Clodhopper's suburban wildlife tips

[magentaflame]

Hmm. Yeah, they move fast. But they are incredibly agile - they catch flies in flight - so you should be safe. Unless you've long fine hair and go to the garage after an extended session with the van der graaf generator...

The blue tits have started bringing their babies to the tree where the feeders are. Unbelievably cute With them, the great tits, the starlings, the sparrows and the birdbath there's a critical mass of cuteness occurring in my garden and the whole place may explode into pink fluffiness at any second.

Oh dear god! Im so biting my tongue right now.......its starting to bleed.
But
Moving on......
Yeah i sometimes watch the flocks of swallows fly around at dusk grabbing every flying ant and insect from the sky......and if im lucky the bats catching moths last light of the evening. Now there's cuteness personified. They're so little with the most adorable faces.


Oh bugger it!!!........ you Brits are cruel. If there are tits so cold that theyve turned blue, then for gods sake cover them up........ sorry my tongue was bleeding.

[spot]

Oh bugger it!!!........ you Brits are cruel. If there are tits so cold that theyve turned blue, then for gods sake cover them up........ sorry my tongue was bleeding.

Darwinian evolution means British tits are definitely bigger than what you get in Australia, in order to retain body heat more easily.

[LarsMac]

We had a bit of a disturbance here, today.
I was hearing a lot of strange chatter earlier, and went to the door, to find a big Raven on the roof of the main house, close to where the Robins have built a nest on a light fixture. A group of black birds, Grackles, I think were all gathered around harassing him and causing quite a ruckus. When I stepped out, he started moving away, followed by the Grackles, and finally got the edge of the roof and flew off, with a dozen Grackles chasing him.

The robin that owned the nest was nowhere to be seen, and has not returned all day. There were several eggs in the nest (I checked a few days ago.) I am now concerned that something has happened to the hen, and the nest may be abandoned. This would be the first year in decades that that nest has not produced Robins. Haven't told the Sister, yet. she will fret incessantly of it. Fortunately it was a warm day (low 80s), and the mom may have taken a holiday. She needs to be back before the chill sets in, tonight though. we will see low 40s.
Will check first thing in the AM.

[Clodhopper]

Oh, hope it's all ok. Trouble is, ravens are smart and if it's noticed the nest the robins may well be best advised to abandon this year.

[Clodhopper]

Oh dear god! Im so biting my tongue right now.......its starting to bleed.
But
Moving on......
Yeah i sometimes watch the flocks of swallows fly around at dusk grabbing every flying ant and insect from the sky......and if im lucky the bats catching moths last light of the evening. Now there's cuteness personified. They're so little with the most adorable faces.


Oh bugger it!!!........ you Brits are cruel. If there are tits so cold that theyve turned blue, then for gods sake cover them up........ sorry my tongue was bleeding.

I'm shocked! Shocked at how long you managed to restrain yourself!

chuckle. I did wonder how it would go, doing a wildlife diary sort of thing. I didn't know I'd get 8 great tits (2 adults 6 chicks) and 6 blue tits (4 chicks). Thank heavens the long tailed tits haven't turned up yet...(I'm not even going to mention the reclusive coal tit)

Had 4 baby blue tits discovering the birdbath today. I can't help it, it just happened.

[Clodhopper]

Well, a nice feeling of satisfaction seeing so many chicks on the feeders. Lots of young starlings in particular as well as sparrows and of course, the tits. It's good to feel there's probably a few more flying around than there would be if I hadn't bothered.

I'm really pleased with the birdbath too. Keep it clean and it's a real contribution to their health and adds to the garden, having them splashing about. It's used many times every day.

[magentaflame]

http://www.birdssa.asn.au/wp-content...-Scrub-TJH.jpg

http://www.basscoastpost.com/uploads...04373_orig.jpg

https://australianimage.com.au/wp-co...1/eagle-31.jpg those guys are always around.

http://www.birdlife.org.au/images/up..._Hutchison.jpg

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3NYOuXRmxx...eyeaterOG1.jpg

http://cd.visitmelbourne.com/-/media...5421153&w=1200 ...... of course these buggers are always around
as well as these barstards who like to strip the fruit from trees https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/i...O5hFmNQLHvqIMA
And nothing ever is complete without these noisy things the rainbow lorikeet. https://echidnawalkabout.files.wordp...pg?w=700&h=526

That's pretty much it at the moment.

[Clodhopper]

Can't compete with Eagles, but we do get Sparrowhawks occasionally. The white ones I remember from the Sydney suburbs. You get such wonderful colours! Can't compete with that. But all these have come into come into my garden in the last week (or can occasionally be seen from it in the case of the sparrowhawks)

Robin:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=15&ajaxhist=0

House Sparrows:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=12&ajaxhist=0

Great Tit:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...x=2&ajaxhist=0

Blue Tits:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=21&ajaxhist=0

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=24&ajaxhist=0



Coal Tit:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=24&ajaxhist=0

Starlings:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...x=0&ajaxhist=0

Ring Necked Parakeet:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=13&ajaxhist=0

Jackdaw:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...x=2&ajaxhist=0

Magpie:

http://www.robertestutts.com/wp-cont...2013-07-15.jpg

Wood Pigeon:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...=24&ajaxhist=0

Sparrowhawk:

https://www.bing.com/images/search?v...179&ajaxhist=0

[magentaflame]

awww they're pretty. Your tits look like our finches.

I have a hawk that sits on the fence but I dont know what type it is.

[Clodhopper]

Oh joy.

A Sparrowhawk has just killed (I think) a juvenile starling and is plucking and eating it in the garden as I type....just this second flown off with her lunch.

Will go and look at the feathers and see if I can tell what it was. The kill I have to say was instant and silent - the only reason I noticed was the sudden exit of the other starlings!

edit: Not a starling, a sparrow by the feathers. It's had an effect on the other sparrows, too: normally if I go to the door they fly off as soon as I appear. This time when I went out one stayed hidden on the ground until I was literally standing over it before it flew off. Wonder how long it will take to bring them back? Hours? Days?

Much smugness. A top predator!