West Ham Online

"I thought you might like this video.



It's a compilation of different birds singing. Beautiful photography. If you expand the 'title' under the video it gives a list of species and the times they pop up in the video. Most of the species are familiar to us in the UK, but there are some 'exotics' (the cranes - wow, what a noise!) It was filmed in Belarus. The guy has a channel you can subscribe to. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it and maybe it'll take your mind off you-know-what for a few blessed minutes."

"What a discourse that would be. In fairness, they go pretty mad for dead ones too."

"Fo, at some point let's talk mealworm husbandry."

"Nurse Ratched 8:13 Wed Apr 21 Exactly the same here, Nurse. Never - or very rarely - have had starlings in the garden but had at least ten in the garden on Sunday going mad for the live mealworms. Hardly a murmuration but it kept me happy."

"It's been a cool, wettish spring and now it's warming up, the place is literally buzzing. Bees in their hordes, bumblebees, every species of butterfly, ladybirds and yesterday something I haven't seen in years: a little green caterpillar just hanging there suspended by an invisible thread lighter than air. These used to be very common in the oak woods around Frensham Ponds when I was growing up though somehow my boys did not share in my enthusiasm when whooped for joy. How spring is wasted on the youth..."

"My garden, and the gustatory delights therein, has been discovered by starlings. The advance reconnoitering parties found much to intrigue and delight. I am braced for invasion and anticipating defeat. I'm no better than Poland. The shame..."

Tomshardware 12:25 Fri Apr 16 Re: For WHO's birders Saw a pair of robins scrapping like mad the other day. Pwopper hard little feckers are Robins they will defend their territory to the death. Nice to hear all the birds singing as in keep the feck out of my garden ! The only bird that drives me crazy is the wood Pigeon what a boring sound they make just wish they would stay in the woods.

Heard and saw my first Cuckoo of the year yesterday.

Saw a pair of robins scrapping like mad the other day.

In Devon btw Devonhammer?

Ok own up.....In 1996 an avid bird watcher spent the whole year hooting at owls and recording their responses unaware that it was one of his neighbours pretending to be an owl and hooting back.

HMJ - where are you?

"Bees are active, and pleasingly still so after the sharp frost And noticed a pair of woodies have taken up nest building in ivy on a fence under a large eucalyptus, which whilst lovely to see has put paid to the aggressive pruning plans of both Oh well such as it is, I hope they evade the attention of the magpies"

"What a striking bird, HMJ."

My hooded orioles are back as they are every year at this time...

My hooded orioles are back as they are every year at this time...

Here is a clip of a hooded crow cockblocking a tom cat. Made me guffaw. https://youtu.be/sKh63xVFllM

"Just seen my first swallows and house martins of the season - Wye Valley. Must have been at least 30 of them, all flying around above a sewage works near the river. Plenty of bugs for them there I suppose. Hope the weather warms up for them soon."

"Saw a bumblebee yesterday, another couple of skylarks and a redstart today."

"This question might have been asked on here before, but what's happened to ladybirds? Saw one in my garden today but it's a long time since noticing one before. Seemed to be far more commonplace when I was a kid. Ditto caterpillars now I come to think of it. And those little red dot things..."

"had one flower from one geranium last all winter, red one. I think things like that are brilliant. Geraniums have now become my second favourite flower after cornflowers."

"The Jackdaws have decided to nest in my disused chimney again at last. There was a very vocal fight between three of them to take posession. Watching them fledge last year was such a pleasure and I hope that they make it that far again. It is quite fun as there is an air brick at the back of the living room that ventilates the chimney and I can here them. They also have to put up with my music taste, guitar, synth and sax playing. Not sure that is a fair deal but it worked last yearfor us all."

gph 2:52 Sun Mar 21 Drakes are far from the comical characters they appear to be. I remember the gay nechrophiliac duck story. Also look carefully at the male/female Mallard ratio as the years ticks on into Autumn. That tells its own story.

"I ran over a squirrel with my bike. I was crawling along in my car when a drake (probably too busy contemplating his next rape*) stepped out in front of me. Probably didn't even go under the wheel (no blood left on it when I got home), just knocked over and got up again. *see the literature on duck sex."

I've been divebombed by wrens before now that had a nest inside a shed above the door.

"York University doesn't have a problem with ducks, however, since you murdered them all with your bicycle."