Our Garden Birds

[grindle]

that's a real shame Derek

[peony]

Poor blackbird mother, hope she survived. Cats are a real nuisance at nesting time

[lesley]

Patience was needed, waiting for her to come back.

This is the mother waiting to go in.


Going in.


Coming out, not sure how many she's got but you can hear them chirping.

[grindle]

good photos Lesley

[SueA]

May 19, 2012 21:58:51 GMT derekbrooks said:

I had a big disappointment this evening. I found my blackbird chicks all dead.There were a lot of adult blackbird feathers on top and round the nest so it looks as though something ,probably a cat, has attacked the bird on the nest but why didn,t it take the chicks.They were untouched-just dead because they hadn't been fed.They were O.K.yesterday which was when I took the picture of the mother with food in its beak for the chicks.
Hope I have better luck with my great tits.

That's really sad Derek, poor little things.
I've been following some little video clips of the peregrines in Manchester city centre & there were 4 chicks in the nest who looked to be doing well but I think one died as it seemed to be lying in the corner & now there appear to be only 3. It's such a shame when you see all the effort the parent birds go to & then either something kills the parent or chicks.

[SueA]

Lovely pics. Lesley. The only problem is if that box was fixed onto one of our fences there would either be a cat or a huge magpie sitting on the roof of it waiting for something to pop it's head out!

[SueA]

May 19, 2012 19:33:02 GMT Cherry said:

May 19, 2012 17:13:54 GMT steve said:

They do love Teasel

There is no Teasel here. What else do goldfinches eat?

I think they eat various seeds, grasses etc. & some insects, the ones in our garden don't seem to bother with the feeders but they pop in & out of the cherry & conifer trees.

[derekbrooks]

I couldn't get on my computer yesterday to tell you this but the mother blackbird did survive.We saw it yesterday with no tail which explains the teathers on top of and round the nest. Don't know if she will try again somewhere else . The male his still singing to me as I walk down the garden.

[SueA]

Glad she survived, what a shame she didn't get back to the babies in time.

[Cherry]

Poor blackbird Derek. She is probably put off and won't feel in peak condition without her tail feathers.

A lot of cuckoos were casualties of the bad weather on their last hop from the continent and I think the cuckoo which has been here every year for nine years (it could be a different one) has died. This is the first year without a cuckoo which is a bit sad, but good news for the surrogate mother birds.

[derekbrooks]

My tail-less blackbird

[Cherry]

That bird has really made itself at home with you Derek.

[Geranium]

We've had a''birdy' day today. The cuckoo was sitting in the old apple tree cuckoo-ing happily for ages, then this afternoon, I heard and saw no fewer than seven swans flying across the garden. What a sight that was!

[Cherry]

There are baby birds in a nest in a plant pot in the railway carriage. I have never seen them at this age. The mother was not there but the birds were snuggled up and not moving much. Their breathing made their bodies move. I wondered if they should be making a noise. They were very quiet.

[SueA]

That's lovely Cherry, I think baby birds are generally quiet until their parents arrive with food so that they avoid attracting attention from predators, yours were probably flaked out in the heat!