Chiltern Birder

I had some leisure to watch what came into my garden today. With one feeder out of action because I lost one of the fittings after taking it apart for cleaning and another bitten throug by a squirrel I only have a single four port feeder in use at the moment. I am getting a good mix of tits with blues, greats and marsh/willow (I still haven't decided which) as regular visitors. At least one long tailed came through the garden today but didn't come to the feeder. Dunnocks, robins, blackbirds and wood pigeons come to the ground feeders and chaffinches have become common visitors. A pre lunch walk gave be a good look at a goldcrest, something I haven't seen locally since the fir tree in the middle of my small back garden became too large and had to be taken out. No kites locally which is unusual now. For a long time they tended not to come this side of Chesham but that has definitely changed.

I have one feeder on the go at the moment but from what I saw in the garden today I think that I am probably feeding more squirrels than birds. The weather has been mixed with clear skies alternating with short sharp bursts of rain. I did see a dunnock perch on top of the feeder but they always feed at ground level. It shouldn't have been surprising really but for the first time ever I saw a kite from my own front path. He circled over our street for a minute or two and then seemed to be caught by the wind and suddenly whipped away without any apparent effort. In clear weather last night I was struck by the view of the escarpment from the Lower Icknield Way. With no lights visible the effect is of a strange brooding shadow against the sky. The drive itself was not particularly exciting with just a glimpse of a fox.

I put some sunflower hearts in a small feeder a week ago as I had seen some blue tits foraging in the garden. Very little activity so far, the level has dropped slightly and I have seen a hen chaffinch using it. I have a feeling that serious feeding is going to start a couple of weeks later than last year. I will have to double check the other feeders and make sure that they are clean and disinfected. The feeders with perching rings are a pain to take apart for cleaning and I always fear loosing one of the nuts that hold everything together.

Not much activity on the bird front close to home. As usual I start thinking about restarting feeding at this time but experience has shown that I should wait for another week or two otherwise food will just start to rot in the feeders. The recent clear weather has meant that the mornings have been misty. When driving between Ley Hill and Latimer this provides some incredible views more like a Chinese painting than an English landscape. If it wasn't for the need to pay the mortgage I would just stop the car and spend the day in the Chiltern countryside. One feature of the mist is that I have seen kestrels hunkered down on pieces of street furniture rather than hovering. One bright spot was a jay seen alongside the North Circular Road in north east London this morning.

With some fine late September weather the leaves are just starting to change colour and I am seeing some impressive cobwebs in the garden. As is usual at this time of year I am not putting out any food as experience shows that from late August through to November it will just rot in the feeders. Of course with the bad weather at harvest time feeding patterns may change a little this year, I saw very grey looking barley being combined well into this month. On the drive to the station this morning the clear weather had me looking out at the bird life. Waiting for another vehicle on the single track section between Ley Hill and Latimer a large bird of prey suddenly came across at hedgerow height. It didn't seem right for a kite but as I was waiting in a gateway I had a look as it cleared the hedge abd turned to follow the high ground above Latimer Bottom. With no fork to the tail and wingtips splayed like fingers it was definitely a buzzard. By no means unknown around here but far le

The arable fields between Ley Hill and Latimer have been harvested over the last couple of days. This morning I saw a group of yellowhammers in the middle of the road by a field gate. From the look of things they were eating spilled grain. Instead of flying into the hedgerow they flew away from me along the road at windscreen height. I haven't seen much else recently apart from a distant glimpse of a partridge and the occasional red kite.

I took one of my occasional visits to South Wales last weekend. There was nothing outstanding about the drive with the usual scattering of kites to the east of Oxford and buzzards to the west. On Saturday a visit to the Gwent Levels was not as exciting in birding terms as my visit in May 2006 but we were lucky to see a water vole cross the road in front of us and also saw a weasel in the reserve. Among the birds there were curlews and oystercatchers at a distance on the mud and a single egret flew across our path. The new visitor centre is impressive with a nice selection of cakes in the little cafe. Later in the day we moved up into the hills near Blaenavon looking for Peregrines but thought we were going to be out of luck until one flew across just as we were turning to leave. As well as the usual buzzards the almost pig like croak of a raven caught our attention and among the small birds there were a host of meadow pipits and a solitary wheatear. On Sunday a walk around Whitecastle

I saw a blackbird on the starling feeder today who flew away with a large beak full of fat. As juvenile blackbirds are around, feeding themselves, this one must be raising another brood. The young starlings are still turning up in small parties but I am not seeing groups in double figures any more. We also had a party of juvenile blue tits on the fat feeder in the front garden. Fat bars are now lasting several days and I will not be buying any more this season.

I parked in the Water Meadow car park in Chesham today, so I took the scenic route into town via Town Bridge. The Chess is in a healthy state with a good flow of water. Moorhens have raised a brood and I saw the parent and one chick by the bridge. In the garden the starlings have mostly moved on and the main visitors seem to be goldfinches and wood pigeons.

I spent some time in Devon for the first time in 6 years last weekend. I was very struck by the number of buzzards that we saw along the A303 / A30. I saw the first just as we crossed from Wiltshire into Somerset and after that they were a regular feature. We stayed in Whimple and, between games, the cricket pitch attracted swallows, skimming dangerously close to the ground and a number of pied wagtails including a juvenile. At one point I saw a wagtail take to the air and drive off one of the swallows.

In previous years I commented on how I never seem to see red kites in June. I was reminded of that when I saw one over Latimer this evening, which is by no means the first this month. In the garden the starlings are turning up in smaller numbers and a great tit has reappeared. There are blackbird families in both the front and back gardens and I have seen the juveniles being fed several times. Both greater spotted and green woodpeckers are in evidence, the former taking a lot of fat from the feeders and the latter digging holes in the front lawn. Other regulars are goldfinches, chaffinches, house sparrows, blue tits, robins including a juvenile, dunnock and a resident pair of wood pigeons. Absent these days are other varieties of tit, greenfinches and collared doves.

As in previous years things are thinning out in the garden. The greater spotted woodpeckers are still taking fat and seemed to have moved from the back garden feeders to the one at the front. We also had a blackbird chick in the front garden bounding about after its father demanding food. Looking back over previous entries I noticed that I have seldom seen red kites in the area during the summer. This year may be different, there was one over Chesham this morning. Yesterday I saw a buzzard over the M25 between Rickmansworth and Watford.

We have had two sparrow chicks on the feeder, taking alternate mouthfulls from the feeder and from their mother. The starlings on the other hand are now feeding themselves while the greater spotted woodpecker is still taking away substantial beakfulls of fat. We haven't seen any juvenile robins this year and the blackbirds are not around so often. The starlings seem to have moved on today, for the last week we have been shifting a litre of fat every day but half of last night's bar is still in place.

The greater spotted wodpecker is still a regular visitor to the back garden but yesterday I was noticed a lot of starlings on the front lawn next door. One seemed to be moving oddly and taking a closer look I realised that there was a green woodpecker among them. I nave never had a change to watch one quite so closely and I was struck by its very stiff gait as it hopped and by the way the beak was held titled upwards, reminiscent of a cormorant. It was digging quite intensively in one spot in a manner which explains the several holes that had appeared in my grass in recent months.

The starling chicks finally put in an appearance yesterday, making a lot of noise and standing on top of the fat bar and demanding to be fed. One or two did take the occasional peck but they still prefer sitting with their mouths open. That will change in a day or two. We have had a lot of chaffinches including one chick being fed while a very frazzled looking blue tit keeps carrying off beak fulls of fat. Apart form that, over the last two days we have had house sparrows, goldfinches, dunnock, robin, blackbird, wood pigeon and greater spotted woodpecker in the garden. A trip to Oxfordshire today was rather lacking in birds as it was raining heavily on the way out although later in the day we did see a few swifts in Bampton and on the way back six kites in the Thame area. Even though they are a common site around here they still provoke a sense of wonder whenever I see them.

Exactly 12 months ago I recorded seeing juvenile starlings on the feeders. So far this year I haven't seen any although adults are around in numbers. On the back garden feeders I am seeing very few tits at the moment. This morning's tally has been robin, wood pigeon, goldfinches, chaffinch, house sparrows and starlings. At the front a blue tit is nesting in a hole in the cladding of my next door neighbour's house. I have a fat feeder in one of my quinces at the front. I have seen the bird going into the tree and the fat is being taken so I guess that he is taking it.

A year to the day since I saw my first greater spotted woodpecker in the garden and one came to the starling feeder this morning. She kept the fat block between her and the window but I could see a flash of red under her tail and then she moved a little higher and gave me a good view. I hope they will be breeding again this year.

Just heard my first cuckoo of the year, I would probably have missed it if I hadn't had the bedroom window open because of the sudden onset of summer weather. Actually it was heard around here four days ago but this is just the first day when I have had the leisure to actually listen to the birdsong.

I saw my first swallow of the year this morning. One flying past and one perched on a phone line near the village. I was then told that they had been around for a while already but none had crossed my path.

At the moment I am hearing more bird song than I am seeing birds. I am getting a pair of coal tits coming to the feeders so, hopefully, they have a nest nearby. A garden in Great Missenden was open for the National Garden Scheme today which showed up my lack of knowledge about bumble bees as there was a pure black species in the garden with the laden pollen sacks showing up in marked contrast. It was striking that all the plants were well in advance of my exposed hill top location. Coming back we did see a red kite between Missenden and Chesham. A short while ago I had to make repeat of the trip to Goring that I mentioned last May. This time I did not see a single kite on the way down although I did glimpse one flying high over Goring at lunchtime. Coming back I saw a group just before the wonderfully named village of Britwell Salome and regular numbers after that.

I put fat out for the blackbirds and robins but it regularly gets carried off by squirrels. I have had complete feeders carried off recently. The answer seems to have been to put a fat block in a square cage feeder and place it inside the cage over the ground feed hopper. So far it has lasted but something seems to have tried to take it away as this morning as the cage had been moved bodily by over a foot. Sunday's snow was spectacular while it lasted and I am sorry I didn't have time to take any photos. A brief look into the garden revealed goldfinches and wood pigeons. On Saturday I saw a red kite low over a house on the road past Bovingdon Brickworks. Not really surprising but the first that I have seen in Hertfordshire, even if it was only a couple of hundred yards across the county boundary.

After a lot of blustery weather and few chances to pay attention to the birds March finally went out "like a lamb". On the drive to the station today I encountered a partridge taking a leasurely stroll across the road and had a nice view of a kestral on the way home. In the garden the leaves are about to break on the quince trees. Hopefully I will have a little more time and opportunity to look at what is around me during April.

As the forecast rain arrived very late in the day I was able to take a short walk in the unexpected sunshine. The fields behind the village are down to brassicas this year and they seem to be providing suitable cover as I heard a skylark while I was out. There was a breeze blowing and he was upwind so every time I turned to look for him the wind noise drowned out the singing. There was also a woodpecker drumming which makes me hope that they might come back to the feeders this spring. Not much of note in the garden apart from wood pigeons marching around the lean-to roof giving the impression of somebody trying to break in.

The unseasonable weather is making the birds think it is spring. A walk in the fields behind Chesham yesterday saw several dunnocks singing their hearts out although with the clear sky the absense of red kites was striking. An automatic bird scarer in one of the fields did seem to have kept a lot of birds out of the area although a massive flock of wood pigeons was disturbed from the outskirts of the town and flew across to the woods behind Ley Hill This morning I saw another sign of spring with a suicidal cock pheasant strutting down the middle of the road with the hen watching from the verge.

The wood pigeons seem to be a permanent fixture now. Yesterday morning the pair of them were on the garden fence indulging in their courtship display. I thought that they were supposed to wait until St Valentine's Day. Another effect of global warming? A party of long tailed tits as been in residence for the last couple of days and has been delighting us with frequent visits to the fat feeders. Apart from that it has been a case of the usual suspects with the exception of greenfinches which seem to have abandoned us entirely and brief visits by a song thrush and a pair of house sparrows.

I have spent a lot of time hoping the the small brown job in the middle of the lilac is going to turn out to be a wren but every time a dunnock hops out. So it was quite a nice surprise when getting breakfast ready this morning to hear one at the front of the house. He sat in my rowan tree for a while making the usual racket before fluttering across the path and exploring my neighbours honeysuckle. This afternoon I stepped rather boldly up to the window as the sun was right in line with the feeders to see what seemed like half the birds in Buckinghamshire take flight. I was in time to make out a nuthatch which is one I haven't seen for quite some time. Of course it didn't return.

Living near the top of a hill in the Chilterns flooding isn't much of an issue for me. The present spell of rain is clogging the feeders and means that I tread mud back into the house every time I top them up. It also means that pruning of my quinces keeps getting put off. At this rate it is going to be back to using an old fashioned saw if it isn't going to be safe to use power tools in the garden. On the bird front the goldfinches seem to have moved on and I have seen very few greenfinches this winter. I have had a couple of house sparrows in the garden recently, and they are not the commonest of birds around here and also had a brief visit from a long tailed tit. The squirrels are becoming a serious problem and I think I will be ordering another baffle with my next batch of feed. I am wondering about covering the ground tray as a mesh small enough to keep the squirrels out will also keep out blackbirds, thrushes and pigeons. I did hear a green woodpecker this morning. I have

I went out to top up the feeders today. When I took the top off the ground hopper I found a mouse inside. He must have dined well on the contents because he had great difficulty squeezing out through the feeding port. Not much of note otherwise although I did see a cormorant over the Chess valley between Chesham and Latimer. They aren't exactly rare these days but unusual enough in the area for me to take notice.