Have you cleaned out your nestbox?

Once a year you should always empty your nestboxs. The main problems people seem to have is the issue of what you will find in them or are you just too lazy to do this, or does the wife ask you why are you taking the hoover outside? Sometimes the old nests have little visitors, such as, spiders, insects, bugs, ticks, lice, should i go on, are you feeling itchy yet?

Well the first photo shows what happens after the blue tits have moved out with their fledglings. A wasp moved in and started turning it in to a home fit for a wasp.

The best way to empty any nestbox is to place your hand in and grabbing the nest and throwing it away. Then flush with hot water, if you have a lot of boxs use some flasks.

There is always a down side to emptying boxs and that is when you open a nest and see that a near fledged bird just didnt make it, oh well that nature!! Other wise we would be knee deep in blue tits! (Had to keep that bit clean)

Chris

And now for something completely different.

No I didn’t meet old hook nose on the way to Aldi. Just thought you might like to see who I met at Chester Zoo today. Love them or hate them the Zoo is currently the nearest I’m going to get to a Condor or Vulture for now. I’m sure these chaps would rather be soaring over the mountains & plains, but without breeding programmes how many species would now be extinct. The Andean Condor is the largest flying bird in the world, not the prettiest, but certainly impressive. Something you certainly got a perspective of when you saw them flying in their large enclosures.
To finish on a topical note ‘Halloween’, if you do fancy a trip to the Zoo and you’re not 'chicken' don’t miss out on the Twilight Zone; Batwings fluttering against your hair and fingers being nibbled in the dark, need I say more.............! Laura

Feed The Birds Day - Saturday 27th October 2007

This weekend is the RSPB's Feed The Birds Day.


Make sure you're stocked up on seed to help our feathered friends through the cold winter months! For advice on feeding garden birds, speak to Laura at the indoor meetings and have a browse through the group's selection of seed on sale, or click >HERE<

Sociable Lapwing finds some friends

Hopes are rising for one of the world's rarest birds after the discovery of the largest flock seen for more than 100 years.
More than 3,000 critically endangered sociable lapwings have been found in the Ceylanpinar district of south-eastern Turkey after a satellite tag was fitted to one of the birds migrating from breeding grounds in Kazakhstan.

Read the full story on the RSPB's website by clicking >HERE<


^ Sociable Lapwing - Maxim Koshkin (ACBK)

A funny thing happened to me on the way to Aldi

Had to have a second take - did my eyes deceive me or was that a Woodcock on the grassy roundabout at Knotty Ash, another circle of said roundabout confirmed it! Mmmh, according to the good book - this is mainly a nocturnal bird, spends most of the day in dense cover, and you would be very lucky to see one. This bird was obviously an attention seeker. Strutting about in the open, probing the muddy grass, oblivious to the Sunday cruisers passing by.. certainly seemed happy with the menu on offer.

I did eventually get to Aldi, I wonder what the passing drivers thought of the mad woman with the camera. ..on second thoughts don’t answer that!!! Laura

A change in the air

A red letter day for me, as tis my first blog - so here goes.
I may not be a twitcher, or one mortified because they dipped that little brown warbler. But I do like to observe the visitors to my very local patch, namely my garden, and yesterday and today brought me proof that winter is on the way. For those of you that have visited our website you will know I have nestbox camera’s installed; The last 2 days have noted a sudden drop in overnight temperatures and sure enough one of our little blue friends checked into the Bimson hotel to roost, after all why shiver on a branch when you can snooze in your own pad. The second signal for a change in season was this morning, with the arrival of our first male Blackcap. Over the last couple of years I have noted, along with Long tailed Tits and Goldcrest, Blackcaps have visited the garden from autumn through to spring, they particularly like homemade suet cake so I better start cooking. I’ve already had a flock of 20 Lollipops last week, still waiting for the first Goldcrest and wouldn’t it be nice to get some winter thrush visitors - didn’t plant out all those shrubs- Pyracantha, Cotoneaster & Berberis just for their colour! - Laura

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