Pages

11 Jun 2013

June doldrums

Beautiful weather for barbecues and lazing around in the garden but not so good for birding locally. Migration seems to have fizzled out with the majority of our breeding birds back on territory and busy raising young in the fine weather.




A quick trip to Hilbre Saturday morning was eventful only due to Marc Hughes finding a female Subalpine Warbler on the Great Orme - the first record for the site and another one that narrowly missed us! Still, we had Linnets!


The prolonged sunny spell has meant the Hilbre flowers are in full bloom with Thrift and naturalised Wallflowers looking stunning in the bright light.



A commotion above me whilst in  the garden turned out to be a family party of Ravens soaring high over head being mobbed by the local Carrion Crows with a female Sparrowhawk enjoying the thermals and joining in the fun as well.


The local male Blackbird obviously has a mate on eggs nearby and is using our aerial as  song post. I'm not sure where they're nesting but its not far away as he's keeping very close to the garden.


Our Robin has sneakily laid another brood in the same nest that was predated a month or so ago and is now sitting on five eggs whilst a brood of 3 Blue Tit pulli were ringed in a box I'd checked a few weeks ago and found nothing. It was only because the parents became agitated when I was working around that side of the house that I realised they'd moved in. Standing back and waiting I eventually saw the parents flying in and heard the chicks calling.

No comments :