endlessrarities | (no subject)

It's results time.

Here's the tally for the Big Garden Birdwatch 2011:-

Blackbird - 8 (This is a record, and I blame it all on the Fruity Nibbles. I have a raised a generation of handout-dependent Fruity Nibbles addicts who just won't grow up and find themselves a job.)
Robin - 2
Magpie - 1
Chaffinch - 8
Greenfinch - 3
Goldfinch - 4
Blue Tit - 2
Coal Tit - 1
Great Tit - 1
House Sparrow - 1
Collared Dove - 1
Jackdaw - 3
Feral pigeon - 3

For once, the stats reflect the genuine bird population in my garden. Some trends are worth noting. A big decline in greenfinches, while the rest of the finch populations remain stable. [NB: this may be a food issue. The greenfinches preferred husk-free sunflower mix, while the nyger/HFS mix I use now tends to attract goldfinches, which are pretty, but damned antisocial and prone to throwing their weight around]. The siskins didn't visit , which may be an indication of the warmer temperatures today. The blackbirds have increased exponentially, and the tits and smaller songbirds have declined. Wrens have always been infrequent visitors to the garden, but we used to have five dunnocks in residence, and this year they've all gone. Does this reflect a crash in the national dunnock population, or the fact that they've been elbowed out by the blackbirds?

Unfortunately, we ran out of a) apples and b) fat bars just in time for the weekend survey, so the thrush didn't bother turning up, and this may also be a reason why the tits have been so poorly represented. I find that the number of species and the size of the population is closely linked with the range of food available and the weather conditions.

I also can't help wondering if last year's freak absence of birds over the weekend was linked with the appearance of the sparrowhawk. When it hits the garden, the birds tend to vanish for a couple of days afterwards...

Is it just me that has a devil of a time counting finches? Maybe I should subscribe to the tried and tested Japanese method for studying whales. Shoot them all first, count them later. Okay, so you've wiped out a species, but at least your data's correct. AND you get to eat everything afterwards!! {Yes, folks. Don't worry. I'm being facetious...)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Oh yes, red-winged blackbirds (which is what I call 'em) are lovely. I've seen them with gold as well but don't remember where or when.

The niftiest bird I ever had show up at my feeders was a painted bunting. I just stood there and stared for as long as he was there.
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Painted_Bunting/id
I'd had a female visiting and couldn't figure out what it was due to her subtle coloring.

But yes, lots of cardinals and blue jays. They're abundant and cheeky. Down in Oklahoma there were times that I had more than a dozen cardinals at the feeders at one time. They weren't very good at sitting still for pic to be taken.

Standing from my corner, I can see both feeders so it's not a horrible punishment. *grin*

Thank you very much. To add injury to insult, you've now given me a severe case of bunting envy. Our reed buntings, snow buntings and baby buntings (okay, I made the last one up) just can't measure up to your painted buntings, indigo buntings and lazulli buntings. Grrr, grrr, mutter, snarl...

And as for these smug folks who have hummingbird feeders... Oh, don't get me started... The closest I can get to a hummingbird is a hummingbird hawkmoth, and that's not even a bird!!!

Oh, then I probably shouldn't mention the hummingbird feeders.

Sob. Whimper. Sniffle...

Now I really do feel so inadequate...

It's not you, truly. I just put out the feeders and they come; greedy, combative little creatures.

Are they migratory??

Yes. The legends there are amazing; there are still people who believe that they ride on the backs of geese as they migrate to Central America. It's fascinating but totally fallacious because they fly at much lower heights and stop more frequently. Hummingbirds are actually carnivores; the nectar is to fuel them for fly-catching.

I usually see them from mid-April until sometime in early October. They're just so much fun to watch.

Thanks for that! I always thought they were exclusively nectar-eaters. I've learned something tonight:-)

I got fascinated with them when I put up feeders in OK. I wish I had time to spend on learning more about birds and participating in bird watches. There's a computer program that I'm lusting after:
http://www.thayerbirding.com/

When I finally get a job, that will be one of my little self-indulgent splurges.