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Birds
Jan 1, 2016 16:38:43 GMT -5
mouse likes this
Post by beth on Jan 1, 2016 16:38:43 GMT -5
Migrating birds flew over a little while ago. A big swath of them. I guess THIS cold spell finally woke them up and gave them the push they needed to get ready for winter. Our forecast is for a milder winter than the past two but that still means a lot of very cold days.
My neighbor has a feeder but they didn't even pause this time.
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Birds
Jan 6, 2016 3:59:47 GMT -5
Post by mouse on Jan 6, 2016 3:59:47 GMT -5
I saw an owl the other day..in daylight...seems birds in general are starving due to not being able to get to food due to the rains...hunting birds in particular have been hard hit..the rain blurs their view of things to hunt and the heavey rain interfers with their feathers haven't seen the buzards for several weeks now..circling and wheeling and then doing a steep dive.....due to either all over cloud even when it isn't raining the small birds seem to be all right..visiting the feeders along with larger birds feeding from under the feeders where seeds and bits have dropped this morning..magpies/wood pigeons..blackbirds..collored doves have all been around along with the robin..blue and cole tits..and hedge sparrows
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Birds
May 15, 2016 19:55:24 GMT -5
Post by annaj26 on May 15, 2016 19:55:24 GMT -5
You might want to increase the size of your font by using a large text theme (go to profile and choose "edit profile", then "settings", then scroll down until you see the pull down theme menu. Choose one of the Large Text themes and click on "save changes" at the bottom of your page. The new theme will show up when you, then, click on "home".
Another option would be to follow the link below to get the 100 year old articles in a more readable font. Abundant Signs of Summer Bird Life - 100 Years AgoGarden warbler and blackcap were singing side by side in the wood, where the thick foliage now makes it difficult to see the songsters; these two, in these northern counties, where the nightingale is so rare, are undoubtedly our sweetest singers. In the dense vegetation which fringed the mere sedge warblers trilled, chattered, and purred, and the more sombre reed warblers crooned contentedly. In one of those deep hollows the result of salt-country subsidence pools, deep and forbidding, are bordered with sticky mud, but the sandpipers chased above the water whistling their love songs, and the redshanks rose from the ooze with deep plaintive calls. On the steep sloping banks, where rank weeds quickly hide the scars caused by constant landslips, the lively whinchat flitted, always perching on the topmost branchlet of dead weed or the highest clump of grass. Beyond, in the lanes, the whitethroat scolded, evidently resenting our presence in the neighbourhood of the spot selected for a home, and in the trees above the silent but ever-busy spotted flycatcher watched for the passing insects. But it was above the mere itself that the abundance of summer bird life was most noticeable, for sand martins, swallows, house martins, and swifts beat to and fro in scores; one could not even guess at their number. The birds have come, and come to stay. www.theguardian.com/environment/2016/may/15/100-years-ago-abundant-signs-of-summer-bird-life
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Birds
May 27, 2016 7:35:27 GMT -5
Post by mouse on May 27, 2016 7:35:27 GMT -5
death came flying by this morning...a magpie has been hanging around and kept flying up to the roof edge...where the nest is just behind the guttering... up he came earlier and I heard feeble tweetings and then the magpie flew from the roof across to the cherry tree....since then there hasn't been a sound...so either he has killed the hatchlings or they are too traumatised to make a sound...I saw the mother bird fly up once...and since then there has been no sign of the usual activity of parent birds flying to and fro with food....at the time I saw the magpie there were a few jackdaws around...they seem distrurbed and fluttery not as they usually are just sitting...still but ever watchfull I did have a look around but I can see no signs of shells or corpses on the ground wretched birds magpies they will destroy any eggs and baby birds they come across
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Birds
May 30, 2016 2:14:54 GMT -5
Post by mouse on May 30, 2016 2:14:54 GMT -5
silence from above my window....and I still don't know if they were blackbirds or starlings..they from a distance looked like blackbirds...but sounded like starlings mean while a male blackbird sang his song nearly all day from the cherry tree branches could any thing be better...bird song and hot sun and a garden bursting into life
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Post by beth on May 30, 2016 6:55:24 GMT -5
silence from above my window....and I still don't know if they were blackbirds or starlings..they from a distance looked like blackbirds...but sounded like starlings mean while a male blackbird sang his song nearly all day from the cherry tree branches could any thing be better...bird song and hot sun and a garden bursting into life I don't think we have the same kind of blackbirds here .. at least not in this part of the country. Our blackbirds, aka crows, son't sing, they caw.
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Birds
May 31, 2016 2:51:12 GMT -5
Post by mouse on May 31, 2016 2:51:12 GMT -5
silence from above my window....and I still don't know if they were blackbirds or starlings..they from a distance looked like blackbirds...but sounded like starlings mean while a male blackbird sang his song nearly all day from the cherry tree branches could any thing be better...bird song and hot sun and a garden bursting into life I don't think we have the same kind of blackbirds here .. at least not in this part of the country. Our blackbirds, aka crows, son't sing, they caw. that's horrible for you..our blackbirds are smaller than crows/rooks/jackdayus with a very shiny black coat and yellow/orangy beak....and they sing loud and clear from what ever vantage point the others mentioned caw and croak rather than sing...noty pleasant birds...they sit and watch every thing ..all very hitchcocks the birds..especially when they group..nasty destructive lot not even good to look at
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Birds
May 31, 2016 5:56:11 GMT -5
Post by beth on May 31, 2016 5:56:11 GMT -5
I don't think we have the same kind of blackbirds here .. at least not in this part of the country. Our blackbirds, aka crows, son't sing, they caw. that's horrible for you..our blackbirds are smaller than crows/rooks/jackdayus with a very shiny black coat and yellow/orangy beak....and they sing loud and clear from what ever vantage point the others mentioned caw and croak rather than sing...noty pleasant birds...they sit and watch every thing ..all very hitchcocks the birds..especially when they group..nasty destructive lot not even good to look at We don't see them often in town. They are drawn to farms and can be very destructive to crops.
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Jessiealan
xr
Member of the Month, October 2013
Posts: 8,726
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Post by Jessiealan on Jun 5, 2016 10:24:22 GMT -5
The birds in our backyard, Robins, were in a cheerful frenzy this morning, swooping and singing. I wonder if their eggs have hatched. Tomorrow, I shall listen for chirping from the area of the nest.
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Birds
Jun 6, 2016 2:58:46 GMT -5
beth likes this
Post by mouse on Jun 6, 2016 2:58:46 GMT -5
I noticed a bird flying to the nest behind the guttering which was devastated a few days ago..it was carrying a petal off the clematis...I think they may go for a 2nd hatching..will keep a look out for any types of movement
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Birds
Jun 8, 2016 4:20:04 GMT -5
beth likes this
Post by mouse on Jun 8, 2016 4:20:04 GMT -5
definitely activity behind the guttering..theyve been coming and going all the last couple of days and I haven't seen the lone magpie around..so if there is a hatching fingers crossed that this time nothing untoward happens
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Birds
Jun 22, 2016 6:42:59 GMT -5
beth likes this
Post by mouse on Jun 22, 2016 6:42:59 GMT -5
a great deal of coming and going to the guttering plus loud churrings leaves me to think theres been another hatching...though by my reconing its on the quick side but my eyes do not decive me but there are too many churrings for it not to be another hatching....and I haven't seen the lone magpie..so fingers crossed for this one
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Jessiealan
xr
Member of the Month, October 2013
Posts: 8,726
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Birds
Feb 17, 2017 20:03:48 GMT -5
Post by Jessiealan on Feb 17, 2017 20:03:48 GMT -5
the bird seed is at last being eaten...even though I haven't seen any birds feeding..so perhaps its country mice running up and helping them selvesd the robin is still around and I have seen one or two blue tits flying around So glad your birds are back, mouse. We still have a few cardinals but they are not singing. When the winter is relatively mild, we get some that stay over. Otherwise we are just a stop and rest point on their way further south. I saw 2 cardinals and a robin in the back yard today. The weather was nice and going to be almost warm over the weekend. These were actually twittering around and rather active. Could they think it's spring? Surely not.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
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Birds
Feb 17, 2017 20:56:11 GMT -5
Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2017 20:56:11 GMT -5
So glad your birds are back, mouse. We still have a few cardinals but they are not singing. When the winter is relatively mild, we get some that stay over. Otherwise we are just a stop and rest point on their way further south. I saw 2 cardinals and a robin in the back yard today. The weather was nice and going to be almost warm over the weekend. These were actually twittering around and rather active. Could they think it's spring? Surely not. I remember seeing cardinals in Florida during the winter.it was backwards from how I was used to seeing them in Michigan.
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Birds
Feb 18, 2017 12:29:13 GMT -5
Post by beth on Feb 18, 2017 12:29:13 GMT -5
Cardinals are pretty tough little birds. They are our state bird. I saw a robin this a.m.. He was perched on top of my trash can lid but took off for the trees as soon as he saw me. Robins and Cardinals stay year round during mild winter like this one has been.
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