Tag: Carrion Crow

The start of Spring, sound of lawnmowers & a common buzzard.

Many birders and others think of the sound the Cukoo makes as the first sign of spring in the UK, for me it has to be the lawnmower and today a very very sunny day in Edinburgh, in fact t-shirt weather, the suburban streets rang with the sounds of people desperate to remove that 1mm of extra grass that has grown since the final cut in October/November last year.  August for my back garden as I wanted places for insects to hide over winter and when snow lay on the lawn, it looked like an icy tundra, there’s a photo of the ice crystals below my garden bird list today.  It’ll be a few more weeks before my back garden gets mown.

Today’s bird list includes what I’m pretty sure is a new bird for the year, the common buzzard, it wasn’t in my garden but soaring high above, here’s the list for today:

  1. Blackbird x 1
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Carrion crow x 1 – looked to have pale wings.
  4. Common Buzzard x 1
  5. Dunnock x 3
  6. House Sparrow x 2
  7. Magpie x 5
  8. Woodpigeon x 3

National Nest Box Week & my garden bird list.

Been pretty busy today so didn’t get a great lot of time for bird watching, did get to see 5 Magpies squabbling and making loads of noise which was exciting and entertaining, also the coal tits seemed flightier and more suspicious of activity in the garden, not sure if it was a cat in the garden or it they’re starting to breed, I hope not the later as I’ve not finished cutting back the hedges and unsure if the weather will turn again, I’ve also not got my sparrow nestbox up yet!  Will try to have them up very soon as it is currently National nest box week.

Here’s my garden bird list for today:

  1. Blackbird x 2
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Carrion crow x 1 – flyover
  4. Coal Tit x 2
  5. Dunnock x 1
  6. Magpie x 5
  7. Woodpigeon x 1

Getting ready for nesting season!

A very sunny day here in Edinburgh, spring feels really in full swing and we were cutting back a privet hedge today to make sure it’s done before the birds start nesting.  Found an old nest in the hedge from last year, which hopefully gives promising signs that there maybe nest building and young birds in the garden later this year.  Hopefully I’ll be out with the camera a bit more soon, my hands are starting to feel slightly better, here’s the list for today:

  1. Blackbird x 1
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Carrion Crow x 1 – flyover
  4. Coal Tit x 1
  5. Dunnock x 1
  6. House Sparrow x 3
  7. Magpie x 1
  8. Woodpigeon x 1

Small amounts of snow brings out a few birds. Plus photo of a Robin.

Today started off slightly white, pretty sure it’s the first snow for just over 2 weeks and then finished very wet.  The birds were loving a left over vegan pancake from yesterday.  The bad weather brought out the birds today and one of the longest lists I’ve had in a few days:

  1. Blackbird x 4
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Carrion crow x 4 – fly overs
  4. Chaffinch x 1
  5. Coal Tit x 1
  6. Dunnock x 1
  7. Feral Pigeon x 1
  8. House Sparrow x 3
  9. Robin x 1
  10. Woodpigeon x 3

Hopefully get Robins nesting in the garden this year, below is a photo of one that was collecting my hair that I’d had cut and put out for the birds:

Robin collecting hair for nest building

Robin collecting hair for nest building

Not sure why but colours have washed out a lot on export.

Another very quiet day in the garden, where have all the birds gone!?

Another very quiet day in the garden, but I did see 21 Carrion crows flying overhead, there was also a flock of what looked like starlings, 9 birds however I could just make out silhouettes and at a distance, so not 100% sure, also 5 gulls flew over, but once again not 100% sure what type they were. So I’ve left it as my garden list and the crows:

  1. Blackbird x 3
  2. Carrion crow x 21 – flying over
  3. Coal Tit x 1
  4. Dunnock x 1
  5. Magpie x 2
  6. Woodpigeon x 2

Young Starling begging for food in my old garden, so far not had any starlings at my new place: 

Feed Me - Starling Chick - feeding time

Feed Me – Starling Chick – feeding time
Pretty sure this was taken with a Canon 20D and Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM

Heard a Tawny Owl & saw very few other birds!

It was another very quiet day in the garden today, a few carrion crows flying overhead and the tawny owl was out and about last night but very little else so I’ve added some photos from the balcony of my old flat in Sydney Australia:

  1. Blackbird x 1
  2. Carrion crow x 4 – flyovers
  3. Coal Tit x 1
  4. Dunnock x 2
  5. Tawny Owl x 1 – heard only
Rainbow Lorikeet

Rainbow Lorikeet at the flat in Sydney.

Rainbow Lorikeet takes a bath

Rainbow Lorikeet takes a bath

Rainbow Lorikeet shakes after a bath.

Rainbow Lorikeet shakes after a bath.

Our flock of Rainbow Lorikeets

Our flock of Rainbow Lorikeets

Robin in Corstorphine Tesco Bakery section, plus Oystercatchers on playing fields.

Another very quiet day in my garden, just 3 types of birds, I added a robin to yesterday’s list as I saw it just before midnight in Tescos Corstorphine hanging out in the bakery section of the store, photo, sorry poor quality from a camera phone:

Robin in Tesco bakery section, enjoying the croissants.

Robin in Tesco bakery section, enjoying the croissants.

 

As well as my garden bird list:

  1. Blackbird x 1
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Dunnock x 2

I managed to take a walk down to Saint Margaret’s Park in Corstorphine and saw:

  1. Carrion Crow x 3
  2. Oystercatchers x 2
  3. Black-headed Gulls x 5
  4. Gulls – others, distance was too great to make out but looked to be lesser black-backed or herring.  They were paddling in a pretty deep puddle, didn’t want to get closer as we had our dog with us.
  5. Woodpigeons x 10

Laurie Campbell photo exhibition and talk at the SOC.

Had a very quiet day in the garden today, however an hour before sunset about 60 carrion crows flew overhead, a great sight!  Tonight I got to see the talk by Laurie Campbell about his photos over the years and his new ones from the Isle of Harris, thanks so much to Jane at the SOC – follow on twitter: ScottishBirding for arranging the tickets for me after I missed out on the sales!  For more info about the photo exhibition head to: Laurie Campbell SOC – now onto my garden bird list for today:

  1. Blackbird x 1
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Carrion crow x 60+ flying overhead.
  4. Coal Tit x 1
  5. Woodpigeon x 1

A good list for just looking during breakfast & lunch.

Once again my listing’s a bit later than normal today, a lot on at the moment.  Still had a chance to check at breakfast & lunch for a few birds and came up with a decent list, including just one fieldfare today:

  1. Blackbird x 2
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Carrion crow x 6
  4. Coal Tit x 2
  5. Dunnock x 1
  6. Fieldfare x 1
  7. Greenfinch x 2
  8. House Sparrow x 4
  9. Robin x 1
  10. Woodpigeon x 1

Hopefully have a few more photos for the site soon.

The birds I saw today were in my garden:

2 fieldfare show up, another first for the year!

Sorry my post is so late, sadly it’s not because I was out birding it was due to working from 6am till 8pm with a short break to see some birds which my dog had alerted me to due to the different calls they were making; he gets worried when there’s different noises from the garden birds as it usually means a cat or sparrowhawk is about.  Today it wasn’t due to any predatory birds or cats but instead a pair of fieldfare making a fair bit of noise, another first for the year.  Here’s the birds I’ve seen today:

  1. Blackbird x 2
  2. Blue Tit x 1
  3. Carrion crow x 2
  4. Coal Tit x 2
  5. Dunnock x 3
  6. Fieldfare x 2
  7. Greenfinch x 1
  8. House Sparrow x 2
  9. Woodpigeon x 3

I tried to get shots of the Fieldfares but they were far away in bad light, I did get some record shots which I hope to add soon.

Once again it was in my garden.