Although the weather this weekend was forecast to be relatively decent there was no real point in visiting any of the nearby parks/ponds as they would be full of 'exercising' people understandably taking the opportunity to get outside into the fresh air. Also the vast majority of species I was likely to encounter, with the exception of the waterbirds at Swannie Ponds, I could just as easily see from home with a bit of time and effort taken. So, I chose the latter plan and tried to see as many species as I could over the course of the weekend from my front window.
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| Herring Gull |
Saturday's main highlight was at least 3 different Starling nest locations (1 definite, 2 others I couldn't see exactly where the birds were going to, from my window but they were definitely taking material to 2 different sites). In addition, there were territorial disputes between pairs of Woodpigeons, Dunnocks and some of the local Herring Gulls. I was able to photograph some of the birds that frequented the higher perches but those below my window height went unphotographed owing to too many windows facing mine. A few Meadow Pipits flew over. I ended up with 13 species seen and a single 'heard only'.
Saturday species seen - Blackbird, Blue Tit, Carrion Crow, Dunnock, Goldfinch, Herring Gull, Jackdaw, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Magpie, Meadow Pipit, Feral Pigeon, Starling, Woodpigeon.
Heard only - House Sparrow.
Sunday proved to be more productive with more Meadow Pipits flying over, though they went mostly unseen, until I finally caught one in flight late in the session. There was no nest material being gathered by the Starlings. A Wren took the place of the Dunnocks and gave a few brief bursts of song, though Dunnocks did show later. A nice surprise was a pair of Greylag Geese overflying. Normally it is Pink Footed Geese that is the default species over here, so they were a pleasant addition. Another surprise was a single Buzzard seen rather distantly, being harassed by gulls - I had seen another (or possibly even the same) Buzzard on Wednesday from my window.
Another bird I had seen on Wednesday was a Sparrowhawk male with some missing primaries, so when the local Feral Pigeons took flight I wasn't surprised to see a Sparrowhawk overhead with missing feathers. It appears to have been the same bird. A second Sparrowhawk, also with missing feathers put in an appearance a little later, this time a female. A potential third bird which appeared to have undamaged wings initially, may be the female with primaries tucked away. Sunday's total was 18 species seen and 2 heard only.
Sunday species seen - Blackbird, Blue Tit, Buzzard, Carrion Crow, Dunnock, Goldfinch, Greylag Goose, Herring Gull, House Sparrow, Jackdaw, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Magpie, Meadow Pipit, Feral Pigeon, Sparrowhawk, Starling, Woodpigeon, Wren.
Heard only - Chaffinch, Pied Wagtail.
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| Woodpigeon |
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| Woodpigeon |
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| Jackdaw |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Feral Pigeon |
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| Woodpigeon & Starling |
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| Starling |
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| Jackdaw |
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| Jackdaw |
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| Magpie |
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| Greylag Goose |
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| Greylag Goose |
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| Greylag Goose |
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| Starling |
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| Woodpigeon |
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| Buzzard |
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| Lesser Black Backed Gull & Buzzard |
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Lesser Black Backed Gull |
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| Feral Pigeon |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Herring Gull & Sparrowhawk |
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| Herring Gull & Sparrowhawk |
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| Feral Pigeon |
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| Sparrowhawk |
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Carrion Crow |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Starling |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Herring Gull |
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| Starling |
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| Starling |
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| Starling |
In total between the 2 days I managed to see 18 species, with 2 heard only taking the total to a reasonable 20. Given the relatively poor available habitat visible from my window, that is not a bad return for a few hours watching. Photos are all from this weekend.
