Great Tits

[Balderdasha]

So that's 15 species of birds I've found in less than an hour and without leaving my house.

The house sparrow is a right noisy little imp and is probably my least favourite bird call, very repetitive. It does look cute though.

[Balderdasha]

Decided to have one last go and show a bit of patience so I did a five minute recording of the front garden and five minutes of the back. Glad I bothered as it's picked out a European greenfinch in the front garden and a Dunnock in the back garden. I've never heard of a Dunnock so I'm off to research that now.

[Balderdasha]

Dawn chorus is easing off. I'll try to remember to listen in again when they kick off before bedtime.

[Balderdasha]

Tried my son's bedroom and it's also picked out a Eurasian blue tit, a Great Tit, a Eurasian wren and a Carrion crow. I was wondering where the little tits and wrens were. They obviously prefer the back garden in the mornings.

[Balderdasha]

Eurasian magpie and Common wood-pigeon.

[Balderdasha]

Ooh, we've found a Song Thrush. I'm so lucky with where I live that I wake up to the sound of these birds outside my window.

[Balderdasha]

The swifts only come at this time of year. They're around for a few months usually.

[Balderdasha]

The blackbird finally piped down so now it's also found a Eurasian collared dove, a Common swift, a Eurasian jackdaw and a Common raven. I really like this app so thanks to whoever first mentioned it.

[Balderdasha]

I've just picked up a house sparrow and a Eurasian blackbird on the Merlin app by holding it outside my bedroom window, which I've definitely seen round here before. I can hear lots of birds but I think they're being drowned out by the noisiest two.

I wish I'd downloaded it earlier. There were some great bird calls on a walk with my mum and in the woods over the last couple of weeks.

[Nocturnal Submission]

You’ll see an occasional one round your way NS.

Really. That's interesting. I'll see if I can actually spot one in the feathers in that case.

[torres]

You’ll see an occasional one round your way NS.

[ursus arctos]

Mature males are a very deep yellow, but females and young are considerably less striking.

Also

Shy and difficult to see well, despite bright colors. Tends to remain well hidden in foliage, and flies quickly and easily over long distances.

[Nocturnal Submission]

Front garden has picked up a Little Owl, which is exciting, and a Eurasian Golden Oriole, which I have my doubts about, mainly because I'd never heard of it and because it's quite striking-looking, so I'd like to think that I'd have noticed one if it had been in the vicinity, unless they're nocturnal or highly elusive or something.

[Nocturnal Submission]

That Merlin app is terrific, so many thanks for the recommendation(s).

It seems to be very accurate. I just tested it in the back garden for 10 minutes or so and it picked up eight different songs/calls, most of which accord with the birdlife that I've seen but it also outed a wren lurking in the vicinity.

Very cool.

[Artificial Hipster]

Niche question but what was the name of the church?

Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Blackley.

[Sporting]

I stopped to admire a particularly handsome red brick church on a bike ride around North Manchester yesterday evening and was about to move on when something made me wonder whether what I'd assumed to be a pigeon on Mary's head might actually be something more exciting. I think I'm right in saying these are kestrel chicks.





I've been making good use of the Merlin app too and picked up 9 different songs making up the dusk chorus in Blackley Forest not far from where I saw the kestrels, a nuthatch being the only one whose call I wouldn't have been able to pick out in isolation

Niche question but what was the name of the church?

[Artificial Hipster]

I stopped to admire a particularly handsome red brick church on a bike ride around North Manchester yesterday evening and was about to move on when something made me wonder whether what I'd assumed to be a pigeon on Mary's head might actually be something more exciting. I think I'm right in saying these are kestrel chicks.





I've been making good use of the Merlin app too and picked up 9 different songs making up the dusk chorus in Blackley Forest not far from where I saw the kestrels, a nuthatch being the only one whose call I wouldn't have been able to pick out in isolation

[S. aureus]

I use birdnet too, though whether it's my phone's crappy microphone or the app I most commonly get a message that I have to move closer to the bird to identify it, even when I can hear it clearly with my ears. Conversely, on odd occasions it correctly identifies a bird that I can barely hear.
I recently downloaded merlin (it appears to be a different app), but haven't got round to trying it, yet.

Since I posted this I gave merlin a quick whirl, and I prefer it to birdnet because you can leave the microphone running and it will identify birds as the sound comes in, whereas for birdnet you have to record the song then stop recording and select a portion to analyze*. Then you can go back to recording again. Both identified the same set of birds in my back yard yesterday.

*I have obtained different results depending on how wide a window I've selected, or shifting it around the bird's phrase in question. Admittedly this has varied between "don't know" and correct identification, rather than spouting out an entirely different bird, but to my eyes I'm not cutting off any part of the song when I select my windows.

[Balderdasha]

Saw this sadly ex-hawk on a countryside walk. And heard but didn't see a pheasant.

[Balderdasha]

I didn't catch them in this photo but these gulls had two fluffy grey chicks with them hidden in nook in-between them and they waddled out to be fed at one point. Very cute.

[Amor de Cosmos]

There has been a very rare Hoopoe sighting at South Shields beach last week. I didn't rush to see it, much as I love them

Ooo! Never seen one. They don't seem a bird that should be in the UK somehow. They look almost tropical.

Meanwhile we've Starlings nesting in our roof somewhere. Everyone hates Starlings here, bleedin' immigrants! They've spent the century since they arrived decimating fruit crops across the continent. Now they're shitting on our windows, and imitating the Eagles — the birds not the band.

---

[longeared]

Went for a walk in Derbyshire today and sat under a shady tree for my lunch to get out of the sun. During the course of this I saw a smart redstart with a big fly in its gob sat on a nearby fence. It stayed there for ages, hopping from post to post, and I was thinking "shouldn't you be taking that somewhere". I then became aware that there was a bird in the tree above me shrieking and clearly sounding an alarm call, and I thought, ah, that'll be Mrs Redstart then. I sheepishly went and sat under a different tree, the alarm stopped and I didn't see the redstart again, presumably it had dropped its catch off. I imagine my name is mud in the local redstart community tonight "coming over here sitting under our tree"

[Jobi1]

We've just been sitting watching a nest full of fledgling robins leave home presumably for the first time. Was like the opening credits from Shameless – SCATTER! Parent robins hopping around trying to keep tabs on where the kids had all flapped off to. One almost landed in the middle of our dinner!

[S. aureus]

I use birdnet too, though whether it's my phone's crappy microphone or the app I most commonly get a message that I have to move closer to the bird to identify it, even when I can hear it clearly with my ears. Conversely, on odd occasions it correctly identifies a bird that I can barely hear.
I recently downloaded merlin (it appears to be a different app), but haven't got round to trying it, yet.

[ad hoc]

I think that's the same app. It's the same logo