Wildlife in your Garden

[larbert toffee]

View attachment 117500

Not the best photo, as it was taken at twilight on a phone yesterday and passed onto me by my mate, another rarity, but my favourite bird, the Barn Owl.

Taken on the field at Speke Hall.

I worked nightshifts up to fairly recently and was able to observe these at close quarters, beautiful, majestic birds, literally like a large butterfly able to hover whilst remaining absolutely silent, we should be doing what we can to encourage and protect these or for that matter any owl, they are seen far to rarely these days.

 

[COYBL25]

I worked nightshifts up to fairly recently and was able to observe these at close quarters, beautiful, majestic birds, literally like a large butterfly able to hover whilst remaining absolutely silent, we should be doing what we can to encourage and protect these or for that matter any owl, they are seen far to rarely these days.

There’s three pairs in the Speke and Hale area.

All three nest in barns and are looked after by very protective farmers.

Most years they fledge chicks, but the chicks have to leave the area, as there isn’t enough room to sustain another pair - food / territory.

The three pairs in Speke / Hale have been there for decades, but that’s it, it will always remain as three pairs.

My mate lives in East York’s and they’re almost common there, as there was a big push on nest boxes a while back.

Habitat loss, loss of nest sites ( barn conversions ) climate change ( wetter ) and getting killed on the road are what’s doing them in.

 

[Mcdrewson]

I have a buzzard that’s in the field behind my house. We call him Leighton. You’ll have to zoom in on the photo to see him. Pity I don’t have a decent camera. The few times he’s perched on the fence he always flies back into the field by the time I grab my phone.

 

[JimmyJeffers]

There’s three pairs in the Speke and Hale area.

All three nest in barns and are looked after by very protective farmers.

Most years they fledge chicks, but the chicks have to leave the area, as there isn’t enough room to sustain another pair - food / territory.

The three pairs in Speke / Hale have been there for decades, but that’s it, it will always remain as three pairs.

My mate lives in East York’s and they’re almost common there, as there was a big push on nest boxes a while back.

Habitat loss, loss of nest sites ( barn conversions ) climate change ( wetter ) and getting killed on the road are what’s doing them in.

Poisoning of rats and mice kills a fair few as well.

 

[COYBL25]

....seen two different types of small hawks on the garden fence outside my living room window this week. They are stunning, wonder if lockdown is making them more plentiful.

A few weeks ago there was a wading bird (crane I think) on a chimney at the back and the magpies were swooping on it. Neighbours were out chasing them.

Did it look like this ?

If so it was a Heron.



This is a common Crane. They are here, but in very very small numbers - recent introduction from Europe.

Massive birds too.

 

[kev]

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Did it look like this ?

If so it was a Heron.

Much more likely than a crane I reckon but you just never know what you're going to see.
Would be rare to see a crane around here though.

 

[COYBL25]

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Much more likely than a crane I reckon but you just never know what you're going to see.
Would be rare to see a crane around here though.

South and the East mainly

Think most are migrants, with one breeding pair.

 

[kev]

South and the East mainly

Think most are migrants, with one breeding pair.

Copied from RSPB site -

The crane is a huge, graceful, mainly grey bird with long legs, a long neck and drooping, curved tail feathers. There is a small breeding population in Norfolk, a re-introduced population in Somerset and small numbers pass through Britain in spring and autumn.

 

[Simon Buttle]

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Much more likely than a crane I reckon but you just never know what you're going to see.
Would be rare to see a crane around here though.

I think there are some introduced Cranes over in Norfolk somewhere. There are lot's of Herons though, down where I am in Sussex there is a whole posse of them that live on the Chichester canal and they hover about the fisherman, they are a big old bird no doubt about it.

 

[navidson]

Sat on my laptop looking at the Coronavirus thread and occasionally glancing into the garden

Tits everywhere

 

[kev]

Sat on my laptop looking at the Coronavirus thread and occasionally glancing into the garden

Tits everywhere

I bet there are more in the Coronavirus thread than your garden

 

[navidson]

I bet there are more in the Coronavirus thread than your garden

 

[larbert toffee]

I bet there are more in the Coronavirus thread than your garden

 

[TangerineToffee]

I detest magpies wit a passion, horrible destructive pests.

Not in the same class as wood pigeons in the detestability stakes.

 

[COYBL25]

Not in the same class as wood pigeons in the detestability stakes.

If you’re a farmer or have an orchard, I’d agree, but in the city Magpies are brutal predators.

A while ago, a pair by us went through a colony of Linnets nests in a matter of hours. Systematically going from thicket to thicket looking for nests and then eating every single egg / chick that they found.

It’s not their fault that they’ve taken advantage and adapted to suburban environments in particular, but the reality is that just like Wood Pigeons in certain areas, their numbers need to be controlled - same with Grey Squirrels.