Your day's wildlife

[Cubist]

Have I just seen a Shrike? Or if I haven't, what was it?
Larger than a sparrow but slimmer. It's back was light brown, similar colour to a collared dove, with dark brown wing edges. It's throat and breast were a pinkish cream. It had dark eyes, a short black beak, and almost a wrapround sunglasses effect. It had grey feathers over its eyes like eyebrows. The portion of its body between wings and tail was white, and its tail forked as it flew, dark tail feathers parting to show a flash of white. It was in amongst some reed grass in a tussocky bit of rough pasture. I've checked various websites but shrikes are pretty scarce.

I heard it call just once, a cross between a chirp and a gurgle.

Edit. I've checked distribution and we're a bit too far west of its normal passage route, although we've had a week of brisk easterly winds and they could be off course.

 

[nickyboy]

Have I just seen a Shrike? Or if I haven't, what was it?
Larger than a sparrow but slimmer. It's back was light brown, similar colour to a collared dove, with dark brown wing edges. It's throat and breast were a pinkish cream. It had dark eyes, a short black beak, and almost a wrapround sunglasses effect. It had grey feathers over its eyes like eyebrows. The portion of its body between wings and tail was white, and its tail forked as it flew, dark tail feathers parting to show a flash of white. It was in amongst some reed grass in a tussocky bit of rough pasture. I've checked various websites but shrikes are pretty scarce.

I heard it call just once, a cross between a chirp and a gurgle.

Edit. I've checked distribution and we're a bit too far west of its normal passage route, although we've had a week of brisk easterly winds and they could be off course.

Description sounds good for Red Backed Shrike. The first of the year was seen last week in UK so it's not impossible. It's very rare where we live so the County bird recorder would be very interested I'm sure

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

Meanwhile, in other news, a family of great tits has forced a French polling booth to change its entrance by nesting in the old post box. The nid won't affect the ni-ni vote....

 

[Cubist]

Description sounds good for Red Backed Shrike. The first of the year was seen last week in UK so it's not impossible. It's very rare where we live so the County bird recorder would be very interested I'm sure

View attachment 351299

There's something bugging me. I think those colours are wrong....... Not as much contrast, and the back was more a beige than a dark brown. Bugger. Off to have another browse.

 

[Crackle]

Brown bird, yellow arse, long tail, looked like it was chasing flies on the bowling green?

 

[Cubist]

Description sounds good for Red Backed Shrike. The first of the year was seen last week in UK so it's not impossible. It's very rare where we live so the County bird recorder would be very interested I'm sure

View attachment 351299

Got it. There were two of them, and I'm pretty sure they were wheatears.
Scroll down this page for some photos of the male. The female was less contrasted, but I'm certain that's what they were.
http://www.stephenburch.com/oxonpics/spring07.htm

 

[annedonnelly]

Got it. There were two of them, and I'm pretty sure they were wheatears.
Scroll down this page for some photos of the male. The female was less contrasted, but I'm certain that's what they were.
http://www.stephenburch.com/oxonpics/spring07.htm

Having read your description above I was just about to suggest Wheatear. The name comes from the white a**e that you mentioned seeing when it flew. Stunning little birds.

 

[Cubist]

Having read your description above I was just about to suggest Wheatear. The name comes from the white a**e that you mentioned seeing when it flew. Stunning little birds.

The female was more subtle than the male, but the yellow/pink/cream blush on her throat was captivating. I'd never seen one, obviously, but was thrilled by the chance. She can't have been more than ten feet from me at one point, and the detail through the binos was a treat.

 

[Maverick Goose]

Lots of Orange Tip butterflies and Speckled Woods around the Sawreys.

 

[potsy]

Baby dunnock (I think) came for a drink this morning

 

[Dave 123]

We've been taking out the tulips this morning. We have a little helper. She's very keen, but isn't a tidy worker

 

[keithmac]

Went to caravan storage site today and this little family wandered over.

Very tame and I couldn't believe they came over to say hello!.

 

[annedonnelly]

Baby dunnock (I think) came for a drink this morning

View attachment 351436

Is that one of those lightweight plastic birdbaths? Is the stone to weigh it down? My ceramic/terracotta bird bath is falling apart but I have only seen plastic ones to replace it and I think they'd blow away.

 

[potsy]

Is that one of those lightweight plastic birdbaths? Is the stone to weigh it down? My ceramic/terracotta bird bath is falling apart but I have only seen plastic ones to replace it and I think they'd blow away.

It is lightweight but you can add sand/gravel to the base to weigh it down.

The stone is for the little birds to stand on as it is quite deep for them, but perfect around it for the bigger birds.

 

[annedonnelly]

It is lightweight but you can add sand/gravel to the base to weigh it down.

The stone is for the little birds to stand on as it is quite deep for them, but perfect around it for the bigger birds.

Thanks, I'll look out for something like that when I'm forced to replace mine. At the minute the bath water is almost as important as the food