Where have all our garden birds gone?

[PhilJ W]

It wouldn't be that difficult to rebrand one of the many A4 models as LNER 4463 (later 18) or BR 60018.

 

Noting that the name was "SPARROW HAWK" (two words).

I meant the avian variety. There does not seem to be any raptors modelled in any scale.

[EddieB]

After those last posts, perhaps time for something "on topic".

 

Maybe not quite the variety in an Essex/London border garden, but enough to notice a few trends. There has been a severe decline in the house sparrow population, and they are occasional visitors only (but showing a slight increase). Likewise starling numbers fell, but seem to be recovering.

 

Overall numbers are slightly down. Goldfinches are getting through the content of a nijer seed feeder about every two days (Paul is right about the level of scatter). GS Woodies seem to prefer peanut hanger to fat-filled coconut.

 

Chaffinches seem to have increased, greenfinches visit occasionally. Numbers of tits, dunnocks and thrushes fairly consistent.

 

Biggest decline seems to be with bullfinches. Never high numbers, but used to be a pest at blossom time. Haven't seen one for over three years locally.

 

 

[Stormbringer]

One bird I haven't seen this year is the feral ring necked parakeet. Living in central Herts my assumption was that these were occasional wanderers from the flocks in the West London area. Did the cold of late 2010 significantly reduce their numbers

 

 

 

They are still about, I saw a few in Stanmore Middlesex recently while loading a container. I've seen them in Ramsgate and Sandwich too.

 

Pete

[hmrspaul]

 

 

Just wish we saw goldfinches regularly in our garden. There's a charm of them to be seen regularly not 200 yards away, but for some reason our garden is not on their beat.

 

Do you have a feeder devoted to niger seed? It is feeding this which has helped build such healthy populations - they have very short lives, and migrate, but they seem to know of our Niger seed feeder from way away.

 

Paul Bartlett

[DDolfelin]

Three blue tits and a song thrush this morning.

Things are looking up!

[Fat Controller]

One bird I haven't seen this year is the feral ring necked parakeet. Living in central Herts my assumption was that these were occasional wanderers from the flocks in the West London area. Did the cold of late 2010 significantly reduce their numbers

 

 

 

They are still about, I saw a few in Stanmore Middlesex recently while loading a container. I've seen them in Ramsgate and Sandwich too.

 

Pete

There are an awful lot of parakeets that seem to roost in Margate Cemetery- when we go to put a wreath on father-in-law's grave at dusk at this time of year, they seem to outnumber all the other birds. When I saw them first, I wasn't aware of their presence, and was a bit taken aback.

[The Stationmaster]

Two bluetits yesterday afternoon - and two bullfinches have just finished on the sunflower hearts.

[Kris]

Small birds seen in the last couple of days in a single tree just out side of one window.

Quite a few blue, great and coal tits about along with an occasional long tailed tit. Sparrows and Dunnocks are also common. There have also been 3 or 4 Goldcreasts about.

[DDolfelin]

Found out where all the birds have gone!

 

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/man-finds-dead-bird-in-store-bought-salad-bag.html;_ylt=Au9jpZ0ErocaR6jM0aoG8RoVfcl_;_ylu=X3oDMTQydjZzM2RyBG1pdANUb3BTdG9yeSBPZGRseSBFbm91Z2hTRgRwa2cDODJkMWRhNTYtZjBkNy0zZGNlLWJiODUtNWFhMGQ0MDkwMjdiBHBvcwMxNQRzZWMDdG9wX3N0b3J5BHZlcgNiZmMyMDFiOC0xMDc2LTExZTEtOGE1Mi03OGU3ZDFmNTk5ZjA-;_ylg=X3oDMTIwODU1dmNiBGludGwDZ2IEbGFuZwNlbi1nYgRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANvZGRseS1lbm91Z2gEcHQDc2VjdGlvbnMEdGVzdAM-;_ylv=3

[DDolfelin]

Our birds are back - all the usual suspects.

[hmrspaul]

Our birds are back - all the usual suspects.

Yes, so are ours - the Wood pigeons are back from visiting their country cousins, and the Goldfinches are queueing up (9 Sunday afternoon). Even had a greenfinch drop by, which I rarely see. Both front and back garden Robins are around and there are a lot of Tits. The sparrows never went away and remain the commonest bird. What we don't have in any numbers are starlings.

 

Paul Bartlett

Edited November 21, 2011 by hmrspaul

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

Relating to absence of goldfinches from the garden despite seeing them regularly not far away...

 

Do you have a feeder devoted to niger seed?...

Yes, we have had one on the go some years. Much visited by siskins and long tail tits among others, but the goldfinches generally stay away. However in the 'compensation' column, this morning a pair of goldcrests had a prolonged scramble around our sumach while I stood in plain view three yards away. Whether there is some special insect or something living on sumach I don't know, but of all the garden shrubs at this time of year, this is where goldcrests are most frequently seen.

[BlackRat]

Pair of balckbirds now (same male as last year, got a duff wing), several blue and great tits back, pair of robins and 1 chaffinch!

 

Still no where near last years tally but better than what it was a few months ago.

 

Had to ditch loads of seed, fat balls etc from the feeders as they were either sprouting or going off!!!!!

[10800]

A couple of weeks ago we had half a dozen redwings and a blackbird stuffing themselves on holly berries.

[DDolfelin]

After brief visits by a few tits (including my BiL) the situation has returned to very few birds seen.

 

As we normally have permanent queues for the feeders in daylight hours, this year is remarkable for their absence.

A few blackbirds about but none to speak of.

Strange.

[jonny777]

All our holly berries have gone now, since about 10 redwings descended on the tree for a day.

 

In a mild winter, the numbers of birds visiting garden feeders will be far lower than in a harsh one. Also, the number of people putting quality food out for birds has increased enormously in the last ten years (as can be seen in the amounts on sale in garden centres and pet shops - if it did not sell they would not stock it).

 

I would not worry too much about the lack of birds at feeders every now and again. What is important is the continuity of supply of available food. I know this may seem a little wasteful if peanuts/fat balls/etc slowly deteriorate in a feeder during a damp week (remember to throw them away if they start to discolour), but the important times will come (a) if we get a spell of prolonged frosty weather, and ( b ) during the nesting season when adult birds will remember where there was always food available, and visit your feeders in between feeding babies.

 

If you are fortunate, and have few or no cats in the area, you may find that when the babies fledge - the adults will bring their brood to your garden, install them in adjacent trees and bushes and fetch food that you provide, to satisfy the insatiable appetite of the juveniles. This will mean that your garden and the surrounding area will be imprinted early in the brains of the young birds, and is likely to mean they will come to rely on your feeders/bird table too.

 

It requires a little patience and an eye for when to increase food and when to cut back. I find that on windy days (irrespective of temperature) the number of bird visits increases. I put this down to the wind chill effect on their metabolism, as even though they have insulating feathers - they are not so efficient in a gale as in calm conditions.

 

My only surprise here in Somerset, is that I have not seen a blackcap in the garden this winter, for the first time in about 15 years.

Edited January 18, 2012 by jonny777

[The Stationmaster]

Quite a few visits by finches (various) although not daily and 3-4 nluetits seem to be regulars. We have a couple of pairs of blackbirds which come and go although they, helpfully, ground feed and clear up some of the stuff the others have dropped. There are also a couple robins who appear several times a week in the garden but show little interest in the feeders.

 

Apart from those its the regular visits from the doves and pigeons plus an occasional starling and the redkites dropping in for luncheon should anything be put out for them (they do a regular circuit of the neighbourhood in any case).

[Tony_S]

Pigeons and starlings mainly. The bird feeders don't seem to be attracting anything. Last year a new cat in the area slaughtered everything else. I haven't seen the cat for a while and noticed a pair of robins and a wren today.

[Downendian]

Birds clearing 4x feeders in two days in Dunstone.

Flocks of bluetits, great tits and sparrows, greenfinches (although much less than the summer) a solitary nuthatch and even a lesser spotted woodpecker. Dunnocks, Chaffinches and Robins picking up the spoils on the ground. Even had a female pheasant in the garden picking up dropped sunflower seeds.

Nothing meaningful in Bristol although Redwings have been around.

 

Neil

[Peter Bedding]

I spent last week on Purbeck (sadly no trains to Swanage). The house/self-catering apartment in which I stayed had a large garden with many mature shrubs.

 

Plenty of birdlife, but most unexpected was that each shrub group had a large and noisy colony of house sparrows. Too many to count.

[DDolfelin]

Had lunch with an old friend yesterday.

They live 20 miles away.

Chockablock with feeding birds.

Over thirty goldfinches, nuthatches, plus all the usual suspects.

 

We had a few long tailed tits passing through here.

[melmerby]

The bird feeding habits seemed to be different right now.

A pyracantha bush laden with berries has attracted little attention from the wood pigeons or blackbirds this year, although the birds are still visiting the garden regularly. Same with the feeding station, the birds are around but not taking so much of the provided food.

Is there more natural food available, maybe?

 

Keith

[chris p bacon]

Redwings systematically stripping our holly tree of berries in the front garden, and great tits investigating nestboxes in the back.

 

Numbers are up to normal in the garden and on the feeders, Methinks "Nookie time" approaches.

[bike2steam]

The bird feeding habits seemed to be different right now.

A pyracantha bush laden with berries has attracted little attention from the wood pigeons or blackbirds this year, although the birds are still visiting the garden regularly. Same with the feeding station, the birds are around but not taking so much of the provided food.

Is there more natural food available, maybe?

 

Keith

 

Same here, but it's put down to a very mild winter so far, you can count the number of days we've had frost, since last autumn, on one hand. There again we have a very high population of 'raptors' locally, even as I type this a large mature Buzzard is sitting atop a telegraph pole, by the road outside of our garden.

[JeremyC]

For those interested in our garden birds, this weekend is the RSPB's 'Big Garden Bird Watch'.

 

Jeremy