The swallows, along with some house martins, are still whizzing around the sky in the freshening breezes of autumn but we think these are birds passing through on their way south rather than the local swallows which left some days ago.
With the changing season we're seeing some newcomers in the garden, including this grey wagtail. Grey wagtails, along with the more common pied wagtail, being insect-eaters, love the assiduously-mown playing fields which surround us.
After a brief absence we're seeing coal tits back on the feeders. They quickly discovered that they could get through the mesh onto the fat ball which, until their return, was the exclusive preserve of the blue tits - which are none too please with the development. Since the blue tits are bigger than the coal tits, and are mercilessly bullied by the sparrows and great tits, they've been enjoying taking it out on their coal tit cousins.
The greenfinches come and go. In the last few days they've been almost permanently on the peanut feeders. We think this is a young one.
Ever since we stopped putting out any seed and confined our feeding to the more difficult-to-access peanut feeders, the sparrows have largely moved elsewhere. However, they do come back for a drink and a splash in the bird bath.
Along with the robins and dunnocks, chaffinches are almost always in the garden.
It's tough being a small bird in any garden but the brooding threat of our young sparrowhawk and the attentions of....
....at least three local cats, does make small bird life here precarious. This is the most frequent feline visitor. Our predecessor in the house used to feed him a slice of ham every lunchtime but, even though he now gets firmly shooed away, he still visits, mostly now to eat our small birds.
The swallows, along with some house martins, are still whizzing around the sky in the freshening breezes of autumn but we think these are birds passing through on their way south rather than the local swallows which left some days ago.
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