Fieldfare

Hi Baines

Happy New Year 2011 to you and yours

Great news about the Fieldfares - they are beautiful though a very vocal bird.

Hope that you see more of them in the same area

Regards

Kathy and Dave

Unknown said:

I know we have had a lot of thrushes visiting the UK this winter, but I was still surprised to see 13 Fieldfare in a single flock. What a great sight. They were happily feeding in a feild by the River Douglas, North West Lancs.

Edenbridge Kent

We have a large cotoneaster tree which is usually stripped bare of berries by a flock of fieldfares within a day or two, in the fortnight after Christmas.  This year we've only seen one singleton fieldfare in the garden during November, and one yesterday which looked quite a young thin bird.  The berries on the tree have been  visited by pigeons, and the occasional blackbird, but the expected  flock of fieldfares has not materialised.  Seeing that we've had such a snowy winter, I've been surprised that this source of food hasn't been finished by now - all the other berries in the garden have gone long ago.  Are there any suggestions as to why the fieldfares might not have got this far yet?

Susan Oldfield

Hi Susan,

There have been Fieldfares aplenty here in Sevenoaks, Kent, not very far from you. In fact I've seen more than I did last year. Individual Fieldfares are not particularly faithful to the same wintering sites year on year, so it could just be that most years a roaming party finds your cotoneaster, but none have stumbled upon it yet.

Took this pics this afternoon. Thought I would share them with you. All birds you don't see that often in the North West of England, particularly the yellowhammer.

Hi Budgie

Here in Cornwall we do get quite a few fieldfare. Yesterday, 26th Jan, I saw a flock of them in our neighbours field, I stopped counting at 45. They looked quite comical; they were spread out in the field, all facing the same way and then suddenly the front row would run forward a few paces, followed shortly by the row behind, then the row behind them. They must have been after worms as the berries are long gone. There were a few blackbirds among them too.

Hi Budgie

That's a lot of fieldfares. I'm quite envious LOL

I have only recently seen my first one ever in Nottinghamshire, during a visit to a relative. I've never seen one where I live.

Hi All

Just wanted to say that I saw a large flock of around 50 birds on a housing estate in Nottingham today.

After using the Bird Identifier, I believe that they were Fieldfares. This is the first time I have seen these birds.

They were not in my garden, but they landed on a large tree that lines one of the main roads.

Hoping to see them again to try and take a photo!

Hi Budgie. A small flock of Yellowhammers at Orrell Water Park today ( Wigan not too far from M6 )

Pity about the distracting background :(

We are half way between Nottingham and Derbyshire, our neighbour has a neglected apple tree with masses of windfalls, yesterday and today a flock of fieldfares, about 20, and a smaller flock of redwing, have been gorging themselves pretty well all day.  I have never seen these birds in a suburban garden before and it has been a joyous experience.