BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 07 May 23 - 09:15 AM

I just saw the resident goldfinch for the first time since winter.
And how he sang!

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 30 Apr 23 - 06:04 PM

Fertile ground for observational science. I shall study my own magpies tomorrow!

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 30 Apr 23 - 10:24 AM

> Look again. The bird's head does not move backward at all, only
> forward.

I'll look closer if and when it returns. The stabilising of the gaze I can grok: I've seen that with chickens and pigeons, and it's related to the "spotting" done by a spinning ballerina who doesn't want to get giddy. But I could have sworn our magpies exaggerate the fore-and-back movement.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 30 Apr 23 - 09:58 AM

Look again. The bird's head does not move backward at all, only forward. When you apparently see the head move backward it's actually keeping still while the body moves forward. The thinking is that the stationary head on a moving body stabilises the bird's vision. If it didn't happen, the world might seem blurred to the bird. There are some mysteries still, for example why it happens only in some birds and not others. Ducks and geese don't do it, which could be something to do with their short legs and waddling gait. Plenty of unanswered questions!

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 30 Apr 23 - 07:17 AM

Curious observation: when a magpie is walking across our lawn, its head bobs backwards and forwards further than the length of its stride. This doesn't happen when it's running or hopping forwards, only when it's strutting. What, I wonder, is the evolutionary advantage of this behaviour pattern? It turns up in other birds too, but with magpies it's especially notable, as the bobbing emphasises the strut.

PS: Not sure whether this should go here, or in the Spring thread, or somewhere better. Now whoever shouted "in the bit bucket" can stay behind after class.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 13 Apr 23 - 02:23 PM

I have a couple of garden helpers today. Jackdaws raking up the winter moss. Dunno if it is for nesting or if there are some grubs in there!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/7aWondWAoNp1YpXh6

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 09 Apr 23 - 02:15 AM

I love foxes Steve. There are many round here, but sadly there are often corpses of foxes at the side of Norfolk roads, along with dead badgers, pheasants and deer. Roadkill always saddens me.
Mrs Quackie, the mallard duck, has been having a passionate affair with another male. I think Mr Quackie is sulking - he spends much of the day sitting moping on the roof of the bungalow opposite. Maybe he's contemplating divorce. Her six eggs are still in my neighbour's front garden, and we're hoping they hatch soon.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 05 Apr 23 - 04:36 PM

I've just learned that the village sign in Fustyweed has been stolen again! It's often pinched because of the funny name.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 05 Apr 23 - 03:14 PM

We've named our fox Basil, as in Brush. He turns up every evening at cat's tea time. Luvly feller he is.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 05 Apr 23 - 07:18 AM

Les turned up without Cilla this morning and brought three of his pals. Maybe it was his stag (drake?) party and he is marrying Cilla tomorrow :-D

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 05 Apr 23 - 04:09 AM

We have the annual duck visitation. Les and Cilla this time. They will be here on and off until June.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Rain Dog
Date: 31 Mar 23 - 04:59 AM

"Fustyweed (next hamlet almost joined with our village)"

Great name. It made me smile and then sent me searching. Thanks for that.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 31 Mar 23 - 03:32 AM

A lady rescued the poor sheep which had become 'cast' in the road (upside-down on its back and unable to right itself).Mr & Mrs Quackie are still visiting our front garden (the pair of mallard ducks).
No sign of the Mad Swans as yet. But the road sign on our village street is still in place (SLOW! Swans!)
Apparently, in Fustyweed (next hamlet almost joined with our village) the frogs and toads are still crossing the main street in droves. They've got a sign up saying SLOW! Frogs!. Any visitors from abroad would find this area completely mad! (Well, it is!)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 27 Mar 23 - 02:49 AM

The escaped sheep and the pig are still enjoying their freedom,wandering all over the village. Nobody has bothered yet to round them up. Escaped farm animals here tend to turn up at the pub door (The Fox) so maybe they'd like a pint of best bitter?

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 26 Mar 23 - 06:43 PM

We've been giving our local young fox, a very pleasant chap who knows how to charm, a little snack every evening for almost a year. I love that he still regards himself as a wild animal that keeps me at arm's length. Thing, is, since he's been coming we haven't seen a mole or a squirrel, which is brilliant. And he gets on with our cat!

Good birds so far this spring. Plenty of long-tailed tits, coal tits and a couple of blackcaps. We've even had a house sparrow. Common as muck until a few years ago, now on the red list. :-(

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Donuel
Date: 26 Mar 23 - 05:30 PM

Keb do share your thread resurrection secrets.
The geese have returned.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 26 Mar 23 - 01:45 PM

It is spring in the Northern Hemisphere,
and from the North of England,
our Senoufou has reported (elsewhere)
of a Mad Swans sighting already.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 06 Aug 22 - 09:56 AM

I saw a goldfinch!
I saw a GOLDFINCH!!

The bird was in flight,
and the black-against-yellow was vivid against
the green foliage of the trees.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 01 Aug 22 - 06:08 PM

Jasper Carrott - The Mole

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 01 Aug 22 - 04:05 PM

:-)

But our local mole catcher tells me that moles are antisocial buggers and that a trashed garden generally means just the one mole (though I suppose they have a breeding season).

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 01 Aug 22 - 04:01 PM

Three moles in a tunnel

First one says I smell honey

Second says I smell syrup

Last one says I smell molasses

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 01 Aug 22 - 09:24 AM

We've had two young foxes hanging around for a couple of weeks, and I have a funny feeling that one of them has caught and dispatched the mole that has spent the last two months laying waste to a big piece of my lawn. Usually, when I level the molehills it throws up, they're back within hours, or a day at the most. The foxes have been sniffing around that area very intently, and the molehills haven't come back for the last four days. I live in hope.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 01 Aug 22 - 05:30 AM

Somehow I must discover what bird it is that sings with crepuscular timing.
The bird sings when the sun sets, and now,
at 5:30 in the morning,
it sings with first light,
well before the sun actually rises.

And it works hard, the singing is really vigorous.
But what bird is this songbird?

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 30 Jul 22 - 02:09 PM

There used to be signs all over Whitby saying "your food is not theirs". I thought it very unfair. We eat their food, why can they not eat ours? :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Jon Freeman
Date: 30 Jul 22 - 09:25 AM

Yes, people are advised not to feed gulls…

Nesting gulls can also be a problem. I remember one at Llandudno Hospital when herring gulls were nesting on the roof of the geriatic wards/day hospital unit where mum worked. The gulls would swoop down on elderly people as they entered/left the building. I think the hospital started having the nests/eggs destroyed to stop this.

All that said, I did meet a friendly herring gull who I did give a bit of food to one Conwy Festival week. (S)he was a funny creature who just stood beside me if I had food. The bird would refuse a chip if offered one but was satisfied when given a bit of my burger.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 30 Jul 22 - 09:03 AM

Most places in Cornwall strongly advise us to refrain from feeding gulls. They were a menace in Padstow yesterday, a menace in Exeter last week and are always a menace in Truro. They're very good at pinpointing your pasty or sandwich and swooping you to cleanly divest you of it. They can hurt if they crash you. As with dogs with bad owners causing problems, it isn't the gulls' fault. But don't feed 'em!

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 30 Jul 22 - 04:36 AM

Hee hee Bob you may be right! I was sitting there eating a choc-ice yesterday evening and a lone gull was eyeing me greedily. I wonder if, like me, he needed a cooling snack? I know the seagulls over in Cromer etc often zoom down and nick bits of fish-and-chips from unwary holiday-makers. They're such large birds they can be rather intimidating.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: BobL
Date: 30 Jul 22 - 03:04 AM

You want to watch out Sen, or those gulls will mug you for the edibles.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 30 Jul 22 - 01:33 AM

While sitting on The Bench in my front garden, I'm always delighted to have numerous seagulls descend, to eat up the moist bread which I put out every morning, along with sultanas, dried meal worms and wild bird seeds. These seagulls are so enormous and beautiful, and they have no fear of me - they waddle almost up to my feet to get at the food.
(They leave a 'thank you present' down my windows, but it's easily removed with a moist paper towel!)
Even more interesting is that many species of birds (crows, jackdaws, starlings, sparrows) hop happily around together to eat, with no fighting, or flying away in fear from each other. I even saw a female blackbird pop a sultana down the gaping beak of a baby starling. Wasn't that kind of her?

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 29 Jul 22 - 04:52 AM

Two rare visitors on our bird table just now - male bullfinch and nuthatch - at the same time!

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Donuel
Date: 24 Jul 22 - 06:25 AM

A sound track for bird lovers wood thrush

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 19 Jul 22 - 09:25 AM

Today I got a better look at the fledgling blackbird that has been
practicing its vocalizations, and sounding very broken-voiced and shrill for a blackbird.
My guess was that it was breaking in its new singing voice,
learning and practicing how to whistle.

And yes, it is a very young red-winged blackbird.
THe markings have no red plumage/feathers at this point,
but on its folded wings you can see plumage that is
a different color than the rest of its black feathers.
As the bird matures, some of those feathers will turn a lovely red,
and its whistle will not have cracks and shrieks in it any more.
But it's amusing to hear at the moment.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 16 Jul 22 - 08:12 PM

I saw a hummingbird tonight! They have a way of showing up
when one does not expect them.

In this region, hummingbirds are dark, maybe some green plumage.
It hovered around a big plate glass window before flying away.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 15 Jul 22 - 11:23 PM

... and it remains to be said,
the anecdotes about Monsieur Senoufou
are hugely entertaining.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 14 Jul 22 - 08:26 PM

Meanwhile, we await, with Eliza/Senoufou,
the appearance of the wooden figure in tribute to BamBam.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 09 Jul 22 - 01:18 PM

Hahahaha Dave. Pissing or passing, either would do. :)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 09 Jul 22 - 01:12 PM

Was "passing" a mistype, Eliza? :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 09 Jul 22 - 06:39 AM

Exactly Steve! hee hee. But if it had an oak statue of Boris riding on its back, it would probably get sprayed with blue paint (not red). Or weed on by passing drunken yobs.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 09 Jul 22 - 06:07 AM

It should be OK as long as it doesn't have a statue of Thatcher riding on its back. :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 09 Jul 22 - 03:12 AM

My neighbour-across-the-road has a pair of blackbirds nesting in her open woodshed. The female follows her around like a pet dog. She puts down lots of sultanas for her, and they have a rather nice little friendship. Fortunately, the bird understands Broad Norfolk. I often hear my neighbour saying, "R U orloit moi bewty? Dew yew want suffin?"
I've had to stop feeding all my bird friends from what I call my Bird Buffet (a long line of bread, sultanas and wild birdseed in my front garden) because everyone's car round here is liberally decorated with lashing of bird poo (mostly from the seagulls, jackdaws and crows).
We're all still waiting for the arrival of the lifesize oak statue of BamBam the tame red deer. I hope it's spectacular, having cost £3,800. And I also hope it doesn't get vandalised.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 07 Jul 22 - 06:57 PM

We have a pair of blackbirds who follow me all round the garden. That's lovely, except that I know that the buggers dig up my French bean seeds and will shortly move on to my raspberry crop...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 07 Jul 22 - 09:53 AM

Blackbirds again.

This is not precisely where I am living/sleeping,
but several miles up the road in a commercial strip
where I get fuel for the car and fast food for myself.
That stretch of road borders a wetland/marsh.

Young blackbirds, whom I cannot see, are clearly, loudly heard
practicing their whistling.
Goodness, it's piercingly clear in the sunny air.
Making of summer memories for me.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 06 Jul 22 - 04:09 AM

It's not red clover, it's heal-all (prunella vulgaris) A very useful medicinal plant so I think I'll collect some :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 05 Jul 22 - 12:13 PM

Full of what I think is red clover at the moment. I quite like it :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Donuel
Date: 04 Jul 22 - 08:36 AM

Nice yard too.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 04 Jul 22 - 08:27 AM

Stan and Hilda having their breakfast :-)

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 02 Jul 22 - 08:05 AM

Stan and Hilda returned again this morning with another female in tow! Stan's plumage is looking worse for wear but with 2 ladies to see to I'm not surprised :-) All 3 were very hungry and ate 2 lots of corn and a serving of bread.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 01 Jul 22 - 06:19 PM

In the last few years we've had lots of jays. I kind of like them, but I suspect them of stripping the beans out of my broad bean pods. They're probably responsible for the hundreds of oak tree weeds sprouting everywhere in my garden. Oddly, there are no oaks for miles around...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: MaJoC the Filk
Date: 01 Jul 22 - 04:00 PM

Thanks for the link, DtG: jackdaws they is, or near offer [OI!!! -- ed]. Case tentatively closed.

.... which led me onto pictures of Magpies ("Oh, we know what those are," says Herself), which reminded me of hearing a poem about them on the wireless, of which all I can remember is:

They are crows who have won the pools
and strut around all day in their dinnerjackets

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Neil D
Date: 01 Jul 22 - 04:10 AM

Keberoxu, grackles will have blue on their necks and back of the head, but from any distance, it's hard to see the blue. Even from forty feet I need binoculars to make it out.