In the first week of Lockdown2 I saw 27 bird species. I saw all of them again this week (except LTTit and Green Woodpecker) but I brought the cumulative list up to 29 with Herring Gull and Rook. It’s not quite like sprng, is it?!
Category: VERY BIRDY: birdwatching and birding nattering
North Northants will fly a Red Kite
This is the propsed logo for the new county of North Northamptonshire from April next year. This is a modified version of one of the logos which was proposed back in the summer. I’m very happy with this and although this wouldn’t have been my preferred option it is an improved version of my second…
Lockdown2 – the first week’s bird list
My Lockdown2 garden bird list is a fairly servicable 27 species, so far. Nothing unusual but the occasional flocks of Redwing, Fieldfare and Skylark make me attentive to what is up in the sky. Here’s my list so far: Woodpigeon Collared Dove Black-headed Gull Common Gull Lesser Black-backed Gull Sparrowhawk Red Kite Buzzard Green Woodpecker…
No Waxwing winter this year
It doesn’t look as though this will be a Waxwing winter as numbers seen around the country so far are very low. And the first indications of an invasion are usually large flocks, by this date, in Shetland, eastern Scotland, the northeast of England and East Anglia. Maybe next year? But after looking at this…
A new lockdown
Depending on where you live, today may mark the start of a new lockdown, but depending on your behaviour, it may not make very much difference to what you actually do. Because of caring duties for two mothers in their 90s our household hasn’t got out much since March and we have got accustomed to…
Birders’ behaviour during the pandemic (so far)
This open-access publication looks at birders’ behaviour across a large number of countries and, surprise surprise, most birders have been affected by a global health pandemic. It’s not just you who didn’t get out so much! The paper rightly suggests that citizen science studies will be affected by recent and ongoing movement restrictions but also…
Songbird Survival looking for a CEO – no conservation knowledge or experience necessary
Here’s an opportunity to earn £50,000+ per annum leading an organisation with 1700 members which is the ‘voice for songbirds’. Membership is £20 per annum and of that almost £10 goes to the research fund. So membership subscriptions seem to fund only a third of the CEO salary at most. According to the Charity Commission…
Birdwatch magazine’s 2020 Birders’ Choice awards
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It’s that time of year when Birdwatch magazine invites its readers and the world (almost the same, surely?) to vote for their Conservation Hero of the Year, Guano Award for Environmental Harm, Book of the Year and a host of other awards. I’ve had a quick look, and some categories I find easy and others…
Waxwings?
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Every few years we have a Waxwing winter when these highly attractive birds turn up in numbers and strip the berries from Rowan trees all over the place and Cotoneaster bushes in Tesco car parks. Waxwings come here in years of Waxwing abundance and berry-scarcity in Scandinavia. They are superb birds and all the more…
My neighbour’s Walnut tree
I slightly covet my neighbour’s Walnut tree but I’m not sure how good the walnuts are. What I do know is that the local Jackdaws love them, as does what appears to be a single Rook. The Jackdaws seem to arrive just after 9am every morning (why then?) and take away individual walnuts in their…