I'd gathered some garden photos for Olive's daughter to show the potential birdlife that could be seen in her garden if she put up feeders, and kept the mad Spaniel indoors. She'd kindly given me a sack of mixed seed for Christmas.
These are the photos from earlier in the year, and I've detailed as much as I remember about breeding success. The numbers were down on previous years, but I hope that's because everyone this year was providing food and enjoying the birds in their gardens, and spreading the birds around more.
The highlight and a first for the garden was a Jay. I'd seen it fly over and one morning Olive saw it in the garden. Only a few days later we sat in the garden and watched it return to a feeder, then it fed on the ground. It could clearly see us but continued as it would have chicks to feed, probably in the West Woods of Ethie.
Cat Scarer Collage, click here for trail camera video how I was confident the cats didn't succeed in the garden
Cat Scarer Collage, click here for trail camera video how I was confident the cats didn't succeed in the garden
Cat Scarer, does what it says on the box, click here the cats learned not to cross the garden hose
Young Blackbird, not many appeared in my garden this year, no broods, just a few individuals that didn't stay. Perhaps the local cats got them, but not in my garden, the cat scarer worked a treat, again
Blue Tit, they didn't appear to do well either, I recall two broods of two birds each
Chaffinch, we never see many fledged birds and this year I can't remember any
Coal Tits are still coming in most days despite the Sparrowhawks. They generally disappear to breed and return in late summer
I believe one Dunnock managed to get two youngsters fledged and later another two appeared, maybe a second brood?
Despite Olive's best efforts in feeding Goldfinches they were few and far between
Some of the winter Greenfinches hung on into spring but disappeared to breed, and have only returned in the last month in any numbers, six is the current max
House Sparrows, this years puzzle. We usually have up to five nests in the roofs of both houses, this year none. I can only assume the male Sparrowhawk that spent the winter here, sometimes roosting in the garden, put the Sparrows off
The theme continued with the Robins, I only saw two young birds and they didn't stay long
An unexpected and fleeting visit by this male Siskin, possibly it had strayed from some woods at the end of the road
Even the Starling numbers were lower this year, I hope it's because many more people were feeding birds in their gardens. There certainly was a high demand for bird foods and consequently the prices went up and stayed up
Good news for our Tree Sparrows, they kept the numbers from previous years and we had a succession of different aged youngsters over a long period
Only three Yellowhammers stayed around in early spring, and the weather lately hasn't forced any to return, yet