Bird Table Visitors

Yesterday I set up the IR detector next to the bird table with the camera indoors to see how well the setup would work. As the sensor could 'see' through the table it would also respond to other birds at the feeders but did catch quite a few comings and goings. Nothing out of the ordinary but it was great to see  a Greenfinch family visit as their numbers were drastically reduced by finch disease last year.





How small the Coal Tit is when seen next to a young House Sparrow



Blue Tit



A slide show  of some of the visitors (came out darker than the original file when YouTube processed it)



It didn't take long for the birds to get used to the detector being close to the table.



As the photos were taken through double glazing the originals were rather grey so  they were batch processed using Paintshop Pro - another first for me.

A Fuzzy Photo

This is just by way of a record shot. A few days ago I spotted Common Darter dragonflies laying eggs in the garden pond. I took a lot of photos but not one in focus! I dashed in to get the camcorder but by the time I got back they had separated. This is the first time I have seen dragons lay eggs in my pond.



Since the weather changed to cooler wet days the activity at the bird feeders has been frantic. A pair of Goldfinches regularly  bring their three offspring and I spotted at least one juvenile Greenfinch. House Sparrows arrive by the dozen, up to seventeen at a time, as do the Starlings. Blue, Coal and Great Tits are regulars again along with Chaffinches. And yes, the chattering Magpie still visits, often calling another to join it.

Juvenile Goldfinches

It was about five weeks ago I saw a juvenile Goldfinch at the Nyjer seed feeder so I was pleasantly surprised to see a couple of juveniles this week. They were with an adult and were obviously new to the idea of using feeders as they first tried the peanuts and then the mixed seed feeder before finding the correct seeds.

Adult at the top and juvenile beneath.


The juveniles always look plumper than the sleek adults and are missing the red to the top of the head.


I thought to myself they were a bit on the late side producing their offspring but as seed eaters I suppose this is just the right time for them to find plenty of natural seeds from thistles and teasels.

This is more in the way of an experiment. It is the first time I have used Picasa to make a slideshow. This is a batch of the photos taken a couple of days ago with the IR detector setup triggering the 350D monitoring the pond waterfall.

Visitors to the Pond Waterfall 2 (Heath Robinson Strikes Again)

A chance comment from Adrian about having some sort of Infra Red detector to fire a camera got me thinking. First I spent some time searching to see if such a thing was made. Probably there is but I couldn't find one so the Heath Robinson in me had another one of those rare flashes of inspiration. Would a passive IR sensor as used for burglar alarms be any use? I had an old one kicking about so set about working out how to couple it to the camera. To cut the story short I got the IR detector to work a small relay which operates a cheap wireless camera remote control, all operated from a 12V battery.

Now the camera could be one end of the pond and the detector the other end near the pond waterfall.
 

But - would the IR detector work in Sunlight? Well yes, as long as the Sun doesn't shine directly on the front of it. There are some spurious shots as it detects changes in temperature when the sunlight varies with shadows but it does seem to detect birds moving on the waterfall.

Sparrows, a Starling and a Blue Tit enjoying a bathe.



Blue Tit having a good soak.



Splash it all over



A Wren came for a drink



I'm pretty sure this is the Wren taking off as it was taken soon after the previous photo.



All in all I am quite pleased with the results. The set up was in place from about 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.. The camera was triggered about 300 times, many of which have no bird in sight but about  40 did, usually sparrows. Most of the bathing activity was between 3.30 and 5.30 p.m. so I now know when to watch out for visitors.

This is the detector, before I put the cover back on the IR unit.

Passive IR detector taking up most of the space. Below that the relay circuit board and on the left hand side the radio transmitter. The receiver can be seen on top of the 350D in the first photo.

The system is not perfect. I am sure it misses some activity as it is difficult for the detector to pick out changes in IR heat in sunlight but it does give an opportunity to see some of the activity at the pond waterfall and see which birds make use of it.

Friday at the Flicks (Ladybird, Noisy Magpie, Magpie V Collared Dove)

I couldn't resist taking a short piece of video as this 7 spot ladybird scurried about looking for food.



A few days ago a juvenile Magpie was making its mind up whether to visit the suet ball feeder. As usual it was either calling or just chattering away to itself.



Not very sharp as a spider keeps building a web in front of this video camera but it was interesting to watch the actions of a juvenile Magpie and a Collared Dove as they sorted out who was master of the ground feeder.Love to watch the dove puff itself up to look larger. The doves and pigeons are not very good at sharing unlike many other bird species which visit the garden.



Have a great weekend observing the wildlife around you.

Juvenile Magpie

A juvenile Magpie is still a regular visitor on and off during each day. I don't have to see it to know it is there. The harsh cackle it makes most of the time lets me know it is about. A few times I have seen it feeding on the suet ball feeder and this morning was the first time I managed to get a few shots of it before it noticed me.





A couple of mornings I have spotted an adult with three juveniles.  Possibly they take it in turns to visit or it may be that one has decided this is its favourite feeding spot.

Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly

This one was spotted last Saturday morning warming itself in the early morning sunshine.


 Aglais urticae

Bit of an allsorts day yesterday, weather-wise. At one stage it was pouring with rain but the front garden was bathed in brilliant sunshine while a few miles to the south I could hear a thunderstorm. Here we had about 3/4 inch of rain but looking at the met office maps during the day we were lucky as much heavier rainfall was shown in most of the surrounding areas.

On the Hedgehog front I am puzzled as to what has happened to the locals. Not one has been seen in the feeding area for the past 7 nights. The activity had started to pick up after a short lull and then suddenly stopped.