The Bird Thread

I'm not averse to a bit of booming

ok boomer

What’s the best/most appropriate for general birdwatching pair of binoculars I could buy for under £120 or so.

I've got some Avalon Minis which are great as they are compact but just seen they are around £150 mark. I definitely didn't spend that much so must have got them in a sale. They're pretty good so keep your eyes peeled for offers.

If you don't mind second hand, you probably won't beat these
https://www.lcegroup.co.uk/Used/Nikon-Prostaff-7s-8x42_384783.html

Full backstory in the neighbours thread, but what is the process if someone just aggressively mowed a wildflower area when there were certainly still skylarks resident there a few days before? The area is notionally an area of communal land designated as a wildflower meadow but the neighbour in question took the unilateral decision to hire a tractor and flatten it all because it looks messy out of his window.

I should note that I don’t think prosecution in this case is either likely or proportionate but I am interested to know what the process is in case he continues to be a twat.

Cheers both looks like I missed out on those LCE ones. Will keep my eyes peeled for some deals and second hand ones.

A bit late to reply but look for Pentax Papillo 6.5 x 21.

https://www.aceoptics.co.uk/pentax-papilio-ii-6-5x21.html
I’ve seen them for just over £100. I have a couple of pairs I use with youngsters and they’re amazing value.
The real bonus is their extraordinary close focus. About 18”.
The only drawback is a rather narrow field of view, but that’s only really noticeable if you’ve had the luxury of the wide field of high end binoculars.

Cheer for the recommendation.

Re high-end binoculars. I was once walking up Snowdon and found a pair of Leica binoculars. Amazing magnification, crisp as anything, ridiculously high end. Never looked through anything like them. Spent 20 minutes looking through them amazed at the quality. Felt so bad that someone had lost them that I couldn’t bring myself to take them. Hung them up on a fence post and left them. Looking back they were probably worth £2-3k.

Many years ago I had a bit of cash to by new binoculars. I went into a shop and looked through lots of pairs and asked to try the then newly released Leica Ultravid. I was astonished at the difference. I simply couldn’t waste money on inferior binoculars having tried them. So eventually I bought a pair and have had them ever since.
A while back I bought an even better pair, the Leica Noctivid, but they were outrageously expensive and I ended up selling them and getting my by now extremely battered Ultravids refurbished. It cost me £500 for a full rebuild but they used the latest glass, which is a considerable upgrade. Given that it’s my most used possession it’s been good value.

Dad gave me some old Zeiss binoculars which I sent off to be refurbished. Got them back with a "no charge" note. Bonus!
When I say old, they're labelled West Germany. They're great.

Talking about binoculars, has anyone tried the image stabilised models, in particular the Fujinon offerings?

In Milan saw what I think was a small hawk in nook in the castle, middle of the city. Greyish-brown. Bit far for me to see detail. What could it be so I can look it up?

peregrines nest and perch high up on buildings though if it’s small it’s probably the tiercel (Male)

This is based upon the UK, but includes where common raptors are likely to be seen:
https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/identify-birds-prey

A large hawk. Was pretty far away. Maxed out my zoom on my phone.

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Same one came back next day. Doesn't look big until you compare it to the chairs beneath it. That fence is a good 5+ ft tall.

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I have some stabilised Opticron binoculars, Imagic IS 10x30. Love them, find the dead-still image more than makes up for any other shortcomings for actually picking out details. My partner isn't massively keen on them, so YMMV. Her dad has the Canon 18x50 ones, which are quite something.

More of a general wildlife watcher and photographer, so have some Nikon Prostaff 3s that I bought whilst whale watching in Alaska, but they seem more than adequate for me when birdwatching.

This one brought down a pigeon in my back garden today, guessing it is some sort of hawk, left me with a right mess to clear up but was interesting to watch it dining

Edit - did some Googling, will call it a Buzzard I think rather than a hawk

Edit again - thanks @Ordinata yes looks like it

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^ Sparrowhawk but not sure on the one further up...

Merlin?

The big one up top almost looks like a Harpy Eagle but unless that's an escapee there's no chance it actually is.... 😂

will call it a Buzzard I think rather than a hawk

Buzzards do not take out pigeons as carrion is their meal of choice
thats a sparrowhawk. the yellow eye means it’s not a peregrine.

If it was a Harpy Eagle it would be half the height of the fence. 😎

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Ha, I know, but that second pic does look pretty similar in marking/colouring...

It looks like it's wearing stripey pyjamas.

Hobby? Or a juvenile?

Curious.