On a day when you are at home most of the day, what are your peaks and troughs as regards numbers of birds in your garden. Also, when do your birds go to bed at the moment?
I'm not an earlier riser, no need to be as I am retired and prefer late nights to early mornings. Anyway, I have no idea what time I get an early morning peak, but I certainly have a peak between 11am and 1-30pm. (This is when I'm going to do my bird count.)
There is a lull during the afternoon, then another flurry at the moment about 3-30pm. They seem to be in bed by 4-15, although it isn't fully dark at that time here, and there maybe an odd starling on his look out post, but nothing else.
Cheers, Linda.
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Hi Lynette,
I asked the very same question as you some time ago on this forum when Buzzard posted a photo of his Goldfinch Flocker with 20 ports hanging next to another smaller one. This is a link to his photo:
http://www.rspb.org.uk/community/forums/p/6579/48642.aspx#48642
He advised me that the more ports you provide with nyger, the more goldies will come. They are unlikely to come unless you provide nyjer, although they also like sunflower hearts. They like to feed in a group, and when one comes the whole group will follow. I hang my nyjer next to my sunflower hearts, and get half the group on one and half the group on the other. Following Buzzard's advice, I got a bigger feeder, and the next day my numbers doubled - from 6 to 12!!! Not vast numbers like Woodpecker and Buzzard, but I now have 12 regulars.
Wow great photo of GPW, I do know that the males have a red spot on the back of the neck, so this looks like a male feeding a young female, you are so luckly
Woodpecker said: I usually see most different birds between 8am and 9am. Greater spotted woodpecker always comes early so I have to be up to watch him (or her). Last year they brought their fledgling so that they could feed him or her suet while he (she) was perched on the tree. There is usually another flurry of activity at lunchtime. At the moment it depends on the weather: if it's cold & frosty they feed in the garden much more frequently than they do if it's a fairly bright sunny day. They stop feeding at about 4.30pm here.
I usually see most different birds between 8am and 9am. Greater spotted woodpecker always comes early so I have to be up to watch him (or her). Last year they brought their fledgling so that they could feed him or her suet while he (she) was perched on the tree.
There is usually another flurry of activity at lunchtime. At the moment it depends on the weather: if it's cold & frosty they feed in the garden much more frequently than they do if it's a fairly bright sunny day.
They stop feeding at about 4.30pm here.
Hey farmer, farmer, put away the D.D.T now. Give me spots on my apples, but leave me the birds and the bees, please!
Hi Woodpecker, I always wanted a garden with a tree in it, ie an apple tree. So when I moved in to my new house I was over the moon with the large old apple tree in the back garden.
I had no idea what birds I had in this area, I looked on line to see what is the best food for wild birds and I got some of each of them, i put up peanuts, nyjers, mixed seeds, meal worms, sunflower seeds and fats balls then I waited to my delight I got, blue tits, coal tits, long tail tits, great tits, goldfinch, chaffinch, blackbird, sparrows, siskins, sparrowhawk, starlings, collared doves, woodpigeons, greenfinch, GPwoodpeckers, robins, redwings, song thrush, magpies, rooks.
I say buy a small bag and give it a try, you never know.
Janet D said:this looks like a male feeding a young female, you are so luckly
Hi Janet, and thanks for stopping by to say hi :-)
Thanks for clearing up the sexes of the GSW. I knew that I had a regular pair visiting at the time, but sometimes they didn't oblige by showing me the backs of their heads. I only saw the male and flegling come three times and twice the baby sat behind branches of a different tree, so I couldn't get close up pics. They are quite shy, and whichever one is currently visiting now, always comes and lands in a tree and has a good look around before flying off then coming back and landing on the peanuts or the suet.
Best wishes Chris
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Judging by the noise they make, my garden birds' peak feeding time is between 8:00am and 10:00am, although I can never quite muster up the energy to get up early enough to observe! There is pretty much at least one or two birds present all day. Mid-day is always quite busy, as are the couple of hours from 3:00pm onwards.
It's 4:46pm now, and while things do seem to be slowing down for the evening, there are still plenty of birds around, including a robin and a dunnock singing their hearts out. Fieldfare is usually the last to bed at the moment, it'll stay out rooting around until it's almost completely dark, which is between 5:30pm and 6:00pm at the moment.
I am always up at 7 but most of my birds dont come until around 8 even if I have left food overnight. My woodpecker, usually comes between half 8 and 9 so only get to see him at weekends.
My last visitors are usually the blue tits just as it's getting dark.
I've learned that I still have a lot to learn...
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Very interesting replies from everyone.
It seems our birds are getting lazy ... concensus seems to be later than I would have thought. I know mine come before I get up as I need to do a refill, but the main flurry that I see is just before lunch time.
What a beautiful sight Woodpecker, I have never before seen a woodpecker feeding young
My busiest times are 8am, 11am-12 noon and from 2pm until around 4pm, so mine are definately early birds, they are usually sitting waiting when I get up and stop feeding around 4pm
Of all creatures, man is the most detestable, he is the only creature that inflicts pain for sport, knowing it to be pain. ~ Mark Twain
Hi everyone,
First, Great photos !!!
The blackbirds seem to be the first out on the lawn, followwed by the robins and finches. Most of the time the garden is full of birds, with flurrys at peak times ( 8-9 and again 3-4) Woody comes any time of the day same as the goldies, we have two flocks that have been coming now and they will come when they know that you have niger seeds out there !!! Longtailed tits come for there afternoon snacks (about 10) all over the fat balls and peanut feeders, sometimes bringing a coal tit tagging along. Jackdaws flock in the mornings with the wood pigeons and colard doves, we have lots of chaffinches, male and females and two yellowhammers are reagular also. We have had a few crows doing there mating dance, which i've never noticed before, similar to the pigeon dance but not as good , lol.
Neil
If it aint broken, dont fix it !.... all good things come to those who wait !
The birds here have their patterns too .... the Chaffinches arrive first - about 8am and have learned to feed from the hanging feeders, i'm sure they prefer the peace and quiet they get before the Greenfinches charge in !!!
The Greenfinches arrive from 8.30am onwards and are here - on and off until 3pm (often squabbling amongst themselves) and at that point they seem to call it a day.
The Goldfinches arrive about 9.30 and stay for a few minutes and return once, maybe twice again before 3pm.
The Coal and Great Tits pop in and out all through the day, they love the sunflower hearts.
The Blackcaps are here all day too, they arrive early and leave late. They love the suet blocks and seem to have the most varied diet of all the birds here.
The Dunnocks too are here all day long, they're like the Blackcaps, arrive early and leave late !
The Blackbirds and Robins are the last to leave and they're still around about 6pm.