www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

What a busy seed tray today. I've seen all the species that you feature (and yes, I agree, Willow tit) except my favourite tit, the crestie! I hope that the butterflies are as good as this in the spring Guy.

Denise

The crested tits move around in groups and I was quite surprised to see that single individual yesterday. He didn't hang around long, perhaps because of all those pushy great tits. But perhaps he'll tell his mates about it and they'll come back en masse.

I'm interested you agree it is a willow tit. Both species fly here so I wasn't sure.

Guy

I've just got home and checked the motion detector pictures, and it seems your favourite tits might become more frequent visitors, Denise. They're certainly funny little chaps!




... and here he (or she) is with a friend...


Guy

I saw a great tit and Nuthatch, but it was only for a minute or so netween seeing them, it was good though.

Guy
Calling it "Guy's Titcam" would get you plenty of new hits I reckon!
Just Google Titcam (if you are brave!)
Roger Harding

oh yea baby, saw the Crested tits!
Denise

We aim to please!! My Dad reckons watching my webcam is probably as good as watching the telly these days!

I'm glad I put the food out because the weather has been bitterly cold recently. The birds seem quite unafraid of me, the dog or the cat. This is what the high-tech apparatus looks like from the outside:



And this is today's walkies (on skis for me) near my house. I think it will be a long time before there are any butterflies on the butterfly cam.



Guy

I've been missing all the action here. I must pay more attention. Do you get longtailed tits at your windowbox? There's at least one gang of a dozen or so individuals that hang around the local woodland here. The ball-onna-stick is one of my favourites.

oh yea baby, saw the Crested tits!

Haven't had a pom-pom lollypop at my seed tray yet, Eccles! They do live locally, at least in summer, so it's possible, but I can't recall seeing one in the last couple of weeks, so I wonder if they go lower down the mountain in winter. I'll keep my eyes open.

A friend of mine regularly gets alpine accentor at his birdtable. That would be a plus!

Guy

Morning Guy,

I am pretty sure that the tit that was feeding just now was in fact a Marsh Tit. Very small black chin detail unlike the Willow tit that has a slightly larger black patch. I cannot see pale wing panels on either bird though. It would help enormously if we could hear them. They do sound quite different. Perhaps you could do that bit for us!

Roll on the spring. I don't like this cold weather and lack of butterflies.
Cheers

Denise

Thanks for that, Denise. The truth is, I first put all the pictures in a file called 'marsh tit', based on the appearance, then when I came home with the dog one day (the same day I took the picture above of the coal tit) I heard a willow tit buzzing in the tree. So I knew that willows were around.

Possibly both species are visiting the seed - but I have yet to see a good wing panel and these are usually quite evident in willow tits here.

When I get time, I'll sit out in the garden and watch with binoculars, but unfortunately I have a job.

Guy

Guy
How enchanting. I have just spent a portion of my lunch hour watching a nuthatch on your bird-table.
How about an improvement suggestion.
I used to have a similar window box table, and I cut a hole in one side,and pushed a drain pipe into it, with the other end in a hedgerow.
A bit of wire netting in the pipe gave footholds for all sorts of rodents, mostly at night.
Scattering some broken nuts and seeds in the pipe got the message to them, and, later, natural depositing of seed etc from bird feeding activity kept the pipe 'baited'.
You may need to rig up a red light as they cannot see this (beware the neighbours don't get the wrong idea though!).
Just a suggestion.
Hamearis

I just spent 5 mins watching a jay, nice to see.

Glad you enjoyed the jay, Dave!

Hamearis, that is an excellent and fascinating suggestion but in view of the cat who lives just below the window ledge I'm wary of taking it up! I don't want to encourage rodents just here, exciting though it would be to watch them. Every day I check the snow around the little tree beyond the window for signs of feathers or blood and so far all is well. But I fear a pipe in the rockery, with rodents scurrying in and out during night hours, would be too much for him to resist.

Incidentally, I have found the infra-red light on my video camera superb for shooting mammals at night. I have lovely film of one of the local badgers guzzling the cat's food.

Guy

Tragically, as if to prove a point, I found this dead wood mouse today, on my front drive. I suspect the cat as culprit, though it might have died in the recent freeze and been exposed with today's thaw.




Guy

How lovely. Long tailed tits feeding this morning at 10.47.
Very busy table today.

Denise

Fantastic! Thanks, Denise.

I've just checked the motion-detector pictures and you are absolutely right:





Guy

the titcam is very busy today !!

i spotted a chaffinch and a blackbird enjoying the plat du jour !!

here's an idea for a competition....

who can get the most birds at once on the titcam ( i have managed 3 so far )


charles

Yes, it's been very active this morning!! I've had a look at the MD pictures and there are a few with three birds in the tray:


(two great tits and a chaffinch)


(great tit, chaffinch and blue tit)

I'm also glad that the l-t-tits and cresties are still visiting. This is a crestie from this morning:



I think we probably have enough competitions on this site but I'd still like to hear from you if you see something interesting. The MD does miss some things - if there is constant movement it only takes a picture every 10 seconds, otherwise my computer would be completely jammed up.

Guy

Bonjour Guy

i saved some pics of the blackbird & the chaffinch if you would like me to
send them to you

Veuillez agréer, Monsieur, l’expression de mes sentiments distingués

Charles