It's really annoying when they stop visiting and you can't always see the reason. Mine have been constant all winter but some have been absent - no siskins this year and only the occasional wagtail. The fieldfares and redwings are mostly still in Russia apparently and there has even been sightings of swallow and swifts which are thought to have overwintered here rather than bothering to fly off to their normal winter holiday spots. Which type of seed do you feed and what birds do you want to attract?
Yes Hurdity, the robin sings at night most nights here. There has been a lot of research into this I believe - it's thought that the increasing traffic noise in the daytime means the robin's song travels further during the night time hours and the fact that in lots of places, here included, street lights are on all night has changed the behaviour of robins (Robins are related to the nightingale). If you go into the centre of Reading during the evening and night there are robins sat on many of the lights singing away. The large light fixtures in the middle of roundabouts attract them too. This is a recent article about city robins singing at night http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-31505672 and the RSPB view on it http://www.rspb.org.uk/discoverandenjoynature/discoverandlearn/funfactsandarticles/watchingbirds/behaviour/nocturnalsong.aspx It does sound rather poignant but mine didn't shut up until three this morning!
Taz x
Thanks for the info - now you come to mention it we had an early flight from Bristol ?last year and arrive in pitch darkness at the car parking and the blackbirds were singing away - of course there were very bright security lights near the kiosk thing where you hand in the keys - that's the first time I've encountered this as there are no street lights here it being a small village.
re the birds in our front garden. There is a bird table and four feeders hanging off - peanuts, fatballs, mixed seed and black sunflower seeds ( with new tray
). Before Christmas there were lots of birds but we went away for a week- on returning the birds had disappeared but they hadn't eaten all the food I put out though (except the bird table part of course).
I went up into our orchard today and was immediately greeted by a pair of nuthatches, blackbirds, fieldfares and I could hear the tits and a big flock of sparrows. There are loads of apples on the trees and the ground so they are all feeding on these. Next to this are our neighbours long gardens and lots of trees, then open fields behind. Near our front garden there are buildings - cottages, farmhouse, barn etc - so I've come to the conclusion that they just don't need to come down here much except during the breeding season because there are more trees and food 20 yards away. Also there is a pheasant shoot just over the fields and the farmer fed them at the weekend so I expect all the grainfeeders are up there. I hardly see anything down here but we are not short of birds in the area.
Incdientally we don't get starlings feeding - just occasional flocks passing, nor wood pigeons, magpies, crows, wagtails etc. Mainly 4 tit sp, robin, dunnock, blackbird, collar dove, chaffinch, house sparrow. In breeding season greenfinch, nuthatch and greater sp woodpecker + occasional sparrowhawk. Jackdaws have given up as I've covered the fatball feeder with two semi-circular hanging baskets pegged together! I couldn't keep up during the breeding season!
I just like to see them from indoors when I'm around the house but they've gone AWOL!!!!
Hurdity x
Author
Topic: Wild Birds and all things to do with Nature (Read 1123629 times)