Drenched + Hanging on by a Claw

Walkies this morning was a time for both of us to put on our waterproofs. At least we could do that. The poor old birds really did look a sorry sight as they went about the daily business of feeding themselves and gathering enough to feed the kids back home.



The only one looking reasonably dry was the juvenile Blackbird who seems to have adopted my garden as a source of easy food. It spends most of the time under an old wooden garden seat next to the feeders and pops out to pick up a morsel and then back under cover.

From MIDMARSH JOTTINGS

It is a while since a certain visitor came to the feeders.
Recognise this tail? I bet you guessed who the owner is.



Squirrel Nutkins, of course. I was once again marvelling just how tenuous its hold is when reaching for food. Those claws on the back legs must dig in well accompanied by good strong muscles to support the weight.



A piece of video I took last year as SN raided a peanut feeder with those back claws just hooked over the edge of the slate cover.



At last the Sun is poking through the clouds, just as well as the pond has been toppped up nicely but is very near overflowing now.

Last night when I went to put out a bit of food for the Hedgehogs the smaller one was already there on the paved area so I gently scattered the little bits of peanut. Little hog stayed for a short while making quite peeping noises but eventually ran and hid. It was soon back for its supper (breakfast really) once I had gone back indoors.

Juvenile Greenfinch and Intelligent Rook

Firstly updates - the juvenile Blackbird I saw in the garden yesterday is back again today so it must have found somewhere safe to spend the night. At least one Hedgehog continues to visit each night.

Today I had a juvenile Greenfinch in the garden. It seemed to be feeding itself quite happily from a dandelion which had gone to seed. Also it spent a short while finding scattered seed on the lawn.



From time to time I have found one of the fat ball feeders on the ground. Today was the first time I have managed to see who is responsible. Fortunately I had the camcorder set up in the kitchen and was able to film the action. This Rook has obviously learned that it is a lot easier to get at the fat balls when they are on the ground rather than having to balance on a thin metal bracket. The first section is slowed down to make it easier to see how the bird goes about unhooking the feeder. The picture is a bit grey as the light was reflecting off the kitchen window in that direction.



Who knows what they will get up to next.

Juvenile Blackbird

When I went out to the shed for the first time today I spotted a bird I had not seen before. Such a beautiful orangey brown chest and back. I though it was a type of thrush with the speckles on its chest. Then, having noticed the black tail I began to think it might be a juvenile Blackbird. I had to look it up to make sure. It appears healthy and well developed and has been feeding on the food scattered by the Starlings aggressive feeding on the bird feeders. It has been easy to get within about ten feet though it will fly out of sight if I get too close but it soon comes back. The bird has been in the garden all day and I hope it can find a safe place to roost tonight.






A couple of times the youngster tried to get Starlings which had food in their beaks to feed it. Needless to say they didn't really think that was a good idea. Throughout the day there have been several adult Blackbirds visit the garden but none have made any attempt to feed the youngster but it does appear to be able to feed itself without any problem.

The male Blackbirds have been scooping up seeds from the lawn so they are still feeding young somewhere.



How do they pick up so many seeds without losing the first ones?

From MIDMARSH JOTTINGS

Here's hoping that the juvenile finds a suitable roost for the night and we shall see whether it is in the garden again tomorrow.

Loads a Birds

Yesterday must have been a record here for a Starling invasion. At one stage fifteen of them descended on the feeders within a couple of seconds. At least that was the number I definitely counted, there may have been one or two more.

Today at one stage half the lawn looked as though it had turned into a low level Rookery. Actually it was a mixture of Rooks and Jackdaws which often arrive and feed together, There were too many to get in one photograph.



Every now and then a couple of Rooks would get too close together and there would be a short altercation. Nothing nasty, just a flapping of wings and opening of beaks.



At one stage a Collared Dove decided that it was economical to drink and paddle at the same time.



Off and on during the day I got short snippets of various birds at the feeders. There is a health warning with this video - the wind was so strong the feeders were blowing all over the place and you may suffer from sea sickness. The sound track is general local bird song recorded a while ago. This is really an experiment while I learn my way round the software.



During our afternoon walk a few of the sheep and lambs were very close to the fence at the end of the cricket field so I managed to get a couple of shots with the camera in the mobile phone. It was too cold in the very strong wind which felt as though it was blowing straight off the North Sea to take the DSLR.

The lambs are growing fast and are now past the cute 'Aw' stage. The sheep was completely unruffled though it did keep a close eye on Bobby.



Finally a short clip from Hoggy Cam of the Hedgehog's final visit last night.



Happy birding to all. John

Blue Tits Exchanging Food - Video

Busy playing with video today. I had ordered an EzCap USB Video Grabber which arrived today. I have tried several capture devices over the past few years and have been disappointed with them all. In fact they were abject failures. What would this one be like? I had seen good user reviews and the suppliers seem to give excellent backup where needed. It imports composite video with stereo sound or SVideo. Output is USB2 including sound so no connection has to be made to the sound card. I bought it from t2direct Ltd.. (Look under Technology and Gadgets)



Instructions were clear. The driver and the software (ArcSoft ShowBiz DVD v2) installed easily and all worked first time. A good start. The software can import to an mpg file or create VCDs or DVDs. Files can be edited and manipulated so it is quite a nice package. The software has shown itself to be slightly flaky but that might be down to operator error. When working it does a good job.

Here are a couple of video files made while I was playing with the software to get used to it.

First an import from my Hitachi DVDCam. This is a little bit I shot this morning and shows one Blue Tit feeding another. They both look like adults to me. If not then the juvenile is well developed for the time of year. The video has been slowed down to one third speed so the action can be seen more easily.



The second bit of video is an import straight from my security camera DVD recorder and is a bit of Hoggy-cam from a couple of nights ago. Previously I had to write it to a memory card and then get the supplied software to extract the one camera I wanted. Then it had to be changed to another format so I could edit it. A real nightmare which took forever. Now - all done in a couple of easy processes in the one piece of software.



This means I will probably be bombarding everyone with lots of video until the novelty wears off! Also it means that I can record Hoggy-cam direct in real time which might improve the quality. We shall see.........

Bobby Investigates

There was only a short appearance by one Hedgehog on hoggy-cam last night. As the days are lengthening so the Hedgehog tends to arrive a bit later each night. When it came to our bedtime I was sure that it had gone elsewhere and that the alternating cycle of 2 then 1 appearing had been broken.

As soon as Bobby was out of the back door he sniffed the air and listened intently. After a few seconds he was off investigating the area under the bird feeders.

From MIDMARSH JOTTINGS

In a very short time he found what he had been seeking and there they were, not one but both Hedgehogs.





I think he was trying to work out which end was the head end, or maybe which end has less spikes. As before the small Hedgehog soon scuttled off at a fair rate of knots and the large one stayed put. So far I have not seen either of them curl up into a ball. Bobby is very good and leaves them alone as soon as he is called away. We toured the front garden as usual and by the time we returned to the back garden both Hedgehogs had disappeared.

A Miner, a Bather and a Hedgehog

I was pottering round the garden this morning checking to see how much the ground was cracking with so little rain when I just happened to spot a hole surrounded by loose earth.



I though to myself - I wonder if I have found the nest site of a miner bee. As it was sunny though cool in the strong breeze I wrapped up well, took a folding chair and the camera and sat and watched. After half an hour I gave up and went for a much needed cuppa. Later I took a tripod and set the camera up and sat in wait. After about five minutes I noticed a slight movement in the hole. Where I had been expecting to see a bee arriving I got just the opposite. Very cautiously the bee crept out of its hole and then flew off at full speed.



The wait had been worthwhile. Later in the day I spent ages trying to get more photos, preferably of it arriving, but nearly three quarters of an hours watching produced zilch. I had had enough for now. I don't think I would have the patience to become a professional nature photographer.

There is some interesting information about mining bees on the Kendall Bioresearch page dealing with solitary bees. Interesting to find that mining bees do not live very long and that the nest hole is open for only a few short weeks so I was lucky to be able to photograph one in use.

Another reason for taking the chair out was the bee hole was just where I needed to be to watch any birds which used the pond waterfall for bathing. I think my presence put many off the idea but did see a Sparrow come for a drink and a male Blackbird have a bath and then sit for ages in the Sun drying out.

I can just reach ....


I'm going to hide behind this fern ....


Ah. That feels better ....


Last night there was the usual Hedgehog visit - jut one this time. They seem to be alternating. Every night the large one comes but every other night so far it has been joined by the smaller one.
I took some photos of the monitor in the living room so the pictures are not fantastic.



As usual I thought hoggy had gone but when Bobby went out at bedtime he made a beeline down the garden - and yes, there was the Hedgehog. Going through to the front garden I saw the Moon was occasionally being hidden by a line of dark clouds so I though I would try a few shots. I think this is the best of the bunch.