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Produce => Wildlife forum => Topic started by: Whippet on December 31, 2005, 16:08:50
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Big Garden Birdwatch 2006
The 2006 Big Garden Birdwatch takes place at the end of January and all you need to do to take part is watch the birds in your garden or local park for an hour.
Go HERE (http://www.rspb.org.uk/birdwatch/) for more details.
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THANKS for that whippet. ;D
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If you go to a park to do it, make sure you are well wrapped up - it would be freezing cold, sitting still for an hour out of doors.
I wonder why they don't have this later in the year, when the weather is warmer?
::)
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I wonder why they don't have this later in the year, when the weather is warmer?
::)
Strange, isn't it? - I suppose they only want records of native British birds which are here for the winter. But we've done the birdwatch for some years now & every year it seems to pour with rain here & the all the birds which we normally see in our garden stay away in droves ... I think it's a conspiracy & they are all sitting somewhere dry laughing at us ::)
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Yes, you could be quite right.
Any sensible birds will be away in warmer climes now.
;)
I can just see them, Juliet, sitting up in trees - under their umbrellas.
;D
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I wonder why they don't have this later in the year, when the weather is warmer?
::)
I think they do it at this time of year because more birds come into our gardens in search of food in the winter.
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I count the birds all year because I am a member of the British Trust for Ornithology and do a weekly count. You count the highest number of each bird and enter it on a form plus count the less popular birds. Its an enjoyable pastime and I keep a notebook handy to note the numbers. I also send my count 'on line' to the BTO.
;)
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SNAP!!! I do exactly the same as you do Carol. ;D
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I do the bird watch each year - assume I will get a reminder email nearer the time, but thanks for the link Whippet :)
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I would be interested in doing that, too, carol.
I should be able to find the British Trust for Ornithology if I do a search - shouldn't I?
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I will be joining in too. The form will be available to download from RSPB on 28th Jan.
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Whippet. The British Trust for Ornithology cant be found on www.BTO.org and all the information is there for you to look at. It costs about £12 a year to join and its good fun taking part in the weekly count. You get a quarterly magazine and lots of other information also vouchers for C.J. Wild Bird foods. The BTO can judge from their 'counters' on the decline of certain birds. Oh. you will find out all about it if you look at their web page. Good luck.
:D :D :D
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Thanks wardy and Carol.
I will enrol my husband, too.
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I did this last year and the year before but will be away on that weekend in January - Birdwatching in India ;)
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Well, at least you should be nice and warm there.
:)
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I have done this for a number of years but because I can look out of the window into the garden at any time of the day I see lots of birds feeding. There are about 20 different sorts every day
My beef with this observation is being restricted to one hour because in any hour the species and number vary considerably depending on the time of day. Not all the species visit every hour but they all visit at some time every day. Yesterday for the first time ever I had 2 long-tailed tits feeding on a peanut feeder and today there were 5.
I would be happier recording the maximum number of a species at any one time visiting throughout the day rather than restricting it to the hour. Can this be done?
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Yes, there are a lot of questions regarding this sort of thing - how do they know that the same birds are not returning several times - which they could do even if the watch was extended.
???
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January 28 & 29th it is.
Maybe Dan could put a reminder in the 'calendar' - especially
for the more forgetful types such as myself ;D
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Good idea Debs, I would like to take part too. :) busy_lizzie
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Its this Sat I think, I'll be doing it.
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You can do it either Saturday or Sunday.
Chris
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This brown heron is in my local wood. I took this pic last year and have my eye on the nest site starting from mid-Feb!
While I was watching it dropped this lump of someones treasured fish it must have nicked from a pond.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Kenkew/06BrownHeronMay04.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Kenkew/08BrownHeronMay04.jpg)
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I have never seen a brown heron - it is the greys we get in this area.
I love them - except for when I saw one eating one of the big frogs from our pond.
>:(
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I can't trace brown heron - are you sure it's not a grey?
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Me neither, Robert - Surfbirds hasn't got a brown heron listed & they're usually pretty comprehensive - they list quite a few others though:
http://www.surfbirder.com/cgi-bin/ukbirdid/readcsv.pl?name=heron
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I have just completed my Bird Watch and sent details to RSPB. The situation of my garden is rural adjoining farmland. This is what I recorded today in a small part of my garden, looking through the patio doors.
3 blackbirds, 1 blue tit, 1 collared dove, 2 dunnock, 28 goldfinch, 2 greenfinch, 1 house sparrow, 1 robin, 1 starling and 1 wren.
The finches were difficult to count as they fight to get prime position on the feeders. However the 16 on the ground underneath the feeding station remained there for 5 minutes, whilst I counted the others above. There were also three on a tree awaiting their turn.
Any results from anyone else? It would be interesting if people could say where they are in relation to being rural, urban, backing onto farnland etc.
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Just finished my survey & submitted it on the web.
Due to a technical hitch (on their part), it wasn't accepted.
I'll try and enter it again tomorrow.
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What did you see, Tel?
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Well I've done mine today (urban London) as well but it was quite disappointing. Two starlings, one robin and one sparrow. Can't help thinking that everyone else must have been at it too this afternoon and there were therefore much richer pickings than normal. ;) I must say I agree with toadspawn's earlier comments, this doesn't seem like a very scientific approach to me.
G xx
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Hi Paulines7,
My wife & I did it together (that doesn't sound right!)
Blackies - 2
Collared dove - 2
Goldfinch - 1
Robin - 1
Blue tit - 3
Dunnock - 1
House sparrow - 1
Starling - 3 (we call 'em gannets)
Chaffinch - 1
Long-tailed tit - 3
Coal tit - 1
MOH reckons she saw a bunting
Sounds a good haul, we do live in the boondocks though!
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The weather seems to have kept most of our birds away, today.
:-\
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.............Sounds a good haul, we do live in the boondocks though!
You have a good selection there Tel, especially the long tailed tits. They are one of my favourite birds and are very rare in my garden. I have never seen a coal tit here but used to see them when I lived in Kent 30 years ago. :'(
I have never heard of "boondocks", are you having us on? ;) Which County are you in? I assume from your list that you are rural.
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Plan to do my birdwatch tomorrow. 7 yr old son was very keen
but when I said 'we' will do our watch tomorrow, 9 yr old daughter
looked at me and said "and who is WE ...?"
...methinks she is not remotely interested and would rather be
singing along to Kelly Clarkson or the Sugarbabes ;D
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The weather seems to have kept most of our birds away, today.
:-\
Well, it's been very cold here today but bright. I wonder why they don't ask about the weather details. Surely they have a bearing? I had two collared doves flying about for the whole hour I did my watch which I've never seen before. But would they land in my garden? Would they 'eck! Also spotted a seagull soaring on high a few times now that would have skewed the figures! ;)
G xx
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Pauline. I am saying this in the nicest way I know how. PLEASE do not put number of goldfinches in BOLD numbers. Every time I look the figure increases. There is poor me hiding behind vertical blinds hoping and hoping to see just ONE little finch. ;D ;D ;D
I hope to join in next time.
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Pauline. I am saying this in the nicest way I know how. PLEASE do not put number of goldfinches in BOLD numbers. Every time I look the figure increases. There is poor me hiding behind vertical blinds hoping and hoping to see just ONE little finch. ;D ;D ;D
I hope to join in next time.
You will Lorna, you will. I did think of you this morning when I sat down to do my count and thought "If only Lorna could be here". On the down side Lorna, they are costing me a fortune because I have to top the feeders up every day.
Be patient Lorna, I'm sure you will be rewarded! ;D ;D ;D
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Hi again Paulines7,
Glyn will understand what 'boondocks' are.
In Canada, the area is best described as the 'wild & wooly wastes'.
We feel like that sometimes - but love our N. Oxon. home!
BUT, we ain't got a Waitrose (for cracking wine) a Lidl for challenging bargains - have got an overpowering stench of coffee & chocolate though!
Hope this helps - doesn't help us!
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I did this yesterday!
I'm sure the birds round here know about this event and declare it a 'Bird Bank Holiday' ::)
They're probably all sat in their nests with cans of lager and kebabs sniggering away at the amount of East Midlands humanoids peering expectantly through their living room windows.
They have internet access you know ... don't be fooled! Where do you think those PC viruses called WORMS come from eh?
That's the last time I make them a lardy seed ball to get them through the winter months. From now on they can EAT CAKE!
Trixie ;D
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;D ;D ;D ;D
Trixiebelle. your humour is wonderful :D :D :D I was thinking the same thing. There am I going from one bl dy window to another, 2 sides of the house seeing whats there to count. Got the bins. round me neck incase my eyes can't pick them out. OH is laughing at me as usual. Got 5 mins to go so had better stop yakking. I may have missed the Great Spotted Bustard!!!! LOL
;D ;D ;D
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THE GREAT SPOTTED BUSTARD! I was married to one of those once ;D
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Trixiebelle, even if you didn't see a dicky bird, ten out of ten for your posts. ;D ;D ;D
Carol, could the birds have been playing a game with you? I bet they saw you approaching the windows and then flew off to the other side of your house and did the same thing when you went there. :( :( :(
There are great bustards in Wiltshire but I haven't seen any yet. No spotted ones as they have probably had the measles jab. ;D
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No Pauline, I have 2 feeding areas for the birds. So it was quite a task going from one end of the house to the other. I seem to get the bigger birds at the kitchen area i.e. pheasants, collared doves, jackdaws etc and at the t'other end of the house is the hanging area for the nuts, fat balls and filled coconut shell. That is where the little uns hang out and way down in the far corner sits mrs Sparrowhawk for hours at a time. Thank goodness she wasnt here long today, but she was around. Bloomin' Long tailed tits hung around across the road today as well, cos I spotted them through my bins. dam and blast.... ah well, it was good fun.
No surprises turned up though, except maybe the Mistle Thrush, he was perching ontop of a the faraway Weeping Willow which is more like a loo brush than a weeper, cos of the winds we get.
;D ;D ;D
I had, 2 Pheasants, (M & F) 4 Blackbirds, 2 Wood Pigeons, 4 Collared Doves, 2 Jackdaws, 4 Rooks, 1 Mistle Thrush, 15 Chaffinches, 4 Greenfinches, 2 Coal Tits, 2 Great Tits, 3 Blue Tits, 2 Goldfinches and 2 Dunnocks scuttering around at front of the house, but NO ROBIN..... where was Robin today???
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For about 5 years it has poured with rain every Birdwatch weekend and we've had NO birds - now I have gone on record as saying that every year they hide in the trees and laugh at us, it was blazingly sunny all weekend & we had so many birds in the garden yesterday we had trouble counting them all! They are laughing again - I'm sure they are. (Paranoid? Me?! ::) ) I'm sure the weather should be taken into consideration, Georgie - it must skew their figures if it isn't. I mentioned to them last year that we never had anything like the number of birds we normally see in the garden because it was always raining on Birdwatch weekend and they said that would mean the birds were being counted elsewhere - but I don't really think that works - our local ones don't all fly off to Devon or something because it's raining all over East Anglia.
Anyway, this year we had 1 blackbird, 1 chaffinch, 3 collared doves, 1 dunnock, 4 greenfinches, 1 house sparrow, 2 robins, 33 starlings, and 1 woodpigeon. Actually we had 2 blackbirds - could only submit 1 because you're supposed to say the highest number you see at any one time, but we know there were 2 because one was male and one was female!
We have trouble filling in the survey online because we're not quite suburban and not quite rural either (we're in a village north of Cambridge). And how big exactly is a tennis court?!! How on earth is anyone expected to know that? Why don't they say a size?! ???
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Hi Juliet. Well, I'm glad to read that someone else was struggling with the 'how big is a tennis court' question. What a stupid way to express it eh? And why did we have to express our distance from farmland in kilometers? I hope I was right in thinking that a kilometer is 0.7 of a mile otherwise I think I've lied! ;) Nice to know that you had all my starlings yesterday - you did well to count 33. ;D
G xx
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Went out to clean out the shed today and thought I'd manage to spy on visiting birds, however after a wren, a robin and some blackbirds I got so involved in what I was doing that I forgot! :-[ :'(
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Well I think the word went around the 'birdie telegraph' round our way that this stupid woman was trying to count them ;D We didn't have nearly as many as we normally have.
Anyway, my count was: 2 blackbird - only 1 blue tit - two chaffinch - 2 collared dove - 3 dunnock - 2 goldfinch - 4 greenfinch - 1 house sparrow - 1 magpie - 1 robin and 7 starlings.
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Typical, day after the bird count and at the same time I was doing the count yesterday, dozen Long Tailed Tits, plus 2 Bullfinches and for the first time this winter a Sisken.
I do like the Siskens but I now await the arrival of the other winter visitor the Brambling. It usually comes along with a flock of Chaffinches. They are similar but the Brambling has a more peachy tinge to its colours and more white down the wings.
::) ::) ::) ::)
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The weather seems to have kept most of our birds away, today.
:-\
Well, it's been very cold here today but bright. I wonder why they don't ask about the weather details. Surely they have a bearing? I had two collared doves flying about for the whole hour I did my watch which I've never seen before. But would they land in my garden? Would they 'eck! Also spotted a seagull soaring on high a few times now that would have skewed the figures! ;)
G xx
Our resident pair of Collared Doves didn't let me down.
I also saw two Blue Tits - we haven't had any of those about for a few weeks.
We always have lots of Seagulls flying around here - but they never land in our garden.
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Just brought this to the attention of everyone again, cos the 2007 Birdwatch is this weekend. Hope the birds don't do a disappearing act like last year and the year before. Happy counting folks.. ;D ;D
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Carol. Got my calendar marked with RED pen for 27th/28th so that I don't forget.
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Last year it was teeming down all weekend. Not sure if I saw a bird all weekend. Not representative of my garden for the rest of the year, that's for sure.
My sparrowhawk wasn't in the area that day, I know that much.
Think I'm going to tick his box whether he turns up or not. Tried to dive bomb me today ! :o