Although I volunteer at Wing and a Prayer Wild Bird and Owl Haven just outside Norwich, this is the first time I have taken part in anything like this and I really enjoyed it. I saw my first goldfinch which is ridiculous really - I've never taken the time to stop and look before. I will be doing it more often for sure.
Saw my regular white headed blackbird in the garden several times, he's been a regular visitor for a while now and I took pictures at Christmas. Will try and post some here but me and technology aren't best of friends!
Had problems trying to decide whether I was looking at dunnocks or sparrows to start with but the RSPB booklet sent through was most helpful.
Hope this brought as much pleasure to others as it did me - sure it did.
Trust in the Universe
Hello Tipsiangel,
It's only my second time doing the Garden Birdwatch as an RSPB member, although it used to be a regular event with us when I was a member of the YOC (the equivalent of today's Wildlife Explorers). I always enjoy looking out into the garden and watching the birds and their behaviour, especially on days like this, and it is good to know we're contributing something towards the further understanding and conservation of our feathered friends :-)
I managed to see four goldfinches today, which is the most we've ever had at once. We also had a resident white blackbird last year (I think they call them 'leucisistic' variants), who had at least half white feathers mixed in with the normal black ones. He's just returned after a long absence. Apparently it's not actually that rare, as I discovered on the BBC's Springwatch Flickr page last year (I've got the link somewhere.....). The strangest looking ones are the white robins! That would be a good place to post your pictures; there are also some galleries on this site, and I think it's possible to add them to your profile here, although I've never tried it.
The work at the owl haven sounds interesting. I've never seen an owl close up, although we have several resident tawny ones in this area which can be heard at night, and I caught sight of the odd barn owl flying across the road in Abernethy forest when I was volunteering on the osprey project!
Glad you enjoyed your first Birdwatch, the more people who get involved the better :-)
"Only two things are infinite - the universe and human stupidity. And I'm not too sure about the universe..." - Albert Einstein
We've had many tawnys and little owls in this winter, the victims of road traffic accidents, probably due to them flying close to roads looking for food in this cold weather. Some are unconscious and the others totally dazed and have to be hand fed. This works well and most survive and are re-released which is so fantastic. Tawnys are absolutely amazing, their eyes as black as night. Little owls are just so commical.
We had barn owls last year and when they were released they chose to stay about the haven and surrounding area which is fantastic too.
We have a kestrel in which has obviously been hand reared as the first time I cleaned him out he was happy to perch on my arm and watch me - how cool is that? He happily flies about the 'hospital' of the haven along with the pigeons and doves that are in and doesn't seem to realise he is a predator ! We've called him Havoc, as he did indeed cause it when he was first introduced. He is stunning.
The haven is on facebook if you would like to follow - Wing and a Prayer, based in Norwich.
Have posted a couple of piccies of the white headed blackbird. They're not brilliant as they were taken through the glass and the reflection from the christmas tree lights can be seen, but I was pleased to get them even so. We've had other blackbirds with white feathers before, but never with a white head - he is quite lovely.
Thank you for responding to me posting - makes me feel quite welcome !
As a complete newbie I was going to start a thread entitled 'New to this' only to find it was already posted. As it says in my profile, I dont really have a garden as such, just an area of grass outside my window, bounded by a hedge. However the area I live in is on the outskirts of Basingstoke and my particular cul-de-sac is like living in a wood, many bushes, hedges and trees.
Unfortunately I am not very mobile and spend a lot of time at the computer or watching the birds that come to my modest feeding area. Now, while I can recognise some tits and blackbirds anything more exotic is a total mystery to me. Dunnocks? Siskins?
Could someone give me a link to bird recognition site, in fact any help for a complete amateur?