The Hide (chat thread)

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

whyulittle wrote: »

Daily Mail have a pull-out on Top 20 Garden Birds in the paper today.

Not sure how good it is, just saw an ad on TV for it.

You occasionally get people asking for that sort of ID guide on here.

I saw the advert on TV but it gave prominence to a page on great spotted woodpecker. Now, I know we once had them and that there are tentative signs of recolonisation but they wouldn't be in my top 10 when compiling a booklet on Irish birds. It think it's the Mail's UK parentage showing through.:)

Half-cocked

I detected a familiar stench and the bottom of the garden the other day so set a trail camera, sure enough a fox appeared, first one we've had in the garden in a long time. A hedgehog too.

MeteoritesEire

so it's ok to shoot corvids? in law?
I;m seriously faLLING out with a "friend" because he feels no compunction about shooting my friends--hooded crows--would rather have them than him-he finds it hard to fathom--but truth will out.I don't care about ANY farmers reasons---just venting-not seeking answers cuz there are none

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Rook, hooded crow, jackdaw and magpie can only be shot, under E. U. Derogation, if causing damage to crops, fauna etc.

Woodville56

Kayla Moldy Supernova wrote: »

Rook, hooded crow, jackdaw and magpie can only be shot, under E. U. Derogation, if causing damage to crops, fauna etc.

On my local patch the number of Hoodies ( the feathered type) seem to have multiplied in recent years and I'm wondering about the effect of this on other breeding birds, nest predation etc. Last year I watched a pair of Hoodies mob a Redshank with nestlings, happily the parent bird managed to fend them off. Same story with Magpie predation of nesting garden birds, I'm a fan of corvids, particularly Rooks & Ravens, but the sheer abundance of both magpie and hooded crow ( in these parts anyway) must militate against breeding efforts of other species .

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

I'm sorry but to me that is natural predation. The numbers of hoodies or magpies can be high in some areas and low in others. That's how nature works. It can seem that the smaller birds are being disproportionally affected but they aren't.

There was an excellent RSPB study on the impact of magpie predation on songbirds some years back that is well worth reading if you can locate it.

I can't say I enjoy seeing large numbers of hoodies or magpies but I accept it and remind myself that they just fill a niche other birds or animals would fill elsewhere and that things balance out.

dodderangler

They are in serious numbers in places I shoot but few and far between in others.
They're very cute in a sense they know danger when they see it. They'd fly right over my head in the village but go two minutes down the road and in a field with the shotgun and they avoid me like the plague.

Capercaille

Numbers of crows like magpie and hooded crows are at elevated levels in Ireland compared with other European Countries. The lack of numbers of large avian predators like Eagles, Goshawks, buzzards, Red Kites is to blame. Hopefully as raptors like these increase in numbers the ecosystem will become more balanced.

The same can be said for foxes. There should be only around 8500 foxes in the Country if the ecosystem was intact, but there could be up to 200,000 foxes. That puts pressure on vunerable species like native ground nesting birds. In Bialowieza forest in Poland the fox density is only 10 foxes for 100km2. The forest is virgin forest but has the full compliment of species like grey wolves, lynx and large raptors which control the fox population properly.

Graces7

Capercaille wrote: »

Numbers of crows like magpie and hooded crows are at elevated levels in Ireland compared with other European Countries. The lack of numbers of large avian predators like Eagles, Goshawks, buzzards, Red Kites is to blame. Hopefully as raptors like these increase in numbers the ecosystem will become more balanced.

The same can be said for foxes. There should be only around 8500 foxes in the Country if the ecosystem was intact, but there could be up to 200,000 foxes. That puts pressure on vunerable species like native ground nesting birds. In Bialowieza forest in Poland the fox density is only 10 foxes for 100km2. The forest is virgin forest but has the full compliment of species like grey wolves, lynx and large raptors which control the fox population properly.

What role to the mink play now in all this? There seem to be so many of them.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Graces7 wrote: »

What role to the mink play now in all this? There seem to be so many of them.

Mink are a pest. They are found mostly near water and are predators of fish like perch and eels, and waterbirds like coot, duck and moorhen. They can be devastating to ground nesting birds as well.

whyulittle

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trebor28

First Rook hatchlings of the year!

Bsal

Had two Starlings mate in the garden today, not long until the little fellas arrive

Woodville56

An early morning walk in a woodland on my local patch here in the north Midlands at the weekend, fantastic early morning birdsong and what sounded like a possible drumming Woodpecker ! !
Dead calm morning, so definitely not a creaking branch !
Hoping to do an after dawn sortie again during the week with another local birder to confirm or otherwise the presence of a Great Spotted on the local patch - a first for these parts if my ears weren't deceiving me !

Graces7

Kayla Moldy Supernova wrote: »

Mink are a pest. They are found mostly near water and are predators of fish like perch and eels, and waterbirds like coot, duck and moorhen. They can be devastating to ground nesting birds as well.

saw one and a heron alongside from the bridge in sneem a while back

Graces7

was sure i had posted this but seems not.

opened the landing window and a huge bumble bee came at my face..lucky my mouth was closed. wafted him gently back out..birdsong is amazing and i hear a lot of pheasants

Bsal

I put out some cotton wool in the hedge today and the sparrows, goldfinch and starlings took all of it for their nests

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Bsal wrote: »

I put out some cotton wool in the hedge today and the sparrows, goldfinch and starlings took all of it for their nests

Also a good idea to leave the hair from grooming pets for the birds at this time of year.

Mad4simmental

Standing out in the field this morning I could see them pop out of the ditch onto the cows back, rob sum hair and into the ditch agen. Smart little buggers. The cows don't even look at them.

Woodville56

Woodville56 wrote: »

An early morning walk in a woodland on my local patch here in the north Midlands at the weekend, fantastic early morning birdsong and what sounded like a possible drumming Woodpecker ! !
Dead calm morning, so definitely not a creaking branch !
Hoping to do an after dawn sortie again during the week with another local birder to confirm or otherwise the presence of a Great Spotted on the local patch - a first for these parts if my ears weren't deceiving me !

Still watching the local woodland patch for a sighting of the suspected Great Spotted Woodpecker - heard a few brief snatches of what I think is GSW drumming this morning but alas no visual !! Anyone know if the "drumming season" for GSW is nearly over now ? Read somewhere that March-Mid April is period to hear drumming ?
Also found what may be a GSW nest hole - a few phone pics attached - maybe someone could offer an opinion as to whether this is a GSW nest hole of some other creature's work. It definitely appears to be an excavated hole rather than a natural feature of the tree . The hole is about 8-10 metres up the tree trunk

Capercaille

Woodville56 wrote: »

Still watching the local woodland patch for a sighting of the suspected Great Spotted Woodpecker - heard a few brief snatches of what I think is GSW drumming this morning but alas no visual !! Anyone know if the "drumming season" for GSW is nearly over now ? Read somewhere that March-Mid April is period to hear drumming ?
Also found what may be a GSW nest hole - a few phone pics attached - maybe someone could offer an opinion as to whether this is a GSW nest hole of some other creature's work. It definitely appears to be an excavated hole rather than a natural feature of the tree . The hole is about 8-10 metres up the tree trunk

Be careful of disturbance of possible nest site. Contact Dick Coombes of Birdwatch Ireland about possible nest site. He would be the top expert on GSW in Ireland.

Woodville56

Capercaille wrote: »

Be careful of disturbance of possible nest site. Contact Dick Coombes of Birdwatch Ireland about possible nest site. He would be the top expert on GSW in Ireland.

Didn't disturb , watched for almost an hour and no activity - watched from a distance and phonescoped. Besides, nest excavation appears to be a bit weathered - wouldn't appear to be freshly hewn out !

Bsal

I saw two Buzzards building a nest today, this is my first time seeing them do it so now I'll keep an eye on them from a distance as their new family grows over the coming months.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Bsal wrote: »

I saw two Buzzards building a nest today, this is my first time seeing them do it so now I'll keep an eye on them from a distance as their new family grows over the coming months.

Be particularly careful watching a Buzzard's nest as they are very easily disturbed early on in the season. To be honest, I would keep away from the nest altogether for at least 2 months. The eggs are incubated for over a month and the young take over 50 days to fledge so there is plenty of time to watch them when disturbance would be less of a risk.

Bsal

Kayla Moldy Supernova wrote: »

Be particularly careful watching a Buzzard's nest as they are very easily disturbed early on in the season. To be honest, I would keep away from the nest altogether for at least 2 months. The eggs are incubated for over a month and the young take over 50 days to fledge so there is plenty of time to watch them when disturbance would be less of a risk.

I won't be going anywhere near the nest, they are easily visible from the car and 100-200 metres away.

dgt

I may aswell introduce myself....!

I lurk a good bit in here but decided to take the plunge and say hello Hello!

Whilst I don't normally take pictures of birds, I love taking pictures of bees. I also get pictures other insects too

Hope to drop in more often with some more pictures!

Woodville56

"Still watching the local woodland patch for a sighting of the suspected Great Spotted Woodpecker - heard a few brief snatches of what I think is GSW drumming this morning but alas no visual !"

Birding colleague and I finally caught sight of our "suspected " Great Spotted Woodpecker yesterday morning on our local patch here in Longford, so confirming our earlier sounds of drumming to be correctly identified. Brief glimpses in the treetops but unmistakeable - think it was a female from what we could make out - didn't appear to have the red patch on nape.

splish

Woodville56 wrote: »

"Still watching the local woodland patch for a sighting of the suspected Great Spotted Woodpecker - heard a few brief snatches of what I think is GSW drumming this morning but alas no visual !"

Birding colleague and I finally caught sight of our "suspected " Great Spotted Woodpecker yesterday morning on our local patch here in Longford, so confirming our earlier sounds of drumming to be correctly identified. Brief glimpses in the treetops but unmistakeable - think it was a female from what we could make out - didn't appear to have the red patch on nape.

Great news Woodville. Heard drumming and caught a few glimpses of Great Spotted Woodpecker for the first time in Tomnafinoge woods, Co. Wicklow last week. Great sound to hear for the first time.

Half-cocked

Just had a freshly fledged Robin fly into the kitchen, followed by 2 anxious parents! All safely back out in the garden now. I can hear at least one other fledgling calling for food.

Alun

My wife is walking the Wicklow Way this weekend and heard a woodpecker around by Crone Woods.