Vocal Voices

by **meriad** » 02 Apr 2018, 14:11

I was talking to my mom earlier today and she was asking about the birds in my garden. As she's getting older and her hearing is not what it used to be (OK it's quite dire) she realises just how much she enjoyed hearing the birds when she was sitting out in her balcony. I don't remember it, but apparently a few years back during one of my visits I commented that she had such a variety of birds... I love waking up to the sound of the blackbird singing his little heart out - such a peaceful start to the day.

This year - as in most years - I've had the usual blackbirds, long-tailed tits, great tits and blue tits, robins, far too many starlings to be overly fond of, not enough sparrows for my liking, the odd nuthatch and the usual collared doves and wood pigeons. It's been such a joy watching them at the feeders and this year I think I finally managed to find the right spots for feeding so the cats aren't an issue.

by **JoM** » 02 Apr 2018, 14:13

We hardly get any, just an occasional Magpie. Probably because we have woodland and the common so close by.

by **JanB** » 02 Apr 2018, 14:27

Hoopoo, blue magpie, partridge, stork, various swallows, and I don't know how many other things.

the odd eagle too :shock:

by **cromwell** » 02 Apr 2018, 15:14

Sparrows (any number of them), starlings, blackbirds, robins, pigeons, blue tits and very occasionally a sparrowhawk.

by **TheOstrich** » 02 Apr 2018, 15:21

In no particular order ....

Both types of common pigeon - the wood pigeon and the feral pigeon (aka town pigeon or rock dove). The former had a wihite neck band, the latter an iridescent green.
One of the two common sparrow varieties - the house sparrow. I am not sure if we have had a tree sparrow, which is trying to make a comeback in this area; the jury's out because they look so similar to the house sparrow.
Robins and wrens. Quite often a pair of males, despite the fact they are so territorial.
Blackbirds, song thrushes and (more rarely) starlings. If we do get starlings, it's usually a flock of juveniles!
Greenfinches and goldfinches. Not frequent, but again usually a flock. I remember motoring into the drive last year, opened the car door, and about 20 of them suddenly exploded from a nearby bush

Great tits, blue tits, and I think I spotted a coal tit a couple of months back.
We had one balmy evening last year when a flock of house martins descended on the close after insects; tremendous flying display for about a half-hour.
Our famous yaffle (Woody the green woodpecker). A reasonably regular visitor, but only one sighting so far in 2018.
A couple of sightings of a sparrowhawk :shock:

Likes to sit on our back gate, according to our neighbour; we can't see it, but the neighbour can!

We are next to the local country park, through which flows a small river. There's a resident flock of mallards, who have visited the close on occasions, and I've also seen more than once a little egret (this is probably a winter continental migrant, although they do breed in Poole Harbour), plus a tree-creeper and a lesser spotted woodpecker.

No Ostriches ... :mrgreen:

Bird food is a major item on the budget. We must have the fattest sparrows in Dorset ..... :roll:

Cats are not so much an issue as rats here, though, Meriad - the sparrows are very messy feeders and scatter the seed widely on the ground. The pigeons hoover up the spillages, but we do have to be careful we don't attract rodents.

The blackbirds are very noisy, Woody's distinctive cackle can be heard at quite a distance, but the flippin' pigeons, who croon romantic melodies down our chimney, can be a right pain! :twisted:

by **Workingman** » 02 Apr 2018, 15:44

Wooded on three sides and with open greens so...

Blackbirds a plenty, the odd woodpecker, collared doves and wood pigeons - coo-bruddy -coocoo - rooks, magpies, wrens and robins, sadly few sparrows. In spring we get a few shrikes passing through. We have red kites overhead all year round and we sometimes see a buzzard or two being harried by the rooks as their young hatch.

by **Kaz** » 02 Apr 2018, 16:17

Dame as Jo, only magpies, and then not for long as Fraggle barks at them :lol:

D has a fancy feeding station and gets all sorts - robins, pigeons, tits, sparrows......

by **meriad** » 02 Apr 2018, 16:22

Ossie, I am well and truly jealous - what a fab lot you have. Pity re the Ostrich not visiting, but having seen them in the wild in SA that'll do for me

I just love listing to them all and watching their antics]

Jan, your birds are so pretty - I loved those stork nests up on the phone poles