Tuesday 03/02
Tuesday, if I remember right, was quite wet. But although the consistent drizzle dampened the area, quite a few species were seen. As usual, plenty of Jackdaws were on the move, with probably 30 passing through heading north. Other usuals included a few Magpies, Crows, Blackbirds, Blue Tits, Sparrows, Long-tailed Tits, and a couple of Starlings. Species that aren't so abundant here (or less usual for a garden) included one Great Tit, and one singular Redwing that briefly landed on some trees. The large group of 30 have stripped all the trees here of the juicy-looking red berries that had been here, so there has been a huge decrease, as expected, in the number of Redwing over the past few weeks. A Song Thrush was singing, along with a Wren, and about 10 of the Linnets were about early morning. The area of gorse in front of the railway is presumably what the Linnets like. Best bird of the day goes to the Linnets. It does feel weird to be able to see them from the house!
Blue Tit
Wednesday 04/02
Wednesday was quite a nice day, with quite a bit of sun appearing throughout the day. Most of the usual species were present, with a few Blue Tits, Starlings, Long-tailed Tits, and Sparrows all seen. Two Red Kites flew around very early morning; it's always really cool to see them here, the high elevation of the bedroom window means you're usually nearly eye-level with them. A Robin was singing, one Wren appeared, and one singular Linnet was about late afternoon. Bird of the day will be the two Red Kites that were around in the morning, far from a daily feature here!
Long-tailed Tit (top) and Linnet (below)
Starling
Thursday 05/02
Thursday didn't include much birding, as we were out most morning as per usual. It was a bit wet, but some species were seen, including a Robin, Wren, Long-tailed Tits, 15 Linnets, and best of all, one Chaffinch. When we got home, Dad informed me that he had seen one of the Bullfinches, and seeing his record phone photo of it, he had. I was very happy to know they were still around. There have been 5 about all winter, but I hadn't seen them for a few weeks, so a sighting was great. Bird of the day would go to the Bullfinch, but I didn't actually see it, so it goes to the Chaffinch, a slightly scarcer bird for the garden.
Chaffinch
Friday 06/02
Friday was again a bit wet, but all the usuals were about, including one Robin, Blue Tits, Great Tits, Sparrows, Starlings, Jackdaws, Crows, and 5 Linnets. A Collared Dove appeared briefly, along with a singular Redwing that briefly dropped in. A Herring Gull flew through, we do get a few gulls coming through but not too many. The two highlights were a Great Spotted Woodpecker that was heard calling and briefly seen flying, and one very smart male Bullfinch, which I did actually see this time! I only saw it for a second or two before it flew off, so sadly couldn't get any photos. The best bird, of course, was the Bullfinch.
Redwing (above) and a B&W Magpie picture (below)
Saturday 07/02
Saturday had ok-ish weather and included all the usuals. Slightly scarcer species seen included one Redwing and one Jay. Mid-morning, I was just chilling in the room listening to the T20 Cricket World Cup with the window open, when I heard a call that I recognised very well. I immediately got my camera out and started searching for the source of the noise, but to no avail. After a few minutes, I finally spotted the bird that I was looking for- a Greenfinch, a garden tick! I was very pleased, of course, and grabbed some photos as it flew around. Before long, I realised there were actually two flying about... really great birds. Bird of the day goes to the only tick of the week- the two Greenfinches.
Greenfinches (above) and House Sparrow (below)
Blue Tit
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I hope you have all enjoyed this, I certainly have been having fun birding out my bedroom window! Just the one garden tick for the week, we'll see what the next week has to offer:)
