 |
Bosom buddies. Posted by on February 8, 2012 11:20 PM | Permalink · rob172.jpg. Still clearing buckthorn in the dunes at Birkdale this week - a pleasure to be out there on crisp, very frosty mornings, when we are constantly accompanied by ...
John Dempsey has been a properish birder for more than 30 years and compiled the Daily Post "Country Matters" column. Birdblog looks at birding in Merseyside, Lancs and beyond!
Still clearing buckthorn in the dunes at Birkdale this week - a pleasure to be out there on crisp, very frosty mornings, when we are constantly accompanied by an extremely confiding Robin around the fire site.
Hardly surprising I guess - cleared areas mean disturbed ground, which means lots of larvae etc for it to feed on, but this one is permanently faithful to the controlled burn area, landing on my boot a day or so before I took these pix.
You should have seen it when John Gramauskas caught another Robin while mist netting at lunchtime today - it had to be dragged away kicking and screaming until the ringed bird was released some distance away.
Apart from that, not much moving through the site - a few Siskins calling high up in the blue yesterday, and a single bird today could just be the start of their northward movement, while the usual Bullfinch and titmice are about.
A pair of Raven that flew off Ainsdale beach before work yesterday morning, flapping powerfully inland, where presumably prospectors looking for easier pickings on the relatively ice-free coastal strip.
Watched a Magpie chipping around the edge of my frozen bird bath yesterday morning and thought you are never going to get any water out of there because it was frozen solid.
It proceeded to chip and chip away for 10 minutes and every time it got a large chunk it swallowed it. I have never seen a bird do this before. but I expect most of them do not have the strength in their beaks to do this.