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Thread: Big Garden Birdwatch

  1. #1
    Master Splatcher's Avatar
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    Big Garden Birdwatch

    Doing my wildlife spotting from the kitchen window today. So far: blue tits, chaffinches, a coal tit, a collared dove, dunnocks, great tits, house sparrows, robins, moorhens, nuthatches, a reed bunting & three lesser redpolls. Sadly we seem to have lost our tree sparrows & marsh tits. This year's biggest surprise was the redpolls - not your average garden bird. They've been eating the niger seeds.
    Andy Robinson
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    Senior Member Just a Lurker!'s Avatar
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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    Have to admit a touch of jealousy over the redpolls - although we did once spot some in our garden, but it was a complete one off - would love to see some again. It would be most suprising if we had a moorhen, however. Anyway, our birdspot was a bit pedestrian this year - the best was a beautiful blue tit with very clear markings - it's nice to find time to appreciate the common ones.

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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    Unicorn.

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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    Eating roses.

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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch is this weekend. An hour spent watching & counting the birds in your garden, with or without kids, then fill in the online form to add your data to the annual survey. Just topped up the feeders in the garden to maximise our chances.

    It's been a good week for birdspotting. While walking the dog today I saw kestrel (circling low over our heads), peregrine, buzzard, great crested grebe. In the last few days little grebe, yellowhammers, reed bunting, snipe, loads of lapwings. And the usual suspects of course.
    Andy Robinson
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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    Roses are the preferred food of unicorns, hotly followed by peonies! Population numbers are on the rise I've heard. Saw some prints in the snow t'other day.

    I keep getting flocks of long tailed tits in my garden, they are gorgeous.

    Quote Originally Posted by Mud View Post
    Eating roses.
    'The birds are the keepers of our secrets'

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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    Every year I count the birds in my garden, every year its the same, one blackbird (female) one pigeon and one magpie, I never ever see the birds that I see day in day out on counting day. They know its coming and they b*****r off! Even been bribing them with copious amouts of food this week, well it is icy and snowy, so lets see if it makes any difference. Bet it doesnt..... more chance of spotting that unicorn.:thumbup:

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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    Quote Originally Posted by Hes View Post
    Roses are the preferred food of unicorns, hotly followed by peonies! Population numbers are on the rise I've heard. Saw some prints in the snow t'other day.

    I keep getting flocks of long tailed tits in my garden, they are gorgeous.

    Bumbarrels! lucky you Hes, I have not seen any round where I live. I have put out various goodies on the bird feeder, but as Splatcher says I just get the "usual suspects".
    No country for old men.

  9. #9
    Master Hes's Avatar
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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    I love that name for them! I'm pretty lucky with my birds because I don't have any feeders out (mainly because my neighbour has loads of feeders) but I do throw bread, odd bits of fruit and stuff out for them and if its really harsh weather I stick some fatballs in my apple trees. The long tailed tits seem to love eating the woolly aphids on my apple trees which is good news for me! I tend to get mainly blue tits, great tits, gold finches, blackbirds, long tailed tits, goldcrests (on occasion) and the odd tawny owl!! My garden backs on to open fields with sheep and horses and woodland not far off.

    Quote Originally Posted by Alf View Post
    Bumbarrels! lucky you Hes, I have not seen any round where I live. I have put out various goodies on the bird feeder, but as Splatcher says I just get the "usual suspects".
    'The birds are the keepers of our secrets'

  10. #10
    Master Splatcher's Avatar
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    Re: Big Garden Birdwatch

    Quote Originally Posted by Alf View Post
    Bumbarrels! lucky you Hes, I have not seen any round where I live. I have put out various goodies on the bird feeder, but as Splatcher says I just get the "usual suspects".
    I have to confess that longtailed tits classify as some of our "usual suspects". They don't visit the garden every day, but often enough. We're very lucky with birds here as we're on the river with ancient woodland on the banks in may stretches (too steep to farm). And we get farmland birds as well.
    Andy Robinson
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    Helsby Running Club

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