RSPB Garden Birdwatch

[Taffycat]

Could you spare just one hour on either the 30th OR 31st January please?

It's the annual Garden Birdwatch event this weekend. The idea is to note the birdies who visit your garden, balcony, window-box, or whatever, for just one hour on either day, then submit your feedback to the RSPB.

Details are HERE along with a printable sheet, to help you ID the birds and keep score of their numbers.

You might find it entertaining and interesting too

 

[floppybootstomp]

Where I am now, 6 floors up, inner city, all the birds I ever see are a few adventurous pigeons (I really don't like pigeons) and seagulls. Yes, seagulls. Sometimes I wake and the seagulls are making their noise and I think I'm at the seaside. Hey - back in Cornwall and surfing again

Quite strange.

I do miss the bird populations I used to see at other places I've lived.

 

[Taffycat]

Where I am now, 6 floors up, inner city, all the birds I ever see are a few adventurous pigeons (I really don't like pigeons) and seagulls.

Quite strange.

Fwiw, the RSPB are interested to log absolutely anything which lands on your patch (or not,) because it helps them to build up an overall picture.

As for seagulls, yes we sometimes get them here too, although we are several miles inland. A while ago, they decided to populate a construction site, just down the road. They would suss-out the general locality, to see if any food was on offer. The Castle is another place they like; the walls provide a "cliff" for them to perch on and of course, the lake is useful for taking a dip with the ducks!

One "couple" (whom we always referred to as "Collin" and his mate) would regularly stand on the chimney of the house which backs onto our garden. They would keep a beady eye on us, and if any of the food offerings - intended for our normal feathered visitors - appealed to them, they would fly down for a quick bite! Lol. They looked enormous when they stood on the bird-table.

Don't see many feral pigeons here, but a lot of collared doves, plus four wood-pigeons.

 

[muckshifter]

Well, I'm not laughing but it is funny how townies, and others, bundle bird life into single categories ...

Flopps, the "seagulls" you see ain't sea gulls, they just called gulls collectively and most are related to the Tern family of Gulls.

The Black headed gull actually looses its black head in winter and is mainly white except for a black "ear" mark.


Pidgins are another bird that people collectively bundle into one species, and even include the collard dove as a pidgin ... I can see how people mix feral pidgin with our native wood pidgin, not much of a difference to the naked eye, but at least they only go around in pairs at best and I don't consider them flying rats.

LBJs (little brown job) are another story.


Pick yourself up a wee reference book of birds, it can be fun just sitting on the veranda sipping coffee spotting the odd bird.