Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
General Subjects => General Forum => Topic started by: mark smyth on December 01, 2009, 03:56:21 PM
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Another N Irish Red Kite has been poisoned :'(
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shhhh!
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How cool! How big is the bat?
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it fits across the palm 4inches 10cm
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This bat is Leisler's bat, Nyctalis leisleri, one of the rarest in Europe. The hibernation site is one of 300 trees due to be cut down in the name of health and safety. Some trees are over 200 years old and because they lean they have to come down
reply 322 http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=2080.msg62496#msg62496 (http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=2080.msg62496#msg62496)
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Sad, very sad. (Um, this referred to some bats living in trees that were slated to be cut down...... the stuff seems to have just disappeared?)
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Sad, very sad. (Um, this referred to some bats living in trees that were slated to be cut down...... the stuff seems to have just disappeared?)
It's in the December thread
http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=4624.msg124459#msg124459 (http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=4624.msg124459#msg124459)
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Ah, must have been split off while I was posting my comment. They were there, then suddenly they weren't. Thanks.
Edit by Maggi: Sorry, cut you off in your prime!
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This bat is Leisler's bat, Nyctalis leisleri, one of the rarest in Europe. The hibernation site is one of 300 trees due to be cut down in the name of health and safety. Some trees are over 200 years old and because they lean they have to come down
reply 322 http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=2080.msg62496#msg62496 (http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=2080.msg62496#msg62496)
In the name of common sense wouldn't be more sensible to fence off the trees, or is beyond these automaton jobs worth types abilities, or is it not possible?
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300 trees, a mix of ash, sycamore, lime, alder and beech, are coming down to be replaced by tree whips that will be a mix of oak, holly, hazel and lime. The largest tree has to come down because of vandalism- fires set in the butress roots. Some lean, some have two leaders. The trees have been there since the 1700s or 1800s and now someone sitting in an office has decided they have to come down
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two goldfinches killed in the garden in two days. One hit the window and one caught by a fluffball - say no more
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what's small furry and lives 7 feet up a tree?
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a rare Irish tree shrew - Sorex minutus hibernicus
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Eerie coincidence here.... remember the "face" of the beastie we found in Ian's Bulb Log pic of a crocus flower going mouldy? The Bulb Log was this one...
http://www.srgc.org.uk/logs/logdir/2009Nov251259157769BULB_LOG__47.pdf
This is the blow-up from the picture....
[attach=1]
well look at the face of Mark's shrew from the last post........ the beastie is his blond brother :o
[attach=2]
Wonder how many rare bulbs the brown version can destroy in a week? Cute though, I give him that!
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Excellent shot Mark. 8) Doesn't this little beastie have poisonous teeth? I once found a cat playing with one. I approached expecting the cat to grab it and run, but it did the latter without doing the former! ::) I prodded said shrew with my toe and it promptly ran up the inside of my trouser leg! :o Thoughts of its ability to eat its own weight at one go went through my head as I walked gingerly home with the little darling making itself comfortable where it ought not to be! Needless to say it was release unharmed and unfed later. I certainly wouldn't risk giving it to a snake. I chap in the USA once caught a shrew and gave it to a small rattler. The next day the cage contained only the shrew, frantically racing round looking for more snakes to eat! ;D
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Thanks Anthony. I've was bitten when I was a teen but I dont remember any infection. You can see by the angle of the photo how high it was up the tree. I can believe a small shrew would tackle a small snake
Maggi no fear because a shrew eats only insects and mainly worms. Good on for remembering the photo of the ghostly dog in the log
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Now I know this Irish cutie presents no danger to bulbs, I feel more kindly disposed towards him...... so long as he wasn't hungry enough to eat Lily!! :o
He's not living in the trees under threat as well, is he? Surely the bats alone would mean they must be saved, let alone more rare furries??
In our paper yesterday there was an item about a school, the International School.... (used to be the American School, for all the Oil Company folks' children, but the Americans became fewer and so the balance changed, hence the name change) which is going to be closed and demolished in order to allow the Western Peripheral Route ( grand name for a bypass) to be built on a route which no-one wants and which was decided and decreed by a whim of a former Scottish Executive minister....this means a new scholl is being built about half a mile away from us, at huge expense, largely public money, because the original buildings were the subject of a compulsory purchase order. BUT.... the existing school is a roost for several types of rare bats... so it appears no demolition would be allowed, so no road, so no need for compulsory purchase of school or homes at vast expense, plus expense of building new school ( nearly finished) ... if it were not so tragic, from every point of view, it would be laughable.
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well.... I am telling small white lies about it being rare and tree living but it is living in a tree that is due to be felled probably feeding on insects that are in turn eating decayed wood
good for the bats!
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http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1514548?UserKey= (http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1514548?UserKey=)
Nigel Astell, an environmental consultant and ob-jector who gave evidence at the public local inquiry into the proposed bypass, said: “As the law stands the existing International School of Aberdeen cannot be demolished. European law forbids the demolition of buildings containing bat roosts if there are no alternatives available.”
I added the word no
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If they can't demolish it then they won't need this company? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qa7why6CCyo
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A report in the newspaper today that an endangered European glow worm - Phosphaenus hemipterus - has been found thriving in the south end where I live. I'd bet they came from an old nursery that imported much from Europe and closed in the 50's or so, it was across from Queen Street and the cemetaries mentioned. They also brought us the giant banana slug and earwig I'm told.
http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/1157226.html (http://thechronicleherald.ca/Metro/1157226.html)
johnw
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Interesting stuff John. This species, which is small and wingless, has a southern distribution in Britain where it is certainly scarce. Even the larger species (Lampyris noctiluca) is rare, but I know of a couple of colonies in Scotland. Interesting that it feeds on worms. In Europe it feeds exclusively on snails.
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He's back! The black pheasant which was hanging around in this area last winter disappeared in late summer and I wondered if something had happened to him, but he reappeared last week and I managed to get a (rather shaky) pic of him running away. He is not really black but a lovely mix of iridescent green and purple.
I often see or hear geese flying north in the morning and south at night. I do not know where they roost or feed, but that seems to be their usual flight direction.
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Roma, nice pheasant looks proud of his black colour, we have one that sneaks into the garden and steals the stray cats biscuits, but he is the common colour, nothing special.
Angie :)
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I was hearing geese flying over in the fog last night after 10 p.m. Why? ::)
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One too many Single Malts? ;D
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One too many Single Malts? ;D
Alas no.
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Full moon?
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No moon visible. Cloudy with some fog. This is not a rare occurrence. I often hear geese passing over at night.
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Geese migrate at night - so they have no problem moving around in the dark.
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Today the garden was suddenly full of life when a flock of 80 Arctic Parrots (aka Waxwings) arrived. It's been a very poor winter for waxwings this far and these are the first birds I've seen this winter. They were stripping berries off Crataegus, Rosa and Viburnum opulus bushes. Feel a bit sorry for the resident Fieldfare who looked on helplessly as his/her food supply dwindled markedly in just a few minutes!
Having "parrots" in the garden warms one up when the thermometer is showing -14C (outside!)
Too dark for proper photography this time of year, so just some silouettes:
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I was just out in the garden at dusk stood next to the Crataegus bush and the whole flock descended into the bush less than a metre from me - a bit like being in the Hitchcock film "The Arctic Parrots"...
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That would have been a failed thriller as a film though, wouldn't it? The happy chattering conversations and friendly natures of Waxwings would never be convincingly threatening! We love these birds.... none here at present.... we'll look forward to seeing yours over here in a few weeks, perhaps... :)
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send some our way please.
Anthony never answered his question ...
Since just before sunrise my garden has been invaded by a gang of redpolls to feed on niger seeds
Here's a male in summer finery
http://www.birdguides.com/iris/pictures.asp?mode=search&sp=161124&rty=0&r=1&off=199425&v=0 (http://www.birdguides.com/iris/pictures.asp?mode=search&sp=161124&rty=0&r=1&off=199425&v=0)
Just now there are so many I cant count them. Every so often they panic and fly away only to return in seconds
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OK - I'll do a deal - you send us some redpolls in return! However, there wouldn't be much food for them - we had large numbers last winter as birch seed was abundant, but I haven't seen a single one this winter. We have a birch tree outside the front door. The birds are totally silent when feeding and all you hear is the patter of seed on the ground below - I've more than once mistaken the sound for rain falling...
Saw a flock of some 40 siskins earlier feeding on alder seed..
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We only get a handful of Siskins at a time, and then not often enough.
We've never had Redpolls and if the ever arrived I think the excitment would be too much for us!
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Listen for their contact call, Maggi. It's metalic ch.ch.ch.ch. in the rhythm of a fast train. I'm sure someone will shoot me down for that description
a recording http://sounds.bl.uk/View.aspx?item=022M-W1CDR0001525-0200V0.xml# (http://sounds.bl.uk/View.aspx?item=022M-W1CDR0001525-0200V0.xml#)
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(http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i76/arykana/tengi.jpg)
(http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i76/arykana/teng.jpg)
(http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i76/arykana/teng.jpg)
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Arykana what is their name in Hungarian? We call them gold finch. Do you feed them the small black seed?
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This is the wing of the goldfinch that sadly hit the window
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http://www.slide.com/r/23O_Sg9Q4z-2yi4r7V6AQnRs06IeHmD4?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original (http://www.slide.com/r/23O_Sg9Q4z-2yi4r7V6AQnRs06IeHmD4?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original)
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Like the Pumpkin feeder, Arkyana! Good idea! However, I couldn't hang anything like that up here - the Hooded Crows and Magpies would figure out how to get it in no time...
It always amazes me how some of our birds manage these cold temperatures. It's been well below freezing for a week now, max. -10C today. Nevertheless, a female blackcap turned up and seemed quite happy eating Berberis berries and foraging around the bird table. A wren is also still managing to make a living out there despite the fact that they never take food we put out (they can get through a winter this far north, although most don't).
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I thought these pictures might be of interest to members, taken on my October 2009 holiday to the Penwith area of Cornwall.
Common Lizard Lacerta vivipara
Slowworm Anguis fragilis
Fox Cub Vulpes vulpes
Fox Cub Vulpes vulpes
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Paul,
That fox cub is just SO cute. 8)
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He is, isn't he Paul. My Teddy would like to play with his tail. ;D
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I heard nasal honking in the fog tonight from very low flying geese that must have been lost.
dozens of redpolls continue to feed in the garden and great for me they have taken to feeding on spilt seeds.
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Big-game hunting
Today I started a hunt in order to get rid of an unexpected Christmas visitor
- after successful ending we made a little journey to another place in the neighborhood - but outside!
Gerd
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Big-game hunting
After being successful we made a little trip to a place nearby - but outside.
Gerd
In this case no BBQ, Gerd ? ;D ;D
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Santa's reindeer? or was it just roe deer?
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In this case no BBQ, Gerd ? ;D ;D
Luit,
Too cold outside ! ;D
Gerd
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Probably not very exciting for those farther North but we have a small flock of redwings feeding on our cotoneaster 'cornubia'. This is the first time we have ever seen them in our garden (or at all ) It has been ignored by the other birds so far but these are feasting on it.
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Lovely festive pic Tony. We took Heidi up the hill and noticed the Sea Buckthorn berries had been stripped from the bushes there. These bushes seem to be dioecious.
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I had to look up Dioecious - refers to a plant population having separate male and female plants
I read yesterday that the fieldfare, Turdus pilaris, population in the UK is -50%
Some photos of this lovely bird http://www.birdguides.com/iris/pictures.asp (http://www.birdguides.com/iris/pictures.asp)
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There is a king eider, Somateria spectabilis, in or around Burghead, Moray/Nairn
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Went for a five mile walk up to The Gathering Stone on Sheriffmuir this afternoon. Plenty of people and wildlife around. Firstly, can you see two birdies? I will show a closer shot.
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Here's a closer view, but this is a different birdie.
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Here's a closer view of the first pic.
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Final pics of the birds. Even the robin was fishing in the burn before flying off onto the branch.
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Anthony,
nice field observation. The white wagtail usual does not stay during winter in our area.
But interestingly since a couple of years a small population of them hibernates close to our public wastewater treatment plant. There seem to be enough insects and warmth available around the never freezing wastewater tanks :-\
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Yes Armin, both the pied and grey wagtails seem to find enough food in the little streams (burns). Even the robin seemed to join in. I wonder what makes a robin either stay or migrate, even as far as Spain? Is it genetic, like the eiders of the Ythan Estuary. There are two genetically different populations that co-exist side-by-side on the Ythan, distinct because the group that migrates south pair up before they return, so don't interbreed with the residents.
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Anthony, interesting and always nature is surprising.
I watched today a small Robin taking a long intensive bath in one of my old pans I use as bird drink and bath.
At 1°C air temperature outside and with still some ice in the pan it felt obviously very well.
This one must have robust genes too ::)
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I've read our robins head south and the European robins come west to us.
There is a huge wagtail roost at a shopping centre near me. 10s of them roost in birch trees at the centre. Belfast has a giant wagtail roost on High Street again in birch trees. The seats, cars and ground under them is white. They look like white light bulbs sitting along the branches
Three robins were in my garden today fighting to see who owns the feeding rights below the feeders hanging on the tree in my garden
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We saw dozens of wagtails coming in to roost into birch trees in the centre of York, not caring that there was the hustle and bustle of an international market going on beneath them.
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I am quite beside myself with envy..... I have never seen more than half a dozen wagtails at once.... I had no idea they flocked to roost.... no idea at all! I am delighted to learn this new fact and now hopeful of one day seeing these great wee birds in a flock.... 8)
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Blackcaps (Sylvia atricapilla) are dominating feeders in the garden during this cold spell. We've never seen so many here before.
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Ashley, I have only one male and one female blackcap in the garden, the same as last winter. Can you chase a few across the Shannon please? :)
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We also have a female Blackcap who's been here for the last 10 days or so. She's also suddenly today become quite aggresive today and is attacking and scaring off all the other finches and tits, but hasn't tried it on the woodpecker yet!
The temperature has not been above about -5C for 10 days or so and has been down to -15C.
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Blackcaps do not stay here over winter.
What do you feed them?
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Blackcaps do not stay here over winter.
What do you feed them?
It seems to be eating spilled sunflower seed particles. Other birds (finches, nuthatches, woodpeckers and tits) can hack into the seed but inevitably drop some bits. It otherwise alternates between the feeder and a berberis bush which is also visited by a Fieldfare and a Robin.
This article is interesting, suggesting that the large scale bird feeding in gardens in the UK has changed the migratory pattern of part of the German population which now move westwards and is even changing the birds themselves:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/telegraph-view/6721178/German-blackcaps-the-short-haul-songsters.html (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/telegraph-view/6721178/German-blackcaps-the-short-haul-songsters.html)
Here are all the reported sightings of Blackcaps in Scandinavia in December so far: http://www.artportalen.se/fennoscandia_birds.asp?speciesid=659&year=2009&month=12 (http://www.artportalen.se/fennoscandia_birds.asp?speciesid=659&year=2009&month=12)
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Stephen,
thanks for your quick reply. Interesting links. Majority of observations were on the coasts due milder climate?
And I thought Blackcaps are pure insect eaters and need special insect food mix. But it seems they are more adaptive in kind of food and taste (like Robins)... :D
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Armin in the UK they can be attracted with apple and raisins. They will probbly love to eat mini mealworms
Ashley and Michael what do they eat in your garden?
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Stephen, the map is interesting. Is this the first year blackcaps are over wintering?
Maggi, I'd bet there is a huge wagtail roost in Aberdeen
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Mark, they were on the peanut feeder and eating scraps that had fallen to the ground from the the seed feeders.
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Stephen, the map is interesting. Is this the first year blackcaps are over wintering?
Maggi, I'd bet there is a huge wagtail roost in Aberdeen
Perhaps, I have no idea where. There used to be good numbers of wagtails around the rivermouth and harbour area, where Ian's Yard was ..... but we never saw them in quantity or were aware of them flocking to a roost, though there would have been likely places in the areas available for them ,I would have thought.
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Stephen, the map is interesting. Is this the first year blackcaps are over wintering?
No, I've seen them passing through one or two days most winters over the last 10-15 years (usually on a Berberis bush). They started overwintering in Norway in the 1980s I think. This is the first year one has stopped for any length of time. I also have breeding Blackcaps in the garden, but it's May before they arrive from South Europe.
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And I thought Blackcaps are pure insect eaters and need special insect food mix. But it seems they are more adaptive in kind of food and taste (like Robins)... :D
I read in that link that olives are important food in the south...so they've changed from Olive Oil to Sunflower and Peanut Oil it seems.....Perhaps I'll put out a saucer of olive oil for it to remind it of the old days.... ;)
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Maggie,
I once heard a lot of birds one night outside 'Petsmart' and though the finches had escaped, it turned out to be a roost of wagtails. Try looking about shopping centres such as B&Q where they have hedges separating the parking lots. They don't seem to mind the street lights.
Susan
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The lowest roost I ever found was about average car height in a thick clipped hedge. Just now I cant remember what plants make up the hedge
Stephen maybe we should start feeding blackcaps diced olives
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Mark,do you want to spoil them,? at the moment with the recession we can't afford to feed ourselves diced olives. :)
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Staphen maybe we should start feeding blackcaps diced olives
Don't know whether they could handle the salt.
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Blackcaps here prefer apple, fat balls & peanuts. Under the present weather conditions they're voracious eaters too, like the rest of us ;D
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I'd just visited this page, then noticed that Ashley had posted one at 1.59 p.m.. I'll check in an hour to see what he says! ;D
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You too Anthony ;) Weird isn't it? Forum time seems to be BST rather that GMT/UTC, & setting local time to -1 under 'preferences' as Fred recommended some time ago has had no effect on my post times :-\
So back to the future ;D
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Does anyone recall that we used to hang up lamb bones and poultry carcases for blue tits and starlings to feed on? I've been puzzled by the fact that such offerings are nowadays totally ignored by the feathered friends. I recently read that small doses of arsenic are added to chicken feed to boost growth [ not to mention antibiotics in farm animal feed concentrates ] and wonder if the message has got around in our bird population that the stuff isn't safe!!!!
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I always used to tie up bacon rind with string to hang out for the bluetits..... ours gave up eating that offering many years ago.....no idea why.I still chop it very finely and the blackbirds and the robins seem to like it.
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Another gratuitous picture. The expression is almost human
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I always used to tie up bacon rind with string to hang out for the bluetits..... ours gave up eating that offering many years ago.....no idea why
because he watches cholesterol ;D
seriously - maybe they feel too salty or smoky
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The remains of our Christmas turkey are always enjoyed by our starlings. Eventually most of the carcass vanishes, hopefully by neighbours' cats onto their best furniture. ;D
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Tom,
What sort of rat is that one? It doesn't have the head shape of the normal hooded rats that are kept as pets, or has the pic been modified? Adorably cute!! I used to have pet rats for a few years. I don't think I'd be allowed to now-a-days, being married and all (I don't think Yvonne would cope with pet rats! ::))
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I always used to tie up bacon rind with string to hang out for the bluetits..... ours gave up eating that offering many years ago.....no idea why
because he watches cholesterol ;D
seriously - maybe they feel too salty or smoky
I soak it first to take away as much salt as possible.
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That fat rat is quite cute.... is he a banker?
He does look to have a bit of a thyroid problem though, with those bulging eyes, don't you think??
Paul, it's New Year's Day, so I'm saying nothing....... ;D
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Or is that a hamster or something? The proportions don't seem right. I've never seen a real hamster, as they're illegal here in Australia. Still looks slightly out of proportion for the pics I have seen of those as well, although the ears are closer to them I think than a rat?
Cute, whatever it is (thyroid problem or no thyroid problem). ;D ;D
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I found the picture on a Russian web site. As far as I know it is a rat. I know that some species have a food pouch in their jaws which could account for the"thyroid " look. I just liked the expression on its face.
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I found the picture on a Russian web site. As far as I know it is a rat. I know that some species have a food pouch in their jaws which could account for the"thyroid " look. I just liked the expression on its face.
Definitely at rat, although it is hamsters that have food pouches.
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Thanks Anthony. The ears and face shape just didn't look quite right. Maybe another type or breed of rat that I just haven't seen before (and that wouldn't be surprising). ;D
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Thanks Anthony. The ears and face shape just didn't look quite right. Maybe another type or breed of rat that I just haven't seen before (and that wouldn't be surprising). ;D
I agree Paul, but I suspect the pic has been widened a wee bit? I bred hooded rats at school for many years, but this one just isn't right.