BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 03 Jun 18 - 03:34 PM

And then, speaking of our feathered friends,
there is the sound of crepuscular bird speech.
Sorry for the fancy word:
Crepuscular means "at dawn" and "at dusk."

I'm spending time in Arizona again.
Besides the mockingbirds,
who sound as though they are running for elected office,
there are the breeds of jays.
I'm not sure what kind of jays these are in Arizona.

It is really something else, at dusk, as the daylight fades,
when the jays get hunkered down in the tree branches
and stop foraging in the parking lots.

At a certain moment, in the encroaching dark,
the jays tuck themselves into the tree foliage
and do their last big vocalizing for the day.
If I knew how to make a You-Tube video of them doing this,
I would post it so that you could hear the sound.

They make all kinds of bird vocalizations that they don't resort to
at any other time that I am aware of.
It probably is not a conversation
but it certainly sounds like one!

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 03 Jun 18 - 11:59 PM

My apologies! I was mistaken, must correct myself.
Just went online to see if I could find these amusing noisy birds.
No, they are not jays at all.

They are Great-Tailed Grackles. Right here in the Arizona cityscape.
They frequent parking lots everywhere.

If this link works, it will take you to a site about birds,
which has a short video of two adult male Great-tailed Grackles,
and you can see and hear them.

Now, if you could just imagine that little video
with about a dozen or more Great-tailed Grackles
doing that, simultaneously, in an ornamental tree in
a parking lot ... it is quite an aural experience.

Quiscalus mexicanus

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 04 Jun 18 - 04:03 AM

Great-Tailed Grackles!!! What a lovely name! And their calls are very unusual. I love their long, elegant beaks. Thank you for posting that keberoxu.
We haven't heard any more from Happy Birthday boy. I wonder if our usual pair have chased him and his missus away.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 06 Jun 18 - 11:50 PM

Is it true
that pink flamingos
are pink
because of what they eat?

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Stanron
Date: 07 Jun 18 - 01:56 AM

Pink elephants are pink because of what we drink.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: BobL
Date: 07 Jun 18 - 02:55 AM

To answer Keberoxu's query - Yes. Consult the fount-of-all-information-but-not-necessarily-knowledge at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flamingo#feeding

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 07 Jun 18 - 12:52 PM

Neighbour-across-the-road sat with me on The Bench today, and suddenly announced, "Hair come Scruffy!" (That's how she talks, broad Norfolk)
I couldn't see anyone walking along our road, but she was pointing to a bird. It's a male blackbird, and his feathers are in complete disarray, sticking out at all angles.

It's the one she feeds with scraps and raisins, and he comes right into her kitchen and sits on the counter top waiting to be served. He obviously knows her voice, as he approached confidently right up to our feet, head on one side.
I hurried indoors to get some raisins and he actually took them from our hands!

She was telling me that all the land on which our houses are built once belonged to her grandfather, a dairy farmer. He had one bull and several milking cows. She'd been chased by the latter many times when they had calves with them, but said that bulls charge with their eyes closed, and if you dodge about, they won't get you!
I never knew that...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 09 Jun 18 - 03:08 PM

My VERY naughty neighbour-next-door came home towing a large piece of farm machinery. He climbed down from his van, grinned broadly at me and bellowed, "Yew ought ter trim yer bush mawther!"

I had to think for a minute, but realised he was referring to a large bush which is growing a bit too far over the pavement.
I bet the whole street heard him and had a good snigger!

Anyway, I haven't trimmed my bush because a pair of sparrows are nesting inside it, and I don't want to disturb them...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Jos
Date: 09 Jun 18 - 04:50 PM

Another blue tit family today. When I looked out this morning there were two adults and five young ones bouncing around on and near the bird feeder, with the adults busily feeding the youngsters.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 10 Jun 18 - 12:29 AM

Visiting Tucson, Arizona for a week or so.
The doves out here really ARE different
from the doves that turn up in other places.

When they launch into flight and their tail-feathers fan out,
the plumage is remarkably colored. No, not like peacocks or anything.
More like the long skirts of the Ballet Folklórico dancers.

And their cooing is really a different call than the birdcalls I'm used to.
It puts me in mind of Lola Beltrán, of happy memory,
the native of Sináloa, México,
whose singing commanded música ranchera/norteña for decades,
and of her song "Cucurrucucú Paloma."

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 07 Nov 18 - 09:39 PM

Am returning from Phoenix, Arizona to my northeastern US home tomorrow.
Today I drove to my favorite parking lot in Scottsdale
and said goodbye to the great-tailed grackles,
when it was getting on from afternoon to evening,
and they were sitting in the trees
voicing their near-infinite variety and diversity of bird calls.
It is the darndest-sounding thing, a continual entertainment.
Until they shut up for the night.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Thompson
Date: 07 Nov 18 - 10:43 PM

Senoufou, your dafe husband doesn't need to build a special yokey - you can already buy cycle trailers for pets; I'm mumbling over the thought of getting one for my new puppy, who's going to be a big boy, so I can bring him to the sea and local parks for romps.

However, he might be wise to take a course in wildlife rehabilitation - there are skills involved, and knowledge. (For instance, you would never in a million years see me pick up a sick bird nowadays unless with rubber gloves and very much at arm's length, and probably not even then; there's a very nasty virus going around Europe that has already killed virtually all of Paris's blackbirds, and which is transmissible to humans.)

You may have seen a video that's going around the internet of an Irish vet (veterinarian for our American ex-co-Anglophones) jumping out of a taxi to run and rescue a young swan on the road at Donnybrook in Dublin. He wrapped it in his jacket, carried it to the river Dodder and let it loose, and it swam happily away.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Jos
Date: 08 Nov 18 - 03:01 AM

Thompson, when I read "he might be wise to take a course in wildlife rehabilitation ...", at first I thought you meant your big puppy should take a course before you took him to the seaside.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Thompson
Date: 08 Nov 18 - 08:37 AM

Hah, could be true too!

I've rather backed off the pet trailer idea on discovering that they're about €800…

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Thompson
Date: 08 Nov 18 - 08:42 AM

Though wait, no, Amazon has some for around £80 to £150.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 08 Nov 18 - 08:46 AM

There's a lovely photo of our Mad Swans online. If you go to 'Lyng Stores and Tearoom', it takes you to a Facebook thing (but no need to sign in or anything), and a large picture of the swans walking along the road in front of the village shop.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 08 May 19 - 07:40 PM

Ah, I'm a bit late refreshing this thread.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 09 May 19 - 06:08 PM

and here they are! (2019 edition, that is)

Norwich's Mad Swans

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 09 May 19 - 06:13 PM

And this is the
2018 edition of the Mad Swans of Norwich.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Jos
Date: 10 May 19 - 04:50 AM

I wonder where the idea of the 'Ugly duckling' came from - yes, I know it was Hans Christian Andersen, I mean before that.
Those could never be described as ugly.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 11 May 19 - 09:55 PM

They do appear to be making a royal progress
in that photograph, don't they?

No wonder they avoid, somehow,
being run over.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 12 May 19 - 04:21 PM

Grand weather for water birds and
anything with webbed feet today.

the local Canada Geese must be thoroughly at home.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Georgiansilver
Date: 12 May 19 - 08:09 PM

Once upon a time...... (sounds like a good start for a short story). There was an area with a couple of small lakes and a nature reserve surrounding them, with pathways round the whole thing. It was widely reported that a male swan had been nicknamed 'Psycho' because it kept going for people on the pathways. I being middle aged and fit went running around those pathways, uninterrupted for around three weeks. However, on this particular day.... there he was, bold as brass, spreading his wings in an intimidating manner in front of me. Little did he know that I had been brought up in the countryside and was used to dealing with flocks of geese on various farms in that area. He moved threateningly towards me, sticking his neck out and making a hissing noise.... just as the geese did.... so i did exactly what i did with the geese and smacked him on the top of his beak. He moved to one side and i carried onmy r=un. The following day, I took some bread, soaked in milk, and when i saw him, i approached him with outstretched arm and fed him the juicy bread. I did this every dasy for many months and he allowed me to also feed his partner (Swans will only ever have one partner). Then came Spring time. He allowed me to feed his pasrtner whilst she was sitting on her eggs, which is a great honour as male swans will usually drive anyone who gets near to the nest away. I carried on with this amazing relationship for many more months. The babies were fed by me, early on in their lives and all seemed wonderful. Many people came to see me with those swans because they did not believe that 'Psycho' could be so tolerant. They saw him and his partner put their heads on my legs and look at me with love in their eyes. The press cameand interviewed me and took pics of me with those lovely birds. In the Autumn (Fall), I found 'Psycho' with one eye shot out by some idiot with an air rifle. I arranged for him to get it sorted at the vets but all they could do wasd make it germ free. A month later, someone found 'Psycho' with his neck tied in a knot.... dead. As you can imagine, I was devastated. How could someone do this to him........ His partner and the younng ones disappeared and were not seen locally again. i sort of blame myself for 'Psychos' demise, because he might have thought that the people who killed him were as friendly as me........maybe i should not have becomea treusted part of their lives.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 15 May 19 - 06:12 PM

This happened a short drive from my apartment building.

i've got good news and bad news...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 18 May 19 - 02:31 PM

Well, Senoufou continues to stay a safe distance,
and
the closest I ever get to Senoufou's Mad Swans
is looking at the
Norwich Lyng Stores internet spots.

Nothing new on this year's edition of the cygnets.
When I see an update, I will let you know.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 19 May 19 - 12:20 PM

I was amazed on holiday to see a hoopoe right outside my apartment window. (even more amazed I identified it correctly)
On checking it online I was a little disappointed to find that they are fairly common in Majorca.
Hoopoe

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 26 May 19 - 04:27 PM

Canada Geese, not swans, are the ones
who think territorially about
parking lots, medians, and even stretches of open road.

Everyone minded their movements and manners today,
and nobody got dented or ruffled anyplace.
Only, they would talk back and forth to each other
as they jostled for position on the street pavement:
cars honking at geese,
and geese honking back at cars.
It was downright amusing.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Jos
Date: 27 May 19 - 05:26 AM

Much feeding of baby blue tits going on in my garden at the moment, but regularly interrupted by the arrival of wood pigeons who will eat everything edible they can find unless I chase them off.

I feel bad being nasty to wood pigeons, but if they behaved like the collared doves and just spent a few minutes feeding and then flew off, the little birds could still get their share.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Jos
Date: 02 Jun 19 - 04:27 AM

We now have lots of baby great tits - they move about too quickly to get an exact number. I am pleased to see that when the bird feeders are too crowded they have taken to eating the aphids on the roses.

We also have visits now and then from a group of young starlings, squawking and squabbling like unruly teenagers.

The young blue tits are now quite capable of feeding themselves but their parents keep on feeding them anyway, unlike the robins. Four young robins will arrive at the bird feeders and sit there waiting in vain, until they eventually get bored and feed themselves. Their parents seem to ignore them completely, and only come to feed when the babies are elsewhere.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 16 Jun 19 - 03:00 PM

Mad Swans and Englishmen …

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 17 Jun 19 - 02:50 PM

Oooooooh,
how I miss
Senoufou / Eliza
with the cygnets and their swan parents in Norwich or thereabouts.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 27 Jun 19 - 08:14 PM

oh where, o where,
have the Mad Swans gone,

oh where, o where can they beeee .........

no new news of this year's cygnets
since last month.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: The Sandman
Date: 28 Jun 19 - 04:46 AM

Great Tits songhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nDLF2fxoWQ , great tits are charming I love them

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 30 Jun 19 - 05:43 PM

What on earth is happening in the Channel Islands?

What do you call one hundred feral chickens?

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 01 Jul 19 - 05:20 PM

These are nouns for other breeds of bird.
What would work for marauding feral chickens on the island of Jersey?

aerie
ascension
band
bevy
bouquet
brace
brood
building
bury
cast
chain
charm
chattering
clamor
clutch
colony
company
congregation
conspirancy
convocation
cote
cover
covey
crèche
deceit
descent
dissimulation
dole
dule
episode
exaltation
fall
flight
flock
flush
gaggle
hedge
herd
host
huddle
kettle
lamentation
mob
murder
murmuration
muster
mustering
nest
nide
nye
ostentation
pack
paddling
parcel
parliament
party
peep
piteousness
pitying
plump
raft
rafter
rookery
scold
sedge
siege
skein
sord
spring
storytelling
team
tidings
unkindness
volery
wake
walk
watch
wedge
wing
wisdom
wisp

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 01 Jul 19 - 05:21 PM

. . . but then, I am partial to this quote
from Theodore Roethke's poem, Root Cellar:

"And what a congress of stinks!"

which might be what the homeowner says
after the feral chickens in their hundreds
walk across the front lawn ...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 04 Jul 19 - 02:45 PM

miser, miser,
modo niger
et ustus fortiter .....

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 21 Jul 19 - 09:44 PM

reprise of

o where, o where, have the Mad Swans ...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 18 Aug 19 - 03:05 PM

Senoufou sent me an update.
I can barely credit my eyes.

The Mad Swans, after all these years,
have altered their ways.
They are still alive,
and their little what-d'yer-call-it of cygnets
is thriving.

And they stay AWAY from the route to that lake/pond/river
miles from their nest.
No more royal progress down the main thoroughfare.
But they returned to the same nest as before.

wonders never cease ...

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 08 May 20 - 11:49 AM

how's the birdwatching going across the pond?

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 08 May 20 - 12:33 PM

Well those silly swans are doing it again! This time they have EIGHT cygnets and lead them up the village street every morning, 'dad' in front and 'mum' at the back while all the poor babies struggle along in an orderly line.
My neighbour owns 'The Pit' (a gravel pit filled with water on her land) and she told me a nasty male swan has decided to live there. He's been attacking the family, and 'dad' and he have had a terrible fight. She's tried to chase the squatter away, but it can be a bit dangerous provoking a large cob swan.
Our lovely house martins are back from Africa and are building mud nests in everybody's eaves. And the huge kites (a pair, with a third 'hanger-on') soar above the village every evening.
I do so love it here!

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Mrrzy
Date: 08 May 20 - 01:41 PM

Ah, yes, the wonderful O, where I learned about the cob and the cos.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 08 May 20 - 03:29 PM

Two male swans? Swans are infamous for being territorial.
Sounds like serious problems.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 08 May 20 - 04:07 PM

Yes keberoxu, and my neighbour reckons one might kill the other.
Her family for many generations back have owned the land there, and she says there have always been swans, and many fierce power-struggles for territory among the cobs. They fight to the death, sadly.
She always carries a large stick when she's out in the fields, in case a heifer, bullock or swan comes at her!
Personally, I think the rogue swan may be a grown-up son of the present cob. They often challenge their father for territory.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: keberoxu
Date: 10 May 20 - 11:07 AM

What about the other birdies out there?

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: gillymor
Date: 10 May 20 - 12:05 PM

I've been watching a pair of black necked stilts that are nesting near a local pond and am hoping to see some little ones running about soon. Stilts are not a real common sight here in SWFL.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Donuel
Date: 10 May 20 - 02:49 PM

Hummingbird

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Donuel
Date: 11 May 20 - 10:24 AM

oops, the picture link changes daily.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Senoufou
Date: 11 May 20 - 11:44 AM

Well now it's bees! Many people in our village keep bees, and some have several hives. Due to the unseasonably hot weather, there have been literally dozens of swarms zooming over our heads. One swarm clung to a tree in someone's garden, and it was two metres long! The lady tracked them down and she and her daughter managed to get the whole thing into a sack.
On our Village Facebook, there are many helpful reports of swarm sightings, and successful taking of swarms.
Our village honey is absolutely gorgeous.

Subject: RE: BS: Mad Swans, blue tits, and others
From: Donuel
Date: 11 May 20 - 02:38 PM

We have such a bee shortage in the US we have to send trucks full of the same bees from farm to farm.