Nice to see these two guys in my garden !

[Jenx]

Bullfinches, I think ...
I'm no great photographer - just glad to have had the chance to record them, 5 minutes or so ago 8) 8)

 

[tekno.mage]

Those are goldfinches, Jenx.

tekno.mage

 

[wizer]

nice pair of ****.... oh er finches. :roll:

 

[Harbo]

Yes definitely Goldfinches I have a family which visit frequently my Niger seed feeder. (Goldfinches have a narrow vertical beak for teasing out Teasel seeds - the feeder has narrow vertical slots which the other birds cannot get through).

Bullfiches are a bit bigger and the male has a bright red chest - very distinctive.

Rod

Two guys in my garden were a pair of rats (now deceased!) - they climb up a tree and onto my high level bird table!

 

[Jenx]

Ah GOLDfinches ! thanks ! ... :lol: :lol: :lol:
Great colours on them... there's green ones coming too, which I guess are probably greenfinches..

Nice to see them around.

Maybe the right Bullfinch will come yet ... he's the Red on,... ok ! I understand now ! thanks !
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[tekno.mage]

Ah GOLDfinches ! thanks ! ... :lol: :lol: :lol:
Great colours on them... there's green ones coming too, which I guess are probably greenfinches..

Nice to see them around.

Maybe the right Bullfinch will come yet ... he's the Red on,... ok ! I understand now ! thanks !
:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

What size are the green ones? If they are bigger than the goldfinches then they are probably greenfinches - greenish birds with pale beaks and pink legs/feet. Like this:

If they are a similar size to the goldfinches they may well be siskins - which also feed on thistle/niger seed as eagerly as goldfinches. If they are siskins, the males are a slightly brighter green/yellow colour and the females more a kind of greeny grey.

Male Siskin

Female Siskin

Taking pics of the garden birds is one of the things I do when not wood-turning

tekno.mage

 

[Jenx]

Having read your last post TM ... I would say SISKIN. The ones coming in are smaller than the Goldfinches... not by a huge amount, but noticeably smaller ... I'd say maybe in the overall height by possibly 1 inch ? would that sound right ?

By the photos you have... I'd put them down as the siskin, when comparing. I'll see if I can get a photo !... then you can maybe tell me for sure !

Excellent... thanks for the pointers ! I will try and get a pic of them 'together' if they'll co=operate !!

8) 8) 8) 8)

 

[Calpol]

We just started putting out seeds a couple of weeks ago and the amount of birds is immense. There's about (give or take) 25 Siskins, 4 Greenfinches, 4 Goldfinches and a million Chaffinches. There was a Bullfinch out the back the other day but I think there are two that fly around... They like Sunflower Hearts as well Jenx, the Siskins blitz them.

And now poxy pigeons are appearing

Oh, and some wagtails

Will try for some photos as well though, they're getting very tame...

 

[Harbo]

Greenfinches are bigger (and green) with a yellow flash on the male's wings.

Rod

 

[Digit]

And now poxy pigeons are appearing

Just wait till the Grey Squirrels find out!
I hung a feeder on a tree using string, 'that'll beat the little beggars!'
I thought!
I actually watched a Grey pull the damn feeder up hand over hand!

Roy.

 

[devonwoody]

And now poxy pigeons are appearing

Just wait till the Grey Squirrels find out!
I hung a feeder on a tree using string, 'that'll beat the little beggars!'
I thought!
I actually watched a Grey pull the damn feeder up hand over hand!

Roy.

They chew through electric cable here in Devon, saves them climbing up the tree again

Or come and knock on the conservatory window for there feed.

 

[Calpol]

There are grey squirrels here, three at least and they've already wrecked one of the feeders! I just put a tray of seeds and nuts out so they go there instead. Not ideal but they're good for photographs :lol:

 

[Harbo]

Grey Squirrels are supposed to make good eating?

The chap who made his home in his woodland on Grand Designs eats them regularly - BBQ on his charcoal.

Rod

 

[devonwoody]

There are some odd bods on Grand Design.

 

[BigShot]

Jenx
I've got a pair of binoculars on the kitchen window, a spotting scope on a tripod in the living room and this book to refer to.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Birds-Larousse- ... 17&sr=11-1

I'm sure there are more complete tomes out there, but for something that serves just as well in the pocket on a walk as it does ready to use in case something I don't recognise flies in for the feeders I couldn't ask for more.

Once or twice I've not been able to find what I was seeing but it does the job most of the time (and for the record, I've found all the birds mentioned on this thread so far in there).




On the subject of Pigeons...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/datab ... 3658.shtml
There's a starter (well, a main actually) for you.
You may want to try something from this search...
http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q= ... =&aq=f&oq=
There's always the trusty air rifle of course. More humane if you're accurate.

On a less brutal note, we've got some wood pigeons nesting nearby and despite the negative view a lot of people have of them, I love the things. One fell down our chimney recently and after removing the gas fire to get to it we checked it wasn't injured and chucked it back into the garden. Lovely looking things if you ask me. If it falls down again though - I'm liable to eat the pipper.


On the subject of grey squirrels...
Not only are they reported to be great eating (I've yet to get around to persuading one of the many that have the run of the gardens around here to hop into my pot) but the more people eat them, the better chance our endangered, native reds have of surviving (and indeed thriving and repopulating the island) so good on two counts.

That said, the ingenuity of the little pests never ceases to amaze me. I laughed out loud at Roy's report of a grey pulling a feeder up hand over hand. Classic grey squirrel. Brilliant.


Try putting your feeders on the washing line. I put a suet ball cage and a seed feeder up during the winter and now just the seeds, and in all this time the squirrels have not managed to get to them. You might get the odd spot of bird poo on the washing once in a while but that's rare, the washing usually keeps them away from the feeder in my experience.


Nice thread.
Apologies if anyone's upset by the trapping/eating links, I do tend to be rather pragmatic about food. Someone I know ran over a rabbit (unavoidable) last night, one of the first things I thought when I heard was "what a shame they couldn't stop and pick it up, that'd have been great for the pot". Always a shame when things like that happen, but nicer when they don't go to waste.

 

[Jenx]

Cheers Bigshot ! thats great !


And thats a cracking squirrel Calpol ... great photo !

I believe Hugh Fernley Whittingstall eats the odd squirrel ....
cant say I'd do that myself !... :lol:
Up here, we have mostly the red ones, except in the parks in town, where its greys.
I remember when I was in Toronto... they had BLACK ones, and about twice the size of our squirrels ! 8) 8) 8)

 

[Calpol]

Did they not say on Grand Designs it is legal to shoot grey squirrels? I don't dislike them that much though, infact I quite like them but they are a bit annoying

I think the black squirrels now taking on the greys is there not? Also white chaps in Edinburgh which I'd love to see...

Agree with Bigshot though, the reds are our squirrels and they should get priority. I've only ever seen one at Cawdor Castle but they are beauties

 

[BigShot]

Jenx
I do like HughFW but I have to say... saying he eats something is no way to get me to eat it - some of the muck he eats makes me feel ill. (I'm sure it's a delicacy Hugh, just don't put any on my plate.)

Reds? Lucky you. I've not seen a red in a long time (gutted the pox broke out at Formby - there used to be loads of reds there, the population is right down now though).


Calpol
It's totally legal to trap and shoot greys, in fact, it is illegal to release a grey into the wild (if I recall correctly). They are a pest species, a threat to the reds (along with habitat loss greys are the main reason the red is in decline) and do a huge amount of damage to other native wildlife including trees and songbirds. (The grey squirrel raids songbird nests for eggs and fledglings.)

Caveats apply to the shooting and trapping bit... If using an air rifle it must be powered below 12 ft/lbs or you need a firearms certificate. Whether trapping or shooting you MUST have permission of the landowner. Other laws apply to so if anyone decides to try it after reading this thread, read further first.

In your own back garden though, trap and shoot away. Just do what you can to avoid non-target species. I may not like cats, but I'd hate to see one of my neighbours' moggies caught in a snare and would hate to have to get one out of a cage too.


The black squirrels we are seeing in the South of England now are, I think, a genetic mutation from the greys. Very aggressive, damaging to the grey populations in those areas, but I dread to think what they would do to the reds if their territory ever reached that far north.
I'm fairly sure they are also seen as an invasive pest species.
They may be taking on the reds, but they are no saviour.

Save Squirrel Nutkin!
Eat a grey!

:twisted:

 

[Calpol]

trap and shoot away

:lol:

I don't think we've ever had reds here so they aren't a problem there... Didn't know they ate eggs and fledglings though :?

On a brighter note though there was a pine marten about not long ago thay probably got a couple of them

 

[EddieJ]

As the thread had gone from birds to squirrels, I hope that you don't mind me also adding these shots that I've taken of Humming bird Hawk moths

Considering that they were taken with just a simple point and shoot camera, I'm quite pleased with the results