Chiltern Birder

We get the occasional nuthatch in the garden during the winter but typically these are very brief visits to take a little fat from the starling feeder. For the last two days, however, we have had not one but two individuals making repeated visits to take sunflower hearts. It is striking that they never share the feeder, one may perch nearby but will wait for the other to finish before occupying one of the ports. A little entertainment was provided yesterday morning by a rather aggressive robin who wouldn't let any of the tits perch on the fat ball feeder. I didn't see him attempt to use it himself but he stood guard on the squirrel baffle ready to attack any blue tit that did. A solitary goldfinch turned up yesterday and there was a pair on the feeder this morning. If they follow the practice of previous years I suspect that we will have serious numbers turning up in the next day or so. The long tailed tits haven't returned but the coal tit is a regular and a blackbir

With sunflower hearts and a fat ball feeder in the back garden and a fat bar in the front the tits have been turning up in numbers. Mainly blues but we have also had the occasional great and a single coal tit. At lunchtime today I looked out to see the fat ball feeder absolutely covered with long tailed tits. After a while the flock moved on up the lane taking a toll from the feeder in the front garden on their way. So far we have had no finches but the resident robins are in evidence as well as the occasional wood pigeon and blackbird.

After seeing activity in the front garden I put a fat bar in the feeder. With visits from blue tits, great tits and a robin it was eaten in less than a week. The backgarden still seems quiet but I have put out fat balls and sunflower hearts so, hopefully, we may see some action soon. I put out some raisins last week and it was a couple of days before they were taken. I kept a camera trap on them the whole time and the only visitor was a wood pigeon and a field mouse until a badger finally turned up. Once the badger had cleaned up a field mouse came back for the leavings.