffinch  

I went for a goldfinch going by the shape of the beak, broader at the base.

[LimboBrit]

3 hours ago, jbqfc said:

 

the first one is a chaffinch not sure of the second but could also be a chaffinch  

I'm inclined to agree. The colours just don't look right for a goldfinch