What have you seen
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A photo of our first apple blossom this year, it's a cider apple that usually flowers a lot later so it's an unusual but welcome sight.
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Nice phot Brue.
We passed the Peregrine breeding area in Plym Woods on our cycle ride. The volunteers had set up telescopes to let people view them so we saw both Male and Female, the latter a young bird who looked great, (many years since I've been allowed to say that
). We also tarried a while and were rewarded with seeing a Kingfisher and a Dipper below us on the pond and the river. If anyone in the area it's worth a visit, easily walked up to from the car park at the bottom of the Drake Cycle and Walkway Trail.
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We're currently staying on a farm CS in Lincolnshire with open countryside views of farmland. In the distance, the farmer has built his own purpose built "owl house" in brick. It looks like a slim three storey town house shape. (Straight walls and pitched roof) with three different levels for the Owls to choose how high they want to live. A barn owl has taken up residence and we saw it last night.......it's the biggest barn owl we've ever seen. It's enormous. It's so big, we could see it without using the binoculars! Hopefully it's very healthy and using the house for the next generation of barn owls. We'll be watching out for it tonight.
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Was chatting about that at home, the owl house sounds very interesting. I'm still waiting for a volunteer to put up a Little Owl box for me, it will involve a relative or friend who doesn't mind heights!
I wonder how tall the owl house is ADD46? Any chance of a photo?
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Wow, what a surprise in the middle of the city today, wish I'd had my camera with me!
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Whilst away just over a week ago we saw 2 Ospreys (no photos too quick) and saw and heard cetti's warblers in the Brenne Regional Park and now back home the Hoopoes and Nightingales have arrived.
Just had nearly 21mm rain overnight done the garden good and more butterflies about had 2 fresh female hummingbird hawkmoths on the lilac yesterday.
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We did well with butterflies in the recent warm weather, counted a Peacock, Red Admiral, Holly Blue, Brimstone, Small White, Orange Tip and a Speckled Wood. Haven't seen so many so often for ages, good conditions and lots of early blossom helped.
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Saw our first flock of House Martins today, about 100 of them, just in from the sea. Also 4 Ducklings, bless.
Op - We've seen Golden Orioles when in the Brenne. More on the periphery of the park. Will have to look up specifics when we get home if you're interested.
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May be more what you have heard rather than seen.
Not heard a single cuckoo for three years! Not heard a nightjar for about five years. Not heard a Nightingale for about ten years. Just heard a thrush, not many of them about these days, are they the next to go?
The RSPB are now releasing a bird song 'record' may be that is all we will have soon to remember the wonderful sounds of our countryside.
So sad, it's about time 'we', governments did something more constructive to stop the decline in habitats and make safe passage for birds across their migration routes.
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you live in the wrong area!We are constantly visited by most species unlike where we used to live where you were very lucky to see even a common sparrow!!!!!!As has been pointed out elsewhere British polution regs are amongst the most strict in the world already!
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There are positives amongst the negatives, Micky. Such as Cetti's Warblers, much more common now. Sparrows are showing signs of bouncing back, certainly if our garden is anything to go by. In a few years time we may well be hearing Bluethroats. Bitterns and Red Kites numbers have increased but...unfortunately there are so many more negatives than positives.
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Peregrines, cranes, red kites, bustards, bittern, ospreys, Eagles (both golden and sea) etc. But it's taken a conserted effort from 'us ' to encourage the return of these wonderful creatures and others, most often fighting against ignorance of others in order to do so. Let's hope hen harriers with our help can also return in appropriate numbers. It's a 'battle' but one worth fighting isn't it?
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If you want to see and hear nightingales then RSPB Pulborough Brooks the place to be. I’ve listened to nightingales with a cuckoo in the background, fantastic sweet music. I’m off to Pulborough towards the end of May.
Two good places to see and hear cuckoos is RSPB Lakenheath, average of 5 and SWT Carlton Marshes photo’d 3 last year.
Agree we need to do more to protect/increase habitats. Carlton Marshes are just starting to covert 1000 acres back to a wetland habitat.
We in the U.K. can and should do more for wildlife but the real problem with the loss of song birds is the millions slaughtered along/in the Mediterranean and that really is down to the EU to enforce existing laws
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Unfortunately these birds were fairly common across the uk but agreed, as part of Europe we need to join forces with those partner organisations abroad who are also fighting for them, as we currently do but even more so in my opinion. After all, they are our birds as much as they are theirs.
Over here we need to enforce laws particularly for raptors in upland areas.
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