BIRD NEWS:643

 

Goldfinches just love sunflower hearts!! They do eat a few nyger seed too, but not many in comparison. I wonder how long the babes will feed at my feeder pole cafe for?

This blue tit was munching grubs - assumedly - from my son's underwear, hung on the washing line! Just shows what can climb on your 'clean' washing overnight.

During my period of 11.5 days covid isolation, I did this and that about the house, poly tunnel and yard - one thing I did was to clean up the patch behind the frog pond. I have ideas for what I want to plant there, but for now, it offers a bleak died-mud experience. The robin followed me about as I pulled out nettle and bramble, but then.....

One day in September, I looked out of my kitchen window and spotted a gray heron standing on the fence, looking into my pond. Soon after, before I could return with my camera, it had flown to a neighboring rooftop, however. In my second attempt to capture it on the camera, I managed to get a pigeon in shot too!

I took a solo ramble up our local hill, mainly to observe the newly renovated gardens. Additionally, I took a picture of this skylark - along with some information - on a NT board.

Back home, and we now have a family of around 7-8 goldfinches that visit and daily empty the sunflower heart feeder tube, along with munching the odd nyjer seed. 3-4 blue tits also come down daily to enjoy the peanuts and fat balls - and one day late in the month of September, I spotted a greenfinch joining in the cafe indulgences.

There is somebody in the tree watching me - a blackbird!!!!!

BIRD NEWS:642

My first couple of pictures are from the budgy aviary at Priory Park Chichester.

Liz & I had plans for the upcoming fortnight - annual leave for me - but alas, the day prior to the start of these hols that I had looked forward to so much, I rec'd notification that I had to self isolate, as one of our drivers was down with Covid.

I was not too happy, as my 15 days of ability to get out some place every single day for a walk - locally &/or with Liz - vanished. It morphed into being stuck at home for at least half my time-out from work.

Somebody had come to visit my bedroom window by the looks of the oil waxing marks...

I had other visitors at home of course - an entire family of goldfinches decided to seed-snack at my pole-cafe.

Beautiful as they are, it is not the same as a 2-8 hour day out with Liz, complete with coffee, hiking, nature seeing, and perfect companionship.

The family kept visiting during my isolation period, thankfully, because part way in I was told I actually had Covid and had to extend the duration of my isoltaion period to cover all but 4 day of my 15 days annual leave.

The goldfinches ave stayed with me right thru - now coming down to empty the sunflower heart feeder thruout the day daily. There are around 6-8 of them - but that's not all I have seen. In this shot, one of our starlings is present. Liz spotted about 60 of them in a flock up on the roof and round about....the flock split into 2 groups. So we have a fairly large gang of starlings about.