The Bird Thread

What happened to all the house martins? When I was a kid, they used to make nests in the eaves of the flats opposite us where my best mate lived. Spring/summer was marked by hundreds of them swooping in and out all day long. I can’t recall the last time I saw one.

One of them became a famous DJ, another is now a journalist, one went to prison for attacking a business associate with an axe, and one is still performing.

So, unhappy hour for at least one of them. Hull 0, Strangeways 1.

Lots of the bird variety around here, which is probably why they're on the Sussex flag.

Guess that explains why they don’t fly up under the eaves of my mate’s flat any more.

Lots of House Martins at Denbies vineyard

OOf. My endz.

Gotta love a trill or 10

Now that’s what I call quite good!

It’s a serious decline. I actually saw my largest flock of the year yesterday, all juveniles, maybe 50 or so. Not that long ago there was a massive colony nesting all over a housing estate near me, but they were possibly the only happy residents so the area has been redeveloped over a few years, and they’ve all gone.

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I noticed a green blur flashing past my head the other morning then spotted this in an apple tree in Cambuslang, Glasgow.

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Just climbed the tower of the garden museum to be greeted by a peregrine on the roof

Pigeon for dinner

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^nice!

The snipe were out yesterday morning.

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Had a hobby fly past yesterday, last of the summer for me I guess, also three cattle egret and a golden plover as new additions for my 10km list

Keep your eyes peeled for American vagrants. An unusual dry warm front has hit the west coast, making landfall in Wales bringing with it unprecedented numbers of rare birds. Most of them must be going unseen, but the reports of those that have been found are amazing.

Didn't know that - wish I was in Ireland ( Tacumshin is fantastic at times like this).

Some amazing birds for sure but some of the photos of the twitches this weekend reminds me why I don't twitch

Me neither. I’ve found a few rares over the years. Once I’ve enjoyed them I leave and then report them.
Last year I found a glossy ibis. Hours later I noticed an unusual number of ducks flying over. I went back and found a bunch of twitchers in the middle of the marsh, flushing everything.

I’ve been seeing a steady stream of them commuting south overhead the last few days here in east Kent. They don’t hang about these parts like the swifts, but the def pass through.

I now have a new friend.
A Crow who knocks on my 2nd floor window in the morning quite insistently, it has also visited during the day and just stares through the window.
Not sure how this all started but I have put a crust on the windowsill after they knock which isn’t taken straight away, there were 2 of them when I was woken this morning by tapping on the window.

There are quite a few rarities passing through here, some of which I have reported or pictured. I watch birds and anything else that runs, crawls or slithers out of sheer fascination. I wouldn't give anything more precise than Kent/Sussex borders because twitchers tend to be unpleasant, trample everything and be a general fucking nuisance. Even though nobody on here is like that, obviously, I can't help but be protective.

Might also go to explain wtf that raptor? is a few pages back.

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

Sorry folks, I live in Iowa USA. I looked into it. It's probably a red tailed hawk.

Regarding this post: https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/337187/?offset=2550#comment17116405

https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/red-tailed-hawk

Hmmm.

I'm not buying that.

No bars on the flanks.

No red tail!? 😁

Could be variation spouse.

the rest of their plumage can be quite variable, especially west of the Mississippi

Maybe not then. I'm not a bird dude. But the red tail is age dependent and I can't find any other raptors with those markings on its leg parts and a largely unmarked white chest.

I sent an email to the university here.

Maybe they reply.

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