The Arrse Twitchers thread

[CivvyLurker]

Obviously not that disadvantaged, then.

. . . chicks dig scars . . .

No, from the way he walked I think he had a damaged leg higher up in the feathery bit. He could put his foot on the ground but he wasn't going to be running across the garden to the no-mess mix.

He did manage to stay on his lady pigeons from what I saw and gave them a fine display beforehand of studly pigeonness so he obviously had no hang-ups about his deformity.

Should have named him Speckled Jim.

He got stuck with Hoppy because I didn't want to be presumptuous about his gender on first acquaintance.

My neighbour also named him - Hopalong Cassidy. It's all go round here, I tells ya.

 

[Richard Headicus]

A rare occurrence last night, as I let the dogs out into the garden a barn owl flew across the garden and into our ash copse, beautiful sight, silent flight but attentive of all around it.

Came into work once, and on the window was a clear impression of a barn owl. The previous night had been a clear moonlit one. We reckoned it had seen it's own reflection and thought it was an intruder. No sign of it on the ground, so probably made of with a 'hangover' wondering WTF!

 

[721CXT]

We went away for the weekend for the first time in eons. We were worried that the blackbirds, robins and pink pigeon, that harass us through the day would get the hump or bugger off. There was no need to worry as they were waiting impatiently when we got back.
Since then, they have been stuffing themselves silly and this morning Squawk, the female blackbird with the territory at the back of the house was sitting by the water bowl after second breakfast, looking like a feathered football.
"Wotcha, fatty, want some worms?"
She stood there, wriggled her arrse a bit, did a couple of knee flexes, inflated some more.....
and shat out an egg.

Quite what she wanted me to do with it, I'll never know, perhaps it's payment for the squillions we've spent on worms.
I disabused wifey of the suggestion that we try to hatch it as I'm pretty sure there was a reason it wasn't dropped in a nest.
Squawk does have a history of dumping fledged juveniles at on the patio for us to feed, but this is a bit early, to say the least.

 

[anglo]

From the trail camera this morning, being fed twice

 

[Goatman]

Swift Mapper | The RSPB

Use the new Swift Mapper to help record swift nesting sites.

www.rspb.org.uk

 

[Chalky101]

Sat at my desk thinking the ducks were making a bit of commotion.
Poor sparrow copped it!

 

[medwaymud]

These two join me for breakfast daily.
Sometimes they bring their parents along as well.

 

[Goatman]

Great shot posted by the BBC's Security Correspondent Frank Gardner:

LINKY

 

[CrashTestDummy]

Yesterday I evening I was delighted to be buzzed by a swift, aptly named as the chance of getting a photo of one is pretty much zero (or oh )

 

[CivvyLurker]

Yesterday I evening I was delighted to be buzzed by a swift, aptly named as the chance of getting a photo of one is pretty much zero (or oh )

They breed and feed in my village and I'm lucky to see a mixture of swifts, swallows and house martins putting on a superb display each evening.

Today I have the day off and they are flying quite low around the houses. From the numbers of all three species they seem to have had a good breeding season so far as all my neighbours with north, east and west facing gables and eaves have at least one martin nest. I think 'my' martins under the gable are on their second brood - lots of poop on the cars.

 

[Goatman]

Love seeing swallows screaming around the place......they are a sign of good air quality.

Where I grew up it was pretty much all swifts and house martins.

 

[schweik]

We had a group of swifts flying round the area last night, screaming away as they flew. I always love seeing and hearing swifts in flight.

But I’m concerned about the lack of swallows in my neck of the woods. I’m just not seeing them this year, even in the places which have almost guaranteed sightings in previous years. I hope that’s just some sort of local aberration rather than a general trend.

 

[Boris_Johnson]

I work in a secured compound on a military camp - we have our own garden here and resident pied wagtails.

It's pretty cool watching them hovering trying to pick off the spiders underneath the window sills and ledges.

Last month they were busy with their latest clutches. Good to see their chicks have now fledged too...

...the only problem is, with being an airfield we cannot encourage wildlife with bird feeders etc which is a real shame as we have whitethroats, wagtails, yellowhammers and goldfinch everywhere round here. As well as sparrowhawks, kites, buzzards and owls.

 

[Boris_Johnson]

Can add redstarts to that ^ list above... Just noticed two in the car park. Rare as hell here in the east.

I heard them before I saw them... Then just as I got my phone out, the pied wagtail mafia scared them off.

Best shot I could get...

And what they usually look like...

 

[CivvyLurker]

Can add redstarts to that ^ list above... Just noticed two in the car park. Rare as hell here in the east.

I heard them before I saw them... Then just as I got my phone out, the pied wagtail mafia scared them off.

Best shot I could get...
View attachment 677065

And what they usually look like...
View attachment 677066

The 'funny' is for your ornithological photography skillz - as good as mine, which are so superlative that I don't bother anymore. There are only so many fuzzy blobs, empty branches, empty skies images one hard drive can contain.

 

[re-stilly]

Can add redstarts to that ^ list above... Just noticed two in the car park. Rare as hell here in the east.

I heard them before I saw them... Then just as I got my phone out, the pied wagtail mafia scared them off.

Best shot I could get...
View attachment 677065

And what they usually look like...
View attachment 677066

You sure that isn't Bigfoot?

 

[Boris_Johnson]

The 'funny' is for your ornithological photography skillz - as good as mine, which are so superlative that I don't bother anymore. There are only so many fuzzy blobs, empty branches, empty skies images one hard drive can contain.

You sure that isn't Bigfoot?

Ha! May as well have been Bigfoot!

I was just sat in my car at lunch and heard the unusual song ... Wasn't long until they came bobbing along into view.

At first glance they looked like a hybrid of robin/pied wagtail. I admit I had to Google it, and then once I'd seen what I believed it was, put it into the RSPB search and surely enough, the song was identical.

100,000 pairs in UK over summer, most of which don't reside in East Anglia.

 

[re-stilly]

Ha! May as well have been Bigfoot!

I was just sat in my car at lunch and heard the unusual song ... Wasn't long until they came bobbing along into view.

At first glance they looked like a hybrid of robin/pied wagtail. I admit I had to Google it, and then once I'd seen what I believed it was, put it into the RSPB search and surely enough, the song was identical.

100,000 pairs in UK over summer, most of which don't reside in East Anglia.

Must admit never seen one so good on you.

 

[Boris_Johnson]

Must admit never seen one so good on you.

A first for me too!

Oh and another first for me last month...turtledoves!

 

[CivvyLurker]

Ha! May as well have been Bigfoot!

I was just sat in my car at lunch and heard the unusual song ... Wasn't long until they came bobbing along into view.

At first glance they looked like a hybrid of robin/pied wagtail. I admit I had to Google it, and then once I'd seen what I believed it was, put it into the RSPB search and surely enough, the song was identical.

100,000 pairs in UK over summer, most of which don't reside in East Anglia.

Interesting. I heard an 'odd' song in the garden the other evening but put it down to a confused black-cap. I shall pay more attention in future.

A bit of googling found this:

Redstart, Phoenicurus phoenicurus

This attractive little cousin of the robin and nightingale, with constantly flicking fiery tail, used to frequent parks and gardens throughout East Anglia in the 19th century. The ornithologists of the time described it as a common summer resident and it is known to have nested even in the towns (one site was in Surrey Street in the heart of Norwich).

It built its nests in the sorts of places used by robins, in walls, mossy tree stumps, holes in the ground and crevices of buildings. No man's hand was turned against it and it cannot be said that its food supplies have vanished, since most other similarly insectivorous birds remain common. Yet nowadays only a few pairs nest each year mainly in or near Breckland.

It'd be nice if it was making a comeback.

Have you reported your sighting?

Suffolk Bird Recording | Suffolk Bird Group