Bird of the day
- Thread starter codyarrow
- Start date
Overmiwadrers
Well-known member
Hardrar
Well-known member
Common as they are, stunning little birds close up- never stop moving, visually about at their best just now.
And a nice Coal Tit. An hour or two later and the nuts have gone down over 2 inches- doing a feeder full a day!
And a nice Coal Tit. An hour or two later and the nuts have gone down over 2 inches- doing a feeder full a day!
Cap'n Fishy
Well-known member
Here's a set of the 4 common tits...
Blue...
Great...
Coal...
Long-tailed...
Years ago, I needed to go to the countryside to see LTTs, but they are now one of the most common urban birds hereabouts. Far more of them than coalies.
Only realised not that long ago that when WC Fields was saying "My little chickadee..." he was referring to the American species that is almost identical to our coal-tit.
Col
Blue...
Great...
Coal...
Long-tailed...
Years ago, I needed to go to the countryside to see LTTs, but they are now one of the most common urban birds hereabouts. Far more of them than coalies.
Only realised not that long ago that when WC Fields was saying "My little chickadee..." he was referring to the American species that is almost identical to our coal-tit.
Col
Hardrar
Well-known member
Lovely pics, thanks for putting them up. We get plenty of Ltt, but not seen any today. Loads of migrant blackies today though.
Cap'n Fishy
Well-known member
They come up the Forth Estuary about as far as the bridges, as do the other auks - guillemots and razorbills. A lot of locals don't realise they are that close to us. These were all taken miles further upstream from where I am...
Guillemot...
Razorbills...
Puffin...
There is a colony of fulmars nest underneath the Forth Rail Bridge...
Col
Guillemot...
Razorbills...
Puffin...
There is a colony of fulmars nest underneath the Forth Rail Bridge...
Col
Hardrar
Well-known member
One of the hardest birds to get a good shot of on a dull day- never stop moving! Regular in our garden and breed in our trees.
Cap'n Fishy
Well-known member
Yep - they are very good at moving round the tree so they are out of sight. As you move round to bring them back into view, they move further round... and again and again... 
Only managed a couple of shots of them...
Col
Only managed a couple of shots of them...
Col
Cap'n Fishy
Well-known member
Went along to the Edinburgh Botanic Gardens today - it's within range for taking local exercise. I had a look for the kingfisher that is there just now - my mate got a really good shot of it on Monday.
Started at the Chinese pond – largely frozen, with a few clear patches. No sign of KF. Went to the big pond – west end. No sign there. Went on round and stood on the lower down bridge of the stream flowing into the pond… and the KF flew straight up past me!!
I tried to work my way up the stream. Got to the first good access point and stood there for a bit, looking up and down. No sign of him. Then there was a splosh! – and it was him, right in front of me! He must have been on a branch on the tree across from me, which is quite densely covered in lichens, so I wasn’t seeing him until he dived. But when he came up from his dive, he didn’t go back to where he had been (probably because I was so close to him) – he flew further up towards the rock garden at the top of the stream. There isn’t much for him to perch on up there, but I went on up. The one-way system they have in place for covid makes you go out and wide and round to get up, so you are away from the stream as you go. When I got up to the top, there was a woman with a baby in a pushchair there. She asked me if I was looking for the kingfisher. ‘Yes’, says I. ‘He was here a few minutes ago’, she says – ‘flew back down though’. Aargh! 
Well, I searched and searched up and down between the pond and the rock garden after that. Never got another look at it! (Good exercise, though!)
I kept hearing long-tailed tits, but not seeing the wee b*ggers. So, my grand total for the day was a fleeting chance at a male bullfinch. Needed a heavy crop and it was high ISO (4000) or nothing, given the light levels in the shaded area he was in. Still, it was a cracking day to be out - cold and crisp and sunny and still.
Hopefully get a chance at the kingfisher next time....
Col
Started at the Chinese pond – largely frozen, with a few clear patches. No sign of KF. Went to the big pond – west end. No sign there. Went on round and stood on the lower down bridge of the stream flowing into the pond… and the KF flew straight up past me!!
I tried to work my way up the stream. Got to the first good access point and stood there for a bit, looking up and down. No sign of him. Then there was a splosh! – and it was him, right in front of me! He must have been on a branch on the tree across from me, which is quite densely covered in lichens, so I wasn’t seeing him until he dived. But when he came up from his dive, he didn’t go back to where he had been (probably because I was so close to him) – he flew further up towards the rock garden at the top of the stream. There isn’t much for him to perch on up there, but I went on up. The one-way system they have in place for covid makes you go out and wide and round to get up, so you are away from the stream as you go. When I got up to the top, there was a woman with a baby in a pushchair there. She asked me if I was looking for the kingfisher. ‘Yes’, says I. ‘He was here a few minutes ago’, she says – ‘flew back down though’. Aargh! Well, I searched and searched up and down between the pond and the rock garden after that. Never got another look at it!
(Good exercise, though!)I kept hearing long-tailed tits, but not seeing the wee b*ggers. So, my grand total for the day was a fleeting chance at a male bullfinch. Needed a heavy crop and it was high ISO (4000) or nothing, given the light levels in the shaded area he was in. Still, it was a cracking day to be out - cold and crisp and sunny and still.
Hopefully get a chance at the kingfisher next time....
Col
Hardrar
Well-known member
That’s a great shot, looks more like a Siberian bullfinch, breast is very red and looks a bit bigger?
Cap'n Fishy
Well-known member
Cheers - I think it is just a regular Edinburgh bullfinch. Looks like all the others we get around here!
Col
Paul_B
Well-known member
I've only ever seen them at Simonstone and that was a long time before Jeremy Clarkson
