Birds (the feathered variety)

I'm very jealous of those of you with woodpeckers!

Not seen many birds in the garden today, but we have a billion (at least!) frogs in the pond. I frogs

Thrushes are on the RSPB red list as the highest priority and threatened globally - I can't remember the last time I saw one.

Nykie - your woodpecker was probably a greater spotted one (possibly a lesser spotted) - I've seen them round where I live but generally see green woodpeckers. I really love the way they fly, so distinctive!

Saffy Sweety Pea wrote (see)

I was woken up rather early this morning by crows scrapping over the bird feeder

Ditto Saffy and magpies were involved too!  They dispersed when my tired face peered out of my bedroom window.

On a run last year we saw herons and I heard otter calls in the river but my running partner was keen to get on an didn't want to investigate.

I saw a squashed moorhen on my run last week.   Still I see lots of live ones too in the lake near where I live.

I'm going to nip down to the woods today with my binoculars to see if I can spot any great spotted woodpeckers - there are usually a few around.

I love frogs too Saffy... and newts ... and toads.

Morning(ish) all! Heard lots of birds this morning but seen very little (maybe 11 is bird siesta time?). Nothing much of interest today so far, just the usual suspects. Did manage to spot the skylarks but too high up so still no idea what they look like.

Emmy_bug - not particularly knowledgeable but can find my way round the RSPB website well enough!

Bird identification can be quite confusing, as females are often duller in colour than males and juveniles haven't gained their full plumage (EG young robins don't have red fronts).

I was always puzzled as to why some cormorants had white patches until a birder I asked told me it was an old age thing, kinda like white hair.

The blue tits are on the Vision feeder's fat ball as I type - about a metre away.  

Today the female parent woodpecker was on the nut feeder. They are greater spotted woodpeckers; my OH is the bird person so I asked him.

I also saw, on my run today, numerous pheasants, a greenfinch and some MASSIVE crows. (They make a racket, don't they?) Those are the notable ones anyway.

Red Squirrel, the budgie is called Floyd Mayfeather and lives in my house

Good name for a budge Nykie.

The crows around here are getting v cheeky.  They've been eyeing up the Vision feeder with attached fat ball.  It'll collapse if they try to get on it.