Tuesday, March 05, 2013

Up close and personal with garden birds

Siskin
With the tree seed (alder, birch etc) finally running out, Siskins are flooding into gardens. This male was a 'control' - a bird already ringed somewhere else when we caught it
Female Siskin
Here's a female Siskin - less colourful but still beautiful. See how fine the bill is for getting those seeds
Male Siskin
Another male, the first I caught in my garden
Lesser Redpoll
Here's another tree seed-munching finch, a Lesser Redpoll
Female Goldfinch
and a female Goldfinch
Female Nuthatch
Here's a Nuthatch, the third I've caught in the garden
Female Nuthatch
I 'retrapped' her 15 days later. Here's a close-up of the claws that mean Nuthatches can climb down trees headfirst
Treecreeper
I originally caught this Treecreeper on New Year's Day 2012, so it was good to see it's still going strong
Goldcrest
A Goldcrest, Europe's smallest bird, weighs about 5g (the same as 5 paperclips)
Male Great Spotted Woodpecker
And a male Great Spotted Woodpecker

Early morning

Early morning

photo taken with iPhone 4S