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Garden birds and the Big Garden Birdwatch
With so many people reporting sightings of unusual birds in their gardens - and observing some pretty odd behaviour - I'm struggling to entice anything other than pigeons to my plot.
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Gardeners' World Web User
16/01/2010 at 15:21
Try offering a number of different foods and in different ways and lots of patience. I have feeders for fat products on brackets next to the kitchen window, two bird tables, one on the terrace, one at the end of the garden, and two hanging feeders, one of them for Nyjer seed. I offer RSPB ground mix and various sprinkles on the tables and sunflower seed+finch mix and Nijer in the hanging feeders. The birds love the various fat cylinders from the RSPB. If the weather is very bad I also put down ground feed in protected places on the ground for birds too shy to come to the table. Also make sure you have water on offer both for bathing and drinking - my birds love the water features: a bubbling rock and a pond (also great for other wildlife and me). Good luck
Gardeners' World Web User
16/01/2010 at 16:30
We have had all the ususal birds feeding as normal during the snow and ice(robins,blue tits,sparrows,gold and green finches,blackbirds,etc but I was very surprised and happy when on 2 occasions we had a woodpecker come and have a feed from the fatballs.
Gardeners' World Web User
16/01/2010 at 16:58
I have stopped feeding birds as last winter, on two occasions, I saw a rat eating from my wire mesh bird feeder which had peanuts in it. Perhaps I should buy a different type of feeder if other people don't have this problem?
Gardeners' World Web User
16/01/2010 at 18:00
We've had about 60 Fieldfares roosting in trees in the gardens around us. In addition to thise we've had blackbirds, blue tits, great tits,coal/long tailed tits, robins (who have become quite fearless)dunnocks, sparrows, rooks, magpies, starlings (unfortunately) a pied wagtail and 3 different types of birds of prey have moved into this suburb: buzzards, sparrowhawk and a merlin!
Gardeners' World Web User
16/01/2010 at 20:57
The cold weather brought a selection of birds to my North London garden, but sadly, it also brought a rat! My dilemma was how could I discourage the rat but continue feeding the birds. I opted to carry on feeding the birds and hope that with improved weather, the rat will depart! I would add that I back on to a field so rats do appear from time to time.
Gardeners' World Web User
16/01/2010 at 21:16
I have noticed less birds in my garden since the very cold weather.
Gardeners' World Web User
17/01/2010 at 10:47
I've had a lot of birds in my garden over the cold snap. All the usual suspects except I've had a mistle thrush which wasn't around before but i'm leased to say he's still around even though the snow has thawed now! I did notice that the sparrows were being rather nasty to the goldfinches literally pushing them off their feeder... this wasn't because they wanted to feed on nyjer seed it was just so they could be nearer in the line for the mixed seed feeder! I've solved this by getting a larger mixed seed feeder and moving the nyjer seed to the other side of the garden! poor goldfinches!
Gardeners' World Web User
17/01/2010 at 15:23
During the recent cold spell we have lost all our large fish and there appears to be a quantity of dead frogs. How do i tell the difference between a dead or hibernating frog?
Gardeners' World Web User
17/01/2010 at 18:20
I've had a group of 12 redwing sitting in the tree in my front garden, during the bad weather they have been feeding off the berries on my Pyracantha.
Gardeners' World Web User
18/01/2010 at 11:57
N London Blue Tits (Couple) Great Tits (Flock of 8-12?) Blackbirds (2 / 3 pairs) Robins (Like Batman there is aleays one at my side) Magpies (2 / 3 pairs Redwing or two (during the snow) Unidentified brown & speckly And the grey flying rats.
Gardeners' World Web User
18/01/2010 at 12:43
Reply to AuntiEv That's so sad to hear about your frogs. I'm worried about mine but haven't seen any so far, so hope they're tucked up in my compost bin. Frogs don't really hibernate, they go into a state of torpor, so they can be spotted hopping about on warmer days in winter..returning to where they were 'sleeping' when temperatures drop again. I'd suggest your frogs are dead. To make sure you could take them in to somewhere warm, but I reckon if they were alive they'd spring to action if handled. Just out of interest, where did you find them? Kate
Gardeners' World Web User
18/01/2010 at 13:19
I have the reverse problem, too many birds. I'm beginning to think I must be the only one in our village who's feeding them. When I go out to put lard and raisins out the blackbird call goes out and within a minute there they are in the bushes and trees waiting to pounce. I counted 18 in one feeding frenzy during the snowy weather. We also have a small flock of house sparrows feeding from the peanut and seed dispensers. Blue tits, great tits, chaffinches and a greater spotted woodpecker are regular visitors. Also the occasional sparrowhawk visits, I suppose he needs to eat too.
Gardeners' World Web User
18/01/2010 at 14:32
During snowy weather the following have appeared. Sparrows robins blackbirds blue tits great tits redwings songthrush. Amazing to watch all of them and so uplifting. Sad to see people not keen on having starlings and squirrels. They all play their part and one creature is not more important than another. We need to look after all of them.
Gardeners' World Web User
18/01/2010 at 17:49
Twice a day i drive through the Cambridgeshire Fens (March) beside a deep drainage ditch. There is a pair of swans who reside on this stretch of water beside arable field of rich fen soil. I have seen many common birds in this area including Kestrals, Buzzards, Grey Herons,Geese and the common Pigeon, Gulls, Moorehens as well as the regular Phesents and Partridge. Yesterday, 17th January 2010 i saw a white bird which i have now identified as Little Egret, very distinctive with its black legs and yellow feet. I know they are common in the Mediteranian but i have never seen them in this country before. I see that they winter in North Africa and breed in the Mediteranian. Are they now an expected addition to our bird life due to global warming or is this pair way off course?
Gardeners' World Web User
18/01/2010 at 18:07
Twice a day i drive through the Cambridgeshire Fens (March) beside a deep drainage ditch. There is a pair of swans who reside on this stretch of water beside arable field of rich fen soil. I have seen many common birds in this area including Kestrals, Buzzards, Grey Herons, Geese and the common Pigeon, Gulls, Moorehens as well as the regular Pheasents and Partridge. Yesterday, 17th January 2010 I saw a white bird which I have now identified as Little Egret, very distinctive with its black legs and yellow feet. I know they are common in the Mediteranian but i have never seen them in this country before. I see that they winter in North Africa and breed in the Mediteranian. Are they now an expected addition to our bird life due to global warming or is this pair way off course?
Gardeners' World Web User
18/01/2010 at 23:44
suzanne nicholson, In answer to your question have a look here: http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/l/littleegret/index.aspx
Gardeners' World Web User
20/01/2010 at 15:27
Another reply to AuntieEv re frogs Hi again AuntiEv. My colleague at Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC) has identified your frog problem: Common Frogs often lie dormant on the bottom of garden ponds during winter (particularly males). They slow their metabolism, and actually breathe through their skin. However, when ponds ice over for a sustained period they can suffocate on the noxious gases that build up in the water. In some winters, many frogs can die from this phenomenon, often termed 'winterkill'. No surprises that this year has been particularly hard on frogs. Winterkill is a natural killer of frogs in cold winters. To prevent winterkill happening in your pond simply ensure that there is a hole in the ice for pond gases to escape. You can make a hole by leaving a plastic ball in the pond overnight, and removing it in the morning when the pond surface is frozen. Another idea is to leave a pan of hot water on the ice surface, and allow the base of the pan to melt a hole.You can also grow lots of pond plants in your pond, this will help to oxygenate the water and prevent the frogs from suffocating.
Gardeners' World Web User
22/01/2010 at 11:54
We have been watching the Red Kites this snowy weather. They usually fly quite high, but they have been swooping low over the field opposite our house looking for dead creatures in the snow! When they are so close you can see their enormous wingspan, and the beautiful markings under their wings. Meanwhile the pheasants in our garden seem to be making more noise than usual - even during the night!
Gardeners' World Web User
22/01/2010 at 13:33
We have only recently put up a bird feeding station and were excited to see a robin two bluetits and the occasional coal tit feeding. However, the last 2 days we have had nothing but pigeons who eat everything I have put out for the robin extremely fast. Can I do anything to discourage the pigeons and encourage the smaller birds to come back ?
Gardeners' World Web User
22/01/2010 at 13:41
We have only recently put up a bird feeding station and were very happy to see a robin, two bluetits and sometimes coal tits feeding from it. However the last couple of days we have seen 4 pigeons in the garden. They seem to have eaten the food I put out for the robins very quickly. Is there anything I can do to discourage them and encourage the small birds back again ?
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