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Tuesday, 28 December 2010
Female Shelduck at Par Beach Pool
Thanks to Andy Carey for the use of his lens to get me a little closer, as this one was taken in poor light and on the other side of the pool.
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Sunday, 19 December 2010
This and that…
Life on the back doorstep has improved a little lately; not just because we have a Moorhen living in & around the garden or the 2 female Blackcaps & 1 male Blackcap; the visit from 12 (yes 12!) Long Tailed Tits & 1 Greenfinch, which are scarce in our little area this year; the 21 Blackbirds I counted one morning & 56 Starlings, all waiting to be fed, but also because mother gave me some new slippers, which have enabled me to sit on the doorstep again with a little relief from the cold! They are 3 sizes too big (I’m a size 3 & the slippers are a 6!). I can wear enough layers to fend off a Shark attack, let alone frost bite. I just need some mittens to match now (in the right size of course); oh & a nose protector & the sores will be a thing of the past (I wish)!
Having said that I’m a little sad to say that I saw one of the young Rats this morning & it wasn’t looking too bright. I suspect someone local has put poison out. Its body was deformed; it moved very slowly & looked at me as though it was willing me not to hurt it. I just let it feed & kept very still so as not to alarm it & cause it to scurry off in pain, in the cold when food & warmth is hard to find for all wildlife. Finding food must be even harder in that condition. I can’t bear to see any animal suffer. There must be better ways to deal with "the problem" (not that it is a problem for me). For this one, I just hope the end comes soon.
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Happy Starling... Waiting for the food.
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I saw few Greenfinches in the garden this last summer & not looking good. I am quite sure they perished so I'm pleased to see this one.
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Life on the back doorstep has improved a little lately; not just because we have a Moorhen living in & around the garden or the 2 female Blackcaps & 1 male Blackcap; the visit from 12 (yes 12!) Long Tailed Tits & 1 Greenfinch, which are scarce in our little area this year; the 21 Blackbirds I counted one morning & 56 Starlings, all waiting to be fed, but also because mother gave me some new slippers, which have enabled me to sit on the doorstep again with a little relief from the cold! They are 3 sizes too big (I’m a size 3 & the slippers are a 6!). I can wear enough layers to fend off a Shark attack, let alone frost bite. I just need some mittens to match now (in the right size of course); oh & a nose protector & the sores will be a thing of the past (I wish)!
Having said that I’m a little sad to say that I saw one of the young Rats this morning & it wasn’t looking too bright. I suspect someone local has put poison out. Its body was deformed; it moved very slowly & looked at me as though it was willing me not to hurt it. I just let it feed & kept very still so as not to alarm it & cause it to scurry off in pain, in the cold when food & warmth is hard to find for all wildlife. Finding food must be even harder in that condition. I can’t bear to see any animal suffer. There must be better ways to deal with "the problem" (not that it is a problem for me). For this one, I just hope the end comes soon.
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Happy Starling... Waiting for the food.
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.I saw few Greenfinches in the garden this last summer & not looking good. I am quite sure they perished so I'm pleased to see this one.
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Tuesday, 14 December 2010
An unusual addition to the garden life list!
Today, we added Moorhen to the garden life list! Just before leaving for work this morning I noticed an unusual shape in the tree and it was being hassled by a Jay. I was amazed when I realised it was a Moorhen. I have always thought it was possible that a Mallard may drop in on the stream that runs down the rear of the garden, as they pass over frequently, but never expected a Moorhen to add to the list!
Sunday, 12 December 2010
Saturday, 11 December 2010
I feel I should pass this on...
I spend a lot of money on bird food. I have a monthly order that is delivered by my local pet shop. Part of the feeding regime is pellets - over £4o worth a month! All our birds love them, but especially the Robins and Blackbirds... Oh and the Starlings, who quite frankly eat too many; are too bossy and wind me up a little, but I love them all the same. Consequently, I have had to increase my order to over £50 per month and this includes Berry, Insect, Peanut & fruit varieties, which I mix together so they have variety! Luckily, as I buy them this way the pet shop let me have them at a very good price (by the way, that's Fields Pet Shop in St Austell and they deliver free of charge). They do 4 different varieties and the birds have different preferences throughout the year as to which flavour they like to indulge in. It's all very complicated and requires fine tuning at times with the food order! However, getting to the point, I ran out this month (hence the increase in order size yet again!) so (from the local garden centre) I bought a 3kg tub of Gardman Bery Suet Treats to get us by at £12.99 (stated as a "VALUE PACK") - (£12.9 flippin 9 for 3 flippin kg's!!!!!!!!!). They state on the tub that "they attract Song Thrushes, Blackbirds, Blue Tits, Great Tits and other species". Well, they may attract them, but that's where it ends! The birds will not eat them. Even the Starlings turn their beaks up at them. Now, it can't be a seasonal preference thing, as they are "berry flavour" and the Blackbirds and Robins (not to mention the pesky, but lovely Starlings) love the berry treats at this time of year, but not these VERY EXPENSIVE BERRY TREATS!
Just for the record, the ones they absolutely love are from "PREMIUM WILD BIRD FOOD" and are called "Suet to Go - High Energy Suet Pellets"... Happy Feeding :-)
I spend a lot of money on bird food. I have a monthly order that is delivered by my local pet shop. Part of the feeding regime is pellets - over £4o worth a month! All our birds love them, but especially the Robins and Blackbirds... Oh and the Starlings, who quite frankly eat too many; are too bossy and wind me up a little, but I love them all the same. Consequently, I have had to increase my order to over £50 per month and this includes Berry, Insect, Peanut & fruit varieties, which I mix together so they have variety! Luckily, as I buy them this way the pet shop let me have them at a very good price (by the way, that's Fields Pet Shop in St Austell and they deliver free of charge). They do 4 different varieties and the birds have different preferences throughout the year as to which flavour they like to indulge in. It's all very complicated and requires fine tuning at times with the food order! However, getting to the point, I ran out this month (hence the increase in order size yet again!) so (from the local garden centre) I bought a 3kg tub of Gardman Bery Suet Treats to get us by at £12.99 (stated as a "VALUE PACK") - (£12.9 flippin 9 for 3 flippin kg's!!!!!!!!!). They state on the tub that "they attract Song Thrushes, Blackbirds, Blue Tits, Great Tits and other species". Well, they may attract them, but that's where it ends! The birds will not eat them. Even the Starlings turn their beaks up at them. Now, it can't be a seasonal preference thing, as they are "berry flavour" and the Blackbirds and Robins (not to mention the pesky, but lovely Starlings) love the berry treats at this time of year, but not these VERY EXPENSIVE BERRY TREATS!
Just for the record, the ones they absolutely love are from "PREMIUM WILD BIRD FOOD" and are called "Suet to Go - High Energy Suet Pellets"... Happy Feeding :-)
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