For the birds

[seanworth]

Gulls taken earlier in the week.



Sunrise this fall




Afternoon shot in December

[seanworth]

Ooops afternoon shot in December is

[ron]

Spotted waxwings around Horwich again Tuesday morning - sorry pic not very good!

[thebish]

Spotted waxwings around Horwich again Tuesday morning - sorry pic not very good!

they are stunning birds - and appear to be making a bit of a splash around the UK these last few years... appearing in sizable flocks around winter berry supplies...

[Lost Leopard Spot]

Going past the Dom (a local pond) this morning and the resident male swan decided I was a bit too close to his missus and came scooting across the water heading directly at me. Feckin scary sight, he was flying just above the surface of the water with his wingtips beating the surface making a loud slapping noise, and at the same time honking like a truck-horn. I tried to free my phone from its sleeve to take a photo of him heading for me but was too slow, and so I fled instead. *cowardice rules*

[Bruce Rioja]

Last weekend I nipped for a piss in some motorway services. As I was there, merrily urinating, I read an ad by the RSPB offering a free book about how to attract birds to your garden and how to identify them, all you had to do was text them.

I've just had a bunch of chuggers on now asking me to donate £8 a month. Just get me the free book sent, and then go feck yourself!

Well, two months on and still no sign of my free book, the chugging wankers!

[bobo the clown]

Going past the Dom (a local pond) this morning and the resident male swan decided I was a bit too close to his missus and came scooting across the water heading directly at me. Feckin scary sight, he was flying just above the surface of the water with his wingtips beating the surface making a loud slapping noise, and at the same time honking like a truck-horn. I tried to free my phone from its sleeve to take a photo of him heading for me but was too slow, and so I fled instead. *cowardice rules*

... they can break your arm you know.

[Lost Leopard Spot]

Going past the Dom (a local pond) this morning and the resident male swan decided I was a bit too close to his missus and came scooting across the water heading directly at me. Feckin scary sight, he was flying just above the surface of the water with his wingtips beating the surface making a loud slapping noise, and at the same time honking like a truck-horn. I tried to free my phone from its sleeve to take a photo of him heading for me but was too slow, and so I fled instead. *cowardice rules*

... they can break your arm you know.

I can well believe it. They've got a nest with six eggs in. The neighbour who discover that wasn't as agile as I was and got beaten up by the male. nothing broken but his pride, but he had some big bruises to show for it.

[Lost Leopard Spot]

Forgot to mention, I had a couple of goldwings in my garden this morning - the birds not the 1000cc two wheeled feckers (not that Bruce could have identified them).

[thebish]

Forgot to mention, I had a couple of goldwings in my garden this morning - the birds not the 1000cc two wheeled feckers (not that Bruce could have identified them).

a couple of what????

[thebish]

do you mean gold finches?

[Lost Leopard Spot]

do you mean gold finches?

Might do. I need that book that Bruce ain't got. Small sleek sparrow sized gold and white and black (and red?). Pretty rare insofar as not usual.

[thebish]

do you mean gold finches?

Might do. I need that book that Bruce ain't got. Small sleek sparrow sized gold and white and black (and red?). Pretty rare insofar as not usual.

goldfinch... attracted by nyjer seed...

[Lost Leopard Spot]

Them's the badgers. As you can probably tell, I don't "twitch" much.

[thebish]

heard a very weird bird sound yesterday night... two long whistles - not a gull, not an owl - but persistent... it was dark, so couldn't see owt - took digital recorder outside to record the sound so i could post it on a bird forum and get some ideas... didn't think any more of it...

next morning - heard it again... couldn't see owt - so plugged digital recorder into pc to download the sound and post it up... (had stopped by now) listened to my recording - could hear wind, rain, sea rescue helicopter - wind chime from next door - but no bird sound at all!! - weird...

don't think any more of it - but really can't imagine what this bird could be...

missus gets back - and almost immediately it starts again...

light dawns..

it's coming from her fecking pc speakers - it being part of the background soundscape for one of those crappy fb games she plays!!! {doh}

[Lost Leopard Spot]

Oh. And we've got woodpeckers. Well, woodpecker. And no, bish, I'm not confusing it with a sea-eagle.

[thebish]

Oh. And we've got woodpeckers. Well, woodpecker. And no, bish, I'm not confusing it with a sea-eagle.

what kind of woodpecker??

great spotted (lesser spotted look very similar but are much rarer!) most often on your bird feeder or a tree...



or green? most often on the ground...

[Lost Leopard Spot]

Now that, I have no idea. We have a wood behind us. The trees start in our garden. Every morning ( starting a few weeks back) we can hear hammering,as in a woodpecker pecking trees. The noise is very close, and me and the missus have tried to triangulate where the birdie is, but despite most of the trees have not been in leaf, we just cannot spot the little bigger. The undergrowth is dense and the wood is unmanaged so it's a jungle out there but even so we should be able to spot it, you'd think. PS it starts up about 5:30am

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

Great Spotted Woodpeckers are very skittish. Any sign of movement and they're off. Usually see them in pairs too if that helps...

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

Hopefully the photo has attached or I'll look a wally!

Photo is a scan of a photo I took (through caravan window) on my old Olympus OM10 in the 90s. Took a few days to see him still long enough to get my camera focussed in time.