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9:44 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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Michelle from Oregon
| | Oregon, USA | |
|  Councillor | posts 1278 | 
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I had a wonderful visitor today, and he even held still for pictures!
He's called an Evening Grossbeak, and I usually see them in May when they migrate through Oregon. He was flitting around the feeders earlier, and you can imagine how suprised I was when I saw him just outside the window.
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If you can't be a shining example, be a terrible warning!
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9:56 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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danast
| | Argyll, Scotland | |
|  Supreme Being | posts 5694 | |
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 Fantastic Michelle.
Today I caught a glimpse of a jay. I watched for a moment from my window and it appeared again very close to the house. I watched it through the binoculars for about five minutes feeding on the ground. No photos though. If I had gone outside it would have flown away, but it was wonderful to see one so close. I usually only hear them screeching from the trees and see them fleetingly as they fly over.
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Old teachers never die, they just lose their class
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10:21 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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Heather E
| | Rubery, Worcestershire | |
|  Knowledegable | posts 344 | |
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Oh, Michelle – what a cutie!
My sister made her postponed Christmas Eve visit yesterday and on arrival immediately asked if I'd got a decent bird book. She'd been watching her beloved robins over the snowy period and had seen two new visitors – correctly identified as a goldfinch and a fieldfare. When she opened her belated Christmas card from me and OH, there they all were line up on her card- a robin, goldfinch and frieldfare, courtesy of Worcestshire Wildlife Trust. How about that for coincidence!
I bought a calendar from WWT today and the photography is stunning. A fantastic shot of a kingfisher with fish in beak, and a brilliant one of two foxes having a fisticuffs in the snow. I love going to the farm, but I'm going to have to have a break-away day and visit our local wetland reserves 'cos they look so good.
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10:52 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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brightspark
| | Wilts | |
| Supreme Being | posts 5006 | |
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Talking of birdwatching, we were just about to go out shopping this morning, when a flock of long-tailed tits flew in, wonderful sight! Of course, we just stood and watched for a while till they were done with all the creatures on and in the trees!
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The value of a friend cannot be measured
- only treasured
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11:02 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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danast
| | Argyll, Scotland | |
| Supreme Being | posts 5694 | |
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Wish I could have seen that Val. We don't get them here.
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Old teachers never die, they just lose their class
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11:07 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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Michelle from Oregon
| | Oregon, USA | |
| Councillor | posts 1278 |
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Don't you just love those moments?
I've been watching the birds on and off all day, an earlier there was a comotion outside, and when I went to look there was a enormous flock of red-wing blackbirds. They were all over the feeders and the ground, sqauking and carrying on. Just beautiful……
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If you can't be a shining example, be a terrible warning!
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11:07 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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KateUK
| | uk | |
| Councillor | posts 1735 | |
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My Long Tailed Tits were in the garden today, they come to the feeder right outside the patio doors, so pretty. Also several Redwings stripping berries and loads of Finches of all types and Tits- very busy out there today, Blackbird count now up to 7 at a time. Wondering if we shall break last year's record of 13.
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11:26 pm
Tue 4-Jan-11
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brightspark
| | Wilts | |
| Supreme Being | posts 5006 | |
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Kate, likewise – our blackbird number has reached 7, as well. We've had flocks of redwings and fieldfares – but no finches.
Bluetits, long-tailed tits, great tits and wagtails – and I believe the bluetits are roosting in our boxes on the garage wall – we've seen them flying in and out of the boxes.
What a shame, Danuta, I guess they don't venture that far north?
Heather – we have a river just outside our house, and the kingfishers are regulars – mostly we hear their sharp whistle before we see them though!
Michelle, doncha just love birdwatching – very calming …..
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The value of a friend cannot be measured
- only treasured
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12:12 pm
Wed 5-Jan-11
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shelley
| | Toulouse, France | |
| Councillor | posts 1106 |
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I also love birdwatching!
I have both a nuthatch and a tree creeper in my garden as regular visitors; also the usual tits and finches. Here we dont have a hoopoo; though we had them in our last garden; they are great!
We also have red squirrels that we see occasionally!
such fun!
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12:20 pm
Wed 5-Jan-11
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danast
| | Argyll, Scotland | |
| Supreme Being | posts 5694 | |
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I consider myself so lucky that I have red squirrels visiting every day.
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Old teachers never die, they just lose their class
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7:47 pm
Wed 5-Jan-11
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maggenpie
| | Cornwall, UK | |
|  Expert | posts 638 | |
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I have long tailed tits visiting my garden too, lovely little things, they often join up with a little flock of blue tits.They work their way through my plum tree then move onto the apple trees in the next couple of gardens. They always follow the same route.
Jays are beautiful too aren't they Danuta. My dad always collected the blue feathers to make brooches for his mum. I love the crow family anyway, and I've had the priviledge of hand rearing a few baby jays in the past. Unlike other crows they don't take to people very well though.
How lucky you are Danuta, to have red squirrels to watch.
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Never assume anything – except an occasional air of intelligence.
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10:07 pm
Wed 5-Jan-11
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Heather E
| | Rubery, Worcestershire | |
| Knowledegable | posts 344 | |
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brightspark said:
Heather – we have a river just outside our house, and the kingfishers are regulars – mostly we hear their sharp whistle before we see them though!
If ever I'm in Wiltshire, can I make a detour? I'm so envious! 
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10:13 pm
Wed 5-Jan-11
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danast
| | Argyll, Scotland | |
| Supreme Being | posts 5694 | |
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Me too Heather. We do not have kingfishers here. 
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Old teachers never die, they just lose their class
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11:24 am
Thu 6-Jan-11
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KateUK
| | uk | |
| Councillor | posts 1735 | |
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ooo I'm so envious of your red squirrels!We just have grey tulip eating BASTARDS.
Interesting you say your Long Tailed Tits always follow the same route Ruth, mine do too.I love the way they really work the garden, cleaning any insects methodically form each shrub and tree, before they move onto the feeders.They are surprisingly tame- if I go outside they just carry on,business as usual, which is wonderful as they fly right by if I stand under any of their favourite shrubs.
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2:36 pm
Thu 6-Jan-11
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bluenose
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|  Senior Class | posts 28 | |
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OH and I are just starting to get into bird-watching. We have just begun because for decades we always had cats in our menagerie. I refused to hang any bird feeders for fear that the little feathered creatures which came for a meal ended up as dinner. My knowledge of birds is limited to only a few common species so whenever we see anything new there is a frantic scramble for the bird book and binoculars.
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