What's buzzing or flying near you 2025 ?

Must admit I've not seen many blackbirds now you mention it, usually some them out with their youngsters in the garden through the summer, but not so much this year.
I wonder if the dry summer has had an effect on their food supply.

 

Got a few but no where like the many we used to have

 

Gulls at rest. There's a walkway close by where they regularly drop molluscs from above to open them and feed, regardless of passers by. I've seen them drop molluscs on parked cars too, with the same motive .

 

Saw a female blackbird today on our back lawn. We don't see them very often.

What I miss is sparrows chirping. Never hear them.

 

I never get sparrows in the garden, but just 5 minutes walk away from the house there are big colonies. I walk past them on the way to and from work and they whizz in and out of the bushes chirping away.

 

Loads of sparrows around here but they do descend in groups and land on the bird feeders in large numbers but all disappear suddenly.

 

When we moved here there were a few sparrow's nests in the eaves and a couple in the roof of what used to be a donkey shed and is now the hen house. We put bird food out every day - mixed seeds and fat ballsn never see peanuts on sale - and now have a huge colony of sparrows up by the house and, since we got the hens, a huge colony down in the veg plot.

They nest and have conferences and perches in the mixed hedge up by the house, the ivy on the ruin walls and wherever they can down at the veg plot.

Blue tits and great tits come too and the odd chaffinch plus a growing family of collared doves. Plenty of nesting space and shelter for them in hedgerows and nearby farm buildings.

Lots of other birds heard but not seen.

 

Yes, we have spuggies. We are just a handy handout for food. They don’t linger longer than the crumbs last.

 

Had to look up spuggies!

 

From the Poole Harbour Bird Boat cruise.
Shelducks and Bar Tailed Godwits

Common Scoter, a winter visiting black duck I very rarely see.


Avocets.


Shags.


One of twelve Glossy Ibis.

 

Blackbird singing in the rowan this morning, and contemplating the remaining berries .

 

Busy day here. The usual small birds flitting in and out of the bushes and trees before going to the feeders. However 1 long tail tit on the feeder. We usually have quite a few but haven't seen any for weeks.
Then the green woodpecker back pecking at the spartan apples that are still on the tree. A greater spotted woodpecker perched on the now leafless Beurre Hardy pear tree having a look at the green one. A magpie pecking away at the fallen apples (at least not on the trees).
A heron flew over and 5 ducks (no idea which ones too high up).
Then walking pass the polytunnel, the top door (like a stable door) was open so space between us on the path and the open door minimal. With no sound at all a male sparrow hawk came from behind us, dropped to the side to miss the open door and brushed past our coats with a swish. It carried on to the top end of the garden and perched on the fence. It must have taken us to be part of the surroundings as it would surely not have perched not too far away from us.
What a treat.

 

15th November

still not 1 blackbird to be found in the area I live

 

Both male and female Blackbirds are now back.

I had some better views of the long staying flock of Glossy Ibis near home this afternoon although some sun might have shown their 'glossiness' but it was cloudy all day.

 

Breakfast