Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

Englishangel ---------

Re your "Pacific" Son---------Being a Gentleman, sometimes has dis-advantages.

But I can understand --- You brought him up !

(Edited)--I have just thought that this sounds like a Criticism ---It was intended as a Compliment !!

I trust all you animal lovers are keeping the birds fed !

We've even had the pair of Red-Kites, who are resident on Boxhill hunting the pigeons on our estate in this weather.

Funny you should say that, JR! I've ventured into my garden not many times these last four days, but each time it was to throw food down (onto the snow) for the birds. Mealworms, supreme seed mix, suet covered sunflower seeds, breadcrumbs. I have a new visitor which I can't identify! A blackbird continually chases it away. Its about blackbird size, but the body (back and breast) is grey, the wings are brown, and the throat is a mottled brown (bit like a thrush, but only a patch at the throat). Any ideas? I've scoured the RSPB website and a bird identifying book which is my bible, but so far can only assume that it is some sort of genetic variant of the blackbird.
I'd be glad if there is anyone out there who is more proficient than I in identifying wild birds....

Is it a female blackbird?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/john-bennett/4228927661/

Have had 2 hedgehogs coming nightly for food since the autumn, and we put cat food out for them. Would have made a lovely pic-but light not right to take photo - one of our 2cats sat watching nearby while the hedgehogs ate. And I always thought they hibernated in the winter especially in these exceptional low temps.

fra828 wrote:Have had 2 hedgehogs coming nightly for food since the autumn, and we put cat food out for them. Would have made a lovely pic-but light not right to take photo - one of our 2cats sat watching nearby while the hedgehogs ate. And I always thought they hibernated in the winter especially in these exceptional low temps.

They SHOULD be hibernating by now, especially in this weather.

It maybe because they haven't found somewhere suitable. Unless someone provides suitable hibernating accomodation, I can't see them surviving the winter.

kerrensimmonds wrote:Funny you should say that, JR! I have a new visitor which I can't identify! A blackbird continually chases it away. Its about blackbird size, but the body (back and breast) is grey, the wings are brown, and the throat is a mottled brown (bit like a thrush, but only a patch at the throat). Any ideas?.

It sounds like a fieldfare, Kerren. We've had a whole flock of them for the last few days, competing with the blackbirds for our firethorn berries. Fieldfares are winter visitors, like the redwings which came too - these look like songthrushes but with a flash of robin-red under the wing.

J.R. wrote:I trust all you animal lovers are keeping the birds fed !

Of course! And watered too, thawing the bowls etc. with kettles of hot water. Blackbirds seem to love currants, and we've put pieces of apple & pear out for them too. Dried mealworms weren't our robin's favourite food when he was feeding his family in the nestbox in our garden - he would only take live ones for his young - but he and the smaller birds are tucking in now! And tiny bits of Sainsbury's bogof cheddar go down well too!

Would Tesco cheddar do?

Fieldfare is a possibility, thank you Annie. I will look out for the distinguishing features. And what a good idea to put out bits of cheese! I can do that easily.....though I regret that I haven't done anything about the frozen water bowls, partly because I reckoned the birds could 'drink' the otherwise unadulterated snow. Will sort something out tomorrow, and also will keep an eye out for the distinguishing features of the fieldfare.

englishangel wrote:Would Tesco cheddar do?

kerrensimmonds wrote:Fieldfare is a possibility, thank you Annie. I will look out for the distinguishing features. And what a good idea to put out bits of cheese! I can do that easily.....though I regret that I haven't done anything about the frozen water bowls, partly because I reckoned the birds could 'drink' the otherwise unadulterated snow. Will sort something out tomorrow, and also will keep an eye out for the distinguishing features of the fieldfare.

Kerren, the fieldfares we had were not quite as spotted as those on the RSPB page, but the grey was very distinctive, as was the stripe around the eye. Luckily we've got a small pair of binoculars, which although our garden isn't big, are a great help to our elderly eyes in getting a positive id on the more unusual visitors!

Thanks Annie...yes, the mottled thrush-like markings were more of a bib than a breast, so I will look out for the eye markings. I have a pair of small, not very superior, binoculars on my bedroom windowsill so I will employ them pdq in daylight tomorrow.
Thanks again for your guidance.

Too slippery to go into garden, but I have been putting mealworms on the wall outside the kitchen door. (Wilkinsons sell mealworms at about half the price in the local petshop)

Slightly Off Topic -- But-----

My Younger Son, when aged about 15 in Salisbury, told me he could cathch Trout on Woolworths "Plastic" cheese.

I pooh-poohed the idea, and so he demonstated, where the Avon and Nadder meet, witha piece about 1cm cubed -----
No float, no lead ----

First Cast !!!!

He told me he sold them to the Chinese Restaurant for 5/- a time, and spent it on cigarrettes !!!!

I don't know where he gets it from (From where, Englishangel !)

.... or even whence!!

The only time I ever went fishing we somehow forgot the bait, so we used tinned spaghetti to catch some small fish and then used that as bait and caught a small pike. Once home we cooked it and found it tasted revolting, so we fed it to next door's dog.