Wings on Wednesday - Robin.

Glancing out of the kitchen window this morning I am pretty sure I saw one Robin feeding another. They were right down the bottom of the garden and it was a brief episode. One Robin had taken a seed from the bird table and flew across to the other and appeared to pass it to the other. I have seen this activity once a few years ago, though later in the year. It is part of the bonding routine for Robins where the male will feed the female.

This grainy photo was taken a few days ago. It is always difficult to photograph Robins here as, unlike most, they are very shy or wary and don't stay in view for very long.


Snow can be a hazard to ones health. I had booked Bobby to see the vet yesterday, just for a general check up. Last Saturday night's snow had deposited a drift over 15 inches deep across the middle of my drive so I spent a couple of days digging it out. The result was a clear drive but a ricked back so I couldn't drive and had to cancel his appointment. I see there is the possibility of another 10cm of snow over the coming days. This time it can stay until it melts!

Macro on Monday - Guess What + Fieldfare

No fooling some people - so congratulations and  to Keith, Wilma, Glo, John and Jan who all correctly identified the Comma Butterfly last Monday.

   

On to this week's macro photograph (taken last week)
Guess What:



Fieldfare
I thought it was a year since I last spotted a Fieldfare but searching through my blog it was in fact two years ago when a flock visited the village. (see HERE).  This morning there was a fleeting visit to a tree just past the end of my garden. I tried to will them to come down in my garden but after a short stay they flew off together.

Just a rather grainy record shot of a few of them:


Later on I will have a walk down the lane to where I know there are lots of windfall apples which is what attracted them last time.

Senior Moment
Just to let Adrian know that he is not alone. This morning I searched high and low for my favourite mug I always use for a decent size cuppa. It was only when I looked in the microwave that I found it, full of cold tea left over from last night when I had put it there to reheat.

Snow For Sunday + Sparrowhawk

For once the weather forecasters weren't telling porkies. So often they get it wrong for the coastal part of Lincolnshire. The forecast was for up to four inches of snow arriving after dusk. It started at 6pm and was still going strong when I retired for the night. Along with the snow was a brisk breeze so it was no surprise this morning to wake up to a good layer of snow, mainly around 3 to 4 inches deep. Some areas with just a dusting and others well over a foot deep where it had drifted.

This is Bobby photographed yesterday sporting his padded Winter coat:



The view from my front door this morning:



Just a few of the many birds in the back garden digging in the snow to find the buried seed and suet pellets.



We went for our usual walk round the block this morning. The going was very slow as there were drifts at every entrance to a property where the wind had piled the snow.

It was inevitable that with so many Blackbirds visiting the garden and kicking up such a row as they squabble that it would catch the attention of a Sparrowhawk. I had already seen it make a couple of unsuccessful attempts but on a return visit it managed to catch one:

 

The Moon and a Confrontation.

Last night with a clear sky and the temperature down to -4C I decided it was an ideal time to have another session photographing the Moon. This was the best of the batch:


Canon 50D  400mm 1/500sec f7.1 ISO500 cropped


Earlier, just as the light was beginning to fade, I had topped up the bird feeders and scattered some seed and suet pellets on the ground ready for the early birds the next morning. As has happened in the past a few birds were obviously watching from a nearby vantage point as it wasn't long before some Blackbirds and one lone Starling descended for a late snack. What caught my attention was a confrontation between a Blackbird and the Starling. The Blackbird was scolding the Starling and occasionally running straight towards it trying to scare it away.. The Starling stood bolt upright, still as a statue, not moving until it found an opportunity to grab a suet stick and fly off with it.



It was so funny to watch as the Starling stayed absolutely still even when the Blackbird flew straight at it. Almost good enough for a caption competition.

Friday at the Flicks - Rook - Pheasant - Tree Sparrows - Bug

Although they have been mainly regulars, for once it has been a good week for shooting video of some of my garden visitors. First the lone Rook which perched for a while on top of the bird table. From its general looks I got the impression it was one of last year's brood though I could be wrong. (No sound on this clip)



The Cock Pheasant continues to visit. This was the first time I had seen it drink. It is using my 'nursery' pool which I use to put the frog spawn in until it has developed enough to stand a chance of surviving the fish in the main pond. After drinking it had a quick preen and then wandered across to see what seed had been spilt from one of the feeders.



The Tree Sparrows continue to visit the garden.



We have finally reached some cold weather - nowhere as bad here as the media would have people believe. To see some of the headlines you would think the whole country was covered by Arctic conditions. In face here it dipped below 0C, to -4.5C, last night. First time for ages.  Anyway, like last Winter, there has been an explosion in the number of Blackbirds visiting the garden. Thursday morning I counted fifteen milling about looking for scattered seed.

Finally a bit of experimental video. A few days ago there was a small bug / beetle / weevil / whatever on my kitchen windowsill. It had been there, upside down, for a couple of days and I assumed it was dead. I decided to photograph it before disposing of it but to my surprise, once under the iPhone4 fitted with the cheap microscope (see HERE) I could see its legs were moving. This was a chance for a bit of macro video, first while it was upside down and then to try and follow it when I put it the right way up. The app used was Camera+ which I zoomed in a bit. The resulting files were zoomed in Corel Video Studio Pro 4. The bug was on my Union Flag tea towel and each weave is about 1mm wide so the bug was a little over 4mm long. Needless to say I was delighted with the result which is pretty clear even on full screen.



Have a great weekend observing the wildlife around you, no matter where you are or what the weather.

Crafty Corvid

Last year there was one particular Rook which could unhook the fat ball feeder so it was easier to get at the contents on the ground. Today I spotted this one trying the same thing though it couldn't quite work out how to get past the metal loop which doubles back on itself.

Wings on Wednesday - Rook

Up to a few months ago I used to have regular visits from Rooks  (Corvus frugilegus) so I was quite surprised when I spotted this lone one sat on top of the bird table. At first I though it may have been injured as it wasn't moving much but I guess it was just keeping warm in the cold breeze. They don't usually stay for long and normally beat a hasty retreat if they see me through the kitchen window. It was unusual to see a lone one as Rooks are gregarious birds and normally arrive two or more at a time. Anyway this one stayed put long enough for me to take some portraits and even long enough to set up the video camera to grab a bit of video for Friday.



They are easy to recognise with their black plumage and large pale beaks which often look gnarled or warty. I think this one would have stayed a lot longer but someone nearby started a chain saw and that was its signal to find somewhere else for a peaceful rest. It won't have had far to fly to its roost as there are at least three Rookeries within a half mile radius of my garden.

On the subject of corvids I just spotted a Magpie approaching the garden which was promptly chased away by a Collared Dove. I can't say I have ever seen a Collared Dove behave aggressively like that before now.

The pictures above were put together after I has watched this YouTube video explaining how to use layers in Photoshop Elements to make a multiple picture.