John, maybe it's trying to swim but only has one leg

had a funny one at penny today,from horrocks hide was counting the pochard,and noticed a manic tufted duck behind them,it was spinning like a topspin:: for an hour none stop,it was making me and john lyons dizzy just lookin at it,i though it was cought some way,fishing line etc,but another duck fired out of the reeds,obviously having had enough of this wirling dirvish!!it swam off about 20 yards further on as though there was nowt wrong with itthen it started spinning again in the opposite direction Anyone else seen this nutter

Geoff Hargreaves wrote:

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I,ve got a 30ft rowan tree in the garden that has produced a very abundant crop of berries this year ,and I,d like to fence it of till waxwing season but it seems a daunting task,meanwhile the local starlings are having a bean feast and have stripped the the top 3rd of the berries leaving the ground covered in rejects and mishaps.It,s not happened in the last 15 years and I just find it interesting.

cheers geoff

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Geoff, as it happens I was watching some young starlings eating (or more like not-eating) berries the other day (in St Helens (out of county )) and they seemed to drop about 90% of them on the floor! The starlings where in the tree and plucking the berries off, but while they then went on to eat some of them, most of them just fell out of their bill/beak/whatever. It seemed to me like they were dropping them out of clumsiness, but maybe there's some other reason, but either way what a waste! I too was thinking of the poor hungry waxwings

I,ve got a 30ft rowan tree in the garden that has produced a very abundant crop of berries this year ,and I,d like to fence it of till waxwing season but it seems a daunting task,meanwhile the local starlings are having a bean feast and have stripped the the top 3rd of the berries leaving the ground covered in rejects and mishaps.It,s not happened in the last 15 years and I just find it interesting.

cheers geoff

I have just been watching 3 Jay's(Adult and 2 juvs) on the path outside my house. The adult was "anting" (spreading its tail and wings out on the ground) and eating any insects that had climbed aboard!

The adult bird then started to lie almost flat infront of the juvs and then jumped up and pecked at them until they copied. The adult then even started to pick off any insects they had picked up. Eventually, the juvs got the idea and started to do it for themselves.

They continued doing this for 20 minutes until they were flushed by a dog walker.

I went out and had a look in the area where the Jays were, and it was teeming with ants!

So I presume that the "anting" behaviour has to be learnt as opposed to a natural instinct?

As I walked passed the car park behind Swinton Town Hall this afternoon I watched one of a pair of Crows pick up a small stone from the grass and then while flying up over the car park it dropped it from about 50`. The Crow repeated this twice and it also tried to pick up a larger piece of stone but could not get its beak around it to lift it up.

I would be interested to find out if the bird repeats this little trick when the car park is full or when Labour MP for Salford Hazel Blears puts in an appearance

Judith Smith wrote:

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This is quite well-known, John. I think it's to aid digestion of nasty fish bones, scales etc in tiny tummies! I saved your shot of it.

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cheers judith,ive seen em eating tiny feathers but that was quite a size ,or was it just a tiny chick,that made the feather look big

buzzard strikes again!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/8158022.stm?lsf
twice in a week!

This is quite well-known, John. I think it's to aid digestion of nasty fish bones, scales etc in tiny tummies! I saved your shot of it.

saw something today ,i don't remember seeing before,a adult great crested feedingits newly hatched chick with 6 inch feathers ,moulted from the ducksdon't think they would be very appertising

buzzard attacks jogger, thats gotta hurt!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/8156734.stm

I had heard that Ringed Plovers, in common with other Plovers when sensing a threat to their nest or chicks feign a broken wing to lead potential predators away. Saw this at Gronant yesterday when walking along the beach below the shingle - didn't realise that we had come a little close to a chick and the adult did the broken wing routine - an interesting ploy.

They were in Levenshulme High School grounds (M19 1FS). I even managed to get a couple of the pupils interested to watch them for a few minutes before they went home. They had never heard of jays! They did know what snails were and they knew what magpies were, so at least we had a starting point.

That's very interesting behaviour, Debs - what was the location?

Was watching 3 jays at work yesterday collecting snails, flying up into a tree and dropping them to crack their shells before eating them.

Yes, but it's unusual. I think it was Hindley Green pond (not Westlake) where this happened, like you I was feeding cyggies. Years ago though.

The other day, while throwing bread to Black-headed Gulls (was supposed to be feeding cygnets but they were too busy sleeping), a Common Tern scooped up a piece of bread from the water, then fed it to it's young. Has anyone else ever witnessed a tern "coming to bread"?

Strange one tonight at Virridor - a small passerine (looked finch like) chasing a swift for a good few hundred yards - low down, over tree tops everywhere. It was literally touching the swift's tail. Now, I cant think of one single reason why anything other than a predator would be chasing a swift, let alone a bird like a finch spp which must have expended a serious amount of energy on a pretty fruitless excercise.

Rob Thorpe wrote:

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Yesterday I was watching a Coot (obviously i have nothing better to do with my time) on the canal at the Wigan Flashes. The Coot was swimming in the water, as they do, but it was plucking and eating Bramble leaves from the canal bank. It would reach up and pluck a whole leaf from the Bramble, then eat it. Is this normal behaviour?

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If its owt like our fruit bushes at the moment,it would be gettin about 3000 aphids per leafbetter than picken em off one at a timeclever coot

i saw a coot eating vegetation as well. dogs eat grass so they can regurgitate food - maybe this has something to do with that?

Yesterday I was watching a Coot (obviously i have nothing better to do with my time) on the canal at the Wigan Flashes. The Coot was swimming in the water, as they do, but it was plucking and eating Bramble leaves from the canal bank. It would reach up and pluck a whole leaf from the Bramble, then eat it. Is this normal behaviour?

Dave Tennant wrote:

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Male whitethroat displaying [ flying up to about 12 feet and then swooping all the time chattering away,repeated several times ].old railway line amberswood 6am .Just looked it up in my collins field guide to birds of britain and europe and it describes it as a " brief dancing song flight ".made my day that

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Simon Barnes once wrote in his Saturday column in The Times that these singing male Whitethroats were the "boy-racers" of the bird-world. His analogy was that their impressive displays must, as well as impressing us humans, bring them to the attention of Sparrowhawks, etc. Their pre-occupation with attracting willing young females takes precedence over any thoughts to the obvious risks.

Male whitethroat displaying [ flying up to about 12 feet and then swooping all the time chattering away,repeated several times ].old railway line amberswood 6am .Just looked it up in my collins field guide to birds of britain and europe and it describes it as a " brief dancing song flight ".made my day that

Judith Smith wrote:

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We must hope and pray LBBs don't take to nesting at Horrocks or they will decimate the tern and BH gull chicks. But from their behaviour over the last few years, there and in the town centre, it's looking more and more likely. They are already nesting at Belmont.

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There's been a pair hanging around on the islands on Horrocks' for sometime now, and they are still loafing in good numbers on Scotman's, although i do believe they can travel some distance from a breeding colony to feed.

They behave like that when they see a Mink i.e. a potential predator. We must hope and pray LBBs don't take to nesting at Horrocks or they will decimate the tern and BH gull chicks. But from their behaviour over the last few years, there and in the town centre, it's looking more and more likely. They are already nesting at Belmont.

At Scotman's Flash on friday there were 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls having a bit of a scuffle in the water. For some reason, all the Black-headed Gulls that were present took to the air and formed a flock which hovered over the fighting LBB Gulls. Not sure what the BH Gulls were hoping to acheive from this, maybe they were waiting to devour the loser???

Here,s a blast from the past,I watched a crow gathering nesting material this afternoon,it had found a piece of twine in a laybye and made a very determind effort to extract it from the bush,after much pulling the twine was freed and then folded into a beakable bunch which was then transported to the nest site (unknown) a very interesting 10 minutes.


cheers geoff

mobbing swallows,i,ve been watching some swallows on a private farm site as and when i can and have seen them 'mob' kestrel ,magpie,pheasant, farm ducks in fact anything (including me) that comes into their air space that they don,t like.It seems unlikley that any contact ever occurs, but their just as defensive of their 'patch' as any parent.conversley a pair of swallows nesting on the irwell would let me get within six foot before moving off.

cheers geoff

Pennington Flash on Saturday - 10-15 GBB Gulls on the end of the spit, including 4-5 immatures. One of the immatures was apparently enjoying itself trying to 'catch' snowflakes in the blizzard that covered the place for about 20 mins. The bird was constantly snapping at the flakes as they blew past it.

Well, I thought it was interesting!!

pete,just checked the listings she,s had me over again,watching repeats on sky+ was her stern reply.

cheers geoff

They don't broadcast 'Corri' on Sundays anymore Geoff

-- Edited by Pete Hines at 23:33, 2008-01-27

on a brief visit to the three sisters feeding station friday a.m. i was surprised to watch a g s pecker
harrass a jay by flying straight at it with claws out (coot style) and the jay backed down to skulk in the undergrowth,? in that strange world of 'who would beat who' heron vs bittern or swallow vs
swift .yes it,s dark and she,s watching corri

cheers geoff

In the garden this week i watched a Blackbird feeding on the fat cakes(berry flavoured) in the feeder. Never seen Blackbirds do this in my garden. Perched on a branch next to feeder and pecked away. Today i had a Mistle Thrush doing the same thing !! I had just put new fat cakes in the feeders and put what was left of the old ones on the bird table. Starlings were feeding on the table when the Thrush came in but was chased off by the much smaller Starlings. After 2 or 3 attempts to get the food on the table the Thrush landed in the tree right next to the berry flavoured cake and took a peck. It fed quiet happily and came back several times. There is a lot off wind blown apples on the floor which the Thrushes usually feed on. I've never seen this in my garden before. There's always fat cake on offer but never seen the thrushes show an interest. I've only recently started buying different flavoured ones, berry, apple, nut and insect.
Is it possible the Thrushes could smell the berry flavour? all the blocks are the same size and shape although the berry ones are a reddy colour.

Ian Woosey wrote:

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Inspired by the `Crow chasing Wagtail` post, how about a thread devoted entirely to behaviour (witnessed in the county, of course) ?

Yesterday at Rumworth I was watching two Stonechats ranging along low bushes and a fence, dropping down and flitting up, as they do. Behind them was a large-ish Hawthorn tree. Three Fieldfares came in and landed in this tree and immediately the male Stonechat jumped into the tree, onto a branch close to the Fieldfares. It was watching them intently, whilst they had started feeding. Then after a minute or two the Stonechat lunged straight for the nearest Fieldfare causing all three to take flight. It then dropped back down into the small bush and continued fidgeting about. Was he protecting his Mrs or just causing mischief ? I`ve never seen a Stonechat mob anything before. I`ve seen them shooing Meadow Pips away from their fence perches, but no `aggression` as such.

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Ian,Isnt it known as defending a territory?

I saw the male Stonechat being aggressive to a reed bunting, could suggest there going to hang around a while, what is it with chats staying a while at Rumworth.

Inspired by the `Crow chasing Wagtail` post, how about a thread devoted entirely to behaviour (witnessed in the county, of course) ? Yesterday at Rumworth I was watching two Stonechats ranging along low bushes and a fence, dropping down and flitting up, as they do. Behind them was a large-ish Hawthorn tree. Three Fieldfares came in and landed in this tree and immediately the male Stonechat jumped into the tree, onto a branch close to the Fieldfares. It was watching them intently, whilst they had started feeding. Then after a minute or two the Stonechat lunged straight for the nearest Fieldfare causing all three to take flight. It then dropped back down into the small bush and continued fidgeting about. Was he protecting his Mrs or just causing mischief ? I`ve never seen a Stonechat mob anything before. I`ve seen them shooing Meadow Pips away from their fence perches, but no `aggression` as such.