Our Garden Birds

[Andrew]

As well as the usual visitors to the garden (robin, blackbirds, blue tits, sparrows, starlings and pigeons), I looked out the window this morning to see a Great Spotted Woodpecker pecking holes in the suet block hanging on the feeding station.

[Cherry]

You can't miss them because of their colours Andrew. A good variety of birds there.

[peony]

You are fortunate to have sparrows visiting your garden Andrew, there are none around here, but I have had a Jay visiting regularly, I put out whole peanuts on the bird table for it, the other day I saw it stashing some away for later in the bark and cracks on our old damson tree

[Andrew]

It's really only been one or two at a time peony. There haven't been the number of birds I've seen regularly visiting the garden in previous years here so far this winter. There are a lot of berries on the bushes round the estate though, so perhaps there's plenty of food for them without them needing to fly to bird tables and feeders.

[SueA]

You're very lucky Andrew, I'd love to see a woodpecker in our garden. We have quite a lot of sparrows & I have seen a jay flying around here once or twice peony but not had one actually land in the garden yet - just their 'bully-boy' cousins the magpies! We had a couple of coal tits in the garden the other day though & they were stashing seed from the feeder in the tree bark - unfortunately it was in a dead tree which I'm going to be getting rid of so I hope they've stashed some somewhere else too!

[whisker]

I'm having lots of visitors to my raised feeders - starlings, magpies, pigeons, collared doves, hooded crows, robins, blue tits, coal tits, sparrows, wrens, blackbirds, thrushes, though the blackbirds prefer to feed on the ground.

I hope to see some redwings, once the snow comes. They come to feed each year on my cotoneaster hedge berries.

[roofgardener]

I don't get birds on the RoofGarden .. perhaps just the occasional thirsty wood pidgeon in summer (I have several rain-capture trays out, which they will drink from).

But the snow and ice reminded me of something that you may find amusing.

I used to live in London, and would occasionaly walk over to Crystal Palace park, which features a couple of large-ish decorative lakes. There where birds of all shapes and sizes there, and some cheeky squirrels, but the lakes would - of course - attract water birds. Ducks, geese, Canadian geese, and various other bits and bobs.

I went there one winter, with the lakes all frozen over, and sat on a bench with my pack of sandwiches, and a bag of nuts for the squirrels. My attention was drawn to the antics of the ducks on the icy lake. There where a whole bunch of them in a loose cluster, sitting on the ice, and slowly moving around. (presumably they just made small 'paddling' motions with their feet). They couldn't really control the direction they where moving in. Heck, they couldn't even control the direction they where FACING in, and they would all gradually drift around, rotating randomly as they went.

What made it amusing was what happened when a new duck landed. There seemed to be an agreed "landing" strip on the ice. The ducks would line up with it on 'final approach', spread their wings to 'flare' at the last minute, and then retract their legs and thump down onto the ice. Presumably they where clever enough to realise that if they kept their feet stretched out, then they could punch through the ice and break their poor litte legs.

So then you have a "landed" duck, speeding down the 'runway', gradually and randomly rotating as it went. This was comical enough as it was, but what REALLY made me sneeze bits of sandwhich out of my nose was what happened next.

Inevitably, one or two ducks would land just slightly misaligned with the runway. So instead of sliding to a halt, and then paddling over the ice to join the rest of the pack, the duck would land, and then skid straight towards the pack. There would be a quiet bit of "muttering" from the pack, and some half-hearted paddling to move out of the way. But inevitably the landing duck would collide with a resting duck, causing THAT duck to slide into ANOTHER duck, which would richochet into ANOTHER duck, and so forth. The result was 5-6 ducks moving in random directions outward from the collision area, rotating as they did so.

It looked for all the world like a game of Curling !

Eventually the 'pack' would slowly re-assemble itself... just in time for the NEXT landing duck to start the whole thing over again. Non of them seemed to get hurt.. they didn't even seem upset or annoyed.

I was so entranced watching this, that I didn't notice that a squirrel had just eaten one of my sandwiches !

[joysie21]

Ive put out cheese seed and apple for the birds on the patio and all that comes in my garden is a pidgeon were have the robin and blackbirds gone as ikts bird watch in a few weeks and I dont have any come into my garden

[Cherry]

Don't you have any hanging feeders for the finches and tits joysie21? The ground feeders you mention would love your food, but I think the patio is too close to the house for them, and they really need a hedge or shrubs for shelter and escape if necessary. Do you have any largish shrubs in the garden? If so, perhaps the food should go under this. The birds need water too. Mine are fighting over the bathing and drinking facilities. Do you have seagulls? I don't know if they make any difference to the birds, but you are close to the sea.

[SueA]

They are probably still around joysie21 but hiding & eating from the plants, trees & shrubs around about. Have you tried dried mealworms or suet treats (you could make bird fatballs out of seed, nuts & melted lard in coconut shells, yogurt pots, plastic Christmas pudding bowls etc.& hang them up), the robins, blackbirds & starlings love those in our garden, As Cherry says you might have to put some food a bit further away at first to attract them in but if you have any pots & plants on your patio the smaller birds might be dipping in & out of them, I've seen the robin & the wren on ours, you just catch sight of a rustle in the plant & then a tiny little bird appears!

[joysie21]

Sue & Cherry

I have a hanging feeder tree but the birds wouldnt eat out of the feeders probely because its next to a fence with no trees near bye and they never touched the fat balls no i havent many shrubs in the garden only 2 camelias the robin and blackbirds always came on the patio when i put food down before also empty the bird bath and saucers I fill with water I do have tubs on the patio perhaps the birds come when im in bed

[Cherry]

They won't come after dark joysie21. Are your camellias big enough to offer shelter? The only birds feeding in the open here are pigeons and magpies. All the others need the hedge to feel safe from magpies, which pinch the fat balls, and the ground feeders like to hop into the hedge. It would be nice for the birds and you to have a tree of your choice in the garden. The robins, thrushes and blackbirds are unlikely to come back unless you have enough garden space with soil because you now have an artificial lawn, so no worms.

[joysie21]

cherry
I meant they must come in the garden in the morning before im up also I have a large border at the top of the garden also a small borders at the sides also around the pond which is enough for birds to scratch around in one camelia is nearly six foot high so the birds can hide in there what trees would you recommend I dont want it higher than 7 ft

[roofgardener]

I was at my Sisters thismorning helping her prune a few bushes.She also removed the old rotting Squirrel Feeder, and put a new one up.

After the gardening, we watched some of the birds coming down. Nothing that special; Dunnocks, a robin, a blackbird, and a couple of dopey Wood Pidgeons. Oh.. and some sort of Finch, which didn't stay long.

Then Mr Squirrel arrived gallomphing down the lawn, up the concrete post and.. SUPRISE... new feeder. You could almost see it having a "What the...." moment, before it started trying to puzzle out how to get the lid open (about 20 seconds). It then spent a happy 15 minutes burrying nuts in the garden, which the blackbird immediately grubbed up and ate.

[whisker]

Different birds have different feeding habits and food preferences. The blackbirds like to eat dried mealworms, which I sprinkle on the path under the shelter of the fatsia shrub, which provides low shelter. Robins like this as well. The naughty starlings will go anywhere, where there is a free meal.

Pigeons, do forage on the ground under the feeders, but like the high ones with garden bird seed. Collared doves are ditto. The starlings come in flocks to devour the fat balls, which are hanging. They are the most fearless of all my visitors.

Love the crows and jackdaws, though they are a bit nervous and fly off, soon as I approach. The crows love breadrumbs, or a moitened crust of a loaf, in dishes, suspebded on my raised feeders.

The magpies are fairly fearless too and will eat almost anything, anywhere they find it.

It takes time and patience - encouraging birds to come to your feeders. There may be somthing putting them off, such as a feral cat prowling around.

The larger birds seem to dominate my feeders, but the little ones chip in too.