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[lady57]

How lovely, i do hope we get a few more. We were both so excited when the greenfinch landed and tucked in, then he flew onto the fence and cleaned his beak 

[ellie]

I make my own fat balls in old yogurt pots. I don't think they work out a lot cheaper than shop bought ones, but the birds love them. There are lots of recipes on the Internet.......I agree that shop bought ones are not as good as they where.
      Last week we saw a Woodpecker......and there are a lot of coal tits around just now. I get a lot of pleasure from watching the birds, so try to repay them with nice titbits...

[CLKD]

Fab sunset this evening 

[lady57]

Getting the regular band of tits, robin and wood pigeons now. The mixed seed is proving popular but the nyger seed remains untouched. Hung a fat ball and they seem scared of it. There is a little wren who just watches..

[lady57]

Word seems to have got round, it was like Battle of Britain at the end of the garden earlier today with all the swooping and dive bombing onto the feeders and fat balls. Had a chaffinch visiting today for the first time 

[Pennyfarthing]

Lots of greedy starlings after my suet blocks today.  I have them in little wire mesh containers and the starlings know just  know how  to balance.

I buy bird  food  in a BIG sack.  £8 I think it is but it lasts most of the winter.  I will write the date on when I open it so I know this year.

Had a little group of long tailed tits about 2 weeks ago but they've disappeared again.  They hung around for a few days and then went to pastures new.

[lady57]

We started with a 2kg sack but think we will need to get a 4kg next time as it is being used up quicker now. We don't have anywhere to store a large sack but we have an old fashioned hardward store at the top of our road so it is easy to get hold of some when we need it. They also sell the fat balls for 20p each 

[purplenanny]

I am soooooooooooo excited!! We had a woodpecker on our feeders today - wow, what a stunning bird! I was so glued to the window I could not get the camera. He was eating the peanuts and then did a bit of tapping on the tree trunk

A question for you ladies: The bird bath (concrete) gets very stained, green and sometimes reddish brown, it actually stains the concrete. We clean and change the water frequently, but does anyone have any tips for keeping it cleaner?

Thanks PN x x

[Taz2]

I get through four 12.5kg sacks a month which costs a fortune. That's without the sunflower hearts, niger seed and peanuts.

Woodpeckers are lovely to watch Pn - do you know which type it was? We have the lesser spotted and the green ones here.

I don't think there is anything you can do to keep the concrete clean - anything you add will get into the water and be harmful to the birds. It is important to change the water often and make sure that any bird poo is washed away though.

Taz x

[purplenanny]

I am a novice Taz, did not realise there were several types. This one had a lot of red, white and black. It was beautiful, I do hope it comes back

Yes, I think it is the poo that turns the water and stains the bowl. I will make sure it is cleaned more regularly

PN x x

[Taz2]

There are three types of woodpecker in the UK - yours was probably the greater spotted woodpecker http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/greatspottedwoodpecker/index.aspx   There is also the lesser spotted which is more timid and tends to be more in woodlands as it prefers the tops of trees for hunting http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/l/lesserspottedwoodpecker/index.aspx  and the other one is the green woodpecker. If you are ever out walking and hear a bird make a laughing call it will be this lovely bird http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/greenwoodpecker/  They eat ants.  You might find this info interesting too http://www.rspb.org.uk/advice/expert/previous/woodpeckers_eat_chicks.aspx

Taz x

[purplenanny]

Hi Taz, thanks for the info - it was definately the first one.

shame it eats other birds eggs, good that it eats ants! but I am surprised it was eating the peanuts!?

PN x x

[Taz2]

The green woodpecker eats ants.

Taz x

[Taz2]

The great spotted woodpecker eats seeds nuts and insects.

Taz x

[purplenanny]

Thanks Taz, I was so excited I did not read far enough down!!